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Train Today, Triumph Tomorrow

I recently received an email with the subject line “Train Today, Triumph Tomorrow”.   The email which happened  to be attempting to persuade me to purchase soccer gear, shoes and apparel was full of nice catchy images like this:

traintoday

and this:

easy

 

Although it did not inspire me to buy shoes, it did inspire me to capture the images and share them with you. Those two slogans, “Train today to triumph tomorrow” and “Train Hard, Win Easy” can be applied to our daily walks as well.  They call to the need to prepare our physical bodies.  I remind you to prepare your spirit mind.  Each day, progressing a little big more down the path, growing and becoming more and more prepare for whatever spiritual battles lie in front of you.  That doesn’t mean we will be perfect, although my dad always said ‘perfect practice makes perfect’, a line he borrowed from some basketball coach name Lehman, I think.  Anyway, lets do it.  Train today, so we will triumph tomorrow!

12 So brothers and sisters, since God has shown us great mercy, I beg you to offer your lives as a living sacrifice to him. Your offering must be only for God and pleasing to him, which is the spiritual way for you to worship. 2 Do not be shaped by this world; instead be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you; you will know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.  Romans 12:1-2 (NCV)

 

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Joyful Friday

My site had a database issue this morning and I so I redirected some of my valuable morning time to fixing that issue, instead of writing down the great thoughts in my head.  Oh well, I’ll save those for next week and you can enjoy this little gem the comes out of one of my favorite chapters which belongs to one of my favorite Bible books.  It’s a good one.

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 NIV

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Trapped

I have had a pesky raccoon around the house and in the garage, so I thought it would be good to relocate him to a location that would be removed from my location!  ( ie, make him another persons’ problem!  )

Anyway, I set out the trap Sunday night, and caught my first victim on Monday – my own cat.  geesh!

Last night, I change the bait, and reset the trap, with in the hour I had another victim.  This time a big ugly opossum.   I released the little guy and off he waddled – appearing to have his head down and his tail between his legs like  he was saying “I am so stupid, I will never do that again.!”

Well, I reset the trap, and went off to bed.   During the night I could hear something thrashing around in the cage and so I threw back the covers and went to investigate.

Guess who was there?

AGAIN!

No, not the cat, the ‘possum.  This time he tried to play dead. I guess he was thinking I would not be able to see him lying there paying the penalty for his greed, for fulfilling his desire for oranges and peanut butter.

Caught again, in the same trap, going after the same thing.

Of course, at the time, I had a hearty laugh, until I got ready to write this morning.  Then I thought about the parallel to our own lives.   How many times do we go back, over and over to the same trap that doesn’t really produce the reward we had anticipated.  We end up wallowing all night in our own mess, just like my little buddy in the back yard.

Luckily, we are not alone in the trap and we have a way out.

21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! Romans 7

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Sleepy Monday

This is the day of the year that ranks the lowest of my list of days – the Monday after the ridiculous lets steal an hour of sleep from people who don’t get enough sleep night.  Argh!!!  Sort of reminds me of this, from this day 2 years ago!

I just hope I can say today is ‘it was all I hoped it would be!’

Speaking of hope, let’s not forget this as we go out on this tired and lonesome Monday

5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:5

and

Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  Romans 8:23-25

 

And remember, that unless, the sky opens and the trumpets sound today, our hope will still be with us on Monday night. As ferocious as this day of the week is, it can’t tear that away from us!

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Oats for Friday

As we continue moving through National Oatmeal Month, we have stumbled upon another Friday, one that evidently will be topped off with Burns Night celebrations.  A night where people supposedly remember the author of the good old January favorite “Auld Lang Syne”!

Anyway, here’s a little comfort verse, one that might be a little oatmeal for your spirit!

38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 8:38-39 New Living Translation (NLT)

 

Happy Burns Night!