Quotes from Max Lucado

But God dances amidst the common.

But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don't be foolish or naive. But don't despair either. With God's help you will get through this.

Joseph's story just parted company with the volumes of self-help books and all the secret-to-success formulas that direct the struggler to an inner power (dig deeper). Joseph's story points elsewhere (look higher).

We long for the call to come home. But until He calls, we wait.... And how do we wait? With patient eagerness. (See rom. 8:25,23) Patient eagerness. Not so eager as to lose our patience, and not so patient as to lose our eagerness. ...we grow so patient we sleep!... ... Or we are so eager we demand. We demand in this world what only the next world can give. No sickness. No suffering. No struggle.

You can't see the warden. You can't see the locks. But you can see the prisoners. You can see them as they sit on their bunks and bemoan their fate. They want to live, but they can't because they are doomed to do what they most want to avoid—they will die. Imagine Jesus seeing us in our "prisons" of fear:

You've already learned, haven't you, that a promise made is not always a promise kept? Just because someone is called your dad, that doesn't mean he will act like your dad. Even though they said "yes" on the altar, they may say "no" in the marriage.

Meditation PRAYER OF SAINT PATRICK I arise today Through the strength of heaven; Light of the sun, Splendor of fire, Speed of lightning, Swiftness of the wind, Depth of the sea, Stability of the earth, Firmness of the rock. I arise today Through God's strength to pilot me; God's might to uphold me, God's wisdom to guide me, I arise today Through the mighty strength Of the Lord of creation.1

521It does little good to make the trip and miss the journey!

You grow weary of unrest. You're ready to be done with sleepless nights. You long to be "anxious for nothing." You long for the fruit of the Spirit. But how do you bear this fruit? Try harder? No, hang tighter. Our assignment is not fruitfulness but faithfulness. The secret to fruit bearing and anxiety-free living is less about doing and more about abiding.

The hand squeezing the handle was not a Roman infantryman. The force behind the hammer was not an angry mob. The verdict behind the death was not decided by jealous Jews. Jesus himself chose the nails.

what you have in Christ is greater than anything you don't have in life. You have God, who is crazy about you, and the forces of heaven to monitor and protect you. You have the living presence of Jesus within you. In Christ you have everything

You will never go where God is not.

faith: faith is the deeply held belief that God will keep his promises

La oración no es un privilegio para el piadoso, ni tampoco el arte de unos pocos escogidos. La oración es simplemente una conversación sincera entre Dios y su hijo. Mi amigo, él quiere hablar contigo. Aun ahora, mientras lees estas palabras, él toca a la puerta. Ábrela. Dale la bienvenida. Y que comience la conversación.

Had any visits from this fellow lately? If you find yourself going to church in order to be saved and not because you are saved, then you've been listening to him. If you find yourself doubting God could forgive you again for that, you've been sold some snake oil. If you are more cynical about Christians than sincere about Christ, then guess who came to dinner?

God's unrivaled goodness undergirds everything else we can say about prayer. If he is like us, only slightly stronger, then why pray? If he grows weary, then why pray? If he has limitations, questions, and hesitations, then you might as well pray to the Wizard of Oz. However, if God is at once Father and Creator, holy—unlike us—and high above us, then we at any point are only a prayer away from help.

Cuando oiga voces a mi alrededor que repitan que no estoy a la altura o no soy lo suficiente bueno, ayúdame a escuchar tu verdad en mi corazón y dame fuerzas.

There is something cold about a God who cannot relate to what you and I feel.

Read Psalm 32:3–4 again. Can you relate? Are your anxiety and fear taking a toll on you physically? Explain.

A stronghold is a false premise that denies God's promise. It "sets itself up against the knowledge of God" (v. 5 NIV). It seeks to eclipse our discovery of God. It attempts to magnify the problem and minimize God's ability to solve it. Does

But only one with a gut full of faith can live a sermon on a mountain of pain.

Worship is when you're aware that what you've been given is far greater than what you can give. Worship is the awareness that were it not for his touch, you'd still be hobbling and hurting, bitter and broken. Worship is the half-glazed expression on the parched face of a desert pilgrim as he discovers that the oasis is not a mirage.

Mientras más nos enfocamos allá arriba, más inspiración tenemos acá abajo.

You and I are commanded—not urged, commanded—to keep no list of wrongs.