Quotes from Max Lucado

Embrace your poverty. We're all equally broke and blessed. "People come into this world with nothing, and when they die they leave with nothing" (Eccles. 5:15 NCV).

God intended for everyone to be able to read and understand his Word. The

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you" (Isa. 43:2 NIV). You may be facing the perfect storm, but Jesus offers the perfect peace.

Don't see your struggle as an interruption to life but as preparation for life. No one said the road would be easy or painless. But God will use your mess for something good. "This trouble you're in isn't punishment; it's training, the normal experience of children. . . . God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God's holy best" (Hebrews 12:8, 10 MSG).

Jesus' love does not depend upon what we do for him. Not at all. In the eyes of the King, you have value simply because you are. You don't have to look nice or perform well. Your value is inborn. Period.

In the treatment of anxiety, a proper understanding of sovereignty is huge. Anxiety is often the consequence of perceived chaos.

Then Jesus took the loaves of bread, thanked God for them, and gave them to the people … He did the same with the fish, giving as much as the people wanted. John 6:11

If we sense we are victims of unseen, turbulent, random forces, we are troubled.

I have never been more or less saved than the moment I was first saved. Not one bad deed has deducted from my salvation. No good deed, if there are any, has enhanced it. My salvation has nothing to do with my work and everything to do with the finished work of Christ on the cross.

But the greatest activity of life is well within your dominion. You can choose what you think about.

When God gets in the middle of life, evil becomes good.

You are valuable because you exist. Not because of what you do or what you have done - but simply because you are.

Jesus was happy and wants us to be the same.

Peace is within reach, not for lack of problems, but because of the presence of a sovereign Lord. Rather than rehearse the chaos of the world, rejoice in the Lord's sovereignty, as Paul did.

Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

When the angels announced the arrival of the Messiah, they proclaimed "good news of a great joy" (Luke 2:10 RSV), not "bad news of a great duty.

Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes" (Matt. 6:34 MSG). That

Here is the big difference between victory in Christ and victory in the world: A victor in the world rejoices over something he did. But the believer rejoices over who he is—a child of God, a forgiven sinner, an heir of eternity.

Here is a scene that happens in Brazil thousands of times each day: It's early morning. Time for young Marcos to leave for school. As he gathers his books and heads for the door, he stops by his father's chair. He looks into his father's face. "Benção, Pai?" (Blessing, Father?) Marcos asks. The father raises his hand. "Deus te abençoe, meu filho" (God bless you, my son), he says.

God doesn't manufacture pain, but he certainly puts it to use.

Maybe, if you had your way, your day would never end. Every moment demands to be savored. You resist sleep as long as possible because you love being awake so much. If you are like that, congratulations. If not, welcome to the majority.

The supreme force in salvation is God's grace. Not our works. Not our talents. Not our feelings. Not our strength. Salvation is God's sudden

Not everyone is bound for a life of substance abuse and addiction—but the moment you think you're untouchable is the moment you're most likely headed for trouble. If you're going to be obsessed with something, make God your choice. That's a habit worth keeping.

The formula is simple: Perceived control creates calm. Lack of control gives birth to fear.