The Encouragement Blog

Inmate Family Encouragement

Cover image for “The Upside of Guilt”

The Upside of Guilt

Comic actor Dennis Miller said in one famous rant, “Guilt is simply God’s way of letting you know that you are having too good a time.” There is truth in that statement, but God has higher uses for guilt in our lives. God places the feelings of guilt in our moral consciousness for good purposes. All of us have done
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Feb 22 2016
Cover image for “Our Monthly Virtue = Patience”

Our Monthly Virtue = Patience

As we unpack what Henry Drummond wrote in his essay on Love entitled; The Greatest Thing in the World, we begin with Patience. Other words that describe Patience are: long-suffering, perseverance, tolerance and persistence. It is probably fair to assume that Patience is the least popular of all the virtues Paul lists in 1 Corinthians 13, the treatise on Love.
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Feb 15 2016
Cover image for “Our Monthly Virtue = LOVE”

Our Monthly Virtue = LOVE

Henry Drummond, 1851-1897, lived in Scotland and was known for his clear thinking theology and concise arguments in favor of the Gospel. His best-known essay is called The Greatest Thing in the World. This classic, short essay unpacks 1 Corinthians 13, perhaps the most famous chapter in the entire Bible. This chapter explores and dissects love. Love, is first contrasted
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Jan 29 2016
Cover image for “Avoid the Devil’s Left Hook”

Avoid the Devil’s Left Hook

Great fighters have destructive one-two punches—a right cross and a left hook. People who follow boxing know it’s the left hook that’s usually the knockout punch. Satan has a deadly left hook too. The reason many of us get discouraged and want to give up on ourselves and God is because we allow the devil to knock us out. Here’s
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Jan 25 2016
Cover image for “Temptation…”

Temptation…

Adjusting our attitudes and seeking to follow Jesus to move on to a better lifestyle is something for which we all strive. But the reality is that the devil as well as our own sinful natures love sin and they make it hard to overcome what some call “besetting sins.” We know they are recurring because we see them showing
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Jan 18 2016
Cover image for “God Touches our Attitudes”

God Touches our Attitudes

God loves to meet us and change us where we are, right where we are living at this moment. He doesn’t wait until we have it all together before God visits us and cleans us up. King David knew this when he wrote Psalm 51 and asked God to give him a “right Spirit.” Some of us can identify with
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Jan 14 2016
Cover image for “Looking back…Looking forward”

Looking back…Looking forward

When the old year comes to a close, we are all tempted to look back upon what we accomplished and where we would like a “mulligan”…a do-over. This is natural for human beings and not a bad exercise if we do it in a way that improves us and doesn’t puff us up as we consider our victories or depress
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Jan 04 2016
Cover image for “Come and See”

Come and See

When Jesus was gathering His disciples, He would often say “Come and See” to them to encourage the men to investigate and observe something about which they were skeptical. As we enter into 2016, make a simple resolution to focus on one thing. That should be Jesus. Many of us are unsure about who Jesus really was…or is… In 2016
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Dec 31 2015
Cover image for “Prince Charming is here…”

Prince Charming is here…

  The fairy tales like Cinderella and Snow White all revolve around a damsel in distress being rescued by a handsome prince. These stories are timeless and were our favorites and now are the favorites of our children. Evil surrounds our heroine and she faces death and poverty unless someone comes to her rescue. Events always look dire and awful
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Dec 21 2015
Cover image for “Knowing Our Sin”

Knowing Our Sin

Sin is real. Anyone who truly believes that sin does not exist has not been paying attention! In real-life, when we are honest, we look anywhere and see the evidence of sin. We see greed, snarky comments on social media, and mean and angry attitudes. Just think about your language the last time someone cut you off on the freeway!!
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Dec 02 2015