Devotional for friends // Devocional para as amigas

People often resist being a Christian because of the many rules. Among other things, they say it is too hard. I can’t disagree with that, it is hard, but it is also worth it. They tend to think that will lose their freedom if they become Christians. But, what do they know about freedom? Are they really free? Let’s see: They say they are free, but they are unable to control themselves. I think they obey their impulses, what it can often lead them to problems. They say they are free, but they can’t control their anger, their greed, their jealousy, their hunger, their prejudice, their own thoughts! They are slave of their own desires, they know some of those are destructive, and they still think they are free. They say they are free, but they can’t have enough money to have a vacation or enjoy family. So, they are committed to their job. They say they are free, but they can’t stop worrying, their anxieties are eating them up, stealing their peace ...

Oh, how I love Nehemiah book. It’s so inspirational! Another day I talked about some verses of this same chapter. Guess what? Another lesson we can see from other verses. Check it out Nehemiah 4:11, 14 . v.11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.” v.14b “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons, and your daughters, your wives and your homes.” The enemy comes without we realize that he is among us. Do you know the main goal of the enemy? The enemy comes only to steal, kill and destroy ( John 10:10 ); whatever it is. The enemy hates us. He doesn’t want us to succeed in anything. Are you having troubles? There he is causing your troubles, stealing your peace, joy, and love. Killing your hopes, destroying your family and relationships. The enemy doesn’t want the work of God to be fruitf...

Tradução para o portugues How do you communicate Christianity? What is the first word that comes to mind when you think about Jesus? What was his goal on earth? Think about that for a minute, or as long as you need it. Now, a personal question if you consider yourself a Christian. How do you communicate Christianity with people? How are you showing it? A reasonable person would easily say – through love, of course. Yes, that is right. But are you sure that is exactly that way you are showing it? Is it easy to show love and actually love everybody that you encounter throughout the day, every day? I remember when I first got to Sao Paulo, I noticed that if you are a smiling person, you would be misread all the time. The people in Sao Paulo are simply not used to smiling people. They will think a ton of things about you, and never imagine that is your way of being, not at first at least. My friend used to be a smiling kind of person. Then, people ...

Eu, Nós, Certo, eu mesmo - you, eles, errado, outros Paulo asked “who regards you as superior? (1 Corinthians 4:7), a writer wrote as he commented on this passage, ‘why would anybody regard us as superior? perhaps it is our own biased opinion that makes us feel important’ (W. Wiersbe). John 3:30 says, ‘he (Christ) must become greater, but I must become less’. “There is no place for pride in the ministry” Paul was a fool according to the standard of men. Aren’t we all? When we say to an unbeliever that we go to church, they think we are fanatics, fool and make fun of us. But that shouldn’t bother us at all. Men may see us however they like, but we should only be worried about how God is seeing us. How do you think God is seeing you right now? What is in your heart? All that burden, hurt, bitterness, jealousy, greed, worries… all these should be handed over to Jesus. Because He died in that cross so we could carry his burden that is light, and he car...

Espere no Senhor. Seja forte! Coragem!Espere no Senhor. (Salmos 27:14) Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14) August. Here we are. More than half-year has passed now, and I have already read the books of Kings (1 and 2) and Chronicles (1 and 2). In summary, those 4 books tell us the stories about the kings of Israel, the good ones and the bad ones. We also have learned a lot from them, especially their mistakes. God loves us however He is a just God. He wants us to obey His word, but when we insist on not listening to Him, he will make us listen to one way or another. As we have noticed, neither the people of Israel nor Judah listened to the word of God through the law nor the prophets. God had to fulfill his word. God led them to exile. Only then, the people of God, in the middle of the heathen people, were able to pay attention to what God was saying. Sometimes, God takes us away from things and...

We have seen so many stories about runners who are failing to finish the race and another runner comes and help them to finish it. Some of them hold them in their arms, others pick them up, lift them up, push them from behind. We're all running the same race; the race of life. the path is to heaven. We are not alone, we shouldn't feel alone. We are here to support one another and God is there helping us too. We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves (v.1) May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, (v.5) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (v.13) ( Romans 15:1, 5, 13 ). Today, I have decided to hear the Bible. And I felt very touched about these 3 verses. Paul is telling us to bear with the failings of the wea...

You know, since I was a kid, I didn’t like to be bothered about what people thought about me because I had learned some truths about the Bible and Jesus. 1- Jesus didn’t gossip either thought evil of anyone, so why should I? He is my golden standard. 2 – It’s written in Romans 14 not to pass judgment on one another. So, I’m not bothered about what people think of me, I also shouldn’t be bothered about how people are or not, I’m not to pass judgment. I know nothing about their hearts, only Jesus knows. Yeah, sometimes we don’t realize that we are doing it. We don’t realize that we are judging people. Sometimes with “small” and “inoffensive” comments, or sometimes some thoughts. “He drinks too much”, “she doesn’t eat that”, “look at the skirt! Too short”, “OMG! He’s dating that girl?” What happens when we judge? We put ourselves in a higher standard, we consider ourselves as better, more righteous, and the truth is – we are not. Don’t ever see yourself ...