Richard Ellis Talks

Sometimes God calls us to step out in faith, not just for our own sake, but so that others can see evidence of the miraculous work He does when we're willing to trust Him. Our faithfulness to surrender points directly back to His faithfulness to provide for us.

Scripture tells us that Jesus came to seek and save the lost -- and God's placed us on this earth so that we can be part of that mission. In order to be true witnesses for the Gospel, we need to have an ongoing and actively growing relationship with Jesus. The more closely we follow Him, the more He can make a different in and through us to get people hooked on the abundant life He offers.

God knows each one of us by heart -- the good, the bad, and the ugly. He knows all of our sin, and all the times we've chosen other things above Him. Yet still He chose to send His Son to die for us. When we begin to more fully comprehend the depths of His love for us, we can start to love Him and other people in a new and selfless way.

The devil knows your name, but he calls you by your sin. God knows your sin, but He calls you by your name. As believers, we need to learn what it means to rest in the covering of Christ, knowing we've been redeemed by His sacrifice. We don't have to live in shame any longer, because God's grace and mercy have covered all our sins.

Whether we realize it or not, our lives are the only Bible some people may ever read. As Christians, we represent God to the world, and we should live in such a way that we represent Him well. When He's in the driver's seat of our daily thoughts and actions, not only do we display His love more clearly to those around us -- we also experience the benefits that come with living the way He intended for us to live.

Would you rather get directions before you become disoriented, or after you're already lost from going off-track? Jesus said that the road to destruction is wide and many will follow it, but few find the straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life. The only way to reach that path is by following God's direction in our lives -- and the first place we should be turning to find that is the Bible.

When we choose to follow Jesus, His power resides in us, and that means He has remote control of our lives even without being physically present. He taught us to ask our Heavenly Father for whatever's in our heart, no matter how big or small, and to believe in faith that if it's according to His will, He'll be faithful to give it to us.

Everything we have has been given to us by God -- which means it was never really ours, anyway. Before we buy anything, we should be praying and asking Him if it's a wise purchase. Over time, as we start to view "our" money as God's money, we begin to think twice about how we spend it.

What do you do when you ask for something, and the answer is "no"? The Bible encourages us not only to ask God for things, but to be persistent in our asking. But once He's answered our prayer, we need to accept His final word on the subject -- even if we don't necessarily like His answer. God always has a purpose and a plan beyond what we can see, and sometimes, learning to trust Him is a better gift than whatever we were asking for to begin with!

Thankfulness begets thankfulness. The more we thank God for what He's given us, the more gratitude we feel towards Him. And the more gratitude we feel towards Him, the more motivated we are to listen to His voice and obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit when He calls us to love, help, and serve others.