Richard Ellis Talks

At the perfect and God-planned time in history, in Mary's virgin body, that egg dropped down and allowed the Holy Spirit to cause her to be with child. Instantly, Jesus went from being seated at the right hand of the Father to being the soon-to-be-born Messiah!

You know that sense of joy we get when we're truly generous to someone else? That's an emotion that God has planted within us, as a reflection of His generous heart! He's called us to use what He's provided us with, to bless and help others in need. May we trample over our selfishness with God's generosity today!

Billy Graham once said, "Our checkbook says a lot about our spiritual priorities". Money is a resource that God desires to use for His glory, just like our time and talents. Let's invite God to work through this area in our life, so we can see Him use our resources in powerful ways, blessing others and furthering His Kingdom!

It's written that it's more blessed to give than to receive. And, if you've ever done that, you'll know that it's a whole lot more fun too! The joy that comes when we treat money the way that God wants us to treat it - by doing His work with it - far surpasses any temporary thrill that "stuff" gives us!

The constant drip of a leaky faucet. The unending yap of the neighbor's chihuahua. What's annoying you today? There are even little "spiritual annoyances" that chip away at us! But those are really opportunities for us to seek God for His greater purpose, teaching us through those annoyances.

God's sovereignty hasn't changed all throughout history! He's allowed each person in authority to take that position. While we might not understand His reasons, we're called to trust Him, pray for those in authority, and honor the position that they hold.

Aside from a believer being called home via the Rapture, we're all going to die an earthly death - some of us suddenly and unexpectedly. Are we ready? Have we received God's gift of salvation, and then have we forgiven others and are living according to His will? Every new day is a gift, and could be our last.

No matter how "cracked" our life's gotten, God can still use us to accomplish what H 's planned all along. We're all cracked from things in our past, but He can pick us up and use us to hit a home run!

If we want to know what God’s will for our lives is, it's right there in His Word! He's given us directions on how to live, and it's better that we know it, than to not and face consequences. We'll still make mistakes, but we'll always know the directions to come back to.

There are times when we might feel like God's not hearing our prayers. But that can be because there's unresolved sin in our lives that’s keeping us from hearing from Him! Repenting of our sins, and living in His peace will open the communication on both ends!