Give Satan a Nail and It Will Not Be Pretty

Give Satan a Nail and It Will Not Be Pretty

While visiting in Haiti, Dale A. Hayes heard a Haitian minister illustrate to his congregation the need for total commitment to Christ.

The minister told of a man who wanted to sell his house for $2,000. Another man badly wanted the house but couldn’t afford the full price.

After much haggling, the owner agreed to sell the house for half the asking price with just one stipulation: he would retain ownership of one small nail protruding from just over the door.

After several years, the original owner wanted the house back, but the new owner was unwilling to sell. So, the first owner went out, found the carcass of a dead dog, and hung it from the single nail he still owned.

Soon the house became uninhabitable, and the family was forced to sell the house to the owner of the nail.

The Haitian minister’s conclusion: “If we leave the devil with even one small peg in our life, he will return to hang his rotting garbage on it, making it unfit for Christ’s habitation.”[1]

Question – How much have you given the devil?

Paul tells the Ephesians 4.27 to “give no opportunity to the devil.”

Have you given a place, no matter how small to the devil?

Even one small nail can make a difference.

Just a thought,

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Nine Promises to Keep You Motivated

Nine Promises to Keep You Motivated

Promises!

We all love them. We really loved kept promises.

Have you ever experienced a broken promise?

A broken promise hurts. A broken promise can cut very deep, wounding our soul, spirit and outlook.

However, a kept promise gets us motivated to continue forward. Even knowing that a promise made by a caring, honest and promise-keeping person pushes us in the direction we need to go. It is motivation. It is a fuel to continue.

Below are Nine Bible Promises to give you some motivation to keep going forward.

Enjoy.

Nine Promises to Keep You Motivated

  1. The Promise of a Gift— “But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” (Ephesians 4.7; ESV)
  2. The Promise of the Son — “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” (Luke 2.29-32; ESV)
  3. The Promise of the Spirit — “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” (Romans 8.26; ESV)
  4. The Promise of God — “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Hebrews 13.5; ESV)
  5. The Promise of a Rainbow — “When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” (Genesis 9.16; ESV)
  6. The Promise of a Crown — “Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4.8; ESV)
  7. The Promise of Cleansing — “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1.7; ESV)
  8. The Promise of Forgiveness — “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you…” (Matthew 6.14; ESV)
  9. The Promise of Heaven — “And this is the promise that he made to us–eternal life.” (1 John 2.25; ESV)

What other promises from the Bible can you remember?

What other promises from the Bible keep you motivated to press toward the prize each day?

Just some thoughts,

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