The truly thankful person is a truly peaceful person.

One thing you can be assured of is that God has already worked out all the details of what your obedience will accomplish - and its all good. we need not fear what our obedience will cause to happen in our life. we should only fear what our disobedience will cause us to miss. the sooner this truth resonates in your heart, the quicker you can make peace with a command from God that you dont fully understand.

Jesus didn't mean this as a sweeping command for everyone who has a lot of money. Jesus meant this for any of us who wallow in whatever abundance we have. I imagine Jesus looked straight into this young man's soul and said, 'I want you to give up the one thing you crave more than me. Then come, follow me.'

We need to make peace with who we are so insecurities don't become a distraction to how we live. Just because I sometimes feel insecure doesn't mean I have to be insecure.

I give grace because I so desperately need it.

I can face things that are out of my control and not act out of control.

Compromise built upon compromise equals failure. Instead, resisting temptation allowed promise upon promise to be built up in my heart, and that creates empowerment.