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22 Oct Session 6: Finding True Satisfaction in Jesus

Posted at 09:41h in The Life-Giving Life-Changing Love of God

LISTEN [audio:http://www.johnandpunkytolson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/WW_10_22_2013.mp3] DOWNLOAD IN ITUNES Click here to download Punky's podcast in iTunes...

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15 Oct Session 5: Worshiping in Spirit and Truth

Posted at 10:29h in The Life-Giving Life-Changing Love of God

LISTEN [audio:http://www.johnandpunkytolson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/WW_10_15_2013.mp3] DOWNLOAD IN ITUNES Click here to download Punky's podcast in iTunes...

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08 Oct Session 4: Living In The Place Called Grace

Posted at 10:39h in The Life-Giving Life-Changing Love of God

LISTEN [audio:http://www.johnandpunkytolson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/WW_10_08_2013.mp3] DOWNLOAD IN ITUNES Click here to download Punky's podcast in iTunes...

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01 Oct Session 3: “My Heart Christ’s Home”: Experiencing Intimacy with Jesus

Posted at 11:20h in The Life-Giving Life-Changing Love of God

LISTEN [audio:http://www.johnandpunkytolson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/WW_10_01_2013.mp3] DOWNLOAD IN ITUNES Click here to download Punky's podcast in iTunes...

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17 Sep Session 1: That You May Believe

Posted at 12:18h in The Life-Giving Life-Changing Love of God

LISTEN [audio:http://www.johnandpunkytolson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/WW_9_17_2013.mp3] DOWNLOAD IN ITUNES Click here to download Punky's podcast in iTunes...

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Are you on Instagram? C’mon and do a little life-on-life with me!

 


I have lots of favorite Bible verses, but one stan
I have lots of favorite Bible verses, but one stands out first in my mind and heart from the story of Jesus and a sinful woman in Luke chapter 7. I’m choked up even writing these words, “Jesus said, ‘Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”⠀ ⠀ This is the story of a woman who is only known by 2 things: her sinful life, and her wholehearted devotion to Jesus that compelled her to shed her shame, gather her courage and walk boldly, uninvited, into the “boys club” and commit the most audacious act of love. Taking the costliest thing she owned— an alabaster jar of expensive perfume, she knelt at Jesus’ feet weeping; a flood of tears ran down her cheeks wetting his feet as she wiped them with her hair, kissing his feet and anointing them with the perfume.⠀ ⠀ She was ridiculed for doing so, and Jesus was ridiculed for allowing her to. But he silenced the critics while holding her in his loving gaze, telling her, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”⠀ ⠀ This is my story and maybe it’s yours, too. I relate to this woman’s sinfulness and her tears of love for the One who set her free. I recall opening my own alabaster jar; pouring out my heart, crying to Jesus, “I give up!” and then being compelled by the Holy Spirit to devote my life to Christ’s service. But serving Jesus has not been the costliest thing for me. My sin was costly; costly to hold onto; costly to let go of… and most costly to him.⠀ ⠀ What’s the costliest thing you have? Your sin, shame, your past, your hurts? We don’t often think of those things as being an expensive sacrifice. But remember that Jesus became a sacrifice for us on the altar of the Cross of Calvary where every sin of yours and mine was laid on him.⠀ ⠀ Have you poured out your “alabaster jar” on Jesus? Have you given him all your sin and shame, laying it down on the altar of his sacrifice?⠀ ⠀ There’s nothing more beautiful than to give Jesus the thing he came to die for: your sin. And when you do, you’ll be free; free to love with a big, bold, audacious love because you, too, will realize that your many sins have been forgiven.⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo – P♥️

Imagine what your life would be like…what it wou
Imagine what your life would be like…what it would look like… if you really took God at his word and *lived* like who he says you are?⠀ ⠀ Do more than imagine that. Live like it!⠀ ⠀ “The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! Rather, it was simply that the Lord loves you—” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8).⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #love #beloved #lifetogether #readthebible #standfirm #makingthemostofnow

In a world that excels at tearing people down, Chr
In a world that excels at tearing people down, Christ’s followers…God’s children, are called to be people who excel at encouraging and building people up—especially in the family of God. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says, “So speak encouraging words to one another and build each other up.” The early Christians had it rough, and rougher times were ahead. So, Paul encouraged them to habitually encourage one another. That wasn’t a word just for them and for then, it’s a word for us and for now. The Bible tells us (over 100 times) to be encouragers, to speak encouragement—now. Thinking about eulogies— we’re generous with words of encouragement, blessing, love, appreciation, and admiration *after* a person is no longer alive to hear them. We regret the things we wish we’d said once it’s too late for them to matter. *Thinking* encouragement is not the same as speaking it. Our words have the power to give life, to build up, encourage, inspire, give people hope, redirect their path, and help them to see things from God’s perspective. But if we never speak them they benefit no one. While the culture is *reimagining* everything, we don’t have to reimagine ourselves as encouragers. God calls us to it, so we must do it…now! Say it now! Imagine what could happen if we start making a habit of encouraging others, eulogizing (speaking words of praise & blessing) people while they can hear it. Begin living an Encourager’s life today! * Have you been withholding words of encouragement, praise, gratitude, or admiration from someone? Stop withholding & start blessing! * Have you been meaning to tell someone how much she/he means to you? How you love & admire them? How much they’ve impacted your life? Sit down today; make that call, write that letter. Meet with that person and encourage them face-to-face. * Maybe there’s someone who really bugs you, or with whom you’ve been offended or held a grudge. Stop right now & encourage them in some way. It will encourage your own heart to do so! It’s a battle out there. Let’s be people who beautifully & generously speak words that encourage and build up. Doing so has the profound potential to change a person’s life. I love y’all, xo - P♥️

I so dislike the term "singleness." When I hear it
I so dislike the term "singleness." When I hear it, it's made to sound like an illness or disease- something you want to get away from or healed of; something you only tolerate until you "break out" and become married. I think “singlehood” is a more appropriate and purposeful title for this season of life.⠀ ⠀ Y’all know I’m married, but when I entered marriage I didn’t leave behind my singleness for marriedness. In fact, I did not feel in the least that I had been delivered of *singleness*. Quite the contrary! I realized all the more the inestimable value of the precious position in life that I’d been granted for 43 years.⠀ ⠀ I regret deeply that for many of those years, especially the older I got, I desperately wished and prayed and hoped that my position would change. Marriage was my focus. It was Jesus + marriage = my happiness and satisfaction. Thus, I was always wanting to be someplace other than where I was; someplace other than where God had assigned me. In the process, I wished so much of my life away; so much of what God had purposed and planned for me in those years as a single person that I could not recoup once I was married.⠀ ⠀ The Apostle Paul considers the single person to be in a place of *more*; a blessed and strategic position where one has a greater capacity for more wholehearted devotion to God (see 1 Corinthians 7). And after all, isn’t that really the goal… to love God wholeheartedly?⠀ ⠀ Marriage is not the end game.⠀ *Christ is.*⠀ ⠀ Marriage is not the goal.⠀ *Christ is.*⠀ ⠀ Marriage is not the fulfillment of your joy and happiness.⠀ *Christ is.*⠀ ⠀ Marriage is not your holy ambition.⠀ *Christ is.*⠀ ⠀ And to you, dearest friend- single or married, your position in Christ is a profoundly purposeful one! Make the most of your *now* season. Fix your eyes and set your heart on Jesus- knowing him, loving him, and following him all the days of your life.⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #single #married #satisfaction #lifetogether #readthebible #standfirm #makingthemostofnow

What are you searching for? What is your heart hun
What are you searching for? What is your heart hungry for? What is that deep, deep longing in your soul that you have been trying to fill with whatever forever?⠀ ⠀ Oh, sweet friend, *NOTHING* this earth has to offer you will ever satisfy the craving in your heart.⠀ ⠀ In a world that beckons us to countless “wells”, Jesus remains the One and Only Well that satisfies. Come to him. Run to him. Dive into the Life Giver’s love!⠀ ⠀ “Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink” (John 7:37).⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #lifetogether #livingwater #readthebible #standfirm #makingthemostofnow

Such a daunting question. Jesus is teaching his di
Such a daunting question. Jesus is teaching his disciples about persistent faith—the kind that’s constant, steady, and never gives up. And then he asks this question: “But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?” “Persistent,” it means continuing for a long time, in the same way; without change in function or structure. I like the way Eugene Peterson phrases it, “a long obedience in the same direction.” When Jesus calls us to follow him, he is calling us to do just that… to follow step by step, day by day, and he gives us particular daily orders to persist in: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). So, we see that Jesus is calling us to a faithful life; a life of daily faithfulness to him, no matter what the day brings. But, if we’re honest, sometimes we drift in and out of faithfulness. We tend to come near when things are rough, and drift away during times that are good and easy and carefree. We get caught up and spun up in the hustle, the distractions and the noises around us… and forget the sound of the voice of the Good Shepherd who calls us to come to him. If Jesus comes back today, will he find you faithful? Despite your personal circumstances? Will he find you faithful? Despite the chaos in the world around you? Will he find your faithful? Despite your aches and pains? Will he find you faithful? Despite your shattered dreams? Will he find you faithful? And what about those who come after us? When they look over our life…will they find footsteps of faith in what we’ve left behind? I’m not talking about big, flashy ministry. I’m talking about a faith-full life. A life that’s made up of faithful minutes and faithful hours that lead to faithful days, and weeks, and faithful years on end. Jesus isn’t calling us to be perfect or to do it all perfectly. He’s asking us to just be faithful… in the little things, the ordinary things, the hard things, the lonely things… In these and more, will he find us faithful? I love y’all! xo - P♥️ #LifeOnLife #Faithful #LifeOnLifePodcast

Thousands of prayers… over 6 decades of them, an
Thousands of prayers… over 6 decades of them, and my faithful God has not ever turned a deaf ear to a single one. He has never failed me yet. He has yet to disappoint me. He has not taken back one of his promises. And He has not ever given me anything less than his very best for me- and I do mean that!⠀ ⠀ He has been faithful and true when I was not. He has reminded me over and over again that He is who He says He is, and that I am who He says that I am: the greatly and dearly loved daughter of The King.⠀ ⠀ And for these reasons and countless more, I am absolutely in love with Him. Never more so than today- when once again I arose in the early dark to meet with Him...because I *get* to, I *want* to, and He is always waiting there just for me. My loving Abba Father, holding me close, leaning in to hear his beloved child, and to speak to her heart. Because He comes close, because He bends down to hear my heart’s cry, this woman will continue to pray as long as she has life and breath!⠀ ⠀ “I am passionately in love with God because he listens to me. He hears my prayers and answers them. As long as I live I’ll keep praying to him, for he stoops down to listen to my heart’s cry” (Psalm 116:1-2, TPT).⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #lifetogether #bettertogether #accountability #readthebible #standfirm #makingthemostofnow #godfirst #newbeginnings

It’s morning. Light breaks though the darkness a
It’s morning. Light breaks though the darkness and illuminates the world around us; dawn presents a fresh canvas on which to live a new day, and a glorious opportunity to begin again. Yesterday is history. Today is the day we do it again- do it over, do it better, different, more, less. And morning is where it all starts...whether in the quiet, pitch black wee hours, or in the fogginess of dawn and first glimmers of light, this is our chance to reset, recalibrate, redirect, and live life anew.⠀ ⠀ Morning awakens both a physical and a spiritual hunger and thirst within us; a hungry stomach and a thirsty soul yearning...*growling* to be fed. And what we choose to satisfy the craving of our soul and stomach with charts the course for the rest of our day. I’ve found that as my morning goes, so goes the rest of my day. What I do first, in the morning, determines what I do next; and like the rudder of a ship, it steers the rest of my day.⠀ ⠀ And so, I pray first in the morning, to be filled as full as I can get with Jesus; filled up in my empty, hurting, hungry, insecure, weary, and longing places with the One who *fills all in all* (Ephesians 1:23). To sit at His table, if for only five minutes, to feast on His Word and to be satisfied with His unfailing love!! This morning, every morning, surrender your day to God and ask... pray, as Moses did: Lord, “Satisfy *me* this morning with your unfailing love, that I may sing for joy and be glad all the days of my life” (Psalm 90:14).⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #lifetogether #bettertogether #accountability #readthebible #standfirm #makingthemostofnow #godfirst #newbeginnings

Graduation brings a swell of emotions as parents l
Graduation brings a swell of emotions as parents launch their kids out into the world, and young grads wide-eyed with excitement anticipate the adventure ahead. It’s bittersweet- but as Dr. Seuss said, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Amid celebrations, gifts, tassels and tears, there’s sure to be a common desire in the heart of every parent: “I want my child to succeed.” We do. We want our kids to succeed. But we can’t guarantee success for them. No. But God can guarantee real success—spiritual success. Here’s how he says it to young Joshua who’s just been thrust into the top leadership position over Israel: “Study the Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and *succeed* in all you do” (Joshua 1:8). The promise is for success in life “in all you do.” Wow, do you love that? But the promise comes with a condition: Study the Bible. Meditate on it day and night. Obey everything written in it. You may be thinking- it’s too late, my kid will never do that. Well, when God says so, start praying so. The prayers of a righteous “parent” are powerful and effective (James 5:16). Buy your graduate a Bible. Sit down together, talk about this verse and what it means to be successful in life and the importance of God’s Word to guide you. Your son or daughter just may start to cultivate a desire for living God’s Word as you start living it yourself (wink). Pray for them to hunger and thirst for God (Ps. 63:1); to ask for and rely on God’s wisdom (James 1:7; Prov. 3:5-6); to be strong and courageous, to stand firm in their faith on the Truth of God’s Word (Matt. 7:24-29); to walk in obedience to God even when it’s not the popular thing to do (Ps. 1); and to love God wholeheartedly (Matt. 22:37). The most valuable, timeless, unbreakable gift you can give your grad is a Bible—the very Word of God. Every word of it meandering through their mind, every precept metabolized into their life will draw them closer to the One and Only who promises success in following him. Class of 2021, oh, the places you will go...with God ahead of you! xo - P♥️🎉

Freedom is costly. It comes at a great price; foug
Freedom is costly. It comes at a great price; fought for and bought at the risk of the lives of men and women of conviction– determined to win that freedom not merely for themselves, but for people they most likely would never know– like you and me.⠀ ⠀ The United States of America has always been known as a country where freedom reigns. You and I enjoy many great freedoms in this country that others have fought for and died for on our behalf– decades and centuries before most of us were even born. Young men and women we've never met and who never made it home to raise families of their own, never enjoying the freedom they fought for. They were somebody's father, mother, son or daughter, husband or wife, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin, next-door neighbor, classmate, boyfriend, girlfriend, teacher, childhood friend.⠀ ⠀ There’s nothing wrong with loving this country, and I do love the USA! I thank God for this nation and I’m grateful for the freedom and opportunities I have to do many things– especially the freedom to worship and proclaim the name of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. I do not take that for granted, because the greatest freedom I have experienced was fought for by Jesus Christ and paid for with his blood. That freedom set me free from guilt and sin and keeps me free for eternity.⠀ ⠀ This Memorial Day– as you return to the beloved family picnics, hotdog cookouts, or shop the big sales and enjoy a paid day off– in the midst of all that, remember: Somebody's blood was shed so you and I could live in freedom *today.* I can't forget that, and neither should you– and let’s certainly not waste our freedom. Because there is no freedom without a fight. Let's remember and praise God for those who had, and who have, the courage to fight for the freedom we enjoy right now.⠀ ⠀ But more importantly– if you’ve not yet experienced the freedom from sin that Jesus Christ offers you, then today’s the day… surrender to him and the freedom that only he can give to you.⠀ ⠀ What freedoms do you enjoy and are especially grateful for today?⠀ ⠀ I love y’all!⠀ xo - P♥️⠀ ⠀ #lifeonlifepodcast #discipleship #standfirm #makingthemostofnow #memorialday


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