Welcome to our Inspirational Stories Center! This is where you will find inspiration stories and more. The place where you will find heart warming stories in one convienent location. More stories will be posted as they come in . Let these stories touch your lives as they have ours and may the peace of Christ fill your hearts!
Growing With Christ
GROWING with CHRIST
Hebrews 5:11-14
Once upon a time an angel entered the storehouse of heaven and announced, "I've run out of the fruits of the spirit — love, joy and peace — can you restock me?"
"Oh no!" said the guardian. "We don't stock fruit here. Only seeds!" In this day of instant coffee, instant pudding, instant replays, instant pictures, instant loans and instant debt, some Christians want to skip the growth process. We want instant sainthood — not seeds, but fruit! We want to be grown up, but We don't want to grow up.
Other Christians want to skip the growth process in a different way. We prefer to remain in the raw, unprocessed state in which Christ found us. What do you say? Are you postponing Spiritual growth?
If there were a yardstick to measure the spirit, And you could record all the past; I wonder what answer you'd find to this question: Are you taller this year than last?
GOD creates us with a purpose... learn to challenge your limits.. don't let your limits challenge and stop you. If this guy can live life through the storms he has been through to the fullest so can you
At the Crossroads
When I was a little boy, I used to sing a song that went like this...I met Jesus at the crossroads,
Where the two ways meet; Satan too was standing there, And he said, "Come this way,Lots and lots of pleasures I can give to you today!"But I said, "No,There's Jesus here, Just see what he offers me: Down here my sins forgiven, Up there a home in heaven, Praise God that's the way for me!"
The Fire
I do not define myself by how many roadblocks have appeared in my path. I define myself by the courage I've found to fore new roads. I do not define myself by how many disappointments I've faced. I define myself by the forgiveness and the faith I have found to begin again. I do not define myself by how long a relationship lasted. I define myself by how much I have loved, and been willing to love again. I do not define myself by how many times i've been knocked down.I define myself by how many times I've struggled to get to my feet. I am not my pain. I am not my past. I am that which as emerged from the fire.
Precious Stones
There was a story of two men traveling across a foreign country. Because of the intense heat, the men decided to travel at night. They soon came across an old dried-up creek bed. As they were crossing it, a bright light appeared unto them, followed by a loud voice saying, “reach out and grab the stones in the creek bed and place them in your pockets, for tomorrow you will be both glad and sad.” They didn't know what to think or do except to follow the voice because they were frightened. They hurried up and continued along their journey. Their long journey began to make them increasingly tired, especially being loaded down with all the stones they had. Before long, they found themselves tossing out the stones to lessen their burden. The next morning, they finally reached their destination. They immediately found a place to rest and freshened up. One of the men reached into his pocket and to his amazement, pulled out one of the largest rubies ever discovered! He was so excited but soon his laughter turned into sadness. He once had his pockets filled with precious stones, only to toss them away carelessly.
I Can Do All Things
As a child growing up in the Midwest, I was raised in a Christian home with Christian values. I consider myself very blessed because many of my friends never had that luxury. My mother was a spiritual mentor constantly reminded me of Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthened me”. Constantly throughout my life, she never wavered of encouraging her son with this scripture.
I was a skinny, timid, backward little boy who would become so embarrassed to be in front of others, especially speaking to a group of people. At times I could barely replying back to someone's question. Later on in high school and college, I would come back for mom's advice, especially when I had a problem or was at a crossroad in my life. She would always quote Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things”.
It wasn't until I fully surrendered my life over to Jesus Christ that I fully understood this scripture. For years, I have forgotten to put Christ into my statement. I had tried to do so many things my way and really did not fully turn things over to His way. No matter how hard we may try, we still fall short of what God can do. Christ makes a difference!
Nose of a Camel
There was a story of a man traveling through the desert. He noticed that it was getting late and needed to bed down for the night. The dessert night can get pretty cold so he hurried to set up his tent. The winds were blowing across the desert but once his tent was set up, he went in to sleep. In the middle of the night, he was rudely awakened. Apparently his camel was getting cold so the camel stuck his nose into the tent to warm up. This man must have thought it was okay and went back to sleep. Before long, he was awakened again. This time he noticed the camel had his head and front shoulder into the tent. Again, the man must have thought it was okay and decided to go back to sleep. The next time the man was awakened, he was outside of his tent. The camel had taken over the tent.
In the Dessert
There is a story of a man traveling in the desert and realized he had no water. Being in the desert without water is a serious problem. He didn't know whether to turn back or go forward. He finally decided to go forward. Traveling through the scorching hot sun, he knew he could not continue much further. He soon found a large rock to crawl under to provide some type of shade from the hot scorching sun and continued to travel by night. The heat was so intense and was paying its toll on his body. Every fiber in his body cried out to quit. Every step was getting slower and more deliberate than the other. Finally he just gave up. He said to himself, “I can't go any farther, I give up, I'll die here.” And that's exactly what he did. He was not aware that he was only 100 yards from civilization that could have provided him with water and rest. He quit and came up short.
Acres of Diamonds
There was a story of a farmer in Africa, which loved farming. He would go each day to his fields, bend down to grab a handful of dirt, smell it and be grateful of what he has. Through the years, he battled drought, storms, pestilences, each time taking a toll of the farmer's endurance and profits. Each year he was expecting a large harvest to make up for past year's loss, only to find himself a victim of another ruined crop.
His friends started telling him that he should sell his farm and search for diamonds. He had a mutual friend who had become rich in diamond field. He continued farming until he gave up, sold his farm and ventured out in pursuit of the elusive diamond. He died penniless. After much frustration and despair, he threw himself into a raging river and drowned.
Meanwhile, back on the farm, the new farmer was excited about his new acquisition. Just like the other farmer, he would bend down to gab a handful of dirt, smell it and be grateful of what he has. He continued farming the land, dealing with the droughts, storms and pestilences. One day, a friend came by for a visit. His friend was shocked in amazement when he noticed a large rock on top of the farmer's mantle. His friend asked, “Do you know what this is?” The farmer replied, “It's a quartz rock I found in the stream on my property.” His friend fired back an exclamation, “It's a diamond!” “It can't be” said the farmer, “There are acres and acres of these stones all over my property!” It turned out to be the richest discovery of diamonds in Africa. What one man sold and went looking to find, was in his backyard all this time!
Many of Christians will do the same things as the first farmer. Some of these may seem rough around the edges but to a master jeweler (Christ), He can perform miracles!
All people are precious in God's sight.
Finding Hope In the Storm -30 day prayer Challenge
It can all overwhelm us like a thick shadow of darkness, controlling our every move and decision. Yet reality tells us that so much of what we spend our time worrying about never even happens. Living under the weight of the “what if’s” is a hard place to dwell. God has words of life - of truth – that he wants to speak into your fears. Soaking them in, praying them out loud until they became so familiar they replace the other things in your mind is the first line of defense against fear and worry. There’s nothing magical about words and verses, but there is power through them, because they’re God’s words.
If you’ve found yourself battling worry recently, this 30-day prayer guide will help you pray and
Fear is one of the Enemy’s favorite weapons. Worry, anxiety, fear...focus on God’s Word. Every day for the next 30 days, there will be a specific prayer to combat fear and anxiety. Some days there will be an opportunity to read a related article, or watch a short video. Other days you’ll be encouraged to journal or write down your thoughts on a related prompt. Every day will have at least one verse for you to study and pray through.
You can start this prayer challenge any day of the month, but it might be easier to start at the
beginning of the month, just to keep track of the days. If you do miss a day, just pick up with the
corresponding day and, if you have time, you can go back to the days you’ve missed.
God’s blessings and peace over you as you pray!
Will you take our 30 day prayer challenge? Please click below the PDF file and watch how GOD changes your life in the next month.
30 DAY PRAYER CHALLENGE:
Fighting Fear and Anxiety with the Promises of God
Are you struggling day to day with Fear and Anxiety? Do you need to feel the presence of GOD in your life? With this 30 day Prayer challenge, GOD can help you work through your fear and anxiety.
Over the next 30 days, you will follow the activities on each day and watch how GOD transforms your life through his word and helping you to overcome your fears and anxiety. If you or someone you know has issues with fear and anxiety and seeking a closer relationship with GOD, this is the perfect activity for you to do. Simply download the file to get started today!
Are you looking for a Christmas Scripture and Prayer guide? Take our 25 Days of Christmas Scripture and Prayer guide: Spreading Joy this Christmas challenge and please feel free to share this with others this Christmas Season.
Fishing lessions from GOD: Here's how to properly reel in a freshly caught fish when fishing on shore and complimentary alligator as well as a side. Girl catches fish, gator stalks and steals fish and gator enjoys a nice fish dinner.
Do you need some help with praying in the monring and evenings? This PDF will help you with that if you are stuck or in a rut. This PDF will give you some ideas of praysers that you can pray. Please feel free to download this file and save it to your computer or share with a a friend or family member that might need a helping hand and spiritual lift. We hope you enjoy this PDF and again feel free to share this with anyone who needs it.
Pursued by God – A Gapper Story
by Paula Jones
I was not raised in any type of religion. The extent of my church involvement was helping my brother-in-law clean a local church. It seemed like I was always in trouble while I was cleaning that church. He did not like that I was teaching my nephews how to play cards, playing tag, hide and seek and playing the organ. During this time, I was about 13 years old.
I also loved the piano. When I saw this big beautiful thing with black and white keys, I could not resist playing it. I did manage to pick out the tune for “When the Saints Go Marching In” in before his voice boomed, “Get down and turn it off.” He and my sister attended that church, but they did not take me. I guess Jesus was not concerned about my shenanigans because he saved my soul years later anyway.
The Longing in My Heart
However, even at an early age I felt a drawing to a spiritual being. When walking down the street at Easter time I saw multiple pictures of Jesus Christ in a storefront. I thought, Who is this Jesus Christ that he has so many pictures of himself? Could it be God?
At age 17, I left home and the first thing I did in my apartment was to set up an altar. I do not know why I wanted to do this and I didn’t know what symbols I should use. However, I decided to lay a white cloth on a desktop with 2 candles on each side of the altar. I put a cross in the center, a picture of Christ against the cross and a Bible at the foot of the cross. It was a way to get close to the longing in my heart.
My Crooked Path
My search for this Christ led me to tarot cards, Ouija boards, and other demonic activities. This was out of total ignorance. I did not know what I was getting into. Then I discovered the Catholic church. Their rosary beads, statues of Christ, and altars attracted me to the church. However, this particular Catholic church let me know that I did not fit in since I was not Catholic.
So, I turned to the world. It only took one friend at work to introduce me to the bars, etc. I do not have to explain where this led me. My first indication that I was in trouble happened when I walked into a bar and the bartender said, “There she is. We got your stuff set up in the back.” He meant the pool table and beer. I stopped and thought, Wow, am I really in here that much? Where else would I go? I did not have any family.
Through the same friend that led me to the dark side, I was led me to the light of Jesus Christ. Her mother attended a church and was praying for us. The church singles’ group was having a camping trip over the weekend. This sounded great to us! We loaded the trunk with beer and took off to party. Little did we know that was not acceptable to a church group. When Saturday night came, they left in order to be at church the next day. I was disappointed because we had not even got to party. My friend and I stayed at the campground, so the beer would not go to waste. (And yes, they did play the snipe game on me.)
I Found My Home in Jesus
One Sunday at church when the altar call was given, I stood straight up to go down and receive Christ as savior. Then I just as abruptly sat down, but then I stood again and went forward. It was interesting because the senior pastor and the singles’ pastor both did the same thing. One stood to come and pray with me and then the other one stood to come and pray with me. I know from the top of my head to the soles of my feet that electricity went through my body. My friend and her boyfriend followed, soon after, to receive Jesus Christ. Since I did not have any biblical background, I did not know what was happening. However, my thirst for God’s Word could not be quenched. I still have that thirst today.
Through my journey with Christ, I have learned that it is not about religion or good works, but about having an intimate relationship with the living God.
In all of my life’s ups, downs and crises, there is one theme that did not change, Jesus Christ never left me, hurt me or lied to me. I found my home in Him.
This Hope Can Be Yours
You can make this decision and receive Christ today. We are all going to die. Your soul is going someplace…heaven or hell. It is your choice.
The Bible tells us in John 3:16, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Any time, any place you can ask Christ into your heart, tell Him you are sorry for all your wrong doings tell him that you believe that he died on the cross for you. It does not take a 3-point sermon, dissertation or 10 prayers to tell God you believe and want Him in your heart. Then find someone to help you grow in your relationship with him. I promise you will never be the same person.