Gary Henry @WordPoints

Whatever ease and pleasure may be ours here, that should only whet our appetites for the real joys to come. And whatever difficulty or pain we may have to deal with while "on the job," that should only increase our capacity to enjoy "quittin' time." wordpoints.com/sweeter-june-23

In every situation, we must ask what is the best thing that can be done, and having done what we knew was best, we must learn to be gratified by the knowledge that we've done the honorable thing. Integrity should be a source of joy to us. wordpoints.com/finding-joy-ri…

Is love's pain to be avoided? I know not what choice others may make, but I shall continue to keep my heart open to love. Even at the bitter end of love's sweetness, there is no grief great enough to keep me from the clear, pure joy of having loved. wordpoints.com/no-love-withou…

"Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." There is not a purer joy in the world, and no more liberating experience. Yielding to someone else's dreams will break many a chain the devil has made. wordpoints.com/submission-sac…

When the final tally is made, I hope that I won't have failed to encourage anyone who needed it. It's a fine thing to have hope, but it is an even finer thing to give hope. That, above all, is what I want to do. And I'm confident that you do too. wordpoints.com/giving-hope-ju…

If we've been Christians very long, we may not remember what it was like to try to deal with the sufferings of this life with no hope of anything better. But one hour back in that situation would remind us how valuable our hope is. wordpoints.com/having-hope-ju…

When we remember the past, as we certainly will, we must remember it with such an attitude that we are helped in the here and now. God intends for our lives to go forward -- and when we're tempted to go backward, we need to remember Lot's wife. wordpoints.com/would-go-back-…

How diligently do you pursue the knowledge of God? How high a priority is it to know more of the truth about God today? Honestly now, what would you sacrifice to gain an hour's worth of time to study the Scriptures? Anything of significant value? wordpoints.com/pursuing-knowl…

It should be a joy to yield to God's purposes. So let's hold our plans but hold them loosely. When we say, "Let's do this," and God says, "No, let's do that," then our love for Him will say, "Yes, I trust you enough to know that will be better." wordpoints.com/man-proposes-g…

The Laodiceans were satisfied. Having what they wanted, the very satisfaction of those needs had blinded them. "You do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked," the Lord said to them. Would He say anything different to us? wordpoints.com/earthly-satisf…

Whatever it may be that provides an occasion for God's people to rejoice and thank Him is a good thing -- no matter what the sacrificial price of that benefit and no matter how painfully it may impinge upon us personally. wordpoints.com/gods-people-gi…

If we make mere pleasantness our priority in life, we won't grow in godliness. That result can only come from the other alternative: the patient endurance of hardship. We can't have the result without embracing the means that lead to that result. wordpoints.com/draws-closer-g…

We do not serve God in order to receive any particular blessing in this life; we serve Him because we want to go, when our journey is over, to the place that He has prepared for us -- by any path through this world that may be necessary. wordpoints.com/flexibility-re…

The devil can be resisted, and we surely need to do that more often, don't we? When we've been discouraged by the apparent hopelessness of our situation, we need to stiffen our resolve and do what is right, if not out of hope then out of defiance. wordpoints.com/hope-defiance-…

The world stands under the judgment of God for its rebellion. Unrepentant, the world is doomed to destruction. When Christ returns, that doom will fall. The only ones who will not be touched by the devastation will be those who are delivered. wordpoints.com/wrath-come-jun…

We spend our lives leaning on props rather than God. We're hiding from the truth, of course, but as long as our props are in place, we don't worry about our alienation. Deep down, our hearts are a lonely void, but we're too busy to think about it. wordpoints.com/truth-must-dea…

When the things you cherish are taken away from you, you will grow in wisdom. You'll learn more from losing things than you ever learned by gaining them. And what you'll learn is that God is all you have to have, the one thing you can't do without. wordpoints.com/learn-more-los…

With too much tranquility, we tend to forget God. We need to get out of our ruts and go on some fearful adventures, the kind that require real faith. If we don't, God may have to disturb us. He may have to say, "Get out of your country . . ." wordpoints.com/much-tranquili…

If God's love for us is active, then our response to Him must also be active. He will help us do whatever needs to be done (Philippians 4:13), but He won't force salvation upon any person who doesn't care enough to seek Him diligently.

Most of our deeds have to be done without any foreknowledge of their outcome. Hope doesn't mean confidence that things will work out as we wish, but confidence that God's purposes will be accomplished, even if we have no idea what is going to happen.