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Are you craving a full and meaningful life?

Are you searching for purpose in life? Here is an online study.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled”  (Matthew 5:6).

“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35).

A group of Christian women sat around a table in their Bible study class. Each of these women was mature in her faith, regularly involved in church and community service, and consistently growing in understanding of what it means to be a Christ-follower. And then Bev’s voice was heard: “I want more!”

Hunger – an experience with several meanings. For those starving people with empty bellies and no prospect of filling them, hunger is far more than a feeling of desire. I believe it is to those with a spiritual hunger that Jesus’ bread-of-life words are addressed. These people experience a gnawing emptiness—and perhaps have even tried a variety of satisfactions and found them wanting. To them, Jesus simply offers Himself as that which will give them life and hope.

But then there is Bev, and many like her. She regularly feeds upon the Bread of Life—the Word of God—but it seems that with each delectable morsel, the desire for more grows. She can hardly wait to experience an ever growing intimacy with the Father, coming to His prepared table each morning with delightful hunger for more. And to this one Jesus promises, “you will be filled!”

TAKE THE NEXT STEP: Do you want more of God? Try an interactive online bible study

Questions: Do you want more of God? How can this hunger be satisfied?

Are you searching for purpose in life? Here is an online study.

Feeling lonely and unloved? We’re here. Talk to us.

Cancer: it was the word of the day yesterday. My 74 year-old grandmother was admitted to the hospital with back pain.  Now she was being discharged with orders to see an oncologist. They found a tumor. “We believe its cancer. There’s a chance that it isn’t, but it doesn’t look good!”

My active grandma went from happy and healthy to full despair in just a few short days. Plagued with the thoughts of what our new journey would entail, tears filled our eyes, hopelessness filled our hearts, and our minds couldn’t bear to take in the pain she may endure in her last days.

As my mom cried out to me with the despondent news, I replied with a sigh. Searching for hope and truth I said, “Well, mom the pain won’t last forever!”

Where was my compassion? Did I acknowledge the fear, the pain, the emptiness that filled our hearts and minds? How cliche! What I said was true, but it wasn’t compassionate. By saying what I said I showed complete disregard for how my family was feeling at that very moment. When my mom pointed it out to me, I was convicted.

In my struggle with infertility remarks such as: “It will happen when it’s time!” open the floodgates of negative emotions including loneliness, anger, and a feeling that says, “No one gets this! No one really cares to try to understand!” It certainly is not received as compassion- a word defined as “a tender feeling.”

I’m frustrated with the Christian clichés. “There’s a reason for everything!” “It will happen when it’s time!” “He’s in a better place now!”

These sayings are cliché and people know it! And quite frankly, they’re lacking compassion. I believe as Christians we need to start showing the love and compassion of Christ. Start saying things like, “I know it must really hurt”,” I know this is scary”, “I know you miss your loved one!” “I can’t pretend to understand your pain, but can I pray for you!?” “What can I do to help?” OR we could just listen, and pray.

Dear Jesus, help us to be compassionate. Help us not to forget that you give us hope, but you also taught us to be compassionate. Help us not to be so focused on the future, that we forget to meet people where they’re at- where they’re hurting. We thank you that you are a compassionate God who loves us! Make us more like you! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Questions: Why do we as Christians so often not know how to show compassion?

About the Author Dawn Kurtz

Do you believe in life after death? Questions? Ask us.

Sometimes I feel like I am in a desert, don’t you? Everything seems lifeless. My enthusiasm dries up and I thirst for something to quench my soul. Day in and out I am on autopilot, going through the motions, living a life, reacting and dealing with whatever pops up and needs to be dealt with. Pretty barren.

This is not the way we are called to live. Each moment is a precious gift from our Creator, anointed by His Son’s blood, empowered by His Spirit. The Holy Spirit is that voice calling me to wake up and do something. I need to prepare my heart to receive God in all circumstances. That way, when I visualize His presence I will run towards him like a desert traveler gathers up energy to dash to the oasis. I will cut a beeline to Him – a straight path, not wavering or wasting any precious time.

I am point A, He is point B – I need to get there next to Him in the least amount of time.

I need His Living Water to quench my parched soul – now.

I hear Him calling out in my desert of emptiness. He is seeking me. So I find the strength to run like a child into the arms of her father and gulp down the cool, fresh water of the great mercy He offers.

Heavenly Father, you sent your Son so we could run into Your arms, cleansed and forgiven. Instill in me the desire to draw near to you daily, to hear your Spirit cry out that You are here. Let me pant for Your Living Water to quench my soul. Then help me clear the way for you through prayer, confession and praise. Amen

Questions: How are you preparing to receive Jesus in your heart this year?

About the Author Julie Cosgrove

It seemed that we had everything. But I knew there had to be more to life than what we were living.

At home in India, I thought that my family’s life was not any different than that of a Hindu family. We went to church instead of going to Temple. When somebody died, we would bury him or her and a Hindu family would burn them. We prayed without an idol and they prayed to many idols.

Yet, I saw my parents continue to struggle in finances, health and regular day to day problems. Although we as a family went to church regularly, I always felt that there was something missing in all of our lives. Especially in mine.

In India, the male children are always preferred over the female child. My mother’s discrimination between my brothers and me left me deeply hurt. I craved her attention and approval. I felt empty and rejected.

Searching for more

The rejection of motherly love led me to search for what I was missing. One day in my church, I heard a speaker telling me how I could know God personally. It was the first time I had heard this; the first time I had heard that God loves me. It was the first time I had heard that He has a plan for my life and I could know Him personally. I was very interested in that message.

I came home that night, and on my bedside, prayed a simple prayer. I said, “Jesus, if it is true that you are real, then I open my heart willingly for you to come in and live in me.” There was nothing extraordinary in my prayer, but it felt real and I meant business with God.

Following that simple commitment, I experienced an inner strength and a sense of belonging. I did not feel rejected any more. I became more aware of wrong things in my life and the lives of others around me. I also developed a keen awareness of the importance of leading a pure life in the presence of God. I became more aware of the difference between religion and a personal relationship with God.

Struggling with my marriage

During that time, I was going through deep trouble regarding my marriage.  My parents arranged a match for me, and the insecurity of not knowing much about the man whom I would marry haunted me. At that time I was 18 years of age.

My new found faith in God gave me confidence that God is with me and He will never put me through a life which is not good for me. This faith in God sustained me through my troubled time and gave me the confidence to go through my marriage.

I faced a second challenge following my marriage the same year. After my marriage, I saw that there was a great difference between my husband and I. He had no interest in going to church or in having anything to do with God. He was an elite Government officer and he was making lots of money. For the first time I became aware of corruption in society. Bribery among Government officers, as well as immoral lifestyle, were commonplace among the educated and elite. It was not considered wrong or strange.

To me it seemed like everybody in India was living a life of lies and corruption. I started to share about God and man’s purpose in this life to my husband. One day, at an outdoor meeting, I believe he invited Christ to come into his life as I had done.

Something had to change

At that time, desire to lead a different life became more important to us than money, a secure job or our country. It soon became impossible for my husband to lead a clean life and stay in his job with the Government in India. With much thought we both made a decision to leave our country and come to North America.

In North America we faced enormous difficulties. For a number of years we went through difficult financial problems, which was shocking to us. We had to do jobs which we never dreamt of doing in India. But there was more to our life than this.

If we had not known God personally, we would not have been able to get through that time. Yet the confidence of God’s love for us and His promise that He would never leave us or forsake us kept us going forward. We saw many miracles and experienced His abundant supply in the midst of difficulties. We are blessed beyond our expectation.

Take a look at your life.  How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times.  There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget.  In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new.  What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

**If you are feeling lonely or empty we can pray with you.  http://thelife.com/interactive/share.html

Trudy’s heart was feeling dry. She remembered times when her walk with God had seemed so much closer… and she realized she missed it. She thought about it as she ran through her early morning shower. She hadn’t even realized her heart was slipping away from God until she began to notice the emptiness.

Once you have known God’s fullness in your heart, the emptiness is hard to settle for.

Life had become so busy somehow. There had been changes in her life… and with those changes had come slow erosion in her personal walk with God. Oh, she still got to church with her family on Sundays. By all outward appearances she looked intact as a good Christian… but her heart was parched.

As she reached for her curling iron she recalled how she used to take time every morning to lay her day out before God. She used to ask for His help and direction in every area. And it had made such a difference too.

At night she would recount the day and the help God had given her. She asked Him to make her conscious of His presence with her. She had been so aware of His faithfulness then.

Trudy put the cereal out for the kids and grabbed a piece of toast. In her heart she determined to come back to that again. She’d start right now.

Gathering the kids around the breakfast table, she asked for God’s help in this day for each one of them. She asked for help to trust Him in every detail. She asked God to remind them tonight to share how He had shown His faithfulness through the day.

She set her Bible out on her bedside table. Yes, she knew where the well was when her soul was parched. She would make a change and consciously build that relationship with God that she knew would fill the growing emptiness she had been feeling.

As she stepped out the door she was aware of a sense of expectation in her heart, and she knew this was where she wanted to live – in God’s presence.

“In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:3).

~Dear Father God, I am sorry I have been running so fast that I have pushed You to the fringe of my life. Today I ask that You would help me and guide me; slow me down and show me the way to walk today in every situation. Fill me with an expectation of what You will do and who You will touch through me today. Remind me tonight to recount Your faithfulness. I want to have You fill the emptiness in my soul today. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Questions: Are you feeling parched spiritually? Have you let God slip to the fringe of your life? What can you do today to change that?

About the Author:  http://talk.thelife.com/experience/devotionalforwomen/authors/gail-rodgers/

In the wake of the horror and suffering of the recent terrorist attacks on Manhattan and the Pentagon, and recently the attacks on London

Still, I am beginning to hear the question, “Why did God allow so much pain and suffering?” I’ve had reason to ask myself this question many times in the last few years—a very painful reason. I thought about my boy as I listened to television interviews of people talking about their loved ones lost in the infernos of New York and Washington.

On February 21, 1996 when he was 21 years old, my son, Austin, was driving to work when a drunk driver crossed the highway and slammed head-on into my son’s car. Austin was wearing his seat belt, and his airbag deployed; he was killed anyway. The driver didn’t die, but he was seriously hurt.

After the tragedy, there were times when I would be ambushed by anguish. I would groan deeply and double over clutching my stomach in pain of loss. I’d fall to the ground and cry out and sob. I would yell at God and ask, “Why? Why did you take him from me? I can’t bear the pain!” I would think of all the atrocities in the world that God allows, of the six million Jews murdered by Hitler and of all the terrorist attacks on innocent people. “Why, God, don’t you come here and do something about all this?” I cried out.

We all experience pain and suffering. Some have suffered much more than others. Some people feel the pain of others deeply. Sometimes there is someone to blame, someone to whom we can direct our hatred and bitterness. In those instances we lash out at the offender and attempt to deliver the pain and suffering we feel upon them in a type of revenge. But the pain and bitterness and anger only grow in us, and we find no relief in that. I know because I regularly speak to groups of people hurt by drunk drivers, and among those people I’ve met men and women with a hatred that has twisted their lives.

I searched for a reason for my suffering and emptiness. Soon after Austin’s death I was able to tell the drunk driver at his sentencing that I forgave him and wished with all my heart that he would be freed from carrying this burden the rest of his life. But if my bitterness and pain was not from hating that man, why was I continuing to suffer?

Sometimes we can’t identify a perpetrator, and we see the pain as senseless and without cause. Perhaps the pain is caused by disease or a natural disaster or a freak accident or inexplicable depression. Sometimes we blame ourselves and eventually self-destruct. But when we are out of options, or when we have vented our emotions on others, we finally turn our rage upon the real source of our anger: God.

After all, since he is God, then he is at least guilty of failing to render aid. If a heart surgeon is walking along the sidewalk, and a stranger drops to the ground at the surgeon’s feet in an apparent heart attack, we would revile the surgeon who passes by. The surgeon, of all people, could have saved this stranger. He or she had it in his or her power to save the dying person and failed to render aid. We would shun such a person and even consider that surgeon evil. The surgeon may as well have killed the heart-stricken victim by negligence.

So it is with God, we reason in our hearts. He has the power to save, to heal, to raise the dead, to defend and protect. And yet he seems to pass on by. Wasn’t it Jesus Christ himself who told the story of the Good Samaritan, of the man who spent his own time and money to rescue his enemy rendered helpless by robbers? And what of the Golden Rule? That’s in the Bible, too. And the God of the Bible claims to be the God of this world. So he, if he indeed exists, must be a liar. He must be malevolent; perhaps even demented, we may reason.

At first we hesitate to curse God for his seeming reluctance to intervene. After all, if he’s the one who allowed such pain, or caused such pain, he could wreak some horrible vengeance on us for our impudence. He could “strike us down with lightning,” as the saying goes. Or cause our business to fail or our relationships to sour. But sometimes we’re in such pain that we don’t care if he hears us and takes offense because we resent him for what he has done or failed to do. We hate him for claiming to be all-powerful and then standing by as evil is poured out upon us. With just one wink of his eye, he could have disrupted the plans of the terrorists who destroyed the World Trade Center.

Where are you God? Where were you when those innocent people were destroyed in New York? If you exist, if there is a God who cares, then why do I experience such pain and suffering in my life? Why should I believe in a God who cares?

And yet, something happened to me. Somehow the burden of my grief was lifted from my shoulders. Somehow the joy of my life was restored. It came as God revealed an important truth to me: that I blamed him—not for taking my son, but for failing to protect him. I had to actually say, “God, I forgive you for not protecting Austin.” In that moment, the burden of my pain was lifted and the healing started in my heart.

I still hurt. I still miss my son. But I’m no longer bent over in the pain of anguish. A peace has flooded my heart that is beyond human understanding; it is supernatural. When I was at the end of myself, God reached out and healed my bitterness. The help came from outside of myself—outside of this world. It came from the only one with the power to truly heal and forgive.

Why? And why did it come to me and not to others? And why did it take so long?

I remember times when my children would come to me with a friend in tow and ask if the friend could stay the night. Not tonight, was my answer. “But why?” they would whine. “Because I said so,” was my reply. When they continued to plead, I would have to take them aside for a reprimand. I would explain that as the father, I have a much wider view of what is going on. I consider issues that never enter my child’s head. Perhaps my answer to the “why” would necessarily hurt the feelings of the friend, perhaps we are having a surprise party for my child that I don’t want to give away, or perhaps I had simply planned for some exclusive family time that night. Whatever the reason, trust in my judgment is required, because I’m the parent and I’m older and wiser and can see further ahead. And because I love my children, and they know it, and because I have demonstrated my love to them. I might be able to explain the “why” later, but sometimes not.

Why did I have to wait three years to discover that I needed to forgive God for not protecting my son? Why did God not protect my son? But he is God. He does exist. He can see much wider and further than can I. I choose to trust him. He is not demented and he is not malevolent. He truly wants what’s best for me. He loves me with a perfect love. He watches my every move and he is aware of all I encounter and will encounter. So I have nothing to fear. I’m in good hands, caring hands.

I got into those hands by choice. Trained philosophers are better equipped to write about the importance of choice and free will in the debate about the existence of God. However, I do know and can say that God’s love is free for the taking. We only have to receive it. We need only to open our hearts to it. I was correct: my son was God’s to begin with. If God created us, he has every right to us. And so we can place ourselves in no better care than the God who designed us and loves us. He has given up that right to us so that we can come back to him of our own free will, of our own choosing. He is simply waiting to pour out his love and peace and joy and to take our burdens upon himself.

God already carried the heaviest burden ever. When his son Jesus Christ died on the cross, he took all the guilt of our sin upon himself. And yet he said in the Bible, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest, for my burden is easy and my yoke is light.” Jesus was God and because he was God, he was able to carry the burden of the world like a fly on a camel’s back. It was easy for him. He wants to carry our burdens; they add no weight to his load. He pleads for the privilege of bearing our worries and concerns and pain. For although he can carry our burdens with a leap of joy, one little particle of our pain, our suffering, our anxious thoughts will crush us. It will kill us. It was killing me.

God in Jesus Christ is the heart surgeon standing on the path crying and pleading to help us. For, indeed, we are the ones dying of heart failure. He is begging us to put our trust in him, in his expert hands. But so often we push him away with the last vestige of our strength and say, “No, I don’t need you. I will get better. I can heal myself. Or someone else will come along and heal me.”

Don’t wait any longer. Simply tell him you accept him. Reach out and ask for his forgiveness for your reluctance and belligerence. Forgive him, if necessary, and then discover his love flood your heart in return.

Take a look at your life.  How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times.  There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget.  In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new.  What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?
If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

There was an emptiness in my heart that could not be filled.

I grew up knowing God but had no real connection to Him. Growing up was different for me than most other children because I never knew my earthly father. My family always did the very best they could for me, but they could never fill the emptiness I felt in my heart.

I led a good life and strived for perfection in everything. I thought by trying to do everything perfectly, there would never be a reason for anyone to pass unfavorable judgment on me. On the outside it looked like I had everything, but on the inside I was bitter and empty.

When I met my father for the first time it filled the void in my heart but it also created a new longing.

In 1997, God gave me the one thing I had always desired: I met my dad for the first time. Meeting him not only filled the void I felt in my heart, but it also caused me to seek a personal relationship with Jesus. I had never really paid a lot of attention to God before other than to get down on my knees with a wish list.

Through an advertisement in the newspaper, I learned about and started attending a ladies’ church group. One day while reading my Bible, I recognized I owed everything to God and prayed to receive Jesus into my life. After this I didn’t immediately feel like a changed person, so I thought I had done something wrong.

A banner advertising a website caught my attention and began a surprising series of events.

In January 2001, I noticed the “Power to Change” banners on some of the churches around our neighborhood and I connected with Power to Change online.

When I logged on to their Christian chat line, the chat hostess engaged me in a conversation. We talked about my spiritual life and I told her I wasn’t sure that I was even a Christian because I hadn’t been going to church. The hostess responded by walking me through the process of how to receive Christ, which I indicated I had already done.

So she began sharing with me how to be filled with the Holy Spirit. That’s when I came to realize that even though I had accepted Jesus into my life, I was still living the life of a defeated Christian. I prayed to give control of my life to God. I believe the Lord made a divine appointment that night on the chat session and the very goodness of God is what led me there.

The next week, I returned to the chat room. Amazingly, I learned that the hostess and I lived in the same town! She referred me to a local church where I got involved in the ALPHA discipleship program.

Since then my life has been completely transformed. I am now truly at peace with God.

That is not to say nothing ever goes wrong, but now I draw on the power of the Holy Spirit. There is now purpose in everything I do. God has been so good and I am thankful for the incredible work He has done in my heart.

Now, today, I’m back in the Christian Women Today chat room, but this time, I’m serving as a volunteer hostess. I get to encourage women like I once was—searching the Internet for spiritual answers.

A verse that is particularly meaningful for me is: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).

Is this the life for me?

Take a look at your life. How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times. There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget. In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new. What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised. Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.