Richard Ellis Talks

We tend to think that God can’t use us because of mistakes we’ve made in the past. But take heart, because though we may suffer consequences because of those mistakes, God still has a plan and a purpose to use us to reach others for His sake!

Living out this life - in the meantime - until Christ calls us Home, takes a continued growing in the grace and the knowledge of our Savior. That way, when we face life's inevitable difficulties, we're filled with His sustaining peace and joy, and He's able to continue using us to reach others for Him!

God has PICKED each believer, so regardless of how we feel about our “worthiness” to be picked (outside of Jesus’ atoning blood, none of us are worthy!), let’s humbly receive His call on our lives to be the hands and feet of His message for hope to the world!

"For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks". (Luke 6:45) That simply means that whatever's in our hearts - whatever things we think about, dwell on, ponder over - the REAL US, will eventually come out of our mouths. So let's continually be filling our hearts with God’s truth and love, so that when we speak to others about Him, our words can bring life and hope!

Trust is a two-way street, even with God. When we trust Him joyfully to use us in whatever capacity or position He sees fit, He in turn trusts us to live out His will for our lives! That way, when others look at us, they’ll see God’s greatness and providence through the hope that we cling to in all circumstances.

Faith, determination, persistence. All those are foundations of when we “pray without ceasing” for things in our life that align with God’s will for us. Just like the Bible story of the woman who kept asking the judge for retribution, her persistence led to his eventual ruling in her favor. Let’s be persistent in our prayers for God to move on our behalf!

The Christian life is about constant pursuit of God through Scripture, prayer, and gathering together as believers. Letting either one of these vital connective dynamics slack can result in our Spirit-led lives fading out and even getting to a point of rejecting Him. Let's be intentional about not going back to our old lives, and instead daily PRESSING IN to learn about Him more, and allowing Him to continue molding and shaping us!

Is there anything in our lives that we'd actually choose to die for? A believer's "no-regrets" relationship with Jesus Christ requires a commitment from us, that we give our whole lives to Him, that we become a "living sacrifice", committing every aspect of our lives to Him.

We as humans - born with a sinful nature into a fallen world - are incapable in and of ourselves, not only to be willing to do what’s right, but even to follow through and do it! God walks with us through the process of making us willing first, and then as we allow Him to work in us, He follows through with the doing.

When we're faced with a sudden crisis, we have the option to respond in despair, or respond in worship to God. Trials will come, and while we walk through them with Him, let's keep our eyes looking up, because Jesus promised that He'll come back for us suddenly out of the blue!

When we face difficulties in our lives, it’s easy to want to go back to the past when life seemed easier. However, God wants to use those difficulties to grow our faith in Him, so that we can receive His spiritual blessings that we'd never have if we went back!

"Not my will, but Yours Lord." That should be the believer's prayer when it comes to how we live every aspect of our lives. And the only way we can do that, is by going against how the world views life (getting even, holding grudges, living for self), and aligning with how God wants us to live (loving our enemies, forgiving others, pleasing God).

Sin equals separation, plain and simple. There aren't varying levels of sin that equate to varying levels of separation from God. All sin separates us from God. However, because of Christ’s sacrifice, God offers grace and forgiveness to everyone regardless of their sin! Let's see our sin for what it is - all of it separating us from God - and turn around in gratitude that He can wash us clean through Jesus' blood!

Part of trusting God, is trusting that when He prompts us to speak, we speak! He wants to speak to us, and through us to bring insight, wisdom, and hope to others, as long as we're hearing from Him and obeying His process. He'll give us the words to speak to others, to tell them about what He’s done in our lives and the hope of the Gospel.

God has PROMISED to never leave us, to never turn His back on us. This is especially true when we’re crying out to Him in prayer. But here’s where faith, patience, and trust come into play; when it seems like He’s silent, or hiding from us, let’s continue to press in, seeking Him with our whole hearts!