God Grows Us One Step at a Time

Current Teaching Series Life's Healing Choices

God Grows Us One Step at a Time By Rick Warren — August 31, 2018 "So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to — the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God's likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy" (Ephesians 4:22-24 GNT). Although God could instantly transform us, he has chosen to develop us slowly. Jesus was deliberate in developing his disciples, just as God allowed the Israelites to take over the Promised Land "little by little" so they wouldn't be overwhelmed (see Deuteronomy 7:22). He prefers to work in incremental steps in our lives. Why does it take so long to change and grow up? There are several reasons: · We are slow learners. We often have to relearn a lesson 40 or 50 times to really get it. The problems keep recurring, and we think, "Not again! I've already learned that!" But God knows better. The history of Israel illustrates how quickly we forget the lessons God teaches us and how soon we revert to our old patterns of behavior. We need repeated exposure. · We have a lot to unlearn. Since most of our problems — and all of our bad habits — didn't develop overnight, it's unrealistic to expect them go away immediately. There is no pill, prayer, or principle that will instantly undo the damage of many years. It requires the hard work of removal and replacement. The Bible calls it "taking off the old self" and "putting on the new self" (Romans 13:12; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:7-10, 14). · Growth is often painful and scary. There is no growth without change, there is no change without fear or loss, and there is no loss without pain. Every change involves a loss of some kind. We fear these losses, even if our old ways were self-defeating, because, like a worn-out pair of shoes, they were at least comfortable and familiar. · Good habits take time to develop. Remember that your character is the sum total of your habits. You can't claim to be kind unless you are habitually kind. Your habits define your character. There is only one way to develop the habits of Christlike character: You must practice them — and that takes time! There are no instant habits. Paul urged Timothy, "Practice these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress" (1 Timothy 4:15 GW).PLAY today's audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk About It Why do you think God allows us to go through pain and loss while we are growing spiritually? What is a bad habit that you've had trouble changing? How is God helping you with this right now in your life? What one thing do you need to practice doing every day so that you are developing more Christlike character?

Our Gift: Life's Healing Choices Complete Audio Series The truth is, going through life we all get at a little bruised and battered. And that means everyone needs recovery from something. Regardless of the problems you face, Pastor Rick Warren wants to help you heal by sending you his Life's Healing Choices Complete Audio Series. In these 8 messages based on the Beatitudes (Matthew Chapter 5), you'll hear about the choices you can make to lead you to the true healing and recovery that can only be found in Jesus. Choices like . . . • The Reality Choice • The Transformation Choice • The Growth Choice LEARN MORE

Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes 10 full-length teaching CDs from Pastor Rick's series Life's Healing Choices. LEARN MORE

Series Summary Session 1: The Reality Choice Session 2: The Hope You Need for Change Session 3: Letting Go and Letting God Session 4: The Housecleaning Choice Session 5: The Transformation Choice Session 6: The Relationship Choice Session 7: The Growth Choice Session 8: The Sharing Choice Session 9: Breaking Free from Abuse Session 10: There's No Recovery without Prayer PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at pastorrick.com. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He's the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including The Purpose Driven Church and The Purpose Driven Life, which has been translated into 137 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered around the world. This devotional © 2017 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences | Unsubscribe

NigerianEye: “Saraki promises sincere anti-corruption war as he declares presidential bid” plus 29 more

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• Saraki promises sincere anti-corruption war as he declares presidential bid
• How Davido’s presence lit up Lagos NYSC camp
• Nigerian police arrest man for alleged homosexuality
• Police trail senator over alleged N369 million deal
• Apapa gridlock persists one month after Osinbajo’s intervention
• Soyinka criticises Buhari on rule of law, national interest
• APC adopts direct primary for presidential candidate
• MTN rejects CBN’s order to refund $8.1 Billion
• Saraki declares for 2019 presidency (FULL TEXT)
• As It Happened: UEFA Champions League Group Stage Draw
• UEFA Champions League: Man Utd draw Juventus, Barca to face Tottenham
• Buhari’s comment on rule on law: Soyinka explodes, tells Nigerians what will happen
• Amnesty accuses FG of silencing critics with ‘enforced disappearance’
• 2019 presidency: Tambuwal picks PDP nomination form Thursday
• BREAKING: APC adopts indirect primary for senatorial, governorship polls
• Ghanaian, Kenyan presidents are good speakers… how did we end up with Buhari? -Fani-Kayode
• Davido Resumes At NYSC Lagos Camp, Reveals Why He Registered for Service
• Soyinka to Buhari: Rulers who tried to annul the law paid heavily
• 10 questions Merkel should ask Nigeria’s president – Timi Frank
• How Governors shared billions despite Okonjo-Iweala’s plea to impoverish Nigeria
• We must get our internal dynamics right in order to win, says Buhari
• Dogara, Lasun absent at APC NEC meeting
• APC won’t miss ‘rolling stone’ politicians – Oshiomhole
• IGP warns against inciting violence ahead of Osun poll
• PVC registration: Declare Friday work-free, Kwara govt urged
• Buhari, Osinbajo, Tinubu arrive for crucial NEC meeting
• APC govs reject direct primary as NEC meeting holds
• PDP foresees Uduaghan’s return from APC in ‘no distant future’
• Borno IDPs forced out of camps to unsafe region because of 2019 elections -Report
• UK announces plan to create 100,000 jobs in Nigeria

Saraki promises sincere anti-corruption war as he declares presidential bid Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:48 PM PDT Senate President Bukola Saraki has formally declared his intention to contest the presidency on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party. Saraki made the declaration on Thursday in Abuja during...

How Davido’s presence lit up Lagos NYSC camp Posted: 30 Aug 2018 11:32 PM PDT Music star Davido's resumption at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) orientation camp in Iyana Ipaja, Lagos yesterday caused uproar. Fellow corps members fell over one another to catch a...

Nigerian police arrest man for alleged homosexuality Posted: 30 Aug 2018 11:50 PM PDT The police in Ogun State have arrested two men – Okon Bassey and Ademola Adekunle – for alleged homosexuality. The suspects' arrest followed a complaint Bassey lodged at the Onipanu divisional...

Police trail senator over alleged N369 million deal Posted: 30 Aug 2018 11:39 PM PDT The Police are on the trail of a senator in connection with the probe into a N369 million deal. Kaduna North Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi has declined to honour invitation, according to police...

Apapa gridlock persists one month after Osinbajo’s intervention Posted: 30 Aug 2018 11:27 PM PDT More than one month after Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo visited the ports in Lagos and ordered a 72-hour joint operation by security operatives to clear the gridlock in and around Apapa, little...

Soyinka criticises Buhari on rule of law, national interest Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:40 PM PDT Nobel laureate Professor Wole Soyinka has criticised President Muhammadu Buhari for saying that rule of law can be suspended for the sake of national security or interest. Soyinka claimed that...

APC adopts direct primary for presidential candidate Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:37 PM PDT The All Progressives Congress (APC) will pick its presidential candidate through direct primary at a date to be announced later, it was decided at the ruling party's sixth National Executive...

MTN rejects CBN’s order to refund $8.1 Billion Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:34 PM PDT Popular mobile company MTN Nigeria yesterday rejected the allegation that it repatriated $8.1 billion illegally. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) asked the company to refund the cash. The telco...

Saraki declares for 2019 presidency (FULL TEXT) Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:43 AM PDT Senate President, Bukola Saraki on Thursday formally declared his intention to run for presidency in the 2019 general elections  under the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Saraki...

As It Happened: UEFA Champions League Group Stage Draw Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:39 AM PDT Welcome to Nigerianeye's live coverage of the Champions League group stage draw. The draw for this year's Champions League group stage takes place at 5pm BST in Monaco at the Grimaldi Forum,...

UEFA Champions League: Man Utd draw Juventus, Barca to face Tottenham Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:25 AM PDT Cristiano Ronaldo will return to Old Trafford this season as Juventus have been paired with Manchester United in Group H of the Champions League. Jose Mourinho's side were drawn from pot two to...

Buhari’s comment on rule on law: Soyinka explodes, tells Nigerians what will happen Posted: 30 Aug 2018 10:11 AM PDT Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, has lambasted President Muhammadu Buhari for suggesting that national security is superior to the rule of law. He said Nigerians should expect certain actions that...

Amnesty accuses FG of silencing critics with ‘enforced disappearance’ Posted: 30 Aug 2018 09:56 AM PDT Amnesty International (AI) has asked the federal government to immediately release "thousands of people" who have been subjected to enforced disappearance in various parts of the country. The...

2019 presidency: Tambuwal picks PDP nomination form Thursday Posted: 30 Aug 2018 09:17 AM PDT The Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, will Thursday evening be at the Wadata House national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to pick his nomination form to fly the main...

BREAKING: APC adopts indirect primary for senatorial, governorship polls Posted: 30 Aug 2018 08:27 AM PDT The All Progressives Congress (APC) has approved the use of indirect primaries at the state levels of party's primaries, and direct primaries at the national level. The declaration was made on...

Ghanaian, Kenyan presidents are good speakers… how did we end up with Buhari? -Fani-Kayode Posted: 30 Aug 2018 08:35 AM PDT Femi Fani-Kayode, a former minister of aviation, says it baffles him how Nigeria ended up with a leader like President Muhammadu Buhari. Commenting via his Twitter handle on Thursday, the Peoples...

Davido Resumes At NYSC Lagos Camp, Reveals Why He Registered for Service Posted: 30 Aug 2018 08:50 AM PDT Popular singer, Davido has revealed why he registered for the one-year mandatory National Youth Service Corps, NYSC.  Recall that social media was recently abuzz with reactions after the 'OBO'...

Soyinka to Buhari: Rulers who tried to annul the law paid heavily Posted: 30 Aug 2018 08:05 AM PDT Wole Soyinka, Nobel laureate, says those who tried to alter the rule of law paid heavily for this. The literary scholar said this in response to President Muhammadu Buhari's position that...

10 questions Merkel should ask Nigeria’s president – Timi Frank Posted: 30 Aug 2018 07:57 AM PDT Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, has called on the visiting German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, to help prevail on the President...

How Governors shared billions despite Okonjo-Iweala’s plea to impoverish Nigeria Posted: 30 Aug 2018 07:57 AM PDT Former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi has revealed that state governors during the last administration shared billions among themselves. Obi said this on Wednesday morning while analysing...

We must get our internal dynamics right in order to win, says Buhari Posted: 30 Aug 2018 07:17 AM PDT President Muhammadu Buhari has charged the leadership of the All Progressives Congress to provide the needed leadership and ensure that the party gets its internal dynamics right to ensure "an...

Dogara, Lasun absent at APC NEC meeting Posted: 30 Aug 2018 07:13 AM PDT Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; and his deputy, Suleiman Lasun are conspicuously absent from the on-going National Executive Committee meeting of the All Progressives...

APC won’t miss ‘rolling stone’ politicians – Oshiomhole Posted: 30 Aug 2018 07:11 AM PDT National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Adams Oshiomhole, has said the party would not miss politicians who have perfected the art of migrating from one party to another with each...

IGP warns against inciting violence ahead of Osun poll Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:43 AM PDT The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, has warned politicians in the country to desist from acts and utterances capable of precipitating violence ahead of the Osun State governorship...

PVC registration: Declare Friday work-free, Kwara govt urged Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:40 AM PDT The Founder of the Adekunle Oyedepo Foundation, Mr. Adekunle Oyedepo has urged the Kwara State Government to declare Friday work-free to enable civil servants in the state to participate in the...

Buhari, Osinbajo, Tinubu arrive for crucial NEC meeting Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:38 AM PDT President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress have arrived the APC National Secretariat for the party's National Executive Council...

APC govs reject direct primary as NEC meeting holds Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:36 AM PDT Six governors of the All Progressives Congress may be heading for a collision course with the leadership of the party over their alleged rejection of the direct primary option to elect candidates of...

PDP foresees Uduaghan’s return from APC in ‘no distant future’ Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:24 AM PDT The Delta State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has expressed optimism that the immediate past governor of the state, Emmanuel Uduaghan, will soon return back to its fold. Uduaghan had...

Borno IDPs forced out of camps to unsafe region because of 2019 elections -Report Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:08 AM PDT Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Borno state are reportedly being forced back home to ruins, without guarantee of their safety. According to Reuters, the move is to show progress in the war...

UK announces plan to create 100,000 jobs in Nigeria Posted: 30 Aug 2018 05:08 AM PDT The Government of United Kingdom has announced a new £70 million programme to create 100,000 jobs in Nigeria.  This was disclosed by the UK Minister of State for Africa, Harriett Baldwin on...

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Surrender What Jesus Uncovers

Current Teaching Series Life's Healing Choices

Surrender What Jesus Uncovers By Rick Warren — August 30, 2018 "And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns" (Philippians 1:6 NLT). It takes years for us to grow to adulthood, and it takes a full season for fruit to mature and ripen. The same is true for the fruit of the Spirit. The development of Christlike character cannot be rushed. Spiritual growth, like physical growth, takes time. Before Christ enters our lives at conversion, he often must allow us to experience problems so that he can get our attention and show us that we're living a life built on a faulty foundation. In truth, that faulty foundation is what causes many of the problems in our lives. Jesus demands that we surrender all of our life to him. He doesn't want a small portion of who you are. It's like this — when you're trying to climb out of a river that has a steep bank, you have to get a foothold on something to start the climb. And once you get the foothold, you can climb up the bank and walk all around. Some of us, when we invited Jesus into our lives, simply gave him a foothold, but we're resisting his efforts to step fully up onto the bank so he can fully access our lives. Jesus isn't willing to stand there on that foothold. He wants you to give him all of your life. You may think you've surrendered all of your life to him, but the truth is, you're still hanging on to some parts of your life. Jesus isn't upset with you. He simply wants to work with you to help you uncover areas that you still need to surrender to him. There will be struggles and battles, but the outcome will never be in question. God has promised that "he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6 NIV).PLAY today's audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk About It Describe your pre-conversion experience with the Lord. What did he allow to happen in your life that was meant to help you see your need for him? How did you respond? What areas of your life have you not yet surrendered to the Lord?

Our Gift: Life's Healing Choices Complete Audio Series The truth is, going through life we all get at a little bruised and battered. And that means everyone needs recovery from something. Regardless of the problems you face, Pastor Rick Warren wants to help you heal by sending you his Life's Healing Choices Complete Audio Series. In these 8 messages based on the Beatitudes (Matthew Chapter 5), you'll hear about the choices you can make to lead you to the true healing and recovery that can only be found in Jesus. Choices like . . . • The Reality Choice • The Transformation Choice • The Growth Choice LEARN MORE

Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes 10 full-length teaching CDs from Pastor Rick's series Life's Healing Choices. LEARN MORE

Series Summary Session 1: The Reality Choice Session 2: The Hope You Need for Change Session 3: Letting Go and Letting God Session 4: The Housecleaning Choice Session 5: The Transformation Choice Session 6: The Relationship Choice Session 7: The Growth Choice Session 8: The Sharing Choice Session 9: Breaking Free from Abuse Session 10: There's No Recovery without Prayer PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at pastorrick.com. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He's the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including The Purpose Driven Church and The Purpose Driven Life, which has been translated into 137 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered around the world. This devotional © 2017 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences | Unsubscribe