“This next sentence is one of the most important spiritual truths you will ever learn: God develops the fruit of the Spirit in your life by allowing you to experience circumstances in which you’re tempted to express the exact opposite quality! Character development always involves a choice, and temptation provides that opportunity.”
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Rick Warren
“A pretentious, showy life is an empty life; a plain and simple life is a full life.”
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Rick Warren
“A second barrier to total surrender is our pride. We don’t want to admit that we’re just creatures and not in charge of everything. It is the oldest temptation: “You’ll be like God!”11 That desire — to have complete control — is the cause of so much stress in our lives. Life is a struggle, but what most people don’t realize is that our struggle, like Jacob’s, is really a struggle with God! We want to be God, and there’s no way we are going to win that struggle.”
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Rick Warren
“Every church needs to grow warmer through fellowship, deeper through discipleship, stronger through worship, broader through ministry, and larger through evangelism.”
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Rick Warren
“God gives us the grace and power to have a relationship with him.”
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Rick Warren
“Gary wondered, 'If God intentionally made us all different, why should everyone be expected to love God in the same way?”
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Rick Warren
“God is not waiting for you to get physically healthy or spiritually mature before he starts loving you or enjoying you. He loves you right now, and he will be cheering you on at every stage of your growth and development. He is not waiting for you to cross the finish line first. He is smiling at you as you run the race.”
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Rick Warren
“You focus your attention on a single truth from the Bible and then continue to think about it throughout your day.”
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Rick Warren
“God wants your life — all of it. Ninety-five percent is not enough.”
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Rick Warren
“Every problem is a character-building opportunity, and the more difficult it is, the greater the potential for building spiritual muscle and moral fiber. Paul said, “We know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character.”
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Rick Warren
“Vulnerability is an endearing quality; we are naturally drawn to humble people.”
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Rick Warren
“Christlikeness is not produced by imitation, but by inhabitation.”
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Rick Warren
“Our habits control our lives. We shape our habits; then our habits shape us.”
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Rick Warren
“Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.”
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Rick Warren
“YOU ARE NOT AN ACCIDENT. Your birth was no mistake or mishap, and your life is no fluke of nature. Your parents may not have planned you, but God did. He was not at all surprised by your birth. In fact, he expected it.”
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Rick Warren
