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Otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident. 2 Corinthians 9:4 When I went off to college, I went armed with the confidence that I was a pretty good wrestler. On one of the first days of football…
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We aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man. 2 Corinthians 8:21 I was taught as a kid that God sees everything I do, and I can recall a brief time when this was a deterrent to my bad behavior. That fear soon evaporated though…
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With him we are sending the brother who is famous among all the churches for his preaching of the gospel. 2 Corinthians 8:18 While floundering in my addiction, I spent an excessive amount of time worrying about what others thought of me. I desperately wanted to keep my drug use hidden and I grew paranoid…
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For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich . . . For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness your…
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I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine.  2 Corinthians 8:8 I’ve used this analogy of our family dog before, but it’s too fitting for today’s passage not to share again. So, here goes. My kids have a strong emotional attachment to…
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For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints. 2 Corinthians 8:3 When my kids were young, we had a vintage gumball machine that we used as an M&M dispenser.…
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For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. 2 Corinthians 7:10 Almost anyone who’s been on a diet knows what it’s like to do well for a few days or weeks, only to give in and fail. In that feeling of failure, we’ve likely felt some…
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Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God. 2 Corinthians 7:1 While on a guy’s trip, I don’t necessarily practice the best hygiene. I’ll jump in the lake every day, so most of the dirt gets worn…
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I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you,…
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Or what fellowship has light with darkness? . . . What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God. 2 Corinthians 6:14-16 I’ve been thinking that maybe I can have just one drink. I hear this not infrequently among those who’ve been in recovery for a…
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