84 Quotes by Jim Cymbala

Every time we open the Bible, let’s stop and pray, whether for fifteen seconds or fifteen minutes, asking the Spirit to teach us. When I read the Bible, I want God to talk to my soul.

It’s not about being a Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, or 5-Point Calvinist. God has only one family and, as Christians, we’re in it!

Prayer cannot truly be taught by principles and seminars and symposiums. It has to be born out of a whole environment of felt need. If I say, “I ought to pray,” I will soon run out of motivation and quit; the flesh is too strong. I have to be driven to pray.

What does it say about our churches today that God birthed the church in a prayer meeting, and prayer meetings today are almost extinct?

God is not aloof. He is not disconnected. He says continually through the centuries, I’ll help you, I really will. When you don’t know where to turn, then turn to me. When you’re ready to throw up your hands – throw them up to me. Put your voice behind them too, and I’ll come and help you.

Let’s forget the novelties. If we prevail in prayer, God will do only what he can do. How he does things, when he does them, and in what manner are up to him. The name of Jesus, the power of his blood, and the prayer of faith have never lost their power over the centuries.

The Bible does not say we should aim at numbers but rather urges us faithfully to proclaim God’s message in the boldness of the Holy Spirit. This will build God’s church God’s way.

A great door opened by God for work, but while I’m doing the work, all Hell breaks loose. Oh! The idea that when God opens a door and He’s with you, you don’t have to fight. Oh, what a joke. That is a joke. In fact, if you don’t feel the devil fighting against you, that’s a bad sign.

I have since learned that the most mature believer is the one who is bent over, leaning most heavily on the Lord, and admitting his total inability to do anything without Christ. The greatest Christian is not the one who has achieved the most but rather the one who has received the most.