1 Peter 5:8

1 Peter 5:8 (MSG)
Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.

Philippians 4:10

Philippians 4:10 (MSG)
I'm glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you're again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I'm just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. I don't mean that your help didn't mean a lot to me—it did. It was a beautiful thing that you came alongside me in my troubles.

Psalm 118:5

Psalm 118:5 (MSG)
Pushed to the wall, I called to god; from the wide open spaces, he answered. god's now at my side and I'm not afraid; who would dare lay a hand on me? god's my strong champion; I flick off my enemies like flies. Far better to take refuge in god than trust in people; Far better to take refuge in god than trust in celebrities. Hemmed in by barbarians, in god's name I rubbed their faces in the dirt; Hemmed in and with no way out, in god's name I rubbed their faces in the dirt; Like swarming bees, like wild prairie fire, they hemmed me in; in god's name I rubbed their faces in the dirt. I was right on the cliff-edge, ready to fall, when god grabbed and held me. God's my strength, he's also my song, and now he's my salvation. Hear the shouts, hear the triumph songs in the camp of the saved? "The hand of god has turned the tide! The hand of god is raised in victory! The hand of god has turned the tide!"

Romans 8:26

Romans 8:26 (MSG)
Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

John 16:33

John 16:33 (MSG)
I've told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I've conquered the world."

Romans 8:35

Romans 8:35 (MSG)
Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:

James 1:17

James 1:17 (MSG)
Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light. There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle.

1 Corinthians 9:22

1 Corinthians 9:22 (MSG)
the defeated, the demoralized-whoever. I didn't take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ-but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I've become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life.

Proverbs 27:17

Proverbs 27:17 (MSG)
You use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another.

Proverbs 20:18

Proverbs 20:18 (MSG)
Form your purpose by asking for counsel, then carry it out using all the help you can get.

1 Corinthians 12:7

1 Corinthians 12:7 (MSG)
Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people!

1 Corinthians 12:12-30

1 Corinthians 12:12-30 (MSG)
You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you're still one body. It's exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive.

1 Timothy 4:12

1 Timothy 4:12 (MSG)
And don't let anyone put you down because you're young. Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity.

Ephesians 5:8-10

Ephesians 5:8-10 (MSG)
You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You're out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it.

Proverbs 24:1-2

Proverbs 24:1-2 (MSG)
19 Don't envy bad people; don't even want to be around them. All they think about is causing a disturbance; all they talk about is making trouble.

Proverbs 16:2

Proverbs 16:2 (MSG)
Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; god probes for what is good.

Romans 8:38-39

Romans 8:38-39 (MSG)
I'm absolutely convinced that nothing-nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow,

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28 (MSG)
And now, friends, we ask you to honor those leaders who work so hard for you, who have been given the responsibility of urging and guiding you along in your obedience. Overwhelm them with appreciation and love!

Matthew 10:36

Matthew 10:36 (MSG)
Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies.

1 Samuel 16:7

1 Samuel 16:7 (MSG)
But god told Samuel, "Looks aren't everything. Don't be impressed with his looks and stature. I've already eliminated him. god judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; god looks into the heart."

John 3:16

John 3:16 (MSG)
"This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person's failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

Joshua 1:9

Joshua 1:9 (MSG)
Haven't I commanded you? Strength! Courage! Don't be timid; don't get discouraged. God, your God, is with you every step you take." The Taking of the Land

1 Timothy 1:14

1 Timothy 1:14 (MSG)
Grace mixed with faith and love poured over me and into me. And all because of Jesus.

John 15:12-13

John 15:12-13 (MSG)
This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you.

Matthew 23:12

Matthew 23:12 (MSG)
If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.