Showing posts with label Revelation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Revelation. Show all posts

Happy Sunday: Our Father Is Light

 

God said let there be light and there was light. Genesis 1:3

Our Father is light and in him is no darkness at all. I John 1:5

Those who trust him and have accepted His Dear Son Jesus as their Savior will live in the light of The One True God forever and ever. Revelations 21:23

Happy Sunday!

Where Is The Benefit In Feeling Beaten Down?



Sometimes we suffer and are sad because of circumstances that God allows upon our lives. Sometimes we don't feel that we can overcome the devastating feelings, which cause us to drag around listlessly doing our daily tasks. We know that we love God, and we still are able to make ourselves read the Bible and pray during these times, but we feel so beaten down by situations.

We know that God allows these things for our benefit, but where is the benefit in feeling beaten down? Well, we should remember that the beaten down feeling is not the goal of God. That feeling and the circumstance that brought it are being used to get our attention. There is something that he wants us to grasp that is above what the circumstance has caused us to feel. To have us look up to it, he had to spur us up. Like the pointy, sharp boot spurs that a cowboy presses into the sides of a horse to startle him with a little pain to get him moving, God spurs us to move our spirit and thoughts in a certain direction, away from and above the sorrow of what he has allowed.

So when we who are devoted to God enter into a period of trial and tribulation, we should not deny that we feel lost, hopeless and just plain tired. We want to benefit from the experience that God has chosen to use. We don't want to waste it, or have to take that lesson again, so we admit and accept how we are feeling. In the midst of it, we who trust God should then ask ourselves, What is it that would help me to feel better right now? For this exercise, the answer is not money, a vacation or anything outside of us. It is something within. It is thoughts or a way of thinking that will in turn control feelings. It is thoughts that go beyond what we could make up to feel better, because that is why we feel so depressed, because our own thoughts cannot handle it.

This is where being already built up in faith helps us tremendously. Reading the Bible and praying always, when things are going well and we feel great, builds up in us a strong storehouse of faith, hope and scripture references. So when we are suffering like this, if we can reach up and understand something that would make us feel better, a promise from God, a past answered prayer, a strong scripture passage that speaks especially to us, a revelation, a confirmation, that will be one of the things that God is trying to point us to, away from the actual crushing distress. This something that only we would know will pull us up inwardly (not by our own bootstraps which often break) to higher heights of strength, faith, victory and understanding of God. That is when we attain a new level in Christ, which was God's purpose all along.

Three Strikes And Satan Is Down! For A Season

He also uses trials to promote us higher into his benefits, so that along with our own blessings, we can better benefit others and glorify his name.

So I swallowed, ignored the pinprick of irritation,
and decided not to.


I made a comment in a craft forum, and someone else commented on my comment. She gave a definition of the word artisan and somewhat refuted my comment. She was not the OP and the dictionary def of the word had nothing to do with my point. I felt annoyed and wanted to comment back. I was going to say that I know the definition and that was not my point. I wondered if it really mattered. I had heard that we should choose our battles. This means to weigh the value of locking horns with someone, which I knew could happen. So I swallowed, ignored the pinprick of irritation, and decided not to.

So I squeezed my eyes shut and decided not to do it.


A little later the desire to challenge her returned. It just popped up. The devil is always busy. I was miffed, and wanted to tell her that I did not need her to post the definition of that word. I thought about what Jesus had said though about being a peacemaker. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. I wanted to be called a child of God. I was really annoyed, but I wanted to be a peacemaker, so I squeezed my eyes shut and decided not to do it.

Later that day I felt the desire to confront her. It was stronger. It was so ridiculous that even I, the one who was feeling it, was able to step back and objectively ask what in the world?! Why is this back! Why is it stronger!!! I defeated it earlier!. I asked myself why I wanted to attack her, what was my goal, and what did I expect to accomplish. The idea of pride came up. I did not think about that word then, but an idea. In retrospect the word pride has appeared. Don't ask me how the word and the idea are different, lol. It's a psychological thing.


So I gritted my teeth, and decided not to.

I also knew from experience that confrontations like this can go on and on, exploding into something that causes destruction. That is the plan of the devil and his fallen angels, to lead us blindly down the path of destruction, like ignorant sheep to the slaughter. From a little thing to an atomic bomb, that's always his goal. I remember thinking this is a test. So I gritted my teeth, and decided not to, that it wasn't worth it. Then the pressure lifted.

It was a pressure that I was enduring. I see that now. A strong pressing, a heavy bearing, a subtle prodding. Almost irresistible. It left, and it was like a swirling, rushing breeze came in and twirled around me. I felt free. I felt like I could take deep breaths of fresh air. I felt released. As I write this I know that it is over, and that feeling to reprimand her will not return. I can truly ignore the post.


This experience reminds me of the temptation of Christ, who defeated Satan's three challenges with the Word of God. The third time Jesus resisted, that miraculous lying wonder left him for awhile. I didn't use the word of God, though I know many scriptures by heart, but I did use God's principles and one of the Beatitudes. My strength came from reading the Bible everyday, and through prayer committing my day to God, everyday.


It seems like a small thing, but these little skirmishes do matter. Being able to recognize them and who is behind the pressure that we feel to attack is important. God uses these trials to show us where we are in our growth. He also uses them to promote us higher into his benefits, so that along with our own blessings, we can better benefit others and glorify his name.
I feel great that that pressure is gone. I feel relief and I feel that I was successful. I must not stop, and rest on my laurels. The devil never rests, but neither does God. That fallen angel Lucifer was defeated, and left Christ for a season only. The opportunities to grow are never-ending.


Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called the children of God.
 Matthew 5:9 KJV

And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season.
Luke 4:13 KJV


If you would like to be sure that you are Saved, say this simple prayer:

Jesus, I believe that you are the Son of God, and the only Savior as it says in The Bible. Come into my heart, and save me now. I confess all of my sins to you and believe that you died for me so that I can come to know God. I believe and I receive all that you have for me. Thank you for my new life. Show me the way and help me to understand. Thank you that I don't have to fear death anymore, and that I have eternal life in you. 

Scriptures: BibleStudyTools.com 
Image: Pixabay.com Free Images

Understanding And Harnessing The Mind As Ron Carpenter, Jr. Teaches

I was listening to and watching Ron Carpenter, Jr. teach, in his series about the MindWorld, about our understanding of enemy activity in our lives. I felt pressed to share some of his outstanding quotes with you. Like Joyce Meyer's Battlefield of the Mind series, I believe in teachings that draw the Christian's attention to the importance of working with the Holy Spirit to take control of and harness the mind. I believe that success as a growing Christian comes through understanding and applying this basic and critical principle.

I do plan to read Pastor Carpenter's book The Necessity of an Enemy, and listen to all of his MindWorld series of teachings. His understanding helps the growing Christian to practically apply the principals of God to every area of life. Here are some of his quotes from the book The Necessity of an Enemy:

"Learning how not to get too high on life's highs or too low on life's lows will help keep you stable."

"But poverty has nothing to do with income; it has everything to do with thinking. Poverty isn't a financial state of affairs. It's a state of mind."

"If you give a cash windfall to someone who's been poor throughout life, the money will quickly vanish. If you leap over several levels of financial responsibility and strength, you don't learn how to be wise with your money."

"Faith comes by hearing, not by seeing. Most people think the opposite of faith is doubt. Not true. The opposite of faith is sight. The enemy wants you to live by something that you saw, something that contradicted what God said about you."

"If you can beat it in your mind, you can beat it in your life."

"If you are passively living life, it's going to pass you right by and your enemies will tear you to pieces."

Here is more info about Pastor Ron Carpenter, Jr., where to buy the book and where to listen to the teachings on Youtube. You should read the reviews at Amazon, Goodreads or anywhere you can find some. Decide for yourself if his book and teachings about this subject can benefit you. Some comments, as usual for anyone who writes and teaches, are quite degrading and critical. Others are appreciative. Make your decision yay or nay, pray, and be led by God's Spirit in you. Don't be moved solely on what others say. Use those opinions as a guide.

About Ron Carpenter, Jr. - http://is.gd/GsKkzm


Website & Church: Redemption http://is.gd/bUkZ7C

Book The Necessity of an Enemy: Amazon - http://amzn.com/B004Y89PJQ

Youtube Lessons:

The Necessity of an Enemy part 1 https://youtu.be/1utOKCNdp9Y

The Necessity of an Enemy part 2 https://youtu.be/sGje5Dkq3sk

The Necessity of an Enemy part 3 https://youtu.be/6wIE4ZYwew8

The Necessity of an Enemy part 4 https://youtu.be/3EbWEzy-pyU

The Necessity of an Enemy part 5 https://youtu.be/0ugWodvlzlU

The Necessity of an Enemy part 6 https://youtu.be/5fnkNfdL8Vk

The Necessity of an Enemy part 7 https://youtu.be/Kf9idUovoVU

The Necessity of an Enemy part 8 https://youtu.be/bnXHTYvuIa4

Image: Pixabay.com Free Images
Quotes: The Necessity of An Enemy. (c)2012 Ron Carpenter, Jr. Waterbrook Press:Colorado.


The Christian, Mental Illness & God


When suffering with emotional and mental challenges, Christians often ask questions such as is something wrong with me? Who will help me? Should I see a doctor and get a diagnosis? Why is this happening to me? Does God really care? Will I ever be free from this horrible suffering? 

There are many reasons that we struggle mentally. Some of them are hereditary, trauma and tragedy. The environment in which we grew up can cause and/or increase mental struggles. Despite the severity of these challenges, the Christian has a source of help that others do not have. Chantal C., a Christian blogger and artist who has managed her mental challenges for many years, shares,

"When we suffer tragic events and huge changes in our lives that lead to trauma, and on top of that have a mental illness, life can overpower us. We may even be in therapy and taking medication but due to our inner suffering, our support network does not seem to be enough.


What it comes down to, is that when we feel overpowered, trapped and defenseless by situations that are happening in our lives, the one we must go to is God. He is the one that will empower us, free us and give us strength to live the life He wants us to.
We must also ask Him the difficult questions we cannot figure out and understand. Why the torment? What purpose does it serve? With God there is a reason and as painful as our torment is and as hopeless as we may get, we must remember to always trust in Him. He provides for us a way out of our anguish through prayer and Scripture. Let us not give up on His love and salvation, the grace He has given us. Let us always strive for that newness of life in Christ."



I met Chantal through a Google+ Christian group, and was impressed by her insight, progress and honesty in journeying through the painful valley of Christian mental illness. I consider mental illness to be a challenge more so than a death sentence, though sadly it has resulted in death for many. It is, however, no more difficult to manage than other life challenges that also have resulted in death for Christians.

We don't know the answer as to why some Christians are crippled beyond repair by damaged emotions and mental processes, just as there is no understandable answer as to why some people in this world suffer so much more than others. Whatever the level or severity of the mental challenge of any Christian, the answer is always to look to God through Jesus Christ and what he did for us on the Cross. There is always hope in suffering, but some are so damaged as to not be able to grasp this hope, to go about obtaining help, or even to pray. It is important for us who can to always pray for those who suffer mentally and emotionally and who cannot help themselves.

Chantal graciously agreed to answer some deep questions about living with and healing from mental illness and emotional challenges. Here are her heartfelt, insightful and profound answers.

1.  When did you first know that you needed help with your mental processes? 
Though I struggled with mental illness most of my life, it was not until seven years ago, in 2008, that I realized I needed help. My world came crashing down on me and I needed hospitalization. I no longer had the mental and physical health I once did. My body shut down and depression settled within me. I felt like I was failing at life, making one mistake after another—broken relationships and lost of employments. I was once very motivated and had my own photography business but as time went on, it seemed like I was fading away from all that was positive in my life.

I realized I needed extra support when I overdosed twice in 2011. I was living with many life-changing experiences all at once and my mental health could not handle it.

I remember when I came out of the psychiatric hospital how ill I still was. My mind was filled with dark thoughts all the while I felt so alone inside. My emotions where still out of control as they wrestled within me. However, four months later I received the support I needed.


2.  Was there anyone to help you? 

I had many counselors since 2008 but it was in January 2012 that I finally found the right therapist. I started to work on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for personality disorders. This helped me tremendously to understand negative thought patterns, emotions and behavior. I am still in therapy as it takes many years to recover from Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Nevertheless, I am healing and doing better than ever.

I also received spiritual guidance. This helped me to seek deliverance as I became closer to God. I also learned many things about myself and God, especially that there was hope for me and that I could find it in Jesus. I was encouraged to read Scripture such as Psalm 51. Eventually, I knew God was giving me a fresh start—a chance at recovery.



3. Did you have formal diagnosis and treatment, and what advice do you give about seeking it?

When in hospital in 2011, I was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), later confirmed by another psychiatrist. The diagnosis was a relief to me, as I finally knew what mental illness I suffered from. This explained why I had such a chaotic and distressing life. Receiving a diagnosis helped me to realize I was not the only one struggling this way. This gave me hope. I then started my recovery journey consisting of therapy, medication and spirituality.

In my opinion, I think it is important for a person with mental illness to receive a diagnosis. This guides them in the proper direction for their healing process. Accepting what illness they have and seeking the right support are the first steps to recovery.



4.  How long have you known the Lord and how did you become a Christian? 
I have known the Lord since my early childhood years. My mother was there for me and shared her beliefs about God. As I got older, due to my symptoms, I often drifted on and off my Christian path. One thing I have always known throughout the years was that Jesus was my Savior. I always found consolation in knowing this, especially through the difficult times.

Nevertheless, it was not until three and half years ago that I truly became new in Christ and felt like my life was being transformed. I grew stronger in hope and trust towards God, and my recovery. I started to live that intimate relationship with Jesus, even in the midst of illness. 
5.  During your hardest times, have you ever felt that God does not care, or wondered if He even exists?

I know God always exists, but I felt like God did not care so much, when I lived through spiritual emptiness. These were times where I felt a deep emptiness within my core.  Moreover, I could not sense Him, feeling lost in my spiritual life and on my recovery journey. During the past four years, I have experienced spiritual emptiness many times. I either experienced it for hours, days or even months. Nonetheless, this emptiness would not last, my soul would resurface to God’s Light and I would be in awe of Him—knowing that He is always there even in the darkness.


6. How do you justify the suffering of mental illness with God's love? 
God loves all His children. The suffering that Christians with mental illness go through, is due to this fallen world we live in.  God does not want us to feel the agony of mental illness; He wants us to be happy, healthy and holy.

In order for this to happen, we must realize that we have a recovery journey to undertake and that an essential part of it concerns our relationship with God. We must seek Him with all our hearts in order to heal. Just as we have to accept our mental illness, we have to accept that God’s love is there for us, no matter what we have. Moreover, that His love is stronger than all our weaknesses.

7.  When did you start writing about your journey? 

I was inspired to write about my recovery journey during the year of 2012. When I became new in Christ, I felt called to share God’s Word, especially in a way that would help others with mental illness. Through my lived-experience and this newness of life, I decided at the end of the year to publish my blog. I not only wanted to express my healing process but also give others hope that recovery is possible. 



8.  What is your goal when you write about being a Christian with mental illnesses? 
I want people who are Christians and have mental illness such as BPD, to not feel alone with their inner pain. I know from my own experience the confusion and self-condemnation I struggled with concerning symptoms and faith. I believe others may feel the same way, therefore my goal is to be real, ease the suffering, give hope, offer compassion, and share God’s message. Therefore, to bring them closer to God with a better understanding of themselves within their Christian faith.



9.  When did you start painting and what do you do with your work? 
I have been painting on and off during my life, but the work that I treasure most is what I have worked on during these past four years. My paintings have expressed my pain with mental illness but also the hope of recovery.

I presently share my work on my blog and with Google+ communities.

10.  Are you trying to share a message through your paintings? 

While viewing abstract art, a person can see many things and feel different emotions. Therefore, it is something one lives for themselves. However, what I hope for others to experience when they see my paintings is to be moved in a positive way, and that the artwork may speak to them personally.



11. Can the Christian with mental illness be completely free of it? 
I believe that Christians who suffer from mental illness can find freedom from the torment of their symptoms especially if they have chosen a spiritual life along their recovery journey. Besides therapy and medication, finding our spiritual identity in the midst of the healing process is essential to that freedom.

I believe that individuals with BPD can recover, without a doubt, from their mental illness. I say this because I have always believed from the beginning of my recovery journey that I would recover someday, and I am gradually, three years later. Besides therapy, I knew I could only recover with my ultimate Healer—God. 


I think that recovery, for Christians with mental illness, becomes a success when they have stopped suffering from the majority of their symptoms, and they have started to discover and accept their individuality and the truth about themselves—who they really are without the illness. It is when they have finally found their way to that happier, healthier and holier life. They are free from the inner pain, they sense joy and peace in their lives, and the wounds that their soul suffered from, are finally healed.





Chantal C.
Chantal C. has lived with mental illness since her early teens. Her turning point came in 2012, when with therapy and spirituality she gained insight into her illnesses. Though she had drifted in and out of her faith as a Christian, during this time she found new life in Christ. Her desire is to offer hope to other Christian mental illness sufferers. She enjoys painting, photography and writing, and considers these activities to be healing therapies. 

Chantal has discontinued her two blogs,  Mental Illness & The Christian Faith, and Chantal's Art & Photography, and is working on a new blog presence.




 

Luxuriating On Sunday


When I was young, and not so young, I used to hate Sundays. I dreaded the ending of Saturday night, because I knew it was coming...that day, that strange day. Sunday was a day that was filled with silence, boredom, and guilt. Where I come from, all stores were closed on Sundays, or closed very early or opened very late. There was hardly any traffic, and hardly any pedestrians, because mostly everyone who did not go to Church slept in late.

Especially as a child, the prettier the sky on Sunday, the more it reminded me of God, and that he probably didn't like it because I was not in church. I don't know why big, fluffy, rolling white clouds reminded me of God and church. Probably because I often saw images like this on hand fans and obituaries whenever I did attend a church service.

Though it was a day filled with extra good food and desserts, Sunday was a day to be quiet. If you weren't told to be quite, you were inclined to be quiet because the world was. It was a laborious day to get through. I wanted the noise of traffic, and people and worldly activity to drown out any guilt that I felt about not reverencing God on that day.

Even the TV programs were different. Singing choirs and men talking and yelling about things of God. Hardly any good programs came on at all. I had to wait until afternoon or evening to see anything interesting. Even then, it usually wasn't my good, favorite programs. Just programs to drag myself through until Monday, when the world would return to normal. Many things have changed since I was that young, worldly, fearful, bored youth, wishing for any day but Sunday.

I enjoy Sundays now. Though these reserved days still fill me with quietness, it's a different type of quietness; and there is no guilt. In most places I have lived, there is almost no difference between Sundays and other days of the week. There is little change in traffic, pedestrian or otherwise. Stores are open by 10:00 am, if not all day. More people work on Sundays now than when I was young; this being a necessity for many of the services that we enjoy.

I feel a reverence on Sundays now, towards a God who wants me to slow down and rest one day per week. I know that if not Sunday, I should live a slower life on another day, each week. I see the value of having one day that is very different from the other six. The towering, puffy clouds on a Sunday day, or any day, remind me of a God who loves me unconditionally, not of condemnation. There is no more guilt on any Sunday, no matter what I do or don't do; whether I am in church physically, or not. There is no more fear, or boredom on this unusual day. I can enjoy and luxuriate on that wind-down day, no matter what. I know that this God sent his son, Jesus Christ, to remove all of my guilt, and self-imposed judgments, and I don't have to fear anymore.

Image Credit: Pixabay Free Images

Bible 3+5 Week: More Power From On High

Read the Bible 3 times a day this week.

JOIN ME for a week of reading the Bible 3 times a day for the next 5 days; Monday through Friday. Some of you already do this. Some do it occasionally. Jump on whenever you read this, even if a day or two later.

Easiest times are morning, around noon-time, and before bed. Adjust as needed, as close together or as far apart as necessary, but not running all together. Should be 3 distinctive times in each 24-hour period. I'm reading in my current book of Luke, and I added 1 John to read mid-day. May return to Luke tonight, or something new.

GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY
as you seek His face and
worship Him in spirit and in truth!


The Truth About Some Fears

As many of us have, I have been battling fear of various things, almost at every turn. There are many things to fear in our society today, and it's not getting any better, as the Bible predicts. Couple this fact with the many fears in our personal lives, and you have a scenario of relentless and increasing torment.

I began to reach out to Christian friends for prayer, without burdening them with details.


I had begun to seek an answer, through consistent and specific prayer, to eradicating this unhealthy fear. I also began to reach out to Christian friends, without unloading and burdening them with too much detail, for help through prayer. I woke up this morning with an interesting revelation.

I already understood that casting down imagination is vital to freedom from fear. My revelation was that there were other things that I had not been casting down, because I did not understand them to be thoughts that needed that. We think constantly, so may feel that if we cast down every jot of thoughts, we would be mentally lobotomizing our brains. We would become vegetables, therefore we know that we have to pick and choose which thoughts to cast down. This sounds like an easy task, but that is why we need God. It is not always as cut and dried as all that. Sometimes there can be a thin line.

Some fears are extensions of real occurrences, and mask themselves as preparation.


I was shown this morning that there were thoughts that I allowed to flourish because I had identified them as highly-likely future occurrences, whether that future is today, next month or next year. We usually see fears as imaginary, or in the mind, or made up. The most damaging fears that I have been enduring are extensions of real occurrences.  Because of this, I did not see them as thoughts that needed to be cast down. My mind had labeled them as highly likely, leading me to allow them to flourish so that I could devise a plan to stop or circumvent them.

My inner man saw it as preparing myself, or being wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove. The resulting fears were running rampant because technically and realistically, I could not control nor prevent these possible developments, no matter how small or large they might be. It seems very simple and that I should not have needed revelation to understand. It seems a moot subject, a given, elementary, but that is why we need God. It is not always as cut and dried as all that.

Even as reborn spirits that have a direct link to God, we still have blind spots. We currently live in a fallen world and exist in fallen bodies, so we enter blind spots often. To not understand the revelation of this and to not accept it is to be continually plagued by failures in our lives, and to be confused by our lack of advancement in some areas. Ignoring this knowledge also means that we will not be able to receive God's answer when we ask, seek and knock.

Though God sometimes removes bad circumstances, the answer to freedom is often within.


The answer is not always in the changing or removal of outward circumstances, no matter how difficult, challenging or horrific. How many times have we heard or read that? It is a hard pill to swallow, depending on what you are going through. Though God certainly changes and removes bad circumstances for some, and sometimes for us in his timing, the answer to freedom is often within. There are times that we cannot find it though, without Him.

God removes the dark glasses, raises the blinds and strips off from our eyes and minds the gauze of each gossamer veil that we could never find or remove. About the simplest things, He reveals deep answers that are too confusingly deep and simple for us to ever dig out. Time and time again He has shown me that though the answer was right before me, like a pebble in my path, and simple in comparison to what I was thinking, I would never have found it had He not revealed it to me.

We need God to help us find the answer that is a pebble in our path that we kick to the side, or step over and go on our way.


When we pray, we think that we already understand. This is why my consistent prayer is for him to make my eye single, make my crooked paths straight and order my steps in His word. The battle is certainly not over, but I have advanced.

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 
(Matthew 6:22 KJV)

 I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, And crooked places straight. These things I will do for them, And not forsake them.
(Isaiah 42:16 NKJV)

  Make my steps secure through your promise, and do not let any sin control me. 
(Psalm 119:133 GW)
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