Over the past year the Lord has brought me through many trials, tribulations, struggles...what ever you would like to to call them. I do believe that it is perfectly fine to wrestle with God. There are going to be times when you doubt and have questions. Psalm 89 gives me hope...If you read it, you will think I am crazy. It starts off bad...the middle is bad...and it ends bad. There is no hope in it. Yet if you are struggling it gives hope to know you are not the only one. Everything is not always roses!
Recently the sermons have been about Spiritual Warfare and prayer. I often think of two books by Frank Peretti: This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness. If you have not read them I encourage you to do so. They are fiction but challenge our thinking about the battle that is going on in the Spiritual Realm.
Eph 6:12 " For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
I have noticed in my life and the lives of some who are close to me that they are struggling in their walk with the Lord. Why? Satan and his followers are not happy. If they can make us ineffective for the Kingdom of God they will! We need to hold onto the Truth. Yes there are questions. Yes there are things that we do not understand and cant fully comprehend as humans. The Truth is...God created us in His image to be in fellowship with him. The angels failed to worship him...Satan fell and took others with him...God created Hell for them! In the Garden of Eden, the perfect union between God and Man was broken. Satan didn't want Man to be with God. God love us...He loves us. Jesus died...He took on all our sins, conquered death, and rose again. So we can have that perfect communion with God again!
If you are struggling...
You are not alone
Satan is prowling like a lion
Speak Truth over your life
You may not want to read the Word or Pray...but do it. Speak the Truth into your life. Ask for Prayer. He will never leave you nor forsake you nor let you be plucked from His hand. He loves you. I know this...because He has rescued me.
The Battle is On. The Battle is Real...Do you have your Armour on?
Monday, April 25, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Codependency
What do you think of when someone says they are codependent? Many people think that it means the person needs someone else to live, that they can't live "alone" or by themselves.
"Codependency is a self-focused way of life in which a person blind to his or her true self continually reacts to others being controlled by and seeking to control their behavior, attitudes, and/or opinions, resulting in spiritual sterility, loss of authenticity, and absence of intimacy."
That is a loaded definition. Take some time to process what it is saying.
Codependents react like a sales person in a china shop...anticipating every ones next move and focusing on what they can do to insure nothing "bad" happens and if something does how they are going to "clean up" the mess.
It is a very unhealthy way to live for the codependent and leaves those in the codependents life negatively enabled.
"A wife whose work-addicted husband neglects the family isn't loving him when she silently takes up the slack for him. People who enable their loved ones to remain in their addictions are in bondage to their own codependent behavior, and their choices fall radically short of Jesus' strong, confrontive love."
Quotes from Bondage to Bonding, by Nancy Groom
"Codependency is a self-focused way of life in which a person blind to his or her true self continually reacts to others being controlled by and seeking to control their behavior, attitudes, and/or opinions, resulting in spiritual sterility, loss of authenticity, and absence of intimacy."
That is a loaded definition. Take some time to process what it is saying.
Codependents react like a sales person in a china shop...anticipating every ones next move and focusing on what they can do to insure nothing "bad" happens and if something does how they are going to "clean up" the mess.
It is a very unhealthy way to live for the codependent and leaves those in the codependents life negatively enabled.
"A wife whose work-addicted husband neglects the family isn't loving him when she silently takes up the slack for him. People who enable their loved ones to remain in their addictions are in bondage to their own codependent behavior, and their choices fall radically short of Jesus' strong, confrontive love."
Quotes from Bondage to Bonding, by Nancy Groom
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Growth not Recovery
There are many 12-step programs out there and many self-help books. We are all looking for a quick fix. We think we should be over and done with issues...yesterday. Though many of these programs and books are very helpful and effective, we need to know we will not be fully recovered!
"The time frame for growth is a lifetime. We speak of growth, not recovery, because strictly speaking recovery suggests that it is possible to fully recover from the effects of evil in our lives. But we sadly acknowledge that our disease is incurable and terminal. We will die of it. Yet in Francis Schaeffer's words, we can hope for "substantial healing" in this life, and total recovery in heaven." -Dr. Dan B Allender
"The time frame for growth is a lifetime. We speak of growth, not recovery, because strictly speaking recovery suggests that it is possible to fully recover from the effects of evil in our lives. But we sadly acknowledge that our disease is incurable and terminal. We will die of it. Yet in Francis Schaeffer's words, we can hope for "substantial healing" in this life, and total recovery in heaven." -Dr. Dan B Allender
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