He’d been sold. Again. First his brothers had sold him to the slave traders, and now, Joseph had been sold to an Egyptian soldier! How far he had fallen! How had he become such a bitter taste in his brothers’ mouths? Knowing that he would see neither his father or his brother Benjamin, who knew nothing of his half-brothers’ evil intent, again, brought tears to his eyes, every time he thought of them.
Depression threatened to overwhelm him, yet, by Adonai’s grace, he was still alive. He was now a slave, and there was nothing he could do to change it. “Elohim,” Joseph whispered softly, as he was led away to the Egyptian soldier’s home, “please be near me, lest I die in this pit of despair… And comfort my father, Adonai. Give him peace, and please, protect little Benjamin from the evil intents of our brothers. El Shaddai, deliver all of us from evil!”
Each day Joseph worked hard for his owner, dropping to his sleeping mat at night, often too exhausted to dwell on his fate. That doesn’t mean that he did not mourn for the loss of his father, his family and his freedom. He deeply grieved for them, hiding his pain from everyone during the day, as He served his master, Potiphar, faithfully, and without complaint. In the cover of darkness, at night, however, especially during his first year as a slave, Joseph often wept, as he pleaded with Almighty God to protect and bless him and his family. The Lord answered Joseph’s prayers and showered him with His favor, so that everything he did succeeded, and Potiphar, being a shrewd man, recognized and rewarded Joseph’s success by giving him charge over his entire household and everything in it.
Despite his bitter circumstances, Joseph was truly grateful to Elohim for allowing His blessings to rain down on him, and he set his heart to walking in humble obedience to both God and his master. Though he desperately missed his family, even his deceitful brothers, Joseph worked hard, refusing to give in to the depression that sometimes threatened to overwhelm him. Several years went by, as Joseph worked for Potiphar, and he grew in strength and stature. Indeed, Joseph was a very handsome young man, and it wasn’t long before others noticed…
She began to watch him, as he went about his business in her husband’s house each day, seemingly oblivious to the effect he had on her. She didn’t say anything to him at first. She just watched him, and wondered what it would be like to be touched by such a man. He wouldn’t be her first conquest, for her husband was gone much of the time, fighting battles and wars. He often left her alone for months at a time. Certainly, no one in their culture would blame her for her looking to others to satisfy her needs, for most of them did the same thing.
After some time had passed, the woman finally acted on her desires, and boldly walked up behind Joseph one day, while he was working. She placed her arms around his waist. “Come sleep with me,” she softly whispered, her lips so close to his ear that he felt the moistness of her hot breath against it.
Startled, Joseph turned to look at her in shock. “Oh mistress, I couldn’t! Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household.No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.”
Without waiting for a response, Joseph quickly spun around on his heel, and left the room. “El Shaddai, protect me,” he gasped, when he was alone, as fear and trembling threatened to overtake him. It felt like a weight had settled in the pit of his stomach, and Joseph felt the bile of nausea rising up in his throat.
From that time forth, Potiphar’s wife made it her mission to coax Joseph into having sex with her. She refused to take no for an answer, and his rejection only seemed to fuel her desire for him. Though he tried to avoid her, she somehow managed to find him again and again.
Finally, one day, when no one else was around, Potiphar’s wife came upon him and insisted that he have sex with her. She walked up to him, and ordered him yet again to, “Come, have sex with me.” Then, grabbing his cloak in her hands, she attempted to remove it. Not knowing what else to do, Joseph slipped away from his cloak and ran away from the conniving woman. She was furious.
Holding his cloak in her hand, she screamed in fury, and when her servants rushed to her aid, she said, “Look! My husband has brought this Hebrew slave here to make fools of us! He came into my room to rape me, but I screamed.When he heard me scream, he ran outside and got away, but he left his cloak behind with me.”
Later, when her husband returned home from work, she repeated the story to Potiphar, saying, “That Hebrew slave you’ve brought into our house tried to come in and fool around with me, but when I screamed, he ran outside, leaving his cloak with me!”
Joseph, meanwhile, was in his room, crying out to the Lord for mercy. The situation had become unbearable. He could see no way to escape from this untenable circumstance, but one thing was certain. He would betray neither El Shaddai nor his master Potiphar. As he bowed before the Lord, the door to his room burst open, and Potiphar entered, with rage on his face.
“I have given you everything!” he shouted. “There is nothing that I have withheld from you, except my wife! Yet you betrayed my trust and tried to rape her. Is this how you repay my kindness, slave?”
Joseph paled and his eyes grew wide at Potiphar’s angry accusation. “Master,” he whispered softly. “You have been very kind and generous to me, indeed, and I am very grateful. I would never betray your trust in such an evil way. Nor would I betray Elohim’s kindness to me.”
As Potiphar gazed into Joseph’s eyes, did he realize that his wife had duped him? Because his wife’s accusations had been so public, and because no one took the word of a slave over his master’s wife, there was no trial. Potiphar had to save face, even at Joseph’s expense. Therefore, Joseph was thrust into prison, for a crime that he didn’t commit. Indeed, he was cast into jail, for a crime that didn’t even exist, except in the twisted minds of his accusers.
Beloved reader, things are not always what they seem. In this day and age, we are told to believe certain things without question, even though there is no evidence to back them up. We have seen false accusations against men and women abound in our country, and in others as well. Yet, Joseph is a true life testimony that things are not always what they seem.
Jesus was wrongfully accused of blasphemy and many other crimes that simply were not true. Yet, He was led away like a lamb to a slaughter, bearing the guilt and sins of you and me. To many in the world, He seemed guilty. Yet, things were not what they seemed…
For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT)
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds ofevil against you falsely for My sake.12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, forso they persecuted the prophets who were before you.(Matthew 5:10-12 NKJV)
For the last few days, I’ve pondered about what to write about persecution. Lord, what would You have me write? Many of us, who have been blessed to live in the United States, are often ignorant of the persecution and crimes committed against Christians. We often, mistakenly think that the persecution of Christians and Jews is a thing of the past, but that is terribly foolish and wrong, for many of our brothers and sisters around the world are being persecuted, even now, as you read this message.
Indeed, I believe that there is coming a day, when even U.S. citizens will be persecuted for their faith in Christ. In fact, that day has already begun.
9 “Butwatch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You willbe brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.10 Andthe gospel must first be preached to all the nations.11 But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand,or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak,but the Holy Spirit.12 Nowbrother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.13 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. Buthe whoendures to the end shall be saved.(Mark 13:9-13 NKJV)
We are living in dangerous times. You don’t have to look far to see how children have turned against their parents, and parents have turned against their children. In other countries, we’ve seen how families from other beliefs, (Hindu, Buddhist, and Islam for example) have turned against their own loved ones, by disinheriting them, beating and torturing them, and even killing them, simply because they believe in Jesus.
The chart listed above, shows the statistics for 2018, for persecuted Christians around the world. It is eye opening, and if you are a child of God, then this should concern you, because those persecuted Christians are your brothers and sisters in Christ. I got this information from the following website:
According to these statistics, approximately 8 Christians die daily, for their faith, which totals 255 Christians monthly. For those who live in the U.S., can you imagine waking up each day, not knowing whether this is the day that someone will betray you for your faith in Christ? Can you imagine wondering, throughout the day, whether you may be murdered because you are a follower of Christ? The statistics tell us that 104 people each month, which is a little more than 3 people daily, are abducted for their faith. Imagine, being snatched from your home, your place of employment, or from the streets, because you are a Christian. As if this isn’t bad enough, 180 women are raped, sexually harassed, or forced into unwanted marriages every month. That’s 6 women who are raped, forced into unwanted, mostly abusive marriages and sexually harassed every day, just because they love Jesus. Imagine the fear, shame and pain that these women endure! 66 churches every month are attacked, and 160 Christians are arrested and imprisoned for their faith, without benefit of a trial.
Beloved reader, don’t just sigh and shake your head. Do you know that if you are a believer, you, too, may one day suffer persecution? I don’t share this with you to frighten you, but so that you won’t be caught unaware. Do you know that here, in the U.S., Christians are being sued for standing up for their faith, which is our first amendment right?
You don’t often hear about these things on broadcast news media outlets, or in most newspapers, because defending the rights of Christians is not part of their agenda. Instead, many are trying to silence Christians, because true believers refuse to embrace sinful lifestyles, such as abortion, adultery, fornication and homosexuality, to name just a few. Christians, such as our Vice-President, Mike Pence, are mocked and ridiculed for our beliefs.
Nonbelievers claim that Christians are narrow-minded and intolerant, and yet, they are the ones who are trying to silence us. All too often, debates end in name calling and false accusations. They do this because, “All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.”(John 3:20 NLT)
Beloved, in these last days, don’t be shocked by the things that are happening in the world around you, and in your world. For Jesus warned us about this…
12 “But before all this occurs, there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will stand trial before kings and governors because you are My followers.13 But this will be your opportunity to tell them about Me.14 So don’t worry in advance about how to answer the charges against you,15 for I will give you the right words and such wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to reply or refute you!16 Even those closest to you—your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends—will betray you. They will even kill some of you.17 And everyone will hate you because you are My followers.18 But not a hair of your head will perish!19 By standing firm, you will win your souls.”(Luke 21:12-19 NLT)
Indeed, my friend, I suggest that we shouldn’t be surprised that people hate us because of our faith. We should instead, be surprised by the ones who don’t hate us. So, what can we do about this persecution of God’s people? There is one thing that every one of us can do, no matter where we live, or what our circumstances are. We can pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ, who are suffering. The Apostle Paul even let us know what to pray for our brothers and sisters, and so did the writer of Hebrews…
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
19 And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.20 I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for Him, as I should.(Ephesians 6:18-20 NLT)
Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies. (Hebrews 13:3 NLT)
Jesus promised that the kingdom of heaven belongs to those who are persecuted for His name’s sake, and that they will receive a great reward. Beloved, let’s be active in our prayers for our persecuted brethren, and remember, you or I could very well be the next one to be persecuted for our faith. And if, you or I do suffer from persecution one day, hold tight to Jesus’ promise, and may we have the same attitude that Peter had…
12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. 14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. 16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.
17 For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 Now “If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?”
19 Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator. (1 Peter 4:12-19 NKJV)
Who knows how long he had lived this way? Can you even begin to imagine what it must have been like for him? Have you ever been in that position?
His life was completely out of control. He had no hope. Filled with pain, fear, anger and bitterness, life was totally meaningless. His thoughts were a jumbled mess, and most of the time, he was unable to put a sentence together in his mind, much less speak coherently. And throughout it all, there was the constant barrage of noise coming from the voices in his head.
No one else could hear the voices, but it didn’t make them any less real, because he heard them. Night and day, they whispered and shouted at him, constantly accusing him, telling him what a failure he was. There was no peace. There was no quiet. He couldn’t escape the voices that taunted him constantly.
They were vile and evil, yet he was powerless to fight them, so he tried to escape them by cutting himself, hoping to die, but always, to no avail. Day and night, he howled in pain and outrage, and breaking all restraints that were placed on him, he would run into the wilderness, screaming at his tormentors, which no one else could see.
Family and friends had long since given up on him. He had no one to care about him. He was all alone with his demons, living in a graveyard outside of town. He was what we might call a zombie today. Indeed, he was a dead man walking.
Do you know any walking dead men or women, boys or girls? Do you know any like this man, filled with violence, rage, fear and animosity? Do you know any who suffer as this man did – hearing those tormenting voices constantly attacking him? Do you suffer as this man did? Is there any hope?
Today, doctors use medications to quiet the voices, but those medications often leave you in a fog, with many side-effects, and though the voices are quieted, they are still there… So, what can be done to help people? What can be done to help you or your loved one?
From a distance away, the man saw Someone step out of a boat, and he ran toward Him. Did he somehow recognize that this One could help him? I’ve thought about this, and I can’t imagine why the demons who tormented the man would want to run up to Jesus, because they recognized Him immediately, and they knew what would happen to them if they entered His presence. Therefore, I can only conclude that this poor, desperate man must have felt the fear in his demonic tormentors, or perhaps he somehow knew that this was his one chance, and he made a beeline for Jesus, bowing low before Him…
Fearfully, the demons screamed, “Why are you interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, I beg You, don’t torture me!” (Luke 8:28)
Jesus spoke to this demon, called Legion, for there were many in the man, and commanded the demons to go, casting them into a herd of pigs, who then ran off the side of a cliff, drowning in the lake below. The keepers of the herd, upon seeing this, fled to the nearby village, fearfully telling the villagers what had happened. When they and the villagers returned, they saw the once naked and wretched man fully clothed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, conversing with Him, and they were terribly frightened. In their fear, they begged Jesus to leave them. (Matthew 8:28-34 NLT)(Luke 8:26-39 NLT)(Mark 5:1-20 NLT)
I’ve never understood that. Wouldn’t you think they would have rejoiced to see that poor man restored to sanity? Wouldn’t you think they would be relieved that they no longer had to worry about him attacking them or their loved ones? I would have thought they would have thrown a great celebration, and sought to know the One who had set this captive free…
And yet, that’s not what happened. Just as the people of Israel didn’t want to hear the voice of God or know His ways, so these people rejected His Son. Is it possible that they were afraid He would change their lives? Were they afraid of the sin and the demons He might expose within them?
18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in Him. But anyone who does not believe in Him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s Light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the Light, for their actions were evil.20 All who do evil hate the Light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.21 But those who do what is right come to the Light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”(John 3:18-21 NLT)
What about you, beloved reader? Will you run to Him and let Him set you free? Or will you beg Him to leave, as the villagers in Gadarenes did?
1 In late autumn, in the month of Kislev, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was at the fortress of Susa.2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had returned there from captivity and about how things were going in Jerusalem.
3 They said to me, “Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
In my last post, I promised to address the United States’ Illegal Immigration problem from a biblical perspective, and one of the first things that I want to note is that Jerusalem, God’s holy city is and has been surrounded by a great wall, for many centuries. In fact, when the Jewish refugees returned to their ancient home, after being captives of first Babylon, then Persia for seventy years, they returned to find their city in tatters. Walls were torn down and burned. Why was this wall so important to Jerusalem, and can we draw any parallels between their wall and the United States’ determination to build a wall today?
4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven.
As you well know, there has been a lot of outcry in the U.S. regarding the building of a wall along our borders. On the one hand, we have people crying, “Build that wall!” while on the other hand, we have people equally outraged crying out against it. As I was preparing to write this post about illegal immigration from a bibilcal perspective, the Lord placed Nehemiah on my heart. Therefore, as I share his story with you, we will compare Jerusalem’s need for their wall to be restored, and our own nation’s cry for a wall.
1 Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan, during the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never before appeared sad in his presence.2 So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to me. You must be deeply troubled.”
Then I was terrified,3 but I replied, “Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where my ancestors are buried is in ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
4 The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?”
With a prayer to the God of heaven,5 I replied, “If it please the king, and if you are pleased with me, your servant, send me to Judah to rebuild the city where my ancestors are buried.”
6 The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked, “How long will you be gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the king agreed to my request.
After much mourning, praying and fasting about the sad state of his homeland and its broken wall, the king of Persia, whom Nehemiah served as a cup-bearer, inquired about his obvious heartache. Nehemiah then told the king about his concern for Jerusalem, and his brothers and sisters, and the king immediately asked, “Well, how can I help you?” Obviously Nehemiah had favor with both God and King Artaxerxes.
The walls of Jerusalem were originally built to protect its inhabitants, including the Judean king, and the holy Temple of God, from the attacks of their enemies. The walls were built and rebuilt to keep Jerusalem’s enemies out…
After praying to the Lord, Nehemiah asked King Artaxerxes to send him to Jerusalem, so that he could rebuild that once great city on a hill, the land of his fathers, and the king agreed to do so, giving Nehemiah a letter to Asaph, the manager of his forest, instructing him to give Nehemiah the lumber he needed to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, its gates, the Temple gates, and a house for Nehemiah. King Artaxerxes also sent letters to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing them to allow Nehemiah to pass safely through their land so he could rebuild the city of Jerusalem. The king also sent horsemen and army officers along to protect Nehemiah. (see Nehemiah 2:7-9).
11 So I arrived in Jerusalem. Three days later,12 I slipped out during the night, taking only a few others with me. I had not told anyone about the plans God had put in my heart for Jerusalem. We took no pack animals with us except the donkey I was riding.13 After dark I went out through the Valley Gate, past the Jackal’s Well, and over to the Dung Gate to inspect the broken walls and burned gates.14 Then I went to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but my donkey couldn’t get through the rubble.15 So, though it was still dark, I went up the Kidron Valley instead, inspecting the wall before I turned back and entered again at the Valley Gate.
16 The city officials did not know I had been out there or what I was doing, for I had not yet said anything to anyone about my plans. I had not yet spoken to the Jewish leaders—the priests, the nobles, the officials, or anyone else in the administration.17 But now I said to them, “You know very well what trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire. Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!”18 Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king.
They replied at once, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” So they began the good work.
As I read the response of Jerusalem’s city officials, priests, nobles and members of the administration, I immediately drew a parallel to the response of many of our nation’s citizens cry for Donald Trump to, “Build that wall!” Like those Jewish refugees from so long ago, our nation’s citizens are weary of the terrorism and hatred that is taking place within and without our nation’s borders.
Please bear with me as I attempt to speak for those United States’ citizens who love our great nation, and who, contrary to the accusations of many more liberal people within the nation, are neither bigoted, racist, hate-filled xenophobes, homophobes, or any of the other epithets aimed at them. The men and women of this nation, who are crying out for our immigration laws to be obeyed, are simply men and women who care about this nation’s citizens and its children. Those who want that wall built, do not want it built to keep good, law-abiding immigrants out, but to keep those out, who have no respect for the law. We have not cried out for new immigration laws, but for those laws that have already been written, to be enforced. There are some who accuse the people who believe this way of being inhumane. Some even accuse Christians of not being “good Christians” because they hold these beliefs. I disagree.
1 Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God.2 So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished.3 For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you.4 The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong.5 So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.
According to scripture, a “good Christian” obeys the law of the land, providing that law does not cause us to disobey God. Enforcing our nation’s immigration laws does not cause people to disobey God. Furthermore, I would submit that many, who are promoting sanctuary cities, and encouraging people to disobey federal immigration laws, are not being humane, but anarchists. Indeed, when we look at the actions of those who accused President Trump of being a demagogue, who stirred up violence in his campaign, we soon discover that it is many of these people, who are in fact, demagogues. They have attempted to preempt free speech, by leading violent riots against anyone who does not support their views, on many college campuses across the country. It is many of these people, rather than the ones supporting adherence to the nation’s immigration laws, who are engaging in anarchy.
Legal immigrants and refugees have been, and always will be welcome to settle into our country. However, those enter into our country illegally, already demonstrate a lack of respect for the laws of our land. It is utterly wrong to reward those who illegally enter this country, demonstrating their contempt for our laws, while other immigrants, who choose to come to this country legally, must wait for years sometimes. Further, how is it logical or reasonable to expect the taxpayers of this nation to support illegal immigrants with free healthcare, no taxes, food benefits, and other aid, while many legal citizens are often unable to obtain the help they need???
Is it reasonable to welcome people that we know nothing about, people who may be terrorists and criminals, into this nation? Absolutely not! Those who claim that welcoming everyone into our land is humane are wrong. It is not humane to our own citizens, who may become prey to terrorists and criminals, simply because some people wanted to feel good about themselves by letting anyone and everyone enter our country.
Laws are put into place for the good of the citizens of that land. Immigration laws protect a nation’s citizens. Look at how quickly and horribly radical Islamic terrorism has invaded Europe, since those countries within the European Union have no borders.
A border wall between the United States and Mexico, another nation, is not the same as the Berlin wall, which separated brothers and sisters from the same country (indeed the same city!). Just as Jerusalem’s walls were necessary and approved of by God, to protect Judea’s sovereignty, so too, is it necessary to protect the sovereignty of the U.S.A., and if that means building a wall, I feel certain the Lord would approve.
As I watched the preceding interview the other night, I grew more and more outraged. Have we, the people of the United States totally lost all reason? Have we lost the ability to judge between right and wrong? What is wrong with deporting criminal illegal immigrants?
The attorney defending Henry Sanchez Milian, the rape suspect in this interview, is callous, as he lays out his plan to accuse the victim, a fourteen year old girl, of falsely accusing the perpetrators of raping her. Instead, he cold-bloodedly states, the girl had consensual sex with these men. Would anyone with an ounce of sense actually believe that a fourteen year old girl would want to have sex with two men in the boy’s bathroom, during school hours?
Do you want to know what is equally disturbing? Since that interview, where is the outcry from enraged feminists jumping to the defense of this poor little girl? Wouldn’t you think that ALL women would be infuriated, knowing that this attorney intends to place the VICTIM on trial, in the place of the perpetrators?
Montgomery County Superintendent Dr. Jack Smith
Yet, instead of an outcry against this heinous act, and the abominable plans of the defense attorney to attack the young victim, people defend these two young criminals’ right to be here in this country. In fact, the school superintendent of Rockville, MD was actually offended by the many parents, who were upset with his school district for having these two men in the same class as fourteen year old children. He even went so far as to threaten the parents in an email, “While I know this tragic incident has become part of a national political debate, I want to remind community members that the lives of real students have been forever affected. While many have chosen to engage civilly in the conversation, far too many have crossed the line with racist, xenophobic calls and emails. MCPS is working with law enforcement to identify those who are making threats toward our students and schools. This behavior will not be tolerated in our community.”
Has he lost his mind? Should parents not be concerned? A child was raped in one of his schools by not one, but two illegal immigrants, one of whom was a legal adult, at the age of eighteen, and the other, who lacked being an adult by months. Perhaps Dr. Smith would better serve the public by protecting the lives of innocent children, rather than lecturing their concerned parents and accusing them of being racists and xenophobes, and threatening them for voicing their opinions. After all, the first amendment still stands!
Then, in Martha MacCallum’s interview, the seventeen year old perpetrator’s attorneys blamed President Trump’s vitriol for people’s disgust with his client and the other perpetrator. Really? Does it not seem logical that people are angry because these two criminals broke the law by illegally entering this country, and then they broke it once again, by raping a little girl?
Why is it so hard to understand that we are a sovereign nation of legal immigrants? Immigrants are welcome to enter our country legally. There are many legal immigrants who now live in this great land of ours, and they love our nation, and our nation loves them. They are here because they chose to obey our nation’s immigration laws, just as our forefathers did. Like every other sovereign nation, we welcome those immigrants who want to obey our laws.
However, those who choose to enter this country illegally are not welcome, because by doing so, they are breaking the law of the land. Can this country sustain all of the illegal immigrants who sneak into it? Should this country provide all of the rights and privileges that are afforded to our citizens and the legal immigrants and refugees that enter it? Does this sovereign nation not have the right to decides who enters into this land??? Let’s look at it another way…
Suppose someone broke into your home, and you caught him and called the police. When the police arrived at your home, they removed the intruder and took him away. A few days later, when you returned home from work, you discover your young daughter lying on the bathroom floor, weeping and crying out for you. Sobbing, she tells you that the intruder from the other night broke into your home and raped her.
Outraged, you once again phone the police, and when they arrive at your home, you ask, “Why did you set that intruder free? He raped my child.”
“I’m sorry this happened,” the officer replies, “but really, he had just as much right to come into this house as you do. Although he wasn’t born in this home and this family, doesn’t he have a right to live in a nice home?”
“Indeed he doesn’t,” you reply. “This is MY home, and MY family! I have a right to lock my doors and protect my family from ALL aliens who do not belong here. Furthermore, my daughter would never have been raped, if you had locked that criminal up, when you caught him the other night!”
“Sir, I’m sorry your daughter was hurt, but this man’s illegal entry into your home has nothing to do with her rape. Lots of women and girls are raped in many different places. Don’t be racist or xenophobic by not allowing anyone who wants to come into your home to enter, just because your daughter got raped this one time.”
Does this scenario seem reasonable? Of course not! It’s ridiculous – and yet, so are the many arguments and accusations being thrown at those who are against illegal immigration. I’ve written this post from a logical perspective, yet I’ve heard many liberals accuse people who believe this way of being inhumane, and even unchristian. Therefore, in my next post, I’ll address this issue from a biblical stance…
If you were to put a price on yourself, what would you say you’re worth? Would you say you are worthy of all the love, joy and peace that every human longs for? Or would you say you’re worthless? How do you value yourself? Is your value based on what others say about you? Or is it based on what you think of yourself? Do you think more highly of yourself than you should? Or do you devalue yourself? How should we value ourselves?
It makes sense to look to the One who created us. He alone knows why He made us, and what we were made for. How does God, our Creator value us? In order to understand how God values us, it is important to know what our purpose is. What were we created for?
Bring all who claim Me as their God,for I have made them for My glory.It was I who created them.
We were created for God’s glory. Think about that. We weren’t created to be garbage thrown in a rubbish heap. We weren’t created to be nothing or no one. We were created for God’s glory. Do you know what that means?
It means that everyone who is reading this post right now, and struggling with his/her self-worth, must now realize that you were created for a great purpose. Dictionary.com definesglorythis way:
noun, pluralglories
very great praise, honor, or distinction bestowed by common consent; renown: to win glory on the field of battle.
something that is a source of honor, fame, or admiration; a distinguished ornament or an object of pride: a sonnet that is one of the glories of English poetry.
adoring praise or worshipful thanksgiving: Give glory to God.
resplendent beauty or magnificence: the glory of autumn.
a state of splendor, magnificence, or prosperity.
a state of absolute happiness, gratification, contentment, etc.: She was in her glory when her horse won the Derby.
the splendor and bliss of heaven; heaven.
This is life-changing. If everyone, who calls themselves a child of God, could see themselves through His eyes, it could change the world. When I see that I was created to bring the glory to God that is due Him, it changes me. No longer am I content to remain stagnant, for I was created to give glory to God Almighty, my Creator, and the Creator of the universe.
I can no longer view myself as stupid or worthless, (things that others have said about me), because God created me to bring glory to Him, and how can something with no worth glorify God? Furthermore, how can something stupid accomplish the goal that God has set forth for him/her to accomplish?
What else does God say about our worth? Let’s begin at the beginning…
26 Then God said, “Let Us make human beings in Our image, to be like Us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”
27 So God created human beings in His own image. In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.
Beloved reader, you need to understand this, not only with your mind, but with your heart and soul as well. I don’t care if you were born with all of your limbs, some of your limbs, or none of your limbs. It matters not whether you’re as smart as someone else, or whether you’re a slow learner. It doesn’t matter if you like what you see when you look in the mirror, or if you don’t like it. None of these things matter, because YOU were created in the image of God. Do you understand this? YOU were created to give God glory, and He created YOU in His image. Therefore, when you look in the mirror, and hate what you see, you are not just hating yourself, you are hating the Creator who made YOU in HIS image. You not only see yourself as worthless, but you see your Creator as worthless, because YOUlook like HIM!
What else does your Creator say about your worth???
13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 Thank You for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. 15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. 16 You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in Your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
17 How precious are Your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! 18 I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, You are still with me!
Let’s really take the time to examine this passage, because it really shows our value in God’s eyes. In verse 13, we read that God made all of the delicate, inward parts of our bodies. He made the parts we can see, and the parts that can’t be seen. He made the parts we like, and He made the parts that sometimes bring us shame. He made every single delicate inward part of our bodies, and He labored over them too.
For those who have ever knitted anything, or tried to knit, you know that it is a labor intensive skill. In order to execute it properly, the one who is knitting must pay careful attention to each stitch, because just one slipped or missed stitch can ruin the entire piece. Not only must careful attention be paid, but the knitter must also possess a high degree of skill, for the project to turn out properly. Knitting is not something to be rushed through. It takes time, patience, and skill. Therefore, when you realize that God carefully knit you together in your mother’s womb, you realize that He was taking special care during the nine months that you were being created in your mother’s womb.
14 Thank You for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
Just look at this! God wasn’t just making some simple little sweater, when He created you. He was creating a wonderfully complex being, unlike any other that He had created before. He was creating the unique individual that is you, and His workmanship on you (and me too) was marvelous! Go ahead. Look in that mirror again, and take a really good look at the wonderfully marvelous person that God created to bring Him glory.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. 16 You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in Your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
Let this thought fill you. While you were being created in utter seclusion, God was watching over you. He saw you before you were born, and you were so precious to Him, that He wrote a book about YOU. He wrote about every single moment that would happen in your life, including this moment, right now, as you read these words. He didn’t just dictate what your life would be like. He wrote this book about you, because He knew you, and He knew the things you would go through, and the choices (both the good and the bad) you would make. He wrote this book, because you were so important, so valuable to Him, that your life was worth writing about.
17 How precious are Your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! 18 I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, You are still with me!
Understand this, beloved reader. God thinks about you – alot! In fact, He thinks of you so much, that His thoughts of you cannot be numbered, and each one of those thoughts are precious! In order for you to truly understand how important this is, let’s see how dictionary.com definesprecious…
adjective
of high price or great value; very valuable or costly: precious metals.
highly esteemed for some spiritual, nonmaterial, or moral quality: precious memories.
dear; beloved: a precious child.
Beloved reader, God’s thoughts of you are precious, because you are of great value to Him. You are His precious child, created for His glory. Indeed, His love for you is so great, that He willingly sent His only Son to pay the penalty for your sins (and mine!). It was for you (and me too!) that Jesus willingly suffered, bled and died, so that we wouldn’t have to. Jesus went to death, hell and the grave, and on the third day, He arose from the grave, so that you and I could live eternally. And though it is appointed once for a man to die, judgment follows, and those who are called children of God, the ones whom He created for His glory, will arise to everlasting life…
The United States is at an interesting juncture in its history. For what may be the first time in our history, we no longer feel as strong and invincible as we once did. Many of us, who call ourselves Christians, feel especially threatened, as our nation becomes more and more sinful, and rejects Christ, and all that He, and therefore, we, stand for. Because of this, many Christians, fearful of living in a nation that seems to have turned against us, are looking for a leader to rise up and fight for us, much like Israel did, when they wanted a king to rule over them, rather than the prophets and judges, whom God had chosen…
As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel.2 Joel and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba.3 But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice.
4 Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel.5 “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.”
Doesn’t this sound like our current state? Things are pretty bad, as many who are currently in office, are greedy for money and power, and have perverted justice. When we look at President Obama’s current administration, there has been deceit since day one. Not only that, marriage laws, between one man and one woman, have now been abolished, in favor of same sex marriage. Parents are no longer only one mommy and one daddy. Now, children may have two mommies or two daddies. Then, as President Obama nears the end of his term in office, we are faced with the possibility that either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders could be our next President, neither of whom are friends of Christ.
Therefore, many of the people of God, out of fear, are looking for someone to rescue us from sinful liberals, so they have looked to the Republican party for a hero, who will fight for our rights… And it seems they have found an unlikely hero in Donald Trump. Perhaps hero is the wrong word… how about fighter? Donald Trump is indeed a fighter. If you don’t agree with him, or if someone questions him or his motives, he comes out swinging, often lacerating people with his tongue.
Now, before I continue talking about Donald Trump, let’s look back at what happened to Israel, when they said they wanted a king…
10 So Samuel passed on the Lord’s warning to the people who were asking him for a king.11 “This is how a king will reign over you,” Samuel said. “The king will draft your sons and assign them to his chariots and his charioteers, making them run before his chariots.12 Some will be generals and captains in his army, some will be forced to plow in his fields and harvest his crops, and some will make his weapons and chariot equipment.13 The king will take your daughters from you and force them to cook and bake and make perfumes for him.14 He will take away the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his own officials.15 He will take a tenth of your grain and your grape harvest and distribute it among his officers and attendants.16 He will take your male and female slaves and demand the finest of your cattle and donkeys for his own use.17 He will demand a tenth of your flocks, and you will be his slaves.18 When that day comes, you will beg for relief from this king you are demanding, but then the Lord will not help you.”
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s warning. “Even so, we still want a king,” they said.20 “We want to be like the nations around us. Our king will judge us and lead us into battle.”
21 So Samuel repeated to the Lord what the people had said,22 and the Lord replied, “Do as they say, and give them a king.” Then Samuel agreed and sent the people home.
Beloved readers, what kind of a king are you asking for? A wise and kind king? Or a king who is cruel and harsh? Are you looking for a man after God’s own heart? Or are you looking for someone else?
Have you ever been bullied? I have, and being bullied is something that no one wants to experience. Bullies cause damage that can last a lifetime, and if you vote for Donald Trump, you are voting for a bully. I’ve seen how “The Donald” bullies those he dislikes, and I also remember that he claims to be a Christian, and has even been seen holding a bible recently, for all to see. The thing is, just because someone waves a bible and says, “I’m a Christian,” doesn’t make him one. And for the record, the pope was not out of line, when he said, “And then, a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian. This is not in the gospel…”
Look at Trump’s history, as well as his current behavior. If someone disagrees with him, he resorts to bullying and name-calling. Instead of sounding like a grown man, full of wisdom and capable of leading an entire nation, he sounds like a petulant child on the playground, bullying the weaker children. In fact, if he were my child, I would likely spank him, and ground him.
Believers, yes, Donald Trump is a fighter, but so is our GOD! He is a Mighty Warrior, and HE is our protector. Do not look to someone like Trump to defend us, because he cannot protect us by using evil tactics.
Do you really want to be responsible for putting a bully into office? As believers, we are responsible for our actions. If I vote for someone who calls women or anyone else, “fat pigs, dogs, slobs, and disgusting animals,” I’m implying that I am in agreement with him, and you know what Jesus said about name-calling…
21 “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’22 But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.”
Beloved followers of Christ, have you forgotten who your true King is?
20 Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,21 to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Beloved believers, why would you vote for someone who constantly spouts evil? Can you truly picture Donald Trump as the head of state? With his temper, and the wicked things that come out of his mouth, if he becomes our President, he could very well insult the leaders of other governments, and lead us into war.
What about our freedom of speech? This is a man who wants to sue anyone who says anything in disagreement with him. How about freedom of press? Under Donald Trump’s reign, only those things that he approves of will be allowed. Do you think I exaggerate? Be careful who you cast your vote for, or God may very well give you what you’re asking for. Do you think Obama’s reign has been horrible for our country? Just wait and see what life under Donald Trump will be.
Do you know what the Lord said to Samuel, when Samuel told Him that the people wanted a king?
6 Samuel was displeased with their request and went to the Lord for guidance.7 “Do everything they say to you,” the Lord replied, “for they are rejecting Me, not you. They don’t want Me to be their king any longer.8 Ever since I brought them from Egypt they have continually abandoned Me and followed other gods. And now they are giving you the same treatment.9 Do as they ask, but solemnly warn them about the way a king will reign over them.”
Beloved believers, if you are looking to Donald Trump to lead you, because you fear what Hilary Clinton or Bernie Sanders will do, then I must ask you this question. Have you lost your faith in God?
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.
We’re still in the midst of the primaries. The Republican candidate who will run for the presidency has not been chosen yet. Look at the other candidates. Look at what they stand for. Examine their lives. There is one, Ben Carson, who is still in the running, though his polls are way down, who has always claimed to be a Christian. This man has not joined in with the others in name calling and hatefulness. His plans to help our nation make sense. I would much rather vote for a man, who has shown himself to be wise and kind, than one who has shown himself to be hateful.
Perhaps Dr. Carson won’t be elected, but at least when I lay my head down at night, I will know that I did what I could for our country, and that ultimately, I have chosen to trust the King of kings and Lord of lords to care for me and protect me, and not someone who is filled with hatred and anger.
Beloved Christian readers, in the end, whomever you choose to vote for, let’s remember that in the end, President Barak Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, nor Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Ben Carson are our enemies. We are not at war against them, nor with any other man.
12 For weare not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
What’s the most significant secret you’ve ever kept? Did the truth ever come out?
Don’t Tell a Soul!
I grew up in a house of secrecy, where things weren’t what they seemed. To the world outside, we seemed to be a normal, happy family, but inside, was a different story. That’s not to say there weren’t happy times, because there were. However, the abuse within, made my happiness fleeting.
Within the house, there was a lot of fear, anger and bitterness, which was hidden from the rest of the world. The most significant secret I ever kept was when my stepfather began molesting me as a little girl, and for several years after.
The first time it happened, I did exactly what they tell children to do in school… I called my mother at work, and told her what he had done to me. Thus, the biggest secret in our household began. I called my mother at work, around 3:00 that afternoon, as soon as the man I called “Daddy” left the house. As soon as Mom answered the phone, I burst into tears and told her what my “Daddy” had done to me. She spoke softly, so no one else in the office could hear her, “Did he rape you?” she queried.
“No,” I responded as I tried to hold back my tears and listen to her.
“Okay,” Mommy replied. “Your sister will be home in a few minutes, so you should be alright until I get off work. He won’t do anything else to you, while she’s there. Now don’t say anything to her, because you don’t want to hurt her, right?”
“Yes Mommy. I won’t tell her.”
“Good. We’ll talk about this more, when I get off work tonight. Okay?”
“Okay, Mommy.” I was disappointed that she wasn’t going to come home right away and hold me, because I was so scared. I then began to imagine what would happen when Mommy got home from work.
I pictured her coming home and telling my “Daddy” to leave, and never come back. Things would be hard, I figured, but I would help my Mommy with the cooking and cleaning, and I would take care of my little sister, too. It would be hard, but we loved each other, so it would work out.
Isn’t it sad that things seldom turn out the way we hope and imagine they will? When my mother got home from work, instead of confronting my stepfather with the truth, she kept the fact that she knew the truth, secret. Instead, she simply told him that I had called her up and told her that I was afraid of him. He then, kept His secret from her, and responded that I was afraid of him, because I had been bad, and he’d had to spank me.
My mother, then came to my room, and asked if my stepfather had spanked me for being bad. I was genuinely confused. “No Mommy. I told you what happened.”
She nodded her head, and then said, “I don’t think you have anything to worry about anymore. I told him you’re afraid of him, and he said you’re afraid because he had to spank you.”
“But Mommy, that’s not true!” I cried.
She nodded and continued, “Now, don’t tell your sister what happened. You don’t want to hurt her, do you?”
“Okay,” I choked out, but inside, I was crying, “What about me??? Don’t you care about hurting me?”
“One more thing,” my mother said. “Your daddy wants to talk to you. Okay?”
What could I say? Did I really have a choice? “Okay,” I said, trying not to cry.
Mom walked out, and a few minutes later, my stepfather entered my room. I had a hard time looking at him. My eyes stared into the distance, at nothing. I just couldn’t make myself look at him, as he told me that he had talked to Mom and told her that he had spanked me, and that’s why I was afraid of him. He told me not to say anything else to Mom or anyone else, because I didn’t want to hurt my sister, did I? I’d already been through this with Mom, so I just nodded my head in agreement. He then left my room, and Mom entered the room again.
“I don’t think you have to worry about anything happening again, but if it does, just let me know, and we’ll figure out what to do next, okay?” I nodded silently, as she continued. “Let’s not tell anyone about what happened, okay? You don’t want to destroy our family, do you?” I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders, as I agreed to keep the horrible secret. It was abundantly clear that my feelings, and my safety weren’t as important as everyone else.
And so, I kept my secret for more than twenty years, because I didn’t want to destroy my family. Meanwhile, over the years, I felt as though my life was crumbling around me. I felt unloved and unlovable, until I met Jesus, who began to rock my world.
As I came to know and love Jesus, He began to speak truth to me. It was He who told me my worth…
13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
Psalm 139:13-14 NASB
As He began speaking life to me, He also spoke the truth to me. It was He who led me to let go of the lies and the secrets that had bound me for so many years…
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.
Psalm 51:6 NLT
31 Jesus said to the people who believed in Him, “You are truly My disciples if you remain faithful to My teachings.32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:31-32 NLT
Jesus wanted me to let go of all the lies and secrets, and to begin living my life in truth. I wanted to obey Him, but I was extremely frightened. After living for most of my life shrouded by secrets and lies, I was afraid to let go of them, and begin living a life of truth. What if I destroyed the family? Finally, after living a life of secrecy and lies for most of my life, with the love of the Lord enveloping me, I broke the vow of secrecy that I had been forced to agree to, as a child.
I was terribly afraid that when I revealed the truth, I would destroy my family, but it didn’t. When I first revealed the truth, my family drew closer together, in their anger and rage against me. It broke my heart, as it became clear that my pain didn’t matter to them. Yet, although my family turned against me, God was closer to me than ever before, as were my husband and my children…
Even if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me close.
Psalm 27:10 NLT
I can truly say that during that difficult time, God remained close to me. And though my family forsook me, He held me close. Eventually, over time, I was able to make peace with my family, though my stepfather never repented or apologized for the sin he had committed against me. He went to his grave without apologizing to me, even though he had claimed that I had caused him to molest me.
Now, twenty years after revealing that terrible secret that I had held onto for so long, I can honestly say that I am thankful the Lord helped me release that secret. You see, as long as I held onto that secret, I also held onto the lies that I had been told…
… the lie that it was my fault that I was molested.
… the lie that if I told the truth, I would destroy my family.
… the lie that my feelings didn’t matter.
… the lie that I was unimportant.
I no longer hold onto secrets and lies, because I’ve been set free from the terrible secrets and lies that destroyed my life for so many long years. That’s why I’m so grateful to Jesus for setting me free…
32 “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
John 8:32 NLT
36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.
“Twelve years ago, as a young teenager I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends. I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life. I sought forgiveness from those I had wronged and asked Christ to forgive me and come into my life. I would do anything to go back to those teen years and take different actions. In my life today, I am so very thankful for God’s grace, mercy and redemption.” (Josh Duggar – May 21, 2015)
If you live in the U.S., and you have access to newspapers, magazines, the internet or television, then by now, you’ve no doubt heard about Josh Duggar’s shocking statement, in response to allegations of child molestation. Many people have commented and weighed in on this subject, with some valid points and some foolish ones. This is an extremely difficult situation, for the victims of Duggar’s actions, first and foremost. It is also extremely difficult for his parents, the siblings who weren’t molested, as well as Josh’s wife and children. Many people have already cast judgment on Josh Duggar and his parents, and while I can’t judge the Duggar’s hearts, what can be judged is their behavior at the time Josh molested five different girls, and their behavior now. In judging their behavior, let us remember that it is the responsibility of Christians, to help our brothers and sisters in Christ, when they fall into sin…
Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.(Galatians 6:1 NLT)
20 “If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die. And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths. 21 But if you warn righteous people not to sin and they listen to you and do not sin, they will live, and you will have saved yourself, too.”(Ezekiel 3:20-21 NLT)
As a former victim of child molestation, I feel compelled to share my thoughts on this indredibly painful topic. First, I’d like to address the announcement that Josh made. One thing that jumps out to me in his account is the fact that Josh appears to tiptoe around the subject. While he comes across as sounding regretful and repentant, there is a part of me that questions Josh’s sincerity. If you glance at Josh’s statement, he seems to address the issue, but read it again.
Never once does Josh confess his sin, which is all over the tabloids. Not once, does Josh admit to molesting anyone or committing incest, not to mention pedophilia. Instead, he merely says, “I acted inexcusably…” A teenager acting inexcusably could be guilty of any number of offenses, ranging from minor ones to major ones. Perhaps, you think I’m being too picky, and that Josh’s disclosure of his “inexcusable actions” is enough. However, the fact is that he hasn’t said enough. In his statement to the press, Josh never really confessed to the crimes of molestation, pedophilia and incest that he allegedly committed. Is it necessary for him to say the words? Absolutely. Just as an alcoholic needs to confess that he/she is an alcoholic, so too, a pedophile and a child molester must admit that he/she is a pedophile and a child molester.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9 NASB)
According to scripture, we must confess our sins in order to be forgiven. According to dictionary.com, the definition of confess is:
verb(usedwithobject)
to acknowledge or avow (a fault, crime, misdeed, weakness,etc.)bywayofrevelation.
to own or admit as true: I must confess that I haven’t read the book.
to declare or acknowledge (one’s sins), especially to God or a priest in order to obtain absolution.
(of a priest) to hear the confession of (a person).
to acknowledge one’s belief or faith in; declare adherence to.
to reveal by circumstances.
verb(usedwithoutobject)
to make a confession; plead guilty; own: to confess to a crime.
to make a confession of sins, especially to a priest.
(of a priest) to hear confession.
According to the above definition, when Josh Duggar gave his press report, he did not confess to, or own the crime he committed. He only admitted to acting inexcusably. Many of us have acted inexcusably, but our inexcusable actions did not include child molestation or incest. Josh Duggar needs to own and confess what he has done, without hiding behind words that are meant to minimize the crime, so that it doesn’t sound as bad as it is.
Another thing that greatly disturbed me when I read Josh’s statement was this comment:
“… I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life…”(Josh Duggar – May 21, 2015)
Perhaps you’re wondering how I could possibly find this statement disturbing, but I urge you to read his entire statement, and take note on whom he focused. Josh understood that if he continued down that road, he would end up ruining his life. He’s absolutely right. He may well have ruined his life with those actions, but what about the lives of his victims?
Regardless of whether he continued on that path, he certainly, at the very least, damaged the lives of his victims. And who, besides God and Josh, truly knows how many other victims there were? We do know that Josh’s actions have already harmed the lives of at least five, not including the rest of his brothers and sisters, his parents, his wife, and the babysitter and her family, as well.
I also found it terribly disturbing that in their interview on The Kelly Files, Mr. and Mrs. Duggar repeatedly minimized the seriousness of their son’s crime against his victims, two of whom were their own daughters!
J.B. Duggar: “… And the girls, we talked to them, and they didn’t know that anything had happened because they were asleep…”
Kelly: “Like when you went to bed at night during that time frame, were you scared? Were you worried? You know, he’s 14, he’s having this problem. What’s going to happen when we go to sleep?”
J.B. Duggar: “Right. Nothing ever happened like that again in the girls’ bedrooms after that.”
Kelly: “Ok.”
J.B. Duggar: “Ok. So, we had safeguards that protected them from that. But there was another incident where — two different incidents where the girls were, like, laying on the couch, and it was — he had touched, like, over the couch and actually touched their breast while they were asleep. And so –“
M. Duggar: “Over their clothes.”
J.B. Duggar: “– over their clothes. And so it was a very difficult situation. But as we talked to other parents and different ones since then, a lot of families have said that they’ve had similar things happen in their families. And so — I mean, this is, for us, of course, this is public shame that our son did this back 12, 13 years ago…”
J.B. Duggar: “… All of these — again, this was not rape or anything like that, this was like touching somebody over their clothes. There were a couple incidents where he touched them under their clothes, but it was like a few seconds and then he came to us and was crying and told us what happened, and it was after that third time he came to us is where we really felt like, you know what?…”
Kelly: “And we’ll going to get to that in one second. The subsequent incidents after the first one involved daughters who were awake, at least a couple of them?”
J. B. DUGGAR: “There was a couple, yes. And they didn’t really understand, though, what happened.“
Kelly: “Yes. What –“
M. Duggar: “It was more his heart, his intent. He knew that it was wrong. But in theirs they weren’t even aware. They were like, you know, it wasn’t — to them they didn’t probably even understand that it was an improper touch.”
Kelly: “I know that the ultimate one before you really got help involved a very young daughter, and I’ll avoid the age because I don’t want to identify anyone specifically, but a single digit. I mean, what was that like for you to hear? You know, one, you must have thought for some time this is a pubescent boy, I don’t know what he’s going through, but he’s testing. But when it moves to a young daughter –“
J. B. Duggar: “Right. At that point, that’s when we pulled him out of the house and we said, he can’t be here. And so, we pulled him out and then, he went through working with that man –“
Kelly: “Yes. He goes through counseling.”
J. B. Duggar: “Yes.”
Kelly: “And then when he was done with the counseling, this is not like a licensed therapist, it’s somebody, a Christian-based –“
J. B. Duggar: “Christian based. But I’ll tell you why.”
Kelly: “Treatment facility…”
Kelly: “… I’m asking you more as the father of your girls than as the father of Josh. You know, it must have been very hard to look at your little one and know the behavior had been ongoing, as difficult as your position was.”
J. B. Duggar: “Right. I was so thankful, though, that Josh came and told us. And our girls, even though this was a very bad situation, as we’ve talked to other families who have had, you know, other things happen, a lot of their stories were even worse…“
To read the entire transcript of the Duggar’s interview, please click this link:
The repeated minimization of Josh Duggar’s criminal actions against his sisters is disturbing. In much the same way that King David, of Old Testament times, ignored the brutal assault that his son, Amnon, committed against his half-sister, Tamar, the Duggar’s also appear to ignore and minimize the traumatizing effects of their son, Josh’s, sexual assault against their daughters. Indeed, protecting and defending their son’s reputation seems to be more important to them, than acknowledging the seriousness of the crime committed against their daughters.
As a matter of fact, the following statement, made by J.B. Duggar, shows just how out of touch with reality they are…
J.B. DUGGAR: I think you actually said pedophile, and a pedophile is an adult that preys on children. Josh was actually 14 and just turned 15 when he did what he did, and I think the legal definition was 16 and up for being an adult preying on a child. So he was a child preying on a child.
KELLY: You do not view Josh as a pedophile?
J.B. DUGGAR: No.
Just to clarify, Wikipedia provides this definition of pedophilia:
Pedophilia or paedophilia is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children, generally age 11 years or younger.[1][2] As a medical diagnosis, specific criteria for the disorder extend the cut-off point for prepubescence to age 13.[1] A person who is diagnosed with pedophilia must be at least 16 years of age, but adolescents must be at least five years older than the prepubescent child for the attraction to be diagnosed as pedophilia.[1][2]
While it may be true that Josh committed these crimes when he was between the ages of fourteen and fifteen, at least one of the children was more than five years younger than he was. Furthermore, what difference does one year or two make in a situation like this? Let’s remember that Josh molested one of his sister’s, who was under ten years old.
The Duggar’s appeared to be more concerned about the release of Josh’s records, than the crimes he had committed against his sisters. Quite frankly, this whole situation is troubling to me, though many Duggar’s fans claim that they are being unfairly attacked because of their Christianity. I’m a Christian, and I find both Josh’s actions and their response to his actions terribly troublesome.
I believe the Duggars mishandled this situation from the very beginning. Josh Duggar should be on the sexual predators list, just like all others who commit the same crimes. Also, because of the nature of his crimes, he should never be left alone with children, who are unable to protect themselves.
Perhaps you think I’m being too hard on Josh Duggar and his family, but I would suggest that they did not then, and still have not taken this situation seriously enough. I love the Lord, and I’m not questioning their faith in God, but consider this…
Suppose there was a really nice young man at your church, who taught Sunday School, or worked in the nursery, and his background was just like Josh Duggar’s? Would you, as a parent, feel comfortable leaving your children in the care of this man, who says he is a Christian, and he’s turned his life around, or would you remove your child from his class? Knowing this person’s background, I believe that any parent who left their children in the care of someone who had committed incest and pedophelia, would be grossly negligent.
Even if this person had totally turned his life around and given his heart to the Lord, I would not leave my child alone with him, because even after we are saved, we still struggle with temptation, and though I pray Josh has truly changed, to risk a child’s well being, when only God truly knows his heart would be a sin. You see, up until very recently, this was something that was hidden in the dark, and it wasn’t Josh who brought it into the light. He was content to leave it in the darkness, and because God hasn’t revealed whether or not it is now safe for Josh to be alone with children, I reiterate that it would be sinful and grossly negligent to leave a child alone with him.
Because of this scandal, TLC has now cancelled the Duggar’s hit television series, 19 Kids and Counting, and I believe it was the right decision. While I understand that many Christians love the Duggar’s show, and they see a double standard here, believing that this cancellation is an attack on Christianity, again, I disagree. Should the Duggar’s be held to a lesser accountability than other television stars, who have fallen in disgrace due to their sins? Should they be allowed to continue to air their show, when Bill Cosby, for instance, who has been accused of drugging and raping numerous women over the years, has had his syndicated series’ cancelled? I would have to say no.
Friends, let us remember that we, as followers of Christ, are held to a higher degree of accountability than the world is, and although we may have sinned and committed crimes before our salvation, we are not exempt from the consequences of those sins and crimes, just because we are born again. Accepting Christ as our Savior does not give us a “Get out of Jail Free” card. What we receive instead, is a much greater gift, instead. For, when we are saved and delivered from our sins, we receive eternal life, and a “Get out of Hell Free” card.
I won’t deny that this scandal tripped many triggers in me, due to my past. However, I’m not condemning Josh Duggar or his parents. I truly do pray that he has turned his life around with help from the Lord. I also pray that Mr. and Mrs. Duggar will stop minimizing the incest and molestation committed by Josh against their children and their babysitter, and face the true scope of their son’s sin, and the harm that was done to the victims, so that all of them can truly heal from their pain.
As for my fellow believers, let us all agree to pray for deliverance and healing for everyone who was involved in this crime, both the victims, their families, and the perpetrator and his family.
As I sit here this Mother’s Day, with all of my children and grandchildren living miles and miles away from me, (some live 350 miles away, and the rest of them live more than 700 miles away from me), I am contemplating what it means to be a mother…
When I was a little girl, growing up, feeling unloved and unwanted, I dreamed of one day having children and a husband, who would always love me, no matter what. When I grew up, and became a mother, that dream changed… Oh, I still wanted my children and my husband to always love me, no matter what, but that was no longer my main goal. As I held both my son and my daughter in my arms after each one of them was born, I felt an overwhelming love for them, which cannot be described. Then, as I looked at the man that I had vowed to love, honor and cherish as long as we both shall live, I was awash with a flood of love for him as well. Suddenly, having someone to love me was no longer my priority. For, in an instant, God had changed the selfish longings of a little girl into an unselfish desire. Now, my number one priority was to make sure that my husband and my children always knew that they were loved, no matter what.
My son and daughter-in-law
In a world filled with condemnation and hatred, I’ve always loved my children, and I strove to ensure they knew that they were loved. When they sinned or did anything wrong, I always wanted them to know that although I hated their sin, I still loved them. When I was angry with them, still burning brightly within my heart was a deep, unending love for them. After all, these were my babies.
Like most mothers, I was and am very protective of my children. I struggle with the desire to shield them from all of the pain that every man, woman and child has endured, since Adam ate of the forbidden fruit, and yet, I know that this is foolish. For the scriptures make it clear that everyone must endure troubles, in order to grow endurance and to become complete in the Lord…
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. ~ James 1:2-4 NLT ~
At times, I have felt like a mama bear, protecting her cubs. There’s a built-in radar within me that KNOWS when someone is hurting one of my children, and nothing infuriates me more than to see my child in painl. So, just as a mama bear will attack anyone that may only seem to be a threat to her cubs, I have been known to do the same, spending my rage on the person(s) I deemed dangerous, only to look back on the situation, years later, and understand that there may have been an important lesson that God wanted to teach my child. Yet, rather than trusting in Him, with His unlimited power and love, to protect my children, I trusted in myself, with my limited mortal imperfections, and in the process, sometimes did more damage than good…..
One of the hardest, most painful lessons anyone, who desires to be a good and godly mother, must learn, is that our children, who are such a wonderful gift to us, are ours, only on loan. From the time we first hold our infants in our arms, we must remember to hold them lightly and gently. For if we hold on to them too tightly, we may squeeze the life out of them. If we look to the bible for examples of women, who were good mothers, the mother, who comes to my mind, is Hannah, mother of Samuel, the prophet of God.
Hannah was so desperate to have a child, that she cried out to the Lord, praying fervently. In her desperation, she made this vow to the Almighty…
And she made this vow: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to You. He will be Yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.” ~ 1 Samuel 1:11 NLT ~
When I think of Hannah’s desperation for a child, I remember when my husband and I decided to have a child. Would I be able to conceive a child? What if I couldn’t have a child? Did you experience that same desperation for a child? Does every woman that wants a child experience that desperation?
Look at the price Hannah was willing to pay just so she could have a child to lavish her love on. For, when Hannah held her beloved baby in her arms, she knew that she would only be able to hold him for a very short time. Then, she would have to relinquish him to her heavenly Father.
What pain intermingled with everlasting joy, Hannah must have endured, when her beloved baby, Samuel was born. As he suckled at her breast each time she nursed him, did Hannah contemplate that the time was nearing, when she would wean him, and she must let go of her hold on her beloved Samuel and release him to Eli, the priest and into God’s service? Mothers, as you hold your infants in your arms, and let them nurse at your breast, do you understand that each time he/she nurses, you are one step closer to letting go of him/her? With each new development, he/she achieves, holding his/her head up, cooing, laughing, you are one step closer to that moment, when you must relinquish your hold on your child, and let him/her go.
As I look at Hannah, I see much to admire in her. She longed for a child, so much so that she made a vow to give him back to God, if only He would give her this child. How exquisitely precious, yet painful it must have been as she held her child to her breast, knowing that as soon as he was weaned, she would keep her covenant with God, and return Samuel to Him. What bittersweet joy she must have felt, as she changed each dirty diaper, knowing that as long as he nursed and dirtied his diaper, he would remain with her. Yet when he was weaned, she must let him go.
Surely, she must have been tempted to “forget” her vow to the Lord, yet she remained true to her word, and her son grew to be one of Israel’s greatest judges and prophets. In her obedience and willingness to let go of her son, she enabled him to be all that he was created and called to be. How sad it would have been for both Samuel and Israel, if this brave and faithful mother had refused to let her son go! In refusing to let her son go, she could have ruined Samuel’s great destiny.
Then, there is the father of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32, who let go of his beloved son, knowing that in doing so, his son would leave home and probably live a life of sin. Indeed, the son did exactly what his father had feared he would do. He squandered every penny of his inheritance on loose living and loose women. Then, after losing all of the money his father had entrusted him with, the son really hit rock bottom, living on the streets, homeless, because of his recklessness. Don’t you think the father grieved for his son, longing for him to return, so he could rest assured, knowing that his son was safe in his presence? Though the father longed for his son’s love and obedience, he let him go, just as God lets us go our own way. By letting his son go, the father won his son’s heart in the end, and his son returned a better man after living a sinful, adulterous life, because he was now humble and appreciative of his father’s love.
Mothers, when your child walks away from you, even though you know they’re walking into a life of sin, don’t be afraid to let him/her go. For the tighter you hold your child to yourself, the further you are pushing him/her away from you. Yet, by letting him/her go, you are giving God the opportunity to begin a good work in him/her, that He may not have been able to do, because you were always pushing Him away, as you tried to solve your child’s problems.
Are there other examples of mothers letting their children go? Sure there are! What would have happened if Mary hadn’t let go of Jesus? What would have happened if Elizabeth had refused to let her son, John live in the wilderness, wearing camel hair and eating locusts and wild honey? Beloved mothers, entrust your children to God, and let them go. As long as we try to hold on to our children, we deny them the right to grow up strong and whole.
Do I wish my children lived closer to me? Of course I do, but I choose to let them go where God leads them, and I trust Him to care for them and provide for their needs. After all, my Father can do a much better job in taking care of my children, than I can.
The evil all around us permeates the atmosphere, invading homes, neighborhoods, cities, towns, municipalities, states, regions and nations with fear and angst, deception and theft, as well as hatred and murder. From racist cops to criminals and terrorists, including many others in between, evil is all around us. How did this evil get here, and who is responsible for it?
While most people like to believe that mankind is basically good, with only a few who are capable of evil, I subscribe to another, less popular viewpoint. It is my belief that since Adam and Eve partook of the fruit, forbidden to them by God Almighty, the Creator of mankind, everyone birthed thereafter, was born with a sinful nature, which makes each one of us susceptible to evil. Indeed, as the knowledge of man increases, so does his capacity for evil, and it is the sin, into which we are all born, that destines us to death.
Many, who don’t ascribe to my views often pose this question to those who believe as I do, “If all of mankind is truly born into sin, then how can there be any good people? The answer to that question is that the Creator of all humanity has given everyone a free will, which enables them to choose whether to succumb to their sinful nature, or choose to do good. Furthermore, He gave people (who, because of their sinful nature, were all condemned to die once, and after that, receive judgment), the option to receive the free gift of salvation and redemption, if they would simply choose to have faith in Him and His Son, Jesus. However, as simple as that sounds, our humanity rebels against the notion that our salvation rests on something as simple as having faith in the One who created us.
When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. (Romans 5:12 NLT)
Adam’s single act of disobedience to God’s command led to the first murder, which, incidentally, was also the first death, when his and Eve’s firstborn son, Cain, killed his younger brother, Abel, in a jealous rage. I’m certain, that when Adam and Eve partook of the fruit, in an act of rebellion against their Creator, they never dreamed that this single act of disobedience would lead to the devastating loss of not just one, but two sons. For when Cain slew his brother, Abel, not only was Abel lost to them, but Cain was as well, for the Lord punished him by cursing the ground he walked on, forbidding it to yield crops to him. He also banished Cain from the land, and condemned him to walk the land as a homeless wanderer. From Cain’s vicious and murderous attack on Abel, man grew more and more sinful, and more and more violent. If Adam’s one act of disobedience could have such devastating effects, that have continued to grow more and more horrible, with each generation that followed, how do we effect the world and the people around us, when we reject our Creator and His commands?
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. (Ecclesiastes 7:20 ESV)
Because each of us is born with a sinful nature, sin is instinctual to us. Children need to be taught what good is, and how to do it. Yet, no one has ever had to teach a child how to sin, because that comes naturally to us. Have you ever noticed that when a child begins to crawl around and walk, discovering the world around him, he immediately begins discovering the many dangers around him? Though we try to baby proof our homes, there is always some danger that the toddler discovers, that causes our hearts to pound in fear for him. It is during this time, that we begin to tell the little one, “No,” and the child quickly learns what “No” means. However, although that child knows that it is wrong to touch certain objects or to go to certain places within (or sometimes even outside) of the home, for some reason, the child seems to gravitate towards those things. Did you ever wonder why that is? It is because that baby, just like every other baby born after Adam ate the forbidden fruit, is born with a sinful nature, and it is the responsibility of the parents and those who are involved in that child’s life to teach him what is good, and how to do good.
Though all of us have different weaknesses, every one of us has been guilty of some wrongdoing, and no one had to instruct us on how to do the wrong thing. Indeed, no one even needs to tell us that it is wrong. For just as we are all born with a sinful nature, we are also born with the knowledge of right and wrong, because God, in His infinite mercy, has written His law on the hearts of mankind, so that no one can truly say, “I didn’t know my actions were wrong.” In fact, that very law that is written on our hearts not only checks our actions, but even our very thoughts, so that we also feel guilty, when we are simply thinking about those things that are wrong.
14 Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know His law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it.15 They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.
(Romans 2:14-15 NLT)
“If this is true,” some may ask, “then why do so many people commit such heinous crimes, without feeling any guilt?” The answer to this question is very simple, yet very profound. For although we may feel guilty when we first commit a sin, the more we engage in that or other sins, the less guilty we will feel about it, until, eventually, our conscience is seared.
12 Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. 13 You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. (Hebrews 3:12-13 NLT)
This is true for all sins, no matter how big or small they may seem to be. For God does not measure the size of a sin to determine one’s guilt or innocence. God hates ALL sin, because sin is deadly. It’s like cancer, killing and destroying every cell within us, until we, like every man, woman and child, since Adam sinned against God, finally die. For those, whose hearts are hardened against God when they die, there will be no other chance for redemption. Those, who choose to believe in their Creator, and His Son, Jesus, will receive eternal life, though their earthly bodies have died.
Yet, in spite of God’s great mercy and compassion on mankind, the overwhelming majority of mankind will choose to reject their Creator, choosing, instead, to follow their own sinful nature. Although God has written His law on the hearts of humanity, they will still choose to go to hell, rather than heaven. Indeed, despite the knowledge that is written on every heart, they will still choose to ignore that knowledge and follow the road to destruction. They even make jokes about it, saying, “Well, if I go to hell, I won’t be alone. All of my friends will be right there with me.”
13 “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. 14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14 NLT)
When I look at the world we live in today, it both saddens and sickens me to see how much evil has increased since I was a child. When I was a child, there were the occasional fights in school, talking too much in class and chewing gum. Most crimes were limited to big cities, which were far away, and though we had bomb drills, and lived during the Cold War, we had no fear, for who would ever be foolhardy enough to dare attacking us on American soil?
12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. (Matthew 24:12 NLT)
Now, I am fifty-four years old, and in today’s world, children and their parents fear they might not come home from school, alive, each day. We now live in a world, where children plot and kill their parents, and where not only fathers, but also mothers, murder, abuse and molest their own children. There are also police, who are corrupted by power, and use it to commit violence and homicides against both innocent citizens and unarmed criminals, thereby violating their duty to protect and defend. Though they have made an oath to heal to the best of their ability, and to do no harm, doctors and nurses murder the very patients they have sworn to care for. Yes, things like this have been happening since Adam’s rebellion, yet it is becoming more and more prevalent, and the crimes that people commit against one another are becoming more and more heinous.
As we look at the evil all around us, and perhaps even within us, it would be easy to lose heart. Yet, the very God who created us, also loves us with an unfathomable love, and He knew, long before He created the heavens and the earth, that Adam would sin against Him, thereby ushering sin into His beautiful creation. Therefore, because sin is so deadly, God had a plan worked out for the redemption of mankind, who was created in His image, even as He breathed life into Adam and Eve.
For the penalty for sin is death, and because sin is so deadly, there are no exceptions. Whether you eat a forbidden fruit, or whether you destroy the life of another human being, the requirement for the atonement of sin is the death of the sinner, for the sins he has committed. Yet, despite the evil all around us, God’s love for mankind was so great that He made a way to redeem the life of man…
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NLT)
God knew the depths to which the depravity of man would sink, still, even so, His love for us was so great, that He was willing to sacrifice His only Son, so that we could live. He knew that Nero would be born, and that he would commit terrible, torturous atrocities against those who followed Christ. He knew that Adolf Hitler would one day, destroy the lives of untold millions, and in the process, slay six million Jewish men, women and children. God knew that Osama bin Ladin would rise up and kill thousands, in the name of his false god, Allah, as he spewed out violence and hatred. God also knows that one day the antichrist will rise up against Christ and His people, torturing and killing countless men, women and children. Still, God chose to give the life of His one and only Son, so that you and I could live and be with Him in eternity. And don’t think that Christ had no say in the matter, for He made it very clear that His love, is so great, that He laid His life down for us willingly…
17 “The Father loves Me because I sacrifice My life so I may take it back again. 18 No one can take My life from Me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what My Father has commanded.” (John 10:17-18 NLT)
Yes, it is true that we live in a world with evil all around us, yet we don’t have to be discouraged or afraid. For Jesus has told us in His word that as long as we live here on earth, there will be pain and tribulation, but we mustn’t fear, for He has overcome the world. In fact, the word of God also tells us something else that many Christians in the western hemisphere have chosen to ignore…
12 Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. 13 Instead, be very glad – for these trials make you partners with Christ in His suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing His glory when it is revealed to all the world.
14 If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. 15 If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. 16 But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by His name! 17 For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? 18 And also, “If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?”
19 So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for He will never fail you. (1 Peter 4:12-19 NLT)
Sadly, not only do these “leaders of the church” ignore this passage, they also accuse those who suffer of having weak faith, causing believers to doubt their own faith in God, sometimes even causing them to turn away from the Lord, because they feel hopeless. Those so called “leaders,” who make these false claims that someone’s suffering is their own fault, because a true child of God would claim healing and walk in it, will be held accountable for every false statement they have made in the name of God. Indeed, the blood of every man, woman and child they have caused to stumble and turn away from God, will be on their hands. For those who do these things, causing emotional pain and spiritual death, are just as evil as those who cause physical harm to another human being, and God will hold them accountable for every sin they committed in the name of Jesus.
As I stated earlier, there is evil all around us. The spirit of evil dwells in the hearts and souls of many men and women, and it also exists in Satan and his demons. Even so, when the enemies of our souls attack us, remember this, and take hope; though the evil all around us can steal our bodies and our minds, those who belong to Christ, should have no fear, for the evil cannot touch our spirits, which belong to Christ, and will one day arise from the grave in triumphant victory, clothed in our heavenly bodies. Therefore, when you read of evil in the news, or watch it on the television, fear not! For if God is for us, who can be against us?
The following is a letter that I posted on Facebook this morning, and I believe it’s important enough to post here as well, for it is vital to the life of our church and nation:
Greetings to ALL My Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
To each and every man, woman and child, who has surrendered themselves to God in Christ Jesus our Lord, out of a heart filled with love and gratitude to our Savior, who willingly paid the penalty of death for your sins and for mine, I greet you in the name of Jesus. I’m writing this letter to you because my heart is filled with love and grief for the church, and for this beautiful nation that God has blessed us with. I have always felt honored and blessed to live in this great nation, which was founded on the principles that…
… all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness… (Declaration of Independence)
I believe with all my heart that this is true, not because the Declaration of Independence says so, but because the bible tells me so…
26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. 28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you. (Galatians 3:26-29 NLT)
Beloved readers, do you understand what this means? It means that once you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you become a child of God and a joint heir with Jesus, Himself! It doesn’t matter whether you are rich or poor, a servant or a king, black or white or any other shade in between, you are a child of God, who loves each of His children equally. It doesn’t matter whether you are very intelligent, or whether you have a learning disability, your Daddy (Abba/Father) loves you just as much as He loves His other children. It doesn’t matter if your parents loved you more or less than your siblings, because God is your Father now, and He is just. He loves you just as much as He loves me. He loves you just as much as He loved King David, the Apostle Paul, Peter, James and John. Do you understand?
If you understand this, you need to understand something else. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you become God’s child, you also gain some new siblings, who are also children of God. Do you know what this means? It means that you have brothers and sisters from every race and culture, and because they are your siblings, you have to love them, no matter what, because Daddy loves them, and if Daddy thinks they’re worthy of His love, don’t you think they’re worthy of yours too?
Now, I’ve told you that I’m writing this letter because my heart is filled with love and grief for the church, and for our wonderful nation, and I’ve established a very good case for why we should love ALL of our brothers and sisters in the Lord, so now, I’m going to take this love thing a step further, before I share my grief with you. Beloved brothers and sisters in the Lord, not only are we supposed to love our brothers and sisters, but according to the bible, we’re supposed to love our enemies too…
43 “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy.44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much.47 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that.48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48 NLT)
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NLT)
After reading these words of Jesus, it is very clear that God expects us to love each other AND our enemies. There is no wiggle room, no way to escape this. And, beloved reader, please allow me to make this perfectly clear, for it is of the utmost importance that you understand. Jesus isn’t saying, “Try to love your enemies.” He isn’t saying, “Love good people.” Jesus is COMMANDING us to LOVE our enemies. Do you still need more evidence?
9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved Me. Remain in My love. 10 When you obey My commandments, you remain in My love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in His love.11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with My joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!12 This is My commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:9-13 NLT)
14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15 NLT)
Do you want to be forgiven? Then forgive ALL who hurt you. Do you want to remain in God’s love? Then love ALL mankind.
This brings me to the reason for my grief. We are all aware of the deep rooted racial anger that exists in our country. It is like a dark plague that is killing the church and this once great nation. You may ask why I say it is killing the church, and I will tell you, but first, I will remind you of my love for each and every one of you, my beloved readers, friends and enemies. Some may read what I am saying and take offense, and I can live with that. However, one of the things that truly grieves me is that some of my brothers and sisters in the Lord may take offense, and it is this very thing that is killing the church.
Let’s talk about what is going on in our country, not as black or white people, but as Jesus’ people, okay? You see, when we became children of God, we took on HIS identity. I am no longer defined by my race or ethnicity, and neither are you, brothers and sisters. I am now called “Christian,” and when I interact with people of the world, I want them to see Christ in me, not the white in me. Also, when I look at my brothers and sisters of different races, I don’t see the color or lack of color in them, I look to see the same Jesus, who lives in me, in them too. When I see the Christ in you, my beloved brothers and sisters, how can I help but love you?
Not only that, but when I look at those who don’t know Christ, it isn’t their color that I care about, it’s their heart. My heart is filled with love for those who don’t know Christ, because I know the One who could set them free from their anger and bitterness against people of different races. I grew up in a racist household, and I know firsthand that racism breeds bitterness, and that terrible root of bitterness chokes the life out of every other relationship the bitter person has.
Church, the reason I’m grieving is because WE are supposed to be different from the world. WE are the ones who are supposed to be setting the examples for the world, and yet, how many of us have found ourselves caught up in the anger that is all around us? How many of us are part of the problem, instead of trying to be part of the solution? What if God’s people united as ONE, just as Jesus prayed we would be, and what if we humbled ourselves and prayed, and turned from our wicked ways? And what if we joined together, seeking God’s face, and asking Him to bring unity and love to our land? I believe God would hear our cry and He would heal our land. Do you know why? Because the bible says so.
14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV)
But sadly, something is preventing us from uniting and praying together, and do you know what that something is? This may be offensive to you, but the words I write are written in love. My heart’s desire is for God to heal our land, and in order for this to happen, we must humble ourselves, but PRIDE is preventing this from happening. You see, there are some among us, who are proud of our race.
Now, I have to be honest with you, and if it offends you, I encourage you to study God’s word, and pray about it. You see, there are some white people who are proud of their lack of pigment. There are also some black people who are very proud of their dark pigment. Now, here’s where I stand on the matter. I’m white, but I’m neither proud nor ashamed of it. I didn’t choose to be white. In fact, I had nothing to do with it, because long before He laid the foundations of the earth, God had determined that I would be a white woman. He’s the One who carefully formed me, and knitted me together in my mother’s womb, and for reasons that only He knows, He didn’t bless me with as much melanin as some of my darker brothers and sisters. That’s okay. I don’t feel slighted. In fact, in the whole scheme of eternity, my lack of melanin, and someone else’s abundance of melanin is really unimportant. After all, the current tent that I dwell in is only temporary, and at nearly fifty-four years old, it’s starting to break down. In fact, one day in the not so distant future, it will finally wear out, and my spirit will leave this body. At some point in time that only God knows, I will eventually receive an eternal body (my forever body), which will never wear out and die, so why should I care about the color of my current flesh?
Indeed, people of God, why should any of us care about our skin tone? You don’t have to tell me the answer to my next question, but it is something you need to pray and talk to our Father about it. Do you have white pride? Do you have black pride? Are you prideful of your race? If so, you need to lay that pride aside and humble yourself and pray for forgiveness. You do know that Lucifer was cast down out of heaven, because he was proud of the body God had given him, right? Do you think that God likes racial pride? Think again. If you want something to boast about, children of God, boast about this:
30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made Him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; He made us pure and holy, and He freed us from sin. 31 Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31 NLT)
14 As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.15 It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation.16 May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. (Galatians 6:14-16 NLT)
Beloved children of God, it’s time for us to stop allowing our flesh to control our thoughts and our attitudes. It’s time for us to stop taking sides in the current trouble our nation faces. The fact is that there are good white cops, and there are bad white cops. There are good black cops, and there are bad black cops. There are good black men, who have been the innocent victims of bad white cops, and vice versa. However, there are also dangerous and criminal black men, who have attacked good white cops, and been shot in self-defense, and vice versa. So, what can we, as children of the Most High God, do to bring peace and righteousness to our land???
We can start by repenting of any pride that we may be clinging to. We can unite as One church in this battle for peace in our land – no more “white” churches or “black” churches. Let us come together as One people, not to preach or shout or argue about why “I” am right and “You” are wrong. Instead, let us come together as the sons and daughters of God, and let us humble ourselves, as Jesus did…
1 Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from His love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, 8 He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
9 Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:1-11 NLT)
My beloved brothers and sisters, do you want to heal our land and bring about a true and lasting peace? Or, do you want to hold on to your bitterness and anger? Do you want to prove that you are right, holding fast to your pride? Or do you want to surrender it to Christ and join together with ALL of your brothers and sisters, humbling ourselves and praying? Do you want people to see the black or white in you? Or do you want them to see the Christ in you? Are you willing to risk offending friends and family for the sake of the cross? Or are you ashamed of this gospel of peace?
Shall we teach our children to respect law enforcement officers and pray God removes the bad ones? Or should we teach them to rebel against the law? Shall we love our friends and hate our enemies? Or shall we love our enemies, with no regard to race, and bless them, as Jesus commanded? The choice is yours. Shall we choose a time to unite and come together to humble ourselves and pray and seek God’s face? Or will we hold on to our bitterness and malice towards another race, refusing to forgive? The choice is yours. If you want to meet and join together, please leave a comment, and we can figure out where and when to join together and cry out to Jesus for our children, our law enforcement officers and our land.
In closing, I’d like to share the priestly blessing with each one of you. For not only are we children of God, but we are also a royal priesthood…
24 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; 26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”
In the blessed name of Jesus, I remain, Your Sister Cheryl
3 Some people may contradict our teaching, but these are the wholesome teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. These teachings promote a godly life.4 Anyone who teaches something different is arrogant and lacks understanding. Such a person has an unhealthy desire to quibble over the meaning of words. This stirs up arguments ending in jealousy, division, slander, and evil suspicions.5 These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt, and they have turned their backs on the truth. To them, a show of godliness is just a way to become wealthy.
I absolutely refuse to watch TBN and many of the other “Christian” television stations. Does this shock you? At first, I thought there was something wrong with me, because many other believers love televangelists like Creflo Dollar, Jesse Duplantis, Benny Hinn, T.D. Jakes, Paula White, Joyce Meyer and so many others. Therefore, something has to be wrong with me, right?
However, as I searched the scriptures and compared the gospel preached by these people, to the Gospel of Christ, I discovered that they were preaching a false gospel. Not only that, but in addition to deceiving many good men and women who are seeking the truth, these false teachers and false prophets also fleece their followers.
5 These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt, and they have turned their backs on the truth. To them, a show of godliness is just a way to become wealthy.
These men and women make the proud and boastful claim that they need your money in order to save a lost and dying world. However, when Jesus walked this earth as a man, He touched the hearts of a lost and dying world, without pilfering anyone for money. Furthermore, when the apostles went to Jerusalem, Judea, and the uttermost parts of the world, they did so without begging for money. Indeed, the gospel was shared by many of them, as they fled from persecution. Not only that, the Apostle Paul, who traveled through many countries, sharing the gospel to a lost and dying world, was careful not to be a financial burden on the people that he served…
17 If I were doing this on my own initiative, I would deserve payment. But I have no choice, for God has given me this sacred trust.18 What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News.
12 When I was with you, I certainly gave you proof that I am an apostle. For I patiently did many signs and wonders and miracles among you.13 The only thing I failed to do, which I do in the other churches, was to become a financial burden to you. Please forgive me for this wrong!
14 Now I am coming to you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you. I don’t want what you have—I want you. After all, children don’t provide for their parents. Rather, parents provide for their children.15 I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you, even though it seems that the more I love you, the less you love me.
9 Don’t you remember, dear brothers and sisters, how hard we worked among you? Night and day we toiled to earn a living so that we would not be a burden to any of you as we preached God’s Good News to you.
You see, Paul wasn’t interested in how much money he could get out of believers; he wanted to win their hearts. Paul truly sought to save a lost and dying world. Today’s televangelists, evangelists, teachers and various other ministries could learn from his example. For though many of these ministries claim they want to seek and save the lost, their lifestyles paint a different picture.
Let’s look at Creflo Dollar, whose website, on Friday, March 13. 2015, announced a new project entitled, Project G650.
According to this video, the ministry’s current jet is over 30 years old and is now out of service. Therefore, they now need a new one, which will cost $65 million dollars. Really??? He and his ministry team aren’t able to fly commercial flights, like the rest of us???
In doing research on Dollar’s life and ministry, I discovered that his church began in the Kathleen Mitchell Elementary School cafeteria in 1986, to a congregation of eight. In the years following that, his ministry began to grow, and eventually moved to a chapel. Around this time, Creflo Dollar began preaching on the radio, and he began having four services on Sundays. The church continued to grow, from the tithes, offerings and donations they received from parishoners and people around the world, and World Changers Church International (WCCI) eventually built moved into the World Dome, a sanctuary that seats 8500 people, located in College Park, GA. This $18 million dollar church was built from the donations of many men and women, with no bank financing. WCCI also has a church in New York as well.
The ministry isn’t all that has prospered since its humble beginning; Creflo and wife, Taffi Dollar have also prospered. Though he has refused to disclose his salary for many years, it is estimated that Mr. and Mrs. Dollar’s net worth is $27 million dollars, much of which has come from the tithes and donations of many men and women like you and me.
When giving to a ministry, I want to be a good steward. I want to know that my offerings are going to help the needy, widows and orphans, as well as the disabled. I want to know that the money is being used wisely, according to God’s will, and not the will of a greedy man. I would be very angry to think that I have given money to bring the gospel of Christ to those who have never heard Jesus’ name, and to help those who in need of food, money and shelter, according to God’s will, only to find it has been used to line the pastors’ pockets.
2 Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful.
8 Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, heal those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases, and drive out demons. You have received without paying, so give without being paid.
Pardon me, but I have to ask, how much of the money that is donated to the ministry, for the salvation of souls and to help those in need, is actually going to the needy? Dollar and his wife not only have a net worth of $27 million dollars, as I stated earlier, but he also owns two Rolls Royces, a $1 million dollar home in Atlanta, and a $2.5 million dollar home in Manhattan.
With all of this wealth, I find it very brazen for Dollar to ask 200,000 members to donate $300 so that he can get a new jet! After all, his wealth has come from the donations of many people who have a net worth of little or nothing, because he preaches a false prosperity message and claims that if his congregants will give at least ten percent of their income, they too will prosper. Frankly, with his wealth, Dollar can either purchase his own jet, or he can do as the rest of us do, and fly the friendly skies on a commercial airline!
Minister Creflo Dollar Attempts to Raise $65 Million to Purchase Private Jet
Beloved reader, true ministry begins with you and me, not with some preacher, who is more interested in what you can give him, instead of how he can help you. Do you want to reach a lost and dying world with the gospel? Then share the Good News with your neighbors, your coworkers, and the people you see on a day to day basis. Pray for them. Love them. Talk to them about Jesus, not about your church. This is how souls are won, not by sending your hard earned money to a charlatan who preaches a false gospel.
Finally, since I have shared my concerns about Creflo Dollar and his ministries and net worth, I would be remiss if I did not address one other scandal that was in the news in 2012. On June 8, 2012, Creflo Dollar was arrested for Simple Battery Family Violence and Cruelty to Children for allegedly throwing his fifteen year old daughter on the ground, choking her, punching her and hitting her with a shoe. The girl’s nineteen year old sister witnessed the alleged assault and told the same story her sister did, when questioned. Below is his daughter’s 911 call.
Dollar told a different story, stating that he and his daughter were arguing over a party that he said she couldn’t attend because of her bad grades. He stated that after entering the kitchen and asking why she was upset, his daughter was disrespectful to him, and he tried to restrain her. After restraining her, he said that she began hitting him, and he wrestled her to the floor and spanked her. Below is a copy of the actual police report for Creflo Dollar’s arrest:
On the Sunday following his arrest, Creflo Dollar spoke to his congregation, and listeners all over the world, about his arrest. Below is the video of his address.
Now, here is the issue I have with Mr. Dollar’s address… Firstly, I want to address the congregation’s response, when Dollar entered the pulpit. I was greatly disturbed by the standing ovation and the cheers and whistles that arose in support of him. With absolutely no evidence of his guilt or innocence, the congregation loudly cheered this man, who had been accused of abusing his daughter. The congregation gave no thought for the troubled teen. Now, please understand, when I refer to Dollar’s fifteen year old daughter as a troubled teen, I am in no way implying her guilt or innocence in telling the truth. Either way, this was a traumatic event, and anyone would be troubled by what allegedly happened. On the other hand, if she did indeed lie, as Dollar’s statements implied, she would still be considered troubled, for contriving a lie. In their loud cheers for her father, who was potentially her abuser, the congregation made it clear that she and her feelings were unimportant.
Secondly, I want to address the following statement by Creflo Dollar, by sharing his own words from this address… “I will never put any fault on my children as Jesus would never put any fault on me. I love her with all of my heart. Amen?”That statement, sounds as though it comes from a benevolent and loving father, doesn’t it? However, in keeping it in context with this very same address to his congregation, and all, throughout the world, who view this statement, I have to ask, who, then, if not his daughters, is he faulting? Certainly not himself!
“As everyone knows, raising children in our culture of disrespect, is a challenge and a responsibility for all of us who are parents.”
Isn’t this just another way of saying that his daughter was disrespectful, and in so doing, isn’t he putting the fault on her, something he said he would “never do”?
“The truth is, she was not choked. She was not punched. There were not any scratches on her neck, but the only thing on her neck was a prior skin abrasion from eczema. Anything else is an exaggeration and sensationalism.”
It was his daughter who called 911 and also reported to the deputy that she had been choked and punched. Therefore, isn’t this just another way of saying his daughter exaggerated and resorted to sensationalism (another way for calling her a liar)? Again, wasn’t this something he said he would “never do”?
“I mean, I can’t imagine. If I punched my kid, (emphasizes by punching open palm) I would hurt her. If I choked my kid, you would see visible signs on her neck. But to come and take a picture of a mark that’s been there for ten years, and not have enough intelligence to at least ask the parent what it is, is appalling.”
Let’s remember that Creflo Dollar had been accused, by his fifteen year old daughter of choking and attacking her. Don’t you think the officer asked the girl what the mark was from? Why would he ask the alleged perpetrator of a crime how she got the mark? How likely would he be to tell the truth? I wonder, how likely was he telling the truth in this statement? Also, let’s not forget that her nineteen year old sister corroborated her statement.
“Again, I would never approach one of my children to inflict bodily harm. I love my children enough to establish proper boundaries and help them make right choices.”
Again, he is implying that his daughters are lying about what happened. I do believe that he was trying to establish proper boundaries and help them make right choices, but I also believe that it is entirely possible he lost his self-control in the heat of the moment, and threw his daughter to the floor, choking, hitting, and punching her.
“I will never put any fault on my children as Jesus would never put any fault on me. I love her with all of my heart. Amen?”
His entire statement has one goal… to deflect the blame off himself, by placing the blame onto his daughter.
“I want to say this very emphatically: I should have never been arrested. Never! And when the facts of this come out, you will be appalled.”
Again, though he doesn’t actually say the words, his statement implies that his daughter lied about his assault on her.
“You’ve got to understand something. It’s not as much against me as it is against this message of grace. The devil knows in order to discredit the message, you have to first of all discredit the messenger…”
Here, Dollar implied that his daughter was used by the devil.
“… I want to close and I’ll have nothing else to say about this. I want to close in the book of Psalms, chapter thirty-five, and it’ll describe to you, what is going on. Verse eleven, Psalms thirty-five…
11 Malicious witnesses testify against me. They accuse me of crimes I know nothing about. 12 They repay me evil for good. I am sick with despair. 13 Yet when they were ill, I grieved for them. I denied myself by fasting for them, but my prayers returned unanswered. 14 I was sad, as though they were my friends or family, as if I were grieving for my own mother. 15 But they are glad now that I am in trouble; they gleefully join together against me. I am attacked by people I don’t even know; they slander me constantly. 16 They mock me and call me names; they snarl at me.
17 How long, O Lord, will you look on and do nothing? Rescue me from their fierce attacks. Protect my life from these lions! 18 Then I will thank you in front of the great assembly. I will praise you before all the people. 19 Don’t let my treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat. Don’t let those who hate me without cause gloat over my sorrow. 20 They don’t talk of peace; they plot against innocent people who mind their own business. 21 They shout, “Aha! Aha! With our own eyes we saw him do it!”
22 O Lord, you know all about this. Do not stay silent. Do not abandon me now, O Lord. 23 Wake up! Rise to my defense! Take up my case, my God and my Lord. 24 Declare me not guilty, O Lord my God, for you give justice. Don’t let my enemies laugh about me in my troubles. 25 Don’t let them say, “Look, we got what we wanted! Now we will eat him alive!”
26 May those who rejoice at my troubles be humiliated and disgraced. May those who triumph over me be covered with shame and dishonor. 27 But give great joy to those who came to my defense. Let them continually say, “Great is the Lord, who delights in blessing his servant with peace!” 28 Then I will proclaim your justice, and I will praise you all day long. (Psalm 35:11-28 NLT)
Creflo Dollar continued, as though this next passage was a part of Psalm 35, but it wasn’t….
10 Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts. 11 Don’t let the proud trample me or the wicked push me around. 12 Look! Those who do evil have fallen! They are thrown down, never to rise again. (Psalm 36:10-12 NLT)
Now, as you read the scripture above, imagine that you are Dollar’s fifteen and nineteen year old daughters, who signed a witness statement against him. Certainly the pastor’s word, this “man of God” carries more weight than a disrespectful fifteen year old and her nineteen year old sister, who are both indirectly referred to as “malicious witnesses” accusing him of crimes he knows nothing about. After all, he has always taken care of them, even when they were sick, and he’s fasted and prayed for them, and look how they have repaid evil for his good. See how gleefully they have joined together attacking him? Because of their behavior, they have caused people he doesn’t even know to slander him…
Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever had a pastor preach a message against you personally, but I have. I pray this has never happened to you, because there is nothing more painful than to have the word of God aimed as a weapon of destruction against you. It doesn’t matter whether you are truly in the wrong or not. It is painful to be exposed, and know that there are others who are listening to the sermon, who also know that the pastor is using you as an example. God’s word is not intended to be taken out of context to condemn or destroy someone else. As you read the scripture in the way Mr. Dollar presents it, he is the victim of a terrible injustice.
Finally, after praying for God’s intervention, just as David prayed against those who treated him injustly, Dollar curses his attackers (in this case, his fifteen year old and nineteen year old daughters, who called the police and signed the report against him) asking God to humiliate and disgrace them, and cover them with shame and dishonor. Regardless of who was speaking the truth, or who was lying, how do you think Dollar’s daughters felt as they listened to their father’s speech that morning? Do you think they were drawn to God? Or did they feel shamed and humiliated by Him?
The assault charges against Mr. Dollar were eventually dropped in January, 2013, in exchange for him attending a pre-trial intervention program, which included him attending an anger management program. In addition, Dollar had to pay $1,072 dollars in fees and court costs.
There are many reasons to be wary of this man’s teachings. His sermons usually revolve around a prosperity message with money and personal wealth as the focus. It’s the kind of message that people want to hear; the kind of message that makes them happy, but is it true?
3 For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear.4 They will reject the truth and chase after myths.
This is why I strongly urge you, beloved reader, to seek God’s face. Study His word for yourselves. When someone preaches or writes a post (including me), read the scriptures to see if what this person is preaching or teaching lines up with what God says. Then, if it doesn’t, find someone who speaks truth, while you continue to study God’s word.
Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world.
15 Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth.
Finally, beloved reader, pay attention to the way leaders conduct themselves, when preaching, and when they’re not in front of a group. What does he/she like to talk about most frequently? If the person talks mostly about money, that’s because this is what is most important in his/her heart. How does he/she treat his/her followers? Does this person like to serve, or does he/she expect to be served? For a true leader will lovingly and joyfully serve his/her followers, expecting nothing in return.
18 But whatever comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this is what makes a man unclean and defiles [him].
43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else.45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.
The scriptures above are the qualifications of a true leader, given to us by the King of all other kings, and the Lord of every lord. If the minister you have been following does not meet these qualifications, prayerfully seek one who does. This person should be willing to give to his/her followers, not to take. In light of this, where does Creflo Dollar fall in the spectrum? You decide.
16 There are six things the Lord hates —no, seven things He detests: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, 18 a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, 19 a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family.
Is it me, or does it seem that lying has reached epic proportions? Think about it… Politicians (including the President), whom we vote into office, lie so much and so often, that we’ve come to expect it from them. Indeed, it has become the norm, and most people are seldom even shocked or angered when a politician is caught in a lie. And what about lawyers, who are supposed to be teachers and keepers of the law? Most are quick to lie, especially if it means winning their case. And what do we do, when we discover that someone has told yet another lie? Many just make jokes about it…
18 Just as damaging as a madman shooting a deadly weapon 19 is someone who lies to a friend and then says, “I was only joking.
Let’s look at Brian Williams, NBC’s anchorman, who claimed that while he was in Iraq in 2003, his helicopter was shot at and hit by ground fire. However, this wasn’t true…
5 An honest witness does not lie; a false witness breathes lies.
Many people were outraged, when Stars and Stripespublished the truth, as reported by U.S. soldiers, who were actually involved in the incident, Williams claimed to have been a part of, and according to them, his helicopter was an hour behind the ones that were shot at. After being caught in his lie, Brian offered the following apology…
9 But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
I’m troubled by the fact that Williams didn’t apologize for lying or misleading the public. He merely apologized for making a mistake. Below is the definition for the noun, mistakeaccording to dictionary.com…
An error in action, calculation, opinion, or judgment, caused by poor reasoning, carelessness, insufficient knowledge, etc.
A misunderstanding or misconception.
A mistake is unintentional, but he deliberately lied, and not just once either, though his apology seemed to imply that. The truth is that he has told this repeatedly over the years, on NBC’s Nightly News, in books, in print, and also in the above interview with David Letterman. With each telling of the story, it has evolved over the years, and Williams’ personal involvement in the shooting has grown from zero to hero, His apology seems very insincere too, because he never accepts responsibility for lying. Instead, after being caught in his lie, Mr. Williams confessed that he “made a mistake in recalling the events of twelve years ago…”
Now, as you might imagine, Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly had something to say about Mr. Williams’ lie, near the end of one of his segments. Unfortunately, O’Reilly’s statement makes it sound as though ‘t Williams’ lie wasn’t a problem, but the fact that he got caught in his lie…
“He knows what he did was wrong, a lot of people exaggerate their life experience, and he did and he got caught.”
Of course, Bill O’Reilly has also been called out on several occasions recently, by former coworkers at CBS, who say that his claim of having been in the “war zone” during the Falklands war between the United Kingdom and Argentina in the 1980’s, is false. In fact, NO American journalists ever reached the war zone in the Falkland Islands and other territories in the Southern Atlantic Ocean, during the conflict. The difference between Mr. O’Reilly and Brian Williams, is that O’Reilly chose to attack those who called him out for lying, admitting to no wrong doing.
1 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.2 For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.”
Within just a few days of the aforementioned scandals, we learned about yet another scandal, this time from one of the members of the President’s cabinet. While on CBS Evening News, recently, when a homeless veteran told V.A. Secretary, Robert McDonald, that he had been in the Special Services unit of the armed forces, McDonald replied, “Special forces? What years? I was in special forces.” Sadly, that turned out to be a lie…
McDonald’s lie was discovered and reported within days of Brian Williams’ scandal, and like Williams, Mr. McDonald publicly apologized… Furthermore, just as Brian Williams’ apology seemed insincere to me, Robert McDonald’s apology also seemed phony. For, just as Williams did not confess and apologize for lying, neither did McDonald, who claimed he had “incorrectly stated that I had been in Special Forces. That was inaccurate and I apologize to anyone that was offended by my misstatement.” According to this apology, McDonald was just trying to connect with the homeless man and while doing so, he misstated his military history. Really??? Give me a break!
In the midst of all these lies, the media is having a hey day, as they gather around the liars like vultures, ready to feast on the road kill. Meanwhile, the military and its veterans are outraged over the lies, and rightly so. The general public is also incensed over the lies, and I have to admit, I was too. Then, I started thinking…
How many of us have lied and justified or excused ourselves for doing so?
“It’s just a little white lie…”
“I only told a small fib…”
“I exaggerated about what happened…”
“I misspoke…”
Have you ever lied to your spouse or your parents about how much money you’ve spent on something or where you’ve been? Have you lied to your boss about why you really called out? Did you ever tell someone to say you weren’t home, so you wouldn’t have to talk to the person at the door, or answer the phone?
Have you tried to justify your lie, because you wouldn’t need to lie if that person didn’t always over-react to situations? Or perhaps you’ve excused yourself, because one little lie never hurt anyone… Maybe you’ve even told yourself it doesn’t really matter, because no one will ever find out about it anyway…
17 For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
Many of us become completely outraged, when someone lies to us. It also makes many of us furious, when someone like Brian Williams, Bill O’Reilly or Robert McDonald lies. After all, someone in their position should be credible, right?
As a child, I lied constantly. It’s true that I was abused as a child, and many times I lied for survival, but that doesn’t justify it or excuse it. In fact, the more I lied, the easier it got, and the lies grew. I lied so much, that I was often able to convince even myself that a lie was true. I lied to survive, and I lied about things that didn’t even matter. You see, when you tell one lie, you become enslaved to it, because one lie leads to another, then another, and so on.
I wish I could tell you that when I asked Jesus to be my Lord and Savior, one summer, somewhere between the ages of eleven and fourteen, I stopped lying, but that wouldn’t be true. I will say that I tried really hard to stop lying, because I knew it was sinful, but lying was a stronghold in my life, and the harder I tried to stop lying, the harder it was to quit.
During my teenage years, I fell away from the Lord. I still believed in Him, but I was also filled with doubts about Him. You see, someone, who habitually lies, usually has a deceiving spirit within him/her, and not only does that spirit lead him/her to be deceptive; it also succeeds in deceiving the deceiver. So, basically, I was a liar who found it easier to believe lies rather than the truth…
I was around fifteen years old, when I stopped walking with the Lord, and for the next ten years, I chose to go my own way. I am so grateful that during the time I walked away from God, He never left me. When I lied, He continued to convict me of my sin. When I cussed and told dirty jokes, He was still there, reminding me that my behavior was sinful. When I was twenty-five years old, my son was three, and my daughter was a little over one, and I decided it was time to take my children to Sunday School, because they needed Jesus. I didn’t realize that I needed Jesus just as much or more than they did, but God knew. He also knew that before my children could know Him, I needed to know Him.
I hadn’t been bringing the children to Sunday School for very long, when I was asked to start teaching Sunday School. Now, in order to teach Sunday School, you have to prepare for it, and the way to prepare for it is to pray and read and study the bible. As I began to study the bible more and more, I realized how much I needed Jesus back into my life. Meanwhile, though I struggled to stop, I continued to lie, and since I’d rededicated my life to Christ, I was racked with guilt.
I hated lying by now, but I just couldn’t stop it, because I lived in fear. Looking back over my life, I understand that the biggest stronghold in my life, which led me to lie, was fear. When I was younger, I lied because I was afraid of losing my parents’ love, as they beat me and cursed me. As an adult, I lied because I was afraid of losing my husband’s love.
I remember fasting one Saturday, and going to church to be alone with the Lord, praying and preparing for my Sunday School class. As I was praying, the Lord pressed me to tell my husband about a secret I’d been keeping from him, but I was afraid he would leave me, so, I refused. I lived in such fear of losing his love, that I didn’t tell him, when some of our bills increased beyond what we were able to pay. Though he never abused me, I’d grown up in an abusive household, and I was terrified of losing him and being forced to live with my parents again. The Lord kept leading me to tell my husband about this, but I was afraid to trust Him, so I continued to refuse.
Then, a few days later, after a medical procedure, which left my husband feeling very sick, he began to talk about how much he loved me, and what a great wife I was. I told him to stop saying that, because I wasn’t a great wife. I told him I wasn’t even a good wife, but he just looked at me with love in his eyes and said I was a wonderful wife, and he loved me very much. Guilt and shame overwhelmed me, and I confessed everything to my husband, just as God had commanded me to do. After confessing my deception to my him, my husband looked at me through his eyes of love and told me not to worry. Together, we would take care of things.
After that day, I was no longer bound by fear and deception. Does that mean that I haven’t failed since then? No, I’ve lied since then, but I’m quick to confess and repent of my sins, and here’s the funny thing. I don’t lie now, because that sin no longer binds me. God set me free from fear that day, and I’m no longer afraid to tell the truth.
32 “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
What about you, beloved reader? Before you get angry with those who lie and try to deceive us, have you examined your own heart? Are you free from deception? If so, praise God, and instead of being angry at people like Brian Williams, Bill O’Reilly or Robert McDonald, pray for them, and ask God to set them free from their fear of the truth, in Jesus name!
If you still continue to lie to people, especially those you love, ask God to deliver you from fear and deception, in Jesus’ name.
7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
Please note ~ the following post deals with sexually explicit material that may be offensive to some, or may trigger others. However, my intent is not to offend or hurt, but to cast some light on a dark subject…
When the book came out, I was still working, and I remember many of my coworkers going on and on about “Fifty Shades of Grey,” and how good it was. Most would tell me how great it was, and then say, “But you shouldn’t read it, Cheryl. You wouldn’t like it.” Most of my coworkers knew that I was a minister of the gospel, and that I wouldn’t enjoy this kind of book. Most of my coworkers knew me well, yet I worked for a retirement facility, that employed more than two hundred people, so there were others, who were only casual acquaintances.
I remember this one woman who worked the evening shift. She usually came on duty just as I was preparing to leave for the day. One evening, before I left for the day, she stopped by the office, where I was working, to see if I knew where our boss was. After telling her, she turned to leave, so she could finish administering medications to the residents she was caring for, but suddenly, she spun back around, facing my office mate and me again, as she asked, “Do you read?”
“Well,” I jested, “we’re not illiterate.”
Laughing at my comment, the woman gushed, “Then you just have to read ‘Fifty Shades of Grey. It’s so good. It’s a love story with a little ‘soft porn.'”
After hearing so many people rave about this book, I was curious to know what the big deal was, and why so many people were talking about it. Therefore, I went online, and looked to see what it was about. Needless to say, I was shocked. After reading an overview of the book, I wondered how so many good people call this book good? Though it’s been touted as a “love story,” nothing could be further from the truth.
I really never thought too much about “Fifty Shades of Grey,” after that, until the movie was released, on Valentine’s Day, and yet again, people were boasting about this “must see” movie event, which raked in more money at the box office than any other movie has ever done. Numerous people, from all over, flocked to see this “romantic film.” Really??? Give me a break! I’ve remained quiet about the subject until now, but enough is enough, and if I don’t share what’s on my heart about this, I just might explode.
Therefore, let’s just call a spade a spade. While I haven’t read this book or seen the movie (nor do I intend to), I still know enough about it to comment on it. This serial (“Fifty Shades of Grey” is the first installment in a “Fifty Shades” trilogy.) is neither a love story, nor a romance. Hence, in order for us to determine if “Fifty Shades of Grey” is truly a love story or not, we must first know what love really is. To discover what love is, let’s look at the best definition of love that has been revealed to man…
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
Now, let us look at “Fifty Shades of Grey,” in light of this definition… As we examine the relationship between the two main characters, Chrisian and Ana, it becomes obvious almost immediately, that there is no patience or kindness between the two. As Christian treats Ana as his personal sex slave, there is not romantic or loving about their relationship. It is both cruel and hurtful. These two characters are involved in an unhealthy relationship, instead of a healthy and loving one, where both people treat one another with respect and dignity. This is an abusive relationship where Christian domineers Ana.
I must say that I am really surprised that more Christians have not spoken out against this novel/movie, and I’m also surprised that most women’s rights groups seem to be uncharacteristically silent on the subject. Such an unhealthy relationship should be denounced for implying that women actually enjoy being tied up, beaten, and verbally, sexually and physically abused.
4 … Love is not jealous or boastful or proud5 or rude…
Love is not jealous… The main character, Christian, is jealous of other men who are a part of Ana’s life. Now, I’ll grant you that there are some women who think it would be nice if their boyfriend or husband was jealous of other men in their lives, but that’s because they’ve never actually experienced the jealousy of a lover.
Jealousy is ugly. Those who are jealous are mistrustful and resentful. Because resentment can quickly grow into hatred, it also often leads to violence. Many times, when a man is jealous of another man who is involved in the life of a woman he cares about, that jealous rage will be taken out on the woman that he supposedly cares about. Does this sound like love to you?
Love is not boastful. Someone who truly loves someone else will not flaunt his/her advantages to the one that he/she loves. The one who truly loves will not ever want to make his/her beloved feel as though he/she is unworthy.
Likewise, the one who truly loves, will not allow his/her pride to enter his/her relationship. The partner who truly loves, will be willing to humble him/herself to the other person. The one who loves will be willing to submit to the wishes of his/her beloved, just as the beloved will also be willing to do. True love is a partnership, in which both parties are willing to give 100% to their relationship. If only one party is willing to do so, then there is no relationship, for a relationship requires two people.
Love is not rude. Love would not even suggest that one partner submit to being tied up, whipped, gagged or sexually abused. Love understands that these actions constitute rape, which is a violent act committed against someone. Rape is not fun or sexy. It is extremely damaging and harmful to the victim, long after the act has occurred. Indeed, most people say that rape is not a sex act, but an act of violence. Violence is not love.
5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
Love does not demand its own way. Women, girls, men and boys, hear me now. Love does not demand its own way. If someone truly loves you, he/she will not demand or insist that you participate or allow him/her to sexually abuse or exploit you. If this person truly loves you, he/she will accept it when you say, “No.” If the person you loves demands that you participate in sexually deviant acts, (any sexual act that is not condoned in the bible), even after you’ve said, “No,” then he/she does not love you.
If the person who claims to love you becomes angry or violent because you have told him/her, “No,” they are not treating you with love. If the person begins to list all of the times you’ve failed to do what he/she wanted you to do, this person is not acting in love. Instead, he/she is acting selfishly, which is the polar opposite of love.
6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
If the person who claims to love you takes pleasure in hurting you, (physically, sexually or emotionally), he/she is rejoicing about an injustice that has been done to you. This is NOT love. It is not fun. This is cruel and harmful to you. If the person you are in a relationship with does not rejoice in the truth of these words that I’ve written, then he/she does not truly love you.
Now, I’d like to share a few words with those of you who read the book and/or went to the movie, 50 Shades of Grey… How would you feel if your daughter, your sister or perhaps, even your mother was involved in this type of relationship? Would you talk to her about it? Would you worry for her safety? Would you worry about her emotional stability?
Or would you find it tantalizing? Would you think it was exciting and sexy? Would you encourage her to go ahead and do it, if she asked for your advice? Would you want her to tell you all about it for your pleasure?
If you would find it disturbing for your beloved daughter, sister, or mother to be involved in this type of relationship, then why would you take pleasure in a book or movie that celebrates this type of behavior? Suppose your daughter, sister or mother, knowing that you had read and enjoyed this book, shared that she was involved in a relationship like this? How would it make you feel? How could you argue against your loved one taking part in this?
Suppose your son, brother or father was involved in this type of relationship. Would you feel proud of him? Would you trust your daughter to be alone with him?
Maybe you’ve read what I’ve written here, and you think I’ve carried it to far. I don’t think so. This needs to be discussed. We need to examine our hearts, for none of us should take pleasure in these things. If this is something you wouldn’t want your loved ones to be involved in, then ask yourself why you’re involving yourself in it. For when you purchase books such as these or go to see this movie, you’re condoning it, and welcoming it into your own life.
Perhaps you’re angry at what I’m sharing. I can live with that. For the fact is, that there are young women, wives and girls who are involved in sick relationships like this, and they would give anything to get out of it, yet they are trapped. And then there are those who will copy what the movie or the book showed, and they will end up raping and hurting other women, and feel perfectly justified in doing so. After all, the movie implies that women like to be treated this way, and every man and woman who bought the book, or a movie ticket also signified this was okay. How would you like it if your spouse or boyfriend treated you like Christian treated Ana? By taking pleasure in this book and/or the movie with him, haven’t you sent that message to him???
Do you think I’m exaggerating the dangers of this movie? If so, I urge you to read this newspaper article taken from the Chicago Tribune on February 24, 2015, by clicking the link below:
Finally, I urge you, therefore, my beloved readers, to do something that many, especially those within the Christian community, are often reluctant to do. Talk with your children, both male and female, and let them know how much God values their lives. Let them know that they are worth too much to devalue themselves as someone’s sex slave or whipping boy/girl. Make sure they know how much God loves them, and how much you love them, and let them know that they will always have a safe place to come to, if they do get involved in an abusive relationship.
And if you, my beloved reader, have taken pleasure in this perverted story, you are not so far away from God’s mercy and grace that you cannot be forgiven. You have only to repent and confess your sins to Him.
9 But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.~ Matthew 24:12 NLT ~
I watched the news Friday night, and as I watched, I wept. Since then, I haven’t been able to get the news out of my mind or my heart. An old Beatles song came to mind as well, and I just couldn’t shake it, so take a listen to the song, before you read on or listen while you read.
Corporal Nathan Cirillo
Please bear with me as I share what I saw and heard on Friday night, that caused me to weep… On Friday, Corporal Nathan Cirillo, the twenty-four year old soldier who was needlessly slain Wednesday, was taken home, to be laid to rest. He was driven home along the Highway of Heroes, while hundreds of Canadians gathered to pay tribute to him, as he made his way to his home and final resting place.
Michael Zehaf-Bibeau
On Wednesday, after ruthlessly shooting Corporal Cirillo, his assassin, thirty-two year old, Islamic convert, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, then charged through Canada’s parliament, before being fatally shot by Sargeant-at-Arms, Kevin Vickers. Not only did an innocent young man lose his life, but also, his assassin, their lives cut terribly short.
The following day, when parliament reconvened, Sargeant-at-Arms, Kevin Vickers, was hailed as a hero for killing Zehaf-Bibeau before he could murder or harm anyone else. You could see tears rolling down the staunch officer’s cheeks, as he stood otherwise composed, while the members of parliament gave him a standing ovation, and I couldn’t help but cry for this brave man too, for though he had done the right thing by killing the killer before he could kill anyone else, he would have to live and come to terms with the knowledge that he had taken a human life.
This whole story is heartbreaking. An innocent twenty-four year old, with his whole life ahead of him, including a wife and a six year old son, who will now grow up fatherless, not to mention a brother and parents, was senselessly slain. As a parent of two grown children, I can’t imagine losing one of my children. In the natural scheme of things, parents are usually the first to pass on, and I can’t even begin to imagine how devastating this loss must be to Corporal Cirillo’s family. How could I not weep over this story?
Thomas Eric Duncan
Another story covered, was the ebola epidemic, and the nurses who cared for Liberian national, Thomas Eric Duncan, who was forty-two years old, when he died of the deadly ebola virus in the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. The nurses who spoke to reporters seemed to be genuinely compassionate, as they shared what it was like to care for the dying man. One nurse in particular said that he held Mr. Duncan’s hand, staying by his bedside, in the place of his family members, who were not allowed to be there, because of the danger of catching the highly infectious disease.
Other nurses shared how their community has responded to them. One said that her niece was asked not to return to school for twenty-one days, even though they don’t even live together. Still others said they were being shunned by various friends and businesses, who were fearful of the medical team contaminating them with the virus, even though the virus is transmitted by body fluids, and is not airborne.
Again, I couldn’t help but weep, for Mr. Duncan, who caught the deadly disease when he buried his pregnant daughter, who died from it. In the aftermath of his falling ill with the dreaded disease, both the Liberian government and the Dallas County prosecutor considered filing criminal charges against the dying man for bringing the disease to the United States.
How ironic this is, when it was the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital that failed to test and treat Mr. Duncan immediately, when he arrived in the Emergency Room on September 24, 2014. When Thomas Duncan told the ER staff he had just returned to the United States from Africa, they should have questioned him more closely about where in Africa he had come from. He should also have been tested for ebola, based simply on the knowledge that he had come from Africa, where the ebola epidemic rages on, yet instead of admitting him to an isolated unit and testing him for the disease, they dropped the ball, sending him home with antibiotics, which could not fight the disease; and to his family, thereby putting them at risk of catching the ebola virus.
When Thomas Duncan returned four days later, on September 28, 2014, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital dropped the ball yet again, with this very sick patient. Yes, they admitted him to an isolated room, but they failed to treat the disease until six days later, on October 4, 2014, when they treated him with an experimental drug. Sadly, it was too little, too late, and Mr. Thomas Duncan died on October 8, 2014. Had he been tested and treated immediately, there is every reason to believe that Thomas Duncan would have survived the disease, like every other patient who has been treated here in the United States. Again, how could I not weep over the injustice of this?
Also in the news was a recap of the unprovoked attack by a man armed with a hatchet on Thursday, who struck two police officers, one on his arm, and other on his head, before he was shot and killed by the two other officers who were there. Sadly, an innocent bystander, a twenty-nine year old woman, was shot in her lower back. Yet again, I couldn’t help but cry, and still, the news continued.
Jaylen Fryberg
Friday, during the early lunch at a high school in the state of Washington, Jaylen Fryberg, a fourteen year old freshman, shot and killed a female student, and wounded four others, before shooting and killing himself. It was said that he shot both family members and friends. What could be so wrong, that he would do something so terrible? I couldn’t seem to help myself, as I sat in my recliner, weeping for the lost souls, who placed no value on human lives.
The final story was an uplifting story, yet it, too, broke my heart. Lauren Hill, nineteen years old, and a Freshman at Mount St. Joseph University, near Cincinnati, Ohio, is also a basketball player. After discovering she had a malignant brain tumor that was terminal, Lauren’s response was, “Can I at least still play basketball?”
Lauren Hill
Wearing jersey number 22, Lauren gets up early every morning to practice with her team. Though the tumor has weakened her coordination and energy, Lauren still pushes herself to come to practice. Her goal has been to play NCAA basketball for Mount St. Joseph University since she first found out about her tumor, but because it is likely that she has only a couple of weeks left to live, the NCAA did something unprecedented. Because Lauren’s situation is so urgent, the NCAA made a special exception to change the Division III school’s opener against Hiram College to Nov. 2, despite its rules that require seasons to start later in November.
Lauren’s hopefulness is inspiring. Her goal isn’t just to live to play that one game. She has stated that she hopes Sunday’s game will just be her first basketball game with her team, and that many others will follow. Again, how could I not weep as I witnessed this young woman’s courage in the face of certain death?
As I sat in my recliner weeping, I wondered what was wrong with me. After all, it’s not as though I knew any of the people in these stories personally, but then, just as quickly, another thought ran through my mind. “There’s nothing wrong with you for weeping for those who are suffering. Instead, you should ask, “What’s wrong with the people who are not as affected by these stories?”
Sadly, far too many people have become desensitized to the pain of others, Even Christians have become hardened to the pain of strangers. Many adults and young people watch horror films and murder shows, not to mention the nightly news, with all of the violence going on throughout the world, while still others play violent games, and search out violent websites. After viewing so much violence and killing, many people have become desensitized to these things.
However, for those of us who are Christians, this should not be. It’s easy not to feel personally affected by the suffering of someone we don’t know, and have never seen, yet, as followers of Christ, we are to love even those we don’t know, and when you love someone, you care about what happens to them, even if you haven’t seen him/her for a long time. In fact, look at this command for Christians…
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.~ Romans 12:15 NASB ~
Beloved reader, when is the last time you wept because of the plight of people you may not even know? When you hear of human trafficking; of children being sold as sex slaves; of men, women and children dying of dreadful diseases like ebola; of tragedies like hurricanes and tornadoes destroying people’s homes and even killing them, do you feel the weight of their pain? Does your heart ache for the abused and misused? The prophets wept for the people of Judea and Israel, especially Jeremiah. Jesus wept for Mary when He saw her weeping over the death of her brother, Lazarus…
33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and [h]was troubled,34 and said,“Where have you laid him?” They *said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”35 Jesus wept.~ John 11:33-35 NASB ~
Beloved reader, if you find yourself unmoved by the pain and suffering of others, then you need to pray for God to change your heart of stone…
26 Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.~ Ezekiel 36:26 NASB ~
Ask the Lord to fill you with His love for others. Ask Him to help you to love others the same way that He loves them. Ask Him to help you to weep with those who weep, and to rejoice with those who rejoice, in Jesus’ name. For this is God’s will for His children. In fact, Jesus commands us to love even our enemies…
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?47 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?48 Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” ~ Matthew 5:43-48 NASB ~
Finally, beloved readers, ask your heavenly Father to help you to weep with those who weep and to rejoice with those who rejoice, in Jesus’ name. For He is faithful to His children, and if we delight ourselves in Him, and ask for anything according to His will, He will give us the desires of our heart…
14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.~ 1 John 5:14-15 NASB ~
4 Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires. ~ Psalm 37:4 NLT ~
Beloved reader, don’t become desensitized (hard of heart). Rather, weep for those who are hurting and struggling. Weep for those who are lost. Weep for the many nations, including our own, who are bent on going to hell.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted anything on this blog. For that matter, I haven’t posted anything on my other blog, Stories for the Heart, since October 8, before I went to the hospital for a spinal cord stimulator implant. It isn’t that I didn’t want to write anything, because I’ve had this word on my heart for a long time. However, the surgery left me feeling exhausted. In fact, every time I would sit down to write something, I would find myself waking up a few hours later. Try as I might, I just couldn’t hold my eyelids open. I’m still pretty exhausted, and there’s no telling when I’ll be able to finish this post. However, I’m determined to at least get this post started.
This is an important message that is certain to offend many. For those who are offended, I make no apologies. What I’ve written is the truth, nothing more and nothing less. If you are one of those who would rather not know the truth, then I suggest you read something else – perhaps a book by Joel Osteen, or another author, who would prefer to tickle your ears with a lie, than take a stand for the truth…
4 Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers, God will judge. ~ Hebrews 13:4 NASB ~
Hollywood has always been a hotbed of sex scandals, ever since it’s foundation as the movie mecca of the world. It’s earliest actors and actresses were involved in domestic disputes and criminal maleficence, as well as many sordid sexual scandals. Almost, from its inception, Hollywood “royalty” seemed to live above the law, as though their money and notoriety allowed them to purchase additional freedoms, above those of normal men and women.
Sadly, nearly one hundred years later, nothing much has changed for Hollywood “royalty.” This last week, while I was in the hospital, I listened to the news and read about the recent scandal where computer hackers apprehended the nude photos of one male and twenty-five female celebrities, and I’ve kept my thoughts to myself. Then, this week, on October 6, 2014, by refusing to decide whether states have the right to ban same-sex marriages, the Supreme Court thereby allowed five more states to marry homosexual men and women, a right strongly advocated for by many of Hollywood’s elite. Also, on Monday, October 6, 2014, an alleged audio recording of Stephen Collins, actor (best known for his role as pastor and father in television’s 7th Heaven), emerged, on which he was heard confessing to molesting three young girls between the ages of ten or eleven and thirteen.
The whole thing leaves me feeling sickened for our nation, which continues to sink lower and lower into debauchery. Is there no one willing to take a stand for righteousness? As I think about the state of our country, I have to admit, with great sadness, that we are no better than Sodom and Gomorrah, and if those of us who are called Christians do not humble ourselves and pray, and seek God’s face, and turn from our wicked ways, then we will be judged for the evils in this land. “But wait a minute, Cheryl,” some might say. “This isn’t my fault. I don’t do any of the things you’re talking about.”
Really? Perhaps you haven’t participated in any of the wickedness I’ve referred to, but what have you done to stop it? Have you spoken to those involved in these and other sins, and warned them of God’s anger? Have you shared the truth with those who are lost? Or do you look the other way and ignore the sin taking place in front of your eyes, and mumble, “God forgive them,” without ever taking the time to warn them?
17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.~ James 4:17 NLT ~
Let’s just take a look at what’s been happening recently in the news and address these issues truthfully, in the light of God’s word… Jennifer Lawrence made these comments, in an exclusive interview with Vanity Fair, for their November 2014 issue, after hackers released nude photos of her and several other celebrities, “The people who chose to look at nude celebrity photos that hackers posted committed ‘a sexual offence…’ It is not a scandal. It is a sex crime,” she said about the hackers. “It is a sexual violation.It’s disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change.”
Ms. Lawrence continued, “Anybody who looked at those pictures, you’re perpetuating a sexual offence. You should cower with shame.”
I wonder, how many of you, who are reading this post, agree with Jennifer Lawrence’s statements? Indeed, those who hacked and posted the photos, and those who chose to look at them, did commit a sexual offence, not against the celebrities, who willingly allowed themselves to be photographed in nude and sexually explicit photos, but against God and themselves.
9 Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, 10 or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.~ 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NLT ~
As for Ms. Lawrence’s comment that this was not a scandal, I beg to differ. According to Dictionary.com, the definition forscandalis:
1. a disgraceful or discreditable action, circumstance, etc.
2. an offense caused by a fault or misdeed.
3. damage to reputation; public disgrace.
4. defamatory talk; malicious gossip.
5. a person whose conduct brings disgrace or offense. verb (used with object), scandaled, scandaling or (especially British) scandalled, scandalling.
6. British Dialect. to defame (someone) by spreading scandal.
7. Obsolete. to disgrace.
True, there are many, perhaps even a majority of people who, in this technological age of “sexting” and nude “selfies”, see nothing wrong with posing for nude photographs with a boyfriend, lover or spouse, but regardless of what the majority believes, it is still sinful, and it is indeed, scandalous. Furthermore, I find it morally outrageous that Ms. Lawrence has the nerve to call this a “sex crime” and a “sexual violation.” As one who was sexually violated as a child, against my will, I see no correlation between the sexual crime that was committed against me, against my will, and the fact that pictures she willingly posed for have come into the public eye. It is well known that if you pose for nude photos, there is always a chance that they will be made public, thus causing a scandal. She chose to take that risk. No one forced her to do so against her will. That is the difference between a sexual crime and a scandal.
Another example of the difference between a sex crime and the scandal that Ms. Lawrence and others find themselves in is the case of the Sayerville High School football team, in which at least seven (perhaps more) upper class football players sodomized several under class football players, calling it “hazing.” Give me a break! This was not hazing. This was a sex crime. It was rape and it was sodomy. The victims of this attack did not willing pose for nude photos. They were violated against their will. These boys were victims.
The difference between someone involved in a scandal and the victim of a sex crime is that the one involved in the scandal may or may not feel shame for a period of time, but they will recover fairly quickly. However, the victim of a sex crime must fight for recovery for the rest of his/her life. In many instances, the victim suffers from post traumatic stress, and battles with suicidal thoughts as well. His/her experience leaves him/her wounded and fearful of intimacy for the rest of his/her life. The victim often carries the burden of shame because of the crime committed against him/her, and many times, people are more sympathetic towards the perpetrator of the crime than the victim. This should not be.
This wasn’t the only Hollywood scandal I heard about while in the hospital. There was also an audio tape of Stephen Collins, the actor who played the father and pastor on Seventh Heaven for many years, allegedly confessing to molesting several young girls, ages ten through thirteen. Again, if the allegations against him are true, how terrible for the little girls who were victimized. This is a sex crime, and my heart goes out to the girls who were harmed by another of Hollywood’s elite.
So, Christian, do you wonder what all of this has to do with you? What can we do about things like this? We must boldly take a stand and cry out against the evil in our land…
14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.~ 2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV~
After killing Abel, when God asked Cain where his brother was, Cain responded by asking God a rhetorical question… He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”Though God didn’t answer that question, if we look at the following passage from Ezekiel 3:17-21, we will see that we are responsible for our brothers and sisters, and anyone we come in contact with. In fact, our responsibility for others is so great, that the Lord repeats Himself to Ezekiel again in Ezekiel 33.
17 “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel. Whenever you receive a message from Me, warn people immediately.18 If I warn the wicked, saying, ‘You are under the penalty of death,’ but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins. And I will hold you responsible for their deaths.19 If you warn them and they refuse to repent and keep on sinning, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved yourself because you obeyed Me.20 “If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die. And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths. 21 But if you warn righteous people not to sin and they listen to you and do not sin, they will live, and you will have saved yourself, too.”~ Ezekiel 3:17-21 NLT ~
Therefore, beloved Christian, our responsibility for others is so great that we must be willing to speak the truth to others in love, because if we don’t warn them, and they die in their sins, their blood will be on our hands. And though we might want to say, as Pontius Pilate did, that we wash our hands of any responsibility for their death, God has already made it clear in His word, that we are responsible for warning those who are lost in sin. Beloved reader, people are talking about these things at work, on the streets, in the beauty and barber shops, and all over. Do you smile and agree with what’s being said, or do you let your light so shine before men that they might see your good works and glorify the Lord?
I must address one final issue before I close this post, and that is the issue of the Supreme Court’s refusal to address the rights of same sex marriage, which led to men and women in five different states marrying their partners of the same sex. Marriage was not created by man, but by God, for the purpose of being fruitful and multiplying. When Adam was alone, God saw that it was not good for him to be alone. Therefore, He created woman from the side of the man, to be his helper and his wife. He did not create two men to procreate, nor did He create two women to procreate. He created man and woman to marry and it was good. Later, as men and women became more and more wicked, God addressed homosexuality and He called it an abomination, because men and women had turned away from Him and what He had created them for, and given themselves over to what was unnatural.
Therefore, regardless of what the Supreme Court of the United States or any other country deems legal, if it goes against the Law of God, then it is sinful and wrong. I don’t hate any man or woman who chooses to live in sin. My heart breaks for them, because they have chosen to live contrary to God’s will for their lives, and the wages of sin is death. I understand that many will read this post and hate me for what I have written, but I must speak the truth in love. I pray that what I have shared will touch someone’s heart, and they will turn from their wicked ways and call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.
You see, I don’t have to close on a sad note, because God is so wonderful that He made a way for every man, woman and child to be saved, no matter what we’ve done, or who we’ve done it with. We just need to do as Peter commanded in Acts…
38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”~ Acts 2:38 NLT ~
Hallelujah! It doesn’t get any better than that. Beloved readers, I pray that as you read the words I shared with you today, you repented of your sins and turned to God in Jesus’ name. My heart’s desire is that no one would perish, but that all who read these words would call on Jesus and be saved.
We live in a sinful world filled with deception and governed by the father of lies. We’re taught from a young age to hide our feelings, and put on a happy face, no matter what is going on inside of us. Those who have been raised in an abusive family are taught from a young age to deny and hide the truth, using any means of deception necessary to protect the abuser(s). We’re even taught that it’s better to tell a “little white lie” than to hurt someone. Even Fleetwood Mac alluded to “sweet little lies,” in their 1987 hit song, “Little Lies,” but are lies really sweet?
How do you trust someone who lies to you, when lies are the polar opposite of the truth. As a matter of fact, scripture makes it very clear where both lies and the truth come from…
6 Jesus told him,“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.”~ John 14:6 NLT ~
44 “For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.”~ John 8:44 NLT ~
How do you feel? Do you think it’s okay to tell little white lies? What makes a lie white? If some lies are white, are other lies black? Where do you draw the line?
According to the bible, Satan is a liar and the father of lies. Also according to scripture, Jesus said that He is the Truth. Please note that nowhere in the bible do the scriptures imply a difference in types of lies (i.e. – white lies or black lies). Indeed, the scriptures make it very clear that not only is the devil a liar, he is the father of all lies. Wow. Just think about that for a minute. If the devil (God’s enemy) is truly the father of all lies, then there is no such thing as white lies. Furthermore, the scripture says that when the devil lies, it is consistent with his character.
So, keeping this in mind, what do the scriptures say about God’s character???
God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change His mind. Has He ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through? ~ Numbers 23:19 NLT ~
29 And He who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will He change His mind, for He is not human that He should change His mind!”~ 1 Samuel 15:29 NLT ~
2 This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God—who does not lie—promised them before the world began.~ Titus 1:2 NLT ~
18 So God has given both His promise and His oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to Him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.~ Hebrews 6:18 NLT ~
According to Hebrews 6:18, it is impossible for God to lie, just as there is no truth in the devil. Therefore, when we become a child of God, Jesus, who is the Truth, dwells in our hearts, and if He dwells within our hearts, then how can we participate in any lie? Yet, sadly, so many people, Christians included, are confused about this, because they have bought into the lies the world has repeated to them, rather than seeking the truth from their Father.
Think about it this way, God’s Holy Spirit lives in the hearts of all of His children, who are believers in Jesus Christ. Now, if I am walking in the Spirit, I will not even utter a white lie, because it is impossible for God to lie, and when I walk in the Spirit, I am walking in obedience to God. However, if I choose to share a sweet little lie, for a good reason, then, I am walking in my flesh, and it is sin.
Who is truly a good friend, one who lies and tells you what you want to hear, or someone who tells you the truth, even though it may be painful to hear? Do you want to confide in someone who promises to keep your confidence, but tells you sweet little lies or the one who always speaks the truth?
Finally, beloved readers, consider this. Lies do not lead to freedom. Indeed, they bind us in a tangled web…
Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive! ~ Sir Walter Scott ~
Do you truly want to be free and walk in complete liberty? Then seek and speak only the truth beloved friend. Don’t be a slave to someone else’s lies, or worse yet, your own!
32“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”~ John 8:32 NLT ~
Finally beloved reader, I leave you with this warning from Revelation…
8 “But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”~ Revelation 21:8 NLT ~
What a powerful scripture! “Whoever has the Son has life…”
When we’re drowning in sorrow, as long as the Son of God dwells within us, we have life.
When pain overtakes our body, we still live, despite the affliction, because Christ lives within us.
No matter what we endure for His name’s sake, we still have life, as long as He remains within our hearts.
And though our world crumbles and falls, even still, we live in His name.
Yes, although we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we are assured that though we die, yet, we shall live, when the Son of God is our Lord and Savior.
I live with chronic back pain that keeps worsening with the passage of time. It often renders me unable to do the simplest daily activities, things that you never even think about, until you can no longer do them for yourself. I now require help to do things such as…
Bathing myself…
Dressing myself…
Cooking…
Cleaning…
Handicap Parking…
Walking (I must use a cane)…
Shopping (I must use a scooter)…
Playing with my grandchildren…
My husband now carries the load of cooking, cleaning and caring for me, and while I am so thankful for this good man, I also worry that I’ve become a burden to him. When I express this concern to him, he asks me if I thought he was a burden, whenever he’s been sick and unable to do anything, and my answer is, “No, of course not. I love you.”
He then smiles at me, and replies, “I love you too,” and I know this is true. I don’t understand how or why, but I am so grateful to my God and Savior, who knew me before I was conceived in my mother’s womb, and chose me to be His. I am thankful, because He knew, long before He placed me in my mother’s womb, that I would one day suffer with chronic back pain, and He had a plan to help me endure it. For three years before I was born, He had created a little boy, who would one day grow up to be my husband. So, knowing the love and patience that would be required to help me endure, He gifted my husband with love, joy, patience, gentleness and kindness…
I wish I could tell you that I’ve accepted my circumstances graciously, but that would be a lie. My faith has been attacked from every side, and there have been many times when I’ve given up. I’ve discovered that it’s much easier to believe that God will answer my prayers for others, than it is to believe that He will answer my prayers for myself. Therefore, like the father of the boy with the murderous deaf-mute spirit that tried to kill him, by throwing him into the fire or water, while his body was overcome with convulsions, I find myself uttering his same desperate cry to Jesus…
20 So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth.
21“How long has this been happening?”Jesus asked the boy’s father.
He replied, “Since he was a little boy. 22 The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if You can.”
23 “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?”Jesus asked.“Anything is possible if a person believes.”
24 The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”
25 When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, He rebuked the evil spirit.“Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak,”He said.“I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!”
26 Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.”27 But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up.
28 Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with His disciples, they asked Him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?”
29 Jesus replied,“This kind can be cast out only by prayer.” ~ Mark 9:20-29 NLT ~
Like this boy’s father, I desperately wantto believe that Jesus will heal me, but what if that isn’t His will? What if His will is for me to endure this pain for reasons I don’t know? Oh, I know that many churches tell us that it is not God’s will for His people to suffer, but how do they explain the suffering endured by every one of the great heroes of faith?
Abel was murdered by his own brother because he offered a more acceptable gift to God than his brother…
Joseph suffered unjustly, betrayed by his brothers and sold as a slave. Then he became a prisoner in a country far from his home…
David, a man after God’s own heart, suffered greatly, chased by the murderous King Saul, losing his and Bathsheba’s first child to death, and later, betrayed by one of his own sons…
Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet, for he suffered greatly for the Kingdom of God.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were thrown in a fiery furnace…
Daniel was thrown in a den of lions...
13 All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth.14 Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own.15 If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back.16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. ~ Hebrews 11:13-16 NLT ~
35 Women received their loved ones back again from death.
But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection.
36 Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons.37 Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated.38 They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.
39 All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.40 For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.~ Hebrews 11:35-40 NLT ~
Now, many might argue that these are all Old Testament examples, and that we are living under the New Covenant, not the Law, and that is true. However, let us not forget that God is the same today, yesterday and forever…
17 Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. ~ James 1:17 NLT ~
6 “I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.~ Malachi 3:6 NLT ~
While it is true that the examples above are Old Testament references, it is also true that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Not only did Old Testament men and women of God suffer for His name’s sake; New Testament men and women of God suffered as well…
Stephen was stoned to death for the sake of the gospel.(Acts 7)
The apostle, James was put to death with a sword.(Acts 12:2)
All of the apostles, suffered for the sake of the cross, and all, except for John, died violently, according to church history.
And, because God is the same yesterday, today and forever, let us not forget that Old Testament and New Testament Christians weren’t the only ones to suffer…
Joni Eareckson Tada, a wonderful woman of God, with a powerful ministry, was in a terrible diving accident as a teen, and though she prayed for healing, it was God’s will for her to remain a quadriplegic, while still ministering for His glory.
Dave Roever, a godly man who served his country faithfully in the unpopular Vietnam war, was badly wounded by a hand grenade that exploded in his hand. Though his face was badly disfigured, he still gave glory to God, and ministered throughout the United States as an evangelist, then eventually returned to Vietnam as a missionary, at the Lord’s leading.
Patsy Clairmont, another woman of God, suffered for many years as an agoraphobic (fear of open places and crowds), before becoming an author and minister for the Lord.
Fanny Crosby, author of more than 8,000 hymns, loved the Lord and served Him faithfully, though she remained blind her entire life. And, rather than lamenting her circumstances, she once said, “Mother, if I had a choice, I would still choose to remain blind… for when I die; the first face I will ever see will be the face of my blessed Saviour.”
Therefore, despite the things I’ve been taught, when I examine the scriptures and the history of the church, I have come to realize that it isn’t God’s will for His people to remain trouble free, no matter what we’ve been told. In fact, it seems to me that it is in the dark times of suffering, in our weaknesses that God’s strength is revealed. In fact, even the apostle Paul asked God to remove his suffering…
8 Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. 9 Each time He said,“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.10 That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.~ 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 NLT ~
As I study the word of God, concerning suffering, I am beginning to understand that those who have claimed that my suffering is God’s punishment against me, are absolutely wrong, and it is they who do not understand what God’s word truly says about suffering…
3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.~ Romans 5:3-5 NKJV ~
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.~ James 1:2-4 NLT ~
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later. ~ Romans 8:18 NLT ~
16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT ~
As I read the Word of the Lord, my faith is being renewed and restored. For too long, I’ve allowed the false teachings and the opinions of others to weigh me down, filling me with fear and doubt, which only magnifies the physical pain I must endure. As I write these words and share the words the Lord has given me, I believe that God will use them to strengthen and encourage others who are suffering as well.
Beloved readers, don’t allow false teaching and man’s opinions to influence you. If someone tells you that it isn’t God’s will for you to suffer, or if they blame your circumstances on your lack of faith, don’t allow those words to fill you with shame. If someone tells you that your suffering is a punishment from God, or an attack from the devil, don’t allow those words to influence you.
Instead, 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:33 NLT) Beloved readers, don’t assume that your suffering is a punishment from God or an attack from the devil. And don’t assume that your suffering is not a part of God’s will for your life, because nothing happens by chance, and if you are truly a child of God, and you are living in obedience to Him, then He will keep you in His will. In fact, don’t even waste your time asking why you are suffering. Instead, remember these words that Jesus spoke to His disciples…
33 “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” ~ John 16:33 NLT ~
Finally, beloved readers, no matter what you are suffering, the most important thing for you to cling to is your relationship with Jesus. Have you been born again? If so, then whatever your circumstances are, no matter how much pain and suffering you endure, no matter how oppressed and depressed you are or have been, rejoice, because you have life!
25 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying.”~ John 11:25 NLT ~
12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.~ 1 John 5:12 NLT ~
In closing, I would like to share this final word with those people who are suffering and have never been born again. If you have read this post all the way to the end, rejoice, because God has not given up on you, and He can turn your suffering into a reason to rejoice, as well. It is not by chance that you found this post and read it; it is because God has led you here so that you can be born again and live.
In order to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you don’t have to pray a “Sinner’s Prayer.” You just need to believe and do what the following scriptures say…
23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.~ Romans 3:23 NLT ~
According to this scripture, everyonehas sinned against God, (except for Jesus, who was the Son of God and completely without sin). This means that every man, woman, boy and girl has sinned. It means that you have sinned, and I have sinned too. It means that even preachers and prophets have sinned. The scripture tells us that everyone has failed to meet the standard that God has set for us. This means that just as the worst criminal has fallen short of God’s glorious standard, we, too, have fallen short of His glorious standard. Do you believe this?
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.~ Romans 6:23 NLT ~
According to God’s Law, the penalty for sinning and falling short of His glorious standard is death. As you can plainly see, there is no differential for how big or how small the sin is. It simply says that the payment or wages for sin is death. It sounds pretty hopeless, doesn’t it? But God had a rescue plan for us…
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.17 God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him.
18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in Him. But anyone who does not believe in Him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”~ John 3:16-21 NLT ~
6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.”~ John 14:6 NLT ~
27 Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God. 28 In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for Him.~ Hebrews 9:27-28 GNT ~
Do you believe this? Would you like to be born again and saved, so that you can spend eternity with the King of all kings and Lord of all lords? Would you like to have a personal relationship with the One who loved you before He laid the foundations of the earth?
4 Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. ~ Ephesians 1:4 NLT ~
9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.~ Romans 10:9-10 NLT ~
Do you believe all of this? If so, openly declare it, so that all will know that you have been reborn. Then, to help you grow in your faith, begin reading and studying the Bible, for its pages contain God’s word. You don’t need to read large portions either. Instead, before you begin to read, ask God to give you an understanding heart. Then, read a small portion of it… (i.e. –John 1is a good place to start, so begin readingJohn 1:1-5. Then, read it again, out loud, and meditate {think} about what it says. You might want to study just that small portion for a week, and write your thoughts about it. Then, begin reading the next portion and meditate on it.) [If you don’t have a bible, you can visitBible Gatewayand read the bible in any version you prefer. Try several different versions, and see which ones are the easiest to understand.]
Also, ask God to place other believers in your life, so that you can worship with them and grow spiritually. Welcome into the family of God, beloved reader. If I can help you in your new walk with God, write me a message and I will answer you and pray for you. God bless you!
1 Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. 2 And now in these final days, He has spoken to us through His Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son He created the universe. 3 The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and He sustains everything by the mighty power of His command. When He had cleansed us from our sins, He sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. 4 This shows that the Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave Him is greater than their names.~ Hebrews 1:1-4 — NLT ~
Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets.Enoch walked in close fellowship with God, until He took him… God spoke to Noah and told him to build an ark… God spoke to Abraham when He appeared before him as an angel of the Lord, promising to bless all of mankind through his Seed… He spoke to Moses through the fire of a burning bush, then later, He spoke to him audibly… God spoke to Joshua, encouraging him to“Be strong and courageous…”He spoke to each of the judges who were willing to listen to Him… He spoke to Samuel in the night, calling him by name,“Samuel! Samuel!”… He spoke to King David and to King Solomon… He spoke to Elijah in a still small voice…
I could go on and on, but you get the picture. God used to speak to His people through the prophets, but when Christ came, things changed. Now, He speaks to us through His Son, Jesus. Think about this, God speaks through the One who created the universe with Him…
1 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.~ John 1:1-5 — NLT ~
Beloved readers, do you get it? God speaks to us through the Word! He speaks to us through His Word! He, who spoke all of creation into existence… He who spoke our lives into existence, also speaks tous through His Son, the Word of God… He speaks to us through Christ, who “… radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God…”He speaks to us through Jesus, who“… expresses the very character of God…”God now speaks to us through His Son,“…who sustains everything by the mighty power of His command…”
15 Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 16 for through Him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through Him and for Him. 17 He existed before anything else, and He holds all creation together.~ Colossians 1:15-17 — NLT ~
How amazing and how wonderful that the God of the universe, the Holy One of Israel speaks to us through His Son and Heir, Jesus Christ, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords! What an honor this is! It used to be that He only spoke to prophets, but now, beloved readers, He speaks through His Son Jesus to ordinary people like you and me! Imagine, hearing the voice of God Almighty as He speaks to us through His Son!
“Oh,” some may say, “I’ve never heard God speak to me.” But according to His Word, He doesspeakto, through His Son. Could it be that those who don’t hear Him speak simply don’t recognize His voice? Let’s see what God’s Son has to say about this…
2 “But He who enters by the door is the Shepherd of the sheep. 3 To Him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear His voice; and He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 And when He brings out His own sheep, He goes before them; and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice. 5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”~ John 10:2-5 — NKJV ~
Do you see, beloved readers? If you are a child of God, (a.k.a. – a part of the Good Shepherd’s {Jesus’} flock) then when He speaks, you will recognize His voice. Indeed, He will call you by name, just as God called the prophet Samuel so many years ago, just as a shepherd calls his sheep. For Christ Jesus is our Good Shepherd, and He calls us by our name, and when He speaks to us, if we are truly one of His sheep, the Spirit within us compels us to follow Him and obey Him.
For you see, beloved reader, when Christ“… cleansed us from our sins, He sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven…”This same Jesus, through whom God speaks to regular people like you and me, now sits at the right hand of Almighty God in heaven, reigning and ruling with His Father. Isn’t it wonderful and amazing to know that this same Jesus, who is far greater than the angels, and whose name is above all other names, would speak to someone such as you or me?
There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. ~ Acts 4:12 — NLT ~
9 Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.~ Philippians 2:9-11 — NLT ~
After reading all of this, what can we conclude from our study of the first four verses of Hebrews 1?
We can know that although God used to speak to us through the prophets, He now speaks to us through His Son, Jesus.
We know that Jesus is heir to everything, according to God’s promise.
We know that God created the universe through His Son, Jesus.
We know that Jesus radiates God’s own glory.
We know that the Son of God reveals the very character of God.
We also know that Christ sustains everything by the mighty power of His command.
We know that after Jesus cleansed us from our sins, He sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.
We know that God’s Son is far greater than the angels.
And finally, we learned that Jesus’ name, given to Him by God, is far greater than any other name in heaven, on the earth below, under the seas, under the earth, or anywhere else in the universe!
Hallelujah! Isn’t it amazing how much we learned about the Lord and how He speaks to us in just four verses? I can’t wait to continue with the next part!
Please bear with me, because I’m not sure how much writing I’m going to be able to do in the next few weeks, as my daughter-in-law (I will refer to her as my daughter from hereon, because that is what she is to me.) just had brain surgery, and I’m going to help care for six of my grandchildren. For those of you who have faith that our awesome and wonderful God and Father hears our prayers and answers them, I ask you to please pray for my son, daughter and children.
Please pray that my daughter heals quickly, and completely, and that she would know just how precious she is to her husband (my son), my husband and me, and everyone who knows her. Pray also that my grandchildren feel God’s love for them, and that they would see how awesome and mighty He is, as He heals their mommy. Please also pray for peace within their home, because this is such a difficult time for all involved, and we all know how the enemy likes to attack when everyone is at their weakest point…
Thank you to each and every one of you for your prayers and for your patience, as my posts for this Bible study will be worked around my beautiful grandchildren’s schedules, and you can imagine how busy my husband and I will be as we help care for those precious children!
Again, thank you and may God bless each one of you!
1 Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2 but early the next morning He was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and He sat down and taught them. 3 As He was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.
4 “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 The law of Moses says to stone her. What do You say?”
6 They were trying to trap Him into saying something they could use against Him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with His finger. 7 They kept demanding an answer, so He stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”8 Then He stooped down again and wrote in the dust.
9 When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10 Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman,“Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”
This story has always moved me deeply, but never more than now, after having watched,“The Stoning of Soraya M.”, a true story about an Iranian woman falsely accused of adultery by her adulterous husband and stoned to death. As I watched this heartrending story of the atrocities committed in the name of Islamic law, I couldn’t help but think of a very familiar and similar story of the adulterous woman in the book of John. I also couldn’t help but think of the Mosaic Law, which carried the same punishment for adultery as the Islamic law, and compare it to the Law of the New Covenant, which those who are born-again now live under.
In this series, Live By the Law/Die By the Law, we have learned much about the Old Testament Law, as we examined whether we are called to Live By the Law and Die By the Law or not…
Image Credit: Anna Popescu
InLive By the Law/Die By the Law ~ Part 1, we learned that the Law does not have the power to save us, for salvation comes only by the grace of God, through faith in Jesus Christ.
InLive By the Law/Die By the Law ~ Part 2, we learned that God gave the Jews Ten Commandments, (also known as the Law of Moses and The Old Testament or Old Covenant), and from these ten Laws, the Jews created 613 laws, (known as the Tradition of the Elders), which were meant to supplement the Law of Moses.
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.”~ Exodus 20:2-3 — NKJV ~
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My Commandments.”~ Exodus 20:4-6 — NKJV ~
Image Credit: Groupthink Rescue
InLive By the Law/Die By the Law ~ Part 4, we continued our in depth study of the Ten Commandments, starting from the third Commandment and ending with the tenth…
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.”~ Exodus 20:7 — NKJV ~
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.”~ Exodus 20:8-11 — NKJV ~
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.”~ Exodus 20:12 — NKJV ~
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”~ Exodus 20:17 — NKJV ~
InLive By the Law/Die By the Law ~ Part 5, we discovered that the purpose of the Law was to show people their sins, and that it was only supposed to last until Jesus, the Christ came. It was never intended to be an eternal law.
Never did it become more clear to me just how very wonderful and merciful our Lord is than after I watched “The Stoning of Soraya M.”last night. You see, if we still lived under the Old Covenant, then not only would we be bound to obey every command, we would also suffer the punishment meted out for every command that we break… According to Old Testament Law, we would be subjected to stoning if we committed any of the following sins…
Anyone who blasphemes the Name of the Lord must be stoned to death by the whole community of Israel. Any native-born Israelite or foreigner among you who blasphemes the Name of the Lord must be put to death.~ Leviticus 24:16 — NLT ~
13 “Suppose a man marries a woman, but after sleeping with her, he turns against her 14 and publicly accuses her of shameful conduct, saying, ‘When I married this woman, I discovered she was not a virgin.’ 15 Then the woman’s father and mother must bring the proof of her virginity to the elders as they hold court at the town gate. 16 Her father must say to them, ‘I gave my daughter to this man to be his wife, and now he has turned against her. 17 He has accused her of shameful conduct, saying, “I discovered that your daughter was not a virgin.” But here is the proof of my daughter’s virginity.’ Then they must spread her bed sheet before the elders. 18 The elders must then take the man and punish him. 19 They must also fine him 100 pieces of silver, which he must pay to the woman’s father because he publicly accused a virgin of Israel of shameful conduct. The woman will then remain the man’s wife, and he may never divorce her.
20 But suppose the man’s accusations are true, and he can show that she was not a virgin. 21 The woman must be taken to the door of her father’s home, and there the men of the town must stone her to death, for she has committed a disgraceful crime in Israel by being promiscuous while living in her parents’ home. In this way, you will purge this evil from among you.~ Deuteronomy 22:13-21 — NLT ~
2 When you begin living in the towns the Lord your God is giving you, a man or woman among you might do evil in the sight of the Lord your God and violate the covenant. 3 For instance, they might serve other gods or worship the sun, the moon, or any of the stars—the forces of heaven—which I have strictly forbidden. 4 When you hear about it, investigate the matter thoroughly. If it is true that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, 5 then the man or woman who has committed such an evil act must be taken to the gates of the town and stoned to death. 6 But never put a person to death on the testimony of only one witness. There must always be two or three witnesses. 7 The witnesses must throw the first stones, and then all the people may join in. In this way, you will purge the evil from among you.~ Deuteronomy 17:2-7 — NLT ~
18 “Suppose a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey his father or mother, even though they discipline him. 19 In such a case, the father and mother must take the son to the elders as they hold court at the town gate. 20 The parents must say to the elders, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious and refuses to obey. He is a glutton and a drunkard.’ 21 Then all the men of his town must stone him to death. In this way, you will purge this evil from among you, and all Israel will hear about it and be afraid.~ Deuteronomy 21:18-21 — NLT ~
The examples above are just a few of the reasons that someone who lives under the Law of Moses and The Tradition of the Elders could be stoned. There are numerous other punishments and judgments meted out against those who break the Law, and each punishment seems quite harsh, especially to those with a western mindset. To those who reside in the Middle East, they are deemed appropriate. Indeed, as the movie,“The Stoning of Soraya M.”, revealed, these punishments are still leveled against people.
This is why Jesus’ response to the adulterous woman was considered to be so radical. Not only did He refuse to condemn her for the sin she committed, He turned the tables on those who wanted to condemn her with His challenge…
… “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”~ John 8:7b — NLT ~
Suddenly, instead of looking at this woman, who was caught in the very act of adultery, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees were forced to look inward, and examine themselves. No one knows what Jesus wrote on the ground, whether it was related to their accusation or perhaps their own sins, or not. All that is known, is that the powerful words He spoke forced each of her accusers to stop.
Who, among them, had the right to pick up a stone and throw it? Who, among them, could be brazen enough to cast the first stone, thereby administering the punishment she surely deserved, when by doing so, he would be declaring before God and his cohorts that he had never sinned? I can just imagine the youngest ones, full of zeal and self-righteousness, respectfully waiting for one of their elders to cast the first stone, so they too, could join in, only to witness each one drop his stone to the dry and barren ground, as the very oldest left with their heads bowed low in defeat and consternation. As each one of the elders left, one by one, the younger condemners were also constrained to realize that they had no more right to throw the first stone at the woman than their senior counterparts.
Now, in case you’re wondering where I’m going with this post, and how it ties in with the series Live By the Law/Die By the Law, please allow me to enlighten you. There are many, many men and women born-again believers who get caught up in trying to live by the Law. Now, please don’t misunderstand me, God loves it when we obey Him, but He does not love it when we get so caught up in trying to live by every jot and tittle of the Law, and we also place that demand on others. You see, living by faith and living by the Law may produce the same outward effects, but the difference between the two lies within the hearts of mankind.
1 Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of His death on the cross. 2 Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the Law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. 3 How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4 Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?
5 I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the Law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.
6 In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”7 The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God.~ Galatians 3:1-7 — NLT ~
You see, one who lives by the Law does so because he/she is trying to gain the approval of God and mankind. One might try to obey every letter of the Law in order to receive the accolades of man. Or one may try to obey the Law for fear that if he/she doesn’t, he/she may lose his/her salvation. A person who lives by the Law may do so because he/she believes that he/she must be an example for others to follow. One who lives by the Law is usually self-righteous, and lacking humility, though this person may not even realize it. A person who follows the Law often sees the sin in others, and sometimes feels superior to those who just don’t “get it.”
10 But those who depend on the Law to make them right with God are under His curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” 11 So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the Law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” 12 This way of faith is very different from the way of Law, which says, “It is through obeying the Law that a person has life.”
13 But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the Law. When He was hung on the cross, He took upon Himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” 14 Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing He promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.~ Galatians 3:10-14 — NLT ~
On the other hand, one who lives by faith walks in obedience because he/she loves the Lord, and it feels good to do those things that please Him. One who walks by faith does so regardless of what others may say. This person walks in the Spirit, doing those things He leads him/her to do, confident that he/she is a child of the Most High God, saved by His grace through faith. This person knows that his/her salvation has nothing to do with his/her behavior, and that he/she did not choose Christ because it was Christ who chose him/her. The person who lives by grace is humble, fully aware that he/she is no better than anyone, even the vilest sinner.
1 So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the Law.
2 Listen! I, Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. 3 I’ll say it again. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole Law of Moses. 4 For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the Law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.
5 But we who live by the Spirit eagerly wait to receive by faith the righteousness God has promised to us. 6 For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.~ Galatians 5:1-6 — NLT ~
Beloved readers, the whole point of this post and of this series, Live By the Law/Die By the Law, is that those who choose to live according to the Law rather than by the Spirit, must understand that they will then be judged according to the Law, and it is important to remember that there is no one who is righteous. Other than Jesus Christ, no one has ever obeyed the entire Law.
20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the Law commands. The Law simply shows us how sinful we are.~ Romans 3:20 — NLT ~
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.~ Romans 3:21 — NLT ~
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.~ Romans 6:23 — NLT ~
Beloved reader, I am not saying that the Law is evil. What I am saying is that we must live by the Spirit, not by the Law. I’ll close with the following scripture, and I encourage you to pray about this post, and seek the Lord’s face regarding what we have studied here.
30 There is only one God, and He makes people right with Himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. 31 Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.~ Romans 3:30-31 — NLT ~
20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who change darkness into light and light into darkness, who change bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter!
21 Woe to those seeing themselves as wise, esteeming themselves as clever.
22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine, men whose power goes to mixing strong drinks, 23 who acquit the guilty for bribes but deny justice to the righteous!
~ Isaiah 5:20-23 — CJB ~
It’s all over the news, and since everyone else is weighing in, I’m going to weigh in too. Were Phil Robertson’s statements regarding homosexuality crude? Yes. Is homosexuality — i.e. – sin — crude? Absolutely.
Would I have stated things differently than Phil Robertson? Perhaps, but in the end, when you weigh it all out, we would have both ended up meaning the same thing…
Before addressing this as a woman of God, which is what I am first and foremost, I’m going to address this as an American citizen. An American citizen can go on television and curse and swear, using all sorts of coarse language, and those rights are protected. American citizens go on television, rapping and singing songs with suggestive lyrics that are extremely crude. On both daytime and nighttime tv, you see men and women fornicating and having adulterous affairs, and as if that wasn’t enough, there are shows such as “Glee”, which promotes the homosexual lifestyle.
I and many others find these things terribly offensive — much more offensive than what Phil Robertson said, and yet these things continue to air on television day in and day out, and I see no network executives stepping in to suspend those involved in such poor behavior. Indeed, the writers, producers and actors of such smut receive ridiculously large paychecks to reward their behavior. Could it be that there is a double standard here? Could it be that those who cry out so loudly for tolerance are indeed the least tolerant of all people? That’s my take on things as an American citizen…
Now, for my take on things as a woman of God, I applaud Phil, no matter how crude his remarks were, because as I said before, the sin of homosexuality is crude, and often, in times past, remarks that have been perceived by one side or the other as crude or harsh have been made against sin…
If a man goes to bed with a man as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they must be put to death; their blood is on them.
18 What is revealed is God’s anger from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people who in their wickedness keep suppressing the truth; 19 because what is known about God is plain to them, since God has made it plain to them.20 For ever since the creation of the universe his invisible qualities — both his eternal power and his divine nature — have been clearly seen, because they can be understood from what he has made. Therefore, they have no excuse;21 because, although they know who God is, they do not glorify him as God or thank him. On the contrary, they have become futile in their thinking; and their undiscerning hearts have become darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they have become fools! 23 In fact, they have exchanged the glory of the immortal God for mere images, like a mortal human being, or like birds, animals or reptiles!
24 This is why God has given them up to the vileness of their hearts’ lusts, to the shameful misuse of each other’s bodies.25 They have exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, by worshipping and serving created things, rather than the Creator — praised be he for ever. Amen. 26 This is why God has given them up to degrading passions; so that their women exchange natural sexual relations for unnatural; 27 and likewise the men, giving up natural relations with the opposite sex, burn with passion for one another, men committing shameful acts with other men and receiving in their own persons the penalty appropriate to their perversion. 28 In other words, since they have not considered God worth knowing, God has given them up to worthless ways of thinking; so that they do improper things. 29 They are filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and vice; stuffed with jealousy, murder, quarrelling, dishonesty and ill-will; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God; they are insolent, arrogant and boastful; they plan evil schemes; they disobey their parents; 31 they are brainless, faithless, heartless and ruthless. 32 They know well enough God’s righteous decree that people who do such things deserve to die; yet not only do they keep doing them, but they applaud others who do the same.
Let’s be honest, these scripture passages have offended the homosexual community for quite some time, and many claim that because Jesus Himself did not speak these words, nor did He specifically say anything containing the words “homosexuality,” then He must not have been against it, and was therefore for it. There are even different factions, who call themselves a part of the church, who openly practice homosexuality, and claim to be Christians, but brothers and sisters, whether these words offend you or not, I must speak the truth, because some things ought not be, and I would rather that you live and know the truth, than die, believing a lie from the pit of hell.
Firstly, although Jesus never specifically addressed the issue of homosexuality, He did address marriage…
5 But Yeshua said to them, “He wrote this commandment for you because of your hardheartedness. 6 However, at the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. 7 For this reason, a man should leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, 8 and the two are to become one flesh. Thus they are no longer two, but one. 9 So then, no one should break apart what God has joined together.”
As you can clearly see here, the only marriage acknowledged by Jesus, who was co-Creator of the universe, was the marriage between a man and a woman – period. His very ommission of homosexuality in this instance made it clear that it was never a part of His equation. Further, Jesus also made this statement while He walked the earth in the flesh…
17 “Don’t think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete. 18 Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah — not until everything that must happen has happened. 19 So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness is far greater than that of the Torah-teachers and P’rushim, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven!
Jesus did not come to abolish the Law. He came to complete the Law. Part of the Law was that homosexuality is an abomination. That did not change when Jesus came. Indeed, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. What has always been sin in times past, continues to remain sin. The difference is that now, He has given us a way of escape from those sins that once bound us.
You see, the sins that once bound me, no longer have the same power over me, not because I have become a better person, but because Christ has redeemed my life from the pit. When He revealed my sinful nature to me, I had a choice… I could either rebel from Him and this revelation and continue living in sin according to my will… or I could repent and cry out for His mercy and forgiveness, asking Him to change what I was powerless to do on my own. I chose the latter, and if there is any good in me, it is only through His mercy and grace.
Each and every person who was confronted with the words from Phil Robertson’s mouth a few days ago, were also given a choice, just as those who choose to read this post also have the same choice. You can choose to rebel against the truth of God’s word and continue in sin, or you can repent and cry out to God for mercy, in Jesus’ name.
For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
So, what do you think? Was Phil Robertson right or wrong? The fact is that the Lord uses all kinds of strange people to spread His gospel… He once spoke to a rebellious prophet through the mouth of an ass. He spoke to a rebellious people through a wailing prophet named Jeremiah, and let’s not forget that the Lord commanded the prophet Isaiah to prophesy nude for three years… John the Baptist was a wild man clothed in camel’s hair with unkempt hair and unshaven face (sounds kind of like the Robertson’s, huh?), who ate locusts and honey…
27 But God chose what the world considers nonsense in order to shame the wise; God chose what the world considers weak in order to shame the strong; 28 and God chose what the world looks down on as common or regards as nothing in order to bring to nothing what the world considers important; 29 so that no one should boast before God.
The fact is that He’s chosen this foolish woman to share these words with you today. We are liivng in a time when people are calling good evil, and evil good, and if those who know the truth refuse to speak the truth in love, for fear of being labeled bigots or intolerant, then we become just as guilty as those who try to silence us. Therefore, I will not be silent. Those who know me and love me know that I am not bigoted.
However, I will gladly state that I am indeed intolerant. I am intolerant of sin. I am intolerant of a world that calls good evil and evil good. I am intolerant of those who would try to silence righteousness by any means of bullying, and I will not be silent. Homosexuality is sin. This is NOT hate speech. This is TRUTH speech. Sin kills. I speak the truth to you in LOVE, because it is not God’s will that any should perish, and how will anyone know the truth, if everyone is afraid to speak it, for fear of losing their jobs, or being labeled as an intolerant bigot. I say it again. I AM INTOLERANT of sin, because it destroys lives, and relationships. I AM INTOLERANT of homosexuality, (SIN), because it leads to death, and no matter how anyone labels it or entitles it, the wages of sin is death.
Beloved, this is not God’s will for anyone. It is the thief’s desire to steal, kill and destroy you, but Christ came to give you life, more abundantly. Won’t you repent of your sin and call upon His name and be saved?
I love the Lord, and I love His word. In fact, I’m very passionate about Him, His word, and His people. His word is life, therefore, it is of utmost importance that we know His word and not twist it or alter it in any way. Otherwise, we run the risk of leading many people astray.
Teach me Your decrees, O Lord; I will keep them to the end.
This scripture is a promise to the Lord, that if He will teach me His decrees, I will keep them to the end. Now, it’s important that I share with you what keep means in this scripture, because it means much more than I ever realized until I studied it.
The Hebrew word for keepis natsar(pronouncednä-tsār’), which means:
I. to guard, watch, watch over, keep
A. to watch, guard, keep B. to preserve, guard from dangers C. to keep, observe, guard with fidelity D. to guard, keep secret E. to be kept close, be blockaded F. watchman (participle)
When I look at Psalm 119:33 in this context, I realize that I have made a commitment to my heavenly Father to not only keep His word by obeying it, but that I will also keep watch over His word and guard it with fidelity, to preserve it from those who would twist it and try to altar its true meaning. I don’t claim to be a great prophet or even a great woman of God, but when I see someone misusing the word of God, or claiming lies in His name, a fire burns within me, and I must speak out and warn the people who follow false doctrines or false teachers.
I don’t like writing negative things about other people, especially those who claim to be brothers and sisters in Christ, however, I feel that the Lord has called me to be a watchman on the wall. It isn’t a job I asked for, but ever since I read the following passage in Ezekiel, many years ago, I have felt compelled to warn people from sinning against the Lord, and from following false doctrine and false teachers.
16 After seven days the Lord gave me a message. He said, 17 “Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel. Whenever you receive a message from me, warn people immediately. 18 If I warn the wicked, saying, ‘You are under the penalty of death,’ but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins. And I will hold you responsible for their deaths. 19 If you warn them and they refuse to repent and keep on sinning, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved yourself because you obeyed me.
20 “If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die. And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths. 21 But if you warn righteous people not to sin and they listen to you and do not sin, they will live, and you will have saved yourself, too.”
Now I fully understand that these words were spoken to Ezekiel, commanding him to warn the people of Israel to repent, however, those words spoken to him by God also apply today. There are still people sinning and in danger of burning in hell for eternity, and if I know the truth, and fail to warn them, or if I fail to speak out against those who are leading others astray, doesn’t that make me as guilty as the false teachers are? Therefore, as distasteful as it may seem to some, I must speak out against false teachings and false teachers!
For this reason, I must cry out to you, my beloved readers, against Joyce Meyer and the false doctrines she teaches. Yes, I’m well aware that there are many of you who love her and admire her, and on the surface, it seems like her teachings are good for people. But don’t be fooled, my friends, because many of her teachings are unbiblical, and if you follow her teachings, they could lead you straight to hell.
I realize that I’ve made some pretty strong claims, therefore, please allow me to share some of the false doctrines that I know of, followed up with Scripture, so that you can make an informed decision about whether to continue to follow Joyce Meyer or not. Remember, my friends, to study the Word of God, for it is vital to your relationship with Him, and it will help you to discern the truth from lies…
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
I’ll leave my concerns about money for another post. For this post, I’m just going to dive right in to expose several false doctrines taught by Joyce Meyer, and the best place to begin are right at the foundations of our faith… What follows is a soundbite of Joyce Meyer sharing some of the blasphemous heresy that she tries to pass as Christian doctrine…
Just to ensure that you indeed heard what you thought was said, I’ve included a written quote of what Joyce Meyer stated below…
“He could have helped Himself up until the point where He said I commend My spirit into Your hands, at that point He couldn’t do nothing for Himself anymore. He had become sin, He was no longer the Son of God. He was sin.”
Image Credit: samuelatgilgal.wordpress.com
Excuse me? How could she make such a preposterous claim that Jesus was no longer the Son of God? Jesus was the Son of God in the beginning. He was the Son of God when He walked on earth. He was the Son of God when He died. He is the Son of God today, more than 2000 years after He died on the cross and was resurrected, and He will always be the Son of God throughout all eternity… Indeed, according to Scripture, Jesus is God, and God always has been and always will be.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.
1 Lord, through all the generations
You have been our home!
2 Before the mountains were born,
before You gave birth to the earth and the world,
from beginning to end, You are God.
Unfortunately, that is not the end to the heresy espoused by Joyce Meyer. Let’s see what other views of Jesus’ death on the cross she has… In her 1991 book entitled “The Most Important Decision You’ll Ever Make”, second printing, May 1993,Joyce Meyer made the following claim…
He became our sacrifice and died on the cross. He did not stay dead. He was in the grave three days. During that time he entered hell, where you and I deserve to go (legally) because of our sin. He paid the price there.
~ page 35 ~
Here’s the thing — if you don’t already know the whole truth, this sounds right. Jesus did become our sacrifice, and He did die on the cross. Jesus was in the grave for three days, and during that time, He did go to hell. And none of us could argue the fact that we all deserve to go to hell because of our sin. Sounds good so far, right?
There’s only one problem with what Joyce stated in her book, but it’s a major problem. In fact, this one statement she made is grounds for calling her a heretic. You see, Joyce Meyer claimed that Jesus paid the price for our sin in hell, and not on the cross! That is absolute heresy, and totally goes against scripture.
But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When He was hung on the cross, He took upon Himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
Do you understand this? Christ paid for your sins and my sins on the cross, NOT in hell! There are numerous scriptures that show that Jesus paid for our sins on the cross, but the words of Jesus on the cross say it all.
After Yeshua had taken the wine, He said,“It is accomplished!”And, letting His head droop, He delivered up His spirit.
I realize that this version of this scripture may not be as familiar to people as the King James version, where Jesus said, “It is finished,”however, I love how the Complete Jewish Bible says,“It is accomplished!”
I think it’s important to understand exactly what Jesus meant when He said,“It is finished (accomplished).”Therefore, I would like to share the Greek word, teleō(pronounced te-le’-ō), for finished, that was used in this scripture.
I. to bring to a close, to finish, to end
A. passed, finished
II. to perform, execute, complete, fulfil, (so that the thing done corresponds to what has been said, the order, command etc.)
A. with special reference to the subject matter, to carry out the contents of a command
B. with reference also to the form, to do just as commanded, and generally involving the notion of time, to perform the last act which completes a process, to accomplish, fulfil
III. to pay
A. of tribute
Just look at the meaning of teleō, particularly number II. When Jesus said that it is finished, He was saying that He had completed and fulfilled the command that He had been given, and now it was accomplished. What Jesus accomplished on the cross was enough, and nothing more was required to save us. He was the Lamb without spot or blemish, who was sacrificed as the atonement for our sins. With His blood sacrifice on that cross, He completed His mission.
My friends, there is so much more that I want to share with you about this topic. There is more that you need to know about this heretic. For those who follow Joyce Meyer’s ministry, I urge you to pray about what I have shared with you, and please come back and read my next post about Joyce Meyer.
He has a sweet, gentle demeanor as he speaks, always careful to avoid causing offense to anyone, which can be quite refreshing in this day and age, where most people seem to go out of their way to offend people. His message is always positive, gentle and filled with hope, Who wouldn’t love hearing the positive words he speaks?
“Choosing to be positive and having a grateful attitude is going to determine how you’re going to live your life.”
~ Joel Osteen ~
“Why don’t you start believing that no matter what you have or haven’t done, that your best days are still out in front of you.”
~ Joel Osteen ~
Image Credit: news.softpedia.com
From all that I’ve read or seen, Joel Osteen seems like a nice, likable man, with a nice, positive message. He has the love and admiration of many, many Christians. Indeed, I would venture to say that Joel Osteen is loved and admired by many who don’t claim to be Christians, and frankly, that is one of the problems I have with him.
Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying that in order to be a good Christian, you must hate non-Christians, because Jesus demonstrated His love for non-Christians by suffering, bleeding and dying for their sins, and He calls for His followers to be willing to suffer for the sake of the gospel as well. However, just as the world hated Jesus and the gospel message He preached, so they will hate His followers for preaching that same gospel message.
ה He
Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes, And I shall keep it to the end.
As I stated in my last post (ה He (Behold!) Show Me Your Ways), the Hebrew word for “keep” in this scripture is natsar, which means to watch over, guard, keep and preserve from dangers. Because I love the word of God, and because the Lord has called me to preach and teach His word, He has also given me a charge to preserve the integrity of His word. Therefore, whenever I hear someone preach a gospel different from the Gospel of Christ, the spirit within me arises, and I must share the truth and speak out against false teachers, for the lives of men, women and children are at stake.
It is vitally important that false teachers and false doctrines be revealed, because no one can be set free by believing a lie. As a matter of fact, the only thing that can set a person free is the truth…
“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
Therefore, let’s take a close look at Joel Osteen and determine whether the gospel he preaches is the Gospel of Christ, or a false gospel. Let’s start things off by looking at his infamous interview with Larry King…
Joel and Victoria Osteen on Larry King Live
KING: Is — have you always believed?
OSTEEN: I have always believed. I grew up, you know, my parents were a good Christian people. They showed us love in the home. My parents were the same in the pulpit as they were at home. I think that’s where a lot of preachers’ kids get off base sometimes. Because they don’t see the same things at both places. But I’ve always believed. I saw it through my parents. And I just grew up believing.
The problem I have with this statement, is that a person can’t be saved or born again based on his/her parents’ faith. Osteen states that he’s always believed, and I guess I could say the same thing. From the time I was a little girl, I believed that Jesus is God’s Son. However, there is so much more to it than that. You see, there came a point in my life, as a preteen, when I realized that I was a sinner, and no matter how hard I tried to be good, I just couldn’t do it on my own. While my grandmother’s faith saved her, it didn’t have the power to save me.
You see, there came a point where I realized that apart from Christ, I was utterly lost. I realized that I needed a Savior, just as every man, woman and child does, and I cried out to Him, repenting and asking Him to forgive me for my sins, and to save me. Joel Osteen had the opportunity to share the testimony of his salvation with Larry King and the millions of viewers who watched him that night, and Osteen had no testimony of his own to share.
Joel Osteen on Larry King Live
KING: But you’re not fire and brimstone, right? You’re not pound the decks and hell and dam nation?
OSTEEN: No. That’s not me. It’s never been me. I’ve always been an encourager at heart. And when I took over from my father he came from the Southern Baptist background and back 40, 50 years ago there was a lot more of that. But, you know, I just — I don’t believe in that. I don’t believe — maybe it was for a time. But I don’t have it in my heart to condemn people. I’m there to encourage them. I see myself more as a coach, as a motivator to help them experience the life God has for us.
Osteen’s statements here cause a righteous anger to rise up in me. This man is supposed to be preaching the Gospel of Christ, and he doesn’t believe in fire and brimstone or hell and damnation? There is no one more loving or compassionate than Jesus, and He spoke of eternal condemnation on several occasions. Therefore, by stating that he does not believe in hell fire and damnation, he is saying that he doesn’t believe in what Jesus spoke.
44 “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
KING: But don’t you think if people don’t believe as you believe, they’re somehow condemned?
OSTEEN: You know, I think that happens in our society. But I try not to do that. I tell people all the time, preached a couple Sundays about it. I’m for everybody. You may not agree with me, but to me it’s not my job to try to straighten everybody out. The Gospel called the good news. My message is a message of hope, that’s God’s for you. You can live a good life no matter what’s happened to you. And so I don’t know. I know there is condemnation but I don’t feel that’s my place.
How can one presume to be a preacher or a teacher of the Gospel, if they refuse to preach or teach the Gospel in its entirety? Further, by stating that he is for everybody, Osteen implies that God isn’t, or at the very least, that he is more compassionate than God. However, it is important to remember that the Good News is a positive message of hope for sinners, those who are lost… If there is no hell, why would people need a Savior? Further, if Joel Osteen was as compassionate as he claims to be, he would realize that it is his place, just as it is the place of every born again Christian, to warn the lost that they are in danger of condemnation if they do not repent and cry out to Jesus!
KING: You’ve been criticized for that, haven’t you?
OSTEEN: I have. I have. Because I don’t know.
KING: Good news guy, right?
OSTEEN: Yeah. But you know what? It’s just in me. I search my heart and I think, God, is this what I’m supposed to do? I made a decision when my father died, you know what? I’m going to be who I feel like I’m supposed to be. And if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. Not the end of the world if I’m not the pastor …
This exchange really disturbs me. Mr. Osteen stated that he made a decision to be who he feels like he’s supposed to be when his father died. To become a pastor, one must be called by God to become one. It is not merely a decision man makes according to his own will.
Furthermore, when a man or woman answers the call of God to preach the Gospel, we are called to preach the whole Gospel message, not just those parts which are appealing to us. As a matter of fact, by omitting the part of the Gospel about judgment and condemnation and refusing to preach it, Joel Osteen condemns himself. For if someone is truly called by God to preach the Gospel and to be a pastor, he/she would not consider it a job to straighten out the wrong beliefs of others. Rather, the need to rescue others from the fiery pits of hell, would burn within that person!
You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.
18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
Clearly, Joel Osteen omits all references to hell from his gospel, speaking only about those things that he deems encouraging and “good news”. Therefore, by omitting part of the Gospel, he opens himself to condemnation. By preaching another message, other than the message Jesus taught, Osteen not only condemns those who believe his false teaching, he also condemns himself…
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
Let’s look at some other things Larry King questioned Joel Osteen about, and look at his response to those questions…
KING: Is it hard to lead a Christian life?
OSTEEN: I don’t think it’s that hard. To me it’s fun. We have joy and happiness. Our family — I don’t feel like that at all. I’m not trying to follow a set of rules and stuff. I’m just living my life.
Again, I take issue with Mr. Osteen’s reply to Larry King’s question about whether it’s hard to lead a Christian life. Scripture does not tell us that being a Christian is fun and easy…
23 Then He said to them all,“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. 25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? 26 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels.”
Does Jesus’ description above look fun or easy? Of course not! Beware of the leaven of false teachers.
KING: But you have rules, don’t you?
OSTEEN: We do have rules. But the main rule to me is to honor God with your life. To life a life of integrity. Not be selfish. You know, help others. But that’s really the essence of the Christian faith.
I find it ironic that Pastor Osteen says the main rule is to honor God with his life and to live a life of integrity, not being selfish. He also stated that the essence of the Christian faith is to help others. What I find ironic about this statement is that Pastor Osteen is unwilling to help people by sharing the full Gospel with them, in an effort to save them from eternal torment. Instead, he merely shares those things that make them feel good for now, but offers no saving grace…
KING: That we live in deeds?
OSTEEN: I don’t know. What do you mean by that?
KING: Because we’ve had ministers on who said, your record don’t count. You either believe in Christ or you don’t. If you believe in Christ, you are, you are going to heaven. And if you don’t no matter what you’ve done in your life, you ain’t.
OSTEEN: Yeah, I don’t know. There’s probably a balance between. I believe you have to know Christ. But I think that if you know Christ, if you’re a believer in God, you’re going to have some good works. I think it’s a cop-out to say I’m a Christian but I don’t ever do anything …
KING: What if you’re Jewish or Muslim, you don’t accept Christ at all?
OSTEEN: You know, I’m very careful about saying who would and wouldn’t go to heaven. I don’t know …
KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They’re wrong, aren’t they?
OSTEEN: Well, I don’t know if I believe they’re wrong. I believe here’s what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God with judge a person’s heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don’t know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don’t know. I’ve seen their sincerity. So I don’t know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.
Joel Osteen doesn’t know if those who have not been born again are wrong? Does he or does he not believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God? He claims to preach a message of hope, and yet, the hope he offers is a false hope. He claims to live a life of integrity, and yet he preaches a false gospel, and has no qualms about leading countless numbers to hell with his gospel of lies! If he truly cared about people as he claims to do, he would speak the truth to them, so that they would have the opportunity to choose life, rather than preaching a false gospel of tolerance.
Beloved readers, I’ve shown you several reasons why I believe that Joel Osteen is a false teacher. Please join me later this week, when I follow up with further proof of why Joel Osteen is a false teacher.
What it’s all about: Five Sentence Fiction is about packing a powerful punch in a tiny fist. Each week I will post a one word inspiration, then anyone wishing to participate will write a five sentence story based on the prompt word. The word does not have to appear in your five sentences, just use it for direction. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Last week, my husband and I flew to Georgia to visit our daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren, and though it was the first time I’ve ever been to Georgia, I was home. When we were at the airport in Atlanta, which is like a ginormous maze that was much to large for me to walk through, I was transported by wheelchair to my destination, assuring that my husband and I would catch our flight on time, and there, in that airport, surrounded by strangers from all over the world, I was home.
Above the Clouds Cheryl A. Showers
As my husband and I flew high above the clouds and I saw the world below from heaven’s perspective, taking note of the homes and buildings, which seemed too small for even a miniature doll house, while the people below were much too small to be viewed by the naked eye, again, I was home. Continue reading Home…→
Does anyone remember Ames Department Stores? Ames Department Stores were the forerunners to the Walmarts of today. If you wanted to buy your items at a lower, discounted price, you went to Ames.
The second job I ever had was at Ames Department Store, where at the ripe young age of nineteen, I was hired to work behind the jewelry counter, and it was there that I discovered the gift of a lifetime! Seriously… you see, while I worked behind the jewelry counter, I came to know many of the other Ames employees and managers. Continue reading Salute to Ames Department Store and the Gift of a Lifetime→
ALCHEMY (noun)
1: a medieval chemical science and speculative philosophy aiming to achieve the transmutation of the base metals into gold, the discovery of a universal cure for disease, and the discovery of a means of indefinitely prolonging life
2: a power or process of transforming something common into something special 3: an inexplicable or mysterious transmuting
Please remember:
Your response must be between 33 and 333 words.
You must use the 3rd definition of the given word in your post.
The word itself needs to be included in your response.
You may not use a variation of the word; it needs to be exactly as stated above.
Only one entry per writer.
If you know your post does not meet the requirements of the challenge, please leave your link in the comments section, not in the linkz.
Genetically modified organisms (GMO) produce an alchemy of nutritious crops, according to the FDA, and eating foods with GMO are not harmful to humans. Unfortunately, there’s no data to base these claims on. No one in the FDA has monitored the impact of GMO foods on human health. In fact, it could take years or even decades to determine all of the health problems these foods are creating in our country. Continue reading GMOs – Diabolical Alchemy?→
Do you ever feel heartsick for the church? I’m not talking about the various places that we visit on Sundays and sometimes through the week. I’m talking about the body of Christ, those people who claim to be children of God. Do you ever feel like picking her up and shaking her? Do you ever get angry and outraged at some of the foolish things she does, because you know that she’s playing with fire, and endangering her own life, as well as the lives of others? Do you ever feel like weeping and wailing and grieving and mourning for her?
I do. My heart weighs heavily on me, and I’m so deeply troubled and grieved for the people who comprise the church. You see, somewhere along the way, many of the men, women and children were taught a lie, and because that lie felt more comfortable than the truth, they bought it — hook, line and sinker. You see, in ministering about the goodness of God’s grace, many in the church have gotten the impression that it’s okay to sin, because God will forgive you if you confess your sins, and after all, He knows your heart. So what caused me to feel this heaviness today?
Image via CrunchBase
I was on Facebook last night, and someone that I go to church with had posted a poster with a saying that was crude and it included the F-bomb. Now, I’m friends with a lot of people who do not know the Lord, and while I don’t like that type of language coming from anyone, it is not as offensive to me as when it comes from a Christian. But even this posting didn’t upset me as much as the fact that another Christian actually “Liked” this post. And the fact that another Christian “Liked” this post wasn’t nearly as upsetting to me as the fact that the other Christian who “Liked” this post is a pastor that I know and love.
Brothers and sisters, I feel it necessary to remind you that when you are born again, you are no longer the same. You must understand that you are no longer enslaved by the sins that once held you captive. You have been set free from those sins, by God’s grace and mercy, and therefore, you must stop catering to those sins. It’s time for a reality check.
What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!
~ 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT ~
Let me break this down for you, because it is vital that you understand, lest you be led astray and die in your sins. Before I became a Christian, I had a foul mouth. There used to be a saying, for those who cussed alot…
Before I became a Christian, I heard that statement frequently. In fact, I was quite proud of that, and the fact that I knew more dirty jokes than anyone else I knew. I loved smut. I read trashy novels, watched dirty movies, cussed when I was angry, cussed when I was happy, cussed for no reason at all. Really, when you do something all the time, you get to a point that you don’t even notice when you’re doing it.
But that changed when I repented and asked Christ to save me. You see, I was reborn, not of flesh this time, but of the spirit.
3 Jesus replied, “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.”4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” 5 Jesus replied,“The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven.”
When I was born of the Spirit, my life changed. I was no longer the woman I was before. I didn’t stop cussing and telling dirty jokes immediately. I didn’t stop smoking immediately, and I didn’t stop reading and watching smut right away. Nonetheless, I had changed. You see, before, I enjoyed those things, and was quite proud of my vices. Now, the first change I noticed was the shame that enveloped me when I cussed. Those things that I used to take pride in now grieved me. The things that I used to gleefully participate in, now disgusted me.
I tried to change my behavior, not so Christ would save me, because He already had. I wanted to change, because I loved Him and I was so grateful for what He had done for me, but the harder I tried, the more I failed, until, in utter despair, I cried out to Jesus and asked Him to change me, and He heard my cries and answered me. I can’t tell you the date I stopped cussing, but I can tell you that I did, because Jesus took the curses from my mouth and replaced them with blessings.
One night, when I was praying to Him, He spoke to me. I can’t remember what I was praying to Him for, but I remember His words to me, “Cheryl, you keep asking Me for things, but what are you willing to give to Me?” He asked.
My response was immediate, “Anything!”
“Are you willing to give Me your cigarettes?” He asked.
“I’ll give you anything but that,” I bartered. “Lord, I’ve tried to stop smoking before. You know I can’t.”
“I know you’ve tried before,” He responded, “but this time, if you’ll give it to Me, I will take the desire away from you.”
I agreed, and He took all desire to smoke away from me. I had smoked for twenty-four years, starting when I was twelve years old, but now, the smell of cigarette smoke sickened me — literally. To this day, I can smell when someone has been smoking, and the odor is nauseating to me.
You see, I was a new person. The Cheryl that once loved sin, now hated it, because she was a new creation. The new Cheryl loved Jesus, and she wanted to please Him. Once, I belonged to the world, and I lived as the world does, but when I was born again, I no longer belonged to the world.
1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. 2 Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. 3 For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all His glory. 5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires. Don’t be greedy for the good things of this life, for that is idolatry. 6 God’s terrible anger will come upon those who do such things. 7 You used to do them when your life was still part of this world. 8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old evil nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 In its place you have clothed yourselves with a brand-new nature that is continually being renewed as you learn more and more about Christ, who created this new nature within you.
~ Colossians 3:1-10 NLT ~
I shared all of this with you, because if you have been born again, you should not be living the same life that you lived before your salvation. You should be different. Your life should be different. Your desires should be different.
Take delight in the LORD, and He will give you your heart’s desires.
I used to think that verse meant that God would give me a nice bank account, a new car, or a better job, and I used to pray for those things. But then, as I began to delight in the Lord, He changed my heart. No longer did I pray for the things I once prayed for… Do you remember why?
I’m a new person, and as I delighted in Him, He gave me new desires… As I delighted in Him, He gave me my heart’s desires… I now desired my husband and my children to know Him… I now longed to serve Him… I wanted to share His love with others… I wanted to love others as He loved me…
I had become someone new. What about you? When you were born again, did your life change? Or do you still laugh at the things you always laughed at? Does it grieve you when you sin? Or are you able to justify your sins?
My friends, if you are born again, and yet you haven’t changed, then it’s time for a reality check. If you’re still dropping the F-bomb, laughing at dirty jokes, posting things that should not be posted on Facebook, Twitter or your blog, or “Liking” any of those things, then perhaps you really weren’t born again, or perhaps you don’t really understand about grace…
14 Sin is no longer your master, for you are no longer subject to the law, which enslaves you to sin. Instead, you are free by God’s grace. 15 So since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does this mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! 16 Don’t you realize that whatever you choose to obey becomes your master? You can choose sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God and receive His approval.
~ Romans 6:14-16 NLT ~
My beloved friends, please, examine yourselves and do a reality check. It is a lie to believe that you are born again if you haven’t changed. I don’t care if you carry the title of pastor, evangelist, prophet, elder, apostle, bishop or anything else, if you “Like” someone else’s sin, if you continue in sin, then sin is your master, not God.
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice — the kind He will accept. When you think of what He has done for you, is this too much to ask? 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.
Brothers and sisters, I’m heartsick at how some have twisted God’s grace into an excuse to continue to live in sin. God is full of mercy and grace, but Jesus died for us, so that we might die to sin. That is God’s grace. Jesus did not die so that we could continue to dwell in sin. He died to set us free from sin.
So now, I ask each one of you to examine your own hearts. If after giving your life to Christ, you find that you are still living for yourself, it’s time for a reality check.
26 Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received a full knowledge of the truth, there is no other sacrifice that will cover these sins. 27 There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume His enemies. 28 Anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Think how much more terrible the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God and have treated the blood of the covenant as if it were common and unholy. Such people have insulted and enraged the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to His people. 30 For we know the one who said, “I will take vengeance. I will repay those who deserve it.” He also said, “The Lord will judge His own people.” 31 It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Beloved, it grieves me to write such harsh words, but I must. I urge you to seek the Lord with all your heart. Examine your hearts, and if you are guilty of trampling on the Son of God and treating the blood of the covenant as if it were common and unholy, repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Cry out to Jesus, and walk in obedience to His will. He is full of mercy and grace, and He will save those who are truly repentant. He knows that we are not capable of changing ourselves, and if you will delight yourself in Him, He will give you new desires… desires to please Him. He will set you free from the law of sin and death, if you will simply love Him with allofyour heart,soul,mindandstrength.
When I got up this morning, I had no intentions of posting anything other than for Sis Caddo’s Seven Word Sundays, but right after posting that, I was strongly led to write another post. I knew I wouldn’t have time to do it this morning, because my husband and I were going out of town to see my son, daughter-in-law and five of my seven grandchildren. Also, to be honest with you, this wasn’t really a post that I wanted to share with anyone, however, when I returned home, the compulsion was there yet again, to share this post, and there was also a promise as well. You see, I believe with all of my heart that this post I am sharing with you has the power to mend broken hearts.
As many of my regular readers know, 2013 has been an extremely difficult year for me thus far. Beginning in January, towards the middle of the month, I had to take my husband to the emergency room, because his foot became extremely swollen and so painful, he could hardly walk. Then, my mother was taken to the emergency room and admitted to the hospital because she was very ill, and before the month was over, I was taken to the emergency room for chest pains (I had pleurisy, which is extremely painful… If you’ve ever had it before, you know what I mean.)
February was no kinder, as my mother’s condition grew worse, and we came to the realization that her time on earth was coming to a close. She passed away on February 15, and was laid to rest on February 22, and it broke my heart. I didn’t realize how much I loved my mom until I lost her. And then, my husband’s other foot started swelling and hurting, and the doctors couldn’t figure out what was going on with him…
Then, as we marched into March, I became terribly ill. I thought I had a stomach virus, but as many of you know from a post that I wrote, I had developed C-Diff, a terrible stomach infection, that caused me to be hospitalized for several days. When I finally left the hospital, I was placed on an antibiotic for 20 days, and though I returned home, and felt somewhat better, all of my strength was gone, and up until this past week, I was extremely nauseated.
In this midst of my illness, my husband’s illness, and grieving for the loss of my mother, I fell into a deep, dark depression. It was truly a dark night of my soul, and I couldn’t seem to pull myself out of it, as the spirit of heaviness weighed down on me, smothering and oppressing me. I was so sick, I couldn’t eat, and was constantly exhausted. I didn’t want to be around anyone, and at the same time, I was extremely lonely, if that makes any sense.
I hate depression and its lies. I thought I was a woman of great faith, and then to find myself wallowing in anxiety and depression brought shame to me. You see, I’m a minister of the Most High God, and many times, I’ve ministered to others who have been depressed, but now, I found myself struggling with a depression like I hadn’t had in many years. I thought those days of darkness and depression were long gone, when the Lord had helped me to overcome them years ago. For crying out loud, I’m a prayer warrior, a mighty woman of God, but now, I was reduced to a weeping, painful, lost little girl.
I loved the Lord, but I couldn’t write as much as I wanted to, because simply sitting up at the computer made me feel as though I was going to throw up, which fed the depression, which kept growing like some dark, black monster. Then, my daughter and her family moved to Georgia, a couple of weeks ago. The Lord revealed it to me before they even told me, so I asked my daughter, who was dumbfounded, because she said she and her husband had only talked about it the night before…
It broke my heart that they were moving more than twelve hours away from me, but at the same time, something happened within my spirit… The Lord had spoken to me again. A spark lit my hope, which had nearly died… In the dark night of my soul, God had not given up on me. He was still speaking to me.
Then, one day last week, I was talking to a friend, and the Spirit of the Lord came upon me, and I prophesied to her, confirming everything the Lord had spoken to her earlier during her devotional time with Him. It had been so long since the Lord had used me to prophesy, and in the dark night of my soul, I had feared that I was destined to spend the rest of my life like this — alone and miserable, no longer able to hear the Lord’s voice as I once had, no longer useful to Him.
It had become hard to pray, because I was no longer sure if God could hear me. As I write these words, I’m struck by how weak I was, how deceived I was, but when the enemy ties you up in those chains of deception and covers you with those robes of heaviness and oppression, it’s hard to see the truth through the darkness.
As the Lord ministered to me, igniting my hope and reminding me of His great love for me, I made a decision to go to church last Wednesday night, no matter how I felt. He had exposed my problem, showing me that I had a spirit of heaviness, and I knew what needed to be done.
6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in His good time He will honor you. 7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about what happens to you. 8 Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. 9 Take a firm stand against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. 10 In His kindness God called you to His eternal glory by means of Jesus Christ. After you have suffered a little while, He will restore, support, and strengthen you, and He will place you on a firm foundation. 11 All power is His forever and ever. Amen.
~ 1 Peter 5:6-11 NLT ~
As I cast all of my cares upon Him, I felt a weight lift from me, as the Lord ministered to me. You see, I had bought into the lie from the enemy that I was a failure, no longer fit to be used of God. In my grief, and pain, the enemy just kept coming after me, with more and more ammunition, and in my weakness, I buckled under the weight of it all, forgetting that which is true…
His anger lasts for a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may go on all night, but joy comes with the morning.
~ Psalm 30:5 NLT ~
The Lord ministered to me that night, as He’s been ministering to me all week, reminding me of His great love for me… He reminds me that though I was disappointed in myself for being weak, He was not disappointed.
13 The LORD is like a Father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. 14 For He understands how weak we are; He knows we are only dust. 15 Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. 16 The wind blows, and we are gone — as though we had never been here. 17 But the love of the LORD remains forever with those who fear Him. His salvation extends to the children’s children 18 of those who are faithful to His covenant, of those who obey His commandments!
~ Psalm 103:13-18 NLT ~
How grateful I am that I have a Savior who loves me just as I am. Though the enemy came to steal my joy, kill my hope and destroy my life, I serve a Savior who redeemed me. He purchased my freedom, and paid my ransom with His life. He not only restored my life, He gave me abundant life.
10 As a result, I can really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised Him from the dead. I can learn what it means to suffer with Him, sharing in His death, 11 so that, somehow, I can experience the resurrection from the dead! 12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be,but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven.
~ Philippians 3:10-14 NLT ~
My beloved readers, there’s no doubt in my mind that the Lord placed it in my heart to write this post not to expose my weaknesses, but to encourage you. I know that some of you are battling with grief and depression, just as I have been. I know that many of you are in the midst of a dark night of your soul, and you wonder if you will ever again see the light of day. Listen to me, my beloved friend, as I pray for you, for the Spirit of the Lord God is upon me…
1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
~ Isaiah 61:1-3 NKJV ~
Father, in Jesus’ name, I cry out to You for every man, woman and child who You lead to read this post, that You would bind up the brokenhearted. Comfort those who mourn, Lord, in Jesus’ name, and set those who are imprisoned and bound by depression, affliction and addiction free. Lord, I know that what You have done for me, You will do for others, because You are no respecter of persons, and You don’t love me any more than You love Your other children.
Arise, O Lord, and show Yourself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are loyal to You. Father, give each person who is weighed down by that spirit of heaviness, a garment of praise in its place. Lord, let them begin to praise You in the midst of their pain, and as they do so by faith, Lord, set them free!
Father, for those who are in the midst of a storm, in Jesus’ name right now, I speak to that storm, and I say, “Peace — Be still!” For those who are bound by fear, I speak to the spirit of fear right now, and I cast that spirit out in Your name, because You are love, and perfect love casts out fear. For those who are in the midst of that dark night of the soul, I loose Your Holy Spirit and Your Word, in Jesus’ name, because in You there is light, and the darkness must flee.
Lord, I believe that You allowed me to go through this dark night of my soul, so that You could minister to others who are going through similar pain, and so I loose Your Spirit to each of those that You lead to read this post, and in Jesus’ precious and holy name, I speak life, peace and hope to each one. Amen.
Greetings My Beloved Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
I would like to thank each one of you for praying for my mother and my family. I know God heard our prayers, and on Friday night, February 15, at approximately 11:00pm, my mother went home to be with the Lord. I praise God, because He took her gently, as my sister, me and our husbands sat beside her praying, for her and talking to her.
I’ve always loved my mother, but now, in her absence, I’m coming to realize just how precious she was to me. Please continue to pray for my sister and I, as we adjust to life without our mother. I truly appreciate your prayers, and I hold fast to the hope that one day, when I step over into g
