Tag Archive | lies

Church? Does God have your attention now?

Sep14

It wasn’t the gun that killed Charlie Kirk, it was the guy who pulled the trigger and planned the deed. He had a heart problem. For you see, the Church has compromised God’s truths. The Church has failed to stand for Truth. For generations now, the lies of the enemy have been subtly digested by our students in the public school system. It’s been a slow, methodical digestion. And the source of this deception has manipulated and deceived us.

We have arrived at a time in history where good has been redefined as evil. Our hearts have succumbed to the constant and repetitive lies of the enemy. So much so that now we are unable to discern what is really evil or good. These types of lies (fiery darts), dressed up to appear as truth, have been absorbed into our minds. And look at the aftermath of such deception!

Then along comes a man, Charlie Kirk, willing to boldly and publicly proclaim Jesus as God’s son! A proclamation that one rarely hears these days except in a church (and sometimes so watered down we don’t recognize it). And certainly not in the public square! And of all things, ties the truths of Scripture to the solutions we should be seeking for the problems we face in our society.

The Bible tells us that we reap what we sow. And 2 Timothy 3:1-5 NLV describes what it is that we will be reaping. Read it. Does it sound familiar?

This is the very thing Charlie Kirk was trying to warn us about. But we have been ignoring him, and others like him, and we are now reaping the whirlwind. So what needs to happen?

The Church, that’s you and me have been a sleeping giant for too long. Charlie’s death, a martyr’s death, I believe, will be our wake up call.

Remember:

2 Timothy 2:25, NIV, “Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,..”

Who is our enemy?

Feb25

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When we fail to identify our enemy!

     His manipulation and deception go forth unhindered. He is able to move incognito throughout the world and mess with people’s lives.  His efforts to turn humankind away from God meets with little resistance.

     Even Christians are susceptible to his deception and manipulation.  By ignoring those tactics, our attitude toward those who reject God and are living in rebellion towards Him can take on a condemning nature.  Thereby painting Christians as enemies. The enemy’s temptations can influence us to treat those who live contrary to God’s word in a less than loving way.  Our misconception is by showing love towards those who have rejected God and His ways then we are condoning their sin. However, when we fail to exhibit love and forgiveness, we take on the characteristics of the true enemy. 

     The world doesn’t understand how a person can be accepted, while their sin can be rejected. Christians understand by acknowledging and forsaking our sin and receiving Christ’s forgiveness, we are accepted. 

     The true enemy of our souls shoots lies towards us with the intention of destroying us. Why? He hates God. Therefore he will steal, kill, and destroy every aspect of God in our lives. 

     The enemy is exposed by the light of God’s word. But if we haven’t given our lives to Christ, we will remain blind to this fact. Apart from God’s truth, we won’t recognize thoughts, feelings, or actions that are being influenced by our enemy. We won’t recognize when our faith is being compromised to believe things contrary to God’s Truth. 

 

 

 

 

     

Depression – My Story

Nov18

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   My first bout with depression lasted for 2 years and occurred after I gave birth to my first child (43 years ago). I survived it but that’s all.  Having a little one who depended 24/7 on my ability to care for her, prioritized my daily routine. Then two years and 4 months later my 2nd daughter was born. Now the well being of two precious little girls depended on my getting it together. After two more children, a daughter and a son, life demanded that I focus on the needs of my 4 children. However, the darkness of depression continued to stalk me.

   During a retreat I attended only recently, I listened as a young mother described her bout with depression. Eventually, she was diagnosed with post partum depression (suffered by a mother following childbirth, typically arising from the combination of hormonal changes, psychological adjustment to motherhood, and fatigue).

   I’m pretty sure that my initial years of depression was an undiagnosed case of post partum.   During those first two years, I established a pattern of destructive thinking. My times spent in Scripture were consistent but brief (3 to 5 min). Any help I might have gained from them to combat such thoughts was drowned out by the lies swarming within my brain.  My thoughts were ruled by those lies. I remember during those dark days my prayers became nothing more than, “God hold on to me.” I had a sense that those negative thoughts were lies but my weakened spiritual state was no match for their dark power.

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   Several years ago I reached a turning point when God prompted me to take notice of the thoughts that were so troublesome to me. This prompting resulted in increasing my time spent in prayer and bible study. As my knowledge of God’s Truth increased, the lies within those fiery darts were exposed. Eventually, I began to break free of the chains that for years had held me in bondage.

    While I continue to battle fiery dart thinking, it no longer rules my thoughts. My thoughts are becoming saturated with God’s Word. Through prayer and bible study, I am learning to recognize & extinguish the lies of fiery darts.  Remember, depression stems from the lies of fiery darts.  But depression cannot take root in the soil of God’s Truth.

  In looking back on my journey, I have often pondered why it took so many years for me to reach the path that led me out of the darkness of my negative thinking. . .Therefore, my hope is that by sharing the lessons I learned, your journey out of the darkness will not be nearly as lengthy as mine. p 14-15, FD 3rd edition