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Chris, God correct His children when they sin because He wants them to be Holy as He is Holy and because you're His child He will discipline you in love to get you close to Him again, He's not out to punish you but to correct you. Just like you correct your children , God will correct us , sometimes it can hurt a parent to discipline a child but what will happen if they don't discipline the child? The same happens to us, if God would let us go on our own ,we will drift away from Him and do our own thing and we will get in trouble, Jesus loves us so much that He will do the same correction to keep us close to Him. Hebrews 12:5–11 5 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by Him. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and chastises every son whom He receives.” 7 It is for discipline … Hebrews 12:5–11 5 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by Him. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and chastises every son whom He receives.” 7 It is for discipline … Proverbs 3:11–12 11 My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of His reproof, 12 for the Lord reproves Him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom He delights. 1 Peter 1:15–16 15 but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

Hi Chris, Lots of great responses by my brothers and sisters. I also believe that the `discipline` of the Lord has an element of teaching with it. `My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens. and scourges every son whom He receives.` (Heb. 12: 5) chastening - Gk. word, `paideia,` meaning tutorage, education or training, disciplinary correction. Thus I like to appreciate that the Holy Spirit is teaching me how to live right, how to behave and think right. We have the bias to `sin` however as our spirit grows stronger in the Lord we are quicker to recognise the wrong, thoughts, behaviour and actions. all the best, in His `school.` Marilyn.

Any number of ways. The truth is that He can and will use any situation in our lives to draw our attention back to Him as we stray. As others have said, discipline, as with any parent to child, is not about pain or revenge, but only correction of ways that the parent knows are destructive for the child. It is discipline out of love and desiring the best and fullest life for the child.

Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us. But He has withdrawn fellowship with Him. It's like He is no longer talking to us, guiding us, comforting us, and we are no longer aware of His presence. A sense of panic sets in as we try to figure out what we had done wrong. Often it was due to a bad attitude we had allowed to foster like self righteousness. He also allows us to reap the consequences of our stupid choices. We get a ticket for speeding even if we are "just" keeping up with traffic and no one else gets one. Or we get into a fender bender while texting. Then something else goes wrong--we cut ourselves with the kitchen knife and need stitches, a trip to the ER and a lot of expense, until we realize that God is trying to get our attention. We realize we had been neglecting bible reading and paying attention when the Holy Spirit was trying to caution us about what we are doing. We had been neglecting our relationship with God and a little rebellion had crept into our hearts. All I can tell you is that I identify with the phrase in Hebrews 12: Heb 12:11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Heb 12:12 Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, That is exactly what we feel like--a whipped puppy! Knocked down and then plowed under. Humbled and pliable in God's hands. All of this is for the purpose of removing SELF. Self effort, self will, and doing it "my way". Pushing the envelope to see how much we can get away with rather than eagerly obeying the law, waiting on God and allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us.

Although we can "retreat" in everyday life, just wondering if you know of any special places (retreats) for people to go for quietness with the Lord? Although I am not Catholic, I think they have many retreat places for people to just get away and have solitude with God. I believe anyone can go there, not just Catholics. Seems like a good idea to me.

Dennis, I can honestly say I don't know how it all works. But it has always been my belief that my faithfulness, or not, in sowing seeds is NOT the determining factor in others salvation. That is the job of the Holy Spirit, moving upon each individual. My job is to share the gospel to whosoever. I have spent much time witnessing to certain old friends, and brothers, sister, Catholics, parents, atheists, planting seed, over and over, and the soil was not fertile very often (A prophet in his own town). Others, my children, grand kids, a brother, strangers, received the word without hesitation. I believe if the soil is ready, (God can prepare the soil) they can receive the seed, and watered, it can grow to fruition. It does not matter how/who planted the seed. I have presently no idea of the results of much of the seed I have sown, but perhaps some day. I do not press for professions. The birth of a child comes with a shout.

I would ask the friend how can it be wonderful when they are dating and planning marriage while he is still married? This makes me wonder about how serious the couple and the friend are about their faith in Christ. Since the man has mental illness and takes medication, I would give him a little more slack...it sounds like the woman really went after him.

It does sound very odd for two Christians to be dating while one of them is still married! If they were just friends and spending a little time together as friends while he is separated, I could understand that. It seems your friend tends to make bad choices about marriage if she already has been married twice....and at 17 to a 50 year old man! They should at least be waiting until his divorce is final before dating, let alone setting such a close wedding date!

As members of the body of Messiah, we can be compared to pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. Each piece has protrusions and indentations. The protrusions represent our strengths (gifts, talents, abilities), and the indentations represent our weaknesses (faults, limitations, shortcomings, undeveloped areas). The beautiful thing is that the pieces complement one another and produce a beautiful whole. The post Do you like puzzles? Here's one for you. appeared first on Worthy Christian Devotional - Daily Devotions. Read the entire devotional.

Dead Christians cannot see us here. Why would God allow that? There are no tears in heaven. Think of the tears they would shed if they could see our daily lives, spiritual battles, sickness, disease, dying without Christ, and more. My father just died two months ago. My mother is a hot mess of grief. Do some of you mean to tell me that my father is watching my mother fall apart from heaven, knowing he can't put his arms around her and comfort her? The great cloud of witness is the faithful of chapter 11. We "watch" them by reading about them. They are not watching us.

Actually the gods that the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Norse, and etc worshipped were the sons of god, the angels who fell, “In those days, and for some time after, giant Nephilites lived on the earth, for whenever the sons of God had intercourse with women, they gave birth to children who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times.” (Genesis 6:4-6). In fact, those fallen angels are still at work and seek worship, “Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. 8 And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. 9 This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels,” (Revelation 12:7-9), and One day Satan and His angels will be judged, “Then he will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels,” (Matthew 25:41), and “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10). Until Jesus returns and destroy Satan and his angels (Revelation 19:11-16, Revelation 20:4-15), those fallen ones seek to lead people into worshipping them. They do it to unbelievers though New Age, Yoga, the Old paganisms. I know a man who left the Catholic Church to become a Thor Worshipper (Oiden and pantheon). The other way the fallen get people involved in the church is Exorcism which in Greek doesn’t mean casts out demons like Jesus did, but means to conjure and our demons in people. These exorcists arnt doing deliverance like Jesus did, they make people obsessed with demons under every bush. I like Chip Ingram’s advice, “be aware, but not preoccupied. Be aware there is an invisible war, but don’t become preoccupied with it, looking for demons under every bush.” (The Invisible War, Chip Ingram).

Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, It is generally true that pre-tribulationists fail to consider that their eschatological model is the one that makes blood bought martyrs of Jesus Christ recipients of God's wrath. In their exuberance to insist that the church will not experience tribulation, that is, not be around for the seventieth week, they have unwittingly become the chief proponents of God's wrath upon the saints. How horrible to promote such a teaching. What! You say that pre-tribulationists promote no such thing. But you do. You teach that God's wrath begins at the opening of the first seal, which places the martyred souls who are seen under the altar and their brethren which will also be killed as they were (5th seal) under God's wrath. These are the saints of the great tribulation. These are the last generation of the church who experience unprecedented persecution beginning in the middle of the week up until Christ arrives at His parousia to rescue those who are alive and remain. Rev 6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: Rev 6:10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? Rev 6:11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Rev 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Praise Jesus

The Bible does say specifically in which ways He may discipline. But these are the exact Scriptures you want to read. Proverbs 3:11-12 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. 1 Cor 11:32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world. Hebrews 12:5-11 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. But remember that God is a God who wants to abundantly pardon! Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Welcome to Worthy if you have any other questions, ask away, Your brother in the Lord with much agape love, George

The word discipline is found only once in the KJV.Bible and that is in Job. It is called chastening in some other versions, Hebrews 12:11. Job 36:10, V, 10, He openeth also their ear to discipline, and commandeth that they return from iniquity. Followed by; v. 11, If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures. 12, But if they obey not, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge. 13, But the hypocrites in heart heap up wrath: they cry not when he bindeth them. 14, They die in youth, and their life is among the unclean.

God's " discipline " for his children is always geared toward correction & growth , via the conviction of sin . I think one of the best examples of this is the risen Jesus asking Peter , " lovest thou me ? " not once , not twice , but three times , with Peter's memory still freshly seared by his sin of denying the Lord . Was Peter experiencing " pain " ? I'm sure his pain was excruciating and heartbreaking for him at the same time . You can literally hear Peter's agony and heartbreak increasing with each instance of the Lord tenderly repeating the question . And yet this " disciplining " of Peter directly led to one of the greatest sermons of the Christian faith ever being given by Peter at Pentecost . His discipline will always involve us having a renewed revelation of Himself . What joy of forgiveness and what power of love awaits the child yet to be " disciplined " . " Beloved , now are we the sons of God ." - 1 John 3 : 2

This entire summer has been one bad thing after another. Summer classes where I drive hours every day back and forth from home, anxiety issues, money issues, car issues, a beloved family pet dying, and now the air conditioner has gone out for the second time in the last month. Nonstop stress, anger, anxiety, and tears. I've never yelled at family members so much or screamed (in my head) at God so frequently. My family doesn't have the money for all this or the willpower or the time. Why can't we just catch a break? I know that bad things can always turn out to be working for God's glory...but when? How do I deal with the pain in the meantime?

I am concerned for a friend who started dating a man late July 2018. She did know of him in the church but didn't really know him. They went on one date. She messaged him on FB to ask him out for a date. They went on the date and the next day she contacted him. He was very hazy about the date as he takes medication for a mental illness. I encouraged her to take things slow, but in a few days, she phoned me to tell me they were getting married. I was stunned?? Both are christians but he is still legally married and filing for divorce now after his wife left him 12 months ago. Apparently, he discovered she married him for VISA only. He appears quite vunerable. My friend just wants to be married. Now they are organising a marriage on 1 December but he only just filing for divorce now. He hasn't even completed the paper work. She told me only family are invited to wedding. It's her 3rd wedding at age 42, her first marriage was at age 17 to a 50 year old man with her parents consent. I am finding it hard to be happy for her but another christian friend said, we should be happy for her as the man she is marrying is lovely. What do you think? God hates divorce but his wife did abandon him. But should they be dating while he is still legally married?

ONE CROSS, ONE GOD, ONE WAY The Way of the cross is God's only way, to save a lost sinner from sin's eternal fate. The Passover lamb, God's perfect plan, to pay sin's debt , when God became man. One Cross, One God, One Way. Messiah Yeshua, his cross he did bare, His cross was our cross, for our sins to us were a snare. One Cross, One God, One Way. The One God dressed as man, the One God who is *Echad I AM, who came to Israel's land, to become the Passover lamb, who was, is, and will be, who took us from the land of *Nod, to set us free. By rabbi Jacob Ben Avraham *Echad = “ch” pronounced as “h” meaning “unity of ONE” “Tri-Unity” “Elohim” *Nod = Wandering without direction, aimlessly, the “way of Cain”.

It is evident paganism influenced nam of the planets of our solar system and the stars: The names: Mercury (named after a god that flew to close to the sun) Venus (the mother goddess of fertility, her other interations are Vishnu, Ishtar, Isis, Ashteroth) Earth (Terra FirmAma, dirt, degrades man) Mars (god of war, Ares, Baal, and etc) Jupiter (the chief Roman god) Saturn (Satanalia, where the name Satan comes from) Uranus (primal Greek god, represents sky) Neptune (god of the seas) Pluto (god of the underworld ). These are not what our Lord and God Trinity would have named the planets and stars. So how about new names to see what God may likely call them? My first list: The name on tight of colons : is what I would substitute the pagan name with. Mercury: Moses (near Burning bush) Venus: Esther (Esther is Ishtar or Venus) Earth: Eden Mars: Michael Archangel (defeated Satan in War Revelation 12:4-11) Jupiter: Jesus Saturn: Spirit of God Uranus: Abraham (left Ur) Neptune: Nathan the Prophet Pluto: Peter Orion’s Belt: David’s Belt You can use names or attributes of God or names of God and etc. Have fun.

I agree. When speaking with her friend, who is also a christian about it, the friend says it's wonderful as he is a lovely man.

There are many experiences in God. But when you truly surrender your life to Jesus as lord, wanting Him to guide you and take charge of it, God fills you with His Spirit and makes you one of His own adopts children. That is what confessing Jesus as Lord and Savior is all about. If you understand this and cannot say "Jesus is LORD", you probably aren't yet indwelt by the Holy Spirit. I have a friend who received Jesus as Savior and was baptized, but she has never made Him Lord of her life. She can't understand the Bible; it is the Holy Spirit Who enlightens us to understand the Bible. She cannot even say the words "Jesus is Lord". Having surrendered to seducing spirits she has embraced parts of other religions; she has fallen away from her first love.

Scripture says anybody that can say and , of course mean... “ Jesus is Lord” has the Holy Spirit dwelling within.....the test could not get any easier than that.....please don’t over-think it

I'm happy to hear this! He and I enjoyed doing it. I'm excited about him suddenly getting interested in poetry. He is in his 30's now. @Frances Even though you don't see yourself as a poet yet, you've added value to this Club by providing a poem you appreciated by someone else. It is nice that the owner of the Club, ayin jade thoughtfully set it up that Christian lyrics and poems by others can be posted, as well as originals. God bless!

Is Scripture speculation? “In those days, and for some time after, giant Nephilites lived on the earth, for whenever the sons of God had intercourse with women, they gave birth to children who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times.” (Genesis 6:4-6). “Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. 8 And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. 9 This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels,” (Revelation 12:7-9).

Folks in that area have gotten ill for decades from toxic junk in their water/rivers etc from mining long before fracking. All over the us, illnesses related to long term exposure to mining debris (tailings etc) happen. Not wanting to diminish their problems, but its scarcely a new thing. I can show you in arizona where there are piles of uranium ore stashed from a mine and almost forgotten, merely 200 yards from a highway. I can show you in phoenix where there were mercury mines. I can show you in arizona where there are asbestos tailings right in the middle of a town.

I also think you reponded well to that man. You responded as you were led; perhaps you planted seeds or watered some seeds that the Lord will bring to fruition later in the man's life.

False gods based on real fallen angels. The Lord said in OT don’t even say the names of other gods, “"Pay close attention to all my instructions. You must not call on the name of any other gods. Do not even speak their names.” (Exodus 23:13). And yet the names of other gods are the planets. Besides this thread is being taken too seriously. I said to make suggestions of what God might call them. We do not know what God calls them, but we can try some possibilities.

Hi Melinda12, I think you did really well in the way you responded to the medium. Push too hard and it may be "casting pearls before swine". The demons attached to mediums and spiritists maintain a conceited and proud presence in them so they will come on as superior to Christians and claim superior knowledge and powers. You weren't literally asked to give a reason for your hope in Christ but in a sense the situation demanded it. Well done anyway, and stay ready...we all need to. 1Pe 3:15-16 (15) But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: (16) Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.

None the less please join in prayer, if led, for this year to go well for all. school year has become a bit of a scary time and place for many students.

Turletwo.. Thanks to you and your son for your thoughtful responses and ponderings on this poem. You both added depth and some clarity to me as I am not a poet (not yet anyway). God Bless You!!!

I do enjoy marketing techniques and examples here is one I find fascinating sold out sold out. Oh oh better buy what I can now. See https://www.americanginseng.com/online-store/ sold out - sold out - sold out, just these over here remaining. Ha funny stuff! A bucket of root presented in a gift box. Needs a little Jimmy Dorsey playing in the background with the voice over of "so rare" . Much like the old old tale of the guy that had white elephants for sale. So he offered one as a rare white elephant and when he couldn't move it he offered a two for one of rare elephants, and the customer then jumped on the "bargain" remaining and ended up with two white elephants.- when he knew he didn't want nor need even one.

Thanks for posting this poem! I, too find it to be interesting. I very much like the first line "The world is charged with the grandeur of God." It is a deep and thought provoking message. I felt there to be weaving in and out of it a theme of joy vs sorrow and God's perfection vs man's sinfulness... This seemed to be somehow happening through the medium of nature (God's creation.) But I couldn't quite put my finger upon it or wrap my mind around it. Upon first read, I admit I was a tad puzzled. So I turned to my son to see what he understood this poem to mean... This turned out to be a nice time of reflection and togetherness that he and I shared. He perceived it as man's careless ingratitude for the beauty God made and man's harsh treatment of this earth through pollution. It's neat how once he said this, I immediately saw it too. These lines suddenly jumped out at me : "Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod." In these verses, my son and I see man's petty ideas of progress (such as industrialization) destroying this wonderful earth God committed to our care (through man's ambitious love of money via mass production, etc.) Yet for the despair expressed by the poet, he balances our selfishness out with the contrast of the Creator's faithfulness. The following lines are poetic expressions of hope through illustrations of God's sovereignty and goodness: "And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs" Then, this sometimes melancholy poem ends on an exuberant high note (even as it had begun...hence, the title "God's Grandeur") These lines: "Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings." Thanks again, Frances for blessing others by posting this unique poem. (I hope my son and I have 'blessed back' in some small way with any insight from the Lord.)

You've addressed a real issue. All religions apart from biblical, born again Christianity are works-based, I save myself, Jesus doesn't save.

This reminds me of a message that was on an outside message board way out in the country where I was taking a great motorcycle ride——- it said, “ want to get rich quick? Count your blessings!”

Has anyone heard from FresnoJoe? I PM'd him last week but he did not respond, and he usually does within a day. He made reference to not being well, but gave no specifics so I am hoping someone here knows how he is doing. Just concerned about his well being, so any info is greatly appreciated. TIA Cheers

Thank .you for letting us know.

thank you for the information.... and prayers for Joe.

Thank you!

FresnoJoe was in the hospital for 14 days, but he's returned home. He's recovering but he's doing okay! God bless, George

Jesus said to deal with today's problems, today. There will be problems tomorrow, and tomorrow, until the Glorious Day. Best mental help advice ever given! Always look down, not up, to feel better. Your remarks indicate: * You have a family * You have a car * You have owned pets * You live in a home * You own air conditioning Do you understand based on those five facts what I mean by "compare down, not up"? I mean people without those five things are worse off.

Thanks for sharing from your hearts! @naominash, @GandalfTheWise, and @Willa...I want you to know that your personal experiences really spoke to me. I'm sure they'll minister to others out there, too. You each had such encouraging things to say. May God bless all of you. And may He especially help YOU, Wintercharm. I hope these post replies you received will cause you to feel loved...by us and by God. I hear you, Wintercharm...because I am going through one of the worst periods of my life. I feel overwhelmed, too. But I think there has been some stuff shared here that may prove helpful to us both. I want you to know I am praying for you that God will guide you on how to cope. I am so sorry for your steady stream of problems. If you ever just need to talk, feel free to write me through the pm. Okay?Remember there are people here who care about you. Most of all, Jesus loved you so much that He died on the cross for you. Greatest love of all! P.S. Sending you a big hug.

Is your avatar a pic of your pet? One of my daughters likes pugs. We've got a big fluffy dog that is a basically a member of the family. They can become a big part of our lives. We all go through different seasons and different places in our walk with God. I'm not sure why, but sometimes it feels like the storms hit during the lowest places though maybe it's just a matter of being more aware of the storms. I'm coming out of one of my lowest places in my life. I had basically gotten too serious about my job (at a Christian non-profit) and reached the point I was having panic attacks and feeling physically poorly very often. I finally decided to quit after I almost collapsed at work one day. On my last day I ended up in the ER after I got home. Ending up in the ER ended up being a huge blessing in disguise because a battery of tests showed I was physically okay and that it was all stress. It took me several months to learn to rest and relax. My body (and mind and emotions) had gotten so used to being at a high stress level that I physically went through something like a withdrawal from it for a few months. As I tried to get used to normal stress levels, it was like any time something happened, my body and emotions would leap back to high stress and I'd feel like someone had punched me in the gut. Over time, I finally got back to a normal stress level and realized I had forgotten how to live (and enjoy) the present. My mind and emotions had been constantly elsewhere worrying about things I couldn't control. I reached a point where I could finally sit outside under a tree and just enjoy listening to birds sing, leaves rustles, squirrels scurry, etc. without my mind constantly racing about other things. About a year later, I realized I had started sleeping through the night most of the time. I had gotten so used to waking up and not falling back asleep that I thought it was normal. What God was dealing with is that I had spent my life being too worried about things I had no control over. I was expending huge amounts of energy and emotion carrying burdens that God never intended for me to carry. I emerged from this with a truer sense of Jesus' words about His yoke being easy and His burden light. I had been slowly killing myself under the weight of things that were not my burden to bear and I had been doing that to some extent my entire life. Right now, it feels so good to be free from that. I'm still physically not up to what I was and I think I still have a way to go to be back to full strength and energy, but this was something God knew I really needed. God used that period of time for me to seriously change a lot. If I hadn't hit a breaking point, I'd probably have spent the next 10 years or more of my life doing that type of routine until I retired or ended up in an early grave due to stress. I had one other time similar to that about 10 years ago. Those two worst times in my life where I was wondering what in the world God was doing were the times of the biggest transformation in my life as well. In hindsight, that was what it took for God to work on some deep-seated things in my life that needed healing and change. In my life, the lowest points were usually associated with God moving me into a time of transformation of some type. In each of these times, one of the things that held me together the most was that I had a consistent spiritual walk. My bible reading, prayer, meditation, and being with other Christians tended to be fairly consistent, not stellar at points when I was really down, but enough to keep me spiritually centered. In hindsight, God was there with me and doing things in ways I didn't realize at the time. These were deep-seated life-changing type of transformations that were not about changing a few things after hearing a sermon but rather deep-seated things the produced big changes in me of the type where people around me noticed a huge difference and I felt completely different afterwards. One thing I'd recommend is making sure you have some quiet alone time with God (be it bible reading, meditating, or praying) that becomes something that you draw strength from. It can take some effort at times to change our mindset and allow ourselves to relax instead of worry. I know that was true for me anyway. The other thing I'd recommend is be conscious that this might be part of a process God is using to bring transformation in your life (and your family's). Fortunately for me, this last time around, I was aware God was doing something which led me to be much more spiritually at peace during those months of de-stressing my life. Hang in there. We all have ups and downs in life. A big part of life is learning to accept and deal with the downs as part of life. There are times that the most severe downs are actually part of a process God is using to transform us in some way. In the long run as well, it is those downs that often prepare us and shape us for ministry to others. I used to view ministry as being having it completely together, having no problems, and coming from a position of strength and near perfection. Now, I realize that often it is going through those low points that gives us the experience and understanding to actually help others effectively.

Thank you George! I heard from Fresno Joe. He did not elaborate, but but we know he is secure in God's love and Christ's Salvation. Thank you again for your help Brother! Cheers!!!

Any news ?

I'll give him a ring this weekend and let you know. God bless George

Well i will go with the what the Holy Bible says each and every time.. Jesus in the Book of Revelation revealed that He was the Alpha and Omega..The First and the last.. The Almighty.. All the relevant information provided in the passage below. Revelation 1: KJV "8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. {9} I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. {10} I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, {11} Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. {12} And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; {13} And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. {14} His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; {15} And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. {16} And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. {17} And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: {18} I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."

The short road to understanding - if Jesus in His own body was a certain way … now Jesus in your body will be >???

you are saved by faith alone..... but if you are really saved, you will by nature have works..... works are not the cause of salvation, but the result of it

"The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God..." - Romans 8:16 "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His." - Romans 8:9 "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." - 1 John 2:6

I was raised Catholic. The first priest at the church I attended was a sex offender, so obviously that wasn't a great experience. But when the second priest came (I was about 7) he was very welcoming.