Willa

You should be able to talk to your mom, but that is frequently not accepted by some moms. Some live in denial and refuse to believe children. But some children have deeper problems as well that aren't easily solved. Would your mom go with you to counseling? You might ask her and see if it can be arranged. I have had very good friends who had your problems. One has overcome much and has not cut since a teen ager. He went through terrible abuse by his dad and complete rejection by both parents. But he himself became an excellent dad and husband with Jesus' help. Another person also was badly abused until her dad got cancer when she was 13. Then she had to nurse his open wounds till he ended his life. She married and lived a fairly normal life after surrendering her life to God. I have not been in touch with her for several years. Jesus said he didn't come for those who are well but for those who are sick. The well don't need a doctor. So He has made a lot of the abused and outcasts of this world to be part of His church. You are not alone. God can make you whole. Some of the best counselors are not sympathetic. They won't be manipulated. The best ones find more solutions in the Bible than from man's wisdom which changes every few years. But they will still want to guide you toward finding your own solutions that are healthy.

Mark 16:17a NKJV And thse signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; But I agree that your problem can probably just as well be handled by forgiveness, and many others can best be handled by repentance. You have the power to forgive past hurts because Jesus lives in you. He wants you to put on the mind of Christ by reading the New Testament daily till you see the world as He sees it--lost and suffering. He has compassion on sinners for while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. In addition, He asked God to forgive even those who were crucifying Him while He was hanging on the cross. Christ in you can forgive the most horrible things done to you in the past. It is a matter of your being willing to ask Him to do it, and to ask Him to give you compassionate love for even these people. This does not mean that you need to put yourself in danger. And it doesn't often happen overnight. But in time we may grow to have pity on them and see that they are lost and heading for hell without Christ. They only acted the way the fallen world does in all its ugliness. And there but for the grace of God go I. Blessings, Willa

Praise Him, be thankful, and just worship Him for Who He is, as if He had done nothing on our behalf, but just because HE IS, the existing, One, the I AM, Who is and was, and is to be, the Alpha & Omega. So He is worthy.

In Acts 1:4-5 the disciples were told to wait for the Promise of the Father, to be baptized with the Holy Spirit. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me--- Much of our strength comes from God's word. But it is the Holy Spirit Who provides the power to minister and do God's work on earth. Before, Peter coward and denied Christ. After, he preached a powerful bold sermon to the Jews at Pentecost, so that thousands were saved. But scripture shows him being filled several times. So it is sometimes necessary for us to ask God to refill us. Taking the sword of the Spirit, the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with prayer and supplication for all the saints--- The Word and intercessory prayer for those on the front lines: that God give them strength, power and wisdom; that He fill their mouths with the Gospel empowered by the Spirit, and that they be as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves. So I often pray for Christians who have come here that are in lands where Christians are persecuted such as India, Pakistan, Egypt and north Africa. Prayer for the peace of Jerusalem, for the safety of Christians and Jews there. It is good to pray the Scriptures back to the Lord, reminding Him of His character and promises as did Moses and others. But we are probably only reminding ourselves which strengthens our own faith. Much of this warfare is in prayer and intercession. But it is also for the battles in our own minds as well as for witnessing when we are told in 2 Cor. 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

quote name="Uncertain" post="2229036" timestamp="1434396845"] There is no such thing as "the luck of the draw". If he is your friend, it is for you to present him with the gospel. It is for him to accept or reject it.Faith is more than intellectual assent to the gospel. It is daily relying on God and trusting Him for help with every day problems. "The just shall live by his faith". He has become more than our Savior for our sins by dying on the cross in our place. He is the risen Lord, ascended on high, made King of Kings and Lord of Lords, even having authority over us. This is what we confess when we receive Jesus into our lives or during our confirmation. It is OK to question our beliefs if we dig into Scripture for the answers and pray about them. I once prayed on behalf of my friend whose dad had died as an unbeliever. He was a good and caring man. Why was he so bitter against God? The only answer God gave me is that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. This is found several places in Scripture. Her dad had been a proud man who had resisted God in his life. He came from godly parents, but he resented their devotion. The fact is that we all are saved purely by His grace through faith. It is not of ourselves but is a gift from God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. This is from Ephesians 2:8-9 No one deserves salvation. We must be humble enough to receive it as a free gift. Her dad could not do that. If your friend can humble himself to receive God's free gift he can yet be saved. But his bent is based on earning salvation, often through self sacrifice in war. He must be good enough by keeping all the rules. This is a religions of pride and hate, not humility. But It is the natural state of all. The saddest song I have ever heard is Sinatra singing "I Did It My Way." Whether raised in a Christian home, or in the world like Sinatra, or in another religion, we all come from basicly the same place. Unbelievers in this country hate Cristianity nearly as much as the Muslims. It reveals their sin and their need to bow to a righteous God. But He is also a merciful loving God Who makes the first move by offering the FREE GIFT of salvaion to whomever with humble themselves to receive it. It also takes humility to bow before God and ask Him to forgive us and help us with our sin. Some people will never say they are sorry to anyone. So all of us come from the same place of pride and rebellion against the true and living God. It doesn't matter the religion or upbringing. We all come out of a sinful world. In the 50s we were called a Christian nation and believed that we are all naturally Christians. Today at least it is recognized that this is not so. Every Christian is one because of God's underserved mercy, and we have been given the free gift of faith. So pray for your friend that his heart may be softened and that his eyes and ears may be opened to the truth. That is how I pray for every unbeliever. Also pray that the lies of the enemy, satan, may be revealed for what they are. This is a stronghold in his life, but God's Word is mighty to the tearing down of strongholds. See if he will read our New Testament. Many muslims have been saved by doing so. Hope this helps, Blessings, Willa

Since knowledge has not ceased and the perfect has not come, I do not hold that scripture to be evidence that tongues have ceased. However, I am glad that the gift has been so beneficial in your life. But the writings of Kenneth Hagin are not the most reliable. It would be best to stick to Scripture. Even so, he said that the gift "stirs up" prophecy. Not that the interpretation is prophecy. For instance, the purpose is to praise God and to pray. The interpretation in Scripture is never prophecy or God speaking. I am sure that He did speak to you in prophecy, but that was not the interpretation if you read Scripture carefully. The interpretation would have been a prayer or praise. I have also been corrected through Scripture concerning this misunderstanding. Search the Scriptures to see if these things are so.

I see this story of Abe and Isaac to be more a testing of Abe's faith. Without faith, believing God, there would have been no actions. His actions demonstrated his belief. They revealed his heart to himself, since God already knew his heart. But the whole scenerio was a prophecy, as you have aptly put. It was a foreshadowing of the coming Messiah. It was yet another way in which Jesus fulfilled the Torah, the Law.

Jesus came to give us life, and that more abundantly. That mean more fulfilling. So 90% of the time I have real joy in spite of the circumstances. I have hope due to my faith. So I look forward to each day. There is contentment. But nothing is more exciting than stepping out in faith because God has told us to do it. We obey, knowing we risk looking pretty silly, and then wait for God to bring in the results and answers. It is so amazing to watch Him work, and we know our part in it all was so minimal. All we did was obey God and talk to someone about what God can do to help them, and he changes peoples' lives! He is so good and faithful.

I also miss NCN, Fez, and Golden Eagle who designed my avatar. Good to know about Nebula, and that George tried to get in touch with Enoob. And one I rarely hear from or about is Red Momma, but I know she is busy with school. She has such a gift for introducing people to Jesus, so gentle, simple and loving.

Getting rid of pork is a big issue. If congressional line item elimination is not allowed, perhaps single subject drafting could be instituted so that no riders or other subject could be tacked on. I thought it was the job of congress to introduce legislation. It rubs me the wrong way that a bill with a thousand pages should be given to congress for approval in 3 days, so that no one has a chance to read it, especially when it had been ready for months. There should be a law that a measure should be given ample time for reading, discussion and proper consideration before a vote. Nothing should be rushed through. A president swears to uphold the constitution when he is sworn in. This should include the intent of it as well. Why can't he be impeached for in practice purposely circumventing the constitution, even when done "legally"? This looking for loopholes to not keep the intent of the the constitution sounds more like the abuses of the pharisees that Jesus railed on, but on a constitutional level. Another problem, in war each strike on the enemy should not need approval of the white house when it comes to destroying a tank or a weapon. I have never seen such abuse of power. Such micro management is absurd and most of such should be left to the battlefield. Czars should meet the same standards as other advisors and need also to be approved and sworn in. Drug and alcohol testing should be done on all members of congress before a vote. If they are not safe to drive, they are not safe to vote.

We loved camping at the beach where it was in the 70s by day and 60s by night when they weren't so crowded. But I insist on hot water for showering and washing my hair. Call it glamping if you wish. I have got too many headaches trying to wash my hair in glacier fed streams! Hubby is very happy going without bathing and all and will even sleep in the car if need be. Too often today we aren't allowed to build campfires due to fire danger. I can't even get our coleman stove hot enough to boil water or to heat it to wash dishes in high altitudes. So no coffee. At least a camp site with electrical hook up lets me use my electric fry pan and coffee maker. But we do enjoy being out and away from civilization to do some bird watching and wildlife photography. The sound of breezes in the trees, a nearby gurgling stream and birds singing is so relaxing. Some of our best times of communication have been while he was driving. And our sons' favorite memories were at the beech, playing UNO by coleman lantern and trying to dunk each other in the surf, or our Boston Terrier chasing an empty pop bottle up the beech that the wind was driving along. We honeymooned in a tent. We slept across the tent door to keep our toddlers from escaping at night. Family camping has been a way of life by choice for us even though we did later get a basic tent trailer. Being able to open all the flaps and windows kept it cool and crisp at night, unlike motor homes and trailers that are like sardine cans and never cool off without a noisy air conditioner.

Butero, in post 25 Shy said he is in his LATE 20s, which is a whole different picture.

I agree that you need to be looking for an older godly single friend or relative with whom to share expenses. It is not healthy for either you or your son to be dependent on each other for so long, both emotionally and financially. You probably had been training him that he must answer to God for his actions many years ago. You can and must pray for him. But it is his decision to acknowledge Jesus as Lord and King of his life or to follow another. You can't do that for him. You can't control a man in his late 20s. If he backslides, Jesus is still the Good Shepherd Who goes after lost sheep. There comes a time that you must let him reap the consequences of his own actions and under his own roof. Keeping my mouth shut has been the hardest thing for me to do. But I had to let them make a growing number of their own decisions and would try to guide them in how to choose by verses like seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and by praying aloud with them for godly wisdom. My usual question was "Have your prayed about it." After praying for godly wives for them from the time they were in grade school, one led a girl to the Lord and married her a year later. The other married a girl from his church who had been a friend for several years. So you should be praying as well. Our sons made many mistakes and dated some girls that I am glad they chose not to marry. We as parents also made mistakes. So in the end we must thank God for His grace because they still wanted to please us and to please God. We had always kept healthy relationships and had developed much of that on common interests and hobbies, as well as respecting them and their growing independence. Now, 20 years later, I still must keep my mouth shut unless asked.

Well, if I am lol hard with tears streaming down my face so I can't see to type, it is counted as ROLF. So now you all know.

When our sons were in their early 20s they lived at home but worked their way through college and payed for their transportation. They never had a joint bank account with us. I didn't pretend to know everything they did but I do know I would not approve of a few thing they may have done. They worked in grocery stores stocking shelves, in Chinese restaurants washing dishes, for the city in manual labor, for the park department mowing lawns, etc. till they could find steady employment in the fields they majored in. But there came a time when they were 20-21 that I told the Lord that I was committing them to Him. I had raised them in they way they should go. So I told them that I want a phone call or note letting us know when they might be home or if they were going out of town, which is common courtesy since they still ate at home. They had to attend the church of their choice but not cults, and we had a teaching moment about cults. And I requested that they pay half of our property taxes after they got steady jobs and were out of school. No drinking or drugs, and they had to be respectful toward us. By the time they were 21-24 they had rented a house together with another friend and shared expenses. Might your son qualify for vocational training programs? Our grandson is hoping to go into the national guard to get some training. Your son needs his own bank account and to pay for his own phone. You should request a nominal amount toward expenses like rent, utilities and food. Forgive me for being blunt, but If he should be rebelling against being tied to your apron strings he is over due. I realize that jobs are hard to come by and it is hard for young adults to find steady work. It is a great temptation to hold on to them. Letting go is hard, and harder when you are alone. But the single women who have hung on to them that I know have seriously damaged them by not teaching them responsibility and to be independent. It is doubly hard since they did not have a godly man in the home to help. Had our sons done things like your describe, I would only ask them if it glorifies God. They must answer to Him, not me.. But that would be when they were 17 to 22. By the time they were in their late 20s, they would be on their own with their own children, trying to be a godly example for them.

Self control is one of the fruit of the Spirit. Losing control is normally a fearful thing for me. It leads to embarrassment and shame. The only exceptions are medical such as surgery or dental work. The use of alcohol or drugs for social purposes is neither sophisticated nor intelligent.

Other One, I can't pray for a curse on anybody. I associate this with the occult. He is already cursed for not supporting Israel. He is heading for hell if he is an unbeliever. I am much more comfortable praying that God save his soul and turn him around like He did Saul when he was persecuting Christians. God can deliver him from the error of his ways and even use him for good were he to humble himself and acknowledge Jesus the Jewish Messiah as his personal Savior and King of Kings. Please reconsider. Willa

It doesn't work on android chrome. There is no arrow either. Wish something worked.

Whether or not the bottle contained champaign, it gave the appearance of evil to the other person. They should not cause their brother to stumble were they perhaps recovering alcoholics.. If it is illegal to have alcohol in that place, they are again giving the wrong impression, especially to impressive teen agers. The other people should not condemn them by what they eat or drink nor assume the worst of them. The pastor should not have been so outraged nor directed the sermon to one couple, condemning them. He also was jumping to conclusions. It was right for him to set a good example as he is in leadership, but he should not hold the congregation to the same exact standard. He also should not be self righteous about it but should set a good example in attitude for the congregation. He should give all sides of the issue from scripture to the congregation and let the Holy Spirit speak to them concerning what is best to do and what their attitudes should be. My first impressions. Wish I could spend more time on it. Personally, I enjoy sparkling cider occasionally.

Sometimes, because of life's experiences, we become overly sensitive and easily hurt. But a godly husband will learn to "Husbands, in the same way dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as the weaker vessel, as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; 1 Peter 3:7-8. Bless those who persecute you. Pray for those who spitefully use you. I have done this literally, smiling back and with authority replying with Aaron's blessing: "The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26. Ask God to fill you again with the Holy Spirit to empower you to reply in authority and peace. You did nothing wrong by reflecting your feelings, but the verbal abuse is continuing. You might even make a sign or woodburn a plaque with 1 Peter 3:7-8. I would not usually use God's word as a hammer. But if he refuses to go to counseling and maintains he is a good christian who has done nothing wrong, it might be appropriate. He is not listening to the Holy Spirit, maybe he will listen to Baalam's donkey (which I have also been called). He may get angry and break it or verbally assault you more, but stand tall. Just be sure that you are practicing the first part of 1 Peter 3 while doing this, and put up a plaque with your own instructions up. 1 Peter 3:1 NIV "Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives." Blessings, Willa PS. Never withhold sex. Your body belongs to him. 1 Cor. 7:3-5

Perhaps the preaching of salvation is the preaching of God's salvation and authority over our lives. When we make Him our LORD and Savior, that is what we are confessing. We are not part of His kingdom if we have not surrendered to Him and acknowledged Him as our King. But His future Kingdom will be over Israel and the earth, both for the 1000 year reign, when He will rule with a rod of iron over both the willing and unwilling, and for His eternal reign in the new heavens and new earth in the New Jeruselem. This is when all will be restored---the earth, the garden and the order of all principalities and powers under His feet. He reconciles all things unto Himself, in earth and in heaven, as it was in the beginning. Shalom. Am I right and isn't this what George said, or am I still confused?

1 Thess. 2:19 NKJV For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? I see this hope as being in Christ's presence at His coming. There is a difference between His coming for His own, and His return when the world is awaiting to do battle with Him.

Praying.

God certainly has promised to bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse the nation. Can he say that our concern for the safety of our nation should not be a huge concern, so we should trust isis and those muslims bent on destroying our nation? Lord, You spoke to Baalam from the mouth of a burrow, please get our president's attention as well and show him his foolishness. In Jesus Christ's Name, Amen

Yep. So I guess that a Christian should not read the news any longer because it is gossip and gossip is a sin. I stopped paying much attention to our local newspaper because it was so one sided and undependable. Whenever I knew the facts personally, the news got it wrong. They are politically correct which I consider most often to be incorrect. So why bother if it only raises my blood pressure. I quit taking the newspaper 40 years ago when I stopped watching soap operas. Worthy news tends to be more reliable, I believe. However, todays news is yellow journalism or propaghanda, in my opinion. It is intended to sway opinion and be sensational rather than to report facts. And social media is mostly gossip. Even the videos don't tell the whole story. It is much more peaceful to stick my head in the sand but I always give in to the temptation to peek and see what is going on.