Willa

Some people go into the bathroom and lock the door to get some privacy and pray. Jesus felt the need to be alone to pray as well. We need to eliminate distractions as much as possible and just be alone with God. But this doesn't eliminate other kinds of prayer. My husband and I used to pray together for friends and family. We agree with each other in prayer often in our prayer forum and on chat's prayer time. We should not pray just to be seen by others, trying to be eloquent and entertaining, or to seem spiritual. Mar 1:35 Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.

I also vote for Amy, especially after I learn that she suffered from what I have, fibromyalgia. She spent the last 20 years of her life in bed, if I remember correctly. But my favorite is Corrie tenBoom. Her gentle humility and willingness to step out in faith with no money and not knowing where she was going just awes me. She was an older lady who was usually completely alone. God gave her so much courage. She ministered in prisons where all others were terrified to go.

I think of His great power and strength, which is so gentle with me. Even when He corrects me He is so gentle.

Several of my pastors said that when God called them to the ministry they had argued with God and told Him all the reasons they could not. My present pastor had a full ride scholarship to Harvard, both academic and athletic scholarships. He turned them down to follow Jesus.

Pray one of those God, if there is a God, prayers. God, if there is a God, my life is a miserable mess. I want to believe but have no faith. Please give me faith. I can't work it up to believe. I need Your help. Please forgive me for turning away from you. Please forgive my unbelief. Please take away my hardened heart. I need Jesus Christ in my life to be forgiven, to be able to love as You do, and to make my life worth living. Amen.

It is speaking of the Song of Solomon, which is also called the Song of Songs. But not all believe it is a parable of Christ and the Church. While you can draw an analogy, it certainly can't be seen as literal. A lot of paraphrases are called translations. We really have to be vigilant. Even the Watchtower's bible is called a translation but the authors didn't know any Greek or Hebrew, according to court records. We need to use literal translations as much as possible since some really run amuck.

There is huge oriental influence on the newer cartoons and Disney presentation. I can't watch them.

He doesn't seem to talk about sin and redemption much from what I have seen. Can it be that he has never experienced them? ?

Psa 19:14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.

This is the Gospel that Paul preached, and it is certainly the same that is in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. 1Co 15:1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 1Co 15:2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 1Co 15:3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 1Co 15:4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 1Co 15:5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 1Co 15:6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.

1Pe 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1Pe 1:4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 1Pe 1:5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. It would seem the Peter preaches salvation by grace (unmerited mercy) through faith. He also preaches that we are kept by the power of God through faith. In 2 Peter 3:14-16 he also called Paul's epistle "Scripture" the same as the "the rest of the Scriptures". He had a very hight regard for Paul's teaching. In fact, just to be sure that they were on the same page, Paul had consulted with the apostles in Jerusalem comparing his teaching with theirs. Paul just traveled far and wide establishing churches, and then spent much time chained to a guard or in prison so that he had to write to the churches to keep in touch. He sent Timothy and others back and forth with his letters. Paul was the only one who was also a Roman citizen so he was given more privileges than the others and was not executed as quickly. John was the only one who outlived them all.

When our lives revolve around God and not around ourselves, life becomes orderly, good and pure. He meets the longing in our hearts for real intimacy and fulfillment. We must allow Him to lead and direct our lives. When we offer Him control, we stop trying to control and manipulate others to meet our selfish needs. He brings beauty out of the ashes of our lives. The goals of our lives becomes to serve Him and to serve others as we grow in God's holy love for mankind.

Peter Paul Rubens --The Upper Room--- is one of my favorites. It illustrates the emotion of the moment and the intensity as a person comeing up the stairs might view it. I don't see it being a serene moment as does DeVinci. They are celebrating the Passover Seder, He institutes the Lord's Supper, He speaks to Judas. All speak to me of drama.

I praise and sing to Him with words of worship and adoration. Hymns may be involved or prayer. No liturgy is involved--just heartfelt worship. I don't worry about whether it "got through". I am not trying to manipulate God or do anything that foolish. He knows my thoughts. By faith I know that all of my prayers are heard by Him, and without faith it is impossible to please Him. Some words of liturgy are beautiful vehicles of worship. The Gloria: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace goodwill to men. We praise Thee, we bless Thee, we Glorify Thee; we give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory---. Some people only repeat these words or like robots sing a hymn. Some of us bless God from the depths of our being. Thanksgiving is just thanking Him for all He has done. Worship is directed to Who He is and His attributes. Both can be a part of praise.

It is shallow and boring. My stay lasted about 10 days before I tried to erase all sign of my having ever been there.

Matt. 24-25. When reading a passage we look to see who is being spoken to. In this case the apostles are asking Jesus questions about the Temple and its destruction, the coming of the Son of Man, and the signs of the end of the age. Jesus answers their question in the rest of the passage. Mat 24:1 Jesus went out from the temple, and was going on his way. His disciples came to him to show him the buildings of the temple. Mat 24:2 But he answered them, “You see all of these things, don’t you? Most certainly I tell you, there will not be left here one stone on another, that will not be thrown down.” Mat 24:3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?” Jesus answers these questions: the first two of which pertain to the Temple, His coming again to Jerusalem, and to the end of the age. The latter affects all of us but the first two questions were specific to Jerusalem. Often the principles of a message have universal applications, such as that we all should remain ready and expecting the Lord's return at any time. We should be full of the Spirit and serving Him. But it is true that any passage should be read in context. By the way, the earliest Christians were all Jewish believers.

All confession should be made directly to God. 1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

In the beginning God uses trials to test the genuineness of our faith. After it tests as genuine, He purifies it. Luk 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Luk 8:12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. Luk 8:13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. 1Pe 1:6 Wherein you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been put to grief in various trials, 1Pe 1:7 that the proof of your faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes even though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ— 1Pe 1:8 whom not having known you love; in whom, though now you don’t see him, yet believing, you rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory— 1Pe 1:9 receiving the result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. Wuest's Word Studies" Verse 7 In this verse we are informed as to the reason and purpose of these trials, namely, that the trial of our faith might result in praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. The word "trial" is the translation of dokimion the noun, dokimazo being the verb of the same root, the latter referring to the act of putting someone or something to the test with a view of determining whether it is worthy of being approved or not, the test being made with the intention of approving if possible. The word was used of the act of examining candidates for the degree of Doctor of Medicine. It is the approval of our faith which is to resound to the praise of the Lord Jesus. Testing times put our faith to the test, and as we are submissive to God and remain faithful to Him and are ready to have Him teach us the lessons He would have us learn through them, we demonstrate by our actions that the faith we have is a genuine God-given, Holy Spirit produced faith, the genuine article. This faith and its working in our lives is to the glory of the Lord Jesus. It is not the testing of our faith that is to the glory of God, but the fact that our faith has met the test and has been approved, that redounds to His glory. This is made very clear by the Greek grammar involved in the statement. It is not the approved faith, but the approval itself that is in the apostle’s mind here. For instance, a gold-mining company wishes to buy a proposed site where gold is said to have been found. But it is not sure whether the metal is real gold or not and whether it is there in sufficient quantity so that a mine if sunk would be a profitable venture. It engages an assayer of metals to take samples of the gold ore to his laboratory and examine them. The assayer sends his report to the effect that the ore contains true gold, and that the gold is found in sufficient quantity so that the venture will pay. The report of the assayer approving the gold ore is of far more value to the mining company than the gold he returns with his report, for upon the basis of the report, the company can go ahead with assurance and buy the land and begin mining operations. The fact that God finds our faith to be one which He can approve, is of far more value to Him and to His glory, than the approved faith, for He has something to work with, a faith that He knows can stand the testings and the trials which may come to the Christian. The fact that God can trust a Christian as one that is dependable, is of great value to Him. God is looking for faithful, dependable workers, not necessarily gifted, educated, cultured ones. It is a "well done, thou good and faithful servant" that will greet the ears of the saint at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Peter tells us that this approval of our faith is much more precious than the approval of gold, even though that gold be approved through fire-testing. The words "of gold" of the A.V. are an excellent rendering for a literal word-for-word translation. But the words "the approval of" are necessarily supplied to make clear the apostle’s thought. It is not the approval of our faith that is compared to gold, but to the approval of gold. The picture here is of an ancient gold-smith who puts his crude gold ore in a crucible, subjects it to intense heat, and thus liquifies the mass. The impurities rise to the surface and are skimmed off. When the metal-worker is able to see the reflection of his face clearly mirrored in the surface of the liquid, he takes it off the fire, for he knows that the contents are pure gold. So it is with God and His child. He puts us in the crucible of Christian suffering, in which process sin is gradually put out of our lives, our faith is purified from the slag of unbelief that somehow mingles with it so often, and the result is the reflection of the face of Jesus Christ in the character of the Christian. This, above all, God the Father desires to see. Christlikeness is God’s ideal for His child. Christian suffering is one of the most potent means to that end.

God's love is expressed in righteousness and holiness, as well as in patience, goodness, kindness and forgiveness and grace.

Christ's dying on the cross for my sins means everything to me. It represents His love for me, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. It represents G0d's grace in granting me His righteousness that I may come boldly to the throne of grace. I will be admitted into His presence. He has adopted me as His own and given me His Spirit as the down payment on my inheritance. He has given me love, joy and peace in this life that were make possible by His death and resurrection. We love because He first loved us. I have never worshipped the cross. I worship the Christ Who died there and arose to forgive the world of its sin.

Be patient, lead by example, and limit but don't eliminate her spending on unnecessary things. But I don't know what your idea of earthly treasures is or what hers are. If you are thinking of aesthetic existence with the bare minimum for survival, there are some comforts that a woman appreciates. If you are meeting her emotional and spiritual needs she may not value those empty things as much. My husband made me feel treasured and would do most anything for me and to protect me. He gave me a good deal of responsibility and appreciated that my talents complemented his own, making me a helper. He prayed aloud with me and for me each night. This meant more to me than words can express. He was my prayer partner. Eph 5:25 ESV Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 1Pe 3:7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered. Col 3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.

Watchman Nee wrote a book called The Release of The Spirit. It shows how when we are broken and humbled, then Christ can be seen in us. Give it all to Jesus. Mat 12:20 a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory; Mat 12:21 and in his name the Gentiles will hope.” Psa 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

I used to feel that way because my husband worked better than 72 hours a week. Then in a marriage conference I learned that men express love for their wives by working to provide for us. It gave me a new perspective and got me over my feelings of rejection. Your husband also needs your support by prayer for his ministry and protection from the evil one. All pastors need those prayers, and much more from their wives. Blessings, and prayers for your strength. My husband recently passed away so I am learning to allow God to fill those lonely moments.

Prayer is sometimes the best thing we can do. When a person is being attacked by the enemy as in your illustration, and they are without hope, we can't do much but God can. The person on the phone should have offered more opportunity to listen to his friend, through, had he been more sensitive. Sometimes a person most needs a friend to talk to. We can't always be there in person. We have had people on worthy who repeatedly say they have survived suicide attempts. These people also need Christian professional help. A good many survivors are looking for attention. The people who are serious about it will most often do it in such a way that there is absolutely no way a person can survive. But all thoughts of suicide need to be taken seriously and family and authorities should be informed.