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I am 21. I never had a boyfriend before. My parents have always overprotected me by not letting me have any contact with the opposite sex. I spent so long without guys contact that I spent 4 years in depression thinking that I was lesbian because I had feelings for some girls in high school and never fell for a guy before. My family wasn't here for me and I tried to kill myself several times. But now that I am in college, I met some guys and I started to have crushes and realized that its a different feeling and that I am not actually gay. During this moment that I started to talk to guys, my mom started to become closer and ask a lot of questions about my guy friends. But I realized that whenever I liked someone and wanted to give them a chance, she always found a reason why and told me that I like guys too much, I am promiscuous and all. 5 months ago I met this christian african guy who really likes me. He's too years younger than me. 19 and I am 21. I would like to give him a chance and when I told my mom she started to srceam at me with anger all the time, she came to the point of beating me up over that and told me that If I accept to be his girlfriend that he won't be welcomed at home. But this guy is like my bestfriend, I got mad after this last fight which happens a couple days ago, than I said yes to the guy. My mom says that she doesn't like him because he's african and he's lazy (because he likes to play and go out all the time and take few classes with not that good grades) ) and he doesn't have a job yet. I like him because he's a christians with good manners, he's willing to wait for marriage to have sex, is playful, don't smoke or drink, makes me happy, really likes me plus he said that he will look for a job and applied for more classes. At my college we need to work in other to gain practice hours before we able to graduate. So I am 2 years in advanced because I work at school better and faster. Even though he started only 1 semester after me. My dad was killed last year so my mom would like to remarry and live her life, so she told me that she won't be able to keep me here for too long and I have to get married fast with 3-4 years and have kids and that this christian guy won't be able to marry me that soon so I should find someone else. My mom makes my life impossible since and keeps on treating to kick me out of the house. WHO SHOULD I CHOOSE!? WHAT SHOULD I DO? WHAT WOULD BE A CHRISTIAN WAY OF SOLVING THIS ISSUE? SHOULD I MOVE OUT AND GET A STUDIO SINCE I JUST GOT A JOB AND STAY WITH HIM? OR SHOULD I LIVE HIM AFTER A WEEK RELATIONSHIP AND LIVE WITH MY MOM? PLEASE HELP ANYONE! I am feeling so depressed from this situation.

My Bible Study was going through Romans 12 this week, and something came up that I've been seriously meditating on. As I was teaching through verses 9-21, verse 10 really stood out to me. In the ESV it says "Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor." Now since then I've been thinking about honoring others and what that looks like. I understand honoring God, the 5th Commandment says to honor our parents, or 1 Timothy when it tells us to honor elders; but I find myself thinking "how am I showing honor"? Am I honoring others with the same ferver that I seek to honor God or my parents? What about the way I am honoring civilian authorities? Does the way I show honor to others give glory to God? Does the way I show honor reap an eternal reward? What kind of ways do you show honor to others?

Greetings my fellow Christian brothers and sisters, I love to speak the truth and I have very serious questions that I think many believers would like to know the answer to. Can you tell me please why does God's word promise so much and yet fulfils so very little to nothing in the lives of many devout Christians, in terms of, for example: long life, health, peace, joy and happiness, etc? Instead, I've seen many atheists who live very healthy, prosperous and happy lives and they obviously don't believe in keeping God's commandments. Doesn't the Bible lose credibility in this way? Isn't this part of the reason why many people don't take God, His commandments or the Bible seriously? In other words, why do not all devout Christians live long lives and have optimum health as countless scriptures promise, such as: Psalms 84; 90, 91; 103; Pr 10:27, etc? There are many scriptures about healing: Exodus 15:26 - “…I am the Lord who heals you.” The scripture in John 10:10: states: "... I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." Doesn't this scripture mean that God desires for us faithful Christians to be in optimum health? Only when someone is healthy can he or she have life to the full. Not when our bodies are incapacitated or debilitated by pain, sickness or disease. Psalms 103:2-3 - Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases. The verse in Proverbs 4:22 refers to God's word and states: "for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body." Many other scriptures state that God wants us healed and whole: For example: Isaiah 53:5 - But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. Jeremiah 30:17 - “I will give you back your health and heal your wounds,” says the Lord. 1 Peter 2:24 - "He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” Romans 8:11 - And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Romans 8:32 - He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? There are many examples of miracles and healings as recorded in the bible. Here are just a few scriptural examples: Leper in Galilee (Mt 8:1-4); Paralytic (palsy) at Capernaum (Mt 9:2-8); Man with a withered hand in Galilee possibly Capernaum (Mt 12:10-13); Women with issue of blood (hemorrhaging) healed at Capernaum during first preaching tour through Galilee (Mt 9:20-22); Two blind men at Capernaum (on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee) (Mt 9:27-31); Two Blind Men Departing Jericho (Mt 20:29-34); Jesus raises a dead girl and heals a sick woman (Mk 5:21-43); and many others as we read in: Mt 4:23-24; Mt 8:5–7, 16-17; Mt 9:6-7; Mt 15:30; Mt 20:34; Mk 3:1-5; Mk 5:25-29; Mk 10:49-52; Lk 4:40; Lk 6:19; Lk 7:12-15; Lk 13:11-13; Jn 5:5-9; Ac 10:38, etc. Psalm 107:19–20 - “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. He sent out His word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death. Psalm 91:3 - For He will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. 3 John 1:2 - Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. Here is another example: Psalm 91: Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” The promise of blessings, including: peace, protection, happiness, healing, long-life and prosperity is not just in the Old Testament (Ex 20:12; Dt 5:16; Ps 34:12-16; Pr 22:9), but reaffirmed in the New Testament (2 Cor 9:10; Eph 6:2-3; 1 Pe 3:9-10). Innumerable scriptures promise peace, joy, strength, protection, provision and prosperity. Here are just a few: Ro 5:1 - Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, Ps 1:1-3 - Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Ps 4:8 - In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety. Ps 12:5 - “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord. “I will protect them from those who malign them.” Ps 16:11 - You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Ps 29:11 - The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace. Ps 46:1 - God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Psalm 105:37 - He also brought them out with silver and gold, and there was none feeble among His tribes. Ps 119:165 - Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble. Ps 138:7 - Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand you save me. Pr 10:22 - The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it. Pr 22:9 - The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor. Is 32:17 - The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever. Is 41:10 - So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Jer 17:8 - They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Php 4:7 - And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Php 4:19 - And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Ro 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 2 Cor 9:8 - And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Cor 9:10 - Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 2 Thess 3:3 - But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. 3 John 1:2 - Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. My mother and I both repented, lived holy lives, with clean hands and pure hearts. God was first love and first priority. We prayed for at least 3 hours each and every day, and studied the Bible for at least 1 hour every day. Prayer was the very first thing in the morning. Our faith was very strong. We strove to obey God's commandments, including keeping the Sabbath day holy. We attended Sabbath services. We served God. Preached the true gospel. We both practiced abstinence, self-sacrifice and self-discipline, so we didn't spend money on holidays, restaurants or other pleasures. We were truly faithful disciples of Christ, by striving to live according to His word. Out of the little that we had, we donated money to charities and helped homeless people. We were never ever involved in occultism. My mother was totally faithful to my father in marriage, although he was very abusive towards her. Although, she forgave him many times, the abuse didn't stop. On the contrary, the more she forgave, the worse the abuse became. It reached a point where she had no choice but to divorce him. From then on, my mother never remarried. She lived the life of a widow for twenty years. We lived a very modest and quiet life. We practiced celibacy and sexual abstinence. Our lives resembled those of nuns. My mother was very protective of me and she taught me to pray since I was two years of age. While parents usually read fairy tale stories to their children, I slept with the Bible under my pillow, which I took with me to the private school that my mother enrolled me in, and I learned about God. We put so much faith and trust in God and I feel like He has really let us down. The verses in Psalm 103:1-5 state: "Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed." My mother suffered from colorectal cancer which spread to her liver and kidneys, heart failure, pulmonary edema and anaemia, including numerous other medical issues. I was completely shocked, devastated and heartbroken when my mother passed away at an early age, and I read her long medical report, which went on and on. She was in terrible pain and had near fatal falls on a few occasions. Despite praying to God continuously, from early morning until late at night, with fasting and begging for my mother to be healed, my prayers returned unanswered. The more I prayed and fasted, the worse her health became. It deteriorated so much that she was bed-ridden for one year and couldn't see the light of day. None of these illnesses run on my mother's side of the family. We both took care of our health by drinking fruit and vegetable juices, exercising and more importantly, absolutely NO smoking, drugs or alcohol. While other people were celebrating Mother's Day with gifts like cakes, chocolates and flowers, as well as dining with their mothers at restaurants or taking them on luxury cruises, my mother was in the morgue awaiting cremation. God's people are plagued by an entire series of extremely serious illnesses—including a number of leading people directly involved in the work. During the 1980's there was a huge number of ministers wives that were stricken. It has always been a fact that wives of so many ministers and church leaders have been stricken by cancer. In 2016, Cornerstone Contact Centre pastor Don Cameron died at the age of 45 years, after a battle with cancer. Jeffery Largent, pastor of Culver flock passed away in 2016, at the age of 59 years, after his second battle with cancer. Church of the Highlands Greystone Campus Pastor Keith Lindsey passed away in 2016 after a lengthy battle with cancer. Kara Tippetts, wife of PCA church pastor Jason Tippetts of Westside Church, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is a devout Christian mother of four, who had stage-four breast cancer and passed away at the age of 38, in 2015, after a long battle. In 2014, Steve Hill, the evangelist of the Brownsville Revival, passed away at his Alabama home Sunday after fighting a long battle with cancer. He was 60 years old. LaKisha died in 2014, at the age of 40 after an 18-month battle with breast cancer. She was the wife of Pastor Breonus Mitchell of Greater Grace Temple Community Church. A Wesleyan pastor, Daniel “Danny” Eiler, age 30, passed away in 2014, after battling leukemia. He served as senior pastor of The Springs Community Church in Ringgold, Georgia. David Landrith, senior pastor of Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, died at age 51. Landrith was diagnosed with an extremely rare and aggressive form of cancer known as colorectal melanoma in 2013. In 2009, founder and pastor of Victory Christian Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Billy Joe Daugherty's battle with cancer took a turn for the worse as he fought an infection at Houston's M.D. Anderson Hospital. He passed away at the age of 57 years. The list goes on and on ... My mother's faith was very strong right to the very end when she passed away, and I wish to point out the fact that I even called for the elders of the church to anoint my mother with olive oil, as the following scripture states in: James 5:14-15 - Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. The scripture obviously wasn't fulfilled in my mother's life who was a faithful Christian, and the lives of many other faithful Christians. As stated previously, God's promises are not just found in the Old Testament, but reaffirmed in the New Testament, as we read in James 5:14-15 as well as many other scriptural references that I've already quoted previously. At the beginning of the chapter in 1 Cor 12, we read that Paul is addressing brothers and sisters. "Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed." Verse 7-10 mentions: "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines." One of the important ministries of the Holy Spirit to believers today, is His bestowal of spiritual gifts on Christians at the time of their conversion. Ephesians 2:10 mentions: "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." The only way we can do good works is if our bodies are not incapacitated or debilitated by pain, sickness or disease. If gifts of healing and miracles are operating in the lives of Christians in these churches, then there would be NO sicknesses, suicides, and crimes such as murder happening there. Suicide is happening at an alarming rate in the Churches of God with so many pastors committing suicide. Living Church of God - Joplin, Missouri pastor Karl Beyersdorfer killed himself on 5/27/2016. Others who committed suicide in the Worldwide Church of God are mentioned in the below article: http://hwarmstrong.com/suicide-statistics.htm The following verses refer to believers in Christ Jesus: Mark 16:17-18 - And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” The following link displays an article on miracle workers who couldn't heal themselves: http://www.bible.ca/tongues-miracles-fake-pentecostal.htm The list goes on and on. The verse in Exodus 20:12 states: “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. It is reaffirmed in the New Testament in: Ephesians 6:2-3 - “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—“so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” During my lifetime, I've seen mothers who honoured their parents and yet lived short lives, like my mother who honored both her parents and grandparents. On the other hand, mothers who dishonoured their parents and yet lived to ripe old ages of over 80 years of age. There are even criminals, such as serial killers, rapists and paedophiles who live long lives on the earth. While at the same time, a shocking number of innocent people are sentenced to death. One of the ways in which we honor our parents is by having a clean criminal record. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, "tells you that a surprising number of innocent people are sentenced to death," Samuel R. Gross, the lead author, said in an interview with Newsweek. "It tells you that a lot of them haven't been exonerated. Some of them no doubt have been executed." The headline on newsweek.com is "One in 25 sentenced to death in the U.S. is innocent, study claims." Do all these convicted criminals deserve to live, and my mother who was a godly, holy, righteous mother deserve to die, along with all these other devout Christians? Charles Manson, the convicted American serial killer is still alive today at the age of 82 years. Charles Albright, known as the eyeball killer, is 83 years. The nurse Jane Toppan, a serial killer, lived to be 81 years of age. Edward Theodore Gein was an American murderer and body snatcher. He died at the age of 78 years. Ian Brady, the child killer is 78 years. Robert Hansen, the serial killer died at the age of 75 years. Dennis Rader is 71 years of age. Phillip Jablonski, another serial killer is 70 years of age, and the list goes on and on. Incarcerated criminals enjoy the fresh air and sunshine with fitness and recreational activities, including sports, gym, pool tables and so forth. These prisons are more like holiday resorts. Charles Manson, the ringleader of the killer cult still remains unrepentant even at the ripe old age of 82 years, just like many other criminals. I'm puzzled as to why God allowed all these criminals to live long lives. Was He waiting for them to turn to Him and repent? But God has foreknowledge. We find instead, that they committed more and more crimes, while growing old without any sign of remorse? Psalm 91:16 states: "With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” This verse is supposed to be referring to devout believers. Instead, we see that the criminals are the ones who are living long lives. Why would God want to satisfy scum of the earth with long lives? If God made us for a reason and that is to begin a relationship with, serve and obey Him, then why doesn't He grant long lives to those devout Christians who do good deeds. It is God who decides when we are born and how long we live according to: Psalm 139:16: "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." God is the one who planned the days of our lives in advance, choosing the exact time of our birth and death. This goes for criminals too, as well as many famous atheists who have lived to ripe old ages including: Diana Athill (99), Katharine Hepburn (96), Baba Amte (94), Uri Avnery (93), Julius Axelrod (92), Marlene Dietrich (91), Kai Nielsen (90), Henry Burstow (90), Jorge Amado (89), Eric Ambler (89), Tom Lehrer (88), James Randi (88), Paul Kurtz (87), Edward O. Wilson (87), Larry Adler (87), Mary Adams (86), Jemima Blackburn (86), Michael Martin (84), Philip Roth (83), Steven Weinberg (83), Victor Stenger (81), Robert Altman (81), Woody Allen (81), and many others. The verse in Isaiah 30:18 states that the Lord is a God of justice. "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!" Where is the justice? I'm absolutely appalled and disgusted by the injustice not only in the Christian community, but in the world today. I believe these injustices promote and encourage evil all the more. Many devout believers have been martyred who were very faithful to God, like Stephen and all of the twelve apostles who died as martyrs during the first century, with the exception of John, the writer of the Gospel with his name and the Book of Revelation who died a natural death, at 94 years of age, close to the year 100 A.D. A report issued by a Christian organization fighting religious persecution states that a Christian is killed for his or her faith every five minutes across the world. It has escalated dramatically over the centuries, with more Christian martyrs in the 20th and 21st centuries than in the preceding 19 centuries — going back to Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry. The situation is only getting worse. Over 75% of Christians persecuted in North Korea who are subjected to torture, imprisonment and all sorts of punishment do not survive to tell their stories. Currently, more than 200 million Christians around the world are threatened because of their faith. Is God pleased with martyrdom? Does it give Him satisfaction to see many Christians martyred for their faith. Does God consider it a sacrifice that brings glory and honour to Him, thereby pleasing and acceptable? Thank you. God bless you, Rachel Henderson

I have observed quite a number of developing trends in our churches that beg the frightening question of who we are worshiping. Common among those trends are the tendency of persons to spend more time on their cell phones than they do in worship and the tendency to 'make an entrance' when entering the sanctuary. I can't help but ask myself - What kind of message are we sending to the world as Christians? I'll begin this discussion with an understanding of the word 'worship'. Worship is derived from the Old English word 'Woerthship' which means to give worth to something. So when we worship God, we give worth to Him. Sadly, it appears that the saints are giving worth to other things in the house of the Lord. Here I will identify two obvious reasons that are rather disturbing to fathom but as it is a reality within the churches I will make mention of them today. The 'cellphone syndrome' We all need to communicate with others over the phone for different reasons. But I find it very disrespectful for the saints to perpetually excuse themselves from the sermon to be on the outside messaging and talking for an extensive period. Not that it is anybody's business to know the nature of these conversations, but when it happens more often than not I'm afraid that we are sending the wrong message to our unsaved visitors. Do we not show reverence to the Lord anymore? I especially observe this trend among our young people of which group I am a part. I fail to believe that our young people use their discretion for they excuse themselves in large numbers at once. It appears that the cellphones get the 'worth' that should have been given to God and therefore it automatically becomes the god that is worshiped. Our God has feelings too. I am more concerned about His feelings than I am with the reputation of the church. For many saints, the time spent in the house of the Lord is the longest and sometimes only time spent with God. If the latter is the case then all the more reason why He deserves our undivided attention. Let's face it, three hours of prayer and worship is the least we can give to God considering all that He does for us on a daily basis. The church needs to be careful not to provoke the Holy Spirit and not to send the wrong message to those who are lost and in need of our guidance. The problem with 'making an entrance' By now many of us would have realized that persons go to church for different reasons; to spectate, to see friends, to wear a nice suit and a few to seek God. There are many other reasons but these are the few I could think of today. Having said that, there are many within the church who perpetually make an entrance under the influence of a 'disruptive spirit' I suppose. This trend may not be very evident in the larger churches, but as my church is small the trend is becoming more noticeable. Saints are not only expected to be present for sermons but are expected to be there on time. It is very distasteful when visitors arrive in the sanctuary before the members do and to make matters worse, our visitors are distracted each time someone walks through the aisle to take a seat. What about respecting the time of the Holy Spirit? I understand that anyone can be late but when the same persons have heads spinning each week, their actions shift from just being late to 'making an entrance'. Leaders are often times included and I don't just mean Pastors, Bishops, Deacons etc. I mean any person within the church body who demonstrates his leadership abilities in even the smallest possible way. Why are persons making an entrance? It is certainly not because of a desire to be noticed by God but rather 'god', who is seated somewhere in the sanctuary. This is one of the reasons why it is increasingly harder to convince an unsaved or even a backslider to return to God. These groups of persons are understandably confused by the double standards that exist within the church. No wonder there is a growing number of non-denominational Christians in our societies today. The church has a voice and we want to be heard, but let us consider addressing some of the ongoing issues among ourselves before we advocate for modesty and decency anywhere else. These are two growing trends that I have observed in church. Have you observed any other?

Wow! The Holy Spirit is to be acknowledged as a person at all times. Why? Because He is. I didn't understand what it meant for the the Holy Spirit to be the access point to Jesus until the closer I think I am to Jesus, the more the Holy Spirit shows me that there is a process to get to the King. Firstly, it is important that we get to know who the person of the Holy Spirit is. In my experience, He is the 'information center' who is willing to reveal all that one needs to know 'if' we are obedient to His instructions. I say this because the Holy Spirit speaks to us everyday; He answers questions, comforts us and guides us in all things but our obedience to His voice is what really determines whether He can trust us to share even more truths with us. He speaks to us in our dreams While I understood that the Holy Spirit will teach us everything and remind us of all that Jesus has spoken John 14:26, it was only two months ago that I learn that He is the One who has given all of us our dreams. There are different kinds of dreams; some are for warning, some are prophetic and some are for making intercessions etc. But for us to identify the kind of dreams we have it will take more than our physical understanding to interpret such. I wasn't able to distinguish my dreams until after a few months of spending time with the Holy Spirit. He knows every person from our past and those who are in our lives presently The Holy Spirit uses people who we are familiar with to bring across His message in our dreams. Though I always understood that He does that, I never appreciated its importance until the Lord showed me in my dream someone I knew from High School but only keep in touch through social media. But as there is no partiality with God Romans 2:11, He revealed that this person was very troubled and in that case I was to make an intercession. Not surprisingly, when I reached out to the young lady on Facebook, she confessed the exact, and I repeat THE EXACT issue that the Holy Spirit had shown me in my dream. Isn't our God amazing!? It was in that moment of confession that I recognized that our dreams are probably the most common medium through which the Holy Spirit speaks. Continual Fellowship strengthens the Holy Spirit's trust in us We will rarely find ourselves sharing very sensitive information with strangers. It is the same with the Holy Spirit. He will put us through all kinds of tests to see how trustworthy we are and two ways to show our trustworthiness is by being obedient and engaging in prayer and worship. I cannot help but emphasize the word obedience, after-all the bible states that Obedience is better than sacrifice, a listening ear than the fat of rams, 1 Samuel 15:22. So I found that the more I worship, the further the Holy Spirit takes me into the spiritual realm. I am truly humbled to know this much more to experience it. All honor and praise to the Holy Spirit. Continual Repentance It is so important that we repent of our sins daily as we serve a holy God. As for me I sin everyday - not only by my deeds but by my very thoughts. Getting to know the Holy Spirit speaks to understanding His standards and meeting His expectations according to the Word of God. I struggle at times to be consistent in worship and reading the word but thanks be to God He understands that the spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak Matthew 26:41. Therefore the Holy Spirit being fully aware of our weaknesses just wants us to seek cleansing so He may continue to work through us as He so desires. I can do nothing without the Holy Spirit. I literally ache in the spirit if I ever feel like I've disappointed Him. How can you tell that you have disappointed the Holy Spirit? Let me hear from you...

According to the New Testament of the Scriptures. How can one enter into the Kingdom of God.?

First i would like to say may the Lord God bless your family and your health. 'Jesus said let the little ones come to me for the kingdom in heaven is theirs ' matt 19:14 OR Mark 10:14 That means the little ones are a blessing and you need to teach and train your children about the ways of God and this will help them grow in the light and helps them archieve a solid relationship with God . Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.Proverbs 22:6 Read stories to them and teach them the book of life .stay blessed may God be with you

I am a 21 year old University student and in a dilemma. My parents met in church. It's a fact I've always liked. My mom has always been very open with me about everything ever since I can remember. when I was 2.5 she went abroad to work in a different country so that we could earn more money becasue the eastern european country i was living in really did not have good living conditions. I stayed there with my relatives, grandparents and aunt. My dad is a storng believer and although he also lived there he never really took care of me so I don't know what it's like to have a real father daughter bond. My mom didn't completely vanish, she was doing it all for me and came back every 3 or 6 months to see me. However, family friends about my mom's age have told me that when I was about 4, I used to go up to them and say things like: "you're my mother" and I remember getting attached to them very easily, which is weird by itself. when I was about 6 my mom took me with her, she got a divorce form my dad who never worked and never helped around the house or anything, and I've been living with her ever since. until I went to University two years ago, but still spend quite a bit of time living with her and her now boyfriend over the holidays. My mom used to tell me about God ever since I can remember. And although I have always firmly believed in Him and known about him I somehow did not want my mom to be the one telling me things about God. I know it sounds awful, but even when I was very little i can remember her wanting to stop talking about it, I did pray and believe in God but it felt like something so private to me, and something blocked me from talking to my mom about God. When I went to highschool I had an incredible teacher, who i was really interested in for some reason, only to find out later that she too was a believer. We got on really well and she would talk to me about God and i loved it. My teacher's parents and 6 siblings are all strong believers and they are such a wonderful family, and i kin of wish i had a family like that too. I loved talking to my teacher about God and was so happy she was a Christian too. She was the one who started calling me BatZion too, and I can tell she really cares about me. She does not have any children of her own and sometimes she can get quite protective of me. After graduation she started taking me to different churches around town, also with her family and it was so nice. My mom, although a believer, somehow doesn't go to church, so i've never been in a very church going family. I went to university abroad, and really enjoyed my independence. I'm a girl who has always been very independent because i don't have any siblings and it's always been just my mom and me. I like dancing when i go out with friends but I don't get drunk at all. I get really good grades and speak 5 languages, so i'm very studious. When i went to university it was so easy to go to church, becuase i could do whatever I wanted, my mom was not there and did not know every little thing I did, and i kind of enjoyed it, even though i do like spending time with her when i'm around her. Whenever I'm home however, going to church is quite a struggle. I don't really have any church going friends my age at home. And there is my teacher who i sometimes go to church with, but whenever I know that my mom knows I am going to church, I feel so blocked, it's like I really can't deal with her even knowing i go to church. I just somehow want it to be a thing I do and talk about with other people. Today it was so bad, i was getting ready to go to church and really wanted to, but my mom was home and she asked where I was going and whether I was going to church, so i somehow ended up not going, because i just wanted to go without her knowing. I know this sounds so weird, and there surely must be something wrong in this? It's so nice to see whole families going to church together, why can't I be open about it with my mom and why do i find it so strange to go to church with her? have any of you had similar experiences or are any of you parents whose kids act similarly and how do you deal with it? Sorry for the really long post but would be great to hear from some of you! Thank you!

Hey everyone, How would you respond to people who slander or make remarks about God in a vile way? Saying stuff like, "God is cruel." and other things? I tend to get defensive over the issue and I find myself always defending God or correcting them.

Hey everyone, Yesterday I visited a new church on my (Church Adventure). During the sermon the pastor was talking about Salvation. And the one thing that threw me off guard was the fact that he said "Revelation IS Salvation" I know that when it comes to the book of Revelation. There is lots of symbolism, and meaning to the end of days with the rapture and the mark of the beast. He tried explaining Salvation in Revelation. But it is impossible for me to see Jesus giving Salvation when he returns since he is going to bring justice for his people and finish the wicked. I wanted to know your opinion on Salvation and if it in any way relates to the book of Revelation?

I wanted to ask you guys, your opinion on this. Why is the name of God, or the word 'God' shushed in the public eye and not embraced as a whole?

Hey everyone, Recently on my church adventure, I came across something that was rather out in the open that led me into deep thought but I need feedback. Are we, Christians, considered to be saints or disciples of Christ? I was at a local church I visit ever so often on my church journey and a pastor during his bible study sermon mentioned that we are all saints due to our belief in Jesus Christ. I wonder what your opinions are? Please give feedback. Thanks & God Bless!

Hey everyone, I wanted to ask what was your experience in the past being with a traditional church or visiting one? Were both traditional churches (Orthodox & Catholic) friendly upon your visit or if you grew up in the church was there drama or other stuff going on around you? Reason why I'm asking is because I'm from an Orthodox Church and have taken up the curiosity of visiting other churches to hear other believers opinions upon the traditional churches, etc. I have heard many positive and negative things about the two and I would like to hear yours as well. God Bless!

Hey everyone! I have a question. I have noticed a lot of street preachers in my hometown and also on social media. Does the bible tell us to preach the gospel on street corners or? Because, the only verse I'm aware of is preaching the gospel to all nations. I don't know if that is considered preaching, I've seen lots of crazy stuff happen to street preachers. So, I'm curious if we as Christians are suppose to do that or not, street preach, etc?

What do you think of Biblioatry? Had you heard the term before? I read this article and thought I'd get some feedback: I think that I am more inclined toward the last definition. Why? Because I have known many hardcore fundamentalist Christians who attempt to interpret the Bible “literally” and who have extreme “reverence for the letter of the Bible” but who did not “worship” the Bible in any real sense. To put it differently, they never placed the Bible in the place of God. So, here’s my definition of biblolatry: Worshiping the Bible instead of the God of the Bible. I want to unpack that a bit, because the phrase “worshiping the Bible” can be easily misunderstood. According to the Bible itself, there is only one object of worship which is worthy of worship: God alone. We see this most plainly in the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Deuteronomy 5.7). Only God deserves that loftiest position. And yet, from time to time and in a variety of ways, we may place the Bible in that position. How might we do this? All the things I’m about to list are things that I’ve been guilty of from time to time in my own life. But they are all things that I now try to avoid: Treating a copy of the Bible we own with an unusual and superstitious amount of respect. I’m sure you’ve seen what I’m talking about — not letting the Bible touch the floor, obsessing over the condition of each page of the Bible, never placing another book on top of the Bible, etc. This is just silly. The copy of the Bible in question is simply a collection of paper, ink, and (p)leather. It is not God. Viewing the Bible as some sort of magical device to help us feel better. I’ve done what I’m about to describe more often than I’d like to admit. I’m having a bad day, so I flip his Bible open to a random page and scour that page for something to help mefeel better. This is just silly. Treating the Bible this way equates it with other silly things that people make into idols: like horoscopes and the like. Thinking that the words of the Bible are more important than the God who inspired them. This one is harder to nail down into a concrete example. But I fear that sometimes we all get so wrapped up in the words of the Bible itself that we become blinded to the God who stands behind them. Again, this is just silly. God is to be worshiped, not the Bible! So perhaps from time to time we all need to lift our noses out of our Bibles and remember to direct the vast majority of spiritual attention toward God himself. Even our study of the Bible should direct us toward God. Instead of reading it for its own sake, maybe we should look for how our reading of the Bible points us to God, and dwell there instead of on the words themselves. Thinking that there exists within the Bible itself some secret code that will unlock the mysteries of the universe, the end times, etc., etc. This isn’t one that I’ve gotten into much, though I dabbled in it a bit as a late teen thanks to my obsession then with eschatology. This mentality has been most clearly seen in the all the Bible Code books (I’ll let you find them on your own if you want to). This is just silly too. The words of the Bible aren’t magic and they aren’t hiding anything. Instead, they’re intended to turn us toward God, not Christian conspiracy theories! Why Does Bibliolatry Matter? You might be thinking something like this: Who cares Matt! As long as someone is reading the Bible, that’s a good thing, right? And you aren’t completely wrong. It is better that someone worship the Bible than something else, I guess. But in the end, bibliolatry is just as wrong as any other form of idolatry. Why? Because it violates the first commandment, plain and simple. So then, if bibliolatry is wrong, which it is, and is to be avoided, which it should, then what is the correct way to view the Bible? I’m so glad you asked! Jesus talks about this very topic in John 5. I’ve written some about this chapter of John before (here and here), but I’ll set the scene again. Jesus healed a man who had been suffering for many, many years (John 5.1-9a). This healing happened on the Sabbath, which made some Jewish leaders angry because they believed that what transpired was considered work and Jews weren’t to work on the Sabbath (John 5.9b-16a). So these leaders confronted Jesus (John 5.16b) and Jesus came back at them with a long diatribe in which he expertly defended himself (John 5.17-47). And during part of Jesus’ long speech he said this: You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5.39-40) Ouch! Jesus really hits them where it hurts. These Jewish leaders were likely Pharisees, who were considered to be experts in the law and taught it to the people with regularity. And here Jesus tells them that their life’s work, studying the Scriptures diligently. was ultimately misguided. This must have really struck at their core identity, which is never fun. To put all of this in different words: Jesus told these Jewish leaders that they were guilty of bibliolatry. They were worshiping the Bible and not the God of the Bible. Specifically, they thought that they could be receive eternal life through their study of the Scriptures, when their only way of accessing eternal life, Jesus himself, was standing right in front of them! So, to bring things back to today, bibliolatry matters because when we worship the Bible instead of Jesus, we run the risk of placing our faith and the hope of our salvation in the wrong place! How Can We Respond to Bibliolatry? Here are a few ideas about how to respond to the threat of bibliolatry: Focus on Jesus. What makes the Bible special is that it is inspired by God and through it Jesus is best revealed to the world. Thus, as we read the Bible, we should focus more on Jesus and less on the words themselves. I know this is a fine distinction. But we can easily be bogged down and miss Jesus who is revealed all throughout the Bible! Allow the Bible to do its job. In 2 Timothy 3.16-17 the job of the Bible is described this way: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” So as we read and study the Bible, are we allowing it to teach, rebuke, correct, and train us in righteousness? And is their proof in our lives that our Bible reading and study is working? What might that proof be? Well the passage from 2 Timothy plainly tells us that if we let the Bible do its job in our lives, then we will be better equipped to do every good work. Mindblown. The true test of whether or not we are using the Bible properly just might be whether or not we are doing the good works that God has prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2.10)! Read the Bible with others. Like many other things in life, community can help! If we only read the Bible alone, then we very well may become worshipers of it instead of Jesus. Conversely, if we read and study the Bible with others, especially if that group of people is diverse in a variety of ways, then we can build in safeguards against bibliolatry. (Please note that I’m not saying that we should never read the Bible alone. I am, however, saying that we should always have a healthy dose of communal Bible reading!) Obey what we read. Perhaps the truest sign of bibliolatry is that we spend all of our time reading and studying the Bible and spend almost no time doing what it says (other than the whole “meditate on the law” part!). Jesus didn’t die so that we could all sit with our faces gazing down at our Bible-filled laps. No! He died so that we could join him in his cosmic mission to make all things right by reconciling them himself! And as we read the Bible, it should inspire us to join in that mission, not avoid it by merely learning more about it! Please don’t misunderstand me. Studying the Bible is greatly important! I’ve devoted my entire adult life to this task. But our love for the Bible should never rival our love for Jesus and our devotion to the Bible should never deter us from living out the mission of Jesus in the real world. The danger of bibliolatry is real but quite subtle. Do you agree? If so, let me know how you think we should deal with this danger in the comments below. If not, why not? God bless, GE

Hi Please below write any evidnce that god exists

Hi, I recently started a new christian blog and I would like some feedback on it. Thanks! https://godsdisciplesblog.wordpress.com/

"Anyone who praises himself will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be praised." That's my favorite line from "The Bible" series. It's also hands down one of my favorite sayings attributed to the Savior Yeshua aka "Jesus" the Christ. The Bible says more than once "God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble." Well everyone who believes in God wants his favor right? So what is humility really? What is the typical Christian's idea of humility? Google says humility is "a modest or low view of one's own importance; humbleness" I totally agree with this definition. How would someone like this think? How would they act? What does humility look like? Christian humility is happily obeying the Savior Yeshua. (impressive) Christian humility is praying for everyone to repent all the time no matter what (very impressive) Christian humility is always praying for God's will no matter what (very impressive) Christian humility is NOT sighing and complaining about life and death.

In 1993,,I am going to reach bus stationSuddenly Express bus is passed, I ran to catch the bus but failedI was disappointed, Actually i am i am going to attend in a prayer meet I need to preach there.. With disappointment i was murmured against God, God some times you are not willing to help me, if i able to catch the Express bus i may reach venue in some early and some safety Now i need to travel in a passenger bus, which goes very slow, i need to trouble Why don't you give the Express bus? while i am travelling to serve you? Slowly i went to bus station and i am started my journey in very old passenger bus,, it is going very slow,,, very slow,.. Still i am thinking against God,, Oh do you willing to give some sufferings to your servants like me? This is my own thinking against God After fifteen minutes while my passenger bus is running suddenly driver stopped the bus,, where many people gathered on road I saw .... the first bus which is express and which is i missed,. is in a accident and went to river.. Passengers are wounded and all passengers are crying,, On road police said to our driver,, don't stop here,, traffic may give trouble,, you can move .. you can move.. my bus driver is moved forward,, God slapped me ,.,, now i am started to think.. If i am able to catch the express bus,.. i may need to face accident.. i may have wounds too.. now i am in passenger which is very slow,, but i am very safe now,, Oh i was started to tear ,,. i asked forgiveness from God.. i started to learn from slow things In my life i missed many ''EXPRESS'' events like buses and others,, but my God is giving his blessings through passenger type slow events Thank you JESUS,, THANK YOU MY DEAR HEAVENLY FATHER,, BRETHREN PLEASE TRY TO LEARN FROM SLOW THINGS,.

One Sunday morning, as I was on my way to Church I encountered a big and vicious looking stray dog. It started to run towards me, while barking and forcing. I was so terrified that I did not know what next to do. As the dog got about 4 feet close to me, instantly I shouted, "Jesus help me"! Immediately, the dog stopped, turned around and ran away in fear. His name is above all names, and at the mention of His name every knee must bow.

Hello there WorthyChristianForums Community, I couldn't find a better section to write my personal story, I hope you read it until the last word because otherwise you won't get the idea. This is my story as a Lebanese person living in Israel and a message to the people around the world. I'm a young person who suffered from war and lost the childhood he was supposed to live surrounded by his family and friends. In a normal day Israel withdrew unexpectedly from South Lebanon after twenty-five years of war followed by many Lebanese families who served under the Israeli regiment, who had little choice but to, leave or die as was promised by the terrorists that were and still in Lebanon. We barely made it out alive leaving everything behind, some lost their lives even as we were trying to escape. We were shot at the border as we were denied to enter Israel at first. The only thing I took with me is a toy. We were held in a place that was full of mad and depressed people, so much yelling and crying, kids and grownups, people from all ages trying to find their loved ones and see if they survived. I don't remember all that happened that day and why did our car disappear, i was told they blew it up. Later on I found myself in a safe place living in a bungalow and riding a bicycle with my friends the whole day, the sea is few meters away from us, everything is alright, peace, no shooting, no booms no screams and cries, well, as far as I remember, you must keep in mind i was just a child… and my uncle's family is at the same place. My parents asked around to know where is the rest of the family, until we finally got to know that we have only two uncles here, one on my mom's side and one on my father's side and the rest remained in Lebanon. Later we were moved to another place leaving one uncle behind and joining the other. (Not by choice) After two years we were moved to a new place. Fresh new life, we rented an apartment, got some furniture, but no uncles and no cousins around, we didn't know anyone. Israel helped us moving and aided us some, slowly we understood that it will be hard to get back to Lebanon and that wasn't a thing I really wanted because of the fact that... Lebanon is in a deep war, bombs everywhere and people dying every day, and because of the fact that if we return to Lebanon my father will be imprisoned and they will torture him like they did to my grandfather, an old man, he was jailed and beaten and denied medication. Fifteen years passed since the day we came to this country. During these years I have met so many people, from all religions Jews, Muslims, Druze and Christians. I wish I could get to know some of them more and I wish I didn't meet some. What I learned by being around them is that religion is not the main problem. The problem is that everyone believes that this land is theirs to keep and want to kick the rest out or even kill them if they could. What they don't understand is that this land is not going with them after they die, instead of sharing it and enjoying life for what it really is, they make it hard for everyone. The reason behind our involvement is because we didn't want the people who were seeking asylum in Lebanon from using our homes as attack bases to fire on Israel which they did and to protect our families from rape, theft, being kidnapped and killed like they did to one of my uncles that i didn't get to know. As a result the South Lebanese people decided to unite and make an army by the order of the legitimate Lebanese government to keep peace in our lands under the Israeli regiment. Muslims, Druze, but mostly Christians stood together and joined the army to protect their home from terrorism and to stop the killing and the kidnapping. Now each and every person who was in the South Lebanese Army that left to Israel is considered a traitor in Lebanon. The terrorist organization is forcing the Lebanese people to believe that they are the protectors of Lebanon and that we the South Lebanese people who left to Israel and the Israeli people are the real terrorists. I can't blame my country it never had a moment of peace, throughout history nations conquered it and enslaved its people, there is no real government because anyone who has the power can take it and do whatever he likes, no one can really protect it from the terror, and most of Lebanon leaders support the terror because they are scared of them. Things escalated since, we got attacked by our own people, let alone those who sought asylum in Lebanon, and so we fought back, we alongside the Israeli people fought terror, we wanted to protect and free our land. But by year 2000 Israel decided to withdraw from Lebanon as it wasn't really leading anywhere and it was costing them a lot, money and blood, as it did us. Most of the families had young children like my family, who had me and my brother on the way, didn’t think twice and left, but the older people like my grandparents were unable to leave, they were rooted to their home and land. My grandmother and grandfather lived alone they didn't see their grandchildren growing and not their own children, my grandfather left us while I was writing this, I can't explain my feelings.. I wanted to be next to him I wanted to help him… I wish I can be next to my grandmother this moment… South Lebanon is an hour drive from us but we cannot visit for a second, leaving to Lebanon will be permanent and may cost us our lives. Despite all we have been through and being mistreated on several occasions, we were raised to be good to everyone and to forgive and forget… It's not easy though, especially when you are reminded of it every day by people who refuse to forgive or forget or try to understand. We have been living in a Jewish City for thirteen years (Arabs live in separate cities and settlements). We've seen a lot, bad things and good things, things like being called Arabs in school and being hated for it, even creating random fights with us just because we speak the language. Although I had a great teacher who took good care of me and helped me like I was her son and even helped me to find a job and she is a religious person. A while after I started college and started traveling around the country I was really surprised to hear for the first time from Arabs - Christians, Muslims, Druze what do they think about us. Confusing… Honestly… I'm a traitor in some people eyes… a weak person who betrayed his country… and living between Jews… can't be any worse, they actually hate us and make fun of us. Christians didn't welcome us especially at first, we found our cars smashed when we went to pray in one of their churches, so we can't expect the rest to treat us any better. Some people think that all the Lebanese people are the same as they see them in Media – Having fun, hanging out with many women, drinking, poker, casinos… no this is not South Lebanon! We were not able even to go to Beirut… The Jewish people main problem is thinking that we are "Arabs" ... as long as I talk Arabic around them it will be weird for them and I understand that… but for those some who got to know us, they started to show us some respect, supporting us morally. It is enough to get a smile from a neighbor, especially that we are living between them and we study with them, to make us happy. While studying software engineering I met a great Jewish friend who changed some of my views and I respect him like my brother (He lives in a village close to the border of Israel and Lebanon). It’s really confusing... From all the religions there are some people who like us and some who don't... But if you ask me who I like more or who I feel more close to? I will say "Don't hate, forgive, and respect me for who I am" In those fifteen years living in Israel we've had a lot of troubles, starting from all kind of people around who think that we are "Arabs" and "Terrorists" and "Betrayers" for not understanding who we are and what we went through, to personal issues as the Epilepsy of my brother that crashed us, and thank god he is alright now. I can't say that Israel should have helped us more than it did, but separating between us was a bad move, for us that is. For them they got what they wanted, two groups busy disliking each other over envy with no combined effort to pursue anything from the country… Two groups that one of them got more and the second one got much less, it's not fair… the result today is that one group has their own house, a new car, and having a normal life even traveling abroad … While the second group are struggling to raise their families dreaming about the day they might have a house that they won't be kicked out of. We personally moved 6 times from house to house ruining our stuff and paying a lot of money moving because the house owner decided to raise the rent. My family consists of five people, two parents and three sons, two of them under age, living in a rented two bedroom house paying for it 2,500 Shekels plus municipality taxes. After paying the rest of the bills, we are left with little money that we can't afford to buy the required food and clothing, my dad found himself at the end of every month in a bigger debt having to ask the bank for a loan after a loan to be able to go on, and asking all the government organizations for help and for a public housing that kept rejecting us. I respect him and I will never forget how strong he is for keeping us together and teaching us what’s right and what’s wrong, and for fighting to feed us with all the mental and financial pressures and every other hurdle, so many things that I learned from him and I will be passing it on. I can't explain how my mom is important in my life, the one problem she has is that she couldn't work and she's not able to work, I won't explain it here, but she is the heart of this family, she made me and my brothers so close to each other to take care of each other, to love each other, to forgive each other no matter what happens. I finished my high school years plus college and I got employed, I have been working for almost half a year and I'm helping my family a bit now, it is going to be hard for us to reach the main goal to buy a house for our family to live in and finally say we have a home and it's ours, let alone pursue my own life and my family to be… with all the problems that we have such as my little brother and mom's health issues "Celiac disease" (They can't eat anything that contains wheat, almost every product has wheat added just for the weight) just makes it harder to us because we must pay four times the normal price for their food, while we are fixing the damage that have been caused by the loans. I know that we are not the only family struggling to survive, many around the world are. However, it's important for me to pass this over so people around the world understand that we are not bad people, all we did is try to protect ourselves and our loved ones. Our presence in Israel isn't by choice, Israel after all is for the Jewish people, always been, always will be, it's not for us (A fact that was made clear through many occasions and by several means) but … Where else can we be? We have fallen prey to political games and we were too weak to do anything about it, I wish I could see Lebanon again for few seconds just to see my house and my family… my grandparents who aged alone. I want to feel how it is like being at home or to belong to somewhere, and not spend my days being shunned by the people I am living amongst for a crime I did not commit. It has been quite the journey and I still have a lot to tell, who knows what fate is holding for me. I will be working hard in the few next years trying to save money to be eligible to take a loan to buy a house or even to immigrate to another country searching for a better life, if I didn't mention it before life in Israel is very expensive with little income to the common man, but it's hard to find a country that will accept us all, maybe I can do it alone but it is hard for me to leave my family after all what we have gone through together. (I must say that this is only one story from so many more Lebanese who live in Israel who suffered a lot) If you wish to comment on my story , or offer any advice, you can reach me on lebaneselivinginisrael@gmail.com I would like to add and thank God very much for his guidance if it wasn't for our strong faith no christian lebanese family would have survived. Thank you for reading and God Bless.

The recent events on the world scene is no doubt a cause for worry for everyone, man and woman, old and young, christian or non-christian, African, European, Asian, Arab or Western. The terrorist activities is spreading out fast across the globe; natural disasters are on the increase and the level of moral depravity is alarming! The evil (man-against-man & man-against-God) in our societies today completely dwarfs the evil described in the biblical Sodom and Gomorrah. But God is in control. Ps. 2:1 - 5: Why do the nations rage, and the peoples meditate on a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers plot together, against Jehovah and against His anointed, saying, Let us break their bands in two and cast away their cords from us. He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; Jehovah shall mock at them. Then He shall speak to them in His anger, and trouble them in His wrath. Isa 60:1-3: Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of Jehovah has risen on you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but Jehovah shall rise on you, and His glory shall be seen on you. And the nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawning. Darkness is covering the earth and gross darkness, the people (their minds, reasoning). That is why it is easy for people to not only justify but legislate into law, what is evil and inimical (both physically and spiritually) to the society. But God is not awed (men can be, but not God) by man's evil. He has seen this over and over again. God is NOT in a contest with Satan. He's fully in control of the situation. If it appears as if things are fast falling apart and the world will enter a state of Armageddon, it is because we men (as God's battle axes - Jer 51:20) aren't quick and reliable when it comes to making up our minds to give our all. The Lord Jesus tidied up His assignment within 33 years because He commited His ALL to the purpose, and NOT because He was (and still is) God. He never operated as God on earth. He was PURELY and COMPLETELY human like you and I. The scriptures quoted above (few of the many verses of their kind) refers to us - anyone who commits to God's agenda through our Lord Jesus Christ. Psalm 2 makes reference to the Son's dominion: Psa 2:7-9 I will declare the decree of Jehovah. He has said to Me, You are My Son; today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I shall give the nations for Your inheritance; and the uttermost parts of the earth for Your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. The Son is the Head. We are the body (of Christ, the Head). The baton is in our hands (the body) to fulfil this scripture. It is time to arise and shine (Isa 60:1) in the midst of the darkness and gross darkness. The initiative is NEVER with Darkness but with light. Darkness can thrive only when light is not shining (extinguished or covered). God is not exasperated or desperate. The devil can do only so much. A peep into history reveals a streak of failures for the devil, even when it appeared he's got it all. He killed the Lord Jesus and thought he won. But that very death was his (Satan's) doom. He scattered the disciples by persecution. But that very act led to the spread of the good news across the globe. He did everything to keep the scriptures from becoming common knowledge. But today, the bible is the highest selling book on earth. As if that isn't enough, that same knowledge of the bible is being used to ridicule the bible by vain men, with twisted minds. Intellectual arguments seem to be dislodging the truth of the scriptures. But God is winning. I speak to the 7,000 who have not (and will not) bow their kneels to Baal, arise and shine. Stand for the truth. The Lord made life hell for Satan during His days on earth. Satan actually fell like lightening from his places over the regions the Lord operated (Luke 10:18). The disciples did the same. They were described as "turning the world up-side-down" (down-side-up, actually) in the book of Acts 17:6. We can do the same. It's time to put off the restraints (Hebrews 12:1-2). I leave you with this scripture: Roman 12:12 - ... rejoicing in hope, patient in affliction, steadfastly continuing in prayer. #Godwin

When the apostles talked about the word of God, what were they refering to?Obviously it was not the old testament. and there was no new testament then.i believe it was not the old testament becasue no ordinary person had access to itthey usually say things like: and the word of God grew"we will give ourselves to the study of the word and prayer"And i believe they were not referring to Jesus Christ as the word, because of the context of usage.I will appreciate your opinions, i have had this in my mind for a while. Thank you all.