Are there any areas that are giving you a hard time in your spiritual walk?

[Christine]

Do you worry about SIN?

Are you afraid of dying?

Do you wonder how to please God?

Do you have questions as to how to walk in the Spirit?

Do you get depressed and discourage when others don't LISTEN or want to hear the truth?

What things are bothering YOU this week...lets talk about them and how to find encouragement from the Word of God.

[NewDawn]

Do you worry about SIN?

Are you afraid of dying?  I'm not afraid of dying, that's one thing finally, that I've just believed the Lord on.  I mean it's not that I didn't believe, but you know, just the word "death", causes me to realize how final it is.

Do you wonder how to please God? It' been a slow process for me to see this.  That it's not in my actions or what I can do, but it's about having faith in Him and believing His word.  Grace Teacher has helped me see this in the word!!
 


Do you have questions as to how to walk in the Spirit?
This also was something that I did not understand.  The teaching that TC did where he mentions how we are to walk was very. . . I don't know. . .I was thinking, is this it?  Is this all we have to do?  I'm not saying this in a bad way either.  When TC explained that I think last Tuesday, it just hit me like V8!  I can't remember how he put it and I should have taken notes, but it was very good!!

Do you get depressed and discourage when others don't LISTEN or want to hear the truth?
Not any more?  Remember what you told me about the "ladies".  That really helped!!

What things are bothering YOU this week...lets talk about them and how to find encouragement from the Word of God.
I've been bothered by certain situations that happened this week with my dads business.  Unfortunately he lost a mediation and the company has to pay the plaintiff money.  Then a few other things happened to the business and I'm thinking, Lord what is going on here? 
But you know, I just kept going in the Lord, my faith in God these past few weeks have really grown.  I mean, with everything I've been learning, it just deepens my faith and trust in God more than before.  Like it's getting more solid.

There were other things too that went on and it just seem to be piled on top of each other.  One thing I did was this. . I was talking to a customer trying to collect money on a job we did.  When he wouldn't pay us until we did a certain thing, he said we wouldn't get our money until this thing got taken care of.  Well I got made and told that's not the way we did this, but he still wouldn't pay us.  But I got mad at myself for allowing this man to get to me like that.  So I went in the office bathroom and just prayed to the Lord about that.  I cried, because I was so mad at that man and at myself. 

Then this morning when I get to the office, the a/c didn't work.  I got to go home early!! That was good!!
That's it, that was my week!

Thank you for starting this thread!  This is really good!!

HUGS!!
Diana

[Christine]

Great answers, Diana.

I have been dealing with the issue of "dying."  I suppose it is because the subject of death has been so up close and personal this past year with the passing of my brother, my girlfriend and my Mother. I also hit the milestone of turning 62 and am feeling my "mortality".

I am like Woody Allen when he said "I'm not AFRAID of dying; I just don't want to BE there when it happens."  Wink

I think as we get closer in age to those who have gone before us, we tend to dwell on these things. God has given me His peace, for which I am greatful.

Aren't we silly?

[NewDawn]

HI Christine,
Ahh, HUGS!!!
I know there is more thought on our mortality as we get older, but really, we can all go when it's our time.  . . at any age.   
I could leave this earth before you Christine!! Wink!!!

You know what it is with me, lol, I don't want another thing to worry about.  I used to worry about when I was going to die and how.  But then finally I hear the truth and then it takes me forever for it to sink in.  I have to hear it explained to me in different ways.  I'm so dense!! LOL!!  But when it comes to death, I know me and if I allow myself to think about it, I'll work myself into a frenzy and then allow "the lies" to set in. 

So many things I'm learning right now that are different from what I had believed previously, as I know it's the same with everyone.  So it's taking me awhile to remove the old stuff and replace it with the real truth.

I have so many quesitions on other things, that I don't know where to begin! 

I'm glad Gods peace is with you on this! 

Yes, we are silly! LOL!!!!

Love,
Diana

[Christine]

I really want to thank you, Diana, for allowing me to be brutally honest about this topic. As we get older, and especially older in the Lord, we tend to think it somehow NOT honoring to the Lord to admit to weaknesses and struggles (pride tends to try to attach its ugly tentacles to us all, unfortunately), when actually God has promised to, and DOES, show forth His power in our weaknesses.

 When we ARE honest He is able to use our less than stellar moments to edify others and to encourage. He used you to show me this truth, and to bring home to me again the awesome truths of how a BODY is made of many parts and that Jesus, as its HEAD, determines how those  parts will and DO work together to bring glory to His name. Most of this occurs without our even knowing that we have, in reality, touched anothers life in some significant way, but for those "eternal glimpses" of Gods awesome plan and purpose I am and will forever be, eternally greatful.

He has used your wonderful enthusiam, your love for the truth as it is revealed to you, and your love for Himself to edify, encourage and renew me in a "weary" time.

Thank you so much for allowing Him to live His life in and thru you, to touch mine.

[NewDawn]

Ahh precious Christine! <<HUGS>>!!!

I don't know what I said, but I thank God that He lifted you up at this time!   

He uses you to do the same for us too, don't forget that. 

Oh, you know, I don't want my post to come across like I and "I have arrived" or arrogant, type of thing pertaining to the post about death.  I don't mean to sound that way at all. 

I believe you know what I'm trying to say.  I just write funny.

Love,
Diana

[Christine]

Your post came across just fine, so don't you worry even one little bit. None of us "has arrived" and we are here to help one another grow in GRACE. I really do appreciate you, sweetie. Huuuuuuuugs

Anyone else want to share???

[Oasis]

I'm with Woody.  I plan on playing hooky from my funeral.

Seriously, I don't worry about sin.  I am confident in Christ's promises of eternal Salvation.  If He has the power to save me, He certainly has the power to keep me and says so in His Word, despite what many naysayers may think(Romans 8, Romans 10:9-10, Jude 24-25).

I don't worry about walking in the spirit, but am ever conscious of my witness for Christ.

I don't get depressed when others don't accept the Truth...sad yes.  It's hard to think of ones you love being in hell.

I don't worry about death, except for the thought of leaving Glenda on her own...however she'd probably be better off.  LOL

ybiC,
Kab

 

[Roofdad]

Yes!! There is something that has been bothering me for some time now! I would surely like any input from anyone on this! satan has been tormenting me about this for over a year, now.
 As some of you might know, my most recent ............. attachment, I guess you could call it, where the Lord is concerned, has come from the Pentecostal church where I have been going for the last two years or so.
Here is my dilemna: I have read about people being filled with the Holy Ghost; Gentiles, as well as Jews. I reckon everyone knows that the Pentecostals put great emphasis on this? Now, I have always gone to a Baptist church, when I went at all, at various times in my life. It never changed me. I would start off good, or so I thought, then little by little, I would stop going, until I didn't go at all, again. But, if some here know how the Baptist services go, it is very quiet, and laid back. You get your little program, that tells you that this will happen, then that, then that, and so on. I never felt the presence of God there. I tried to, but I never did. And it never changed me, inside. I still drank, smoked, smoked dope, etc., and just kind of added church to everything else, ya know? Still did all the other stuff. Even living a secular life, I could see that prophecy was being fulfilled in the world around me. I began praying and asking God to take these things from me, if He saw that they were standing in the way of my being what He would have me be.
Now, I will NOT say that it came easy, because there was MUCH trial, and plenty of adversity involved, BUT............ Christ delivered me! From ALL of it!! I had smoked for over 30 years, cigars and cigarettes, AND pot. I had been drinking pretty heavily for 3 years, beer and whiskey. GONE!! Delivered! No want, need, or desire for it anymore!

On with the story......... I began to attend a Pentecostal church where my sister has been going for 10 years. My first visit was a praise and altar service. I had never ............ experienced anything like it before. I am sure that I felt the presence of God there, like nothing I had felt in any church before.

I got saved, again. I got baptized, again. I began to try living for God, through Christ, and started to pray for the baptism of the Holy Ghost. It has never happened. I know that I have the indwelling of the Spirit, because God deals with me about a lot of things. But I have not been filled with the Holy Ghost. Satan tells me that it is only for those people that are TRULY saved, etc. Y'all know how he is, right? Little voice in the back of your mind, just tormenting about whatever might bother you? I hate him. I know he is a liar, and the father of lies. I try not to listen to him. Can someone help shed light on this for me?

[NewDawn]

Sounds like mine and my husbands life!!  Or did! 

We went to a pentecostal church too, with talking in tongues and prophecing and all that.  But we still lived the same lifestyle too.  Drinking and partying and carrying on, but now, it's like a light bulb has opened up since learning about grace teachings.  This is what I have been searching for and knew that there had to be more than what I was learing previously.

But as Paul say's there is one baptism and that if through the Holy Spirit as soon as we believe in the gospel of our salvation.

Eph 4:4-6
4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
 5One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
 6One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.


Eph 1: 7-13
7In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
 8Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
 9Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
 10That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
 11In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
 12That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
 13In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise,


So you can see the Holy Spirit is present once we believe.  It's not anything that man does, by laying on of hands or even praying Him into our lives.  Another truth I learned here!!

[Christine]

Hey Darryl,

I think I know what the  problem is. We all tend to want to have the "feeling" that God is present and active on our behalf...and the Pentecostals and Charismatics feed INTO that desire, unfortunately.

God is honored when we BELIEVE Him, regardless of how we "feel." THAT is the walk of faith. He oftentimes will spend YEARS with some of us, weaning us from the devastating habit of living by "feelings" instead of walking by FAITH, but in the end, He will have burned off all that which has us tied to this world and its "fascination." We will have become truley "spiritual" beings predominantly, and will have learned to walk in the Spirit and NOT In the flesh.  This flesh has such a hold on us, and we don't realize what a stranglehold it has on us UNTIL we try to free ourselves from its tentacles.

You ARE filled with the Spirit. YOU ARE "complete in Christ." YOU HAVE everything you will ever need ....where? IN CHRIST. And He lives where? IN YOU.

The issue is not how much you have of HIM, but of how much He has of YOU. As we surrender those areas that we have been holding onto, we find the "freedom" that He promised. We no longer belong to ourselves, but to Him who paid such a dear price to redeem us, and to buy us back to Himself.

FEELINGS are the caboose to the train....they follow FACTS, not vice versa. We cannot run the train with the caboose...it was never intended to operate that way. As we allow Him more access to who we are, He is able to live His life in and thru us. Will we "feel it?" Not necessarily, because it is a walk of faith, NOT feeling.

Some days I get up and "feel" no more like God is living in me than I could fly....but the FACT is, He is. He tells us what He has done by placing us INTO the entity called the church which is His Body, and there are a zillion things that happened to us at that very moment that we have NO PROOF of by "feeling", but that His WORD tells us is true nonetheless.

You are beginning the adventure of a lifetime. Learning to think as God thinks, to take Him at His Word without having to have "feelings" to back it up, and best of all, you will be seeing what His plan has been and is for the two realms He created, heaven and the earth.

If you get a chance...go to www.enjoythebible.com...Keith Blades website, and order the book "Satan and His plan of Evil".

It will amaze you what you will learn from this book. I only endorse books I have myself read and found to be biblically and doctrinally sound. I highly recommend it.

In the meantime....hang in there and continue fellowshipping with us. You are definitely NOW on the right track and we will do all that we can to assist you.

[Blood Bought]

Roofdad -- "Satan tells me that it is only for those people that are TRULY saved, etc. Y'all know how he is, right? Little voice in the back of your mind, just tormenting about whatever might bother you? I hate him. I know he is a liar, and the father of lies. I try not to listen to him. Can someone help shed light on this for me"

Been there, brother. As a matter of fact, I still feel the nagging from time to time. I am finally dismissing it, and taking God at His word. It is the ONLY way to settle it. It got to the point with me that it felt like I could cry out to the Lord and He just wouldn't listen to me, and that He hated me.

Ridiculous? You bet! You heard the Gospel. You responded in faith to accept the free gift. God says it's settled. We need to agree with our Lord.

Love in Christ

[Christine]

Bloodbought said:

I am finally dismissing it, and taking God at His word. It is the ONLY way to settle it. It got to the point with me that it felt like I could cry out to the Lord and He just wouldn't listen to me, and that He hated me.

Ridiculous? You bet! You heard the Gospel. You responded in faith to accept the free gift. God says it's settled. We need to agree with our Lord.

AAAAAAaaamen, bloodbought....now thats the kinda talk I like to hear!  YEEEE haw, fella! Huuuugs