I have a dear friend whom I was with in the back seat of her car when I was visiting her. The car went over a bump in the road as we lifted out of our seat a little, while swaying back and forth.
The words out of my friends mouth were; "pitchin and rollin." We laughed together at that silly little encounter.
Later as I pondered the phrase "pitchin and rollin", it reminded me of life. Life is almost nothing but pitchin and rollin, we might as well do our pitchin and rollin with joy in our hearts and a flexible spirit. Cry if you must but just keep going.
Today might be calm and steady, even tomorrow, maybe even an entire week, but never fear the pitchin and rollin will come, it always does.
That's why I call this life "boot camp", we are not here to be comfortable, we are here to learn, learn about everything all the time. The most valuable lessons God takes us through are not out of books except His Book. Life explains His Book, it validates what He tells us. If we are not reading His Book while asking for the understanding, then we will not learn from the lessons of life.
The saddest day of anyone's life is the day they stop learning. Not the learning that comes from books, anyone can do that, but the learning that comes from facing the truth head on and obeying God through it.
Friday, August 4, 2017
Emotions Stress Reliever
Narcissists hate emotion, they think it means someone is weak.
There is weakness in one who has to pretend in order to feel whole and safe. The narcissist cannot admit what is right in front of them if it will make them sense emotion. I have lived with people like this all my life, when emotion is shown they seem to disappear as though something is wrong with tears or crying out. I even had a woman tell me she refused to scream when she was in labor. I asked her why, her answer was "I don't know, I'm just not going to scream." My reply was that "I did scream and I didn't care who heard it." LOL Perhaps pride is what keeps people from admitting truth, they just hate to look weak. But they mistake honesty with weakness, sad to say the least.
Often believers are doing their obedience in the flesh rather than the power of the Holy Spirit. Facing the truth and telling the truth does not stress me at all. My joy is not diminished by looking at truth any more than a doctor's joy or skill is diminished by diagnosing a problem in someone who needs an operation.
So many people cannot face truth because it affects their mood, that is not the case with me. Someone who must have "positive" as defined by them, continually in their life, will never be able to face hard things. When an expert runs into a problem, he looks for solutions, he does not sit down and cry because there is a problem, he gets busy and solves it or admits it cannot be solved.
It is the difference between seeing the world as it is or sucking it into your soul. As believers we should be able to look at anything and see the good or bad, call it what it is and feel little or no devastation in our hearts. As one doctor once said, "we ought to be able to observe without absorbing."
I have cried many times over things I see, but it doesn't make me depressed or despondent. In fact the tears bring relief while accompanied by my trust in Christ that He has all the answers.
Our emotions do not guide us nor do they diminish us, they just "are." They are the bodies response to stress, a God given release mechanism that should never be repressed. Only weak and beggarly people are fearful of appearing weak through the expression of emotion. It is not strength to pretend one does not have emotion, it is weakness.
The devil is very clever, he loves to watch people implode from heart attacks brought on by unreleased emotion, the stress that keeps us in bondage. Releasing our emotion through tears allows our body to heal, the emotions and the physical are deeply connected. There are no Scripture verses that tell us that weeping is wrong or weakness.
The more we hold in the more the stress builds, even if we don't think we are stressed. God meant for things to be dealt with, solutions that heal are confession, expressed emotion and trusting Christ for the outcome.
Psalm 56:8
"You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?"
Psalm 126:5
"Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!"
Revelation 7:17
"For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
Psalm 42:3
"My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?”"
Isaiah 38:5
“Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life."
There is weakness in one who has to pretend in order to feel whole and safe. The narcissist cannot admit what is right in front of them if it will make them sense emotion. I have lived with people like this all my life, when emotion is shown they seem to disappear as though something is wrong with tears or crying out. I even had a woman tell me she refused to scream when she was in labor. I asked her why, her answer was "I don't know, I'm just not going to scream." My reply was that "I did scream and I didn't care who heard it." LOL Perhaps pride is what keeps people from admitting truth, they just hate to look weak. But they mistake honesty with weakness, sad to say the least.
Often believers are doing their obedience in the flesh rather than the power of the Holy Spirit. Facing the truth and telling the truth does not stress me at all. My joy is not diminished by looking at truth any more than a doctor's joy or skill is diminished by diagnosing a problem in someone who needs an operation.
So many people cannot face truth because it affects their mood, that is not the case with me. Someone who must have "positive" as defined by them, continually in their life, will never be able to face hard things. When an expert runs into a problem, he looks for solutions, he does not sit down and cry because there is a problem, he gets busy and solves it or admits it cannot be solved.
It is the difference between seeing the world as it is or sucking it into your soul. As believers we should be able to look at anything and see the good or bad, call it what it is and feel little or no devastation in our hearts. As one doctor once said, "we ought to be able to observe without absorbing."
I have cried many times over things I see, but it doesn't make me depressed or despondent. In fact the tears bring relief while accompanied by my trust in Christ that He has all the answers.
Our emotions do not guide us nor do they diminish us, they just "are." They are the bodies response to stress, a God given release mechanism that should never be repressed. Only weak and beggarly people are fearful of appearing weak through the expression of emotion. It is not strength to pretend one does not have emotion, it is weakness.
The devil is very clever, he loves to watch people implode from heart attacks brought on by unreleased emotion, the stress that keeps us in bondage. Releasing our emotion through tears allows our body to heal, the emotions and the physical are deeply connected. There are no Scripture verses that tell us that weeping is wrong or weakness.
The more we hold in the more the stress builds, even if we don't think we are stressed. God meant for things to be dealt with, solutions that heal are confession, expressed emotion and trusting Christ for the outcome.
Psalm 56:8
"You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?"
Psalm 126:5
"Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!"
Revelation 7:17
"For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
Psalm 42:3
"My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?”"
Isaiah 38:5
“Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life."
Society Benefits When Christ Rules
In reading another post about teen suicide today, I felt led to say more than I felt I could in a comment on someone else's thread. It is astonishing how many teens are committing suicide today. This was not happening when we were teens, at least we never heard about it.
Teen suicide, I believe is due to our culture of self. The self esteem teaching, family split up and overindulgence has brought about a hopelessness in young people.
When parents and teachers praises a child too much, they become arrogant, while at the same time knowing they really aren't that great. They spend their lives attempting to "appear" superior, but in their heart of hearts they feel condemned because there is a war going on in their heads, the war between knowing what they really are and attempting to pretend to be what their parents think they are.
Teens are not stupid, they know whether or not they earned the praise they receive. When they receive too much praise and adulation, they begin to realize their parents want them to be as wonderful as the parents claim. But when they don't measure up on the inside, they feel unloved.
Children who are not corrected enough, or given little encouragement to be better, know their parents are being phony and thinking only of themselves.
Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, or lose heart when He rebukes you. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises everyone He receives as a son.” 7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"
Proverbs 12:1 “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.”
Proverbs 13:24 “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.”
The teen feels unloved because their parents false idea of them is pressure to keep up pretense. Instead of being what they really are, growing and learning through life, falling, picking themselves up continually, they are not learning, they are floundering while never able to progress past the "ideas" and "fantasies", they know are not real.
We know our parents love us no matter how many times we fall because they work to help us learn the right way that will be good for us.
Far too many parents are not raising their children, they are allowing them to go which ever way they want without discipline or instruction, it is proof the parent does not love them, and the children know it.
Children these days are undisciplined, lacking parental instruction, while little attention is paid to their welfare. Placing a child in front of the television, sending them off to school for others to train, while leaving them alone at home often, while two parents work, sends the message to the child that money is more important to their parent than they are.
Children need interaction, instruction, redirecting, correcting, from their own parents, when these things do not happen they become heart sick, lonely sensing intense rejection.
Children don't like discipline, but they know it is right and later as they mature they realize and appreciate it, unless the parents were negated by the institutions that taught different values than the parents.
In our day, many parents tried to raise their children properly, but the children were sent off to schools that brought a different and ungodly psychological standard, it worked against what the parents were doing. Up until about 25 years ago home schooling was illegal, but as the Christians began to push back, it became legal, by that time many children were ruined by the public school indoctrination
Now we have teen suicide as common, cyber bullying, sexting, filthy mouths and disrespect all around.
Hebrews 12:11 “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
When we do things God's way, all of society benefits!
Teen suicide, I believe is due to our culture of self. The self esteem teaching, family split up and overindulgence has brought about a hopelessness in young people.
When parents and teachers praises a child too much, they become arrogant, while at the same time knowing they really aren't that great. They spend their lives attempting to "appear" superior, but in their heart of hearts they feel condemned because there is a war going on in their heads, the war between knowing what they really are and attempting to pretend to be what their parents think they are.
Teens are not stupid, they know whether or not they earned the praise they receive. When they receive too much praise and adulation, they begin to realize their parents want them to be as wonderful as the parents claim. But when they don't measure up on the inside, they feel unloved.
Children who are not corrected enough, or given little encouragement to be better, know their parents are being phony and thinking only of themselves.
Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, or lose heart when He rebukes you. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises everyone He receives as a son.” 7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"
Proverbs 12:1 “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid.”
Proverbs 13:24 “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.”
The teen feels unloved because their parents false idea of them is pressure to keep up pretense. Instead of being what they really are, growing and learning through life, falling, picking themselves up continually, they are not learning, they are floundering while never able to progress past the "ideas" and "fantasies", they know are not real.
We know our parents love us no matter how many times we fall because they work to help us learn the right way that will be good for us.
Far too many parents are not raising their children, they are allowing them to go which ever way they want without discipline or instruction, it is proof the parent does not love them, and the children know it.
Children these days are undisciplined, lacking parental instruction, while little attention is paid to their welfare. Placing a child in front of the television, sending them off to school for others to train, while leaving them alone at home often, while two parents work, sends the message to the child that money is more important to their parent than they are.
Children need interaction, instruction, redirecting, correcting, from their own parents, when these things do not happen they become heart sick, lonely sensing intense rejection.
Children don't like discipline, but they know it is right and later as they mature they realize and appreciate it, unless the parents were negated by the institutions that taught different values than the parents.
In our day, many parents tried to raise their children properly, but the children were sent off to schools that brought a different and ungodly psychological standard, it worked against what the parents were doing. Up until about 25 years ago home schooling was illegal, but as the Christians began to push back, it became legal, by that time many children were ruined by the public school indoctrination
Now we have teen suicide as common, cyber bullying, sexting, filthy mouths and disrespect all around.
Hebrews 12:11 “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
When we do things God's way, all of society benefits!
Correcting is not the same as Condemning
I have had people tell me I was condemning them when all I was doing was correcting them. In our narcissistic generation any show of disapproval at all is seen as total condemnation of the person as a whole. Angela Provancher makes a very good point in the following statements.
Angela Provancher wrote:
"People love to toss out the verses "judge not" and "he who is without sin cast the first stone', when someone tries, in love, to correct someone in error, Where that verse is misunderstood is that when the woman was caught in adultery, the Pharisees were all to quick to want to condemn her to death by stoning, as was commonplace for the times back then. Jesus did not condemn the woman, He convicted her, but did not condemn her. Problem is that people confuse conviction or correction with condemnation, or they construe that conviction of the Holy Spirit (which stings make no mistake) with being condemned. We are to correct and restore when we find a brother or sister in error, and we should be just as willing to accept correction. We are to hold each other accountable.."
Angela Provancher wrote:
"People love to toss out the verses "judge not" and "he who is without sin cast the first stone', when someone tries, in love, to correct someone in error, Where that verse is misunderstood is that when the woman was caught in adultery, the Pharisees were all to quick to want to condemn her to death by stoning, as was commonplace for the times back then. Jesus did not condemn the woman, He convicted her, but did not condemn her. Problem is that people confuse conviction or correction with condemnation, or they construe that conviction of the Holy Spirit (which stings make no mistake) with being condemned. We are to correct and restore when we find a brother or sister in error, and we should be just as willing to accept correction. We are to hold each other accountable.."
Thursday, August 3, 2017
Deeds Don't Count for Salvation
Our salvation is not based on our deeds, it is based on the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. However, we do hate sin when we fall, we confess and then He will pick us up.
Christ will not pick up those who refuse to confess, He will leave them in the pig pen until they tire of the mess they are in, admit their sin through open confession, then He will pick them up.
God wrote this to believers:
1 John 1:9 "1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Christ will not pick up those who refuse to confess, He will leave them in the pig pen until they tire of the mess they are in, admit their sin through open confession, then He will pick them up.
God wrote this to believers:
1 John 1:9 "1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
How Do We Treat Others?
Douglas Slay: said this!
John 13:35 tells of an important benefit: Jesus said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Since unconditional godly love is uncommon in our world, people will notice.
Treating others as we want to be treated is what builds the deep, satisfying connections that all people desire. Without significant relationships, life lacks meaning, regardless of how many possessions or acquaintances we have. So think about the people you come in contact with throughout the day. Are you treating them the way that Jesus modeled?
John 13:35 tells of an important benefit: Jesus said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Since unconditional godly love is uncommon in our world, people will notice.
Treating others as we want to be treated is what builds the deep, satisfying connections that all people desire. Without significant relationships, life lacks meaning, regardless of how many possessions or acquaintances we have. So think about the people you come in contact with throughout the day. Are you treating them the way that Jesus modeled?
Bitter or Better It's a Choice
Brothers and Sisters, do not be intimidated by accusations of the unregenerate narcissist. Their tactics are common and easily identified if we educate ourselves.
The devil loves to keep us in a state of turmoil and confusion, we don't have to be, we can know truth and that truth will set us free from the wiles of the evil one.
The favored tactic of the devil is to accuse the brethren.
Revelation 12:10-11
"10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, he who accuses them day and night before our God.
11 They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; and they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.…"
When we are accused, it is best to evaluate what actually happened, pray for the understanding and move on. If we find ourselves to be guilty then we need to confess it and praise God that He cleanses us.
If we have found ourselves to be innocent of the accusation, then we can be at peace. When others choose to believe the accusation, even without speaking to us to clarify, then we can count that person as an enemy, one who loves their gossip.
Often family members and co-workers will enjoy the false belief, treating us disrespectfully with contempt for something that was relayed to them but untrue. When this happens we can walk away without guilt and avoid those who would enjoy their gossip.
Until our accusers repent and confess openly we are instructed to avoid them. Praying and leaving it with God is the best way to handle these situations and the people who create them.
The world is full, more than ever now in the end times, of mean spirited and cold hearted people who are toys in the hands of the devil. The following passage shows us what they look like and what God wants us to do about them.
2 Timothy 3:1-5
“Difficult Times Will Come”
"3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these."
Gossipers work to destroy relationships between those they despise and their friends and family. They are never satisfied to torment us with their hateful actions and attitudes, they must turn others against us. We saw this with Christ and the apostles. If we love the Lord, stand firm for Him and His principles, we will be targets for these kind of people.
Narcissists as described in 2 Timothy 3 hate passionately those who love to obey the Bible. They will pick at them with tenacity while making sure others do the same.
If you feel isolated, ignored, rejected and treated as though you are invisible, welcome to the world of the believer!
John 15:18-20 "18 If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first. 19 If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. 20 Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well.…"
Here is what God instructs us to do;
James 1:2-8
"2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,
8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."
Hallelujah, we don't have to allow the devil's minions make us bitter, we can grow stronger and more joyful through all the trials by trusting Christ!
The devil loves to keep us in a state of turmoil and confusion, we don't have to be, we can know truth and that truth will set us free from the wiles of the evil one.
The favored tactic of the devil is to accuse the brethren.
Revelation 12:10-11
"10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, he who accuses them day and night before our God.
11 They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; and they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.…"
When we are accused, it is best to evaluate what actually happened, pray for the understanding and move on. If we find ourselves to be guilty then we need to confess it and praise God that He cleanses us.
If we have found ourselves to be innocent of the accusation, then we can be at peace. When others choose to believe the accusation, even without speaking to us to clarify, then we can count that person as an enemy, one who loves their gossip.
Often family members and co-workers will enjoy the false belief, treating us disrespectfully with contempt for something that was relayed to them but untrue. When this happens we can walk away without guilt and avoid those who would enjoy their gossip.
Until our accusers repent and confess openly we are instructed to avoid them. Praying and leaving it with God is the best way to handle these situations and the people who create them.
The world is full, more than ever now in the end times, of mean spirited and cold hearted people who are toys in the hands of the devil. The following passage shows us what they look like and what God wants us to do about them.
2 Timothy 3:1-5
“Difficult Times Will Come”
"3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these."
Gossipers work to destroy relationships between those they despise and their friends and family. They are never satisfied to torment us with their hateful actions and attitudes, they must turn others against us. We saw this with Christ and the apostles. If we love the Lord, stand firm for Him and His principles, we will be targets for these kind of people.
Narcissists as described in 2 Timothy 3 hate passionately those who love to obey the Bible. They will pick at them with tenacity while making sure others do the same.
If you feel isolated, ignored, rejected and treated as though you are invisible, welcome to the world of the believer!
John 15:18-20 "18 If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first. 19 If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. 20 Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well.…"
Here is what God instructs us to do;
James 1:2-8
"2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,
8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."
Hallelujah, we don't have to allow the devil's minions make us bitter, we can grow stronger and more joyful through all the trials by trusting Christ!
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