Eliminating mental stress

Don't be so afraid of feeling uncomfortable for a bit. If you do what you can do, God will do what you can't do or facilitate it so that you can do it. I think that we don't realise how powerful our thoughts and words can be. God is so powerful and he bounces off our positive words and thoughts.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us that we can control our thoughts. If we are conscious enough we can recognise our negative thinking implanted by the devil invading our mind and can seek to change it. The more you speak it the more you think it, the more it will happen and the more you will believe it. Positive can win over negative. Thoughts don't have to remain distressing and blue when God is in your life.

Philippians 4:4-9 "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice" . You can think yourself happy. If you want to be happy get yourself off your mind. Think on good things. Try to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Focus on the good things in your life, not the bad things. 4:6 "continue to make your wants known to God". The bible tells us to continue to pray about what is causing us mental distress and God will help us to find peace. You've got what it takes to eliminate the distress, you just need to believe it.

Jeremiah 4:14 " Jerusalem, wash the evil from your heart and be saved. How long will you harbour wicked thoughts?" Jeremiah is imploring us to take a reality check and decide how long we are going to have negative thinking and make ourselves unhappy for? An interesting question. Sometimes we find ourselves in a particular mindset or train of thinking and we become comfortable with it. In a state of total despair, negativity and helplessness it can be very, very hard to make that first step into turning your mind. But I implore you my dear friends, put your trust in Christ, let Jesus take you by the hand and there will be no regrets, just gratitude and joyfulness at having made this awesome decision.

Romans 13:14 " Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh". We are urged to put a stop to thinking about the evil cravings that sneak up on us in life at times. Don't let the devil in. Don't purposely put temptation in your own path. I'm an alcoholic, a dry alcoholic. I am confident in myself that I will never drink again in my life but despite that faith in myself I will not put myself in a situation which could jeopardise my strength. So for example you will never meet me in a night club or in a pub late at night. I do not keep alcohol in my home. I don't spend time around drunk people or people who only talk about drunken exploits. I am keeping the devil away. I am ensuring that the devil does not put irresistible, evil cravings in my way. In effect, I am taking control and empowering myself. It isn't your outer life that impresses God, it's what is going on inside of you that impresses him. Nothing can be hidden from God. He knows my mental strengths and weaknesses and he knows yours too.

Matthew 12:34-39 - A lot of your problems in life are related to the fruit that you have. Instead of picking up the fallen fruit dig up the tree instead by the roots. Get to the root of the problem - your thinking - nothing is going to change in our life if your thinking doesn't. Don't mask the problems or hide from them. The flesh doesn't want any part in anything that takes any effort. Sometimes we need to give ourselves a spiritual deep clean in order to begin to make progress with our new way of thinking. Get rid of the What ifs in our lives. Don't look for reasons to get angry, walk in faith and put a positive spin on things. You can think yourself happy or you can think yourself miserable. The more you think right the more stress you are going to relieve from your life.

God has given us everything we need to be happy. Use it!

What does it mean to be a Christian?

We go to church, read the bible because of what god has done for us, we don't do it for him.

Salvation is a life of healing and letting God use you and do something through you to make someone else's life better. When you receive Christ as your saviour he opens the door for you to have a very intimate relationship with God.

John 14:23. "Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them"

There is a lot more to being a Christian than just going to church. Church should only be a minor part of our overall walk with God. We go to church to learn His Word facilitated by a pastor then we ought to go out and live His Word.

Where are you going to spend eternity and what are you going to do with the rest of your life?

Following Christ is a decision not a feeling. The Word of God is real, it is our reality and it is incredibly powerful. God sent his son to us so that we might have a relationship with God himself. God forgives all our sins if we let him into our life. God created you and he is the only one who knows how to run your life perfectly. We as Christians worship a God who is alive, a resurrected Saviour. JESUS IS ALIVE!

Mark 16:2-6 In this verse we read about the angel in the tomb when the stone was rolled back. Jesus died for us but was raised from the dead by God. He was raised in order that we might be raised and live a resurrected life.

2 Corinthians 5:17 "all things become brand new" . We can all have a new beginning by receiving God's gift of salvation. God wants to come and live inside you. You can be resurrected from the past, abuse, sins and so on because we have a risen saviour. You can be lifted up out of all of that. It's not so important how you begin your new life but how you finish it. A life time with God has an awesome finish to look forward to - eternity.

if you believe with your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is who he is and what he did he will come and live in you. We are the home of god. We can't just want Jesus, we need to be ready to give ourselves to Jesus in order to be resurrected. You have to want to live the way God wants you to live. let God come live inside you and begin to live the most amazing journey you ever dreamed possible. God wants to be involved in everything that you do, he will turn you upside down and inside out. You cannot and will not have this relationship if you want to keep God in a box only taken out on a Sunday morning. You need to let him into every area of your life. God never ever, ever asks us to do anything unless it is going to be the best thing for us.

Being a Christian is not hard, being a sinner is hard! Anger, jealousy, drugs and adultery are hard. Walking with God is not hard. Don't let the devil put the lie in your head that it's hard to be a Christian. Becoming a Christian is the best thing you will ever do with your life. I can testify to that.

Know the truth and have the truth set you free. No man can go to heaven on their own good works, ie reading the bible but not putting the Word into action. God is not for sale, you cannot buy him. The only way is to surrender yourself.

I SURRENDER AND I RECEIVE YOU. Amen!

Sin, guilt & regret

Guilt and regret are such heavy burdens to carry aren't they? We need to begin to live on the other side of those by allowing God into our lives. Grief can steal your life, please don't let it. There is so much more to feel in life such as God's amazing and undying love for us all.

As a Christian we are encouraged to meditate on His Word. In doing so we all interpret in different ways what God wants and expects of us. God is not shocked or unexpecting of our behaviour. He is committed to working with us so long as we keep up our end of the bargain in being faithful to him and his Word.

It's time to move out of the City of Regret and into the Kingdom of God my friends. Forget about we should have done, would have done, could have done and so on. There is no physical way in which we can undo our (perceived) mistakes but if we put our trust in the Lord he will help us move on to a far better place than the one we currently know. We need to live by and follow his word. We need to stop living by how we feel and start living by the word of God.

We can't change yesterday but we do have the power to make today a wonderful day - Amen!!!

Romans 6:2 "how can we who died to sin live in it any longer?"

The God filled, spiritual you does not want to sin. Sin has been taken care of. Everything we need to deal with sin has been taken care of by God. We are a new creature in Christ. God gave us a new heart when we began to follow Christ. We don't fall into sin, we choose it, sometimes without realising at first - sins of the flesh for example are often not premeditated but a spur of the moment event, however a sin is a sin. But if you really understand who you are in Christ then you cannot purposely, habitually sin. God knows your heart.

Romans 6:3-4 " so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in
newness of life"

Christ suffered so that we might gain. In taking all our sins to the cross, spiritually we were in and with Jesus when he died and again when he was resurrected.

When we are baptised, our old way of living dies, we die to Satan and are reborn to a new way, an awesome, everlasting life with Jesus and oh how my life has changed since this moment happened to me.

There is no sin we have committed that cannot be forgiven with the blood of Jesus Christ. Don't be held back by guilt and condemnation, give it up to God. God heals and forgives all for he is an awesome God who reigns above all.

Live to serve Christ and your life will be forever changed.

Do you spend more time with your sins than you do with god?

 

 

 

I'll be happy when...

We live in a time where true happiness is always around the corner, or so we think. True happiness will come when I win the Lotto jackpot, when I finally give birth to a girl - I have 5 boys but I want a girl, when my mum buys me some Jimmy Choo shoes and so on. We are so focused on the vague possibilities in the future bringing us happiness when we ought to be looking at the present and finding happiness there, because believe me it IS there. Sadly too few of us choose to see it and we focus on the sadness and negatives of our present life. I urge you to try, just for one day to begin with to look for the positives in your day. The moments that bring a smile to your face, a flutter in your heart, a laugh or a feeling of contentment. Don't wait for the supposed tomorrow to bring you happiness. BE HAPPY NOW!!! Come on, what's stopping you? Really, what is stopping you?? Your attitude belongs to you and you can have a positive one if you want to.

God loves you unconditionally, everlastingly, and he wants an intimate, personal relationship with you, he has good plans for your life. If you have a bad attitude you cannot have a good relationship with God.

James 5:7 Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.

The farmer puts his seed in the ground and waits. He keeps up his patient vigil. He doesn't become disheartened and impatient. We need to keep a vigil on our dreams. Plant our own seed and wait. The devil cannot stop us from getting from god wants us to have.

Enjoy where you're at on the way to where you are going and don't wait to be happy - be happy now!

Persecuted for his cross

Persecuted for his Cross.. yes, a 64 year old Christian faces being sacked from Wakefield District Housing. His sin? Placing a palm crucifix on the dashboard of his work van! Mr Atkinson is facing disciplinary action for GROSS MISCONDUCT as he refuses to remove his cross from the van. However he remains true to his faith and says he will choose being faithful to Christ over his job. It's a matter of principle, faith and Christian integrity.

The company, WDH claims to be "inclusive" and boasts how it allows employees to wear religious symbols in the workplace and have religious paraphernalia on desks in the office. They went as far in their statement to the press to make a point of mentioning that they provided stalls at gay pride events, held 'diversity days' for travelers and hosted a gender reassignment event entitled A World That Includes Transpeople.

It seems to me that WDH only want to be inclusive on their terms. Religious symbols within the offices are fine but dare to show one out on the street in a vehicle branded with the WDH logo then it's a total no-go. But why is that? WDH state that they do not want their organisation being associated with any faith whether that is Christianity, Islam or Buddhism. Perhaps it would do them well to remember that we are in fact a Christian country. Failing that, everyone has the right to express their faith in a non-malicious, non-threatening way and to be quite frank I do not see a 6 inch cross being threatening. Many of the taxis I catch have religious regalia hanging from the rear view mirror. Do I have a problem with that? No, I respect that person's faith and what is more I feel that a vehicle is a totally appropriate place to have a faith item given that many accidents happen whilst on the road and I know that I would feel more comforted if I had a religious item in my car, something that would focus me in times of distress and allow me to gain strength in order to get through a possible road traffic accident.

I wear a bangle, one of those 1cm wide stretchy plastic ones. It's bright green and says on it "Jesus saves you". I wear it most of the time, absolutely always when I leave the house. The only time I really take it off is when I bathe as I do not want the writing to wear off. I wear it to work. The bright green colour totally clashes with the colours in my wardrobe thus making it very visible. It's actually started quite a few conversations about Christianity that have proven to be very fruitful.

I've asked myself the question what would I do if my employer asked me to remove it at work and I concur that I would do exactly the same as Mr Atkinson and refuse to remove it. It is my right as a follower of Christ, as a British citizen, as a human being to both express my faith and to bring me a source of comfort and security.

Stand by your beliefs Mr Atkinson. Christians nationwide are proud to call you a brother.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1377684/Electrician-Colin-Atkinson-faces-sack-Christian-cross-van-dashboard.html

The renewal of life

Ephesians 4:22

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires.

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

With God's mercy it is 100% possible to recover from any trauma. Nancy Alcorn regular witnesses healing of the girls in her houses at the hands of God. It is possible to recover from years of abuse knowing that God will extend mercy and grace to you. Some sexual abuse survivors recover so far that they begin to see themselves as a virgin in God's eyes. This is amazing and I would love one day to hear such a testimony.

If we confess our sins God will cleanse us without exception. A prostitute can confess and be made pure again by the blood of Jesus. A murderer may confess his sins and become pure and whole again by the virtue of Jesus. God's love and forgiveness surmounts all.

I am on a journey of healing myself, healing from childhood sexual abuse and the closer I grow to God the deeper and more rewarding the journey becomes. I have witnessed many changes and I now know that one day I will be perfectly renewed, cleansed and restored. A day which will be celebrated!

Getting your mind off the road behind you

1 Corinthians 2:9

"What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived the things God has prepared for those who love him"

Are you one of life's grumblers? Stop and think. Do you complain more than you appreciate and accept? God is not going to bless anyone who grumbles and moans all the time. He will bless those who are thoughtful and thankful for what they do have. This is also how people are divined with a miracle. Miracles are amazing, a true gift of God's awesomeness, however miracles will not keep you happy long term. Taking god as your bread, your food, your life, your everything will. Many people pray hard and dream for a miracle to take them out of a situation fully expecting to live happily ever after. Not so. The miracle is just the beginning. Life changes have to be made in order to fully prosper from the miracle. If you are not prepared to move forward with the miracle then the miracle was sadly of little use to you. Praise the miracle and look forward. Don't just look at what you don't have, make an inventory of what you do have.

Don't let the past determine your future.

Isaiah 43:18-19

"Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
¹⁹ See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.

God wants us to move forward. He wants us to lead fulfilled lives, lives with purpose. Too much time is spent dwelling on the past whether the past is filled with trauma or not. Exclamations such as "if only" and "what if" enter our minds. We need to banish them for they serve no purpose in our future. We need to accept that the past has happened but that it doesn't have to shape our future - God will do that. Hear him, listen to him, he will lead the way to The Promised Land.

Like a seedling

Like a seedling in the garden reliant and ever responsive to the elements my roots are firmly planted in the soil and I too respond to my own elements: Faith, Hope, Love, Mercy and Grace.

Each day I grow a little more into what I aspire to be but knowing that I will strive all this lifetime and not reach the goal I have set myself, that many Christians set themselves. That will only be achieved at Jesus' feet in eternity and what a place to aim for!

New shoots sprout, my Faith becomes multi-faceted. I revel in the excitement of each new day that God blesses me with. I seek to grow. My leaves and buds lean towards the sunshine trying to absorb as much of the elements as possible. I do this too. I draw towards my own sunshine: my Lord. I know that in order to grow in the best way that I can in order to reach my potential that the most important element is sunshine and I seek it wherever I go. There are times when rain is necessary but it is the sunshine that changes my being, gets into my soul and makes me proud of what I am becoming.

Never Alone

Many years ago I felt alone, truly, truly alone. I was a child and my life was not what I wanted it to be. Despite there being people around me there was no one there. Time passed. I survived .. on my own. I had a vague belief in God but without the right nurturing this belief was never given the opportunity to grow into anything more.

As a young adult I pursued this vague belief and began to learn. However at the same time I had a strong belief of that God can't exist else I would have felt his presence. I spent the next ten or fifteen years dipping in and out of Christianity, learning more and more as time went by.

This past year I have witnessed a big change. My faith is growing stronger day by day. I lead a more Christian lifestyle which isn't easy when one is betrothed to an ardent athiest however I continue to strive to be what God wants me to be.

The reason for this blog entry is that increasingly and especially this past four months when I have been riddled with both mental and physical health problems I have realised that there is one constant presence in my life: God

God is always with me.

I am never alone.

Do you ever find yourself feeling alone?

Maybe it's time for you to reach out to God?