Citizens of Heaven

September 16, 2009 by bonlou

Friends, we are different when we become Christians.  God in His mercy and love has given us such great benefits that we need to learn what they are so we can appreciate what we got.  Sometimes, it is as if we’ve been given a gift that we’ve never opened to see what is inside.

When a person becomes a believer they also become a citizen of heaven.  What a privilege this is!

Php 3:20(a) NASB “For our citizenship is in heaven,…”

The Greek word, “politeuma”, means citizenship; “is” in the Greek means, “has it’s existence.” So, we can see that our citizenship is right now in heaven.  We are God’s children!

Isn’t it a huge thought to ponder the fact that our true (spiritual) citizenship is in heaven?  Here we are on this little earth.  We did not ask to be born.  Have you ever wondered why you were born? Or why you were born in a certain country and to a certain family?  I have.  I’ve never figured out the answer to that except that I know God is sovereign and it was in His sovereignty that I was born who I am and where I am.  I was born a citizen of the United States of America.  And, I’m happy with that. But, I’m also a citizen of heaven! That is amazing!

My life could have gone on, and I could have died and only been a citizen of the USA. Then, I would have been buried in the grave and that would have been the end of anything good that had happened up to that point.  Then, in the future I’d go before the Lord and be judged for my unbelief and would have been sentenced to live eternity apart from God in a place called Hell.  That would have been a horrible existence.  I’m so grateful that the Lord allowed me another way, even though I am a sinner, saved by grace, and don’t deserve it.

But, now that I’ve been born again by the Holy Spirit of God and am adopted into His family, God has made me a citizen of heaven.  Praise the Lord!  This is wonderful news!  My future is glorious.  I will be living in the New Jerusalem and serving along with Jesus Christ for eternity.  That boggles my mind!  You can read about the New Jerusalem in Revelation Chapter 21.  I love that section.  It shows us what our new home will be like. It’s very exciting and gives us something else to look forward to.

Php 3:20(b) NASB “… from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;”

Heb 9:28 LITV so Christ having been once offered “to bear the sins of many,” Christ shall appear a second time without sin to those expecting Him for salvation. Isa. 53:12

It gets even better. Christ is coming again for us.

Php 3:21 NASB  who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

Mat 17:2 NASB And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light.

When Christ comes for His own at the Rapture, we will be caught up to meet Him in the air and our bodies will be transformed into a glorious body like His. (If we are still alive at that time, otherwise, we will rise out of the graves and meet Him in the air.)

As for me, I’m really looking forward to that day when I get rid of this old worn out body that has given me so much trouble through the years, and I’ll put on a body of glory, perfect in every sense, without sin, and beautiful beyond belief.  No more sin, dieting, exercise groups, aches, pains, surgeries, diseases, blindness, panic attacks, anxiety, agoraphobia, or any of the other things that haunt us today.

Yes, it is true right now we still live in this fallen world.  But, God has told us we should set our affections on things above.  We should be consumed with thoughts about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Word.  We want to think about what it’s going to be like there and how we will praise God and worship Him. We want to live our lives in a way that is honoring to Him.

Col 3:1-4 NASB Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. (2) Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. (3) For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (4) When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

What a marvelous promise this is!

Can you see what a difference there is in us from unbelievers?  Can you see why it is sometimes hard for us as we travel this world?  Can you see how others do not understand us?  We ARE different!  We have been born from above by God’s grace and mercy, and we are very different then we were. 

In light of that fact, ask yourself this question:  How have I changed in my own life since I became a Christian?  There must be a transformation because when we are truly saved we are changed on the inside.  We will still be tempted to do things that are not honoring to God, but He has given us the strength and courage to resist and turn from those things.  We may stumble once in a while, but we are not seeking perfection, but the right direction toward being more like Christ. 

Sometimes even for true believers the pressure from the world around us draws us to it.  There are times when we are in the certain company and we are uncomfortable because the Holy Spirit who lives in us pricks our conscience.  We don’t always recognize that as the reason for being uncomfortable.  There are places we shouldn’t go anymore.  There are friends that are not good for us anymore.  Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you.

Because we are different, and because we have been chosen by God, we need to stand up for God as a citizen of heaven and be a witness of the goodness He has bestowed on us.

Psa 73:24-26 NASB With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory. (25) Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. (26) My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

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Are You Growing?

August 28, 2009 by bonlou

Factors That Contribute to Your Growth as a Christian
By Adrienne Carlson

If you are a Christian, I’m sure you feel blessed to be one. The oneness you enjoy with God is compounded when you grow as a Christian through the years. And the factors that contribute to your growth as a true Christian are:

1.  Faith: To be close to Jesus, you must have absolute faith in his teachings and the way of life that he has advocated through the Bible. You must believe that he is the one and only true God, the one who is responsible for all that we are and all that we are blessed with.

2.  Obedience: Once we accept that Jesus is our Christ and savior, we must obey his word without question. Only then can we prove that we are growing spiritually as Christians. The Bible teaches us certain values, all of which are reinforced when we go to church regularly and listen to the word of God.

3.  Acceptance: Being a true Christian means accepting who we are and all that has been given to us in life. While we can try to do all we can to uplift our status, we grow as Christians when we accept our lot without complaining or blaming other people for our troubles and miseries.

4.  Forgiveness: This is probably one of the hardest acts to perform, but as a Christian who wants to grow, you must be able to forgive even those who have wronged you grievously, because only when you are able to forgive are you able to let go of the past and grow as a Christian. Conduct: The way you behave in your interactions with other people and in various situations defines how you grow as a Christian. A good Christian abides by the values that the Bible has taught us in every little part of their lives.

5.  Evangelism: When you grow as a Christian, you want to spread the word to the whole world. You must teach the word of Christ to people who are not aware of his goodness and mercy. And to do this, you must know how to approach people and talk to them without hurting their sentiments. Evangelism does not imply force; rather, you grow as a Christian when you are able to spread the word of God and tell people of his greatness through your actions.

This guest article was written by Adrienne Carlson, who regularly writes on the topic of online Bible Colleges.    Adrienne welcomes your comments and questions.

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Our Father Takes Care of us!

August 1, 2009 by bonlou

God, our Father, has given us a new relationship with Himself.  He has actually adopted us into His family. 

“If you want to judge how well a person understand Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God’s child, and having God as his Father.  If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all.”  (Knowing God, by J.I. Packer, pg. 201)

We need to grasp what kind of new relationship God has given us.  We need to take time and meditate on what this actually means to us.

Here is a definition of adoption taken from the Westminster Confession (Chapter 12).

“All those that are justified, God vouchsafeth, in and for His only Son Jesus Christ, to make partakers of the grace of adoption: by which they are taken into the number, and enjoy the liberties and privileges of the children of God; have His name put upon them, receive the Spirit of adoption; have access to the throne of grace with boldness; are enabled to cry, Abba, Father; are pitied, protected, provided for, and chastened by Him, as by a father; yet never cast off, but sealed to the day of redemption, and inherit the promises, as heirs of everlasting salvation.”  (Taken from Knowing God, by J.I Packer, pg. 205-206.)

That is awesome! When we’ve been given and promised all of that, what can we complain about?  It is a certainty that our Father will take care of us no matter what is going on in our lives.  Try to get that ingrained into your mind.  God will take care of you no matter what!

Where do we run for help and direction when things are going bad in our lives?  We’d better run to Abba, (daddy).  This shows me that when things go wrong I’d better get in prayer with my heavenly Father and talk to him.  It won’t do me a bit of good to call  friends and hash something over, or complain to them about whatever it is. It might make me feel better temporarily, but it won’t last and it could be sinful if I’m talking about another person. God has all the power and the provision we need.  Not only that, He loves us and wants to help us.

I’m writing this today as much for me as for you.  I had to have a special time of prayer with my Father this morning.  You see I got caught in the trap of worry.  My husband pointed it out to me last night and I really didn’t want to hear that and tried to rationalize it.  But, this morning when I woke up I realized that he was correct. 

We are contemplating moving to a different location and it is not nearby.  It will be a big undertaking from my point of view.  One part of me wants to go forward with it and the other part of me wants to stay put.  So, I struggle and worry about all the many details this move would involve.  And, there are many. 

Finally, I see that these thoughts really boil down to “fear of the future.”  I did not leave the future in God’s hands, I have tried to figure it all out myself.  Actually, when I think about it now, I realize that God already has it all figured out. 🙂  It’s a waste of my time and energy to stew about it in my mind.  Today I prayed and talked it over with God.  I confessed my sin of worry, and repented of it.  I will go forward now, and think of this as an adventure and watch how God is going to work things out.  It may be that we won’t move in the end. We will take the next step and take a trip to look the area over and see if we think we would like it. I pray God will guide and direct our decisions.

Psalm 23-28 NASB. (23) Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. (24) With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory. (25) Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. (26) My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (27) For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. (28) But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works.

Isn’t that a wonderful Psalm?  God is our refuge and strength, and over our present and future.  We are nothing without Him.  We need Him!

Here is another powerful Psalm that tell us where to look for our help and counsel.  It also tells us of some more of the wonderful benefits our Father has given us. 

Psa 121:1-8 A Song of Ascents. I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? (2) My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. (3) He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. (4) Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep. (5) The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade on your right hand. (6) The sun will not smite you by day, Nor the moon by night. (7) The LORD will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. (8) The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.

In this next scripture we see that once we’ve been adopted into the family of God that we have eternal, everlasting life, and we will never, ever perish.  Also, that no one can ever snatch us out of His hand.  God is greater than he who is in the world.

Joh 10:28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

Here is another important portion of scripture that gives us the confidence we need to know that we know, that our heavenly Father is all that we need.  He will take care of us in every situation.  Again nothing can separate us from the love of God.

Rom 8:31-39 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? (32) He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? (33) Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; (34) who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. (35) Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (36) Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.” (37) But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. (38) For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, (39) nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In summery, after reading and meditating on all of these marvelous holy scriptures we can rest assured that our Father in heaven will truly take care of us in every way.  There is no reason for us to worry, fear, or be anxious about the past, present, or future.  He loves us and will make sure we are cared for.  No other love is greater than His.  So, as the scripture says we are too cast (throw) all our anxiety (worry, stress, fretting) on Him, (our heavenly Father. Why should we do that?  It is simple really, because He honestly cares for us and has told us to do that.  He knows that it is not healthy for us to carry all the burdens in life so He has made a way that is better.

I Peter 5:7 Amplified Bible “Casting the whole of your care–all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all–on Him: for He cares for you affectionately, and cares about you watchfully.

Psalm 55:22 Amplified Bible “Cast your burden on the Lord (releasing the weight of it) and He will sustain you; He will never allow the (consistently) righteous to be moved — made to slip, fall or fail.”

I pray this article will truly bless you as you realize what an awesome Father we have!

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Praise, Religion, Scripture | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Adoption

July 31, 2009 by bonlou

One of the greatest benefits God has bestowed on believers is adoption.  This is probably only second to the benefit of salvation.

In order to be a Christian with a correct view of ourselves we must get a grip on what this actually means. It will change the way you see yourself and how you live.

Do you realize that as a Christian you have been adopted into God’s family? Have you ever thought about what this means?

I have a nephew who was adopted.  I remember the day when they brought that cute little bundle of joy home from the hospital only 2 days old.  I held that little one and looked into his eyes.  He was looking at me with trust and assurance that we would take care of him, a helpless little baby. 

It is really a special privilege to be adopted, as you were chosen by the new parents. They picked YOU!  They chose you to love and care for, and give you the best life they know how.  Also, they chose you to have the family name, and when the time comes to be an heir to an inheritance that they plan on leaving you.   

Eph 1:4-5 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love (5) He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,

This scripture is loaded, and I can only touch upon it.  God chose us before he even created the world!  Isn’t that amazing.  Somewhere out there God said “I’m choosing (put your name here)  to adopt into my family.”

He chose us to be saved, then He could forgive our sins and make us holy and blameless before Him.  He did all this in love, (agape love) as He predestined us to be adopted, through the death of Jesus Christ making it possible.  And, all of this was according to the kind intention of His will.  God in his kindness toward us did that for us, and it was his choice to do it.  It wasn’t anything we did, or anything we would ever do or say. It was all God’s doing to adopt you and me.  That is remarkable!  I often think, “why me?”

Rom 8:14-16 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. (15) For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” (16) The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,

Now, here is another rich, rich section of scripture.  First, it says that all of us who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.  This is true because those who do not know God cannot be lead by the Spirit of God, which is the Holy Spirit because they do not have Him yet.

Then, he tells us that we have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again.  When we were saved we did not receive a spirit of slavery to sin and evil that we once had. We were born-again and became a new creation, and received the Holy Spirit to enable us to live a holy and godly life.  An unbeliever is always fearful to some extent. He should be fearful of the future and what lies in wait for him when he dies.  But, we received a spirit of adoption as sons. 

God in his kindness took strangers in as His very own. What a difference!  Knowing that, we can cry out “Abba! Father!” which means daddy.  He is our daddy, our heavenly Father!  Now we can call Him Father instead of God.  And, we can know in our hearts that our heavenly Father will care for all our needs, just as a good earthly Father would, but even better.  With this assurance we do not have to fear anything in this life.  Our daddy will take care of us.  What do you fear?  Let your daddy deal with it.

(Gal 4:5) so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Isn’t it wonderful what God has done for us?  He redeemed us.  He bought us with the blood of Jesus Christ, so that we would have the privilege of becoming His own sons and daughters. 

Rom 8:16-17 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, (17) and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

Oh my!  Here we learn that the Holy Spirit as He lives inside us talks to our spirit inside us and assures us that we are children of God.  And, that we are heirs, and fellow heirs with Christ.  Can you imagine being joint heirs with Jesus?  That means when the time comes and Jesus is handed over all that God has for Him, we will be partakers of that also.  I can’t even begin to imagine what that all means, but I know it is good!  We will also be glorified in Christ Jesus.

Under the Jewish law the older brother had a double portion, but Christ admits all to a joint share of the great inheritance.  (The People’s New Testament Commentary”)

In verse 17, it also talks about “if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” It seems that we do suffer with Christ and for Him in this world we live in.  We are persecuted, some more than others.  There are people dying for their faith even today in certain countries.  When we suffer Christ suffers with us, as we are one with Him.  But, some day we will also be glorified with Christ!

I hope these scriptures will open your heart to the fact that you are adopted into God’s family.  It is certainly a privilege, and as we begin to understand this, it shows us how different we are from the unbelievers in this world.  Yes, we are different!  And we need to realize this and live our lives in a new way.  We don’t think like the world thinks, and we don’t act like the world, and we don’t speak like the world speaks. We are new in Christ.

When we realize how much God has done for us already, we can rest assured that He will continue to take care of every need we have.  We do not have to worry and fret about things.  God is in control and He is our Father.  He will take care of every thing.  He must really love us immensely to have chosen us before He even created the world.  He must have had a plan for our lives. Let’s try to live it.

“Help us Lord to live our lives in a way that is worthy to be called sons of God.”

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, inspirational, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Sins Forgiven/New Creation

July 29, 2009 by bonlou

We have to understand that God’s way and man’s way of solving problems are different.  If we are not believers then all we have is man’s way.  Man’s way of solving problems includes such things as psychology, philosophies and ungodly theories.  On the other hand the Word of God has been given to believers as the sole source for solving man’s problems.  The Bible is sufficient for problem solving.

What is the biggest difference between man’s way and God’s way:  SELF

We try to please self, comfort self, rely on self, fulfill self, forgive self, exalt self, and to love self.  We are basically selfish people.  It’s all about ME.  That is man’s way.

While God’s way is applying the Word of God to our problems.

The other day I wrote a piece called, Key to Recovery.  In it I stated that the key is developing an intimate relationship with God.  That is so true.

In order to have an intimate relationship with anyone we have to get to know all about them.  It’s the same way with God. 

I’d like to expand on that thought a bit and think about the benefits that believers have been so graciously given by our wonderful Heavenly Father. It will help us to get to know God better as we see how much He loves us and what He had done for us.

When we know God in a personal way He bestows upon us certain benefits.  All true believers have these benefits, but not all true believers enjoy them, or even realize how loving and kind our heavenly Father has been to us.  It would be helpful if we go through some of these benefits and remind ourselves what a marvelous God we serve.

1. We are forgiven of all our sins. Every one of us had a death sentence upon us.  For God said in Rom 6:23 NASB “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We were spiritually dead because of sin.

But, God, in His marvelous grace, made a way for our sin payment to be paid in full.  Jesus Christ hung on the cross on our behalf.  He canceled what we owed to God for sin, and satisfied God’s justice.  Because of His great love for us our sins are forgiven, past, present, and future.  Now that is mind boggling to me.

Col 2:13-14 NASB When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”

2. At the time we are born-again we actually become a new creation.

2Co 5:17 LITV So that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new!

Sometimes it is hard to understand this new change because we do not look any different on the outside. We have the same bodies and the same physical problems.  So, the new creation has to be on the inside. 

What does it mean that we are a new creation?  We are born again spiritually and we actually become new in the inner man. This is a divine act of God. Our old views of life are passed away and we now have new views.  We see things differently than before. 

I remember when I was young I was arrogant and prideful.  I don’t like to admit it, but I looked down my nose at certain people.  Usually, they were the poor and unlovely people.  In some twisted way I thought those people deserved what they got.  I had no pity for them.  At one point I too became impoverished and the shoe was on the other foot.  Part of that lead me to find the Lord. 

After conversion to Christ my views toward people changed a great deal. Then when I saw poor people I had real sympathy in my heart toward them.  I looked at them as beautiful souls that the Lord created and I wanted to help them if I could.  Sometimes I would see a poor soul on the street and I would pray for them.  My whole attitude changed toward people, and I wanted to tell them all about my precious Savior.  I also began to understand why people acted the way they did.  I could see the selfishness that I couldn’t see before.  It was as if my eyes were opened for the first time. 

Barnes in his commentary talks about the “old things have passed away.”

“…, it is also true that old things pass away. Their former prejudices, opinions, habits, attachments pass away. Their supreme love of self passes away. Their love of sins passes away. Their love of the world passes away. Their supreme attachment to their earthly friends rather than God passes away. Their love of sin, their sensuality, pride, vanity, levity, ambition, passes away. There is a deep and radical change on all these subjects – a change which commences at the new birth; which is carried on by progressive sanctification; and which is consummated at death and in heaven.”

Isn’t it wonderful what God has done for us?  He has allowed us to be changed in a way that we could have never done on our own.  Do you see change in your life?

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, inspirational, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Key to Recovery

July 25, 2009 by bonlou

 Pic094

In our PD-Overcomer’s group we’ve been talking about some of the road blocks that stand in our way of clear sailing on the road to complete recovery from panic attacks and anxiety. 

Some of the road blocks that we mentioned were:  complacency, past experiences, lack of trust, sin in our hearts, following emotions instead of intellect, lack of assurance, trying to please others, and not being perfect, negative thinking, bitterness, unforgiveness, anxiety, fear, worry, doubt, and unbelief. 

Wow! That is quite a list isn’t it?  And, those are not the only things that can stand in the way.  But, if we take a closer look at all of these things we could boil it all down to sin and disobedience to the Word of God.  So, first, we need to do business with God and get right with Him.

Now let’s look at the other side of the coin.  The more positive side.

As I’ve thought about this, it has become clear to me how much greater we have it then those who do not know Christ as their Lord.  Have you ever thought about that? 

We have the Word of God to stand upon.  We have the Holy Spirit actually living within us.  We have the power of prayer.  We have God Almighty as our Father, and we have Jesus Christ, our Brother, Intercessor, and Lord.  That is only some of what we have in Christ.  Unbelievers don’t have any of that.  Therefore, we can be different in our lives and be overcomers!

The key to becoming an overcomer of fear and anxiety is an intimate relationship with God!  Remember that!  Strive for it!  Make every effort to accomplish it!  It is so very important.  Get your eyes on Jesus and the things in the Word.  Get you eyes off from yourself, your feelings, and things of this world.  Those are strong words, but I am speaking from my heart and truly believe them.

I’d like to recommend a couple of books that have helped me see God more clearly:

Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God, by Noel Piper.  This book consists of several short bios of Christian women who have really gone suffered and struggled for the sake of Christ.

They are:  Sarah Edwards, Lilias Trotter, Gladys Aylward, Esther Ahn Kim, and Helen Roseveare.  I’m not quite finished with the book yet, but I’ve really enjoyed reading about how these women faced the trials and tribulations in their lives.  It makes me feel as though I haven’t gone through anything at all.  🙂

Knowing God, by J.I. Packer:  This is a book that I’ve been reading now for some time.  I’ve read it through once and then hit and miss again.  There is so much in it and if you want to get to know God better I highly recommend this book.  It is also one of John MacArthur’s favorites.  It isn’t really easy reading, but it has helped me lately understand who my God really is.

I’m praying for all of you that you will not settle for less than complete recovery.  I want you tol realize that God does have a purpose for everything that is happening in your lives. And that you will trust Him to walk you through your trials and bring you out on the other side.

Mat 19:26 NASB

26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Hymn: Blessed Assurance

June 22, 2009 by bonlou

BLESSÈD ASSURANCE

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith.” Hebrews 10:21-22

Phoebe P. Knapp (1839-1908)

 

Words: Fan­ny Cros­by, 1873:

My friend, Mrs. Jo­seph F. Knapp, com­posed a mel­o­dy and played it over to me two or three times on the pi­a­no. She then asked what it said. I re­plied, “Bles­sed as­sur­ance, Je­sus is mine!”

Music: As­sur­ance, Phoe­be P. Knapp (MI­DI, score).

This hymn was sung in the Acad­e­my Award win­ning mo­vies Plac­es in the Heart (1984) and Trip to Bount­i­ful (1985).

Fanny Crosby (1820-1915)

 

 

“During the re­cent war in the Trans­vaal,” said a gen­tle­man at my meet­ing in Ex­e­ter Hall, Lon­don, in 1900, “when the sol­diers go­ing to the front were pass­ing ano­ther bo­dy of sol­diers whom they re­cog­nized, their greet­ings used to be, ‘Four-nine-four, boys; four-nine-four;’ and the sa­lute would in­var­i­a­bly be an­swered with ‘Six fur­ther on, boys; six fur­ther on.’ The sig­nif­i­cance of this was that, in ‘Sac­red Songs and So­los,’ a num­ber of co­pies of the small edi­tion of which had been sent to the front, num­ber 494 was ‘God be with you un­til we meet again;’ and six fur­ther on than 494, or num­ber 500, was ‘Bless­ed As­sur­ance, Je­sus is mine.’”

Sankey, p. 122

We’re seek­ing trans­la­tions of Bless­ed As­sur­ance in Ar­a­bic, Ben­ga­li, He­brew, Hin­di, Ja­pa­nese, Ne­pa­li, Pash­tu, Pun­ja­bi, Thai, Turk­ish & Ur­du to put on­line. If you can help , would you send us an e-mail? Thanks!

Blessèd assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

Refrain

This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Refrain

Perfect submission, all is at rest
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Refrain

Bambara | 中文 | Deutsch | Español | فارسی | Français | Indonesian | 日本語 | 한국어 | മലയാളം | Português | Русский | Shqip | Yorùbá

Taken from www.nethymnal.org

Posted in Christian, Faith, Hymns, inspirational | Tagged , , | 2 Comments »

Christian Living Sermons

June 8, 2009 by bonlou

Check out the messages by Pastor Bob in the Sermon section of this site.

If you want to hear the Word taught verse by verse so you can get a good understanding of how God wants us to live, these are for you.

https://hatchcreek.com/sermons/

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