Monday, July 22, 2013

What Does Your Future Hold?

by  

Did you know that you have a great cloud of witnesses cheering you on as you go about your life on earth? Hebrews 12:1 says:
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us… (KJV).

When Christians die, their spirits go on to be with the Lord, and they become part of this great cloud of witnesses. Part of the definition for the word “witnesses” implies agreement and exhortation. These witnesses are not only very much aware of the unfolding plan of God on the earth, they know what’s happening in your life and are cheering you on from the grandstand of heaven, adding the power of their agreement to the course you’re running in this life.

One thing these witnesses cannot do yet is step into their eternal calling of ruling and reigning with the Lord because that requires a physical body. In order to fulfill this calling across the vastness of a universal creation that is temporal and physical, we have to have a physical body.

Angels can’t do what we do as human beings because they don’t have physical bodies. They can only legally function in this world as ministers to the heirs of salvation, which is their calling. The same is true with demons; they can’t do things in this earth without first possessing a biological life form through which to find expression. That’s the way God created this universe.

All Christians—both those alive and those who have died—will receive a glorified, physical body at the rapture of the Church so they will then be enabled to fulfill their eternal calling. First Corinthians 15:22-23 says:


For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. (KJV)

Christ experienced a physical resurrection of His body. He didn’t enter into some kind of spiritual immortality; He was physically raised from the dead and it says that He was the firstfruits of many to follow. The resurrection of our physical bodies will occur when the Lord returns at the end of the church age and the Church is raptured.
What happens to the people who have died and their bodies are rotting in a grave or even cremated? Their earthly bodies will be resurrected to life and rejoined to their spirits who are with the Lord; those who are alive will experience the resurrection of their bodies after that.


Start Thinking About It!

So why is this important to know?

Well, I believe that if people knew what their future looked like, they would live their lives much differently here on earth. A future you are certain about is the only way your quality of life now is going to be what it should be.

Hebrews 11:12-15 says:

Therefore sprang there even of one [talking about Abraham], and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. These all died in faith [a reference to the men and women of faith talked about earlier in this chapter], not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city. (KJV)


You and I need to become more mindful of the heavenly, eternal truths that are going to define our future than we are mindful of the earthly experiences that often occupy much of our thinking. Being heavenly minded makes a huge difference in the way you see everything in life. Of course, you can’t be mindful of something you know virtually nothing about. That’s why I’m sharing with you some basic truths about eternity.

What Will Your Body Look Like?

What else do we know about the resurrection of our bodies and the eternal ages to come? We can read more about it in 1 Corinthians 15:35-38.

But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: but God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body. (KJV)

Since I went into the ministry, I’ve had questions asked me about the rapture. “I’m a short guy now; I want to be 6’ 5” in the rapture.” “I have brown eyes, but I want blue in the rapture.” Paul shows us two things in this passage. First, your glorified body will be better than what you currently have. Second, he states, “to every seed his own body.” Your body is a seed of what is to come. If your body—“the seed”—has black hair and blue eyes, when it’s raised, it’s going to have the same thing. If you have a hook nose and a little bit of a hawkish profile, you’ll have that in the resurrection.

I heard somebody preach that we’re all going to be neutered in the rapture since there will be no marriage or giving in marriage in heaven, and thus, no need for sex for purposes of procreation. That’s not right though. If you’re “sown” a man, you’re going to be raised a man. If you’re “sown” a woman, you’re going to be raised a woman.

The things that get changed in the rapture are the corruptive effects of sin: disobedience, aging, sickness, and infirmity. In your glorified body, you’ll look in a mirror and say, “Whoa, do I ever look good!” No bald spots. No potbellies. No blemishes. You’re going to look good, but you’re going to be you.

The point of all this is that heaven is going to be so good, it’s just going to blow your socks off. You’re not going to be disappointed about a thing. You can’t even imagine the joy in a place without tears or sorrow. You’re going to be so excited about everything that unfolds.

The truth of it is that every God-given desire of yours will be fulfilled. If the promise wasn’t received in this earth and your heart’s desire was to be healed, then come heaven, you’ll experience healing. If you have a desire to experience an abundance that never seemed to manifest on this earth, then, man, your mansion and the street in front of your house paved with gold is going to be more than satisfying.

These are truths you need to know about the resurrection as you enter the eternal ages to come. Much is a mystery that the Bible doesn’t address, but we can rejoice in the certainty that heaven will more than satisfy every yearning of the human heart.
What About the Judgment Seat?

Another eternal truth is found in 1 Corinthians 15:41–42.
There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. (KJV)

Eternity will be pretty glorious for all of us, but the degree of glory from one person to another will differ. Why would that be? It could be because of the rewards that are meted out at the judgment seat of Christ, which are dependent upon the works done in this body.

Second Corinthians 5:10 says, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or be bad” (KJV).

This isn’t an appointment we can miss. It will occur immediately after the resurrection because the degree of glory that is going to ultimately crown your resurrection will be dependent on this, the judgment seat of Christ.

The purpose of the judgment seat is that “everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad.” Now if that’s all you knew about the judgment seat, it might sound like a little bit of a scary experience. We’ve all done a lot of things in this body we would just rather not give an account of and certainly not receive something accordingly. We need to know more about the judgment seat which we find in 1 Corinthians 3:13–15.

Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. (KJV)

This isn’t about who gets into heaven and who doesn’t; the issue of salvation was settled at the cross. No punishment is administered at the judgment seat. This is talking about getting a reward or not getting a reward. The greater degree of glory will come to those who have more works that He can reward you for.

Our Future Rewards

What are those works you get rewarded for? A lot of things have been preached about this. Today I want to show you the one passage of scripture that I can find in the New Testament that deals specifically with the basis of the reward system at the judgment seat. It starts in Matthew 25:14, where we find the parable of the talents.

The idea conveyed in this parable is that a lord is going on a journey to a far country and he entrusts all of his kingdom and possessions that represent his kingdom to his servants. This is an analogy for the Lord entrusting the Church and you as an individual member of the body of Christ with certain talents—gifts, abilities, financial resource, etc. He entrusts that to us until He returns and then an accounting will be taken.

The first two servants—one received five talents and one received two—produced an increase for their Lord. The Lord said, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many more” (KJV). The third did not produce an increase. The third was the one whose works got burned up and he suffered loss.

An important part of the reward system is our eternal assignment. The extent and the nature of that assignment is the ultimate reward you will experience for the things you do on this earth. The basis of measurement for reward is going to be whether or not you produced an increase for the kingdom of God.


The Importance of Increase

How did you use your gifts, your spiritual and natural talents, and your abilities? How did you use your financial capacity and resource? Did you use it for personal consumption or elevation of your own ego or fame or did you use your life’s resource to bring increase to the kingdom of God? That is the primary basis of measurement at the judgment seat.

Remember, increase in the kingdom of God only comes one way: through the principle of sowing and reaping. That principle governs increase in the kingdom. (See Mark 4:13, 26.)

As Jesus defines in Mark chapter 4, the soil is the human heart. The seed is the Word of God—not just a word off a page from the Bible but principles from the Word. God’s Word sets our perception of life and reality and our paradigm of what’s important and what isn’t.

When the principles of God’s Word are sown in the soil of the human heart, healing is produced. Deliverance is produced. Salvation is produced. Provision is produced. The kingdom is increased, and for that, you will be rewarded.

When you use your time to preach the Gospel and go on the missions field, when you use your talent, ability, and gifting to lay hands on the sick, when you use your money to support the preaching of the Gospel (that’s the only time money is called seed), you are increasing God’s kingdom.

“He Has More Than Me!”

God entrusts each of us with certain levels of responsibility. Don’t get bummed out if He only gave you two talents and He gave another guy five talents. We tend to look at the big TV preachers and say, “Man, they have a lot of reward coming because look who they get to preach to.”

I’ll tell you who is going to get the biggest reward. It’s going to be the ladies who sit in their prayer rooms and pray and believe God for His Word to bear fruit!

Don’t use your natural reasoning to figure this out. “Well, look at all that he’s got….” The increase you see on this earth has nothing to do with it. The question is this: what did you do with what He gave you? Did you use it to bring increase to the kingdom of God?

These things are really important. It’s what is going to make you more mindful of heaven. When you stand before your Lord to give an account for the deeds done in this body, with the desire to bring Him glory, it has an effect on the way you live your life.

So start thinking now about heaven and your part in eternity. Learn how to live in this world while remaining focused on heaven!
Mac Hammond
Mac Hammond is senior pastor of Living Word Christian Center, a large and growing church in Brooklyn Park (a suburb of Minneapolis), Minnesota. He is the host of theWinner’s Waybroadcast and author of several internationally distributed books. Mac is broadly acclaimed for his ability to apply the principles of the Bible to practical situations and the challenges of daily living.
Mac Hammond graduated from Virginia Military Institute in 1965 with a Bachelor’s degree in English. Upon graduation, he entered the Air Force with a regular officer’s commission and reported for pilot training at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia. He received his wings in November 1966, and subsequently served two tours of duty in Southeast Asia, accumulating 198 combat missions. He was honorably discharged in 1970 with the rank of Captain.
Between 1970 and 1980, Mac was involved in varying capacities in the general aviation industry including ownership of a successful air cargo business serving the Midwestern United States. A business acquisition brought the Hammonds to Minneapolis where they ultimately founded Living Word Christian Center in 1980.
After more than 30 years, Living Word’s church attendance has grown from twelve people in 1980 to an active church body of 10,000 members. Today some of the outreaches that spring from Living Word include Maranatha Christian Academy, a fully-accredited, pre-K through 12th grade Christian school; Living Free Recovery Services, a state licensed outpatient treatment facility for chemical dependency; The Wells at 7th Street, a multi-faceted outreach to inner-city residents; CFAITH, an online cooperative missionary outreach of hundreds of national and international organizations providing faith-based content and a nonprofit family oriented ISP; and a national and international media outreach that includes hundreds of audio/video teaching series, the Winner’s Way broadcast, the PrayerNoteseNewsletter, and the Winner’s Way eMagazine.

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

God Will Anoint You For Battle

fs we all know, and as we explained to you in our article titled, “Trials and Tribulations – The Testing of Your Faith,” most people in this life will have to face a certain amount of trials and tribulations, and this includes every single Christian.


In the above article, we give you all of the main verses from the Bible as to why this has to occur even to Christians who are fully serving the Lord and walking in His perfect will for their lives.

In this article I want to point out and highlight for you, that even though we all have to go through a certain amount of trials and tribulations in this life, God will still be with you and help you get through each storm cloud that will come into your life. God will not leave you, forsake you, or turn His back on you just because you have fallen into the middle of a severe trial.

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Prophecy Over New America 2013 And Beyond

Redesign, Realign, Rebuild and Restore America

Read This Timely, Prophetic Word for America!

Partners and Friends,
I received this prophetic Word from another ministry and wanted to share it with you. Email me your thoughts at partnerservices@mcwe.com.
The Church in America has assumed there has been a systematic power shift from God’s House to the White House. The enemy has had the Church deceived to believe this lie, forcing them to accept a place of defeat in the spirit realm.
This is further compounded by the Church’s divisive line around political ideologies and personalities. The Church has taken their basic human right to choose who they are to vote for into the self-agenda and humanistic realm.

Friday, June 7, 2013

Angelina Jolie Has Double Mastectomy Because Of 87% Breast Cancer Risk

Actress Angelina Jolie, who carries a mutation in her BRCA1 gene, announced that she has had a double mastectomy. Women who carry a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation have a significantly higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers.

According to Angelina Jolie, her lifetime risk of developing breast cancer before having her breasts surgically removed was 87%. Having the BRCA1 mutation also means a 50% lifetime risk of ovarian cancer.

According to scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, carrying the BRCA1 mutation may also be linked to other cancers.

Jolie's mother, Marcheline Bertrand, died of ovarian cancer* on January 27th, 2007. Jolie elected to have a double mastectomy to minimize her risk of breast cancer. She has also intimated that she may consider having her ovaries removed (Oophorectomy).

Thursday, June 6, 2013

10 Reasons You're Not Having Sex

By Leslie Goldman, Health.com | Fox News Magazine,

Not getting any? You're not alone: Women today have less time for sex than their 1950s counterparts.

And it's estimated that 40 million Americans have what experts call a sexless marriage (having sex less than 10 times a year).

A regular sex life is good for your health. It can satisfy all sorts of emotional and physical-intimacy needs and help partners stay close, says Anita H. Clayton, MD, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Virginia and author of "Satisfaction: Women, Sex, and the Quest for Intimacy." So why the dry spell? You can chalk it up to a sheer lack of time, but there are a slew of other reasons, too — from weight gain and perimenopause to technology overload (stop texting now) in the bedroom. Here's how to beat the top 10 sex busters.

10 Reasons Why Having Sex Is Good For Your Health

(As the article below mentions my name, I got it from Google Alerts. It was written by by Parul Tyagi and published in EzineArticles I do believe that the writer is going too far (in my opinion, sex is good because it is good) but I decided to republish it here…By the way, I also believe the writer or the article is quite optimistic in saying that we can have a 2-3 min orgasm. It never happened to me… )

Paulo Coelho’s book titled “Eleven Minutes” suggests that the “act of coming together” just takes about 2-3 minutes, while the remaining 9 minutes are no more than an attempt to reach the “crescendo” when a hormonal discharge provides ecstasy like none other!

Scientists have often debated that sex is extremely beneficial for our health, but the lack of sex in good measures can have negative effects. On the other hand, too much sex can also be harmful; if you indulge in sex for more than 3 times a week, you are exposing yourself to the risk of a weaker immune system as well as vulnerability to infections…

‘It’s Too Big’: Meet Jonah Falcon, the Man With the World’s Largest Penis

by  

Jonah Falcon is said to have the world’s largest penis. Now he’s singing about it. He chats with The Daily Beast about “It’s Too Big” and, well, his very large penis.


When your penis is so large that documentaries are made about it, that airport TSA mistakes your member for a weapon, that Jon Hamm gets advice from you on how to handle the attention, you have two options. You could try desperately to play down the fascination and keep your prodigious private...private. Or, you could let it all hang out.

130506-Fallon-too-big-tease
via YouTube

Jonah Falcon, the 42-year-old actor with the 9-inch penis (13.5 inches hard), has chosen the latter route. Falcon has already spoken about his penis, unofficially the world’s largest, in a handful of documentaries on the male body. Now he’s singing about it.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Twenty Building Blocks Of Vision

1.     A vision begins as a concern.
As a pastor, you probably have a vision of great revival for your city. But it began as a concern for souls, then it grew into a burden for souls. It grew till it consumed your thoughts. This is the birthplace of vision. God has placed that vision there.

2.     A vision does not necessarily require immediate action.
When God speaks to you, he may not be giving you a vision for the immediate.  God’s timing is not our timing. When David was anointed king, he did not take the throne for many years.  He went through many hardships before he finally became king.

3.     Pray for opportunities and plan as if you expect God to answer your prayers.
The Bible says that the steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord. Begin to pray for the right people and opportunities to be brought into your life...God will order your steps.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Portable Praise

Psalm 98:4–9

Making a joyful noise to the Lord sounds good and right, doesn’t it? It’s a no-brainer—so much so that it’s easy not to engage our brains all that actively over a praise passage. We’re inspired and uplifted when we read such words. Our gait may even be livelier and our gaze focused higher for a while afterward.

The trouble is, our days are often characterized by an operative word other than praise. Despite our best intentions, that word too easily morphs into busyness. Author Cynthia Heald reflects on this issue:

One day when I was reading Oswald Chamber’s My Utmost for His Highest, I was struck by his insight about a rather obscure and easily overlooked verse in Genesis: “[From there he (Abram) went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD.]” Chambers writes, “Bethel is the symbol of communion with God; Ai is the symbol of the world. 

Monday, May 20, 2013

The Bible Verse No Guy Enjoys Reading


Mens Conference
Deuteronomy 23:1 is painful—but it shows us that God wants to heal the wounds of the masculine soul.
I’d never heard a sermon on Deuteronomy 23:1 until last month, when my Puerto Rican friend Luis Roig had the courage to read the text out loud to a group of men in Florida. When he did, one guy gasped and fell on the floor. Several others laughed nervously, and we all drew our knees together and groaned.
The Holman translation says it this way: “No man whose testicles have been crushed or whose penis has been cut off may enter the Lord’s assembly.”
Ouch!
Please pardon the graphic language, but older translations just aren’t clear. The King James Version says, “He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord.” That’s putting it mildly!

Monday, May 13, 2013

23 Lessons Coffee Taught Me About Reaching the Unchurched


by Brian Dodd

23 Lessons Coffee Taught Me About Reaching the Unchurched
Many people with no church
background likely process their 

church experience they way 
I did with my first coffee.
I am an anomaly in America culture. At 47 years old, I had never had a cup of coffee until I attended a coffee cupping last week.

Coffee cupping is similar to wine tasting in that you smell the aromas, identify flavors, test texture and then drink different types of coffee.

It is not because of religious reasons that I have not had a cup of coffee. I simply do not enjoy hot drinks. Like many people who have no religious background, I have no coffee background. I was truly an outsider in this group of about 15 people at the event.

Within moments, I began to realize that many people with no church background likely process their church experience in the same fashion I, with no coffee background, was experiencing the coffee cupping.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Aaronic Benediction Explained


Dear Friends,

Myles & Katharine Weiss
Messianic Jews have consistently experienced a presence of peace with Arab, Egyptian, and Persian Believers. The continued failure of political peace efforts is underwhelming and completely predictable. Any of us who are involved with world ministry, especially those in Israel, can recount mountaintop experiences of supernatural fellowship that supersedes human failure and historical precedent.
This is based on the power of blessing that comes directly from the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is not merely a New Testament phenomenon. Blessing is a characteristic that winds throughout His-story including the Tanach (Old Testament). From the very time it was instituted in the Word, we see that Abraham could bless whomever he wanted. One of the most famous rabbis in Jewish history observes that if Abraham could bless whomever he wanted, doing so becomes a privilege that God gave to us as the children of Abraham. In fact, it is commanded. In Numbers chapter six, God told Moses to have Aaron and his sons stand before the people and “You will bless the Sons of Israel in this way….”

Monday, April 15, 2013

“From Empty to Full” – Part 4 “Nothing – Except”


“As a deer longs for a stream of cool water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for you, the living God.” Psalm 42:1
The Good News Bible

EXPLORATION: “From Empty to Full” – Part 4

“Nothing – Except”

“Fullness” – Containing all that is possible. Complete in every detail.

If I feel like I have nothing in my life, what is the “except” I can bring to Jesus?

“She said, ‘your handmaid has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.’” 2 Kings 4:2 Amplified Bible

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Martha : The Woman Who Was More Practical Than Spiritual

Scripture ReferencesLuke 10:38-41John 1112:1-3

womenofthebible-insertName Meaning—As a Chaldee or Syriac word, Martha is the feminine of moro or more, meaning “lord,” “master.” We find this in the form maran in the well-known phrase Maran-atha, “The Lord cometh” (1 Corinthians 16:22). There are those who think that Kyria, translated “lady” in 2 John 1, is a proper name, the Greek equivalent of this word. Carpzov supposes that this Kyria was the same person as Martha of Bethany.


Family Connections—Of the history of Martha, the Bible tells us nothing save that she was the sister of Mary and Lazarus, and lived with them at Bethany. Some early writers have made Martha, the daughter, wife, or widow of Simon the Leper, and that on his death the house became hers, hence the reference to the house when the resurrection of Lazarus was celebrated (Matthew 26:6Mark 14:3). 

Others think that Martha may have been a near relative of Simon for whom she acted as hostess. But the narrative seems to suggest the home belonged to Martha and being older than Mary and Lazarus, she carried the responsibility of all connected with household affairs in a home where “Jesus found the curse of the sojourner lifted from Him, and, in reversal of His own description of His loneliness and penury, found where to lay His head.” 

Monday, April 8, 2013

How to Hear from God Regularly


Whitney Hopler, Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer

Editor's note: This article was adapted from Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God, copyright 2012, 1999, 1993, and 1984 by Dallas Willard. Published by Formatio, a division of InterVarsity Press, Downer’s Grove, Ill., www.ivpress.com.
God is constantly speaking to people. But too often, they miss out on hearing God’s messages because they seek His guidance only occasionally – usually when they’re going through a crisis or facing a major decision. Then, with a dire need to hear from God, people become confused and frustrated when they don’t clearly hear what they should do.

It doesn’t have to be that way. God wants everyone to hear His messages clearly, and it’s possible to do so. The key is to forget about formulas and gimmicks for hearing from God, and to focus instead on developing the kind of relationship with God that will empower you to hear God speaking regularly. The closer you get to God, the more you can enjoy ongoing conversations with Him, and the more God will use those conversations to transform you into the person He wants you to become.

Here’s how you can hear from God regularly:

Were Angels Watching Over Tornado Survivors?


TREVOR FREEZE


tornado survivors
(BGEA)
If you've never believed in angels before, this may change your tune. At least it did for one Henryville, Ind., family of five.

With a tornado bearing down on their home, Darrell and Tricia gathered their three children—ages 11, 10 and 8—stuffing everyone into an interior closet just like the safety videos would suggest.

But the EF-4 twister with winds estimated at 175 mph lifted the framed home some 50 feet off the ground—with all five still inside the closet—and carried it about 400 yards before it exploded into pieces.

Had it carried the home just 40 more feet, it would have landed in a nearby pond and Darrell is convinced his family would not have survived.

He is convinced the Lord was watching over his family.

Saturday, March 30, 2013

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ: Faking Death


by Tim Chaffey, AiG–U.S

In addition to studying the importance of the Resurrection of Jesus, we have looked at the “infallible proofs” and other evidences for this event. We have also critiqued many of the skeptical and critical attempts to explain away the historical evidence recorded in the New Testament. Each of these alternative hypotheses can account for portions of the evidence, but they do not come close to explaining all the facts. Unbelievers have posited that Jesus did not exist or was not even crucified, that the disciples were just seeing things, that someone moved the body, or that His body was buried in a family tomb. This article will examine a couple of views that admit Jesus was crucified but claim that He somehow managed to survive for a short time after being taken off the Cross.

The Swoon Theory

Proposed by Heinrich E.G. Paulus in The Life of Jesus (1828), the swoon theory states that Jesus was not actually dead when He was removed from the Cross. Instead, He had fallen into a coma-like state (a swoon) on the Cross and was then buried in a tomb in that condition. He later revived, rolled away the tomb’s stone from the inside, evaded the Roman guards, and escaped. He then appeared to His disciples proclaiming He had conquered death. But rather than making a full recovery, Jesus died soon thereafter due to His numerous injuries.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

The Most Common FSD: Low Interest

Female sexual dysfunctions are highly prevalent, multi-dimensional, interrelated and associated with personal distress. Symptoms include problems with desire, with arousal, with orgasm/ejaculation and with pain during intercourse.

Female sexual function (interest in sexual activity) is associated with psychologic factors (mind, relationship) and biologic factors (brain, hormones, blood flow, nerves).
On the other hand, female sexual dysfunction, especially low interest, is associated with problems with mind and/or relationships and problems with brain, hormones, blood flow and/or nerves. 
If a woman complains of sexual dysfunction, such as low interest, it follows that: 
1) mental health care professionals should assess the mind and the relationship and
2) medical health care professionals should assess the integrity of the hormonal milieu, nerves and blood flow.

Of the first 3000 women with sexual dysfunctions evaluated at the Institute for Sexual Medicine, the 10 most common complaints include:
1) loss of desire since childbirth, 
2) loss of desire while using anti-depressants, 
3) loss of desire while using birth control pills, 
4) loss of desire since transition or since menopause, 5) loss of arousal since transition or since menopause, 6) never had orgasm, 
7) lost orgasm since childbirth, anti-depressants, birth control pills, 
8) sexual pain since childbirth, 
9) sexual dysfunction after hysterectomy and 
10) sexual dysfunction after breast cancer treatment.
The following represent 10 common statements from women with sexual dysfunction and low sexual interest: 
1) I am tired of being an actress,
2) I could write a book “101 ways to avoid sex with my husband”, 
3) I dread having sex, 
4) I even hate being touched, 
5) I don’t care about sex, I do this only to keep the peace, 
6) He takes this personally – even though I really love him, 
7) We live a brother-sister relationship, 
8) Not only am I not interested if I ever have sex again, it hurts so much, it is raw and burning at the vaginal opening, 
9) I do this out of pure guilt and 
10) My lack of a sex drive is causing great distress in the relationship.

Sex steroid hormones are critical for genital (clitoris, labia, vagina) structure and function. Sex steroid hormones induce protein synthesis – the proteins cause the genitals to: grow, become more sensitive, have more blood vessels, act on the brain to have libido, act on the bones, muscles, skin, mood, etc. Without sex steroids, genital tissues shrink/atrophy, become poorly sensitive and poorly engorge,

Conditions associated with reduced levels of sex steroid hormones in women with sexual dysfunction are:
1) Combined oral contraceptive pills, 
2) Infertility treatments with “lupron”, 
3) Childbirth, 
4) Hysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy, 
5) Chemotherapy for cancer, 
6) Hormone ablation therapy for endometriosis, 
7) Eating disorders – bolemia, anorexia, 
8) Transition and menopause, 
9) Depression, major life stress, relationship conflicts, 10) Drug treatment for depression, 
11) Drug treatment for epilepsy, 
12) Thyroid disease (i.e. hypo- or hyper-thyroidism), 13) Lyme disease, HIV, diabetes mellitus, chronic fatigue syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and HIV-AIDS, and 
14) Major metabolic/nutritional disorders (e.g. iron or vitamin D deficiency)

Of the first 3000 women with sexual dysfunctions evaluated at the Institute for Sexual Medicine, those who have sexual dysfunction and low sex steroid hormone blood values have complaints of: loss of desire, decreased frequency of sexual activity, painful intercourse, atrophy of genital tissues, diminished sexual responsiveness, difficulty achieving orgasm and decreased genital sensation. Other symptoms include: less memory, less sense of smell, taste, hearing, worse vision, tiredness, fatigue, less energy, depressed mood and osteoporosis/osteopenia.

Double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-institutional international trials have documented that androgen therapy in women with sexual dysfunction and androgen insufficiency (hypogonadism) can significantly improve sexual dysfunction during sexual activity compared to placebo. Side effects have been minimal, including no change in hirsutism or acne over baseline.

To fully evaluate androgens, we ask patients to undergo the following blood tests: DHEA-S, androstenedione, free testosterone, total testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin, dihydrotestosterone, estradiol, estrone, FSH, LH, prolactin, TSH, progesterone. Treatment with androgens is suggested if the woman with sexual dysfunction demonstrates sex steroid blood test values either below or in the lower quartile of the reference range. Patients on treatment should have follow-up blood test values every 3 months to assess the biochemical response to treatment.

In our experience, 70% of women with low interest secondary, in part, to low sex steroid blood test values will experience restoration of sexual function with normalization of the sex steroid hormone milieu.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

"THE MAGIC IS NOT IN THE FAUCET!"


Matthew 17:14-21
14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, 15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. 16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. 18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. 19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? 20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. 21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

"THE MAGIC IS NOT IN THE FAUCET!"
by Rev. Michael Phelps

INTRO:

Thomas Edward (T.E.) Lawrence was born on August 16, 1888 in Wales. Popularly known as Lawrence of Arabia, Lawrence became famous for his exploits as British Military liason to the Arab Revolt during the First World War.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

WHAT'S OK? WHAT'S NOT? Paul & Lori Byerly

Paul & Lori Byerly


We are often asked questions like "Is oral sex OK?" or "My husband wants to make a video of us in the bedroom. Is this a sin?" The reason we get so many of these questions probably has something to do with the fact that the Bible does not specifically speak to everything that a couple can do sexually. Many couples don’t talk about these things, and it’s not uncommon for both husband and wife to want to try something new, but each is afraid the other will be upset or offended. Our aim here is to provide a way for a couple to discuss these issues.

Where scripture is silent, we must look at Biblical principles to build outlines for what is, and is not, good for our marriage bed.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Washington DC Residents Watch More Porn Than Anyone Else