Friday, November 30, 2012

Change Your Self-Image

Written by Terri Savelle Foy

When I was a little girl growing up in church, many times they would call all the children of the church up to the front for the guest minister to pray over. We would all be lined up waiting for the preacher to get to us and wondering what he might say. I would hear all these amazing things about the kids down the row, then I would hear the preacher say things to my sister like, "You're bold and courageous! You're a powerhouse! You're a lion!"

I would be standing there just waiting to hear what awesome things he might say over me. Suddenly, he'd get to me and his voice would become very soft and he'd almost whisper, "And you're just precious! You're a little sweetheart. You're a peacemaker and a little lamb." I thought, "That's not fair! I want to be the lion!"

Don't Play the Game!

Written by Kenneth Copeland

"I receive not honour from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?" (John 5:41-44).

Honor. Godly honor. It's the kind of honor that keeps its word and standard of integrity no matter what. It never fails—it always succeeds.

Every day, commitments of honor are required of you. You have choices to make regarding ethics in your job, disciplining your children, keeping your marriage strong—and it's hard.

What About Sex?

Written by Spencer Patrick

Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. (1 Cor. 6:18 NKJV)
Everywhere you turn, someone is talking about sex. Sex is short for sexual intercourse which is part of the intimate relationship between the husband and wife. It is not a physical exercise, it is not something that people want to do as a part of the so-called "dating process."

Sex is sacred.

Why is it that we are permeated with sexual things in our media? Why is it that you cannot turn the channel on secular TV station in the United States and watch a sit-com (situational comedy) that doesn’t have a sexual innuendo? Why is it that when you take the train in Tokyo, you have to see images of women with oversized busts or weekly magazine adverts that try to sell copies of their magazines with "Sex" written on it?

When You Face Trials

By Suzie Eller

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." James 1:2-3 (NIV)

I planted them at the same time. In the same way. With the same tender love and care. Every time I watered one, I watered the other. Everything was the same ... almost.

One red begonia flower was planted between a crepe myrtle tree and a hydrangea bush, tucked under the protection of the sloping roof. The other flower was planted next to the concrete sidewalk and had no shelter from the pounding rain or scorching sun.

At the end of the summer I was surprised by what I saw.

The little flower tucked under the tree and bush, with just the right amount of filtered sunlight and water, had not grown.

I Want to Run Away

By Lysa TerKeurst

"If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast to him—then the Lord will drive out all these nations before you, and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you." Deuteronomy 11:22-23 (NIV)

One of the worst feelings in the world to me is feeling stuck.

Stuck in a situation where I can't see things getting better. I look at the next 5 minutes, 5 hours, 5 days, and all I see are the same hard patterns being repeated over and over.

I try to give myself a pep talk and tap into that part of me that chooses to see the bright side. But it isn't there.

Life suddenly feels like it will forever be this way.

Do You Have "I" Issues?

By Jennifer Rothschild

"He must become greater; I must become less." John 3:30 (NIV)

In the late '70s I sat with my folks in a hospital room in the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. The doctors who had just completed tests on my eyes were explaining what it meant to have retinitis pigmentosa. They described how I would slowly lose my remaining sight and eventually be totally blind. My mind raced and my heart welled with confusing emotions. I was silent in that hospital room that day.

A few days later at my next visit, I only wish I had been silent.

We went back to the same room with some of the same doctors. This time it was to help me get on a rehabilitative program. One doctor described how large, thick glasses might help with the little vision I still had. Another discussed walking with a cane. Another doctor told me how important it was for me to have an oversized magnifying glass and advised me to use a flashlight to find my locker at school.

God Wants His Job Back

By Karen Ehman

"Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people." Colossians 3:23 (NLT)
I have a confession to make: I crave control. You know—as in I like to be in charge; the shot-caller; the boss.

I'm pretty sure I was born ready to be in charge. As a toddler, I lined my frilly dolls and any willing playmates or siblings up in a way that suited my preferences. In elementary school, I couldn't wait to be selected for special duties, like heading up a game or putting on a play.

Yes, from birth I instinctively ordered and organized anything within my reach—objects, circumstances, and later in life, even living, breathing human beings. I didn't need a boardroom to prove that I was a natural born boss.

What It Takes to Struggle with Something Hard

By Rachel Olsen

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." Romans 8:37 (NIV)

Beginning in my twenties, I wrestled each day with chronic pain and fatigue. The first few years of it, doctors had no idea why.

Then came the diagnosis: fibromyalgia.

I was told this condition was poorly understood, not very treatable, and also not reversible. In fact, they called it "degenerative," meaning it would worsen as I aged. In short, doctors said I had no chance to conquer this pain.

The pain worsened for a couple years and I couldn't image what my life would be like five, ten or fifty years down the road. I prayed for deliverance.

Feasting at God's Table

Written by Carolyn Savelle

It's that time of the year again! People are preparing for festive holiday dinners and get-togethers. The Thanksgiving holiday seems to kick off the chain of seasonal events! The children are busy making out their Christmas lists, the malls are gradually becoming more crowded, decisions are being made about where to spend the holidays, and the bank account is swiftly decreasing.

During all this hussle and bussle, it is very easy to get stressed out, depressed, bombarded, and most of all—sidetracked!

When I say sidetracked, I'm referring to your personal time with God. Most of us are guilty of getting so caught up in our Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday planning that our quality time with God takes a back seat for a while. "There's just not enough time in a day!"

Like the Nazis, Islam Carries Deadly Agenda

ELHANAN BEN AVRAHAM/JNN

A short time ago, few ever heard the word Hamas. Today, that name is part of the daily vocabulary of populations across the Earth. The term is synonymous with another Islamic term, jihad, which is “holy war” in Arabic.

Here in Israel, we are facing the ongoing and relentless hatred of the Arab Islamic world, and recently fought a war of missiles sent from Gaza, the ancient homeland of the Philistines, from which the term Palestinian is derived.

Since vacating that area some years ago in an experiment of “Land for Peace,” the Palestinians under the rule of their elected Hamas leadership has chosen, instead of using that now Jew-free territory to create a viable economy and a peaceful life, to smuggle in and launch thousands of rockets into Israeli civilian towns and cities.

ADRIENNE S. GAINES

Since Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight series debuted in 2005, the four books about love-struck teenage vampires, werewolves and humans have taken the world by storm. More than 100 million copies have sold worldwide, and translation rights have been purchased in 50 nations. The first film adaptation, Twilight, generated $408 million internationally, followed by another $709 million for the second installment, New Moon. Still, the book’s largely young, female fans anxiously awaited Friday's release of the final film in the series, Breaking Dawn Part 2.

Jamie Foxx Blasphemes, Calls Obama Lord and Savior

11/27/2012 RAY RISER

Respect for Barack Obama as the president of the United States is one thing. Worshipping him as a deity is quite another.

Comedian Jamie Foxx is beginning to draw fire for his idolizing comments about the commander-in-chief during the recent Soul Train Music Awards in Las Vegas. During the broadcast, aired last Sunday on BET, Foxx urged the audience to “give an honor to God—and our Lord and savior, Barack Obama.”

The statement received a rousing ovation from the audience, and another when Foxx repeated Obama’s name.

Catholic League President Bill Donohue, who has been an outspoken critic of the president’s liberalism, said in a statement Monday that Foxx’s “epiphany is startling.

Artist Depicts Obama as Christ Crucified

11/28/2012 BILL ROBERTS

Entertainer Jamie Foxx recently in public declared President Barack Obama to be our “Lord and savior.” An artist has now taken the bold declaration a step further as an obvious attack on Christianity.

Michael D’Antuono’s painting, “The Truth,” originally scheduled to be shown in New York’s City’s Union Square in 2009 but whose display was cancelled due to public outcry from Christian groups, is finally seeing the light of day at the Bunker Hill Community College Art Gallery in Boston.

The painting, depicting Obama posed as Jesus Christ on a cross including a crown of thorns on his head with his outstretched arms pulling back curtains to unveil the presidential seal, is part of an exhibit called “Artists on the Stump, The Road to the White House 2012. The exhibit will be held at Bunker Hill through Dec. 15.

female soldier — Four female service members filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging the Pentagon's ban on women serving in combat, hoping the move will add pressure to drop the policy just as officials are gauging the effect that lifting the prohibition will have on morale.

Four female service members filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging the Pentagon's ban on women serving in combat, hoping the move will add pressure to drop the policy just as officials are gauging the effect that lifting the prohibition will have on morale.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, is the second one this year over the 1994 rule that bars women from being assigned to ground combat units, which are smaller and considered more dangerous since they are often in battle for longer periods.

The legal effort comes less than a year after the ban on gays serving openly was lifted and as officials are surveying Marines about whether women would be a distraction in ground combat units.

GINA MEEKS

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Pope Benedict XVI
Jesus was born several years earlier than commonly believed, according to a new book by Pope Benedict XVI. The pontiff argues in his book Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives that the Christian calendar is based on a miscalculation.
This latest publication, which delves into the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, completes Benedict's trilogy. His first book was about Jesus' public ministry, and the second about His death.
“The calculation of the beginning of our calendar—based on the birth of Jesus—was made by Dionysius Exiguus, who made a mistake in his calculations by several years,” 85-year-old Benedict explains in his book, which has a print run of 1 million copies.

No More Surprises

Written by Kenneth Copeland

"But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God" (1 Cor. 2:10).

God is not full of surprises. He's not an unpredictable being who likes to keep you guessing. Countless believers, however, have the idea He is.

"You just never know what God is going to do," they say. They base that idea on 1 Corinthians 2:9 which says, "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." They interpret that scripture to mean that God is keeping secrets from His people.

But, praise God, He isn't!

In fact, verse 10 says He's given us His Spirit to reveal those secrets to us! He wants us to know everything that's on His heart.

It's God's Will to Heal You

Written by Mark Brazee

And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed. (Mark 1:40-42)

The average Christian is in the same position as this leper was - not knowing whether it is God's will to heal or not. The believer may think, I know God is able to heal. I just don't know whether or not it's His will to heal me.

The leper knew the ability of Jesus. He came to Jesus and said, "Lord, if You will, You can make me clean." I've heard the same thing from people in prayer lines. They stand there praying, "Oh, Lord, I know You're able to heal me."

Postpartum's Gaping Black Hole

My first struggle with Postpartum Depression occurred when I was still living in the United States, with my husband and three kids. I was 33 years old, and had for the previous six years been working on my Ph.D. A mere two weeks after submitting the final draft of my thesis, I gave birth to a healthy, eight-pound baby girl. She was born at home, by choice, and I was surrounded by friends and care-givers.

The period immediately following her birth was exhilarating. My Ph.D. came through during Sukkot, which added to an already festive Yom Tov. Life was normal and happy. I was busy with the kids, tending to my family's needs, the house, going back to aerobics classes – all the normal functions of daily living.

Sandwiches For You

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