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Friday, April 23, 2021

Purity 400: Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship

Purity 400 04/23/2021 Purity 400 Podcast

Good morning.

Today’s photo comes from a friend’s morning commute two days ago who testified that one of the best parts of their morning is “cresting over the mountain into Durham and watching the sunrise over the valley”.   With a view like this we can understand why they feel that way and we are thankful that they shared their experience with us.   

As we crest the “mountain” of another work week and cruise into the “valley” of the weekend, I am extremely thankful for the people in my life and the way we can build each other up through sharing our experiences.  

At last night’s discipleship class, I was blessed to have a podcast student travel an hour to experience the class live.  Simple things like people showing up can really encourage us, so make sure that you “show up” for the people in your life.

Our presence is a gift that we can give that may not be fully appreciated when given but whose value is fully realized when it isn’t. So give the gift of your presence this weekend. Even if they don’t appreciate it, they’ll miss you when your gone!

But seriously, I was also blessed last night when I realized that my words of encouragement seemed to have an impact on another student’s life.  My class isn’t a recovery class it’s a Christian discipleship class but before we transitioned to discipleship we taught Christian recovery for 5 and half years so I wasn’t too surprised when a couple of new students were referred to our class for recovery.  

I explained that we taught Christian discipleship, but we could certainly help them with any recovery issues because of my experience and because we fully understand that life transformation only happens through the power of the Holy Spirit that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.  

Amazingly they stayed for the class and came back, but this one individual was in rough shape, like with zero days sober under their belt, so not surprisingly they got the help they needed with an extensive detox. So while they were gone, I kept teaching and wondered if they would return when they got out.  Last week they got out of treatment and came to class reporting 40 days sober, and I encouraged them to come back this week and we would count off 47 days of victory.   

Last night they were there again, and I congratulated them on 47 days walking in victory. In our conversation they revealed to me that they had put their trust in the Lord and have been receiving His strength to keep walking in victory.  They also reported that they had been reading the Bible.  

You know we try to trust what people say to us and sometimes we’re never really sure if they are just telling us what we want to hear or if they are for real.   Believe me I have walked with a lot of people and have been saddened when that walk has ended and usually don’t know why. 

But when I heard this individual tell me that they were reading the Bible, I knew they were telling the truth and I knew that God is alive and working in their life right now. I assured them that if they continued to trust the Lord and to walk with Him that 47 days would be 54 next week and that they could leave that darkness behind for good.  

So share your experience with one another. Chances are that someone could learn a lot from you.  But when you do share it be sure to thank the Lord and give Him the glory because there is nothing that we have experienced that is good that He wasn’t responsible for.   

 

This morning’s meditation verse is:

Romans 13:12 (NLT2)
12 The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living.

Today’s verse speaks of the life transformation that we should all be walking through after having received our salvation through placing our faith in Jesus Christ.  

This verse in the NKJV starts as “the night is far spent, the day is at hand”, so what the NLT calls “the day of salvation” should be understood to be the final day of salvation: when salvation will be complete: the day that Jesus returns to judge the earth and to reclaim it.  

This letter to the Romans is to believers, so they didn’t have to get saved, they were saved already.  But if you are not sure you are saved, do a quick prayer to make Jesus your Lord and Savior and then do the thing that will give you full assurance of your salvation: believe it!

We don’t need to be born again, again but there is nothing wrong in rededicating yourself to the Lord or saying a salvation prayer to reconfirm your faith and assure yourself that you have given yourself to the Lord.  

Let’s face it, we go astray sometimes and when we do, we should know that we haven’t been thrown out of God’s kingdom, but we should re-establish the harmony we have with Him by confessing our wrongs to Him and stating our intention to repent, to change our minds and our ways.  

That’s what Romans 12:13 is talking about.  We don’t know when Christ will return but it could be today.  So what are we supposed to do as a Christian with the knowledge that Jesus can come back at any moment?   

We “remove our dark deeds like dirty clothes and put on the shining armor of right living” Simply, we repent and live a righteous life by faith and in the power of the Holy Spirit.  

We need not fear the end times. Christ has sealed us with the Holy Spirit. We are secure forever.   So we can live in the peace of that knowledge, but we should also seek the continual harmony we can have with the Lord by living the life that He wants us to have: a righteous life accomplished by walking in the Spirit. 

I invite all to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. 

 

Today we continue to share from Dr. H. Norman Wright’s “Experiencing Grief

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage all to purchase Dr. Wright’s books for your own private study and to support his work. If you need this title you can find it online at several sites for less than $5.00:

Chapter 15.
What Do I Do with My Feelings?

Some have said grief is the blackest night of confusion because of all the emotions. Your range of feelings is like a smorgasbord. Each day you have a wide variety to choose from. There will also be daily variations. They come and they go. You may think they're gone for good, but not so-they come and go and overlap one another. Over time they're less frequent and less intense.

Perhaps the best way to deal with emotions that invade your life is to follow the example of a hiker who had just read the Forest Service instructions of what to do when encountering wild animals, especially mountain lions. This man was jogging with his dog and came upon a mountain lion. The lion began stalking the man and then ran after him. Fortunately, the man remembered what he had read. He stopped, turned around, and faced the mountain lion. The lion wasn't expecting this, so it stopped and walked away. Your emotions are like that mountain lion. Face them head-on, listen to their message, and eventually you'll rise above them.

When we lose a loved one, we sometimes believe that God has abandoned us. He hasn't. When we lose a loved one, we sometimes feel as if nothing matters—but it does. When we lose a loved one, we sometimes think life is not worth living. It is!

In times of loss and sorrow, we people of faith have to "believe against the grain." In our weakness God reveals his strength, and we can do more than we thought possible.

Faith means clinging to God in spite of our circumstances. It means following him when we can't see him. It means being faithful to him when we don't feel like it.

Resilient people have a creed that says, "I believe!" and they affirm their creed daily. In essence they say:

  • I believe God's promises are true.
  • I believe heaven is real.
  • I believe God will see me through.
  • I believe nothing can separate us from God's love.
  • I believe God has work for me to do.

"Believing against the grain" means having a survivalist attitude. Not only can we survive, but out of it we can create something good. We need to cry out, "God help me believe!"

Your thoughts are not immune from grief. You may not like some of your thoughts. You would like more control of them, but that's difficult. The preoccupation you have with the death and your pain can occur when you're in a group, attempting to work through a business transaction, or when you're driving—which could lead to a ticket or an accident. Sometimes you may feel as though you've become obsessive with your thoughts since you can't let go of them. You're not. These too will diminish.

It's true that feelings can be held back and bottled up. But not for long. If you don't let them out, you'll discover they'll find their own means of expression. Your storage space is only so large. It has limits. And when it's full, feelings spill out causing confusion, turmoil, or a rash of physical ailments.

Putting your feelings and thoughts into words gives them shape and meaning. Expressing them to others means you're not having to carry their weight by yourself. It also gives you a freedom to overcome them. Sometimes it provides you with the freedom to be free of them. If you don't give them a voice, they will still find a way. Often they explode. For many, giving these a written expression defuses their intensity.

There is another reason for your expression of feelings. It's a message to everyone around you of how you're doing. If you are silent, others will think "you're getting over it" and doing just fine. Your display of grief needs to be clear. Most won't know what you need unless you tell them. Be specific. Avoid words like, "I'm OK," or "I'm fine." Others can't read your mind. If you're struggling, say so. If you're depressed, tell them. If you can't function, describe it. Don't hesitate to say, "I could use your help in this way." If another just quotes a verse or says she'll pray for you, say, "Thank you, but here is something else you could do that would be helpful."

There is something else you can do: Share with your friends and family the book or video Tear Soup. Ask them to purchase a copy for you and watch the video together. It will change their response to you (see the Appendix).

Even though you can't schedule your grief, you may want to select some time and solitude in your life that is purposeful. It may be a time when you choose to vent all of your feelings, sit and weep, reflect on the future, listen to worship music, consider forgotten blessings, or simply stare into space.

The experience of this woman may reflect where you are:

I cry from time to time, and often find myself swallowing this strange lump in my throat. But I am learning not to apologize for my tears since they are God's gracious gift to me to express my loss, and a sign that I am indeed recovering. As I continue to feel, God continues to heal.

At times, I feel so angry and irritable for no apparent reason. Most of the time I just don't have a tangible reason, and this causes me much frustration. One thing I have learned is that all of my emotions have greatly intensified during this time of grieving. The loss of my parents brought with it a multitude of other losses as well. The loss of what never was and will never be (on this side of heaven). But I continue to pray that God will turn these losses for his gain.

During this year grief has affected every part of my being—physically (some days my body ached from the inside out), emotionally (at times I felt completely numb, and other days I felt raw to the touch), intellectually (some days my memory was so bad I feared I was in the beginning stages of dementia), relationally (retreating and withdrawing was safe), and spiritually (some days feeling the absence of God felt too much for me to bear). So, if I don't always make sense, please forgive me and be patient with me. Just a few months ago, I found myself standing in Starbuck's when a kind employee called out, "Have a nice day," to which I replied, "Vacuum." We looked at each other with great bewilderment!

Listen to what Elisabeth Eliot learned through the loss of her husband: "We are not given explanations, but to hearts open to receive it, a more precious revelation of the heart of our loving Lord."

As you express your emotions of grief, remember the following:

 

But it hurts....Differently

there's no way to predict

how you will feel.

 

The reactions of grief are

not like recipes,

with given ingredients

and certain results.

 

Each person mourns in a

different way.

 

You may cry hysterically

or

 

you may remain outwardly controlled,

showing little emotion.

 

You may lash out in anger against

your family and friends,

or

 

you may express your gratitude

for their dedication.

 

You may be calm one moment—

in turmoil the next.

 

Reactions are varied and

contradictory.

 

Grief is universal

 

At the same time it

is extremely personal.

 

Heal in your own way.

 

With such a jumbled array of feelings, no wonder there's a sense of confusion.

The following Ball of Grief describes the normal array of feelings you may experience:

Ball of Grief

Take out your, Ball of Grief, each day. Some days it seems that each one belongs to you. Yet another day one or two are dominating your life. You're not unusual. This is the way of grief. Share your Ball of Grief with others so they can understand. It may help them with their own grief.

Grief...

A TANGLED 'BALL' OF EMOTIONS




Experiencing Grief.

----------------------------more tomorrow-------------------------

 

God bless you all!

 

Join our Victory over the Darkness Discipleship Class via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154) and Google podcasts (https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL210NGNocmlzdDI0Ny9mZWVkLnhtbA%3D%3D

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

 Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship 

 

 

 

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