Are You Double Minded?

Have you ever thought about being double mindedness looks like.

In James 1 says, But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavers is like a wave of the sea driven by the wind and tossed here and there. For let not the man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.

A Double-Minded man is unstable in all his ways.

Jesus

I often think we overlook the weight of this. I was shocked the first time I heard someone speaks of it. Even though I had read the Bible I missed that part.

Many of us have been or still are double-minded but fail to recognize it in ourselves.

Double-minded means one is wavering, uncertain, doubting. It is to have divided interest.

If you are double- minded you are unsteady, faithless and changeable in everything they say or do. You can get nothing from the Lord if you are.

If you are double-minded you can talk faith today and lack faith tomorrow. You can encourage others that God will help them but, regarding yourself, God never honors your requests. Such individuals often have a “but” ready when confronted with the truth of Scripture. Why is this?

The Double-minded are:

  • Led by there emotions/feelings
  • Led by their own understanding
  • Led by what they see
  • Led by the dictates of man/society

There can be a number of reasons causing one to be double-minded. Neglecting to assemble together with true believers. I believe another cause is lack of understanding. Being separated from the body is dangerous for a believer.

Most the time when someone mentions double- mindedness they just call it doubt: “if you doubt you are double- minded,” it is seldom explained just how subtle double-mindedness can be. It is something we all have to guard against no matter how long your a believer.

For example: Your mother-in-law is coming to town and emotions want your, weary in a perfect position for double-mindedness to creep in. Emotions are high, perhaps a little anxiety starts to set in and before we know it we’ve become soft in the head and loose at the lips and we say stupid things we will regret later. God is not to blame ever. I’ve heard people say that faith inGod doesn’t work. Letting emotions run away with your mouth cause us to be reckless with our words.

Is it not unreasonable speech for a man at midnight to say, it will never be day? It is unreasonable for a man in trouble to say, O Lord, I shall never get free; it will always be

Thus.

Richard Sibbles

If we think of double-mindedness as a lack of real trust in God. Have you ever thought about the ways we cultivate double-mindedness?

Think about it you pray for a job you really wanted, you get the job and your happy and thankful for the job, but then you grow accustomed to it’s d suddenly the job isn’t so great anymore, there’s co-workers that don’t do their jobs, there’s frustration with the conditions. You can’t seethe blessing of having the job in the first place.

Think about those times we become impatient or worried things won’t ever work out. Do you just have faith and trust God, or do you just struggle with unbelief.

Think about how you deal with what God blessed you with. Do you give credit to God in your church circles just to treat your blessings like the are worthless when you think no one’s looking? Your being double-minded.

Even with God do you trust only with strings attached? I used to do this so much. “If you bless me playing bingo so I can win I’ll give you 20% of what I win.” Bad move, not only did I not win, but the conviction that comes after it was horrible.

I know people who have come close to losing their child from a incurable deceases. The Doctors said their child only has 3 weeks to live, they prayed and prayed to God, to save their child, the child made a turn for the better their child showing no signs of the decease. And two months later their partying it up with no mind of anything that happened. If that happened to me and my child I would be fully in debt to God.

God is trustworthy, wonderful and worthy to be praised.

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Strategies The Enemy Uses To Keep You Defeated

Do you have a plan to counterattack the strategies the enemy uses to keep you defeated? Don’t let Satan catch you off guard- You can defeat the enemy every time.

If you know anything about the military you know a unit would never dream of going to war without a battle plan. A battle plan is a strategy to exploit your enemies weaknesses and to maximize your strengths so you can win. If you don’t know anything about the military, perhaps you’ve never thought you needed a battle plan. You do because we all have a spiritual enemy, Satan, who has waged wars against you.

In Colossians 2:15 it states the Jesus has already defeated Satan for us but that doesn’t mean Satan isn’t going to use strategies to try and trick us into believing otherwise. His strategies are intended to keep us defeated and take everything that is rightfully ours.

Some Christians say: The enemy is already defeated, then lie down and take a whipping. If we have no responsibility to stand our ground against the enemy’s schemes then why did God tell us to resist the devil. He would have no need to give us authority over all the power of the enemy.

I suffered from depression, anxiety and suicidal tendencies. For 20 plus years. I thought it was just the way things we were meant to be. There was no way out of it, the medication the Doctors gave me just didn’t work or made things worse. I would take the medication as prescribed and end up in the hospital every few weeks for overdoses. How can you take medicine the doctors give to and be overdosed?

No medication and I suffered endlessly. It wasn’t until I began to fight with all my heart and soul that things started to change. If you want the enemy to leave you alone fight and never give up.

Satan uses his strategies to try and steal kill and destroy. Many of us take light of our opponent.

You need to have a battle plan so Satan won’t outsmart you become familiar with his evil schemes. The military calls this intelligence.

God has given us all the intelligence we need to keep Satan under our feet. Psalm 144:1 says that He trains our hands for war. He reveals the enemy’s strategies, and then tells us the plan of counterattack.

Don’t let Satan catch you off guard. Be prepared. Below are four strategies that Satan uses to keep you defeated and how to launch a counterattack and win.

1.) Satan Instills fear. (Timothy 1:7). Fear is Satans primary weapon. It’s a spiritual war that begins inside you, and it’s totally destructive because it robs you of your faith and peace. It keep your focus on circumstances instead of the promises in God’s word.

That’s why the Bible commands 110 times to fear not. healing for his daughterit’s why Jairo’s needed healing for his daughter and the circumstance didn’t look good. Jesus was quick to instruct him, “ don’t be afraid just have faith and he will be healed. (Luke 8:50). Jesus was warning Jairus of the greatest enemy to his greatest enemy to his daughter’s healing fear.

The enemy instills fear by challengingThe promises of God. A great example of this is found in Matthew 14 when Jesus invited Peter to come to Him on the water. But when Peter saw the strong wind and waves, he was terrified and began to sink. Save me, Lord he shouted.

What enable Peter to walk on the water? His faith in the word of Jesus. What caused Peter to sink? He saw the strong wind and waves that defeated him it was his fear of them.

The counterattack for fear.

Meditate on Gods word, this is how faith that drives out fear is developed. The word of God is the sword of the Spirit.

Speak the word of God. Use it to fight something every time he comes against you. Hold up your shield of faith and Quinn all his fiery darts. Speak words of faith and fear will depart.

Rebuke fear. Whenever you feel fear trying to come on you don’t stand it for a moment say fear I rebuke you in Jesus’s name now go.

Pray in the spirit. Whenever you tempted to be in fear, anxiety, or worry, begin immediately to pray in the spirit. It will edify your inner man and bring you peace that exceeds understanding.

2) The enemy liar and is the father of lies. (John 8:44)

One of the strategic schemes of the enemies is to lie to you every day. “Your stupid you’ll never amount to anything.” Do you ever have negative and discouraging thoughts that come out of nowhere? Sometimes They can be hard to recognize the enemies right because they sound like they could be true. However if you except him as truth or leave them even for a moment the ball onto Satan’s tactics giving him the upper hand.

The enemy knows your insecurities he plays on them. He knows the fears to fight you again and he tried his best to feed them by telling you guys. The question is: why does he like to you? What does he get out of it? The answer is this access to your life. He has come “to kill and steal and destroy” (John 10:10.) and if he can get you into wrong thinking wrong leaving wrong saying and wrong acting, the door to your life is wide open to him.

So if you have thoughts opposite of what God says- thoughts like your aren’t good enough to be healed, delivered, saved, prosperous, full of joy, full of peacem full of hope or powerful in the kingdom of God- know they are outright lies straight from the pit of hell.

No one can afford the “luxury” of entertaining the enemy’s,it’s. There is to much at stake. Your health, your family, your relationships, your money. Don’t let Satan become your counselor in the areas of life that matter the most. He is the Father of lies and our greatest enemy. And what’s trying to Destroy America right now.

Take every thought captive. Start lining up every thought with the words of God. It says in the Bible Gods sheep know His voice so when you hear something that is contrary to God’s word it’s speaking lies take those lies captive and throw them to the ground before they ever have a chance to take root.

Respond with the truth. You can’t fight back with box so it’s important to speak gods truth when the enemy lies. For example if Satan says “you are not smart enough to do that job,” you answer back oh yes I am Satan. For it is written that I have the mind of Christ.

3) going to meet temp you to sin. Let no one say when he is tempted I am tempted by God for God cannot be tempted by evil nor does he himself tempt anyone. -James 1:13.

God will never tempt you to do anything that is wrong. In fact He has given you every tool to resist Satan so will flee from you. Satan tempts you to sin and no one is exempt.

Has Satan ever tempted you?

Sometimes it’s obvious about it telling you to lie or human action immortality or another sin clearly defined as such in God’s word. But a lot of times, he’s sucker than that. For example, he may tempt you to think your holier than others or that your doing others a favor by judging and exposing people. You might even start thinking more about your own feelings, needs, and desires than those of others.

A few years ago I was at a worship and prayer meeting, my church had people visiting. Right before it was over I said something about the word of God in front of the group. This visitor said to me. You don’t have it right! I tried to tell him the scripture it was from. But he just walked away. I left feeling very angry, by the time I reached my home I was angry at the entire church, my pastor, his wife, and everyone that went there. It got to the point I was going to leave the church and find another, I live in a small community, so I was believing that everyone would here what happen, so I would have to stop completely. By the time the morning I was angrier than ever.

Then I stopped. I thought why would someone from out of town, come to my church and downgrade me in front of everyone. It didn’t make sense. I knew it was Satan trying to attack me. I began to pray and seek God’s answer. After about 3 day’s I was able to share this with a small prayer meeting I went to during the week, they were naturally shocked this would even happen.

The next Sunday I spoke to the pastor and his wife. The said it was a direct attack from the enemy. I few weeks later I shared what happened with the entire church.

In Matthew 4:11 Satan pulled out all the stops when a Jesus was in the wilderness. He tried to get Jesus to abandon the path of obedience and keep Him from what God had sent him to accomplish.

Is this what kinda of what happened to me. I decided then and there Satan was not going to stop me from accomplishing what God sent me to do.

From a troubled childhood, to depression and oppression, and having Cancer. Satan has tried to stop and destroy me. Why? I’m pretty sure I have a purpose here. I my not know how it will end. But I will be in God’s hands, no Satan’s.

The greatest danger in a believer’s life is to think you are above temptation. That when you’ve let your guard down, taken off your armor, and assumed your work is done. Remember Satan can sneak in the tiniest crack. Just when you least expect it he will strike. Be ready to fight.

Signs Of Emotionally Manipulative People

I thought today I would share the sign of Emotionally Manipulative People.

Sometimes it difficult to tell if your being manipulated.

  • That twist everything you say, to make you look or feel bad.
  • They say awful things, then deny that they said it.
  • They used guilt trips to control people.
  • They minimize your difficulties,so they don’t have to be there for you.
  • Their situations or problems are always so much worse than everyone else’s.
  • They are experts at using passive aggressive behaviors to hurt you.
  • They focus their attention only on their own unhappiness. They never acknowledge your pain
  • they try to intimidate you with aggression or anger.
  • They seek out sensitive, insecure or trusting people, who have no idea the kind of people they are dealing with. They take advantage of the genuine or naive souls.

Love is grand, but no matter how much you love them. See past it. See the signs, it could save you a lot of hurt along the way.

Defeating The Serpent

We are in a spiritual battle. Our country and the world are divided into ever-broadening ways. Half-truths, misinformation, propaganda and “conspiracy theories “ are multiplying and permeating and also growing channels of communication. It’s as though “the prince of the power if the air” has taken control. This is a battle of information. This is a battle of competing reformations. How can we wade through all the confusion? How can we “stand” in such a time of this?

People who isolate themselves from God and His fellowship of believers are playing into the age-old strategy of divide and conquer. Satan knows about this tactic and uses it often. A person or believer, on their own is easy prey for him.

When this happens, we can expect to face a ruthless cunning enemy. Satan and the enemies of God’s people can smell weakness and vulnerability. To then it is like blood in the air. To the. It is prey and easy picking, like a lamb straying of its pen, like a straggler wandering from the heard.

1Samuel 11, talks about the Kings of the Ammonitems who was severely oppressing the tribes of Gad and Reuben. He would poke out everyone’s right eye and allow no one to rescue them. Here we have a broader picture of Satans’ strategy to enslave people.The Kings name was actually name Nahash. What parent would name there child Serpent? Maybe parents who worshiped the devil or parents who liked snakes. But it was most likely given to him after his birth because of who he was.

What is Satan’s strategy based on the circumstances of Nahash. This picture of how Satan attacks us.

If Satan can get us to settle for less than God’s best, such as what he did with Ruben in the Bible. Then Satan has us in a vulnerable weakened position.

Doesn’t that seem like what he’s trying to do in America trying to get us to settle for less.

Spiritual Shortsightedness.

When we are very shallow spiritually. We don’t see the big picture. When God took the slaves out of Egypt in Exodus 1:10, into the wilderness with an objective of a lush land of blessing. They had no desire or perception about what God was doing. Therefore, they settled for less than God’s best.

Is this what happening in our World today? We have not taught our children how to settle only for God’s best. Or to know Him as “The Great Messiah” who can do the impossible.

Don’t act in a faithless way by choosing ease and comfort. When we choose a life of comfort instead of conquest in Christ, we set ourselves up to be conquered by the enemy.

Now it’s true that following God and His plan can be difficult times. But It’s always worth it. God allows difficulty in our lives to build strength for such a time as this.

Yes, Satan can sneak in and attack you. I always know I’m doing something right and about get stronger in the Lord when he hits my weakness, he hits my head with headaches be it puts me down. Or an old injury that hasn’t bothered me in years will give me pain.

When we settle for less Satan attacks us. We should put on Jesus and make no provisions for the flesh.

Satan is a bully. He is a master of bluster. He can himself look pretty scary at times, like in America we are being bullied ( Conform to the Evils of America or you will be called a racist, terrorist terrorist).

Like the fear that’s being spread today on media,social media and other places people are shrinking like ants.

Have we forgotten how God had defeated Israel’s enemies, like King David with the stone he killed Goliath.

Satan seeks to blind us even if only partly. Ignorance is the strategy of Satan. If he can keep us ignorant of God’s truths, God’s resources at our disposal, or anything in God’s word, he has us at a great disadvantage. And what we don’t know the truth of Satans defeat and that he is a loser, we are more likely to cower in fear.

The truth is we have the power to defeat Satan by virtue of Jesus in our lives.

What is Faith?

Faith is believing what you want to believe, yet cannot prove.

Many people, including some Christians, live with this definition of faith. For some it feels liberating. It means being able to believe in anything you want to believe. No explanation is required, indeed no explanation can be given; it’s just a matter of faith. For others, such a definition is sickening. Embracing faith means you stop thinking. As faith increases, reason and meaning eventually disappear. No explanations can be given, and none can be expected. Living in faith is living in the dark.

For both groups, the problem is the same. By starting with the wrong definition of faith, they have asked the wrong question, are dealing with the wrong problem, and so have ended up with the wrong answer. Faith is not wishful thinking. It is not about believing in things that do not exist. Nor does it make all things believable or meaning impossible.

So what’s the right definition of faith? Hebrews 11:6 says “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Faith is simply defined as knowing that God exists and that God rewards those who earnestly seek Him.

Perhaps the best word that can be used to translate is the Greek word “pistils” usually translated faith is the word “trust” or “trustworthy.” Would if you told a friend that you have faith in her. What does that mean! It means two things. First, you are sure the person you are talking to actually exists. And second, you are convinced she is trustworthy; you believe what she says and trust her character.

It is the same with Paul the writer of Hebrews talks about faith in God. Faith is knowing that God is real and that you can trust God’s promises. You cannot trust someone who isn’t there, nor can you rely on someone whose promises are not reliable. This is why faith is talked about as the substance of things hoped for and as the evidence of things not seen. Both words carry with them a sense of reality. Our hope is not wishful thinking. Faith does not make God real. On the contrary, faith is the response to a real God who wants to be known to us:

“I am the Lord, and there is no other;

besides me there is no God.

I arm you, though you do not know me,

So that they may know, from the rising of the sun

and from the west, that there is no one besides me;

I am the Lord, and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:5-6)

Every sense the church began, the refrain has always been the same: Come, believe, follow the light of the world. It has never appealed for people to leap into the dark; no such invitation is found anywhere in Scripture. Instead, we are called to step into the light. The Christian Gospel is not a message that revels in ignorance. It is the revelation of God in the person of Christ, so that we might know there is no other. The Christian is called to see things as they really are, and not as she would simply like them to be. We trust in a God who has been revealed to us in the Son and the Spirit. We believe because God is real.

What Do Tough Times Say About You?

It’s one thing to have a bad day yet quite another to fall on tough times. These are the days when it’s hard to get out of bed, not knowing how you’re going to make it through the day. Or what the day will even bring. These are the days when it feels like the world is crumbling around you and your so weary you feel like you’ve been hit by a two by four by the time you go to bed.

Many of feel weary and low because what is going on in America right now.

Yet, these are the times that shape character and show what you’re made of. So what do tough times say about you?

Unfortunately, for most of us, there comes a time when we all experience a major setback. Whether we’re confronted by personal tragedy, faced with a serious financial crisis, or struck by an uncontrollable event, these are the times that will test your spirit.

Everyone reacts to these situations differently. Some people get angry, feel sorry for themselves, and cast blame, other people remain calm, create an action plan to move forward, and look for a trace of light in the dark skies ahead. The fact is, the way you respond to these situations in the short term can impact your long term happiness.

George S. Patton said, “The test of success is not what you do when your on top. Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.”

I Pastor told me once: it’s okay to be angry, it’s what you do with that anger.

Take that anger and put in to good use through your prayers.” God wants prayers from your heart. To that anger you feel into your heart and pray them out.

Character Matters During Tough Times

  • Be positive. Surround yourself with positive and supportive people.
  • Remain Calm and Levelheaded. Count to ten. Try to make decisions based on fact rather than emotion.
  • Accept Support. There are wonderful people who care about you. Don’t shut them out, or worse take your problem Luton them. They’re trying to help.
  • Learn From You’re Past. Have you faced a similar situation in the past? Or maybe someone older has faced what you going through. Ask them. Apply the learned lessons or heard from others. There’s no need to suffer things twice.
  • Face Reality. Don’t run away from your problems. Run toward it. Accept reality as it is, not as you want it to be.
  • Own The Problem. Don’t waste precious time and energy making excuses or casting blame. More forward rather the dwelling on the problem.
  • Make Tough Choices. Don’t procrastinate or hold out for the perfect answer; there may not be one. Identify your options and create a plan of action. You’ll gain more from moving forward in a deliberate fashion that from running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off.
  • Set Priorities. Don’t treat every option or activity equally. It’s smarter to do the important things rather than to complete every item on your list
  • Built Momentum. Big problems are best solved in small pieces. Tackle short-term items to achieve wins while you address the root cause.
  • Remaining True To Your Values. This is no time to comprise your integrity. Listen to your conscience. You have to live with yourself for the rest of your life.
  • Be Loyal. Don’t throw anyone under the bus to safe your hide, putting the needs of others first may supply the positive energy you need to move forward.
  • Find An Outlet For Relaxation. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Identify ways to relax and reduce stress. That will help you complete the mission with your sanity intact.
  • Be A Leader. There are times when real learners show their character. Lead by example. Be the first to “take a hit” before asking others to do the same.
  • Never Quit. A man or woman is not finished when they quit.
  • Keep The Faith. When nothing seems to work faith and prayer does.
  • Learn From Your Experiences. Make sure to learn from the experiences. You may have to apply this lesson another day. One thing this teaches us is that life if filled with “ups and downs,” so make the most of the “in- betweens.”

From Tough Times To Good Times

Believe in yourself. This too shall pass. This isn’t the first or the last time that you’re going to face tough times. If the situation is within your control, do something about it; if not, accept it for what it is and try to make the best of it. You survive the last time you faced a crisis, and you will this time as well. Remember, it’s not going to get better by sitting around. In fact, left unattended, smack problems often become bigger ones.

It’s easy to look like a star when times are good, but when times are tough, your true character comes into full view. Be strong. Don’t compromise your integrity; don’t lower your standards; and above all, don’t quit. You’re better than than that. You owe it to yourself to overcome the problem, as you have so many times before.

Staying Positive In A Negative World

Negativity seems to be surrounding us everyday.

There’s always seems to be something new and a scary that hit us everyday. Negativity also hits us at work with layoffs, benefit cutbacks and other decisions that affect our personal income.

People on the street don’t wave or say hello like they used to. Smiles are few and far between. Masks seem to alienate us from each other.

For many, the negative world has become the “new world.” It doesn’t have to be this way. When you know how to stay positive in a negative world. You take the control back from the darkness.

We can decide to be happy. We can decide to speak to people and be the light in the darkness.

We are called in Matthew 5:14 to be the light of the world. A city, that is set on a hill that cannot be hid. We need to start being that light. Light overcomes darkness.

With so much information coming our way it’s easy to get and keep a negative perspective and easily becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.

If all we focus on are the dark moments in a dark world it slowly saps our hope away. If we only see darkness that is what will show in us is darkness.

A change in perspective is all it takes to turn negativity into positivity. Instead of looking for and expecting the negative seek to turn the negative into perfection. Which still exists within the imperfection of our world today.

I choose not to focus on the negativity of the government, media or anyone else that is trying to shove hate and evil down my throat. I choose instead to focus on the positive outcome I can provide in my life.

I can still treat everyone I meet on the street with dignity and respect. I can help the needy, I can still take a friend out to lunch and buy. I can still choose to help the elderly with their groceries in the parking lot. By helping them lift things into their car or return their carts and save them a few steps.

Start to watch the helpers who provide sanity in a disaster. Watch for the young parents who stand in the middle of the crosswalk to teach their children that to stay safe walk in between the painted lines.

Times and seasons change but that doesn’t mean the good people in America have too.

My Father, my husband and my son has fought for the freedom of America. I will not stand by and have to government dictate hate and evil to me just because they have more money and think they know what right for America.

When you begin to see positivity in other people you more apt to do something positive.

Yes there’s a nasty virus out there, but I will not live in fear. If I die I know I’m going somewhere better than here.

So how do we seek the good moments out when the world seems so terrible.

  • Avoid negative influences. Look for the best in people and point out those points. Even if you meet someone so dark that your heart hurts. Have you ever not particularly cared for a person? What would happen if you started saying something nice about them every time you seen them? What do you think would happen? They would more than likely feel more positive. Right.
  • Give thanks in all things, begin to look for the good things in your life. And thank Jesus for them.
  • Be content in your circumstances o matter what they are. Looking at what others have and wanting it. Example; there’s a person in my life right now that has a great job, great cars, a nice house and all the toys to go with it. But she do not have love in heart, like I do, she would never help a stranger who was in need. She lives for herself and herself alone. I sure would like all the things she has, but I’d rather have what I have a heart to help people, some great friends. And an Amazing Church family. I would much rather have what I have instead of what she has.

Begin to focus on the positive and avoid listening to the negative media, there are plenty of other positive news sources out there in that negative world they are trying to shove down our throats.