Conflict

Can conflict be good for a marriage and/or work relationship?  YES!

But are we not to love one another? That is love!

How about relationships at church? YES! Are we not to be nice to each other? NO way!


^{Matthew 5:21}

 “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’  

²² But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; 

and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire.

 ²³ So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, ²⁴ leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. ²⁵ Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. ²⁶ Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

Want to learn more about making peace? Get Hope and Change for Humpty Dumpty

My Peace I Give You (For Lent)

 

Rest in Jesus

Why are so many Christians living in fear, anxiety, sadness and despair?Perhaps because they have never learned to rest in Christ. In John the Lord Jesus stated to His followers that they were powerless to perform unless they stayed deeply involved in His life. "I am the vine and you are the branches." That seems pretty clear but I keep hearing people say they have "failed to perform" but rarely do they say, "I am abiding in the vine so much I don't have time to perform". Instead they say, "I am doing so much I don't have time to abide."

Karen and I decided at dinner that the greatest threat to Christian leaders is a compulsive need to perform, do, act, produce, make things happen, force people to change, be holy, etc.

The Original Serenity Prayer

Rev Reinhold Niebuhr

God, grant me the serenity to accept

The things I cannot change

The courage to change the things I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time:

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace:

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it:

Trusting that you will make all things right

If I surrender to your will:

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life

And supremely happy with you in the next

Ways to apply this prayer? Power Christian Thinking eBook found in our store.
All our eBooks are in PDF form that can be read on a computer and/or downloaded and printed out. This book is on sale for $3.99 

A Self-Exam From Me

John Wesley initiated some far out, radical methods for bringing people to faith and then discipling them into wellness and maturity. In my last post I copied some of his questions for self reflection and small group interaction. 

Out of his Spirit led genius came numerous organizations and ministries promoting growth and change. The Methodist Churches including The Wesleyan Church, The Salvation Army, The Holiness Church, Pentecostals of all stripes, Charismatics, the Oxford Movement, the Moral Rearmament Movement, the Small Group Movements, the 12 Step Recovery Movement, Girls Brigade and Boys Brigade, and, I suppose, many more.  

My Great Grand Father and Grand Mother met the Holy Spirit at a Holiness Camp Meeting in 1893. They became radically new people and started planting churches and reaching others for God and good.

Take a look at the past post and add these points for self reflection. 

I Am I getting enough rest, sleep and time away from work?

Is the relationship with my spouse intimate in every way?

Do I have compulsive sexual/emotional thoughts about a member of the opposite sex?

Do I “lord it over anyone?

Do I show evidence of over eating, drinking or working?

Do my words, looks or behavior wound others?

Is my anger ever a problem?

Want to learn more? Breaking Free on sale now for only $3.99. Get it quickly!!!

Growing with A Self-Test

I am speaking Saturday and Sunday at the Southbrook Christian Church in Miamisburg. The topic is the fourth message in a series called Sex and the End of the World. We call it Life in a Warped World. 

We will focus on healing from shock, trauma, abuse, pain, and unwanted behavior that came as a result. First, we want to make sure we offer people HOPE! We want people to realize that God has a plan for us despite the habits and difficulties we find so hard to change. See my book, Breaking Free to be all God wants me to Be. It is on sale for only $3.99 right now so go online and order it.

People of this era are not the first to face pain and difficult behavior. The Bible is full of stories that tell how God used people with deep issues of emotional pain and addictive behavior who experienced healing with God's grace. In fact, one of the world's greatest leaders of healing and change was John Wesley.  Wesley was a genius in healing and growth. His James 5 Groups followed the practice of asking these questions of each other. A SELF-EXAMINATION TEST of The Holy Club of Oxford: The questions they asked themselves each day were:

1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?

2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?

3. Do I confidentially pass on to another what was told to me in confidence?

4. Am I a slave to dress, friends, work or habits?

5. Can I be trusted?

6. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?

7. Did the Bible live in me today?

8. Do I give it time to speak to me every day?

9. Am I enjoying prayer?

10. When did I last speak to someone else of my faith?

11. Do I pray about the money I spend?

12. Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?

13. Do I disobey God in anything?

14. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?

15. Am I defeated in any part of my life?

16. Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy or distrustful?

17. How do I spend my spare time?

18. Am I proud?

19. Do I thank God that I am not as other people, especially as the Pharisee who despised the publican?

20. Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward or disregard? If so, what am I doing about it?

21. Do I grumble or complain constantly?

22. Is Christ real to Me?

Copyright 1992, 1997, 2000 by Wycliffe Bible Translators International and Laura Mae Gardner, D. Min. Permission granted to copy for non-profit use.

Planting Seeds in the USSR

We have a very small ministry in Russia which has the largest land mass of any nation in the world. Yet, despite the tiny nature of our group it is mighty through Christ. Can such a few people really make a difference?

We think so.

In 1992 I went into Moscow to meet a Doctor that was also a Psychiatrist. Those two things were astounding enough but she was also a strong Christian! It was unheard in those heady days after Perestroika.

I recruited her to come to the USA to study in our Christ-centered, in-patient, psychiatric hospital with a strong program for addicts. It was eyeopening for her and for us because she saw God working in the lives of hopeless, helpless people. She returned to Moscow to set up the small ministry there which was designed to bring Christ, the Great Physician to the former USSR. Now, 22 years later it is happening, ever so slowly.

She is returning to see us in early May. Can you contribute to her travel expenses? Any amount will help us pay for a ticket and expenses. Pray about it.

Go to our web page to donate.

A Famous Place for a Wedding in Moscow

Russia is not all grim and sad. The hill overlooking the forum for the Olympics in 1980 was a great gathering place for people. It is the tradition in the USSR that continues to celebrate in a public square. Enjoy this fast paced, powerful Your Tube Video.

Ministry in Ukraine

Our Russian team has an in-depth ministry with the people of Ukraine. They have been  vital link to the Professionals who make up the Psychotherapy Association as well as training churches and Pastors how to reach out to the sick, poor, addicted and victims of abuse and abandonment.

After the uprising in Ukraine the team was asked to do a seminar for the Psychotherapists who serve on a a Shock-Trauma Intervention Team.  The online seminar will be focused on training the team members how to help the people who were involved in the Civil War.

Focus of Training
1. How to help the people avoid being overcome with the shock and trauma of war.

2. How to help the Team Members from being overwhelmed by the pain of the victims/clients. The suicide rate and alcoholism rate of the First Responders is usually very high.

Pray for our team and for the Ukrainians.