Hey Everyone, Thanks for stopping by! I use this blog to post my Christian Studying, and hope that through me doing so, I will bless others, and gain extra insight through peoples discussion with me. I hope this blesses you and you feel as though you can tell me what you think, good or bad, through the ask box :)
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Does God really talk to us? Can we really hear God’s voice? We often doubt if we are hearing from God until we learn to recognize the ways God speaks to us. In “How to Hear from God,” Karen Wolff of Christian-Books-For-Women.com takes a humorous and practical look at how to listen…
Becoming D30.
Has anyone ever heard of D30? It is a fantastic new product, which is almost claylike in texture, and can be easily moulded. Unlike clay, D30 becomes rock solid upon impact. You can hit it with a sledge hammer, and it will break the hammer. You can run over a blob of this stuff and it feels like a bump and dependant on speed, could damage your wheel. D30 is being used in the protection of mobile phones, being moulded in cases, to protect them when they are dropped. I think it is also being introduced into the inside of phones themselves for this very reason.
In this study I am suggesting that each of us should have a D30 mentality. Now this may seem strange, but when you really think about it, you’ll be able to see where I’m coming from. So journey with me through my concept, and God’s word, wont you? And let’s see where we end up.
A D30 Mentality
Now, I propose that the D30 mentality has three attitudes, which make up the mentality. As you read on, I’ll introduce each attitude, and give some tips on how to achieve it. I’m not saying this is a step by step guide, as I have no right to proclaim such a thing. This is something which is a continual process, which we need to make a conscious effort to apply and live out.
An attitude of Love
The first attitude I propose is an attitude of Love. We each as Christians strive to become more like Jesus every day. Or at least we intend to. The very fact that Jesus is God, and God is Love, means that we should at all times look to show that aspect of who God is through our lives.
D30 in its initial state is soft and almost gooey. This is how most people view love, hence the comparison. Let’s look at what the bible says about love, and what tips it gives us about how to show it.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 tells us the characteristics of Love. Love is patient, kind, is not jealous, boastful or proud. Love does not demand its own way, is not irritable, and keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not rejoice at injustice, but does so whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
These characteristics ARE an instruction manual on how to love. Applying these to ever situation in life will allow us to measure how loving we are being, and how we can improve.
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ Matthew 25:40 NLT
This verse informs us that what we do to even the least of people, you are doing to Jesus. In that respect shouldn’t we treat each other in a way we deem acceptable to treat the Lord?
An attitude of enduring, unshakable, unbreakable Faith
If there is one character flaw that Christians worldwide need to remove entirely, it’s that we are quitters. We are told time and time again in the bible to endure, and fight to the bitter end.
So what is faith? The definition is as follows:
faith
[feyth]
noun
1. confidence or trust in a person or thing: faith in another’s ability.
2. belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.
3. belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion: the firm faith of the Pilgrims.
4. belief in anything, as a code of ethics, standards of merit, etc.: to be of the same faith with someone concerning honesty.
5. a system of religious belief: the Christian faith; the Jewish faith.
The biblical definition is as follows:
“Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see” Hebrews 11:1 NLT.
Through analysing and combining the two, we can see a clear map for our faith.
There are two major biblical examples of enduring faith. First of we have Moses who led the Israelites through the desert wilderness for 40 years, whilst Paul says in his letter to Timothy, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful.” 2 Timothy 4:7 NLT.
Both of these men are prime examples of how to live a life of unbreakable, unshakable, enduring faith.
If we take the example of these two great men, and adopt the principles set forth here, we can develop an attitude that will enable us to stand firm in our faith, no matter what we come up against, and endure all trials. And I promise you this, there will be trials.
Loving and praising God in EVERY circumstance.
This attitude is possibly the hardest to apply in the D30 mentality. It’s human nature. When we suffer, or face anguish, or hardship, it is in our human nature to try and find someone to blame.
If we take a look at the bible, and the truly great example set by Job, we see a fantastic roadmap to success in this area.
In Job 3 we see an extremely dramatic, and lengthy… well moan. Wouldn’t you given his situation? He has just lost his entire family, and spent an entire week sat covered in the most horrific skin disease, with some friends there to comfort him, but with no conversation. You’d be a little annoyed right? Well Job does not once curse God, he does not blame God. Rather he defends God, when asked why he wasn’t cursing.
In Job 6, he is forced to defend his integrity. At the time, bad things happening to you, was deemed as a direct result of sin in your life. This was the perception of the day. Should you have told everyone you are Christian, and something bad happens in your life, people will be watching to see how you react.
Job 7, has Job crying out to God. He is asking what sin it may have been he did. He is trying to ask God to stop testing him for his last few days alive, I assume that he may have some peace from his suffering in his last days. He does not hate God for his trouble, but rather asks for a reprieve. He acknowledges that with God, there are times of success and joy, but they come with times of hardship, illness and pain.
Job 9 has him responding to a friend’s comments, agreeing with them in principle. He then goes on to say how awesomely wise, and powerful God is. He goes on to tell how regardless of his innocence, in God’s eyes he is guilty. He is acutely aware that no matter how hard we try to live our lives perfectly and blamelessly, we are still guilty, as we are born human, and born sinful.
Job continues in a back and forth between defending his innocence and honour against his three supposed friends, and talking with God, asking him to let him be and die in peace, wrestling with him, but never ceasing to praise. This continues all the way through to chapter 38.
The following Chapters are a challenge of the Lord to Job. Job never lost his integrity and never stopped believing in, or acknowledging the almighty power, of God. Job is then blessed for his attitude.
If we are able to praise God in each circumstance we find ourselves in, we will be blessed also. Fact. I find it helps to acknowledge that no matter what situation we find ourselves in, there is most likely someone worse off than ourselves.
Conclusion
We can all adopt a D30 mentality by applying these three attitudes. Through combining an attitude of love, an attitude of enduring, unshakable, unbreakable faith, and an attitude of loving and praising God in every circumstance, we will become more and more like Jesus every day, but also, live out an exceptional witness, which will help further the kingdom of God.
I’m not saying this will be easy. I’m not saying that anyone will ever achieve this mentality in a lifetime, as it is a continual life long process. My challenge to you is to strive to achieving this mentality for the rest of your life. So do you accept?
As ever, please give me feedback.
God Bless you all.
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John 15:13 (via martelthechristianrapper)
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Jarrid Wilson (via -bailee)
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Genesis 29:20
So Jacob worked seven years to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days. (NLT)Proverbs 5:19
A loving doe, a graceful deer—may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by…
Asked by anappointment
How to ask tough questions by anappointment!
Ok, I’ll attempt to answer them all. And then publish it.
1) What pain have I experienced? How did it shape the person I am today?
Hmm.. I can’t say I’ve been through major pain, like some people have, but I can think of three things that I would class as pain. First off was the death of my Nan, whom had lived with our family for my entire life. She was the one spiritual influence in my life, and I loved her so very much. I longed for her stave off returning home long enough to see me marry, and meet her great grandchildren, and for my kids to meet her. Losing her hurt a whole heap. It hurt more that I thought it would. I think this experience of loss and grief has helped me appreciate those around me more, whilst having an increased sympathy for those experiencing loss. Until then I hadn’t truly felt grief. I think it also effects subconsciously the way I act, as I still want to be a person she would be proud of.
The other pain I’ve experienced was a major issue with my back. I burst two discs in my spine, unbeknown to me, and left them leaking for a year, being a stubborn guy, until it got so painful, caused major sciatica, and left me relying on crutches to get around. Eventually I saw a specialist who told me that this problem was extremely uncommon in someone so young and that it was more prevalent in people aged 80+. He then performed a double disc-ectamy. This experience taught me that stubbornness is futile, and makes no odds when it comes to health. My back problem was so severe and complicated that I had to prepare myself for the eventuality that the surgery could potentially have left me paralysed from the waist down. Having to prepare myself for this, really sets your life into perspective, and make you analyse what is actually important. When I came through the operation, and I could still walk, it made me appreciate the simple things in life that we take for granted daily, like standing up for example.
Finally, I would say that I have suffered two heartbreaks in my life. The first was when after 4 ½ years of a relationship, my girlfriend decided she didn’t love me anymore. No other explanation. We had been arguing, and I’d seen it coming for a while, however that didn’t detract from the fact that felt like a wasted 4 ½ years, and I knew nothing about dating, flirting, and felt very, very alone. I felt so alone in fact that I started lashing out at God. Which he swiftly responded to, with one of those ‘God moments’, where I was overwhelmed with a sense of Love, and knew how much he loved me. This strengthened my relationship with God no-end, and taught me that all I needed was Him. A lesson I would later forget, and would eventually result in the demise of my most recent relationship. My relationship with God had deteriorated significantly. A combination of a self imposed feeling of abandonment after tirelessly searching for a job for over a year with no success, and over giving of myself in ministry with no spiritual input whatsoever, culminated in the love of my life leaving me. It was the speed at which the break up occurred that was the hardest thing to get my head around. It seemed so sudden. It took me losing the love of my life to realise what state my relationship with God was in. Since the break-up, I’ve almost gained a second wind from my salvation. You know how fearless new Christians are, and I feel as though I’m almost as enthusiastic as I was then. I think this latest event has pushed me into just focusing on what God wants me to do, and striving for that.
2) What evidence can I point too of the presence and power of God in my ministry?
I’m afraid to answer this question. It’s not something that I can particularly identify. I think it’s a lot easier to point out God in other people’s ministry than in your own. I guess it all depends on what you define as my ministry too.
I think I’d define my ministry as my life. I feel as though power of God to transform me from what I was, and to keep me focused on trying to live a life that pleases Him is evident in the person I am, and therefore I would suggest that my example, my witness, is one way in which the power of God is displayed in my ministry.
If you mean like spiritual stuff, I think God reveals himself through allowing me to ‘guess’ certain things accurately, whether that be through him blessing me with a great ability to see the logic in everything, or lack of it, and seeing the wider picture a lot of the time, or it be him giving me words of knowledge or wisdom (Which I ashamedly usually take credit for, mainly out of bad habit, but also out of fear).
I’d like to think the spiritual gift of Faith is one which God has blessed me with. I’ve been told I have an uncanny ability to KNOW things before they happen, or come to fruition. I like to think of it as ‘knowing in faith’. A example of this would be when my mum found white spots in her mouth, and was extremely fearful that she had mouth cancer. When my mum speaks about health stuff, we usually accept it as she was a nurse for years, but the moment she said she was going to the doctors because she might have cancer, I KNEW it wasn’t, and I was at peace, not ever worried one tiny little bit. Turns out all she needed was mouth wash.
I’m finding this question particularly difficult to answer; perhaps you could re-phrase and get back to me? Perhaps explain the question a little more?
3) As I assess my growth, what areas do I feel I need to work on? What my felt deficiencies?
The areas I can identify within my own growth, which need the most attention? Well, I really struggle keeping focused when studying the bible. I know right? Who doesn’t? Well apparently a lot of people don’t struggle with this. So I intend on working on my focus.
I also identify that showing compassion is a very weak area of my life. Its more born out of fear than anything else. I just don’t know what to do when someone asks me for change on the street, or I see a homeless person. I try and avoid entering a situation where I’d be interacting with these people. Call me heartless? I know! It’s something that I’m ashamed of, but I just freeze up. So I could use aid in that area.
I also get stage freight. So I should really work on that if I want to be a Pastor right?
Other than that I’m sure there are many other areas that need working on. By that I mean every area needs work on. You can never be too generous, or too helpful, or too servant like.
I hope this blesses you. These were truly challenging questions.
Please give me feedback guys J
Asked by Anonymous
I think what you’ve said here is very typical of people involved in ministry. I found myself in the same ish situation a while back. Whilst constantly giving out, and tryign to minister effectively, with very little input and being ministered to, it is very easy to get disheartened and question why you’re even doing it. It become repetative, and you start to do it out of obligation rather than passion.
I would also like to say, you can love God, and not have any outward ministry. I have some harsh news for you too, We can never do enough to deserve the love of God, yet he willing gives us it anyway :)
Thanks for the feedback :) Muchly appreciated :)
God Bless :)
Asked by Anonymous
I’m not exactly sure what your question is. But from what you have said, I think you’re searching inside yourself to discover whether or not you truely love God?
You may think that you only love what he has given you. I don’t discourage you. Have you commited your life to God? Said the prayer of salvation?
I think you’re brave to seek guidance on this subject, and the very fact you are, and that you’re questioning it, makes me feel as though you might love God more than you’re giving yourself credit for. After all, you’re looking for an answer which will let you, and help you love God more right?
You may have had a rough childhood, I can’t imagine what you may have gone through, but I can tell you the best way to love God, is to live by his Word. I get the feeling you try to do that anyway. You’re average joe doesn’t read Crazy Love.
I think if you can truely apply the following biblical truths to your life you will start to see God in a whole new perspective and light, that can’t help but leave you in awe and in love with him.
My Child,
You may not know me,
but I know everything about you.
Psalm 139:1
I know when you sit down and when you rise up.
Psalm 139:2
I am familiar with all your ways.
Psalm 139:3
Even the very hairs on your head are numbered.
Matthew 10:29-31
For you were made in my image.
Genesis 1:27
In me you live and move and have your being.
Acts 17:28
For you are my offspring.
Acts 17:28
I knew you even before you were conceived.
Jeremiah 1:4-5
I chose you when I planned creation.
Ephesians 1:11-12
You were not a mistake,
for all your days are written in my book.
Psalm 139:15-16
I determined the exact time of your birth
and where you would live.
Acts 17:26
You are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Psalm 139:14
I knit you together in your mother’s womb.
Psalm 139:13
And brought you forth on the day you were born.
Psalm 71:6
I have been misrepresented
by those who don’t know me.
John 8:41-44
I am not distant and angry,
but am the complete expression of love.
1 John 4:16
And it is my desire to lavish my love on you.
1 John 3:1
Simply because you are my child
and I am your Father.
1 John 3:1
I offer you more than your earthly father ever could.
Matthew 7:11
For I am the perfect father.
Matthew 5:48
Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand.
James 1:17
For I am your provider and I meet all your needs.
Matthew 6:31-33
My plan for your future has always been filled with hope.
Jeremiah 29:11
Because I love you with an everlasting love.
Jeremiah 31:3
My thoughts toward you are countless
as the sand on the seashore.
Psalms 139:17-18
And I rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17
I will never stop doing good to you.
Jeremiah 32:40
For you are my treasured possession.
Exodus 19:5
I desire to establish you
with all my heart and all my soul.
Jeremiah 32:41
And I want to show you great and marvelous things.
Jeremiah 33:3
If you seek me with all your heart,
you will find me.
Deuteronomy 4:29
Delight in me and I will give you
the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4
For it is I who gave you those desires.
Philippians 2:13
I am able to do more for you
than you could possibly imagine.
Ephesians 3:20
For I am your greatest encourager.
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17
I am also the Father who comforts you
in all your troubles.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
When you are brokenhearted,
I am close to you.
Psalm 34:18
As a shepherd carries a lamb,
I have carried you close to my heart.
Isaiah 40:11
One day I will wipe away
every tear from your eyes.
Revelation 21:3-4
And I’ll take away all the pain
you have suffered on this earth.
Revelation 21:3-4
I am your Father, and I love you
even as I love my son, Jesus.
John 17:23
For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed.
John 17:26
He is the exact representation of my being.
Hebrews 1:3
He came to demonstrate that I am for you,
not against you.
Romans 8:31
And to tell you that I am not counting your sins.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
His death was the ultimate expression
of my love for you.
1 John 4:10
I gave up everything I loved
that I might gain your love.
Romans 8:31-32
If you receive the gift of my son Jesus,
you receive me.
1 John 2:23
And nothing will ever separate you
from my love again.
Romans 8:38-39
Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party
heaven has ever seen.
Luke 15:7
I have always been Father,
and will always be Father.
Ephesians 3:14-15
My question is…
Will you be my child?
John 1:12-13
I am waiting for you.
Luke 15:11-32
Love, Your Dad
Almighty God
I hope this helps :) Let me know :)
God bless :)
Asked by Anonymous
Thank you Anon for your very honest question. What you’re doing at the moment is fantastic. I’m a firm believer that the words of God, the words of life, are the best for every and any situation. I’ll take a look through the verses you’ve posted above, and pick out a few key ones that I think you can reason on, and explain why. I’ll then give you my personal opinion. Sound good?
1 Corinthians 7: 1-5
Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. ESV
This section talks about how it is better to marry than to live in sexual sin. Paul writes that our humanity leads us to be tempted by sexual immorality, or in today’s terms, to be tempted to have sex, or act on sexual desires. I believe this can even include lust. When a man has a wife, he has no need to lust, and vice versa. It also speaks on the fact a husband and wife should not withhold themselves from each other. I think a good arguing point in this verse to use it that, God does not condemn sex, but rather, her actively encourages it, and not just to make children either, but encourages it in its appropriate context.
I find the rest of the chapter only really speaks into marriage, as opposed to sex before marriage, and a great deal of it is Paul’s opinion, which he clearly states.
“Charm can fool you, and beauty can trick you, but a woman who respects the Lord should be praised.”Prov. 31:30 NCV
If you look at this verse, it gives you all the reason you need to explain yourself, and all the reason you need to keep in your current stance. As you are anonymous, I know not if you are male or female, but I assume you are female. I just have a feeling, and if you are, this verse speaks of how you want to honour God, and that you want to be the person to be praised. Guys, this is a warning. Those good looking attractive girls, that throw themselves at you, are tempting yes, but not the people who should be praised.
My personal opinion is that you don’t just have sex with a person physically, but there are numerous emotional and physical ties made with that person. When you have sex you have sex with a persons Soul.
I hope this helps. Let me know.
God Bless x
Jon Watts - RTWOG
