All Stressed Up and Nowhere to Go

Written by John Grant

“I am leaving you with a gift–peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” John 14:27, NLV

In today’s world it is virtually impossible to avoid stress. Almost everyone is carrying some amount of it, in varying degrees. Many find it increasingly difficult to simply survive in the world we live in. You’re probably stressed out right now. That’s okay. It’s understandable. So is everybody else, according to a study released recently.

The study measured the forty largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country, focusing on six factors that cause or are caused by stress: high unemployment, long commute times, long work hours, limited access to health care, poor physical health and a lack of exercise. And, I live in the fourth most stressful city in the nation. No wonder I am stressed out, but at least I have good company.

When You're Angry at God

Micca Campbell

"LORD my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me." Psalms 30:2 (NIV)

As I waited for my husband to return from surgery, I began to worry. It was taking longer than the doctor had said it would. Since over 80% of my husband's body had been burned during the house fire, I feared the surgery would be too much for him.

My worst fears were confirmed when the doctor walked into the waiting room, still in his surgical clothes, and knelt down beside my chair. My heart began to pound as he explained that my husband had gone into cardiac arrest and though they were trying everything they could to resuscitate, they feared they had lost him. Immediately, I cried out for God to save him.

I still remember my desperate plea: God, I realize if my husband lives he most likely won't keep his arms. I understand what that means. He'll never hold me again or play ball with our son. But I don't care, God. Please let him live!

Step out of the Crowd

Written by Brigitte Straub

Do you feel isolated, hurt or afraid and have no one to talk to? Talk to us.

“When He had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him saying, ‘Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.’”. (Mathew 8:1-2, NKJV)

In the ancient world, leprosy was a terrible, destructive disease – and it still is in some parts of the world.  According to Jewish customs, one had to keep six feet from a leper. If the wind was blowing toward a person from a leper, they had to keep 150 feet away. The only thing more defiling than contact with a leper was contact with a dead body.

Everything is Possible for Her who Believes

Sharon Jaynes 

 

Everything is possible for him who believes, (Mark 9:23 NIV).

Once, a distraught father had an unruly son with multiple physical and emotional problems. Many people even said the boy was possessed by a demon. The dad had tried everything, but the boy continued to demonstrate anti-social behavior: throwing himself in the fire and then in water.

That sort of behavior, on top of frequent seizures, rolling on the ground, foaming at the mouth, and an inability to talk, made the dad desperate to find a solution. He even took the boy to some faith healers who were traveling through his hometown. But nothing seemed to work.

Thanking God for Unanswered Prayers

March 26, 2013

Dear Reader: Happy Passover! For the next eight days, we celebrate Pesach (Passover), offering you devotional reflection tied to this very special observance as well as Torah readings for each day. Since no work is done on the holiest of these days, these devotions were prepared in advance for you.
"His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him." —Exodus 2:4

Today is Day 1 of the eight-day Passover celebration. The Torah reading for today is from Exodus 12:21–51 and the Haftorah is from Joshua 3:5–7; 5:2–6:1; 6:27.

What if God answered every prayer with a resounding "YES"? Would the world be a better and happier place or a worse one? For example, what if God had answered Miriam's prayer as she stood among the reeds next to the Nile River where her baby brother, Moses, floated in a basket designed to protect him as he drifted in the water?

As you remember the story, Miriam and her mother had placed Moses in the basket as a last resort. The Egyptians had resolved to kill every single Hebrew baby boy. Miriam and her mother hoped that a non-Egyptian would find the infant and have mercy on him.

Flirting with Doubt

Written by Kristi Huseby

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he MUST believe and NOT DOUBT, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1.5-7, emphasis mine)

Have you ever pleaded with God over and over again to answer your prayer? Or felt such desperation in your soul, that you prayed all night long begging God to hear your prayer? Did you really expect God to answer you?

In my reading of Acts this week, Peter was captured by Herod’s henchmen and thrown in jail. James, John’s brother was killed just days before his capture. Herod, seeking affirmation and approval turned his attention towards Peter and now Peter was sitting in jail surrounded by sixteen soldiers, all appointed to guard one unarmed man. Do you remember this story?

Sampaguita in the Street

A woman in rags, cradling a baby, was selling stranded sampaguita flowers in a street of Metro Manila.

Suddenly, a police squad car appeared and the policeman at the wheel shouted at her, “You have been told that it is prohibited to sell your goods in this street! Give me all your sampaguita. Otherwise, I will send you to jail.  Hurry up!”

In a burst of tears, the woman lifted her baby and said, “Sir, if you take all my sampaguita please take my baby also. It is for him that I am trying to earn a living. My baby and I are sick, and I do not have any money to buy medicines. If I cannot sell sampaguita, my son will not survive the cold and the hunger tonight. Please take him with you. He will die anyway with me.”

A Prescription For Peace

Tracie Miles

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

Despite attempts for more than a year to figure out what was wrong with me, doctors could not identify a serious medical condition. It's not that I wanted something to be wrong. I certainly didn't need anything else to stress about.

I was desperately seeking a prescription for peace.

Looking back I can see the main culprit for my stress was my job. Overwhelming expectations and the impossible perfectionism my supervisor demanded took their toll on me physically, emotionally and spiritually.

His harsh criticisms and comments made me feel inadequate, and my self-esteem plunged to an all-time low. Chaos swirled around me, stress raged within me, and my health continued to decline. But I didn't recognize the cause.

When a medical diagnosis continued to elude doctors, I believed the lie that excessive stress was normal and I needed to learn how to live with it.

No Longer Addicted

SANDRA LESOURD

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(© Madja/StockFreeImages.com)

Any traumatic occurrence can lead to a life of desperation and idolatry, but Christ can set you free from addictions and compulsive habits

It's 6 a.m., and the alarm is beeping relentlessly. Decision time: Slap the "snooze" bar, or up and at 'em?

These days my feet hit the floor with great anticipation for what the Lord has planned for me. In prayer and in His Word, I get my marching orders for the 24 hours ahead.

Our World on Fire

GEORGE OTIS JR.

 

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If we truly want to see the Holy Spirit transform our communities, here’s how we can prepare ourselves for His coming

Only God can transform a community, but there are several things we can do to prepare for His arrival. Here’s a short list of considerations.

1. Picture true success. In short, a transformed community is a neighborhood, city or nation where values and institutions have been overrun by the grace and presence of God; a place where divine fire has not merely been summoned, it has fallen; a society in which natural evolutionary change has been disrupted by invasive supernatural power; a culture that has been impacted comprehensively and undeniably by the kingdom of God; a location where kingdom values are celebrated publicly and passed on to future generations.

From Desperation to Devotion

"Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." (Colossians 3:2)

Things, things, things! A better job. A bigger house. New clothes for the kids. Tomorrow's luncheon date. A better television. Get the picture?

Many of us have learned to believe God to prosper us to such a degree that we have too much to keep up with. We end up spending so much time and energy taking care of the legitimate "things" of life that we unconsciously give the attention and affections of our heart over to this natural world instead of to God.

When Kenneth and I first heard about living by faith, we were in desperate circumstances. We were sick and broke, so it was easy for us to dedicate ourselves to prayer and to the Word. But as we honored God's Word, He honored and prospered us. We came to the place where we were no longer desperate. Then came the real test of our faith. Would we serve God out of our love for Him instead of our desperation?

Compassion For The Impoverished

Jennifer’s life was touched when she happened to see a television program which documented the plight of the millions of children in the world who live in poverty. She felt guilty about the privilege that many people have while others are in such desperate need. It made her wonder: How can we make a lasting impact in the lives of others, that goes beyond even material, physical needs, but also addresses the deepest questions of life?

Video provided by: TruthMedia films

http://powertochange.com/discover/stories/compassion-for-the-impoverished/

Related:

Why Is There Evil And Suffering?

http://powertochange.com/discover/stories/compassion-for-the-impoverished/

We Live In A Good Friday World

David Burchett

A couple of years ago I saved an article from USA Today . The title, We are Easter People, was intriquing enough to merit a second look. Here is a portion of the piece written by Diane Cameron.

One of the lowest points in my life occurred years ago when I was living in Washington, D.C., at Easter time. My older sister had recently died and both of my brothers were seriously ill; my best friend was leaving town, and on top of that I was questioning my work. In my journal that April I wrote, "Am I depressed?" When I read those pages now I laugh and shake my head. "Depressed?" That I even had to ask. In that long year I thought I'd never laugh again, just as I thought I'd never again feel love, the joy of easy friendship, or the satisfaction of good work.

I went to church that Easter out of both habit and desperation. I had grown up in a church-going family. It was what we did. And so to honor the family that I was losing I went. Easter after all, is the centerpiece for Christians, honoring and recalling Christ's triumph over death.

I chose a big downtown church for Easter services — one with hundreds in the congregation — not daring to visit a smaller church where I might have to speak to people or be embarrassed by my own tears. I wanted the paradoxical safety and anonymity of being in a crowd.

The minister that Easter Sunday said many things that I don't remember, but one sentence has stayed with me all these years. He said, "We live in a Good Friday world."

That I understood. A Good Friday world is a world full of suffering, questioning, unfairness, trouble, mistakes, hurts, losses and grief. Good Friday in the Christian faith is the day Christians commemorate Christ's suffering and death on the cross. So that certainly made sense to me at that difficult time in my life.

"But," he continued, "We are Easter people." Those words stopped me cold. I was stunned to be reminded that painful morning that there was something other than what I was feeling.

Wow. What an amazing message as we head into the Easter week. We do live in a Good Friday world. How easy it is to stop right there, just short of healing, not realizing the hope of resurrection. The story of Easter week did not stop on Friday. The hope of this season is all about Sunday. Tony Campolo writes about a life changing sermon he heard in his book It's Friday but Sunday's Comin'. (Note to spiritual cyber hall monitors...I know Mr.Campolo is controversial. Just enjoy this illustration, take a deep breath, and move away from the keyboard). Campolo writes about hearing a wise African-American pastor preach about the events of Easter week.

For an hour and a half he preached one line over and over again..."It's Friday, but Sunday's comin'!" He started his sermon real softly by saying, "It was Friday; it was Friday and my Jesus was dead on the tree. But that was Friday, and Sunday's comin'!" One of the Deacons yelled, "Preach, brother, Preach!" It was all the encouragement he needed.

He came on louder as he said, "It was Friday and Mary was cryin' her eyes out. The disciples were runnin' in every direction, like sheep without a shepherd, but that was Friday, and Sunday's comin!"

The preacher kept going. He picked up the volume still more and shouted, "It was Friday. The cynics were lookin' at the world and sayin' `As things have been so shall they be. You can't change anything in this world; you can't change anything. But those cynics don't know that it was only Friday. Sunday's comin'! It was Friday, and on Friday those forces that oppress the poor and make the poor to suffer were in control. But that was Friday! Sunday's comin'!

It was Friday, and on Friday Pilate thought he had washed his hands of a lot of trouble. The Pharisees were struttin' around, laughin' and pokin' each other in the ribs. They thought they were back in charge of things. But they didn't know it was only Friday! Sunday's comin'!

Campolo continues, "He kept on working that one phrase for a half hour, then an hour, then an hour and a quarter, then an hour and a half. Over and over he came at us, "It's Friday, but Sunday's comin!" By the time he had come to the end of the message...He had me and everybody else so worked up that I don't think any of us could have stood it much longer. At the end of his message he just yelled at the top of his lungs, `It's FRIDAY!' and all 500 of us in that church yelled back with one accord, `SUNDAY'S COMIN'!"

A lot of people who stumble across this site might be in the middle of what seems to be an interminable Friday. It is hard to accept suffering and illness. Relationships that hurt us make Friday seem like it will never end. The trials of living on a fallen planet will make this seem like a Friday world at times during the journey. Two years ago Joni’s diagnosis of cancer put us into a Friday state of mind. But we trusted that Sunday's comin'! As we told our wonderful sons, if your faith doesn't work at times like this it is of little value for the rest of the time. And it does work. We have been blessed with healing for now but we have the greater hope of the resurrection of Jesus as we continue. We trust in a God that has been faithful to strengthen us for the battle, work through us for His glory, and teach us to be dependent on Him.

I believe the message of this week. Sunday's comin'. And I believe that with all of my heart and soul. Paul wrote in Romans...

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." Romans 1 NIV

I am not ashamed of the gospel. I fact I am excited about the gospel. Even though I may be living in a Good Friday world today I am convinced that Sunday's comin'!

Dave Burchett is an Emmy Award winning television sports director, author, and Christian speaker. He is the author of When Bad Christians Happen to Good People and Bring'em Back Alive: A Healing Plan for those Wounded by the Church. You can reply by linking through daveburchett.com.

http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/david-burchett/we-live-in-a-good-friday-world-11570780.html

Jesus, the Balm of Gilead

by: Alan Bullock

There are three things I remember about John on the day that I met him.  He was a tree trimmer, an alcoholic and almost dead.  My wife Anoosh and I were sharing our testimony in a church in Michigan when John’s mother came to the altar for prayer.  She told us how he had fallen over 60 feet just two days ago and had broken ten percent of the bones in his body.  Once at the hospital, they found he had one collapsed lung and the other lung was functioning with the assistance of medical equipment.  Our Faith
Why does the cup of peace and plenty,
And our prayers seem distant from on high;
When our requests are oft so very many,
And our faith needs wings to fly?
Why do we oft endure temptation,
And faith bears a heavy load,
As if each were assigned a tribulation
To conquer as days unfold.
Why does our prayer need wait the hour,
When ill befalls His children in gloom;
Is it not to see His wondrous power,
And His love a healing balm of perfume.His family had been praying for years for John to straighten out his life and become a Christian, but now the doctors gave him less than two weeks to live and his family was devastated.   In sheer desperation, his mother asked us to visit and pray for her son.  Standing over his still body, I broke down in tears and began to weep.  In the midst of that terrible scene I had an overwhelming sense to breathe on him.  Call it odd, bizarre or strange if you will, but I knew it was a message from God.  In front of the family and nurses, I breathed heavily into the nostrils of a near-dead man.  A month later John walked out of that hospital room to the astonishment of the doctors and nurses and is now a born again believer.  What perils are you confronting today?   Jesus, our healer,stands ready to breathe the power of the Holy Spirit into your most troubling circumstances.Yes, there is a Balm of Gilead whose healing salve can mend a broken body.  The healing properties of the balm of Gilead were known throughout the world.  Balm is described from antiquity as being a “rare, fragrant and stimulating ointment”.  Its properties to heal wounds bordered on the miraculous.  The miracle power of God lives on through the New Testament church.  I don’t pretend to understand how healing or prayer work, but I know when we pray God hears us.

Trust Him!  Believe in Him! He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think (Eph. 3:20).

Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5:14).

Hope and faith are powerful instruments of healing when used with the Word and spoken in the name of Jesus.

MEET THE AUTHOR

ALAN BULLOCK

Alan has pioneered several churches and has also been blessed to travel the world preaching and teaching in churches and conferences as a missionary evangelist for over thirty two years.

Copyright © 2011 by Alan Bullock