RStane

Often we see the same sins of the parents in their children as well. Drinking to excess, unfaithfulness in marriage, uncontrollable temper, or a huge ego, are not totally learned behaviors. There are definitely inherited personality traits that lead to sin. You've heard it said, "He's a chip off the old block" or "she's just like her grandmother!" There is much truth to this. There is a genetic code that includes tendencies or weaknesses as well as strengths.

Now with the Lotto in most states, it has become very acceptable and commonplace. But there needs to be a word of caution here for us as Christians. The Lord teaches, "I can do anything I want to if Christ has not said no, but some of these things aren't good for me. Even if I am allowed to do them, I'll refuse to if I think they might get such a grip on me that I can't easily stop when I want to" 1 Corinthians 6:12 LB. How appropriate God's Word is here in light of the fact that there are tens of thousands of people today that are compulsive gamblers, deeply in debt.

How we intend to live our lives, in every area....from finances to relationships,....from ethics to emotional well-being,....depends on our understanding of the foundations for our Christian beliefs. The jailer asked Paul, "what must I do to be saved?" and Paul answered, "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved" Acts 16:30-31. But he did not mean living a life separate from God's Word and Spirit. "Even the demons believe" James 2:19, but they do not adhere to the Lord's truths. What are these most important truths that qualify our belief in Jesus?

When we speak of the "fruit of the Spirit" we are talking about the character and benefits of God's presence in the heart of a believer. Are we letting God rule and reign in our hearts? Or are we still showing signs of our old carnal nature; self-centered, uptight, arrogant and rude? It would be good to examine your heart, and how you have been treating others, especially those that are hard to love. We need to "put on the new man which was created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness" Ephesians 4:24. Amen?

The primary characteristics of a friend according to God's Word are: love, deep sharing, self-sacrifice, encouragement, stimulation, spiritual challenge, loyalty and fun. "Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep" Romans 12:15. We should "bare one another's burdens" Galatians 6:2 with our friends. We should build close and meaningful relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another" Romans 12:10.

This is essential to our Christian faith. We must forgive to be a Christian. We must forgive everyone who has offended us...to be forgiven by God and go to heaven. "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" Matthew 6:14-15.

Perhaps we shouldn't always be so super spiritual...Sometimes our problems in life, that greatly affect our inner man, are from money. We need to discern if money is causing other problems like anxiety and stress. The Word of God gives us instruction in God's principles on finances. I would like to encourage you to apply these as I share them.

This is a basic human emotion. We can be filled with many different fears. Fear can be good if it is to make us careful or cautious like avoiding a dark alley at night. But usually fear is a dread, terror or anxiety about life that is only hurting ourselves in that it is keeping us from the love, joy and peace of God.

Our relationship to God is on a very intimate and high level when we totally give Him our hearts. "You have been chosen by God himself - you are priests of the King, you are holy and pure, you are God's very own...once you were less than nothing; now you are God's own. Once you knew very little of God's kindness; now your very lives have been changed by it" 1 Peter 3:8-10 LB.

Do you trust your Heavenly Father? The Lord says "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you" Hebrews 13:5. You might ask, "if He loves me so much, why can't I see Him or hear Him?" God the Father wants to envelop you with His Spirit even now. And He wishes to speak to your heart right now if you'll only listen. "Even when we are too weak to have any faith left, He remains faithful to us who are part of Himself, and He will always carry out His promises to us" 2 Timothy 2:13.

Not eating or eating minimally has great physical health and spiritual benefits. Consider Daniel, "Daniel talked it over with the steward...and suggested a ten-day diet of only vegetables and water;...at the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the youths who had been eating the ...rich foods and wines! God gave these four youths great ability to learn and ...God gave to Daniel special ability in understanding the meanings of dreams and visions" Daniel 1:11-17 LB.

A family is an earthly model of what is in store for us in heaven. The Lord says to call Him "Abba, Father" Romans 8:15 which means "daddy." In the hour that we first believed we became "children of God" Romans 8:16. And God's nature is also like a loving mother. "As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you" Isaiah 66:13. Jesus said, "whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister" Matthew 12:50. So will we be an eternal family in heaven....

Faith is believing in God and trusting God; that he will provide for you, and will guide you in decision-making, and will one day bring you to live with Him in a place called heaven. Our salvation comes by faith. "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God" Ephesians 2:8.

Deep resentments about how God is blessing someone else are the opposite of divine love. Listen to the Words of God that are the opposite of the sin of envy, "be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another" Romans 12:10. This is the cure for envy.

Have you ever had someone that you wanted to put your hands on their neck and squeeze until their eyeballs bulge? It's kind of a given that we would have those that we are not able to get along with in life. People are different. Often personalities clash. Many are abrasive and competitive. In any group of people, there is a tendency to create a pecking order, who's in charge and who will give the orders and dominate. People can be petty. They can be haughty and arrogant and even cruel. They may slander you, mock you and belittle you.

Getting high, loaded, wasted, or zonked was kind of common with the hip era of the sixties and seventies. Yet, mind-altering drugs have been around for thousands of years. The Lord tells us that drugs are translated as "witchcraft" in Galatians 5:20 and "sorceries" in Revelation 9:21 and again in 18:23 which reads, "by your sorcery (drugs) all the nations were deceived." In Galatians 5:20, "witchcraft (drugs)" was put in a list of serious sin and those that practiced them "will not inherit the kingdom of God." This is definitely not cool or hip!

Jesus said "what God has joined together, let man not separate...except for marital unfaithfulness" Matthew 19:3-9 NIV. Repeated adultery blatantly brakes the marriage vow and is cause for divorce. The Lord also said "but if the unbeliever leaves, let him so do. A believing man or woman is not bound in such circumstances" 1 Corinthians 7:15 NIV.

Disciplining includes training by many ways of getting a point across: Parents need to guide by example, modeling, written requests, teaching and providing learning and fun experiences. We need to model Christ-like character. Are we patient and kind? Are we gentle and have self-control? Galatians 5:22-23.

Jesus says to you, right now: "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you" Matthew 28:19-20. God himself will empower you and be with you. "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me...to the end of the earth" Acts 1:8.

Depression....deep persistent feelings of gloom. This is not to be taken lightly. I do not wish to downplay or easily right off how you feel deep inside. I want you to know that the Lord is with you right now and I want to communicate God's tender love and care. Only the Lord fully knows the "thoughts and intents of the heart" Hebrews 4:12. And this is how He feels about you...."You have seen me tossing and turning through the night. You have collected all of my tears and preserved them in your bottle! You have recorded every one in your book" Psalm 56:8 LB.

In counseling, whenever there is a strong obsession or the person feels strongly compelled, there is a probability that the forces of darkness are at work and there needs to be a deliverance. "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" Ephesians 6:12.

Dating means spending time with another of the opposite sex to develop good relationships as friends or as a potential life-long mate in marriage. The focus should be on developing godly character and honoring the Lord. It offers an opportunity to truly care for another.

I am your brother in Christ and I hear the Lord's voice in my heart and He wants me to share His Words and His care with you right now. He says, "I will never leave you nor forsake you" Hebrews 13:5. "I am with you always, even to the end of the age" Matthew 28:20. And "even when we are too weak to have any faith left, he remains faithful to us and will help us, for he cannot disown us who are part of himself, and he will always carry out his promises to us" 2 Timothy 2:13 LB.

"You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife...nor anything that is your neighbor's" Exodus 20:17. A lust, a longing, a greed, a selfish ambition, to possess in your heart those things now belonging to someone else is evil and of the same evil nature as stealing or murder in your heart.

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition" 1 Timothy 6:6-9.