Training our minds

Hebrews 11:6  But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Faith cannot grow in an atmosphere of doubt. Doubt is a result of our own thinking.

Mark 9:23    Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things [are] possible to him that believeth.

Hebrews 6  ( This whole chapter is good to refer to. Here are are few scriptures. )  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.And this will we do, if God permit.

God cannot help those who refuse to be helped. Do you have something in your life that is challenging? God is saying, “give it to me, let me have it and make it happen.”

If our own thinking is, “By the will God I believe this can happen,” then you leave room for God to work.

Train your mind to leave room for God.

Genesis 6: 5-6  And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

It is important to listen to the Holy Spirit. Don’t take the voice of God for granted, or you might find yourself unable to reach God. When you don’t listen to the voice of God you might find yourself in a situation worse than if you had listened to him when he was trying to help you.

The way we think reflects on how we act.

Sin will take you farther than you want to go.

Sin will deceive you and will leave you in a state of “moral bankruptcy.”

Luke 15:11-32  The story of the Prodigal’s Son      

A wicked desire leads us to the “hog pin.” The world will take everything from us and desert us when we have nothing else to offer.

Romans 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Romans 1: 31-32 Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.


A mental act can be just as bad as a physical act.

We need to be cautious of what we allow our minds to think about, because the devil plants evil thoughts.

Don’t try and justify what you know is sin.

Another important thing to help us be mindful is to be mindful of our days.

Don’t make everything that comes your way negative. Try to see the positive in every situation. If your focus all day is negative, then you will most likely have a negative day.

We need to remember to always look for things to be thankful for.

Philippians 4&8

These are great examples of how to train our minds.

We cannot afford to miss our devotions, meditations, and prayers with God. When we do this it is like we are missing a meal, which then is not healthy for our minds or body.

Guide to good thinking:

1.Pray for the little things, and acknowledge God for the things he has already done for us.

2.Pray about the big things and acknowledge God for those he has already done.

3.Pray and acknowledge God for direction he gives us.

4.Pray even if you don’t feel like it

5.Praise God when you don’t feel like it

“Fear and feeling Inadequate”
Definition of Inadequate: not adequate or sufficient; inept or unsuitable.
Definition of Fear: a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.
Judges 6:11-16
11 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which [was] in Ophrah, that [pertained] unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide [it] from the Midianites.12 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD [is] with thee, thou mighty man of valour.13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? And where [be] all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?15 And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family [is] poor in Manasseh, and I [am] the least in my father's house.16 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
-          Many of us see ourselves as the least adequate of doing the work of God. We need to remember that whatever God ask us to do, he will always be there to help us along the way.
-          God needs humble, willing “vehicles” to his work.
-          If we are saved, we already have what God is looking for
-          Having fear is not unusual, although we cannot use fear as an excuse to not follow through with what God has asked us to do.
-          The strength is in being led by God
Romans 15:4
4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
-          We can have confidence, courage, and hope from the word of God.
-          If we are going through a hard time, we can always look back and learn from others that were in the bible.
Deuteronomy 31:6&8
6 Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee
8 And the LORD, he [it is] that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
Exodus 11: 1-4
1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague [more] upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let [you] go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.2 Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbor, and every woman of her neighbor, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.3 And the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses [was] very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, and in the sight of the people4 And Moses said, Thus saith the LORD, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt:
-          Moses probably had a lot of fears when God asked him to talk to Pharaoh.  Regardless,  Moses followed the will of God, and because of that , the Israelites were set free.
Exodus 4:11-12
11 And the LORD said unto him, who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? Have not I the LORD? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
Some of the ways to overcome Fear:
-          Start off small
-          Be faithful to the small things such as, prayer, going to church, and fellowship with saints
-          Don’t be afraid to ask for help
-          Go to church even when you don’t feel like it

Last week we talked about what we all could do next, that would help expand the word of God. All of us had very good ideas, such as:  Visitation, plays, prayer meetings, bible studies, musicals, etc.
What we all need to realize is that although these are all great ideas, we will never see them happen unless we individually let God use us for his work.
This week we talked about some fears that we might have in moving on with the work of God.
•         One person asked, “When someone starts to talk to me about God, I automatically fell apprehensive about saying too much, or even saying anything at all. Is this a bad thing, because I feel like I shouldn’t be ashamed to speak the word of God?”
Sometimes it is wiser to build a relationship with people before you start talking to them about God. When you build a relationship first with that person they are more trusting of you, and will be more open to hear what you have to say. They will also know you as an individual, and your life will be a testimony to them.
Although at times you might feel like God wants you to testify to someone right away.
Keep listening for God’s voice and his guidance when working with a soul.
•         Another person asked, “Should we spontaneously bring up God?
Depending on the situation, it would not be a problem to bring up God.
For example: someone says, “Good Morning, how have you been?”
You reply, “I’ve been good Thank God.”
This is just one example of how we can bring God up in every day circumstances.             
We hope that throughout this next year and years to come, that each of us moves on the Burdens that God has given us each individually. We also want to be able to overcome the fear that the devil tries to put on us when we are trying to accomplish the things of God. Most of all, we want to be willing workers and hearers for the things of God.

HOPE

Rom. 15:4

Hope is incredibly important in our walk with God. Our ultimate hope is heaven. The devil's goal is to distract us from it. If we're in a dark place, if we're discouraged, we can draw strength from our hope. Losing it means destruction.

When we're faced with battles, we can grasp hope through reading scriptures and praying. Everyone goes through hard times. If we lose hope during those times, the Devil can easily take advantage of us.

II Cor. 4:6,7

Our treasure is our hope, and we are the earthen vessel.

8-9

Sometimes we're caught in very tight situations, just as the Israelites were at the Red Sea. They had nowhere to turn - there were impassable mountains on either side, an ocean in front, and the enemy behind. God stepped in and, in His great power, delivered them in a way they would never have thought possible. When we find ourselves faced with nothing but unpleasant alternatives, we need not despair. God didn't bring us out to be destroyed by the enemy.

I Cor. 10:13

Temptation can be anything that you are drawn to that will weaken your experience with God. Temptation can come in the form of persecution. God can give us victory over every temptation - unless we choose to give in to it, God will give us strength to overcome. He will not forsake us or allow us to be defeated.

Heb.11:1, 25

We can have hope in eternal things, even though we can't see them. In these scriptures, Moses had hope greater than the immediate. We have to get to the point where what we have is greater than the temptation.

Rom. 8:37-39

When we're unsure of what direction to take, God's light will shine through and guide us. Satan will try to get you to believe that God will endorse your will. If we force God to endorse what we want, we risk losing our hope.

How do we know something is the will of God? You will have a clearness - you will know beyond a shadow of a doubt. If there's hesitation there, it's probably not the will of God.

Prov. 14:12

If what you're wanting to do is causing you to try to convince God it's okay, that's a sign that the devil is the one putting the idea in your mind.

Exercise and practice all the things you already know. God has given us hope to carry us through, and everything will work out just as He's planned.

Prayer

We have the natural desire to connect with God. Genesis 4:26 is the first account of man reaching out to God in prayer. There are times that, without a thought, we call on God in earnest prayer. It could be for our health, it could be in a moment of urgent need, it could be in an hour of desperation. How important is prayer to one who has been saved from sin and if walking in the will of God? A life without prayer is a life independent from God. Without God, we are nothing. Prayer is absolutely necessary for our spiritual survival.

It is a common misconception that asking for help is a sign of weakness, but going to God in prayer is the ultimate sign of strength. Not only does it strengthen and prove our faith, but it strengthens our bond with Christ.

The Bible is full of thoughts regarding prayer.

Philippians 4:8 admonishes us to always have a mind prepared for prayer. Don't put God on a schedule by only allowing certain times for prayer. Allow that connection with God to remain open throughout the day.

Matthew 6:5-8 reminds us that prayer does not make one any more spiritual than another. Prayer is an intimate conversation with God. God doesn't receive any glory or honor when you boast about your personal talk with Him.

II Chronicles 7:14 tells us that one of the most important conditions for a successful prayer connection with God is humility. Remember, God is the one in control. Don't go to Him in prayer demanding that your needs be met. Acknowledge that you are merely the vessel through which He can work His perfect will.

Jeremiah 29:13 offers the most valuable advice: seek God with ALL OF YOUR HEART. Don't hold back. God already knows everything that you are going through, and He is already working a miracle. But how can He possibly help you if you don't open up your whole heart to Him?

Prayer is vitally important in remaining connected to God. Our goal as Christians should be making Heaven our home, and helping others get there. Slow down. Be aware of the needs of the people around you. How can you, in prayer, help that soul?

Last night's lesson was on how we are building our lives. When you build a house, you build it three times - once in your mind, once on paper (blue print) and then in real life. In class we looked at pictures of homes and each person chose one they liked. We also wrote down six things we wanted in our dream home and six things that we didn't want. The challenge was to do the same with our own lives - to write down what we WANTED to be a part of our life (i.e. Jesus, salvation, peace, happiness, etc.) and what we DIDN'T WANT to be a part of our life (i.e. sin, alcoholism, drugs, strife, etc.). We are building our lives every day. Unless someone has a blue print for the house they are building, it is hard to build that house and not get distracted. We need to have a "blue print" for our life so that when the enemy tempts us to get distracted or to do something different, we can remember what we said we wanted in life and stick to it. It will help us to resist the temptation because we know that the outcome is not something we want. "Let every man take heed how he buildeth."

Love One Another

John 15:12    "This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you."
Throughout all trials and decisions in our life, God's love is unconditional. He will always be there if we need him. We should always be there for our brother's and sister's if they need us. even if we don't agree with certain decisions, or don't have the same idea's about things, we still have an obligation to show the love of God.
Matthew 22:35-39  "Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him and saying, Master, which  is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, thou shalt love the lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.
If God is our first priority in life, we should have no problem loving our neighbors as ourselves.

"Learning to appreciate the differences between and within this generation."

"And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in My name saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nation's for My name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another." Matthew 24:4-10

Satan has a plan to cause chaos and strife. If he can fulfill that plan, then He can prevent the Word of God from spreading. He wants to create disunity and distrust in God's body.

Often there is a failure to appreciate differences between people in one generation or more than one. We need to have a respect, an appreciation for the differences that exist between ourselves and those around us.

"One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts." Psalm 145:4

Each generation of people has a responsibility to the next generation to pass on what God has taught them. If we keep what God has blessed us with to ourselves, who will benefit from it? We need to "pass the torch" on to the next generation. However, if one generation doesn't hold a testimony of unity and trust, there will be a message of confusion and the next generation may be unwilling or unsure of receiving it.

There is good reason to respect our older generation -

"Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the Word of God: who's faith follow, considering the end of their conversation." Hebrews 13:7

"Conversation" in this scripture refers to a person's conduct. Watch the outcome of a person's life.

It will be hard for one generation to accept what the other has to give, unless there is a spirit of humility.

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honor thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Ephesians 6:1-4

Every generation has the ability to influence other people - younger, older and within their own generation.

"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;" 1 Peter 2:9

In the eyes of God, we are His chosen people - whether we are younger or older, whatever generation we are in, whatever differences we have. When we are saved, we all have something in common - we're all a part of this one body - the only body that is going to Heaven.

If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. - James 1:26-27

To "visit the fatherless" is a commandment. While this can be literally referring to someone without a father, it also is talking about people who don't know the heavenly Father - people who aren't saved.

Many scriptures have a spiritual application as opposed to just being literal. In this scripture widows can mean someone without a companion - without someone to support them. Back in the days when the Bible was written, literal widows didn't have the support that they would today (i.e. government support, social security, etc) and the saints had to step in to "fill in the gap".

What could we accomplish if we just started looking beyond ourselves, seeing a need and reaching out? Where would our meditation be if we were reaching out and looking beyond our own little bubble? We would be thinking beyond our trials and what we are going through. We'd find ourselves less concerned about our heartaches and more about those of someone else. Where would our prayer life be if we were conscious about the trials of others? Instead of being focused on our upsets, we'd be wondering about and praying for someone else.

(James 2:1-10)

Respect of persons:

*  getting angry about something someone does, but not getting so angry when someone else does the same thing.
* making judgments based on a person's appearance


We can easily have respect of persons if we focus on a person's nice clothes or nice talk. We shouldn't lift one person above another - even in our relationships; even if they are not our spiritual brother or sister; even if the person is in a low place such as a drug attic - that person is still a soul. It's all in the attitude and how we look at something or perceive something. If it's not Christ-like, we need to change. God looks on the heart - not the appearance.

We need to be careful not to look at a situation and judge by what we see because we don't see the heart. We don't know what the person(s) involved is going through or struggling with. They may be sincere and praying hard and really trying. When we stand back and start judging, they might see our attitude and think "forget it - it's not for me". We can get carried away in our thoughts even with people that have left God. Some things we have to simply leave in God's hands.

If we were the ones who were "poor in spirit", we'd want someone to long-suffer with us.
God loves everyone and puts everyone in His church that loves Him and wants to serve Him. God uses all of us. We need to be careful not to look down on anyone - one day they may be the one(s) God sets over us to lead us. (those that are sick, slow, "weird", poor, foul, etc.) When we have "respect of persons", we are sinning because we are transgressing God's law. We need to watch our attitude.

What if the person did you wrong or betrayed you? Are you going to take it and turn it into a trial or will you give it to God and leave it with Him? That person that has wronged you may be going through something that you have no idea about.

And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. - Mark 11:25

If you cannot forgive someone and you die that way, it may be the one thing that bars you from heaven. Even if that person has not asked for your forgiveness, you still need to forgive.

Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. - Matthew 18:21-22

It's not for us to judge a person's sincerity - we still have to forgive.

(Galatians 6:1-5)

If we don't go through something right, we will be tempted. We may judge a person for the way they handle something or go through something, but later on we ourselves may be tempted by the same thing.

Never be proud in trying to restore somebody.