Defeat May Be Your Greatest Victory

Samson's story is told in Judges 13 - 16.  His story is perhaps one of the most well-known of the Judges, at least in my knowledge.  Sadly, a lot of the generation coming behind me don't know the Bible stories like many my age or the generations before me.  I encourage you to read the entire story; there is much to be gleaned from it.
I felt drawn to read Samson's story and refresh my own self as to the particulars.  As I re-read this, there were a lot of parallels to my life, particularly the part about the incredible physical strength.  Wait... I guess the parallels were more figurative than literal.
One of Samson's most memorable triumphs is told in Chapters 14 and 15.

Judges 14:1-2New International Version (NIV)Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman.  When he returned, he said to his father and mother, “I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.”

It is only fair to start off here stating that Samson made a mistake to choose a wife from among the people who did not believe in God.  I guess it is best said that defeat and ruin come to those who step out from under the covering of God that is for those who are obedient.  Samson loved God, and God loved Samson, but the Bible tells us that those that truly love God obey his commands.  God told his people, the Israelites, to not marry those who did not worship Him.  It was not because He is a terrible and mean God, but because by marrying "pagans", their hearts would be led astray.  If you read Samson's whole story, you will find that is actually what was Samson's undoing with the infamous Delilah.  If Samson had kept away from the Philistines, he would never had fallen in.  But, as Romans 8:28 states, God worked even Samson's blunders for the good of Samson (by restoring his name) and for the good of his people.

At any rate, Samson wishes to marry a Philistine woman.  There is a lot of drama, and when you get to Chapter 15, you can read of Samson's own heart-wrenching, utter defeat.  He goes to see his wife and finds that her father has given her in marriage to another-- a man that was in his bridal party at that!

I find the romance in Samson's reaction.  In verse 4, you get a pretty detailed picture on how Samson handled his heartbreak.

Judges 15:4-6New International Version (NIV)Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned the foxes tail to tail and put one torch in the middle between two tails.  When he had set fire to the torches, he released the foxes into the standing grain of the Philistines, thus burning up both the shocks and the standing grain, along the vineyards and groves.  Then the Philistines said, "Who did this?" And they said, "Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took his wife and gave her to his companion." ...

All I have to say is 300 foxes? I live in a rural area where I might, if I'm lucky, see a fox run across the road.  But 300?  How do you even trap that many?  Or did he catch them with his bare hands?  And then to set fire to them?  The man was mad, or driven by some pretty strong emotion.
Before you think that I am justifying catching foxes and setting fire to them because of heartbreak, I need to point out the fact that Samson undoubtedly had a pretty bad temper.  Compounded with the supernatural strength given to him, if he acted on his anger, the results were disastrous.  His actions were definitely ungodly.  Not only was Samson defeated in his relationship, but he was also defeated by sinning in his response to his pain.
We learn in the second part of verse 6 that Samson's wife (or his companion's wife, rather) and father were burned by the Philistines because they were the cause of so much destruction, an action which further disgusted Samson and brought out his anger.  Not only was the woman he loved taken away from him, but she was also murdered!  Talk about defeat in in the lowliest sense of the word to a man in love.  Samson's temper flares again, and in verse 8 you see that he again takes revenge on the Philistines, killing many.
Where is the victory in all this pain, anger, and slaughter?  The victory lies in the fact that God is God, and he knew exactly how much of a temper Samson had, and how much destruction would come from hurtful actions.  I am not saying God inspired Samson to murder or that God inspired the Philistines to murder to make him angry, however God has a way of using free will (especially our blunders!) for the good of those he loves.  God used Samson, a man of incredible strength, in his weakness to set into motion the deliverance of his people.
The Philistines were the Israelite's enemies.  They were oppressive.  They were cruel (seen in burning Samson's love and her father!).  Israel needed to be delivered, and God used Samson's utter defeat and heartache to lead to his greatest victory.
Samson's story did not stop at foxes.  That was only the beginning.  The rest of his story can be read in Judges 15 - 16.  It is an incredible tale of how one man's defeat and even death were the greatest triumph of his life.
If you are feeling defeated, remember Samson.  Your pain, your weaknesses, and your troubles seem so large to you now, but they are all a part of a greater picture.  While you may not know if you can keep going, I encourage you to be strong and courageous!  What seems like your utter defeat may just be the greatest victory of your life.  

I Asked God For a Car

Matthew 7: 7-10 (NASB)
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!"


When I was a teenager, my walk with God was something else.  I think that I didn't have some of the hindrances that I have as an adult.  I had pure motives, not the convoluted motives I find I sometimes have.
My brother and I didn't grow up with great wealth.  I remember eating hotdogs and ramen as a kid.  My family didn't have all the things other families had.  When we were teenagers, my parents were able to buy a house and I think our lifestyle was better than it was before.  However, my parents' better income did not provide for my brother and I to have a car to get around in.
We lived 11 miles from our high school.  My brother and I frequently biked to the school during the summer for cross country running practice.  Need I point out that part of the ride was downhill and then uphill in both directions, so I biked 22 miles uphill both ways to get to running practice?  Now, we didn't do sprints.  We both ran cross country.  So that was 22 miles with at least a mile of running in-between.  If you are impressed, just think about the (INSANE!) days I decided to bike back to the school in the evenings to weight train for an hour or so...
I wish I was as in shape now as I was then.  Ahem.
At any rate, the church we attended was at least double this distance.  My brother and I both were involved in youth group.  Plus we were growing up, and it would be nice to have wheels.  So, having simple faith, I went to God.
Me: God, will you give my brother and I a car to drive?
Not long after, my neighbors came over and were chatting with my parents.  They brought my brother and I in and they said that they weren't going to a church at the time but they were Christians and wanted to give God their "tithe".  So, they decided to give my brother and I their old car.
That car ran for nearly ten years, and only recently my brother got rid of it.
God doesn't just provide, he plans ahead with his provisions.  How much  more will your heavenly Father give indeed!

Clothing Saga I: The Sweater

Matthew 6:28 (NIV)
And why do you worry about clothes?  See how the lilies of the field grow.  They do not labor or spin.
God knew somehow that women in our day and age would like clothes.  Jesus addressed it during his time on earth.  Fitting.
God knew that when I would walk the earth, I would like clothes too.
When I was a teenager, I had an incredibly close walk with God.  I played the guitar or bass on a worship team and sang.  At one point I lead worship while playing the bass.  At another point I was at the church a minimum of 40 hours a week, nights and weekends, practicing, playing worshipping.  It was so easy to enter in then.  
At any rate, my time with God extended past worshipping at church.  I talked to him on passing periods at school, I talked to God while I was driving.  Before going to bed at night, I talked to him.  The list goes on.
There's something about being close to God that makes even insignificant matters a priority to him.  I think it's like being in a love relationship.  A lover might do something crazy to get something small just to please their love.  God showed his love through me by re-acquiring a sweater for me.
I say re-acquiring because it was a sweater I once had.  I have this (bad) habit of purchasing clothes, getting tired of them, putting them into a garbage sack at the bottom of my closet, getting rid of the sack, and then buying new clothes to start the whole vicious cycle over again.  One item of clothing that made it into the garbage bag was a white, creme-colored cardigan sweater that had once been a staple in my wardrobe.
I've pretty much found that in Alaska, every girl needs a nice basic white cardigan sweater, and a nice basic black cardigan sweater to keep warm and look trendy.  I don't know why I got rid of this sweater, but away it went.
There's one thing I forgot to mention about my vicious clothing cycle.  I sometimes wish for clothing that I've gotten rid of.  But it's gone, so that's that.
I was talking to God one day, and I told him, "You know what, God?  I wish I had that creme-colored cardigan sweater back."
God told me: Get into your dad's truck and drive to Value Village (a thrift store).
I thought God had ignored my request, but I promptly did as I was told.  Ah, the good ol' days when one didn't have to worry about things as one does as an adult.  There were so many less hindrances as a youth.
Needless to say, I went to Value Village and I found my cardigan sweater.  It was a little used, but it was mine.
Why worry about clothes?  God's got you covered.  :)

Strive To Be Like The Lotus Flower

Matthew 5:8 (New International Version)

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Background

During a prayer session, youth were asked to wait upon the Lord to see if he had anything to say.  He showed me a picture of a small pink lotus flower, but I dismissed the image, thinking it trivial.  One of the youth, a quieter boy, piped up and said he saw a small, pink lotus flower.  When the youth leader asked if anyone had the interpretation of this image, one student offered to look it up on the internet.  The following information was found.

What makes the lotus flower so special?

The lotus flower starts as a small flower at the bottom of a pond, in the muck and grime. It slowly grows up towards the water’s surface, continually moving towards the light. Once it comes to the surface of the water, the lotus flower blossoms into a beautiful flower.  At night the flower closes and sinks underwater.  At dawn it rises and opens again. Untouched by the impurity, the lotus symbolizes the purity of heart and mind.

Significance

Like the lotus flower, we are all called to keep our hearts pure so that we may see God in these dark and murky times.  While we may take time to be in God’s presence, our ascension into the light of day, we will, until we die, eventually submerge into the grime of the world again.  I believe that these images, given at a youth group prayer session, were a picture of God’s heart for us in these times.  God desires purity in us; it’s what He finds attractive.  When we are attractive to anyone, they will want to spend time with us.  I think in some respects it is like us with God. 

If you do your research, you will find that the lotus flower has some deep spiritual meanings for many different religions, especially Buddhism and Hinduism.  No wonder so many people over the ages were attracted to the powerful symbolism in this beautiful little flower!  It is a very basic depiction of the desires of God’s heart for us, to rise again as a beautiful flower, the very essence of who we are in Him.  That part of us that humans call their conscience, the part that cries out for God, sees this beautiful depiction, and across the board, we have desired to be like this small flower, yearned for the completion in Christ.

I believe the message that God wanted to give to us during that session, and wants to portray now, is to look at this image and take heart.  To be encouraged and to strive for purity.  I believe the message that God wanted to portray to us is simply this: strive to be like the lotus flower.  

How I Met God

I met God first, I think, at the young age of four.  It was in my backyard on post at Eilson Airforce Base, Alaska.  
I heard about him in Sunday school and wondered if God was actually real.  My parents took my brother and I to the chapel every Sunday.  One of our neighbors, a girl slightly older than I, told me that she believed in science, not God.  Also in Mother Nature.  I asked a lady who was teaching Sunday school how I could know if God is real.  She told me to ask God to show himself to me, and he would.
I went home and did as directed.  God did just as she said he would.
My father had given me a children's Bible and through videos and my parents reading the children's Bible to me, I was familiar with a story of Gideon (Judges 6-7) and how he set out a physical test to see if God was real.  I decided to do ask God to reveal himself to me in a simple test:  If he was real, he would accept an offering that I left for him.
I then set about making the offering.  It was a bouquet of hand-picked dandelions and clover flowers.  I took a piece of Trident chewing gum and wrapped it around them to hold them together, so God wouldn’t lose any.  I then thought he might find the gum disgusting, as grown ups did when they found used gum under tables.  So I disguised it with clover leaves.  The bouquet I left by the solitary birch tree in the back yard.  And then I waited.
The next day, I went to the tree, and the bouquet was gone.  I thought to myself surely someone must have taken it, so I told God if he was there, he would accept my next offering too.  And I went through the routine a few more times.  Each time, the bouquet disappeared.
I never told my parents about my experiment, for fear they might interfere.
Suffice to say, I told God shortly thereafter I believed in Him and would do so the rest of my life.  I also said I didn't really understand the part about Jesus because I didn't really find the crucifixion comfortable, but because I believed in God and Jesus was sent by Him, I would believe in all of that as well.  I told God I didn't understand everything in the Bible, but since He was real, then the Bible had to be real, too.
I still believe in God today, and he has revealed himself in ways to me more powerful than accepting a simple offering of flowers.
I am excited to one day see him face to face.

God Speaks Through Graffiti

In high school, I never really fit in.  Teens are insecure, but I was even more so because I went from seventh grade straight into ninth grade, and unlike everyone else, I did not have any friends in my classes that I knew since kindergarten.  I knew hardly anyone, and that was my freshman year.  

I remember at times feeling invisible.  I remember wishing I was well-liked and had friends, instead of being the awkward girl who was too smart to be in eighth and too uncool to hang out with the freshmen.  (I tagged along with my brother's friends, who were juniors.  My brother pretended he did not know me.)  

One day, it had just been too much for me—emotions and life—and at times in high school I suffered from suicidal thoughts.  I told God, “Lord, if anyone sees me—let them speak now; let me have even one small gesture of kindness.”  I needed to know.

I waited all day, and no one spoke, no one did anything.  I felt lonelier, and more self-conscious than ever. 

Then, in my weight training class, I finally had it.  I’ve never really been athletic, and I had trouble benching the bar (without any weights on it).  I told myself that I'd had it.  I didn’t know what I’d do, though my thoughts veered toward ending my life that night since I was so insignificant and no one cared.

Then, when I sat down on the sit-up bench to knock out fifty crunches, I saw something before me that made me speechless.   There, on the wall, someone had written in pencil, “I see you.” 

Those words, a joke to unnerve whoever might be trying to cheat on their pushups, resounded through my soul.  I knew it was God who said them; it was God that prompted whoever wrote it to pen the words, just so that I might know that He cared.

I still struggle sometimes in regards to acceptance and self-worth, but inside, this memory serves as a reminder that no matter where I am, and how invisible I feel, I am significant to God.

While my problems are insignificant when compared to the happenings of the cosmos, God has time for me.  While I am one of 5 billion people, and however many more people that lived on the earth before my time, God knows me by name.  He knows the number of hairs on my head.  He collects my every tear.

If you struggle with feeling small and significant and just need one small gesture, see the graffiti on the wall in my gym class.  God says to you, too, “I see you.”

            

The Book of James Rewritten In My Own Words

Chapter 1

James the apostle writes to the brethren. 

Hello.

Dear ones, when life is troubling in any way, when you feel surrounded by hopelessness and the world presses in all around, let your heart be filled with joy.  Exercising your faith in such circumstances builds endurance—like a long distance runner, you must practice.  You must build endurance so that you can be mature, that you can finish your race and not lack in energy throughout.  Joy comes in finishing, so be filled with joy at the prospect of being able to finish well.

            If you feel you don’t have wisdom, request it from your heavenly Father, who gives in abundance without a second thought; it will be given to you.  But ask as if you will receive it, don’t doubt for doubters are like a storm-tossed ship driven by gales of hurricane winds.  This is like being double-minded and unstable like a house with a shifting foundation, and this kind of person must not expect to receive anything, for what use is wisdom to such a person?

            Let the believer who is the least or in a poor circumstance boast in being lifted up and seated at the right hand of the Father, and the rich believer boast in being brought low in humility, for the riches they are used to will not be carried with them into the afterlife.  Their riches will disappear like a flower in the field, and they will be better to learn to not lean on them in this life, for amidst a busy life, riches can be lost in a moment.  The only one we can trust in is our Lord.

            Anyone who endures temptation is blessed with favor from God.  Such an overcomer who has stood the test will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.  No one should think that temptation comes from God—for God is disgusted with evil and would not dangle failure in our faces just to mock us.  But we are tempted by our own dark hearts, lured and enticed by the fleshliness of it; when desire is allowed to breed it gives birth to sin, and that sin, when it matures, is the father of death.  Do not let your hearts deceive you, dear ones.

            Every time you find yourself giving generously or operating in any of the gifts, you are acting upon the inclination of the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, no shadowy places due to change, for He never changes.  These gifts are from him.  He gave us life to fulfill His purpose, so that we would be better than His first creatures, which fell to sin on the garden.

            You must make this your mantra, dear ones: be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.  For human anger does not produce God’s righteousness.  So rid yourself of this rank, rotten behavior which is detestable to God and submit to the fresh, sweet growth of the words planted in you, which has the power to save your souls.

            But you shouldn’t just hear these words and deceive yourselves into thinking you are growing.  You must also do what the words say to do.  If any just hear and don’t do, then they are like those who glance in a mirror in the morning and walk away without fixing their mussed hair, sandy eyes, and smeared mascara, going out into the world as if they were freshly done up.  But those that actually do the work and also persevere, these will be blessed in their doing, and also bless the heart of the Father.

            If any think they are a great follower of Christ, if any claim to be, and they do not bridle their tongues and let their hearts deceive them, their faith is practically worthless.  Faith that is attractive and sweet to God the Father is this: to care for those hurting, those lacking family and protection, those needing, those that no one else wants to care for, like orphans and widows, in their distress.  And also to keep oneself unstained by the delights of this world that our deceitful hearts lust after.

Chapter 2

My dear ones, do you really think you impress Jesus by showing favoritism?  For if a rich, attractive, and interesting person comes around and you show them great favor and deference, while you snub poor, unattractive, uninteresting people, do you not become like corrupt judges who, given bribes, will be convicted and thrown into prison?  Listen, my dear ones.  Hasn’t God chosen the poor to be rich in faith and to be heirs in the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?  But you dishonor the poor, in both material wealth and other attractions.  Isn’t it the rich people, rich in material wealth and other attractions, that are the ones that end up being oppressive?  Isn’t it a rich person who’d sue you for all you’re worth?  Isn’t it they that have time to make a bad name for you and the Lord God?

            You would do well to do what the words of God say.  “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  But if you show partiality, you commit sin and will be taken to trial and convicted as a criminal.  For just by breaking this one part of the law, you have broken them all and will be put to death.  For the one who said not to commit adultery also said not to murder.  But if you do not commit adultery and murder, then you have still broken the word of the one who said it.  So speak and act like you are going to be judged by the one who set these laws of liberty.  For judgment without mercy will be given to you if you do not show mercy even unto these poor, unattractive, uninteresting people; mercy triumphs over judgment.

            What good is it, dear ones, if you say you have faith but do not have anything to show of it?  It is one thing to say you have faith, but you can truly prove you have it with action.  Can the idea of climbing up a rope ladder onto a ship save you from drowning in a shipwreck?  Or do you have to actually grab hold of the ladder and climb up?  If another believer lacks clothing and daily provisions and one of you says to them, ignoring their needs, “Go in peace, stay warm out there and I hope your dinner is awesome,” what is the good of that?  Just as shallow as that would be, so is faith itself without works.  It’s like a dead corpse without the life in it.

            Of course, someone would probably say to this, “I have great faith, and so-and-so has great works.  So it’s all good.  I spur them on, and they do.”  Show me your faith without works, I’d like to see it.  By my good works, I show you my faith!  You believe that God is the only God.  Good for you.  Even the demons believe this, and shudder at the great and terrible knowledge.  Do you want to be shown, you silly person, that corpses without life in them can’t go very far?  Abraham justified his faith when he was willing to offer up his one and only son as a sacrifice to God, by putting his faith into action.  Faith is brought to completion in works.  Because he believed God and put his faith into action, God called him his friend.  A person is justified by his works, not by his faith alone.  Rahab, a prostitute, was also justified by her works, for she welcomed messengers risking her life, and sent them out on a different road.  For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so is faith without works.  A dead corpse. 

Chapter 3

I don’t advise that a lot of you become teachers, dear ones, for not only do you have the responsibility of your own walk, but you will be held responsible for the material that you teach to others, and be judged in greater strictness because of your responsibility.  I know that everyone makes mistakes.  Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking could be called perfect, able to keep the whole body kept in check with a bridle.  It’s like when you put bits in the mouths of horses to make them obey.  With one fairly small tool, you can guide their whole bodies.  Ships, too, are guided by very small tools.  They are so large it takes strong winds to drive them, yet a tiny rudder will direct such a vessel wherever the captain directs.  So also the tongue is a small tool, yet it boasts of great exploits.

            How a great forest can be burnt to the ground by something as small as a spark or a bit of ash that has not been extinguished!  The tongue is like this small spark or bit of ash.  The tongue is capable of staining the whole body, setting afire the entirety of it so that it is subject to the fires of hell.  It’s so wild that none can tame it, us humans who have pretty much tamed every species of creature on earth.  It’s a restless evil, full of a deadly poison.  With it we can praise our most precious Lord and Father, and with it we also curse those made in his glorious image.  From the same place comes both blessing and cursing!  Dear ones, this ought to not be so.  Does a spring pour forth fresh water and bog water?  Can a fig tree grow olives naturally or a grapevine grow figs without someone to graft them on?

            Who among yourselves thinks you are wise and have a great understanding?  Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness towards others which is born of your wisdom.  But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t be boastful or false to the truth.  Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, and devilish.  For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and evil of every kind.  True wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good life results, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.  For those that sow peace where they go, for those that make peace, they will reap righteousness as a result.

Chapter 4

Where do conflicts and disputes among you come from?  Do they not come from your own dark hearts, the evil cravings that are at war within you?  You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder.  And you want something that is not yours and take it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts.  You do not have because you don’t ask.  You ask and do not receive because you ask with the wrong heart, so that you can appease your own dark heart’s pleasures!  Unfaithful cheaters!  Don’t you know that friendship with the world is like having an affair, cheating on the God that loves you?  So if you want to be friends with the world, you break his heart and incur his wrath.  Or do you think the scriptures say, “God longs jealously for the spirit that he has made to dwell in us” for nothing?  But such a God that loves us understands our weakness, gives us all the more grace.  The scriptures say, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace the humble.”  Submit yourselves therefore to God, humble yourself before him.  Resist the devil and the desires of your dark hearts that he rises up within you, and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God, and like a lover he will draw near to you with great joy!  Cleanse your hands, you who sin, and purify your hearts, those who are double-minded.  Truly lament your actions, weep and lay yourself low before God.  Let this repentance pierce your very soul so that you cannot even laugh or have joy because of your God-hurting actions.  Humble yourselves before God, and he will lift you up off your face like good king, and give you the princely seat he has promised.

            Do not speak evil against one another, dear ones.  Whoever speaks evil against another judges another, speaks evil against the law of God and also judges the law itself.  This exalts yourself (proudly) to the position of a judge.  There is but one lawgiver and judge who is able to save and destroy.  Who are you to try and take His place?

            Now, for those of you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go here, spend a year there, doing business and making money” as if you are god of the future.  You don’t even know what tomorrow will bring!  What is your life?  You are a like a morning mist which appears for moments and then vanishes once the sun comes out.  What you really ought to say is, “If the Lord wishes, we will do this and that.”  Make your plans as if God exists. Without figuring him into the picture, consulting him, you boast in your own arrogance and all such boasting is evil.  Anyone then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin.

Chapter 5

Now for those of you who are rich and trust in your riches, you should prepare yourself for the heart-break that is coming.  Your stored-up riches will rot and your clothes will be eaten by moths when you are gone.  Your gold and silver piled high will rust, and their rust will be evidence against you, will eat your flesh like fire.  You laid up treasure for the last days, but when you are dead, it does you no good!  If you have cheated anyone, the Lord God has heard their cry.  While you lived on earth in luxury and pleasure while others suffered, you fattened your heart for the day of slaughter only.  By doing wrong to others, by not using your wealth on those, you have condemned and murdered the righteous one, who does not resist you.

            Have patience, then, dear ones, until the day that God comes back.  Farmers wait for their crops to grow, until it receives all the rains needed.  You must also be patient in this season.  Strengthen your hearts, build up your endurance, for the coming of the Lord is near.  Dear ones, do not grumble against one another, do not sin against one another with your mouths so that you will be judged.  See, the Judge is standing at the entranceway.  As an example of suffering and patience, dear ones, look to the example of the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord, those who died long before their prophetic words were fulfilled.  Indeed we call them blessed for their endurance, and their prophecies came true.  You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.

            Above all, dear ones, do not be so that you have to swear or make an oath to make people believe your word.  Let your ‘yes’ answers be true and your ‘no’ answers be true too, so that you may not fall under condemnation for your idle, lying words.

            Are any among you troubled, hopeless, or feel surrounded by the pressures of this world?  They should pray, go to the God who has power to give strength and provide.  Are any having a great time, glad at the blessings in their God-blessed lives?  They should praise God, sing forth songs of praise to lift up His name and thank Him for His blessing.  Are any among you ill in either soul or body?  They should call the elders of the church to pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.  The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up.  And lastly, but not the least, anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven, if they come before the Lord in the humble spirit that God loves.  Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.  The prophet Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain.  Just like he prayed, there was a great drought for three years and six months.  Then when he prayed again, the heavens gave rain.  The same God that helped Elijah is the God we worship and pray to; remember that.

            Dear ones, if anyone of you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death