Uncategorized – Page 2 – Hope for Complete Healing

How to transform the Helpless Belief with Self-Control

Do you know someone who said they couldn’t help themselves? Is there someone in your life that has a compulsive issue? For many years I had an anger problem that I could not control. I was angry for most of my life because of the angry home I grew up in. I felt helpless to control my feelings and behavior. I said hurtful words to my precious family. I had to change, but how? You may not have an anger problem, but maybe it is a spending problem or a pornography issue.

This post is the last post on transforming unhealthy beliefs series. I have exposed many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and how to transform them with the truth to experience a new reality. My website is about changing false viewpoints to experience a new reality. What we think and say comes from what we believe, and what we believe directs our behavior.

Where Does the Helpless Belief Come From?

The helpless belief is closely related to the “I can’t” belief. If you haven’t read that post, you can read it here. The helpless belief is programmed into our brains from the memories of feeling helpless. Maybe you couldn’t control your behavior which created a painful memory. Or you couldn’t control the events in your life, so you gave up.

When a child is not disciplined for out-of-control behavior, such as laziness, manipulation, lying, temper tantrums, etc., that becomes part of their character. Controlling behavior issues are very hard to reprogram, but with God’s help, you can change automatic reactions.

For example, on New Year’s Eve, I played games with my family. I had an automatic reaction of throwing a fit when I felt someone was not being kind to me. I felt helpless to control my reaction, and it was embarrassing. If you have the same problem, go through the steps to overcome unhealthy beliefs below.

How To Change Unhealthy Beliefs

1. To transform unhealthy beliefs, recognize you have them. Listen to what you are saying and pay attention to your thoughts. Don’t accept that you are helpless to change.

2. Submit the wrong thinking to God and ask Him to show you the truth.

3. Ask God to show you if there is a painful memory controlling your thoughts and out-of-control decisions.

4. Pray and put off the unhealthy belief controlling your thoughts and put on the truth that God shows you from His Word.

I first loosed the wrong thinking that God showed me and replaced it with scripture truths like the following:

— With God’s help, I can be self-controlled and resist temptation, and I can say no to ungodliness and worldly desires. Titus 2:12; Pr. 25:28

— When I am self-controlled, I am temperate, worthy of respect, and sound in faith, love, and perseverance (I do not quit). Titus 2:2

Conclusion: If haven’t seen the other posts in this series, check them out.

How to Dig up the Unforgiving Belief to Grow in Love

How to Convert Pridefulness to Gentleness and Humility

How to Diminish the Distrust Belief to Enlarge Trust

Diminish the “Self-centered” Belief to Expand Goodness (Other-centered)

How to Decrease Fairness Belief to Increase Patience

How to Weed out the Protection Belief and Grow Kindness

How to Eliminate the “My Way is Better” Belief to Sustain Peace

The Link Between Disappointment, Resentment, and Self-control

Self-control and Maturity

1–Healing Begins by Transforming Painful Memories

Finding Unhealthy Beliefs Along the Paths of Life – Hiking Lessons Part Two

All verses are from the English Standard Bible. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share the links with your friends and family, hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected, and no part of the posts or my book may be reproduced without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom.

Check out my first book on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think.

If you read my book and find it helpful, please leave a review. Also, if you want to do a Bible study with it, email me and ask for a free PDF of the leader’s guide. Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com

Contact me for a PDF of Eight Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Three Ways to Have Good Success in The New Year

Joshua 1:8 explains how to have success in your life: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

Last year my New Year’s resolution was 1Timothy 4:7-8. “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; ⁸for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” I wrote several blogs concerning godliness as I considered how to train myself for godliness, which you can read here.

This year, Joshua 1:8 is my New Year resolution verse because I want to be successful in accomplishing my goals. I do not believe this means I will not have problems or get rich. Prosperous also means good fortune; flourishing; successful. Success is defined by Dictionary.com 2021 as the favorable or prosperous end of attempts or endeavors; the accomplishment of one’s goals.

I want to see my ministry prosper and bring God glory. I want to see my evangelistic efforts grow and that many will accept Christ Jesus into their hearts and escape the wrath of God. I want to see my relationships prosper by becoming deeper and healthier. You get the idea.

First Way to Have Good Success

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth.” I plan to accomplish this by always reminding myself and those around me of God’s promises and truths found in the Bible.

Second Way to Have Good Success

“But you shall meditate on it day and night.” To accomplish the second way to prosper, I will ponder and memorize one truth a day, both morning and night. I hope to have 300-360 verses memorized by next year. See my blog post on how to memorize.

The Third way to Have Good Success

“So that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.” I plan to memorize scriptural truths that teach me how to love well, be godly, and do good. Next, I will practice these truths through God’s divine power (see 2Peter 1:3). So, if God wants me to share the gospel with my neighbors, I will pray for divine opportunity and do that. To accomplish obeying God’s instructions, I need to ask Him to show me the false beliefs that defile my heart and prevent me from doing His commands. Purifying your heart takes work, but it is worth it because Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). To learn how to purify your heart, see my post called Five Steps to Heal Your Heart and Purify Your Soul.

Conclusion

I hope you choose a guiding verse for your New Year. May God bless you richly in the coming year as you draw closer to Him each and every day.

Check out my first book on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think.

If you read my book and find it helpful, please leave a review. Also, if you want to do a Bible study with it, email me and ask for a free PDF of the leader’s guide. The PDF will have suggested discussion questions after each section. Quick links to all the scriptures in the endnotes for you to review or to copy and paste into your notes. Website links to review supporting material. Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com

Also, contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to know how to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

How to Fight Unseen Battles

What are unseen battles? How do you know you are in a battle if you don’t see it? These questions and many more are answered in my book called Fighting Unseen Battles that you can find on Amazon. If you wish to read my eBook and don’t have a Kindle or a Kindle app on your computer or phone, you can go to GooglePlay and download it for free.

Though there are many books written on Spiritual Warfare by big-name radio hosts and preachers, my book is unique in that it addresses the unseen battles against our minds, hearts, and souls.

How often do you struggle with being offended, worrying, being judgmental, and so on?

Do you realize how often the spirit world interacts with you?

My book explains how we are spirit beings in a physical body living in a physical world and how the unseen spiritual world interacts with our spirit. Read 1John 4:1-6 and underline all “Spirit” references. Here are the first three verses: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. ²By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.”

How many times a day do you have an opportunity to become offended?

This book will help you recognize and overcome offenses. For example, I was helping an inmate fight the unseen battle of deception that generated anger. Because of this unseen battle, she wanted to kill her mother. By the end of our session, she overcame the attack on her mind. At our next session, she reported that all was good with the situation involving her mother that she took offense to.

This book will teach you how to help others fight unseen battles in their lives. Parents will benefit by reading this book, so they can recognize the unseen struggles in their children and help them be victorious. I regret not knowing about unseen battles when I was a parent. I would have been a better parent and better equipped to help my children face the many difficulties in the world.

Do you know where unseen battles come from?

My book reveals the many sources of unseen battles, including the basic tactic of every deception and temptation from:

–Demonic Forces

–Self-centered Pride

–Adversity and Troubles

–Sinful Nature

–Worldliness

–Idolatry

–Unanswered Prayer

You will learn about the biblical authority a believer has to fight against demonic forces and the biblical strategies for victory.

My book is the culmination of the Bible Study materials I prepared for incarcerated women. It is written at a basic, easy-to-understand level with practical how-to applications of God’s truths. I love reading my book because it reminds me of the daily battles we are unaware of and the biblical strategies to be victorious. I know you will be encouraged when you read this book. You will also be equipped to help others and to make disciples as Jesus instructed in Matthew 18:19.

You can find my book on Amazon. I hope you check it out because I know you will be blessed. If you read my book and find it helpful, please leave a review. Also, if you want to do a Bible study with it, email me and ask for a free PDF of the leader’s guide. The PDF will have suggested discussion questions after each section. The scriptures in the endnotes will have quick links, and website links to review supporting material. My contact information is on the Copywrite page.

Thank you to everyone who supports my healing ministry. May God bless you and your family richly in the coming year.

How to Decrease Fairness Belief to Increase Patience

“They are not doing their fair share (whine).” When you think of fairness, what comes to your mind? Fairness can be equality, impartiality, justice, and doing what is right. The problem with the unhealthy belief that everything should be fair is that each person has a different perspective of what is a just and equitable action or behavior. What I think is equal, impartial, or fair may not be what you think. So, patience is necessary for those times when your expectation of what you think is fair is not realized. The only one who is truly just is God, yet many people do not trust that He is fair because of this harmful belief. God is righteous and will always do what is right according to His holiness, though we may not understand it.

“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.” – Psalm 89:14

“The LORD works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.” – Psalm 103:6

“Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!” – Psalm 106:3

“To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.” – Proverbs 21:3

“Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.” – Proverbs 28:5

My website is about changing unhealthy beliefs to experience a new reality. What we think and say comes from what we believe, and what we believe directs our behavior. Our choices determine how healthy our relationships will be. In this series of posts, I will expose the unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and how to transform them with the truth to experience a new reality.

Where Does the Unhealthy Fairness Belief Come From?

Let’s look at our opening statement. “They are not doing their fair share (whine).” Or “They are not pulling their fair share of the work.” Can you hear the judgmental whine? I’m not making fun because I have said that plenty of times. So, the source of the fairness belief begins with comparison and thinking we are doing more than someone else, or have less than someone else, and so on. For example, if you have a liberal mindset, you think the conservatives are not being just and impartial. The conservatives think that the views of the liberals are unjust and not right. It is all a matter of point of view or bias.

Another source is unmet expectations. When we expect that the workload will be shared, yet we think we are doing more work than the other person, they may be thinking they are doing more work than you. You might think you are not getting a fair price, but the other person thinks they are giving you a fair deal. So, fairness is a matter of perspective, which is often based on our self-centered pride. Again, we see the ugly head of pride in yet another unhealthy belief. Pride demands justice and fairness especially when it benefits our self-centered desires. Only when we are humble can we be patient when our standard of fairness and justice is not achievable.

A complaining attitude instead of a thankful attitude also breeds the unhealthy fairness belief of inequality. So, be grateful instead of comparing yourself with someone else and what they are doing or not doing or have that you don’t have.

So, why should we be patient when we feel wronged, and what is patience?

Patience is the evidence of love (1Cor.13:4). When we love others, we are right with God because we love as He loves. John 15:12-14 states, “This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life [selfish pride] for his friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command you.” Also, 1John 4:8 states, “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

The following definitions of patience come from Webster’s dictionary. Patience is bearing or enduring pain, trouble, inconvenience, etc., without complaint, losing self-control, making a disturbance, etc. To be forbearing: tolerate (to put up with). Keep oneself in check. It is refusing to be provoked or angered, as by an insult or frustration. And, it is merciful: compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or person in one’s power. Lastly, patience is being just: living with a moral principle that determines right conduct and fairness by treating all sides alike.

The Truth That Transforms the Unhealthy Fairness Belief

First, accept that life is not fair, and fairness is arbitrary, which is why we need to be humble and patient with one another.

Second, ask God to reveal if you have resentment toward an unfair action in your past that is related to the offense you have taken in your current situation. For example, when I was a teenager, I felt it was unfair that I had to spend hours doing the dishes that everyone piled up. I became resentful of my sisters because I felt they were dirtying too many dishes. Fast forward to a few years ago; I still resented having to do the dishes. I had my sons take turns doing the dishes, and then they moved out. I talked to my husband about my resentment and asked if he would help, which he did reluctantly, but he often wouldn’t help at all. The truth that set me free from my irrational fairness belief was that I am called to serve others in love as Jesus came to serve.

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴ Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵ Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” – Philippians 2:3-7

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh [selfish-pride], but through love serve one another.” – Galatians 5:13

Third, instead of stewing about something you feel is unfair, talk to the person involved in the comparison. Calmly state your observation or point of view, then ask for the other person’s point of view on the situation with a humble attitude. Ask if you can work out a more equitable situation to reduce frustration for both of you. If the other person does not see your perspective, then be patient with them.

How To Change Unhealthy Beliefs

1. To transform unhealthy beliefs, recognize you have them. Listen to what you are saying and pay attention to your thoughts.

2. Submit the wrong thinking to God and ask Him to show you the truth.

3. Ask God to show you if you have a painful memory or resentment controlling your thoughts and decisions.

4. Pray and put off the unhealthy belief controlling your thoughts and put on the truth God shows you from His Word.

I first loosed the wrong thinking that God showed me and replaced it with scripture truths like the following:

Being patient shows wisdom. It is to my glory to overlook an offense and not be prideful and arrogant. Prov. 19:11; Eccl. 7:8b
Being patient calms a quarrel, but anger stirs up strife, so I put off my anger and wanting things my way. Prov 15:18
I can be patient with everyone and accept them. And not complain about them but to forgive them as Christ is patient with me and forgives me. 1 Thes. 5:14b; Col. 3:12b,13
I trust God to give me what I truly need in His perfect, divine timing. Phil. 4:19; Luke 12:22-34
I can be humble, gentle, patient, and show tolerance for others in love. Eph. 4:2

A POWERFUL MOOD CHANGER

What is Wrong with Fairness?

How Patience is a Sign of Maturity

WHY HEAL YOUR HEART AND PURIFY YOUR SOUL?

Love From a Pure Heart

All verses are from the English Standard Bible unless otherwise indicated. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share the links with your friends and family, hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. No part of the posts or my book may be reproduced without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, salvation for non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. Please leave your name so I know you are a person making the request.

HOW I SURVIVED THE VIRUS

On September 1, I began fighting the Delta Coronavirus. I am 59, with a weak immune system and several autoimmune diseases. My experience is not CO-VID misinformation but how my husband, sister, and I overcame the virus. So, why did I not get the vaccine when most of my family did get the vaccine? First, I am not a good candidate. Second, I am a logical data analytics person. I wanted to see what data emerged after the COVID shots began. I wanted to observe how effective the shots were, what the side effects were.

I learned that the shots only protect you from getting a bad case of the virus, but you can still get the virus, transmit it to others, and still die. So, why should I get the shot? The data that is glaringly missing and most concerning to me is the side effects. In the beginning, I saw testimonies of people who had side effects, but then they were suppressed. Why? I found out that many who died from the complications of the CO-VID shot were considered coincidental. I have the right to know what my risks are. Also, why are the medical doctors who are sounding the alarm being suppressed and canceled? My skepticism is growing, not because I am stupid, as the media would divisively accuse.

Surviving Any Virus

God created the human body to take care of invading viruses and bacteria and heal itself. But we need to take care of our wonderfully made bodies to have a healthy immune system and a robust endocrine system. First, I eat 50-80% raw food and avoid foods with chemicals and added sugar/corn syrup to stay in good health. Second, I avoid sugar/corn syrup because it is the #1 suppressor of our immune system that also causes the most inflammation in our brains and bodies. Third, I supported my immune system with natural supplements. So, the best way to survive a Corona or SARS virus is to have a healthy body and a strong immune system. Studies showed that those with adequate vitamin D had a greater chance of staying out of the hospital.

Being a school teacher for many years, I was exposed to many viruses. I learned how to keep my immune system strong because, inevitably, I would fight every virus the students brought into the classroom. I took very few sick days when I supplemented with Vitamin C (ascorbates), Zinc picolinate, Echinacea, elderberry syrup, and an odorless garlic supplement to support my immune system. If I got a SARS virus, I would take Myrrh to protect my lungs, which worked well for me. So, when I started to feel sick (soreness in my nose, eyes, and throat), I immediately started supporting my immune system. I also added Stinging Nettle to relieve pain, inflammation, detox, strengthen my immunity, and so on.

Many of my friends, who also got the Delta variant, relied on pharmaceutical drugs to relieve the symptoms and had the most challenging time overcoming this virus. When you need them, there is nothing wrong with pharmaceutical medications, but they do not support the immune system. It took me a little more than three weeks to recover because of my compromised immune system. My husband recovered in about eight days, and my sister recovered in about four days. My sister is a natural health practitioner and did other things to heal faster.

Where is God When We are Sick?

When I had no energy during the worst of the coronavirus fight, I could only pray. I sought God for strength and healing because I did not know if I would get worse and die or overcome it. I reminded God of His faithfulness and promises never to leave nor forsake me. I trusted Him to strengthen my body to fight the coronavirus and give me the wisdom to know what my body needed to fight off the virus. I relied every day on God to help me because I knew He was faithful and loved me. What if I did get worse and ended up in ICU? Would God be less faithful or not love me? Not at all.

Some of my Christian friends did get worse and had to go on oxygen or spend time in the hospital. Sometimes we get bitter at God when our prayers are not answered; sometimes, we reap what we sow. If we put junk food into our bodies, well, we will reap poor health and a weak immune system. I was sick all the time when I ate the typical American diet. I would pray for healing and not be healed. So, I began to educate myself about how to keep our amazing bodies strong. Read my blog post called Sick and Tired? Change Your Destiny! Be Free From the Infirmity Stronghold to learn more about how I changed my destiny by changing what I ate.

Why do we need a vaccine?

Since the development of vaccines, we have defeated many diseases. I am vaccinated against those diseases, and so are my children. I discovered that the COVID shot is not a true vaccine and is not designed to eliminate disease. The Moderna and Pfizer injections do not have any attenuated form of the intended organism within their solutions, which does not meet the vaccine classification.

We were told to get the vaccine so we could eradicate COVID and get back to normal. We all wanted that, and many blindly flocked to get the injections, but we were lied to. Now we have division in our country, and the vaccine-hesitant are treated as evil and discriminated against. Mandating this experimental shot is tearing the very fiber of our great country apart. Our hospitals are being short-staffed as many doctors, nurses, and technicians are leaving or being fired. Out fire, police, and ambulance companies are being short staffed. Our education system is being understaffed. I am very disturbed by this. Why are we being forced to be part of an experiment against our will and better judgment? Though the FDA approved the COVID shots, the FDA and CDC guidelines say that all vaccines must go through a three-year safety efficacy study first.

Besides, viruses mutate, and now we see that the original COVID shot does not protect you against the mutations. Keeping our bodies healthy and strong and supporting our immune system is the best way to overcome invading viruses.

I hope my experience helps, educates, and encourages you. You do not have to be afraid of the COVID virus. It is never too late to learn as much as you can about supporting your immune system and keeping the supplements available that I shared in this post.

Keep praying for our country and many other countries who are mandating this injection.

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WHAT IS YOUR FINAL MESSAGE?

What will your final message be to those around you? King Solomon’s last message was, “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Eccl. 13-14). He says that man’s whole existence is the revere God to the point of wanting to please Him by obeying His commands. My last message will be, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2Cor. 5:10). Yes, God knows all things, even things we think are secret. He knows our thoughts (Ps. 139:1-4), which is why we need to keep our minds on the things above and not on the things of the earth (Col. 3:1-2). How consciously aware are you that God sees all that you do? How will you live your life differently knowing this fact?

Why Should We Fear God?

When we fear God, we will have wisdom (Prov. 9:10). Wisdom helps us make good decisions and choose the right actions. The people I know who do not fear God make foolish decisions that have negative consequences in their lives. The worst consequence is being sent to hell because they refuse to repent of their sin and seek God’s forgiveness.

Pastor Lawry responds to people who say, “How can a loving God send people to hell” with “God doesn’t send people to hell; people choose to go.” Romans 1:19-21 states, “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. ²¹ For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” We all know people who foolishly live their lives as though they will not stand before God to give an account for the things they have done while in the body. Futile thinking is thinking thoughts that do not have meaning or value. We control what we think and what we believe. Every day, acknowledge God and do what pleases Him by obeying the commands found in the Bible, namely, to love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. Then love others as yourself. Proverbs 15:3 states, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” How often does the accounting you will make before God impact your actions and attitudes?

Our lives need to revolve around God because He created us to be in fellowship with Him. Since He sees everything, and everything we do is for Him, then nothing in life is pointless. An encouraging word, showing kindness or patience, a quiet prayer—they all have meaning to God. Therefore, we should live our lives by design and not haphazardly.

Where Do Good and Evil Come From?

Interestingly, there were two trees in the Garden of Eden that Adam and Eve could not eat from. One was called the knowledge of good and evil, and the other was called the tree of life. God threw Satan out of heaven onto earth because of his prideful rebellion, and he came to Eve and tempted her to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Why? You can read the story in Genesis 3. The knowledge of good and evil came as a result of sin. We have a choice to obey God and do good or disobey God and sin, which is evil.

Good and evil also come from the heart. Luke 6:45 states, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” You know the saying, hurting people hurt people, and loving people love people. The purpose of my website is to help you work through the evil done to you that has left your soul wounded and has stolen your peace, and crippled your ability to love. The wounds of our soul generate wrong thinking and unhealthy beliefs that direct us to do evil. In my book Hope for Complete Healing, I explain how to heal your heart, which can be found on my website.

A Consequence of Doing Evil

The worst consequence of evil is separation from God, who gives us life and every good thing. 1Peter 3:10-12 states, “For ‘Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; ¹¹ let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. ¹² For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil (Ps. 34:14-16).” When our hearts are full of hurt and resentment, we cannot seek peace because we don’t have peace in our hearts. 2Corinthians 7:1 states, “Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”

What will be your last word to those around you? I would like to know, please leave a comment, so other can know as well.

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http://How to experience a heavenly life on earth

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, salvation for non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. Please leave your name, so I know you are a person making the request.

Finding Unhealthy Beliefs Along the Paths of Life – Hiking Lessons Part Two

Where do you find unhealthy beliefs? Where do they hide? This website aims to help you discover unhealthy, false beliefs and replace them with the truth to experience a new reality. You will find unhealthy beliefs in many places, such as education, friends, family, bad experiences, what you watch on TV, the internet, or in the movies, and so on. The trick is to recognize unhealthy beliefs and replace them with the truth found in God’s Word. I discover most of my unhealthy beliefs when I become resentful. I discuss the power of resentment and how to resolve it at length in this post: How to Recognize and Eliminate Emotional Cancer.

Rattlesnakes Let You Know When You Are too Close

When I go on a hike, I pray for God’s protection that I would not encounter a rattlesnake, copperhead, or any other wild animal that could hurt me. Though I pray this prayer, and I believe God hears my prayer, but He may not answer my prayer as I expect. I wrote a series of posts on why God may not answer our prayers, found here.

I have hiked close to 300 miles of the MST and have only seen three rattlesnakes and no bears, though I see evidence of a bear being on the path. Psalm 91:14 states, “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.” On the last four-day hike, we came across two beautiful yellow-phase rattlesnakes on two different days. Yes, I was scared and backed away when I heard the rattles sound off, but I know they will not hurt me unless I mess with them.

Just as rattlesnakes let you know their presence, so resentment lets you know when you have an unhealthy belief. When you don’t have peace and joy, back up and look for bitterness. All bitterness is based on a false belief, which is a lie about yourself, others, or God. When you allow bitterness to bite you, it will cripple your ability to relate lovingly to people. Hebrews 12:15 states, “See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.”

Often destructive attitudes that create bitterness come from unmet expectations and disappointment. For example, you expect a thank-you when you give someone something, but they don’t. You resent that and refuse to give that person any more of your time or resources. To learn more, read ALL THOUGHTS ARE WITHIN OUR CONTROL.

Difficulties Throughout Life Create Unhealthy Beliefs

How many times has everything gone perfectly in your life? Have you faced difficulties you did not anticipate? Challenges in life reveal your true character. Are you patient and kind in the midst of hardships? Or are you angry and rude when things don’t go as planned? We all want our life to be peaches and cream, but that is not reality; it is an unhealthy, false belief. The Bible tells us that we are to expect problems. John 16:33 states, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

When we get on a trail, we have no idea what we will face. Sometimes it is very rocky and difficult.

Then there are easy trails that are wide and smooth. The last eight-plus miles of the MST to the Maryland border was the easiest of the 300 miles. We complete the eight miles in less than four hours.

Other times, you can’t see the trail and have to follow the blazes. Once I tripped over a log that was covered by ferns and fell face first. Thankfully, I did not hit my head on a rock. I thanked God for His protection.

Then there were two days of bushwhacking overgrown brambles and thorny vines. It took us six hours to hike six miles. We were bleeding from all the scratches, then I slipped on a sweating rock and fell into a patch of thorny brambles; ouch. The more I struggled to get out of the brambles, the more scratches I got. My strong husband was able to help me up. I saw it as an adventure, but my husband’s attitude was misery.

Often the trials of life will cause you pain and misery. How you view them will determine if you develop a false belief about your difficulties or allow God to perfect your character and root out the lies you believe. James 1:2-4 encourages us to “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4) And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” Ask God to show you the false beliefs or unhealthy attitudes you may have concerning a difficulty you went through so you don’t become entangled in resentment or bitterness.

Review of Lessons Learned In Last Blog

In the last blog, I learned that I needed a map to navigate life successfully, and our map is the Bible. When we refer to it often and follow the blazes left by others, we will stay on the path that leads to eternal life. Secondly, look for the surprises along the trail and enjoy them. Thirdly, pray for God’s strength when the tails of life become difficult. Whatever you do, don’t give up and persevere to the end.

Love From a Pure Heart

Five Steps to Heal Your Heart and Purify Your Soul

Pt. 1: Forsaken? Betrayed? How to Trust Again.

How Hiking Teaches About Life-Part One

Have you done something and regretted it, or did you learn from it and grew stronger? My husband and I are hiking the Mid State Trail (MST) from Maryland to New York. We are now section hiking our way down to Maryland. Every hike is an adventure with many challenges and surprises. Today’s hike was especially difficult, but there were many pleasant surprises. I was reminded of how hiking relates to life. Some people persevere with a positive attitude through difficulties and disappointments., and some people cave to depression and anger. To be honest, I tend to yield towards depression and anger, but with God’s help, I am learning to be thankful and seek His strength.

Make Sure You Follow The Right Path

A map is the most important thing you need when you go on a hike, but you need to make sure you are using the correct map. We need the Bible to guide us on the right path of life that will lead us to eternal life. When you walk the wrong path, you find dead ends and difficulties. For example, we began a ten-mile hike that went through a farm. To my delight, I saw a newborn calf. We were the first people he saw.

Further down the trail, we saw some remarkable fungi formations. After hiking to the top of the mountain, we realized we did not see any more trail blazes. We walked back and forth, trying to see if the trail took a turn we did not see. We look at our map many times. I was very disappointed and sad. I prayed for God to help us find the path, but He didn’t answer my prayer.

Expect Disappointments and be Flexible

We finally gave up and went back down the mountain to our car. I was tired, and my muscles hurt. Life is like this hike. You never know what difficulties and surprises lie ahead on the road of life. Expect disappointments and learn to be flexible. Expect that God will not always give you the requests you ask of Him. Most of all, find something you can be thankful for. My husband and I changed our plans. We later discovered the MST Association changed the trailhead to the other side of the mountain but did not blacken the trail blazes for the abandoned tail route or update their trail notifications. We might think we are on the right path in life, but when it leads nowhere, we have to backtrack and find the path we should be on.

We wasted a good portion of the day on the abandoned trail, so we decided to do a shorter section of the trail, we planned to do another day. This part of the trail also had surprises and difficulties. Not only did we have a hot road walk through Everett, but then the trail took us down a weedy railroad bed with briars and thistles that wrapped around our ankles, and I only had shorts on, ouch. To our surprise, we found two recliners sitting along the trail. The path that life takes us may be filled with difficulties and unpleasant things, but perseverance and having an attitude of gratitude and expectation will help you endure. I often tell myself, “This too will pass.” Covid19 and all the hardships will pass, so don’t despair, but through prayer, keep your eyes on God, our eternal guide.

Sometimes Life Can be Rocky

Hiking through Pennsylvania requires a lot of rock hiking, which is very challenging and tiring. You need to watch where you step and make sure the rock is stable, plus you need to watch out for rattlesnakes. If you take your eyes off where you step, you will end up falling or stepping on a snake. I have done many snake dances. Next week, I will tell you about the yellow-phase rattlesnake we encountered in another hike. Often, life leads you down rocky stretches but keep your eyes on the path by reading your Bible. Proverbs 119:105 says that the Word of God is a light to your path and a lamp for your steps.

Life Will Have Challenges

Hiking up and down mountains is very challenging, especially when we hiked from the bottom of the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon to the top. It was so steep and high that I didn’t know if I could make it. I prayed for God to give me the strength to make it. At times, I had to walk up backward and push with my hiking staff to give my calf muscles a break. Life can also be challenging, and you will need to rely on the Lord’s strength to help you make it. God will not give you strength until you seek it and put your trust in His ability. Psalm 18:32 “The God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.” Psalm 73:26 “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

I will share more next week.

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Being Thankful During Hardships

Thoughts That Create Peace Within and Without

ALL THOUGHTS ARE WITHIN OUR CONTROL

What Controls Your Thoughts?

The Meaning of Life — MOORE IN THE WORD

Let’s lighten it up a bit. My last blog entry caused a bit of a stir, so let’s soften the mood with an easier and lighter topic. How about THE MEANING OF LIFE (pause for dramatic music). What is the meaning of life? What is your purpose, what is your task? Where might we go to find […]
The Meaning of Life — MOORE IN THE WORD

I came across this great post. I hope you enjoy it. I am hiking the Mid State Trail (MST) to the Maryland border from Everett over the next four days, so I didn’t get a post written. I also hiked 27 miles of the MST last weekend as well. As I was hiking the roughest part (I hope) of the trail (5 miles up and down a rocky ridge) above Everett , I realized that life is like hiking, and I began to write a post on my thoughts. Hope to share that post soon.

What is Glory?

Why did God create humanity? Isaiah 43:7 and 21 explain, “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” And verse 21 states, “The people whom I formed for myself that they might declare my praise. Also, Ephesians 1:12 states, “So that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.” According these verses, God created us for His glory and to declare His praise. So, what is glory?

I found an old photocopy of an article called The Glory Of God And You written by Mary E. Birt. I have kept it in my Bible for many years, and I feel God inspiring me to share it with you today.

The glory of God is His beauty, power, honor, and greatness. The glory of God is the person and presence of God. The glory of God is His personality, goodness, holiness, light, righteousness, and His perfection of character. The glory of God is His mercy, graciousness, patience, truth, justice, forgiveness, and the work of the Holy Spirit. The glory of God is that place in which He lives. The glory of God is the atmosphere of Heaven. The glory of God is the way that God is.

Jesus Christ is the image of God. “He is the sole expression of the glory of God – the Light-being, the out-raying of the divine – and He is the perfect imprint and the very image of [God’s] nature, upholding and maintaining and guiding and propelling the universe by His mighty word of power. When He had by offering himself accomplished our cleansing of sins and riddance of guilt, He sat down at the right hand of the divine Majesty on high.” Hebrews 1:3 (The Amplified Bible).

Jesus Christ came out of glory and lived as a man on earth walking in holiness and purity. He laid aside his heavenly position and power and came as a humble servant.

Jesus was tempted in every way and lived without sin. He manifested the holiness of God on the earth so that you could so the same. He cleansed your sins so you could come into the glory. You can live without sin because He took away your sinful nature and gave you His divine nature (Romans 6:6-14; 2Peter:1:4).

Jesus deposited His glory in you – John 17:22. He gave you the ability to live a glorious life, to live daily in the glory, and to be a part of the glorious Church.

Jesus wants you to behold His glory on this earth and eternally – John 17:24. You behold His glory on this earth as you do His works and greater works, worship Him, meditate in His Word, spend time in His presence [through prayer], and come to know Him.

“For God Who said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts so as [to beam forth] the Light for the illumination of the knowledge of the majesty and glory of God [as it is manifested in the Person and is revealed] in the face of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. However, we possess this precious treasure [the divine Light of the Gospel] in [frail human] vessels of earth, that the grandeur and exceeding greatness of the power may be shown to be of God and not from ourselves.” 2Corinthians 4:6-7 (The Amplified Bible).

What God has done is magnificent! He placed His glory in earthen vessels, pots of clay, so that His grandeur and greatness would be seen in the lives of Christians.

Have you seen the excellence of God in the Church very often? Well, it is time now. This generation shall bring forth the glory of God. Confess this aloud: “This generation shall bring forth the glory of God.” Speak from your spirit and with the resurrection power of God that is within you “I shall bring forth the glory of God.”

Do you realize what you are saying? You will bring forth His beauty, power, honor, greatness, and the person and presence of God. You will bring forth His goodness, light, perfection of character, patience, truth, justice, and forgiveness. You will bring forth the working of His Holy Spirit and the atmosphere of Heaven.

If you meant what you just said, the Church will change, the world will change, the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and everyone will see it.

Verses to Ponder About God’s Glory (my addition)

And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! – Isaiah 6:3

And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. – Ezekial 43:2

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. –John 1:14

This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him. – John 2:11

That according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being. –Ephesians3:16

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. –2Corinthians 3:18

After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was made bright with his glory. – Revelations 18:1

We exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. –1Thesalonians 2:12

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. – Colossians 1:27

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. – Psalm 3:3

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