Chat – Page 33 – Hope for Complete Healing

WORDS HAVE POWER—Part I: Overcoming The Destruction of Offensive Words

Have you ever considered the power of the spoken or written word? When someone says something hurtful, it creates an offense in our hearts. A person’s words reveal the condition of their heart. Therefore, the person saying the hurtful words is also hurting from the offenses they have stored in their hearts from painful memories. This post explains how to overcome the power of offensive words and actions. But first, let’s review the power of words. Imagine how the progression below is influenced by negative words, then imagine how the progression is influenced by positive words.

Words (positive or negative) create like thoughts.

Thoughts create feelings.

Feelings create beliefs.

Beliefs create attitudes.

Attitudes influence decisions for behavior.

Decisions directs the course of our life.

Change the course of your life by changing your thoughts.

Often, when we become offended, it is because the words or action triggered a subconscious painful memory of an unmet need or expectation. Other times, we become offended because a selfish desire was not met, or our pride was hurt. All of humanity struggles with being self-centered. For instance, someone does something to you or says something about you that you thought was unloving; your first response is to think; that wasn’t right; I didn’t like that. Or you weren’t acknowledged for an achievement, or accepted into a group, or ignored, etc., which hurt your pride. So, when we become offended, we open the door to the temptation to be angry, bitter, depressed, then to slander, gossip, and say hurtful things. Our thoughts and feelings become controlled by the offense, and we do and say hurtful things. To be free from the control of offenses, do the following three actions.

First, is to forgive, which may be hard to do, but it is to set you free from their control on your mind, not for them. Forgiving sets your mind free from the unseen control of negative energy from the hurtful words or actions. Forgiveness also releases the unseen control of negative energy from painful thoughts, so they don’t control our feelings and actions. Second, pray for the person who hurt you, because they are hurting. Praying generates positive energy, that gives you positive feelings and positive thoughts. And third, set your mind on the things of God by reading the Bible and transforming your thoughts to think His thoughts of love for yourself and others. The following post describes this process in detail: Thoughts That Create Peace Within and Without

Sometimes though, you need to set boundaries for people who continue to say abusive, hurtful words, after you have first spoken to them about how their unloving words affect you. You need not let their words control your thinking, feelings, beliefs, and attitude, which is hard to do, but possible when you are quick to forgive.

For example, I became offended by the words on an anniversary card my wonderful husband gave me. He did not intend to offend me, but when I explained why I was offended, he apologized and tried to make it right. Unfortunately, I allowed the offense to get into my heart and control my feelings, and I became miserable and said hurtful things. I’m sure no one else has done that.

When I had enough of feeling sorry for myself, I remembered that I needed to forgive the offense, even though it was not intentional. Then I asked God to forgive me for being hurtful, and to take the power of that memory and negative energy of the offense from my mind and heart. I felt so much better. So often relationships are ruined by hurtful words and holding onto offenses. I realized the quicker I forgave, the more love, peace, and joy I would experience, and the more love, peace, and joy others would experience when they were in my presence.

The anniversary card situation caused me to ask myself, why did that card offend me? I knew from my research that it had triggered a painful memory. So, I asked God to show me what the offense was. He showed me that I was still offended by a hurt from my first marriage. I went through the “Kindness Issues” worksheet on my website to release the offenses I was feeling. Next, I forgave my ex-husband for the hurtful words he had spoken to me, and I asked God to lose and remove the power of that memory and all negative energies from my mind and heart. I also applied the right thinking and truths from the “Joy” and “Peace Issues” worksheets to transform the feelings of hurt and anguish in my heart and mind. After going through the process of healing these negative heart issues, I felt so much peace and joy.

To learn more, please visit my site and read a short book I wrote about how I transformed many negative heart issues and discovered a new reality. 1–Healing Begins by Transforming Painful Memories

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I hope you found this helpful. May God Bless you richly.

To understand the power of forgiving, read: WHY SHOULD I FORGIVE

You may enjoy reading my next post called: WORDS HAVE POWER—PART II: Words produce death or life energy

If you find my posts and website helpful, then 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.

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. Please leave your name so I know you are a real person making the request.

P.S.: Experiencing a lasting change in your life depends on having a right relationship with God the Father through believing in His Son Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love (1 John 3).

HOW MEMORIES INFLUENCE OUR THINKING, EMOTIONS, AND BEHAVIOR

Dr. Caroline Leaf researches how the brain works, and she wrote the book, “Switch on Your Brain.” She discovered what we consciously think and what we say and do comes from the information and memory images in the unconscious mind that has been accumulating since our birth. These memories form the perceptual base through which we see life and react to stressful situations. She explained how we can change our thinking, and ultimately our reactions to stress. Check out her lectures on YouTube.

Dr. Penfield also did years of extensive research on the brain and memory. He knew the whole nervous system uses a slight amount of electrical current to transmit sensory information to the brain. The brain, in turn, uses that current to record and store the data. He experimented by stimulating the memory areas of the brain with small amounts of electricity and discovered that every experience we have ever had is recorded in minute detail by the brain. Whether or not we can consciously recall them, they are still stored in our memories including the feelings that go along with the stored experiences. We not only remember what we felt, but we tend to feel the same way as adults when we go through a similar experience. Dr. Bruce Lipton is a Cellular Biologist, and his research shows that over 90% of what affects our thoughts, feelings, and actions can be attributed to subconscious memories stored in the cells of our bodies. Southwestern Medical School calls them cellular memories.

The following story is my experience of how an unconscious memory affected my relationship with a friend. I often got angry with the kindest person ever, who said nothing mean or unkind, so why would I get angry, so I asked God to show me why. The word “irresponsibility” came to my mind. I asked Him to show me why this would cause me to be angry. I waited for a little while until God brought up the repressed painful memories of my father’s irresponsibility I had taken offense to. My friend’s irresponsibility triggered my unseen hurts and anger of my father’s irresponsibility. I went through the forgiveness process for each of the painful memories God brought up from my subconscious. Then, I verbally loosed and put off the offenses from my heart and the negative energies associated with the painful memories. Next, I sought God’s forgiveness for my anger toward my friend. When I completed this process, I was no longer angry with anyone who acted irresponsibly. To learn more about forgiveness, see the post: WHY SHOULD I FORGIVE. To learn how to hear from God, read my book I posted on my website.

I was addicted to anger, and it controlled me. Little by little, with God’s help, I worked through my painful memories and broke many strongholds in my life. If you have anger problems, please read the following post: Anger Issues Protected by Pride and Judgmental Strongholds. Dr. Leaf emphasizes the importance of changing toxic memories to effect a change in our lives. My book, called “Hope for Complete Healing” is my testimony of how I have changed my toxic memories and transformed my thoughts, emotions, and behavior.

The sooner we realize how painful memories affect our present beliefs, decisions, and behaviors the sooner we will seek to transform these memories. Only God can help us find subconscious memories that keep us from being healthy and whole. God created us and loves us, and He intimately knows everything about us (see Psalm 139). The concept of God may not be part of your thinking or belief, but ask Him to show Himself to you. I know He is an Almighty Spirit, who always was, always will be, and is the creator of Universe and mankind. He also wants to be in a loving relationship with us through His Son Jesus Christ, who died to pay the penalty of our sins. If you are offended by God, which we all have been if we are honest, then seek His forgiveness and healing of that hurt. There is so much more I could say, so I encourage you to read my web page called Who God is — Daily A-C-T-S Prayers and look up the verses I reference.

I was healed of many painful memories that controlled my reaction to stressful situations. Visit my website to learn more about how our memories control our lives and how to transform them. https://hopeforcompletehealing.com/

All verses are from the English Standard Bible. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family; hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

If you find this website helpful, you will benefit from the latest book. You can order Breaking Mental Strongholds on Amazon.

Also, check out my book called Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. I would love to hear what you think. To learn more about my book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

15 Promises We Can Trust God to Keep

In my last two posts, I shared the many miracles I experienced when I trusted God to keep His promises. The conclusion I came to is trusting fills us with peace because we don’t have to worry or fret.

So, what prevents us from believing God keeps His promises? The answer to this question is simple; doubt from wrong thinking and lies we believe. Often, the significant people in our lives did not keep the promises they made to us, which causes us to doubt that God keeps His promises. Maybe we did not keep our promises, and the quilt prevents us from believing God keeps His promises. Correcting our corrupted faith from wrong thinking and healing our painful experiences requires diligence and perseverance. So how do we transform our painful experiences and change our wrong thinking? I thoroughly explain how in my book called “Hope for Complete Healing,” which is also on my website. 1–Healing Begins by Transforming Painful Memories.

Read each of the promises listed below and rate, from 0 to 5, how much faith you have in God to keep the promise: 0-not at all, 1-struggling, 2-sometimes, 3-depends on the situation, 4-most of the time, and 5-completely. Rate all the promises before reading the extra text in italics.

God keeps His promises to His children (John 1:12 ― Romans 9:8). So, it is necessary to rate the first promise as a five. If you could not answer with a 5, then read each of the scripture passages listed after this promise and pray for God to open your eyes and give you understanding.

1) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― You are saved from sin and death and have the hope of eternal life (John 10:27, 28; 3:16 – Romans 5:12; 6:23; 8:2; 10:9 – Ephesians 2:8 – Titus 3:4-7 – 1 John 5:13). To become a child of God, you must believe in the name of Jesus, and then ask Him to come into your heart by faith (Ephesians 3:17) and to fill you with His life, light, and love. Jesus is the only legal way to get into heaven (John 14:6).

2) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God forgives all your sins and cleanses you from all unrighteousness when you confess your sin (Psalms 103:3 and 1John 1:9).

If you did not answer 5, then ask God to show you if you haven’t forgiven yourself, and if so, what do you need to forgive yourself for. Follow the steps listed after the survey to resolve why. If He shows you need to forgive someone, then do that, because Matthew 6:15 states “but if you do not forgive others their sins, neither will your heavenly Father forgive your sins.” Ask God to remove the guilt from your heart, and then with thanksgiving, bind in the promise above.

For example, I asked God to show me why I did not feel love. God showed me that I did not love myself, and therefore, could not love others, so I asked God to reveal why. He revealed the answer during a Bible Study. The leader explained how the Old Testament Priests offered two sacrifices, one for the forgiveness of sins and another for guilt. God showed me I needed to ask Him to remove the guilt from my past sins. After I prayed, I felt a huge weight lift off me. Not only does He forgive all our sins but forgets them as well (Jeremiah 31:4 and Hebrews 8:12).

3) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God will never leave you nor forsake you because He loves you (Deuteronomy 31:6&8 and Hebrews 13:5).

If you did not answer 5, then ask God to show you the painful memories of being abandoned, rejected, or neglected. Follow the steps listed after the survey . Maybe you feel God has abandoned you by not answering a prayer, which caused an offense to form in your heart. Often, unconfessed sin prevents answers to prayer (see Psalm 66:18 and Isaiah 59:1,2). Follow the steps after the survey and work through the offenses (resentments, even toward God), then bind in the promise with thankfulness. Psalm 9:9-10 states, “The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know Your name trust in You, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You.” Also, look-up Psalm 107:13-16.

God did not answer my prayer to heal my first marriage and keep us together. I felt forsaken and despaired as I faced divorce. I was pouring my heart out to God and told Him I was going to walk away from my faith. And God answered, “What is the alternative?” I thought about it and knew that Satan would love to destroy me, so I stayed tight with God and experienced many miracles, which I wrote in the post Trust God to Keep His Promises

4) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ―You are more than a conqueror through Christ who loves you, and nothing will separate you from His love (Romans 8:37-39). Also see Ephesians 3:16-19.

If you did not answer 5, then ask God to show you the painful experiences of failure or memories of not being loved and accepted. Isaiah 54:10 states, “’Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” Breathe deeply and repeat this truth over and over until it enters your heart. Follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason why you doubt.

5) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God’s plans for you are for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).

If you did not answer 5, then ask God to show the wrong choices you made and the fear of consequences that has stolen your hope. Or, you may have painful memories concerning mistakes others have made that have affected you and your hope for a good future. Maybe you’re struggling with trials and hardships, and you can’t see how good can come out of them. Follow the steps after the survey to resolve these painful issues. Meditate on Psalms 34:4, “I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” Also meditate on Isaiah 26:3.

6) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God will cause all things to work together for good according to His purpose for those that love Him (Romans 8:38 – Proverbs 3:5-8).

This promise is often overused, but it still comforts us when we don’t understand why something happened as it did, and God did not answer our prayer the way we wanted. For example, I did not like losing my job, but God wanted me to write another book, and that was the only way it was going to happen. When I completed the task, then I was offered another job. During that time, God provided for all my needs. Also, God wants to heal all the memories of disappointment from your past and show you His goodness. If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason for your doubts.

7) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God will supply all your needs according to His riches (Philippians 4:19 and Matthew 6:31-33).

God will not always give you what you want (James 4:3), but what you need. Practice thankfulness for the things He has given you. For example, I needed a free small piano for my son, so I prayed for it. The next day I turned on the radio, which I rarely do, and a woman was giving away a piano. It was the exact size I needed, and even though it was broken, it played beautifully. Psalms 37:4,5 states, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5) Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.” Notice what our response is to be in this verse. If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason why.

8) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― When we come to God and do what He says, we will dwell secure and will find rest, without the dread of disaster (Psalms 91 – Proverbs 1:33 – Matthew 11:28-29).

If you feel anxious or dread that something terrible will happen, then ask God to heal those memories of painful things happening to you, (i.e., abuse). It may be helpful to read my post ANXIETY: Protected by Worry and Fear Strongholds and Why, What, and How to Submit to God and be FREE If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason why you have doubts.

9) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one (2 Thessalonians 3:3 – 2 Timothy 4:18 – 1 John 5:18 – Psalm 121:7-8).

Sometimes we need to claim promises by faith even when we don’t understand how God will keep the promise. Remember the miracles God did for King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. Also remember, giving God thanks for keeping His promises is a way to exercise our faith. If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve your doubts.

10) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability to bear it. With the temptation, He will provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Know that we all will be tempted, which will be different for each person because Satan knows our weaknesses. When God shows you the way of escape, then obey. If you have to get rid of Facebook or the internet, do it. If you have to give up your friends who want to take you in a direction you don’t want to go, then walk away from them, they aren’t really your friends. Make new friends who are healthy and walking in the newness of Christ (Ephesians 4:17-24). Be in the Word of God every day and pray continually (see I Peter 5:8-10 and Ephesians 6:10-18). Resist the devil and draw near to God (James 4:7,8). If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason for the doubt.

11) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God gives power and strength and helps us when we trust Him (Isaiah 40:29-31 – Isaiah 41:10 – Psalms 46:1 – Hebrews 4:14-16).

Claim this promise for all your addictions or trials you may be facing. If you are trying to overcome an addiction, then read how to overcome addictions in my book first. If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason why.

12) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God is doing a new thing in your life, and He will make a way where there is no way (Isaiah 43:19).

This promise was one I claimed when I was struggling as a single mother, and He answered this promise in marvelous ways. Rejoice when you see God doing new things in your life and when you see opportunities you never dreamed you would experience. If you did not answer 5, then follow the steps after the survey to resolve the reason why.

13) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― God’s peace will guard your heart and your mind when you trust Him in every situation and pray with thanksgiving as you present your requests to Him (Philippians 4:6-7). Also see Luke 11:9-13 and Isaiah 26:3.

14) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us and if we know He hears us in whatever we ask; we know we have the requests we have asked of Him (1 John 5:14-15 – 1 John 3:21-23 – John 15:16).

15) 0 1 2 3 4 5 ― If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you (James 1:5 – Proverbs 2:6; 3:13; 4:7; 8:12; 9:10; 11:2; 13:10; 15:33 – Ecclesiastes 2:26 – Ephesians 1:17).

Evaluate the promises you answered 0 to 4, by praying through the following steps to heal the painful experiences and memories that may be causing you to doubt.

1. Ask God to show you why you do not completely believe the promise. It could be a painful experience that generated an offense (also called resentment), which is causing you to believe a lie. Be patient and sensitive to images or feelings He brings up from your subconscious mind.

a) It may be guilt from a sin you committed or a promise you did not keep, which can be confessed to God and ask His forgiveness.

b) It may be a sin from another person who hurt you. The hurt is healed when you forgive that person, and then ask God to heal the wound and remove the negative energy from the painful memory. If you find it hard to forgive, then read my post: “Why should I forgive?

2. Write down the reason you doubt, or the revealed memory of the offense, word curse, etc. And then ask God to lose the negative effects of the memory and offense from your heart and mind. Find something to be thankful for. For example, thank Him for what He did to protect you, provide for you, prevent worse things, or comforted you.

3. Next, list all unhealthy beliefs (lies you believe) that the Holy Spirit reveals that is causing you to doubt. Ask God to lose and remove these lies, and then bind in to your heart the truth found in the Bible passages listed after the promise.

4. Last, identify the wrong behaviors (sins) and decisions you made as a result of wrong thinking and doubt. Repent by confessing them and seeking God’s forgiveness. See 1 John 1:9. If this does not make sense, then my book mentioned above will help explain this concept more clearly.

The Bible contains many more promises that we can believe and claim for our lives and for the difficult situations we are going through. I recommend the book called “Scripture Keys for Kingdom Living” compiled by June Newman Davis, for many more promises to believe.

P.S.: Experiencing a lasting change in your life depends on having a right relationship with God the Father through believing in His Son Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love (1 John 3).

Trust God to Keep His Promises

This post recounts the miracles I experienced when I trusted God to keep His promises. In my last post, I explained my experience of feeling peace knowing I can trust God to keep His promises. God keeps His promises even if we don’t physically see it, which is why we need faith. Hebrews 11:6 states, “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Doubt keeps us from experiencing miracles. We cannot have faith and doubt, that is a double mind. James 1:6-8 states, “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” My encouragement is to expect God to keep His promises through faith. Remember what Hebrews 11:1 explains what faith is? “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” For example, we don’t see the flower bulbs in the ground, but we have the promise that when spring comes the bulbs will miraculously produce beautiful blooms. The promises of God are assurances, and we can expect for God to keep His promises, just as we can expect flower bulbs to bloom.

One of my favorite Old Testament stories of faith is when King Jehoshaphat faced enemy armies, and he became frightened. See 2 Chronicles 20 for the whole story. So, he prayed and reminded God of his promises to the people of Judah and recounted all that God had done. Then God spoke through a prophet, and he said, “Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s.” Then He said to go out against them, and He will be with them. They worshiped God and obeyed. So, Jehoshaphat sent the singers first, and they sang, “Give thanks to the LORD, for His steadfast love endures forever.” Then what happened next was amazing. God caused the armies to destroy each other during the night. When they arrived at the battle field and saw what happened, they worshiped the Lord.

The application to our lives is that situations will happen that frighten us. When this occurs, pray by faith; recount God’s promises, remember what He had done in the past for you, and seek His help. When He tells you what to do, then obey and worship Him. When you see the victory, give God the thanks and praise.

For example, when I became a single mother of two toddlers with no job, I was frightened. When the father of my children said, if I leave him, I will never see the children, I was frightened. When I did not know where I would live, I was frightened. So, I prayed and told God that He promised to supply all my needs according to His riches (Philippians 4:19), and I reminded myself that He owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalms 50:10) and can provide for all my needs. Also, I was very afraid my ex-husband would kill me and the children, so I trusted in God’s promise to protect me and my children as He protected David when King Saul tried to kill him. Luke 18:27 states, “But He said. ‘What is impossible with man is possible with God.’“ Think about your situation. What promises of God do you need? In my next post, I will list key promises we can trust God to keep and the corrupt thinking that keeps us from having the faith to believe. God kept the promises that I claimed over my situations.

The first major miracle; a friend suggested I become a seamstress and run an alteration business. Though I did not know what to expect, I advertised and went to dry cleaners looking for work. Praise God, I earned enough money to pay my bills and put food on the table and keep my children at home with me. Not having to send my children to daycare was an answer to one of my many prayers.

The second major miracle was providing a place for us to live. I didn’t qualify for a mortgage and rent was high. But, a banker in my church called me up and said he found someone who would give me a mortgage, which is a modern-day miracle. I can testify to many other miracles of how God provided for me and my children.

The third major miracle was how God protected my children and prevented my ex-husband from making sure I never saw them again. I must admit that I had anxiety attacks every time he came to pick up the children. One time he kidnapped the children and refused to let me see them. I paced and prayed for 11 days until my lawyer was able to get them returned. I have feet problems to this day from that event. God was with me and helped me through all the court hearings. During one court hearing my ex-husband had a psychologist come in to testify that I was an abusive mother and I should not have any custody. The psychologist testified on my behalf and my first husband’s lawyer even advocated for me; what an incredible miracle.

His next attempt to get full custody was to get married. He took me to court and told the Judge it would be better for the children to be in a two-parent home. The Judge did not go for. God is good. Though I went through many trials, I learned I could trust God to keep His promises. To clarify, I was not a perfect Christian. I had a lot of anger and anxiety, which manifested often, from all the abuse I went through. I continually confessed my sin and sought God’s help. I trusted in another promise found in Hebrews 4:16 which states, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Paul also sought God’s help during a trial he was suffering and God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9. God’s grace is His power.

The fourth major miracle was sending me a wonderful second husband. I was not looking to remarry or date because I had a 90% chance of marrying another abusive man. When my separation happened with my first husband, I claimed the promise in Isaiah 61:7,8 which states, “Instead of their shame my people will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace they will rejoice in their inheritance; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs. 8) For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity.” I received a double portion for sure.

I describe my transformation from anger and anxiety to peace and joy in the following blog called: WHAT IS INNER LIFE TRANSFORMATION?

All verses are from the English Standard Version. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family: hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and what the truths are. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles.

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, non-believers, the 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.

TRUST Leads to PEACE

Do you trust those around you will value and protect you? Do you trust that what others say is the truth? Do you trust the plane does not crash? Do you trust your spouse will be faithful? Do you trust a politician or car salesman? Trust believes in honesty, integrity, and justice, but all of us have been betrayed at one time or another. Some of us has been betrayed multiple times because we live in a sinful world. So how can we trust?

I recently went to Israel, and I was so anxious about everything related to the trip. Why? As I pondered why, I realized it was because I focused on all the things that could go wrong. My thoughts were dictating my behavior choice to be anxious. I also realized that my thoughts were controlled by memories of plane crashes, terrorist attacks, lost luggage, etc. I do have to admit, sedatives (natural) were my best friend while flying. Also, the unknown made me anxious. I was such an emotional mess that I got hives. In short, I was not trusting God. So I decided to focus my thoughts on God’s protection and help. Remember, our thoughts have negative or positive energy, so controlling our thoughts controls our reactions.

As I was packing for the trip, I found Psalms 62:1,2, and 8 written out on a card, so I put this in my pocket to help me focus on God’s protection. Every time I felt anxious, I would read these verses, which says: “1) My soul finds rest in God only, from Him is my salvation. 2) He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold, I shall not be greatly shaken. 8) Trust in Him at all times; you people, pour out your heart before Him; God is a hiding-place for us.” I often recalled Psalms 91, which also reinforces that I can trust God and no harm will come near me. Many other scriptures help us focus on God and the fact that we can trust Him. I encourage you to keep these scriptures before you and to memorize them, so you can recall them when you get anxious.

Let’s be practical, what does trust look like? For me, it is the quiet confidence that God is in control and is ordering my steps. Trust believes He loves me and has my best interest in mind, even if it means I have to go through trials to improve my character and make me more like Him. Trust is the confidence that God is faithful and will protect me and sustain me in everything I do.

Remember, our enemy (the devil) wants to steal our peace and quietness, and he will bring to our mind all the memories of the bad things that have happened or could happen. Resist him; James 4: 7 says, “Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” You will maintain your peace and confidence when you quote the truth of God’s Word and turn your mental focus on God and His faithfulness. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him/her in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You; because he/she trusts in You.” I can attest to this truth, and I have no anxiety as long as I put my trust in God.

But you may ask, who is God and why should I trust Him or that the Bible is truth? I know that God is an all-powerful, loving, and all-knowing Spirit who always existed and always will exist. The Bible is written by God through men for our benefit, so we can know Him and know that we can trust Him. I have seen many miracles in my life because I chose to trust God, and He was there to protect and provide for me. I may blog about that some time.

On the flip side, can you be trusted? Are you faithful? Do you have integrity? To learn more about trust read the following page of my book: TRUST AND FAITHFULNESS Issues

Also read my blog post on Anxiety: ANXIETY: Protected by Worry and Fear Strongholds

The following are truth statements to focus on:

It is safe to trust God and do what is good, and He will direct me. Ps. 37:3-5 (Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.)

I can trust God’s faithfulness to be a shield around me as I put my trust in Him, and I will not be afraid. Ps. 91:4 (He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.); 56:4,11 (In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? 11) in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?)

Trust believes the good thing God is doing, and my heart does not need to be troubled, for He is my salvation. John 14:1 (“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.), Isa. 25:9 (“It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”)

I can be trusted, and I am faithful with what God has given me. Lk. 16:10 (“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.)

I can trust and believe that my life has a purpose and that God has a plan for my life, which gives me hope… Jer. 29:11-13 (“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”)

As I trust in God, He is my refuge, and His unfailing love and favor surround me. Ps. 32:10 (“Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.”); 7:1(“O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,”); 5:12 (“For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield.”)

When I trust and believe in Jesus, I will not be disappointed. Rom. 9:33 (“as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”); I Peter 2:6b (“For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”)

I will not put my hope in the uncertainty of riches but in God who richly supplies me with all things to enjoy. I Tim. 6:17-19 (“As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”); Phil 4:19 (“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”)

I am blessed when I trust and hope in the Lord, and I make him my confidence. Jer. 17:7 (“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD.”)

What other truth statements and supporting scriptures can you add to this list?

P.S.: Experiencing a lasting change in your life depends on having a right relationship with God the Father through believing in His Son Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love (1 John 3).

HOW PRIDE DESTROYS

So why is pride a destructive force? Pride is more than feeling good when we accomplish something great. Arrogant or conceited pride keeps us from loving others well. Second, pride prevents us from seeing the sin of thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought. Last, pride justifies self-centered behavior that erodes relationships. Not only is pride destructive, but God hates pride and will oppose anyone who is prideful, which is explained at the end of this post. So, if we don’t want God opposing us, then we need to seriously seek to get rid of pride.

A humble person exhibits acts of selflessness, kindness, patience, and gentleness. They are not self-asserting or boastful but are more concerned about others. Humble people are meek and not inclined to anger or resentment from insults and offenses. Meekness shows incredible strength. Humble people are merciful, polite, and respectful. People like being around those who are humble because they feel loved and safe, and never judged.

Every person has pride problems because the sinful human nature is self-centered, wanting only to please itself. Also, a self-centered person does not seek God or do His will. On the other hand, Christianity is about being Christ-like and other-centered. Pride is often revealed by what we say about other people and situations, especially when we compare ourselves favorably. For example, I demeaned my husband by saying I was a harder worker than him. Because of my pride, I thought I could do things better than other people, and they should recognize that. So, if you sincerely want to know your pride issues, you can ask one of your loved ones, but humbly be prepared to accept what they have to say. Being easily offended shows pridefulness.

How to be free from the sin of pride.

When you ask God to show you your sin, wait quietly for the Holy Spirit flow by keeping your mind tuned to flowing pictures/visions and emotions. I learned this from Mark Virkler in his CD called “Seven Prayers that Heal the Heart.” Dr. Virkler said if you neglect this, your prayers will come from your head, and will not heal your heart. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to see your pride issues as you read the following questions.

Do I have a high or undue opinion of my own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority and expect other people to cater to my wishes and wants?
Do I have an exaggerated self-esteem with a higher opinion of myself than is held by others? If someone does not share my opinion of my worth, am I offended?
Do I feel I am better than others because of my achievements, and look down on others?
Am I haughty and judgmental by showing disdain, contempt, or scorn for others who are not like me (i.e., political, cultural, economic, etc.)?
Do I want to control what people do and think, and get angry if I can’t?

Prayerfully ask God to expose your wrong thinking, unhealthy beliefs, offenses, and resentments. As the Holy Spirit shows them to you, write them down, then pray the following prayer model. When I prayed this prayer to get rid of my pride, it became hard for me to breathe because the spirit of pride did not want to give up control of my heart and mind.

Lord, I confess I have sinful pride in my heart. I can see where pride hurts my relationships and _(list other things the Holy Spirit showed you)_, and I ask You to forgive and cleanse me of the sin of pride.

I loose/put off my prideful attitude and the spirit of pride from my heart. I loose/put off wrong thinking and unhealthy belief(s) of _(list wrong thinking and unhealthy beliefs)_ in Jesus’ name. Next, I loose and destroy all oppressive spirit attachments and generational sins and markers from my DNA related to pride in Jesus’ name. And, I loose _(offense/resentment)_ I have harbored in my heart and the oppressive spirit attachments.

I bind in the truths that humility is realizing everything I have, including my abilities, is a gift from God (see Deuteronomy 8:17-18). And I don’t think of myself more highly than others, but in humility, I will regard others as more important than myself (see Romans 12:3 and Philippians 2:3). Amen.

After learning these truths, I now take my angry, impatient, and controlling thoughts captive and walk them back by consciously stopping the reactive thought, then thinking a truthful thought. I can live in peace with everyone as far as it depends on me. In the New International Version, Hebrews 12:14 states, “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy, without holiness no one will see the Lord.”

I also put into my mind and heart the truths that humility is realizing that everything I have, including my abilities, is a gift from God (Deut. 8:17-18). And I don’t think of myself more highly than others, but in humility, I will regard others as more important than myself (see Romans 12:3; Philippians 2:3).

The more we transform our thinking with the truth found in the Bible (see Romans 12:2) and are renewed by the Holy Spirit, the more like God we will be (see Ephesians 4:22-24), which is loving, patient, kind, peaceful, faithful, humble, full of joy, and self-controlled. To learn how I became free to live a transformed and renewed life and how you can be free to live a new reality, visit my website: https://hopeforcompletehealing.com/.

Ponder the following Scriptures to learn how pride will destroy you.

2 Chronicles 26:16 states, “But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the LORD his God ….”

?? Why are we unfaithful to God when we become strong?

?? How do you think pride destroys us when we become strong?

?? Think about a time when pride brought destruction in your life or someone else’s life.

2 Chronicles 32:25 states, “… for his heart was proud. Therefore wrath came upon him ….”

?? Why does a proud heart deserve the wrath of God? (see Romans 2:5-8; 5:9; 13:5; Ephesians 5:6; and Colossians 3:5-6)

Psalms 10:4 states, “In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek Him; all his thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’”

?? Why doesn’t a proud person seek God?

Psalms 31:23 states, “Love the LORD, all you his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride.”

?? What is the difference between the faithful and the proud person?

Psalms 59:12 states, “For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride. For the cursing and lies that they utter,”

?? How do the words of the proud trap them?

?? How is lying a sign of pride?

Proverbs 11:2 states, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.”

?? Why would the humble be wise, and the proud be disgraced?

Proverbs 16:18 states, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

?? What causes a haughty person to fall?

Proverbs 21:24 states, “‘Scoffer’ is the name of the arrogant, haughty man who acts with arrogant pride.”

?? Why do the arrogant scoff (an expression of mocking contempt, scorn; jeer)?

Proverbs 29:23 states, “One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.”

?? How does pride bring a person low and how do the lowly obtain honor?

Ecclesiastes 7:8 states, “Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”

?? Why is a proud person not patient?

Obadiah 1:3a states, “The pride (arrogance) of your heart has deceived you, …”

?? How does pride deceive us?

Romans 11:20, 23 states, “That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud (conceited), but fear. 23) And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.”

?? How does standing fast in your faith and fearing God keep you from becoming prideful?

James 4:6 states, “But he gives more grace. Therefore, it says, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” (Also see 1 Peter 5:5.)

?? Why does God oppose the proud?

Understand, God hates pride. Proverbs 8:13 states, “The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil (sinful behavior) and perverted speech I [God] hate.” Also, look-up the seven things God hates in Proverbs 6:16-19. Not only does God hate pride and arrogance, but He also hates evil behavior, which is morally bad and depraved. He also hates perverted speech, which is speech that deviates from what is good or true (i.e., manipulation, lying, deceit, etc.). To be sure, a proud heart will not humbly submit to God or others and do what is right (see Romans 8:7).

Read my other posts about Pride:

How I became free from pride: The Core Negative Heart Issue

Anger Issues Protected by Pride and Judgmental Strongholds

Freedom from Impatience and Strongholds of Injustice and Unfairness

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Patience — Freedom from Strongholds of Injustice and Unfairness

You know you have a patience problem when you get upset every time you drive on the road. Also, do you often get frustrated with people when they do not meet your expectations? You probably already know if you are not a patient person. Our goal should be to love others well from a pure heart, and the first attribute of love is patience (1 Cor. 13:4). So, when we are patient, we are loving well. I have heard people say they pray for more patience than any other attribute of love. Why? Why are we not patient? Only God can tell us why, because only He knows the hurt in our hearts, and only He can heal it.

So, what is patience? The following definitions 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. 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. It is persevering: steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement (does not quit). Lastly, patience is being just: living with a moral principle that determines right conduct, and fair: treating all sides alike.

Every time I read these definitions of patience I can see where I am still falling short of not loving well. This post is my testimony of how I destroyed the mental strongholds of unfairness and injustice that control my thoughts and reactions. So, if you have not read my post on strongholds, please read it first to understand what they are. STRONGHOLDS PART I—What are they and how do they affect us?

At a young age, I developed mental strongholds of injustice and unfairness that protected the authority seat of impatience. Impatience ruled my behavior, which explained why I over-reacted when I perceived something was unfair or unjust. I had an unhealthy belief that trials, or difficulties were unfair, wrongful actions against me, and I needed to fight against them and the people involved. But, in fact, trials and difficulties strengthen our ability to be patient, that is, practice makes perfect. I also had the unhealthy belief, if I didn’t get what I needed, wanted, or what I expected, I would become frustrated and angry, which happened often.

How often do you hear a child say, “That’s not fair?” Have you said it? Because I thought my parents were unfair, I couldn’t trust them. This stronghold combination prevents us from being submissive since we do not trust those in authority to be fair. So, when a person doesn’t think they can trust someone or submit to them, then they become rebellious. Also, not being able to trust and submit our self-focused wills has adverse effects in all areas of our life (i.e. work, family, social, spiritual, etc.).

When I became free from this stronghold combination, I could then control my thoughts and emotions. To be honest, it took some time to transform all my wrong thinking and unhealthy beliefs, that triggered automatic response programming from my childhood. To eliminate this stronghold combination, I asked God to show me the memories of the offenses I thought were unfair from the time I was a child until the present time. Note, if a situation is fair, but you don’t think it is, this still creates an offense, just look at our political landscape.

Here is one example of many, I was responsible for doing all the dishes for a month for five members of my family, and each month my sisters and I would take turns. I thought this was so unfair, and I had issues of doing the dishes for many years. This memory caused many needless conflicts with my children and husband. The key is to overcoming is to stay mindful of the goal to love others well and not be self-centered.

The need to heal issues of frustration became clear after eliminating this stronghold combination. So, I transformed the memories of my mother’s frustration by eliminating the negative energy and forgiving her. I also had to forgive myself for being frustrated with my children and husband. Next, I transformed the unhealthy belief that I have to control circumstances and what people do, with the truth that I can only control myself. Then I applied to my heart and mind the positive attributes found in the “Patience Issues” prayer focus on my website. A truth statement I chose to believe was that I can be humble, gentle, and patient and show tolerance for others in love (Ephesians 4:2).

If you identify with what I have written, and you want to eliminate the power of offenses then go to my website: hopeforcompletehealing.com and learn how to be free to live a new reality.

P.S.: Experiencing a lasting change in your life depends on having a right relationship with God the Father through believing in His Son Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love (1 John 3).

Hope for Lasting Peace, Love, and Victory

Many of the women I minister to feel there is no hope for overcoming their situations. And sadly, I often meet women who are put in jail right after having a baby that tested hot for drugs. Equally sad are the women whose children have been taken away from them, which drives them to use drugs and alcohol to escape that emotional pain. These women feel defeated and hopeless. When I asked them why they use, 99% of them say it is to avoid feeling emotional pain. They know the drugs and alcohol takes them further away from the life they desire. But they feel they have no inner strength to stop using drugs or drinking alcohol. Their hearts are full of emotional pain from unloving acts from those who should have loved them. Unfortunately, most people do not realize they have a love hunger that they are trying to satisfy with everything but the true source of love.

You may not have a drug or alcohol problem, but if you are honest, you also have some mechanism for escaping inner pain (e.g., binge eating, shopping, watching TV/movies, workaholism, etc.) For example, I was a workaholic, and my accomplishments helped me feel good, which concealed the pain in my heart. I also felt helpless to control my anger when I was offended. As a result, I believed I was unlovable and worthless. I have good news; with God’s help, I was able to transform my unhealthy beliefs and wrong thoughts with His truth. Read about my transformation here.

The following five facts have helped the women in jail have hope to achieve lasting peace, love, and victory. I pray they help you as well:

1. Know the source of offenses that steal your peace, love, and sense of worth.

a) Taking an offense to something is when you feel resentment for something done or said which often causes hurt feelings or displeasure. These resentments build up in our hearts throughout our lives.

b) The demonic powers around us are destructive forces in our lives. In Ephesians 6:12 it says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Also see Eph. 2:2; 2Cor. 4:4.

c) The Bible says that the devil is the father of lies (John 8:44). The lies we believe cause us to be offended, which results in resentment and hate. For example, my oldest son believed the lie that I hated him because I disciplined him. He believed the lie that my discipline was abusive, therefore, he says he hates me. I can’t change what he believes because resentment is consuming, and the demons keep it stirred up in him to keep him in bondage to these destructive thoughts.

d) The demons want to keep you defeated by destroying your peace, self-worth, and ability to feel loved. Children are their favorite target because they are so vulnerable, then as adults we wonder why we have so many offenses in our hearts, also called unresolved childhood issues. Feeling unloved and offended can lead to various destructive actions and addictions, which result in feeling more defeated.

For instance, when I am offended and get upset, I desire to binge eat, especially chocolate, or I get angry and tell the person off. Both responses are destructive; binge eating is destructive to my body and anger destroys my relationships. We can choose to respond with peace and love, which may sound impossible. Choosing a non-destructive action requires us to constantly check our thoughts and control them, though I still need to improve. Awareness of how we are offended is the first step.

2. Know your source of help to resist the demonic attempts to destroy you.

a) Jesus knows what it is like to suffer demonic attacks and temptations. He overcame the devil and defeated the enemy of our souls and can help us overcome (see Hebrews 2:17&18; Heb. 4:15&16; and 1 John 3:8).

b) To receive this help, we need to put off the pride of being self-focused and the lie that we don’t need Jesus. Then, humbly ask Him by faith to transform our lives. When we do this, then we will be rooted and grounded in His love and nothing can separate us from His love (see Ephesians 3:17; 1 John 4:9-10; and Romans 8:35-39). Also, we will be filled with the Holy Spirit who is our helper (see John 14:26; 15:26; and Romans 8:24-27). To learn more about pride, read: HOW PRIDE DESTROYS

c) After receiving Jesus into our hearts and submitting to God, which is to obey Him, then we will have all the divine promises in Christ Jesus. We will also have his divine nature and power to have lasting victory over all our issues and addictions. 2 Peter 1:3-4 says, “seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4) For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.” We tap into this divine power by faith through prayer and believing. We do not see the divine power in us, but we know it is there by faith and that it is ours through prayer.

3. Know the true source of love, peace, and victory.

a) God will always love us, and He gives us His worth. (See Colossians 3:12). He is our only source of love; not our parents, not our boy/girlfriends, not our family, not our spouse; no one can love us as God does. Our love is flawed because each of us has wounds and hurts (offenses) from the sins and weaknesses of those around us.

b) God is our only source of peace. Isaiah 26:3 says “You keep him/her in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he/she trusts in You.” Jesus said in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (Also see 1 John 5:4) The key to lasting peace is to keep our minds on God through continual prayer.

c) God is our only source of victory over the demonic world; James 4:7,8 says, “Submit yourselves, therefore, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8) Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” Victory occurs when we submit to God and resist the devil through prayer and standing firm in our faith. Victory also requires that we remove sin from our lives. Also see 1 Peter 5:8,9a.

4. Know the truth and pray the truth to stay in perfect peace, love, and victory.

a) Our responsibility is to keep our minds on the truths of the Word of God and remain with Him through prayer. As we stay in prayer, we will be victorious over the many temptations to believe the devil’s lies and become offended (see John 15 and Colossians 3:1-3). But first, we need to humbly confess our sins through prayer and seek God for forgiveness (see 1 John 1:9). You see, sin blocks our prayers and God will not hear our prayers because He is Holy (see Is. 59:2).

b) If we keep our minds on our problems and what we don’t like, then we will be worried, fearful, angry, depressed, etc. So, when you find yourself focused on a problem or an offense, then turn it into a prayer of repentance and submission to regain your peace, love, and victory. For example, we can get upset with a family member for the things they did or said or how they said it, and it can consume us. But when we turn the problem over to God and trust Him with it, then we will be filled with peace and love again. I have also found that being thankful keeps me in peace. As you know, when you don’t feel peace in yourself, you are not at peace with others around you.

c) Our prayers and words have power and we can take every thought captive in the name of Jesus and command them to be gone. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 says, “For though we walk in the flesh (live in the world, NIV), we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh (this world), but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses (strongholds). We are destroying speculations (arguments) and every lofty thing (pretensions) raised up against the knowledge of God (truth), and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” Taking our thoughts captive is critical to have lasting victory over our destructive emotions and actions.

5. Lastly, remove the many offenses in our hearts through prayer and forgiving.

a) Offenses hinder love but purifying out hearts by removing offenses allows us to feel love and to love others. Purifying our hearts begins with obeying the Word of God, that is, to do what it says. 1 Peter 1:22 states, “Having purified your souls (heart, mind, and conscience) by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart.” We can love with a pure heart when our soul wounds are healed as outlined in my healing booklet found in my website (hopeforcompletehealing.com).

b) One of the truths we need to obey to be victorious over offenses is to forgive those who offended us. Then to put off the lies we believed. (See Matthew 6:12; Colossians 3:13; Ephesians 4:32). Our unforgiveness perpetuates the inner pain we feel and keeps us in bondage to it. We will never have lasting peace, love, or victory if we do not forgive. If you find it hard to forgive, read: WHY SHOULD I FORGIVE

I hope you found these five facts helpful and know that lasting peace, love, and victory is possible. In my website, I list many truths concerning key character traits to help you replace the devil’s lies with truth. I encourage you to look at these and be blessed.

Escapism; Protected by Strongholds of Loneliness and Discontentment

#1 Destroyer of All Relationships and the Solution

P.S.: Experiencing a lasting change in your life depends on having a right relationship with God the Father through believing in His Son Jesus Christ and obeying His command to love (1 John 3).

Freedom from the Spirit of Jealousy

Can a spirit control us? I say yes, based on my experience and observation. So, do we have an excuse for atrocious behavior or making wrong choices? No, because we still need to love God, others, and ourselves from a pure heart! So, if we have unloving behavior, then we need to look for the source.

For example, at a family gathering, I became emotional because I felt discounted and said things I should not have said. I was embarrassed by my reaction, so I asked God to reveal the source of why I became emotional. He showed me I had a spirit of jealousy (Numbers 5:30; Ezekiel 8:3). I discovered that corrupt spirits attach themselves to memories of being offended by unloving actions or unkind words. In my case, God revealed I was jealous of my younger sister. I cannot remember specific memories as I was too young, but I do remember being angry with her our entire childhood.

Being a twin meant I already had to share my parents’ attention and care. Then, thirteen months later, my second sister was born, which meant I had to share my parents’ love and attention with two other needy beings. Unfortunately, my new sister was born with a disorder and was hospitalized often. This meant that she received more attention than I did. Even babies and toddlers can be offended when their perceived needs are not met, especially for love and attention. Humans were created to love and be loved. So, because I had to share my parents’ attention with my two sisters, I understand how I became offended and how the spirit of jealousy attached to my soul. This spirit controlled my reactions when I thought I was being discounted. Have you ever felt discounted?

Furthermore, on my website (chapter 3 of my book), I describe how I became free from the mental strongholds of injustice and unfairness and how they protected the wrong beliefs and behavior of being impatient. Consider the following: when something unfair happens to us because another person has an advantage over us, jealousy naturally arises. As a result, we become resentful towards that person, which manifests as anger. For example, someone gets VIP treatment because of their high position in the company, and you are sent to the back of the line. Or, someone gets a better parking space because they have more money. Or, your spouse gives their attention to someone else. Have you ever experienced this? The next time you get irritated, ask God why you are getting irritated. You may have a jealous spirit. I never thought I had a jealous spirit until God showed it to me.

Thankfully, God is all-knowing and knows everything about us, and He alone can reveal repressed memories and unhealthy beliefs. God showed me I had developed the unhealthy belief that my sister was the favorite and received preferential treatment. Because of my resentment towards my sister, I mistreated her, which caused her to fight back, which then led to me being punished. So, I believed I was being unfairly punished for things she did or instigated, which made me resent my sister even more. Another unhealthy belief was being unlovable and feeling worthless. Consequently, from early childhood, I tried to earn my parents’ attention and love by working hard and doing things for them, such as cleaning the basement and garage. In the same way, doing work for people’s attention and approval carried into my adulthood. Therefore, my sense of worth was based on what I did and what people thought of the quality of my work. I was freed from this mental stronghold as well. Do you feel you have to please people to get their love and attention and to feel accepted and wanted? Do you have a sibling you feel was favored, maybe they were a better athlete or had better grades? Do you have a co-worker who receives more privileges because they are favored by the boss?

After learning the source of my jealousy, I asked God to lose and remove the memories of being offended (not getting the love and attention I wanted) and to remove the spirit of jealousy from my soul. I then replaced my wrong beliefs with the truth. For example, the truth is my mother did love me, but it was overwhelming to take care of my sick sister. Another reality was the fact that it was not my sister’s will to be sick; she could not help it, and I can show her compassion. Then, I sought forgiveness for my spiteful behavior. Now, when I think about the current situation that revealed my jealous spirit, I no longer get upset. You can learn more about healing memories and transforming unhealthy beliefs with truth by reading my short transformation testimony book on my website, hopeforcompletehealing.com.

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My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

How is your blood? Mother Earth News Fair at Seven Springs Ski Resort

blood pic At the fair, I decided to see what the health of my blood was, so I visited Dr. Misak’s booth, from Pittsburgh Alternative Health (website: pittsburghalternativehealth.com). He took a drop of my blood and displayed it for me to see the individual components. The picture above shows some of what I saw. He explained what the problems were, and what I needed to do about it. Pretty cool stuff. You can learn more about this process at www.biomedx.com. Would you like to know a way to examine our behavior and reactions? For example, the GPS directed us to a closed road, and it would not recalculate. We had no idea how to get to the ski resort. I panicked and became very anxious. Why? The book I wrote called “Hope for Complete Healing” explains how to examine our reactions to determine the why. You can read my book on my website hopeforcompletehealing.com.

I rate this fair at 5 stars. 100+ workshops taught everything from living off-the-grid, installing solar, organic gardening, growing mushrooms, keeping bees, animal husbandry, prepping, natural health, and homesteading. You could take classes on making your own mead, coconut milk, cheese, bread, bacon, fermented foods, makeup, and medicine. There even was a class on how to build mud/straw structures. About 240 vendors were willing to help you with all your health needs, gardening problems, farm supplies, cooking utensils, and so much more. They even had a mushroom walk in the woods to identify different mushrooms. If any of these topics interest you, then check out the Mother Earth News website to see where and when the next fair is.

My husband went to a workshop by “Happy Leaf,” about how to grow an indoor garden. He took me to their booth, and I saw the beautiful plants they produced with their special LED Grow lights. As a gardener, I was very impressed. See the picture below of their passive hydroponics starter kit. You can learn more at http://happyleafled.com/

LED Grow Lights

I went to a workshop on how to make your own makeup hosted by Maria Rayma. Her website is http://humblebeeandme.com/, which is a fabulous must-see website. The last workshop we attended was called “Prepping 101.” This speaker talked about how to prepare for a catastrophe. I do agree that we all should have at least two weeks of food and water in the event you lose power from a natural disaster. I also agree you should have alternative energy and heat sources during and after a natural disaster. Therefore, be prepared for the unexpected but don’t be controlled by an irrational fear. Irrational fear is a stronghold that keeps you believing wrong things, so you do crazy things to prepare. I know people who are doing this. If you feel you are being controlled by irrational fear or you know someone who is, please go to my website hopeforcompletehealing.com. You will learn how to become free from strongholds and unhealthy beliefs.