Courage should be coupled with common sense. After Frederick Douglass published his book Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass in 1845, Douglass sent his former slave owner, Thomas Auld, a copy of the book.
The Chinese invented the umbrella. Sometimes we need our friends to cover our courage, so that a bad situation doesn't rain on us.
Friends helped Douglass to get out of the United States and to seek refuge in England, which had abolished slavery in 1807.
By 1846 friends purchased Douglass' freedom from Thomas Auld. They also gave Douglass money to start an anti-slavery newspaper. By 1847 Douglass published the North Star. Former president and friend of Abraham Lincoln Benito Juarez said, "The respect for the rights of others is peace." The North Star was not only concerned with the rights of African Americans. The motto of the North Star was "Right is of no sex--Truth is of no color--God is the Father of us all, and all we are brethren."
Proverbs 3:27-28 Amplified Bible says, "Withhold not good from those to whom it is due [its rightful owners], when it is in the power of your hand to do it. Do not say to your neighbor, Go, and come again; and tomorrow I will give it—when you have it with you."
Douglass' friends could have spent their money on something other than purchasing Douglass' freedom and his newspaper. To have chosen to spend their money elsewhere would have probably meant that Douglass would be returned to slavery, separated from his wife and children, unable to provide for them economically and an international voice of inspiration for human rights would have been silenced.
Is God telling you to help someone?
Instead of making excuses, why not consider all the ways good could come out of it, and do what God says to do. A Japanese proverb says, "Do quickly what is good."
Showing posts with label Wisdom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wisdom. Show all posts
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Getting In The Mood
"Leaders have to keep learning. It's the learning that keeps us fresh," says Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur John Maxwell in his A Minute With Maxwell daily email entitled "Fresh." The same can be said for spouses who want to keep their marriages fresh. Learning excites the brain. Excitement can spark sexual desire.
Proverbs 18:15 Amplified Bible says, "The mind of the prudent is ever getting knowledge, and the ear of the wise is ever seeking (inquiring for and craving) knowledge."
We are all born with certain physical characteristics that can be changed a little. The amount of knowledge we acquire can be changed dramatically. Acquiring and applying useful sexual knowledge can have an adhesive quality. King Edward gave up the English throne for an American divorcee who was not attractive but who was said to be skillful sexually.
Sex matters. Sex doesn't have to be sinful. God celebrates sex. Génesis 2:24-25 Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy dice, "Por tanto el hombre dejará a su padre y a su madre y se unirá a su mujer, y serán una sola carne. Ambos estaban desnudos, el hombre y su mujer, pero no se avergonzaban." Genesis 2:24-25 English Standard Version Bible says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed."
Good sex inspires poetry. An ancient Egyptian man wrote to his loved one:
"When I embrace her,
And her arms open wide,
I feel like a man in Spiceland,
Who is overwhelmed with perfume.
Then I kiss her;
And she opens her lips.
Without a taste of beer,
I am intoxicated."
Some spouses have trouble opening their mouths much less other parts of their bodies to sexual relations. Sexless marriage is a sin. To stop sinning, we need to ask God to cause us to overcome ourselves. Watchman Nee writes in his book Sit Walk Stand The Process of Christian Maturity, "God never asks us to do anything we can do. He asks us to live a life which we can never live and to do a work which we can never do. Yet, by His grace, we are living it and doing it. The life we live is the life of Christ lived in the power of God, and the work we do is the work of Christ carried on through us by His Spirit whom we obey. Self is the only obstruction to that life and to that work. May we each one pray from our hearts, "O Lord, deal with me!"
When God empowers us, instead of being irritated, disappointed, hurt, etc., by our spouses, we can find a way to like and to love them, and even to enjoy pleasuring their G-Spot and other places sensitive to touch.
What are some places sensitive to sexual touch?
Even if you have been married 40 years or more, you don't know everything about your spouse. What sexual questions haven't you asked? Ask them!
Proverbs 18:15 Amplified Bible says, "The mind of the prudent is ever getting knowledge, and the ear of the wise is ever seeking (inquiring for and craving) knowledge."
We are all born with certain physical characteristics that can be changed a little. The amount of knowledge we acquire can be changed dramatically. Acquiring and applying useful sexual knowledge can have an adhesive quality. King Edward gave up the English throne for an American divorcee who was not attractive but who was said to be skillful sexually.
Sex matters. Sex doesn't have to be sinful. God celebrates sex. Génesis 2:24-25 Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy dice, "Por tanto el hombre dejará a su padre y a su madre y se unirá a su mujer, y serán una sola carne. Ambos estaban desnudos, el hombre y su mujer, pero no se avergonzaban." Genesis 2:24-25 English Standard Version Bible says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed."
Good sex inspires poetry. An ancient Egyptian man wrote to his loved one:
"When I embrace her,
And her arms open wide,
I feel like a man in Spiceland,
Who is overwhelmed with perfume.
Then I kiss her;
And she opens her lips.
Without a taste of beer,
I am intoxicated."
Some spouses have trouble opening their mouths much less other parts of their bodies to sexual relations. Sexless marriage is a sin. To stop sinning, we need to ask God to cause us to overcome ourselves. Watchman Nee writes in his book Sit Walk Stand The Process of Christian Maturity, "God never asks us to do anything we can do. He asks us to live a life which we can never live and to do a work which we can never do. Yet, by His grace, we are living it and doing it. The life we live is the life of Christ lived in the power of God, and the work we do is the work of Christ carried on through us by His Spirit whom we obey. Self is the only obstruction to that life and to that work. May we each one pray from our hearts, "O Lord, deal with me!"
When God empowers us, instead of being irritated, disappointed, hurt, etc., by our spouses, we can find a way to like and to love them, and even to enjoy pleasuring their G-Spot and other places sensitive to touch.
What are some places sensitive to sexual touch?
Even if you have been married 40 years or more, you don't know everything about your spouse. What sexual questions haven't you asked? Ask them!
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Sexual Silence No More
"A lie cannot live," said Christian Minister and Civil Rights Leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Many women actually enjoy sex, but not sex stripped down to physicality without spiritually and mentality. Sexuality is a relationship. Even masturbation is not isolation; God is present and participating. Dialogue is abrir la puerta (opening the door) to the best relationships. Proverbs 31:26 Amplified Bible says, "She opens her mouth in skillful and godly Wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness [giving counsel and instruction]."
Relationships don't contain identical people, and God made us different on purpose. Compare the mindsets of Jesus Christ and the 12 apostles.
Be who you are, and let Jesus Christ keep on making you better. I'm not called to tone it down, but rather to take it up to a heavenly level. What are your thoughts on a Biblical, global, sexual revolution? God created sex and sexuality. What God creates is good, very good.
God designed sex for oneness with Himself, a husband and a wife. Out of this union God sometimes wills for children to be conceived. What God wills, He means to live and not be killed by abortion. While more than one million babies lose their life to abortion in America annually, some survive abortion. Gospel singer Fred Hammond is an abortion survivor. Read my article, "Thoughts About Abortion," for more on his story.
God designed sexuality for singles too, but not in the context of partner sex. What are your thoughts on single sexuality?
Hammond sings about Jesus Christ protecting him and his family in his song, "Jesus Be A Fence Around Me." All of us need God's protection. Satan hates when the Christian Church talks openly, accurately and lovingly about sex and sexuality. Pray for the truth bearers. Satan wants America and the globe to preach and practice promiscuity and portray Biblical sex and sexuality as boring and bondage.
But God built us with an appreciation for pleasure. God is for pleasure. David says about God in Psalm 16:11 Amplified Bible, "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy, at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore."
What are some passionate, provocative and pure ways to celebrate Biblical sex and sexuality?
Some believe the truth about sex and sexuality has to be covered up and certainly not discussed by certain people like singles and/or women. Some also believe that sexuality talk should be limited to the night instead of at any time. Some also believe that sexuality conversation is only for married people. But God makes the Bible available to whosoever will read it!
Climbing a tree to seek for fish is a Chinese proverb that means attempting to do the impossible. China is the world's most populous nation with more than 1.3 billion people. What are some Chinese sayings about good sex and sexuality? What are some other good sayings about sex and sexuality?
What are your favorite books or other media about sex and sexuality? Henry David Thoreau says, "A truly good book teaches me better than to read it. I must soon lay it down, and commence living on its hint. What I began by reading, I must finish by acting."
Reading multiple translations of the Bible can help guard against the sterility of stiffness. Some have a tendency to get stuck in certain wrong mindsets. By looking at Scriptures in multiple ways, God will reveal new insights. What translations of the Bible do you study regularly?
The Apostle Paul was a single man who wrote in 1 Corinthians 7:3 New Living Translation, "The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs." How delicious to feast on marital sex for seven or more days. After a fast, does the ecstasy increase? A French saying about sex is, L'Appétit vient en mangeant. (The more you get the more you want.)
Some say that they get tired of marital sex. This doesn't sound true to me in the long-term. I enjoy both cooking and eating out at restaurants. There are times when I feel I can't get enough. Is any Christian feasting on marital sex multiple times daily?
Did your children accidentally or on purpose walk into where you were making love? How did you handle that? Do you think your response was Biblical?
Training our children can be progressive learning for our children and for us. A Japanese proverb says, “Fall down seven times, get up eight times.”
Happier marriages and happier singles would do a wonder for the reduction of HIV, abortion, divorce, promiscuity, infidelity and other evils globally.
Some say we should not discuss sexual positions publicly because they are not in the Bible. Read Song of Solomon and consider John 20:30-31 Contemporary English Version Bible which says, "Jesus worked many other miracles for his disciples, and not all of them are written in this book. But these are written so that you will put your faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. If you have faith in him, you will have true life."
It is curious that what may be the most practiced sexual position, the missionary or man-on-top, is named after spiritual/religious people. What is the history on the missionary sexual position?
Relationships don't contain identical people, and God made us different on purpose. Compare the mindsets of Jesus Christ and the 12 apostles.
Be who you are, and let Jesus Christ keep on making you better. I'm not called to tone it down, but rather to take it up to a heavenly level. What are your thoughts on a Biblical, global, sexual revolution? God created sex and sexuality. What God creates is good, very good.
God designed sex for oneness with Himself, a husband and a wife. Out of this union God sometimes wills for children to be conceived. What God wills, He means to live and not be killed by abortion. While more than one million babies lose their life to abortion in America annually, some survive abortion. Gospel singer Fred Hammond is an abortion survivor. Read my article, "Thoughts About Abortion," for more on his story.
God designed sexuality for singles too, but not in the context of partner sex. What are your thoughts on single sexuality?
Hammond sings about Jesus Christ protecting him and his family in his song, "Jesus Be A Fence Around Me." All of us need God's protection. Satan hates when the Christian Church talks openly, accurately and lovingly about sex and sexuality. Pray for the truth bearers. Satan wants America and the globe to preach and practice promiscuity and portray Biblical sex and sexuality as boring and bondage.
But God built us with an appreciation for pleasure. God is for pleasure. David says about God in Psalm 16:11 Amplified Bible, "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy, at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore."
What are some passionate, provocative and pure ways to celebrate Biblical sex and sexuality?
Some believe the truth about sex and sexuality has to be covered up and certainly not discussed by certain people like singles and/or women. Some also believe that sexuality talk should be limited to the night instead of at any time. Some also believe that sexuality conversation is only for married people. But God makes the Bible available to whosoever will read it!
Climbing a tree to seek for fish is a Chinese proverb that means attempting to do the impossible. China is the world's most populous nation with more than 1.3 billion people. What are some Chinese sayings about good sex and sexuality? What are some other good sayings about sex and sexuality?
What are your favorite books or other media about sex and sexuality? Henry David Thoreau says, "A truly good book teaches me better than to read it. I must soon lay it down, and commence living on its hint. What I began by reading, I must finish by acting."
Reading multiple translations of the Bible can help guard against the sterility of stiffness. Some have a tendency to get stuck in certain wrong mindsets. By looking at Scriptures in multiple ways, God will reveal new insights. What translations of the Bible do you study regularly?
The Apostle Paul was a single man who wrote in 1 Corinthians 7:3 New Living Translation, "The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs." How delicious to feast on marital sex for seven or more days. After a fast, does the ecstasy increase? A French saying about sex is, L'Appétit vient en mangeant. (The more you get the more you want.)
Some say that they get tired of marital sex. This doesn't sound true to me in the long-term. I enjoy both cooking and eating out at restaurants. There are times when I feel I can't get enough. Is any Christian feasting on marital sex multiple times daily?
Did your children accidentally or on purpose walk into where you were making love? How did you handle that? Do you think your response was Biblical?
Training our children can be progressive learning for our children and for us. A Japanese proverb says, “Fall down seven times, get up eight times.”
Happier marriages and happier singles would do a wonder for the reduction of HIV, abortion, divorce, promiscuity, infidelity and other evils globally.
Some say we should not discuss sexual positions publicly because they are not in the Bible. Read Song of Solomon and consider John 20:30-31 Contemporary English Version Bible which says, "Jesus worked many other miracles for his disciples, and not all of them are written in this book. But these are written so that you will put your faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. If you have faith in him, you will have true life."
It is curious that what may be the most practiced sexual position, the missionary or man-on-top, is named after spiritual/religious people. What is the history on the missionary sexual position?
Friday, February 8, 2013
Divorced = Eliminated from the Race?
Thank God for Hazel Scott. Before Oprah there was Hazel. Hazel was the first African-American woman to host her own nationally syndicated television show in musical format.
In a time when most television hosts were men, The Hazel Scott Show aired on July 3, 1950.
Sometimes people do not notice a mistake, or they are afraid to point out a mistake. The general manager of the mint in Chile was fired in February 2010 after thousands of 50-peso coins were discovered with the name of the country spelled Chiie instead of Chile. The coins had been in circulation for two years before the error was reported.
Sometimes people create situations. Scott was eventually accused of being a Communist or Communist sympathizer, her contract was not renewed and the show was canceled in September 1950.
Multi-talented Scott played piano, trumpet and saxophone professionally. She sang and acted on Broadway and in film, arranged songs, wrote songs and didn't let racism or sexism stop her from working the dynamic range of her talents and serving as a Civil Rights activist.
Scott was born June 11, 1920, in Port au Spain, Trinidad. As a toddler she began to play piano. When she was a tween in 1932 her father, R. Thomas Scott, died.
Scott and her mother, Alma Long Scott, toured together. The younger Scott made her first appearance at Carnegie Hall, playing Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23.
Scott was playing regular nightclub gigs by age 15, started her own radio show the following year and performed in her first Broadway revue when she was 18. Read my article, "Youth Uprising," for more on talented youth. Please leave an on-line comment about talented youth and/or African-Americans.
Life was not perfect. Later in life, Scott attempted suicide twice. Please leave an on-line comment about Satan trying to take out someone successful who bounced back.
In 1945 in Connecticut Scott, a Catholic, married Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., a Baptist minister and U.S. Congressman, who was the first person from New York of African American descent to be elected to Congress and became a powerful and prominent national politician. The couple had one child, Adam Clayton Powell III, who is the first black to direct a major national radio news network, National Public Radio.
Scott and Powell Jr. divorced in 1960 after a separation. I don't know why they divorced. Bishop T.D. Jakes says in his sermon, Love Story, "Marriage does not work until a man dies. There's a wild nature in him that has to die, and every now and then it kicks up. And you got to kill it again. And if you don't kill it, it will destroy what you got." Jakes goes on to say in Love Story, "Christ gave Himself. Let the men say, 'Give it up.'" International Christian Minister Ravi Zacharias says about a husband and wife, "The Bible tells us to mutually submit to one another." International Christian Minister Joyce Meyer says in her sermon, Hindrances to a Good Marriage, that her ministry did a questionnaire and the number one and two reasons the respondents reported for trouble in marriage are:
1) lack of communication/not knowing how to communicate
2) selfishness/pride.
Dr. Derek Grier says in his Ministry Minute "Strong Marriage," "We really have no idea how selfish and how self-centered we are until we commit to spend the rest of our lives loving and making decisions with another person."
Please leave an on-line comment about the causes for trouble in marriage and/or divorce.
Scott did not succumb to a pessimistic view of life: "All good things must come to an end;" "If it is not one thing, it's another;" "This is as good as it gets." Cavett Robert says, "If you don't think every day is a good day, just try missing one." After her divorce Scott went to Paris, France.
Learn to relate well, so that you can date and mate well.
Scott married Ezio Bedin, a comedian, on January 19, 1961.
Scott opened the door for African Americans in the arts. Today America and the world is filled with the talents of African-American entertainers who dared to try something different using the talents God gave them.
God made it so that no two snowflakes are the same. Likewise even though today more than 7 billion people live on planet earth, God made it so that no two people are alike. Even twins have different fingerprints and odor prints! By swabbing the scene of a crime, investigators can compare the scent samples taken from suspects with those taken at the scene of a crime.
God likes diversity displayed in daily living. Dr. Cindy Trim says,"Revelation without application is frustration." Let your unique light shine according to Matthew 5:14-16 New Living Translation Bible which says, "You are the light of the world--like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."
Please share an on-line comment reporting good deeds.
In a time when most television hosts were men, The Hazel Scott Show aired on July 3, 1950.
Sometimes people do not notice a mistake, or they are afraid to point out a mistake. The general manager of the mint in Chile was fired in February 2010 after thousands of 50-peso coins were discovered with the name of the country spelled Chiie instead of Chile. The coins had been in circulation for two years before the error was reported.
Sometimes people create situations. Scott was eventually accused of being a Communist or Communist sympathizer, her contract was not renewed and the show was canceled in September 1950.
Multi-talented Scott played piano, trumpet and saxophone professionally. She sang and acted on Broadway and in film, arranged songs, wrote songs and didn't let racism or sexism stop her from working the dynamic range of her talents and serving as a Civil Rights activist.
Scott was born June 11, 1920, in Port au Spain, Trinidad. As a toddler she began to play piano. When she was a tween in 1932 her father, R. Thomas Scott, died.
Scott and her mother, Alma Long Scott, toured together. The younger Scott made her first appearance at Carnegie Hall, playing Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23.
Scott was playing regular nightclub gigs by age 15, started her own radio show the following year and performed in her first Broadway revue when she was 18. Read my article, "Youth Uprising," for more on talented youth. Please leave an on-line comment about talented youth and/or African-Americans.
Life was not perfect. Later in life, Scott attempted suicide twice. Please leave an on-line comment about Satan trying to take out someone successful who bounced back.
In 1945 in Connecticut Scott, a Catholic, married Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., a Baptist minister and U.S. Congressman, who was the first person from New York of African American descent to be elected to Congress and became a powerful and prominent national politician. The couple had one child, Adam Clayton Powell III, who is the first black to direct a major national radio news network, National Public Radio.
Scott and Powell Jr. divorced in 1960 after a separation. I don't know why they divorced. Bishop T.D. Jakes says in his sermon, Love Story, "Marriage does not work until a man dies. There's a wild nature in him that has to die, and every now and then it kicks up. And you got to kill it again. And if you don't kill it, it will destroy what you got." Jakes goes on to say in Love Story, "Christ gave Himself. Let the men say, 'Give it up.'" International Christian Minister Ravi Zacharias says about a husband and wife, "The Bible tells us to mutually submit to one another." International Christian Minister Joyce Meyer says in her sermon, Hindrances to a Good Marriage, that her ministry did a questionnaire and the number one and two reasons the respondents reported for trouble in marriage are:
1) lack of communication/not knowing how to communicate
2) selfishness/pride.
Dr. Derek Grier says in his Ministry Minute "Strong Marriage," "We really have no idea how selfish and how self-centered we are until we commit to spend the rest of our lives loving and making decisions with another person."
Please leave an on-line comment about the causes for trouble in marriage and/or divorce.
Scott did not succumb to a pessimistic view of life: "All good things must come to an end;" "If it is not one thing, it's another;" "This is as good as it gets." Cavett Robert says, "If you don't think every day is a good day, just try missing one." After her divorce Scott went to Paris, France.
Learn to relate well, so that you can date and mate well.
Scott married Ezio Bedin, a comedian, on January 19, 1961.
Scott opened the door for African Americans in the arts. Today America and the world is filled with the talents of African-American entertainers who dared to try something different using the talents God gave them.
God made it so that no two snowflakes are the same. Likewise even though today more than 7 billion people live on planet earth, God made it so that no two people are alike. Even twins have different fingerprints and odor prints! By swabbing the scene of a crime, investigators can compare the scent samples taken from suspects with those taken at the scene of a crime.
God likes diversity displayed in daily living. Dr. Cindy Trim says,"Revelation without application is frustration." Let your unique light shine according to Matthew 5:14-16 New Living Translation Bible which says, "You are the light of the world--like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."
Please share an on-line comment reporting good deeds.
Friday, February 1, 2013
Heart Disease, Depression and Christianity
Following a diagnosis of coronary-artery disease and bypass surgery it is not uncommon to slide into depression. One of the reasons for the slide into depression is a break-down in our body's communication system.
Neurotransmitters are more than 60 chemicals in the body that communicate between neurons. Depression interferes with the production and processing of neurotransmitters which impacts heart disease and other diseases like diabetes, cancer, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, stroke and Alzheimer's.
Sometimes people consider physical health as more important than mental health. The reality is that they both need our regular attention, and failing to take good care of ourselves physically and mentally is dangerous. Many people know that heart disease can be fatal, but they may not know that so can depression. In addition to the link between hearth disease and depression, most of the 30,000 American suicides annually stem from clinical depression. "One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you," says author Rita Mae Brown.
Help to overcome all types of illness can be found through God, the Church and living according to the Word of God. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Amplified Bible says, "Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will]."
Disobedience to God is deadly. Obedience to God opens opportunities for eminent, enjoyable living. Neal Krause, a sociologist and public-health expert at the University of Michigan, has since 1997 conducted a study of 1,500 people. One of the study's findings is that people who maintain a mindset of gratitude for what's going right in their lives have a reduced incidence of depression.
Sometimes we do not even know that we are depressed. Michael Hyatt in his "Get Out of That Funk" article at michaelhyatt.com on February 6, 2013 lists seven questions to ask ourselves:
"Question #1: Am I getting plenty of rest?
Question #2: Am I exercising three to four times a week?
Question #3: Am I eating high-energy foods?
Question #4: Am I staying hydrated?
Question #5: Am I getting enough sunshine?
Question #6: Am I focusing on the positive?
Question #7: Am I hanging out with energetic people?"
Maintaining our health requires a multifaceted approach. Maintaining our health is loving God, ourselves and other people. Love is not limited to feelings; love is actions and interactions. In addition to a relationship with God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost and living based on the Bible, help to live healthy can also be found through medical professionals and support groups. The North Carolina Black Churches United for Better Health involved 50 churches with 2,500 members mixing spiritual and communal life with eating better and exercising more. This group became a national group, called the Body and Soul project, with the same objective.
Your Christian fellowship may prayerfully consider starting a health support group if it does not already have one, and/or maybe your church could hold regular praise parties playing music by multiple artists including Gospel singer Debra Ashley, who has a song, "Praise Party," on her album, New Birth, and was healed from a heart attack. Praise parties are opportunities to celebrate creatively without excessive alcohol, illegal drugs and partner-sex outside of marriage. Some of the best medicines are humor, forgiveness and marital sex.
Health is a hot topic today that is a wonderful, worthy and wise way to fulfilling Matthew 28:18-20 Amplified Bible which says, "Jesus approached and, breaking the silence, said to them, All authority (all power of rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen (so let it be)."
Forming and maintaining good friendships through disciplining is good for us and good for others. Dr. Derek Grier says in his book, 60 Minutes of Wisdom Insight In an Instant, "I do not need a prophetic gift to predict where you will be in five years. Anyone can forecast your tomorrow by looking at the people you hang around today. First Corinthians 15:33 says, "Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.'" Imagine what good company might do! Many people have questioned the importance of becoming part of a church. I think the answer can be illustrated in nature. I have read that when geese form the V formation, the whole flock adds over 70 percent to its flying range. When each bird flaps its wings, it becomes uplift for the birds that are following. Please don't mishear me. Don't just join any church, but find a church where you experience uplift. Find a church that flies in divine order, and then don't just sit and stare; connect your gifts and talents to the formation."
Please share an on-line comment about Christian groups that uplift others in the areas of physical and/or mental health. Also tweet with me. My Twitter name is Michelelove30. Recommend this article on Google.
Neurotransmitters are more than 60 chemicals in the body that communicate between neurons. Depression interferes with the production and processing of neurotransmitters which impacts heart disease and other diseases like diabetes, cancer, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, stroke and Alzheimer's.
Sometimes people consider physical health as more important than mental health. The reality is that they both need our regular attention, and failing to take good care of ourselves physically and mentally is dangerous. Many people know that heart disease can be fatal, but they may not know that so can depression. In addition to the link between hearth disease and depression, most of the 30,000 American suicides annually stem from clinical depression. "One out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you," says author Rita Mae Brown.
Help to overcome all types of illness can be found through God, the Church and living according to the Word of God. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Amplified Bible says, "Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will]."
Disobedience to God is deadly. Obedience to God opens opportunities for eminent, enjoyable living. Neal Krause, a sociologist and public-health expert at the University of Michigan, has since 1997 conducted a study of 1,500 people. One of the study's findings is that people who maintain a mindset of gratitude for what's going right in their lives have a reduced incidence of depression.
Sometimes we do not even know that we are depressed. Michael Hyatt in his "Get Out of That Funk" article at michaelhyatt.com on February 6, 2013 lists seven questions to ask ourselves:
"Question #1: Am I getting plenty of rest?
Question #2: Am I exercising three to four times a week?
Question #3: Am I eating high-energy foods?
Question #4: Am I staying hydrated?
Question #5: Am I getting enough sunshine?
Question #6: Am I focusing on the positive?
Question #7: Am I hanging out with energetic people?"
Maintaining our health requires a multifaceted approach. Maintaining our health is loving God, ourselves and other people. Love is not limited to feelings; love is actions and interactions. In addition to a relationship with God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost and living based on the Bible, help to live healthy can also be found through medical professionals and support groups. The North Carolina Black Churches United for Better Health involved 50 churches with 2,500 members mixing spiritual and communal life with eating better and exercising more. This group became a national group, called the Body and Soul project, with the same objective.
Your Christian fellowship may prayerfully consider starting a health support group if it does not already have one, and/or maybe your church could hold regular praise parties playing music by multiple artists including Gospel singer Debra Ashley, who has a song, "Praise Party," on her album, New Birth, and was healed from a heart attack. Praise parties are opportunities to celebrate creatively without excessive alcohol, illegal drugs and partner-sex outside of marriage. Some of the best medicines are humor, forgiveness and marital sex.
Health is a hot topic today that is a wonderful, worthy and wise way to fulfilling Matthew 28:18-20 Amplified Bible which says, "Jesus approached and, breaking the silence, said to them, All authority (all power of rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen (so let it be)."
Forming and maintaining good friendships through disciplining is good for us and good for others. Dr. Derek Grier says in his book, 60 Minutes of Wisdom Insight In an Instant, "I do not need a prophetic gift to predict where you will be in five years. Anyone can forecast your tomorrow by looking at the people you hang around today. First Corinthians 15:33 says, "Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.'" Imagine what good company might do! Many people have questioned the importance of becoming part of a church. I think the answer can be illustrated in nature. I have read that when geese form the V formation, the whole flock adds over 70 percent to its flying range. When each bird flaps its wings, it becomes uplift for the birds that are following. Please don't mishear me. Don't just join any church, but find a church where you experience uplift. Find a church that flies in divine order, and then don't just sit and stare; connect your gifts and talents to the formation."
Please share an on-line comment about Christian groups that uplift others in the areas of physical and/or mental health. Also tweet with me. My Twitter name is Michelelove30. Recommend this article on Google.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Artificial Death
Sometimes
things are not as they seem, but we make assumptions about certain
appearances and behave according to our false beliefs. When Chen
Qingwang went to check on her neighbor, 95-year-old Li Xiufeng, in her
home in Beiliu, Guangxi Province, China, Xiufeng seemed to be dead in
her bed, motionless, not breathing or responding to her name and efforts
to get her out of bed.
So
Quingwang and her son made funeral arrangements for Xiufeng who lived
alone. Two weeks earlier Xiufeng had tripped and suffered a head injury.
Everyone thought Xiufeng was dead. She looked dead. She acted dead, so
she must be dead? According to Chinese tradition, Qingwang had Xiufeng
placed in a coffin in Xiufeng's home that was unsealed, so that family
and friends could pay their respects.
Six
days after Qingwang found Xiufeng "dead" in her bed, Qingwang came back
one day before Xiufeng's funeral to find no body in her coffin!
Xiufeng
was found cooking in her kitchen. Xiufeng said she woke up so hungry
that she forced herself out of her coffin and went to the kitchen to
cook. Medics say Xiufeng experienced an "artificial death," which is
when people have no breath, but their body is warm.
We
don't know much about "artificial death," but God knows everything. God
has many surprises about the human bodies He has designed and created.
"God delights in concealing things; scientists delight in discovering
things," says Proverbs 25:2 the Message Bible.
Some things that scientists do that we may imitate to help us handle situations that are artificially dead in a way that shows our appreciation, affirmation and adoration of our infinitely capable God:
Some things that scientists do that we may imitate to help us handle situations that are artificially dead in a way that shows our appreciation, affirmation and adoration of our infinitely capable God:
- Scientists conquer their doubts and unbelief.
- Scientists don't assume things.
- Scientists investigate things.
- Scientists consult and collaborate with those full of wisdom, truth and ever-expanding knowledge.
- Scientists try to continuously learn as much as they possibly can.
- Scientists believe the unexpected and even the impossible are possible.
- Scientists thoroughly test things.
- Scientists share and publish the results of their experiments.
- Scientists change their life based on the results of their experiments.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Warrior Women
The US Defense Department is expected to announce the elimination of the 1994 Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule excluding women from combat, opening more than 230,000 direct-combat jobs to servicewomen, reported the American Forces Press Service, Pentagon's information wing, on January 23, 2013.
The move will expand the Pentagon's action last February to partially lift the ban, which opened up to women about 14,500 Army jobs, such as tank mechanic and field artillery radar operator.
Women comprise 14 percent of the 1.4 million active military personnel in the United States.
A Gallup poll conducted January 24, 2013, found that 74 percent would vote in favor of a law supporting women in combat job while 20 percent said they would vote against allowing women in combat roles.
Women have waged war for centuries. The Jewish prophet and judge Deborah along with Barak led her people to expel Canaanite invaders. Kentake Shanakdakheto, a black African queen of Kush, dressed in armor and wielding a spear in battle. She did not rule as queen regent or queen mother but as a fully independent ruler. Her husband was her consort. In Celtic culture women were warriors. Boudicca was the queen of the Iceni of the East of England. She headed a rebellion against the occupying Romans in Britain in A.D. 60 that was eventually crushed. Mongolian Queen Manduhai the Wise of the 1400s united the Mongols. Manduhai was pregnant and delivered twin boys while engaged in war against the Oirats who were eventually defeated. Queen Elizabeth I of England changed the course of history defeating the Spanish and establishing her nation as a leading world power. Queen Isabella I co-ruled Spain with her husband, Ferdinand II. Some of the highlights of their rule were that they united Spain and financed Christopher Columbus' 1492 voyage to the New World extending Spanish rule to the New World. This list of warrior women is not exhaustive. However, it points to the truth that woman may succeed today in multiple missions within the military and all other areas of life.
Warrior women have some practices that are useful for all of us to cultivate in order to succeed in multiple areas of life:
* They focus on solutions, not problems. Philippians 2:13-14 New Living Translation Bible says, "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing."
* They choose courage over fear. God said to Joshua words that apply to all of us in the book of Joshua 1:6-9 Amplified Bible saying, "Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
* They choose relationships wisely. Proverbs 22:24-25 New Living Translation Bible says about those who continuously refuse godly change, "Don't befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul."
* They nurture these carefully-selected relationships. Forgiveness is fundamental to friendship. Proverbs 17:9 New Living Translation Bible says, "Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends."
* They actively seek feedback, and use it to grow. Proverbs 20:18 the Message Bible says, "Form your purpose by asking for counsel, then carry it out using all the help you can get."
God is for us. He wants us to habitually win against the kingdom of darkness and our human nature that rebels against His goodness. Romans 8:31-32 English Standard Version says, "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?"
God gives us multiple principles to help us live well. Tenaciously pursuing God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost and His ways is a tactic that will translate into winning whatever war we are battling.
The move will expand the Pentagon's action last February to partially lift the ban, which opened up to women about 14,500 Army jobs, such as tank mechanic and field artillery radar operator.
Women comprise 14 percent of the 1.4 million active military personnel in the United States.
A Gallup poll conducted January 24, 2013, found that 74 percent would vote in favor of a law supporting women in combat job while 20 percent said they would vote against allowing women in combat roles.
Women have waged war for centuries. The Jewish prophet and judge Deborah along with Barak led her people to expel Canaanite invaders. Kentake Shanakdakheto, a black African queen of Kush, dressed in armor and wielding a spear in battle. She did not rule as queen regent or queen mother but as a fully independent ruler. Her husband was her consort. In Celtic culture women were warriors. Boudicca was the queen of the Iceni of the East of England. She headed a rebellion against the occupying Romans in Britain in A.D. 60 that was eventually crushed. Mongolian Queen Manduhai the Wise of the 1400s united the Mongols. Manduhai was pregnant and delivered twin boys while engaged in war against the Oirats who were eventually defeated. Queen Elizabeth I of England changed the course of history defeating the Spanish and establishing her nation as a leading world power. Queen Isabella I co-ruled Spain with her husband, Ferdinand II. Some of the highlights of their rule were that they united Spain and financed Christopher Columbus' 1492 voyage to the New World extending Spanish rule to the New World. This list of warrior women is not exhaustive. However, it points to the truth that woman may succeed today in multiple missions within the military and all other areas of life.
Warrior women have some practices that are useful for all of us to cultivate in order to succeed in multiple areas of life:
* They focus on solutions, not problems. Philippians 2:13-14 New Living Translation Bible says, "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing."
* They choose courage over fear. God said to Joshua words that apply to all of us in the book of Joshua 1:6-9 Amplified Bible saying, "Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
* They choose relationships wisely. Proverbs 22:24-25 New Living Translation Bible says about those who continuously refuse godly change, "Don't befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul."
* They nurture these carefully-selected relationships. Forgiveness is fundamental to friendship. Proverbs 17:9 New Living Translation Bible says, "Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends."
* They actively seek feedback, and use it to grow. Proverbs 20:18 the Message Bible says, "Form your purpose by asking for counsel, then carry it out using all the help you can get."
God is for us. He wants us to habitually win against the kingdom of darkness and our human nature that rebels against His goodness. Romans 8:31-32 English Standard Version says, "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?"
God gives us multiple principles to help us live well. Tenaciously pursuing God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost and His ways is a tactic that will translate into winning whatever war we are battling.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
7 Ingredients for Intimate Relationships
Intimacy is hindered absent certain ingredients. Let's look at seven ingredients from Ephesians 5 for fun, fulfilling marriages, families and friendships.
Ingredient #1: Acceptance. Regardless of our imperfections the best marriages, families and friendships contain people who accept each other while encouraging each other to grow. Ephesians 5:1 Amplified Bible says, "Therefore be imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father]."
Sometimes we fail to accept people the way they are. A mother told a daughter with stubby fingers and little sense of rhythm, "I have such lovely, long fingers and play the piano like a virtuoso. Why don't you practice the piano more?"
Lynn Toler, author of Making Marriage Work New Rules For An Old Institution, writes, "Pretend you have two dogs, one named Displeasure and the other Joy. They both live in your house, and you and your spouse are in charge of feeding them. Displeasure, bitch that she is, barks a lot. She is easily annoyed, and she snarls and growls and carries on the moment something does not go her way. If her food is late, she starts up. If she doesn't get to go outside when she wants, the yapping begins. You have to throw her a bone to get her to stop. Displeasure gets fed a lot. Joy, on the other hand, is a quiet and content canine. Loves to be petted, but doesn't cause you any trouble if you don't. She will sit quietly in the corner and await the attention she deserves, but she does not howl when it doesn't come her way. She often gets ignored. Here's the thing: you have to make a conscious effort to feed the quiet dog. Acknowledge all kindnesses. Thank your spouse for the everyday things that could easily go ignored. Whoever is paying the bills should feel like the other respects the effort involved. Whoever is cooking and cleaning deserves to know their daily grind is valued. If you appreciated something your spouse said or did, let her know. If he did something that anyone on the street would be impressed with, don't let the fact that you have seen him do it before keep you from mentioning it again."
Ingredient #2: Security. While some friendships may need to be pruned off our life because they are sucking nutrients out of us and/or our family, secure people are committed to relationships even through problems.
God doesn't give up on us because we have problems. He gives us enthusiastic, extravagant, enlightened love. Since He is our model, as believers the more we do likewise the better our relationships will be with God, self and others.
Ingredient #3: Choice. We don't have to be married, parents or friends. We choose these relationships. These are not one-time choices. In good relationships we are choosing our spouse, children and friends over and over again. We hunger to be desired continuously. If we aren't enjoying our spouse, family or friends, then it sucks out some of their enjoyment.
Everyone is an individual. Learn each others likes and dislikes. We want to be liked for who we really are. Ephesians 5:10 New Living Translation Bible says, "Carefully determine what pleases the Lord."
God is for people. He wants us to experience pleasure in His presence and the presence of His people.
One of the key ways we receive pleasure is through edifying conversation. Learn to say things that bring out the best in people. For married people a saying goes, "99 percent of sex happens between the ears." What goes into the ears connects to the mind. Latina-American actress Raquel Welch says, "The mind can also be an erogenous zone." Woo him or her with the most effective, encompassing words rooted in the Word. John 1:1-3 Amplified Bible says, "In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was present originally with God. All things were made and come into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one thing made that has come into being. In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men."
God is the Creator of sexuality and sex. Learn more and more about God, and you will learn more and more about how to be a sexy single or sexy married person. God knows all the sexual positions, and many that you don't know about! God invented all the sexual positions. God thinks marital sex and Biblical single sexuality are sublime, not shameful and sinful.
Ingredient #4: Support. Friends and family members are individuals; we are not the same people. We have some interests in common and some that are different, but good people support each other's individuality. They also protect their life and relationships by on purpose preparing lots of time to listen and to understand those we share a relationship with and to maintain and foster unity.
The Bible is a book of balance. Individuality and unity go together. If they are working against each other, sin is present. Talk to God, and cooperate with Him to transform whatever is not like God.
Ingredient #5: Thankfulness. Thankfulness is expressed in attitudes and actions that communicate, "I'm not perfect. You are not perfect, but I am thankful we are together. I am thankful for the memories, the present and the future."
Big-picture thinking doesn't dismiss the petty arguments and small inconveniences, but also does not become absorbed in them. Big-picture thinking focuses on the overall benefits in good relationships.
We can have seasons were Satan seeks to wear us out with discouraging circumstances and/or relationships. God is using these same circumstances and/or relationships to allow His fruit of the Spirit on the inside to be plucked for food on the outside.
"When it comes to food for thought, some of us are on a hunger strike," says activist Dick Gregory. We are thinking, talking and acting out negative attitudes and actions like, "I'm tired. You're getting on my nerves. I'm going to put you out of the house," for situations and circumstances God isn't finished with. God can enter a relationship with anyone, no matter how bad they seem to be; the Apostle Paul started out as Saul going around throwing Christians in jail and trying to have them sentenced to death. But then God showed up in Saul's life and showed him what true living really is.
We may be reading our Bibles, put not practically applying the Word in some areas. Our physical body is part of the temple of God. It too has to be nourished. Some of us do inadequate or no physical exercise and/or improper eating depriving us of sources of stamina that support our spiritual and mental health. Jesus not only prayed and cultivated His Christ mind, He also walked, ate and slept. Why do some think it's okay to abuse they physical body?
Much of life is interconnected. We have to also pay attention and nurture our relationship with God, self and others on many levels. Satan is looking to slip into our life where we are sluggish and slay someone and/or something. 1 Peter 5:8-9 Amplified Bible says, "Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world."
Ingredient #6: Wisdom. Good decisions come from a good heart. Daniel Hale Williams was the first African-American cardiologist, and the first to perform successful open-heart surgery in the United States. We will need to leave our hearts open for God to perform surgery on them slicing out our numerous sins.
Sin isn't sexy. Sin acts as a spoiler in our relationships.
Not many of us would want others to be able to see all of our thoughts! However, God can, and He sees how these thoughts help and hurt people. We are responsible to be wise enough to continually seek spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical growth through cooperating with God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost to develop more of the God inside. The more God controls the inside, the more our outward behavior will bring out the best in people.
Perhaps you had a child in your 40s or 50s that wasn't exactly planned and have not cooperated with God to have the disappointment, resentment, anger, jealousy and other hostility in your heart removed, so now it seeps out on your child and others. Many have lived in relationships filled with the agony of indifference or hatred.
Ingredient #7: Clarity and Compatibility. By reserving our most close relationships for those who have the same faith and purpose in life, we are building ourselves up instead of working against each other. Ideas have consequences. Christians believe in hope, life and the multifaceted goodness of our God that is primarily expressed through His people. Not everyone believes the same. Chandragupta Maurya, the first emperor of India, with a kingdom stretching from Punjab to Karnataka, more than 300 years after Alexander the Great had died, chose his own death as a devout Jain who starved himself to death on a hilltop at Sravanabelgola.
Being equally yoked with spouses, family and friends is not simply sharing the same Christian faith. "Yoked" is a farming reference. When a farmer would plow a field, he or she would use a yoke to join two animals. The farmer paired two animals of equal strength to work together to produce a straight line in the field.
Before marriage a wise couple talks about the nature of our relationship with God, self, family and friends, the desired frequency of sex, the acceptable behaviors with opposite-sex friends and same-sex friends, the purpose and use of money, the number of children, the lifestyle and as many things as possible. The more agreement and equal strength before marriage the less potential relationship conflict after marriage. While we all change, we all also have a certain character and personality that may remain remarkably consistent throughout adulthood. A couple where the wife desires sex seven days a week, but the husband desires sex once a month probably should have never said, "I do."
Sex is a central part of the oneness in marriage. Genesis 2:24-25 New Living Translation Bible says, "This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame."
Sexual incompatibility is a serious issue. A wife who keeps asking her husband for sex and habitually receives, "I'm not in the mood," or some other rejection will likely begin to receive messages of shame and low self-worth while the husband may feel personally attacked, unappreciated and even exploited.
Sexual abuse is also something we should share with our partner by the time we are engaged. Bollywood actress Sofia Hayat was sexually abused by her uncle when she was 10 years old. Minister Noel Jones was molested by a man in a Christian church bathroom when he was in elementary school. Rape, date rape, molestation, incest and various types of sexual abuse are experienced by people of all ages, races, genders and religions and often have a profound impact on our behavior and may require Christian pastoral and/or psychological counseling to overcome. Don't be surprised if you were abused sexually as a child and/or adolescent that the abuse has a negative impact on your marriage. International Bible teacher Joyce Meyer was raped by her father repeatedly throughout her childhood and adolescence. She says the experience played a role in her low-self esteem and choosing a first marriage partner who abused her in various ways, and even when she married her current husband, Dave Meyer, of more than 45 years, a time existed where she had problems with sexual relations. She says for he longest time she could not have sex with Dave with the lights on.
Twenty-five percent of all females will be sexually abused by the time they reach adulthood. These women may or may not have a conscious aversion to sex that needs to be overcome for the success of their marriage.
Also some women who are sexually active before marriage discover that they have physical problems having sex. The American Psychiatric Association divides female sexual problems into four categories:
(1) Sexual Desire Disorder,
(2) Sexual Arousal Disorder,
(3) Orgasmic Disorder and
(4) Sexual Pain Disorder.
Sexual Desire Disorder is when a person habitually loses all interest in sex and may even develop an aversion to sex. Sexual Arousal Disorder is when a woman mentally desires sex, but her physical body fails to maintain a state of arousal. She becomes dry and/or unresponsive to sexual stimulation. Most women do not have an orgasm every time they have sex, but Orgasmic Disorder is when a woman desires an orgasm, but habitually she cannot reach sexual climax. Sexual Pain Disorder is when a woman experiences chronic vaginal pain during intercourse.
Reading the seven ingredients you may have noticed some things you are doing that don't bring out the best in people. Now is a good time to talk to God and to begin the process of incorporating the seven above ingredients of intimacy from Ephesians 5 into your life. Please leave an on-line comment sharing how God has helped you to learn to be intimate and have intimacy.
Ingredient #1: Acceptance. Regardless of our imperfections the best marriages, families and friendships contain people who accept each other while encouraging each other to grow. Ephesians 5:1 Amplified Bible says, "Therefore be imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father]."
Sometimes we fail to accept people the way they are. A mother told a daughter with stubby fingers and little sense of rhythm, "I have such lovely, long fingers and play the piano like a virtuoso. Why don't you practice the piano more?"
Lynn Toler, author of Making Marriage Work New Rules For An Old Institution, writes, "Pretend you have two dogs, one named Displeasure and the other Joy. They both live in your house, and you and your spouse are in charge of feeding them. Displeasure, bitch that she is, barks a lot. She is easily annoyed, and she snarls and growls and carries on the moment something does not go her way. If her food is late, she starts up. If she doesn't get to go outside when she wants, the yapping begins. You have to throw her a bone to get her to stop. Displeasure gets fed a lot. Joy, on the other hand, is a quiet and content canine. Loves to be petted, but doesn't cause you any trouble if you don't. She will sit quietly in the corner and await the attention she deserves, but she does not howl when it doesn't come her way. She often gets ignored. Here's the thing: you have to make a conscious effort to feed the quiet dog. Acknowledge all kindnesses. Thank your spouse for the everyday things that could easily go ignored. Whoever is paying the bills should feel like the other respects the effort involved. Whoever is cooking and cleaning deserves to know their daily grind is valued. If you appreciated something your spouse said or did, let her know. If he did something that anyone on the street would be impressed with, don't let the fact that you have seen him do it before keep you from mentioning it again."
Ingredient #2: Security. While some friendships may need to be pruned off our life because they are sucking nutrients out of us and/or our family, secure people are committed to relationships even through problems.
God doesn't give up on us because we have problems. He gives us enthusiastic, extravagant, enlightened love. Since He is our model, as believers the more we do likewise the better our relationships will be with God, self and others.
Ingredient #3: Choice. We don't have to be married, parents or friends. We choose these relationships. These are not one-time choices. In good relationships we are choosing our spouse, children and friends over and over again. We hunger to be desired continuously. If we aren't enjoying our spouse, family or friends, then it sucks out some of their enjoyment.
Everyone is an individual. Learn each others likes and dislikes. We want to be liked for who we really are. Ephesians 5:10 New Living Translation Bible says, "Carefully determine what pleases the Lord."
God is for people. He wants us to experience pleasure in His presence and the presence of His people.
One of the key ways we receive pleasure is through edifying conversation. Learn to say things that bring out the best in people. For married people a saying goes, "99 percent of sex happens between the ears." What goes into the ears connects to the mind. Latina-American actress Raquel Welch says, "The mind can also be an erogenous zone." Woo him or her with the most effective, encompassing words rooted in the Word. John 1:1-3 Amplified Bible says, "In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was present originally with God. All things were made and come into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one thing made that has come into being. In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men."
God is the Creator of sexuality and sex. Learn more and more about God, and you will learn more and more about how to be a sexy single or sexy married person. God knows all the sexual positions, and many that you don't know about! God invented all the sexual positions. God thinks marital sex and Biblical single sexuality are sublime, not shameful and sinful.
Ingredient #4: Support. Friends and family members are individuals; we are not the same people. We have some interests in common and some that are different, but good people support each other's individuality. They also protect their life and relationships by on purpose preparing lots of time to listen and to understand those we share a relationship with and to maintain and foster unity.
The Bible is a book of balance. Individuality and unity go together. If they are working against each other, sin is present. Talk to God, and cooperate with Him to transform whatever is not like God.
Ingredient #5: Thankfulness. Thankfulness is expressed in attitudes and actions that communicate, "I'm not perfect. You are not perfect, but I am thankful we are together. I am thankful for the memories, the present and the future."
Big-picture thinking doesn't dismiss the petty arguments and small inconveniences, but also does not become absorbed in them. Big-picture thinking focuses on the overall benefits in good relationships.
We can have seasons were Satan seeks to wear us out with discouraging circumstances and/or relationships. God is using these same circumstances and/or relationships to allow His fruit of the Spirit on the inside to be plucked for food on the outside.
"When it comes to food for thought, some of us are on a hunger strike," says activist Dick Gregory. We are thinking, talking and acting out negative attitudes and actions like, "I'm tired. You're getting on my nerves. I'm going to put you out of the house," for situations and circumstances God isn't finished with. God can enter a relationship with anyone, no matter how bad they seem to be; the Apostle Paul started out as Saul going around throwing Christians in jail and trying to have them sentenced to death. But then God showed up in Saul's life and showed him what true living really is.
We may be reading our Bibles, put not practically applying the Word in some areas. Our physical body is part of the temple of God. It too has to be nourished. Some of us do inadequate or no physical exercise and/or improper eating depriving us of sources of stamina that support our spiritual and mental health. Jesus not only prayed and cultivated His Christ mind, He also walked, ate and slept. Why do some think it's okay to abuse they physical body?
Much of life is interconnected. We have to also pay attention and nurture our relationship with God, self and others on many levels. Satan is looking to slip into our life where we are sluggish and slay someone and/or something. 1 Peter 5:8-9 Amplified Bible says, "Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour. Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world."
Ingredient #6: Wisdom. Good decisions come from a good heart. Daniel Hale Williams was the first African-American cardiologist, and the first to perform successful open-heart surgery in the United States. We will need to leave our hearts open for God to perform surgery on them slicing out our numerous sins.
Sin isn't sexy. Sin acts as a spoiler in our relationships.
Not many of us would want others to be able to see all of our thoughts! However, God can, and He sees how these thoughts help and hurt people. We are responsible to be wise enough to continually seek spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical growth through cooperating with God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost to develop more of the God inside. The more God controls the inside, the more our outward behavior will bring out the best in people.
Perhaps you had a child in your 40s or 50s that wasn't exactly planned and have not cooperated with God to have the disappointment, resentment, anger, jealousy and other hostility in your heart removed, so now it seeps out on your child and others. Many have lived in relationships filled with the agony of indifference or hatred.
Ingredient #7: Clarity and Compatibility. By reserving our most close relationships for those who have the same faith and purpose in life, we are building ourselves up instead of working against each other. Ideas have consequences. Christians believe in hope, life and the multifaceted goodness of our God that is primarily expressed through His people. Not everyone believes the same. Chandragupta Maurya, the first emperor of India, with a kingdom stretching from Punjab to Karnataka, more than 300 years after Alexander the Great had died, chose his own death as a devout Jain who starved himself to death on a hilltop at Sravanabelgola.
Being equally yoked with spouses, family and friends is not simply sharing the same Christian faith. "Yoked" is a farming reference. When a farmer would plow a field, he or she would use a yoke to join two animals. The farmer paired two animals of equal strength to work together to produce a straight line in the field.
Before marriage a wise couple talks about the nature of our relationship with God, self, family and friends, the desired frequency of sex, the acceptable behaviors with opposite-sex friends and same-sex friends, the purpose and use of money, the number of children, the lifestyle and as many things as possible. The more agreement and equal strength before marriage the less potential relationship conflict after marriage. While we all change, we all also have a certain character and personality that may remain remarkably consistent throughout adulthood. A couple where the wife desires sex seven days a week, but the husband desires sex once a month probably should have never said, "I do."
Sex is a central part of the oneness in marriage. Genesis 2:24-25 New Living Translation Bible says, "This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame."
Sexual incompatibility is a serious issue. A wife who keeps asking her husband for sex and habitually receives, "I'm not in the mood," or some other rejection will likely begin to receive messages of shame and low self-worth while the husband may feel personally attacked, unappreciated and even exploited.
Sexual abuse is also something we should share with our partner by the time we are engaged. Bollywood actress Sofia Hayat was sexually abused by her uncle when she was 10 years old. Minister Noel Jones was molested by a man in a Christian church bathroom when he was in elementary school. Rape, date rape, molestation, incest and various types of sexual abuse are experienced by people of all ages, races, genders and religions and often have a profound impact on our behavior and may require Christian pastoral and/or psychological counseling to overcome. Don't be surprised if you were abused sexually as a child and/or adolescent that the abuse has a negative impact on your marriage. International Bible teacher Joyce Meyer was raped by her father repeatedly throughout her childhood and adolescence. She says the experience played a role in her low-self esteem and choosing a first marriage partner who abused her in various ways, and even when she married her current husband, Dave Meyer, of more than 45 years, a time existed where she had problems with sexual relations. She says for he longest time she could not have sex with Dave with the lights on.
Twenty-five percent of all females will be sexually abused by the time they reach adulthood. These women may or may not have a conscious aversion to sex that needs to be overcome for the success of their marriage.
Also some women who are sexually active before marriage discover that they have physical problems having sex. The American Psychiatric Association divides female sexual problems into four categories:
(1) Sexual Desire Disorder,
(2) Sexual Arousal Disorder,
(3) Orgasmic Disorder and
(4) Sexual Pain Disorder.
Sexual Desire Disorder is when a person habitually loses all interest in sex and may even develop an aversion to sex. Sexual Arousal Disorder is when a woman mentally desires sex, but her physical body fails to maintain a state of arousal. She becomes dry and/or unresponsive to sexual stimulation. Most women do not have an orgasm every time they have sex, but Orgasmic Disorder is when a woman desires an orgasm, but habitually she cannot reach sexual climax. Sexual Pain Disorder is when a woman experiences chronic vaginal pain during intercourse.
Reading the seven ingredients you may have noticed some things you are doing that don't bring out the best in people. Now is a good time to talk to God and to begin the process of incorporating the seven above ingredients of intimacy from Ephesians 5 into your life. Please leave an on-line comment sharing how God has helped you to learn to be intimate and have intimacy.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Friends See Things We Don't
Moses was a great leader for God. God selected Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery to the mighty Egyptian nation and into the wilderness to worship the Lord. Yet even great leaders are not perfect leaders.
We all need friends who have a relationship with God. God reveals, and friends see things that we don't that help us and others to experience better relationships and living. Jethro, Moses' father-in-law and friend, saw that Moses needed to assign some of his work to others, and he advised Moses to do so (Exodus 18).
Moses accepted the advice, and a whole nation experienced better relationships as a consequence. Leaders of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens and the people of Israel lived more like what pleases God because many leaders used the talents God gave them to help people to hear the Word of God, to enter and to grow in relationship with God, to apply the Word of God to their lives and to resolve more disputes than what could be solved by one person thus encouraging more harmonious and intimate relationships with God and people.
What godly revelation has a friend seen in your life that improved a relationship?
We all need friends who have a relationship with God. God reveals, and friends see things that we don't that help us and others to experience better relationships and living. Jethro, Moses' father-in-law and friend, saw that Moses needed to assign some of his work to others, and he advised Moses to do so (Exodus 18).
Moses accepted the advice, and a whole nation experienced better relationships as a consequence. Leaders of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens and the people of Israel lived more like what pleases God because many leaders used the talents God gave them to help people to hear the Word of God, to enter and to grow in relationship with God, to apply the Word of God to their lives and to resolve more disputes than what could be solved by one person thus encouraging more harmonious and intimate relationships with God and people.
What godly revelation has a friend seen in your life that improved a relationship?
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Sleeping With the Enemy
Ephesians 5:17 Amplified Bible says, "Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is." God wants us to love Him, ourselves and others. God created sex and sexuality. What God creates is good, very good provided it's used according to His instructions.
When we are thoughtful, alert and sensitive to the leading of God the Holy Ghost we will carefully protect and cherish our whole person. When we are asleep spiritually we get into bed with the enemy. The Bible book of Judges records that Samson was a believer who was sexually confused, sleeping with the enemy. Here are four ways Samson was not thoughtful, alert and sensitive to God.
1. Companionship in the spirit:
God designed for both husband and wife to be believers with an equal relationship with God. Samson was having sex with Deliliah, but he was not married to her. Samson was a worshiper of the one and only true and living God. Delilah probably worshiped Dagon. Samson and Delilah had nothing in common spiritually. They could not have companionship and unity spiritually because the spiritual source upon which their lifestyle was based were in conflict and opposition.
2. Intellectual agreement:
Relationships help us fulfill our God-given purpose in life. Sexuality is designed to reproduce a legacy of life, of multiplication. Samson had a pattern of choosing sexual partners who betrayed him to his enemies. His relationships brought destruction instead of multiplication.
Believers value freedom. Delilah talked repeatedly about bondage.
Believers affirm each other consistently. Delilah attacked Samson relentlessly.
Believers seek to help self and others. Delilah sought money for herself at the expense of Samson.
Believers seek the truth. Delilah lied.
Believers practice love with true affection. Delilah practiced false compassion.
3. Emotional encouragement:
Joy and peace are experienced in good relationships. Samson experienced insults, harassment and other emotional torment in his relationship with Delilah.
4. Healthy physical bodies:
God designed sex inside of marriage to be pleasurable and good for us. While Samson experienced moments of pleasure the end result of sex with Delilah was that he had his strength stripped and his enemies were empowered to bore out his eyes and put him in bondage.
Sometimes we attract enemies because they are persecuting us for right living, but Samson attracted enemies because he was an enemy to himself living sexually according to the ways of evil. He was asleep to the sexual ways of God.
Believers have God on the inside to empower us to stay awake and live well. No time is a good time to be vague and sleepy about our relationship with God and His will for us. The evil enemy is always seeking to seduce you to sleep with him.
When we are thoughtful, alert and sensitive to the leading of God the Holy Ghost we will carefully protect and cherish our whole person. When we are asleep spiritually we get into bed with the enemy. The Bible book of Judges records that Samson was a believer who was sexually confused, sleeping with the enemy. Here are four ways Samson was not thoughtful, alert and sensitive to God.
1. Companionship in the spirit:
God designed for both husband and wife to be believers with an equal relationship with God. Samson was having sex with Deliliah, but he was not married to her. Samson was a worshiper of the one and only true and living God. Delilah probably worshiped Dagon. Samson and Delilah had nothing in common spiritually. They could not have companionship and unity spiritually because the spiritual source upon which their lifestyle was based were in conflict and opposition.
2. Intellectual agreement:
Relationships help us fulfill our God-given purpose in life. Sexuality is designed to reproduce a legacy of life, of multiplication. Samson had a pattern of choosing sexual partners who betrayed him to his enemies. His relationships brought destruction instead of multiplication.
Believers value freedom. Delilah talked repeatedly about bondage.
Believers affirm each other consistently. Delilah attacked Samson relentlessly.
Believers seek to help self and others. Delilah sought money for herself at the expense of Samson.
Believers seek the truth. Delilah lied.
Believers practice love with true affection. Delilah practiced false compassion.
3. Emotional encouragement:
Joy and peace are experienced in good relationships. Samson experienced insults, harassment and other emotional torment in his relationship with Delilah.
4. Healthy physical bodies:
God designed sex inside of marriage to be pleasurable and good for us. While Samson experienced moments of pleasure the end result of sex with Delilah was that he had his strength stripped and his enemies were empowered to bore out his eyes and put him in bondage.
Sometimes we attract enemies because they are persecuting us for right living, but Samson attracted enemies because he was an enemy to himself living sexually according to the ways of evil. He was asleep to the sexual ways of God.
Believers have God on the inside to empower us to stay awake and live well. No time is a good time to be vague and sleepy about our relationship with God and His will for us. The evil enemy is always seeking to seduce you to sleep with him.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
How to Stop Spinning Out of Control
Sometimes we are in relationships with believers and certain interactions repeatedly spin out of control. Neither one of us wanted to end up in sins of anger, envy, selfishness, etc., but we seem to repeatedly move there. Often these interactions condition us to have a mindset of fear regarding how we will behave in certain circumstances. Fearing the worst behavior or something less than the best behavior is not believing the best. God calls us to the best. 1 Corinthians 13:7 Amplified Bible says, "Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]."
As believers, "Esperamos." Our hope and confidence is not in someone's ability to change to good behavior, but in God's ability to change someone. As long as our hope and confidence is in people we will be prone to expect failure, and we will try to flee and/or fight as a means of protecting ourselves from sin. Placing our confidence in God and walking in love is not operating with unrealistic thoughts about human behavior. Rather love sees and understands the truth about ourselves and others and turns us over to God for the ability to do good in increasing likeness of God.
Examine ourselves. Ask questions like, "What behavior am I afraid he/she will do?;" "Why do I respond in fear?" Then ask God to set us free from the fearful thought pattern that is motivating us to respond in an unloving way. Ungodly fear entangles us in more sin because wisdom declines and low expectations increase.
God has already placed Himself in believers giving us self-control to master the fear and to respond in love.
When we are walking in self-control we are in God's will. We don't have a perfect body yet, so we will not walk in perfect self-control. A Japanese proverb says, "Fall down seven times, get up eight times."
God is already aware of and taken care of all the sins we ever did, are doing and will do. When we are imperfect, but chasing God, God is willing to make the changes we ask Him. 1 John 3:22-23 Amplified Bible says, "And we receive from Him whatever we ask, because we [watchfully] obey His orders [observe His suggestions and injunctions, follow His plan for us] and [habitually] practice what is pleasing to Him. And this is His order (His command, His injunction): that we should believe in (put our faith and trust in and adhere to and rely on) the name of His Son Jesus Christ (the Messiah), and that we should love one another, just as He has commanded us."
Contact Michele Jackson and Rafael Fowler at email address michefrancesjackson@gmail.com to join our live relationship group to conquer fear and to live in love and self control among other things. God created us and preserves our life from fertilization through birth, youth, old age and beyond death for people who are African, European, Asian, Hispanic, male, female, working all different kinds of assignments at all different kinds of hours and with different minds and abilities and with multiple mixtures of these characteristics. God created us to have a good relationship with Him and to be in relationships with people who are just right for us.
As believers, "Esperamos." Our hope and confidence is not in someone's ability to change to good behavior, but in God's ability to change someone. As long as our hope and confidence is in people we will be prone to expect failure, and we will try to flee and/or fight as a means of protecting ourselves from sin. Placing our confidence in God and walking in love is not operating with unrealistic thoughts about human behavior. Rather love sees and understands the truth about ourselves and others and turns us over to God for the ability to do good in increasing likeness of God.
Examine ourselves. Ask questions like, "What behavior am I afraid he/she will do?;" "Why do I respond in fear?" Then ask God to set us free from the fearful thought pattern that is motivating us to respond in an unloving way. Ungodly fear entangles us in more sin because wisdom declines and low expectations increase.
God has already placed Himself in believers giving us self-control to master the fear and to respond in love.
When we are walking in self-control we are in God's will. We don't have a perfect body yet, so we will not walk in perfect self-control. A Japanese proverb says, "Fall down seven times, get up eight times."
God is already aware of and taken care of all the sins we ever did, are doing and will do. When we are imperfect, but chasing God, God is willing to make the changes we ask Him. 1 John 3:22-23 Amplified Bible says, "And we receive from Him whatever we ask, because we [watchfully] obey His orders [observe His suggestions and injunctions, follow His plan for us] and [habitually] practice what is pleasing to Him. And this is His order (His command, His injunction): that we should believe in (put our faith and trust in and adhere to and rely on) the name of His Son Jesus Christ (the Messiah), and that we should love one another, just as He has commanded us."
Contact Michele Jackson and Rafael Fowler at email address michefrancesjackson@gmail.com to join our live relationship group to conquer fear and to live in love and self control among other things. God created us and preserves our life from fertilization through birth, youth, old age and beyond death for people who are African, European, Asian, Hispanic, male, female, working all different kinds of assignments at all different kinds of hours and with different minds and abilities and with multiple mixtures of these characteristics. God created us to have a good relationship with Him and to be in relationships with people who are just right for us.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Wisdom Keeps on Giving Good
"Real giving occurs when I give somebody something that I want to keep," says Joyce Meyer in her book Love Out Loud 365 Devotions for Loving God, Loving Yourself, and Loving Others. I really wanted to keep my book Crazy Good Sex Putting to Bed the Myths Men Have About Sex by Christian author Dr. Les Parrott, but I donated it to a local Prince William County, Virginia, library.
Please share an on-line comment about the books, audio-books, CDs, DVDs and other media you have recently donated to a library. Please also comment about other gifts that keep on giving to others. I welcome financial gifts to my ministry. Checks and money orders should be made payable to "Michele Jackson," and mailed to P.O. Box 2106, Woodbridge, Virgina, 22195.
Learning is a lifetime pursuit that at its best connects to wisdom. Proverbs 8:35-36 Amplified Bible says, "For whoever finds me [Wisdom] finds life and draws forth and obtains favor from the Lord. But he who misses me or sins against me wrongs and injures himself; all who hate me love and court death."
During Jesus Christ's earthly ministry, the majority of the Pharisees were well educated, but wronged and injured themselves and others by creating rules that lacked the Spirit of God. God is the source of goodness. Following many of the Pharisees' rules meant participating in evil. Martin Luther King Jr. says in his speech "The Better Way" on the CD The Wisdom of Martin Luther King Jr. quoting Gandhi and Thoreau, "Non-cooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as cooperation with good."
Bartolome de Las Casas was a Dominican friar and bishop who practiced non-cooperation with evil. He spoke about the humanity of Native Americans during colonial-era Spanish rule when Native Americans were thought to be and treated as a lesser race.
Please share an on-line comment about current evils in relationships, sexuality and life that need to be exposed.
Please share an on-line comment about the books, audio-books, CDs, DVDs and other media you have recently donated to a library. Please also comment about other gifts that keep on giving to others. I welcome financial gifts to my ministry. Checks and money orders should be made payable to "Michele Jackson," and mailed to P.O. Box 2106, Woodbridge, Virgina, 22195.
Learning is a lifetime pursuit that at its best connects to wisdom. Proverbs 8:35-36 Amplified Bible says, "For whoever finds me [Wisdom] finds life and draws forth and obtains favor from the Lord. But he who misses me or sins against me wrongs and injures himself; all who hate me love and court death."
During Jesus Christ's earthly ministry, the majority of the Pharisees were well educated, but wronged and injured themselves and others by creating rules that lacked the Spirit of God. God is the source of goodness. Following many of the Pharisees' rules meant participating in evil. Martin Luther King Jr. says in his speech "The Better Way" on the CD The Wisdom of Martin Luther King Jr. quoting Gandhi and Thoreau, "Non-cooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as cooperation with good."
Bartolome de Las Casas was a Dominican friar and bishop who practiced non-cooperation with evil. He spoke about the humanity of Native Americans during colonial-era Spanish rule when Native Americans were thought to be and treated as a lesser race.
Please share an on-line comment about current evils in relationships, sexuality and life that need to be exposed.
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