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=> Testimonies / Prayer Requests / Fellowship => Topic started by: rrammfcitktturjsp on January 31, 2007, 11:29:59 AM
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To All,
For some time I have prayed for patience. This is a scary prayer to pray, but I was wandering around in the Word of God yesterday and found the Scripture where God will not put me through more than I can bear. So why I am still afriad. Everyday it is getting harder and harder to pray for it. But I know patience is a weakenss in my life right now and want to get it worked on before my son can get any older.
2 other prayers that I have been praying is true understanding of the Body of Christ - those that are in Him in Spirit and Truth. I was a pre-med student and understand how the human body worked, but I prayed that I would see the body of Christ at work.
I also prayed that I would learn to feel God's presence at all times. Including time out periods of which I am experiencing right now. I know that I am praying these things becuase God wills it. Please pray for me as I am having trouble to keep on praying. But I know that persistence and running the race is the first step.
I will not quit, until God says that it is okay. I am just being told to pray all the harder. So I guess it is time to let go of the branch and jump. I think and know this will be a tough lesson to learn and tought discipline to go through at the time, but I know it will make me a better person.
Finis
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire
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Anne,
I can relate to your situation. God is drawing us closer every single minute of every single day and He never promised us it would be easy but He did promise us that He would never leave us nor foresake us. He also promised us that He would finish the work He has started in us.
If you, I and others can hold on to that promise then we can do all things through Christ which gives us strength.
bobby
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Bobby,
That is so good to hear and I just remembered something. I did post those verses and things that relate to your reply in another topic entitled Phillipians. Hmmm, perhaps God was trying to tell me something after all. I just wish that I just was not so stubborn headed about things. ;D In science we learned that the hardest substance on the earth was a diamond, but I am of a different opinion, I am sure that I could break the diamond by cracking it on my head. ;)
Thanks for the words of encouragement brother.
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire
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Anne,
NOW you know why DIAMONDS are a girls best friend. ;D ;D
Ches
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Don't try so hard. You've allready arrived. When Jesus died on the cross he bowed his head and said "it is finished". That applies to you. Read Galatians 2:20. Absorb that verse and let it heal you from your human effort. You are in Christ. Learn to rest. Quit trying so hard...you may be in danger of making your own "self-effort" and idol. God will continue to let you fail..until you learn to totally rest and let go. It's like this ... when you fly ... you the human person don't run down the tarmac and flap your arms do you... :)no you purchase a ticket (salvation)..get on a plane (higher power) and sit down and rest. The law of aerodynamics simply overcomes the law of gravity and you fly high and fast...no effort on your part...except to accept your higher power's power (Jet). Therefore in our walk..like it says in Romans..."the law of life in Christ Jesus has OVERCOME the Law of Sin and Death! (Romans 8:2) Notice the previous verse says "In Christ Jesus" It's wonderful...Precious sister in Christ. Learn to Rest in Him. Quit trying so hard. He loves you no matter what. Think about Paul the Apostle..he considered himself the Chief of Sinners!. Look how God used him Hope this helps...Been where you're at for many years...Am now liberated...As I understand that Christ is all and in all...
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Jaunzo,
Thanks for your post. Yes I do have to be careful of self-effot. Sometimes it does become very hard to establish the necessary balence between the two. Thanks brother for that. I have been trying hard in the last few days. I will let go.
God bless you and yours.
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire
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Hi Juanzo,
It's good to see your first post :)
You are right when you say it is by effort on our part. But as you said,
When Jesus died on the cross he bowed his head and said "it is finished".
The work He came to do was finished, but the salvation of all mankind was just beginning. In this age God is calling many but only choosing a few, and they must be drawn or bragged to Christ.
Joh 6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
Am now liberated...As I understand that Christ is all and in all...
The act of all things in all, is the last act of Christ, before He turns all things over to the Father.
1Co 15:28 But when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subject to Him who has subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all things in all.
There is still quite a lot that is yet to be done by Christ, before all things are subjected to Him and He is 'all things in all.'
mercy, peace, and love
Kat
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Juanzo that was a great explanation and so easy to understand. We do, at times, just need to sit back don't we? Jennie
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Thanks Kat....lot's to digest...good to know He's at the helm....Love in Christ. Juanzo
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Hi Juanzo,
Yes it is quite a lot to take in.
But it sounds like you really are seeing it.
Ask question any time, there are a lot of people to help you out :)
mercy, peace, and love
Kat
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Hi Juanzo,
Welcome aboard my brother, lets fly together in Him!! :) ;) ;D
Dwight
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Hello juanzo,
Welcome to the forun!
I enjoyed your first post.
May God continue to open your eyes and ears to the truth.
Iris
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Anne,
A long time ago I prayed for patience too. I did it out of defiance (boy was that smart huh? :-\) for someone telling me that you should NEVER do that. Ha, I did it anyway. Um, maybe not one of my brightest moments but I would do it again because it has been working. I can't say I'm there but I'm way more patient that I've ever been before. In my experience, God has answered my prayer.. slowly ;D. Having to wait patiently to be taught patience...ironic huh? It's a long hard road through some of the lessons. God will get you there, but you have to be....patient... ;).
As for feeling God's presence at all times, I personally don't believe I'll be granted that because I use that as "proof" that He is there and He loves me. But faith means believing even when you can't see or feel His presence, knowing He's still there and still loves you when you feel nothing but empty and alone. There are many times when I feel so close to Him I get lost in it and am barely aware of the world around me. And those times I feel so much joy and love and so alive that I can barely contain it. There are times when I can talk with Him and know that He is very present and is teaching me and telling me of His love for me and for those around me. And there are those dark times when I struggle to pray, when I can't feel Him and it is so hard. But, yet I love Him and know that He is teaching me to depend only on Him even when He doesn't make His presence so well known....increasing my faith to believe in Him separate and apart from any feeling of His presence. In some ways, those times make me love Him even more than the times when He is filling me with such joy and the awareness of His presence. It has given me much peace to know that His calm steadying love is always there, even in those times when I can't feel it but only can know it through faith.
Rest assured, God is with you and teaching you as you know.
Love in Christ,
mongoose
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Mongoose,
I know what it is to struggle with the "proof" thing. I am a mathematics major and see everything either and or, or sometimes all at the same time or not at the same time. Mathematics is somewhat inhibiting my faith, becuase it all turns into games of logic when I try to break it down. I am learning somewhat how to relax in those quiet periods. I guess, it is true, absence makes the heart grow fonder. ;D
Look forward to walking down this journey with you all.
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire
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Hi Anne ;D
This might help,
This life we're living is a training ground for being Gods. I know its hard but think like God. Everything that happens right now is directed thought out and controlled by God. I think if we fix our minds on that it becomes effortless for us to understand Gods hand in everything. This is all a part of your growing nothing more nothing less. I'm finding that keeping my mind focused of looking for what God is trying to teach me then everything else is carnel.
I'm just trying to lift your thoughts up not put anyone down because if its happing its Gods will just stand back and watch God show you all the things he wants to teach you (or us)
God bless us all.
PS we're being tought how to jugde, rule, and to be Kings with Christ. This is what our life is about. To be like God
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Something to think about. In Matthew 6:10 it reads your Kingdom come,Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, When I looked up earth in strongs after the solid parts of the earth and such it also said material that which man was made or something to that matter, so if we read earth as a chunk of land are we missing out on the true meaning? Could earth relate to mankind? Your will be done on man as in spirit?
Could this be a parable? His will be done on(with) man as it is in the spirit realm?
I guess what I'm saying is that Gods will is being done right now back then and later on. Have faith that our Father knows us better than we know us and just give your attention to what is being shown to us and try to learn from that. No matter how much we will ask even beg, Gods will is the only sure thing about us that we can count on.
I'm not much in the way of looking things up but any help or comments would help me and others out very much.
Thanks
Randy
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You all have said it well. And life is like a fine wine; with time it is aged to perfection. ;)
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Mongoose and Randy,
Thank you for responding to this topic. It is helping. I am sorry that I cannot write much more but I get on the forum a whole lot less than I did. God bless you both and thanks for sharing some of your wisdom with me.
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire
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The best prayer comes when you're meditating on the Word. Romans 8:26 says - Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Remember, you are a spirit, that possesses a soul, and lives in a body. Jesus said in John 4:24 - God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. Prayer is a form of worship, and worship is a form of prayer. But it must be done in the spirit to count. Mark 12:38-40 - Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces, And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts: Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation becauseJohn 6:63 says - It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
Don't meditate on problems, faults, and/or shortcomings or trying to create an impressive prayer, but rather, memorize and meditate on THE WORD!!!
SINCERELY DEAR SISTER IN HIS LOVE,
Bradford
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Hi Bradigans,
Your statement,
Remember, you are a spirit, that possesses a soul, and lives in a body.
I don't think you can say we are a spirit, we are a living being made up of body and spirit to make a living soul.
The scripture you used, John 4:24, in most translations have "God is Spirit," leaving out the 'a.'
Here is an email of Ray that explains this point.
http://www.forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,1675.0.html ------------------------
Dear John:
Yes, there is a spirit in man (AND ALL ANIMALS). Nothing can live without "spirit." Spirit IS life (Ecc. 8:8; Ecc. 12:7; Luke 23:46; I Cor. 2:11; etc.). There is no consciousness in our spirit alone. There is only consciousness (soul) when man's spirit is combined with a body. God retains our spirit until resurrection when He puts our spirit into a new body and we once again become conscious or receive back the quality of "soul." We are said to have new "spiritual" bodies, not that we are made "spirits."
God be with you,
Ray
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mercy, peace, and love
Kat
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Hi dear kat,
i think i understand where you're coming from when you say, I don't think you can say we are a spirit, we are a living being made up of body and spirit to make a living soul.
Do you mean how it says in the Genesis account of God's creation when He said, and he breathed into man the breath of life (God gave a piece of Himself St John 4:24) and man became (after the breathing of Spirit) a living soul.
James put it like this, As the body without the spirit is dead, so is faith without works.
IN HIS LOVE,
Bradford
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Hi Bradford,
As I see it the breath of life in Gen. 2:7, is the same life/spirit that He gives all living creatures.
Now the Spirit in John 4, tho they both come from God, is not the same as the breath of life/spirit.
John 4:23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.
v. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
In John 4:24, this spirit and truth is only given to those chosen few, it is the Holy Spirit/Comforter.
Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.
This Holy Spirit/Comforter is not given to the called, those preordained from the creation of the world are the only ones who will receive it in this life.
Eph 1:4 even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love v.5 He predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, v.6 to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.
But I might add, any receiving the Spirit must remain faithful. There would not have been the admonition to remain faithful if all do.
Rev 17:14 ... And those with Him are the called and elect and faithful ones.
The no. 8 article in Ray's LoF series has a section in it on this matter. I have an excerpt, but the article has much more about it.
http://bible-truths.com/lake8.html ---------------------------------------------------------------
FROM GLORY TO GLORY
We need to get very serious for a moment. Salvation culminates for the believer in the First Resurrection to spiritual life and immortality. However, before that time, during the life of each believer, there are warnings in the Scriptures about ways that one can become disqualified from being in the first resurrection. Let’s notice just a few of them:
"Wherefore let him that thinks he stands take heed LEST HE FALL" (I Cor. 11:4).
"But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should A CASTAWAY [Gk: disqualified]" (I Cor. 9:27).
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I thought I could give an simple answer and one thing lead to another.
Oh well hope this helps :)
mercy, peace, and love
Kat
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Anne praying for you I know what it is like to not have patience that is another one of my weaknesses.
Do you ever feel as if you have been wandering in the desert?
I love the fact God is showing us things we need to know about ourselves.
Pride has been another one of my weaknesses.
I was too prideful to even consider my weaknesses.
Once God shows us things it helps and it is humbling to say the least.
In his love.... Jackie
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Bradford,
Thanks for responding to this thread. Your words of encouragement are priceless and such a blessing.
Kat,
As always, thanks providing such meat that I can naw <sic?> on to help me through this situation.
Jackie,
Yes, I would call this time a desert experience, but I know that there is an oasis in the midst of the desert, and that oasis is this forum and my brothers and sisters. Thanks to all for being a refreshing spring that is welling up in my life, to where I am speechless and so grateful before the Father for all of you.
Sincerely,
Anne C. McGuire