Average?

It's amazing how we can get used to average and mediocre...

Mediocre job,

Average living

Average relationships.

It's sad how we can settle for less...

Less than ideal existence,

Less than great life.

I wonder should God do the same to creation!

We certainly would be in trouble and chaos, wouldn't we?!?

Imagine if God's standards were average, mediocre and less than...

And as I marvel at His handiwork and passion for details, a subtle but powerful thought springs to mind:

- We have only one go at this life experience, we have to make it worth and great!

So, how is your life?

Raquel

Self-Esteem

Learn how to bounce back!

Overcome! Bounce back!

When I was a little girl about eight years old, I loved to play volleyball and basketball on the street with my friends.
Sometimes we didn't have appropriate ball and we used the old footballs that boys no longer wanted to play with... 
The problem was that old and deflated  balls don't bounce! Have you ever tried to play volleyball or basketball with a bounceless  ball? Then you know it's horrible!!

One day my mom surprised me with a brand new volleyball she bought out of the local supermarket... I called all my friends to play ball and we did it for hours non stop . We were so accustomed to the old deflated balls we put too much power when serving with the new ball - it bounced easily! It's really great to play with a bouncy ball!

Few years ago I was thinking about my life and about some sad and terrible things I went through... I was ready to give up "The game of life"...

Something (God?) made me remember the old days of playing ball with my little friends... a thought crossed my overwhelmed mind: 

"You gotta learn how to bounce back!"

Yes! That's it! 

When something contrary or bad (or both!) happen to us we need to learn how to bounce back! We cannot just sit there inert and take the blows...

That was exactly what I did in years past! I learnt how to bounce back! And the more pressure and power life put on me the more I bounced, higher and further I went!

Some examples flashed through mine mind: 

When I was inert during my adolescence due to the sexual abuse I suffered when I was only a little girl... I had to learn how to bounce back and stop being a victim.

When depression wanted slowly to suck life out of me for seven years... I had to learn how to bounce back and decided to be happy.

When I "bet all my chips"  sixteen years ago in a relationship with someone who fooled me and cheated on me, simply because he was too coward to "get out of the closet"... I had to learn how to bounce back.

When faced with other life challenges and opportunities to do something out of the ordinary, I decided to invest in my long forgotten dream of moving to London and finishing my English course... and I learnt how to bounce back.

...So in a flash my life passed  through mine mind like a film...and once more hope and encouragement begun to fill my heart again. I saw that adversity and set backs don't need to be the end of anything...It all depends on the window you see things through...

Right now I have to remind myself of this lesson... I am going through some frustrating moments and major setbacks... I gotta learn how to bounce back!

What challenges are you going through today? Do you feel overwhelmed with your present circumstances? Do you feel like giving up?

Don't give up! Let God teach you how to bounce back. Learn how to use the pressure life is putting on you to go higher and further out of your problems.

Today, second week of a new year... this phrase still burns in my heart - "You gotta learn how to bounce back."

After all who likes a 'deflated ball' anyway?!?

See you next time,

Raquel Davis

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The secret for your success in 2013

Happy New Year!
If you are going to succeed in 2013, you need to learn how to see yourself as a winner. 
You will never go somewhere you haven't been in your mind first dear reader!
You can, if you think you can.

The Man Who Thinks He Can

by Walter D. Wintle

If you think you are beaten, you are;

If you think you dare not, you don't.

If you'd like to win, but think you can't

It's almost a cinch you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you've lost,

For out in the world we find

Success being with a fellow's will;

It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you're outclassed, you are:

You've got to think high to rise.

You've got to be sure of yourself before

You can ever win a prize.

Life's battles don't always go

To the stronger or faster man,

But soon or late the man who wins

Is the one who thinks he can.

********************************************

All the best!

R. Davis

www.facebook.com/Capuccinocomfe

I am a Nike (wo) man

Be a world over-comer today!

"For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. "
—I John 5:4-5

God has made total provision for you to overcome the world. What does it mean to overcome the world? The word "world" refers to all that is bad and evil, including sin, worry, sickness, poverty, and other such things. God says to you that you have overcome the world.

The Greek word for "overcome" is nikeo. It originally comes from the famous legendary Greek god named Nike of Samothrace who was the messenger of Zeus and Athena. You can view his statue at the Louvre Museum in Paris. As you might notice, the shoe company Nike took their name from this god.

He was famous for one thing: he never lost a battle. It is this word that John uses to describe the believer in Christ. He says that the believer, like Nike, will never lose a battle. God wants you to win, always!

God guarantees to make you a winner. You are "Nike Man"! Say that out loud, "I’m Nike Man!"

Christ is Not His Last Name

If you asked the average person what "Christ" means, most will tell you that this is Jesus last name. They’re wrong. Christ is not a name, but a title.

Christ comes from the Hebrew word Messiah. It means anointed One and His anointing. It refers to both the person who’s anointed and the power he is anointed with.

What I’m saying is this: it’s not enough to believe that Jesus is good and loves people unless you also believe that He has power to do good and help people. So the title, Christ, represents His available power, not His love.

So many people are defeated, and yet they believe that Jesus loves them. Good! But that’s not sufficient, you must believe that He is anointed with power to help you. Not only is Jesus anointed but so are you.

To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Col 1:27)

Wow! Did you get the meaning of this passage. The glorious riches of this mystery is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Who’s in you? Not simply the person Jesus, but Christ! His power, His ability, His strength. When you believe this and act like it’s true, then you start to overcome.

You hear altar calls given, "Ask Jesus to come into your heart." You will not find this phrase in the Bible. It’s not simply Jesus as a person that comes into your heart, but it is also His anointing power!

You Are Anointed

As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. (I Jn 2:27)

You are anointed, so quit acting like you don’t have power. You do! Many believers look at Benny Hinn or some other great evangelist, and put their trust in their anointing, but they never have received a revelation that they are also anointed.

Of course there are special gifts that people have, and one of Benny’s is healing. You should take advantage of any gifts that others have. However, your faith should be in the anointing that you have!

The mystery is not that Christ lives in some television evangelist, but that His anointing is in all believers. Believe that, and you’ll overcome.

To Rub

The word "anoint" originally comes from the word meaning to "rub." A person under the Old Covenant was anointed when the elders rubbed anointing oil on him, hence, the word rub.

When someone resembles another person, we sometimes say, "That person is rubbing off on him." The same is true with the anointing. Christ starts to rub off on you through the anointing working in you. You start to resemble Christ because of the anointing.

How did Christ react when He saw a need? He met the need. He healed, cast out demons, calmed storms, multiplied bread, and even raised the dead. Listen: His anointing is in you to do those things as well.

Say, "I’m anointed to heal the sick, I’m anointed to cast out demons, and I’m anointed to raise the dead!" Believe that, act like it’s so, and you’ll see God’s anointing in you work.

Recipe for the Anointing Oil

Many people do not know what the anointing in like. I found a passage that describes three characteristics of the anointing.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Take the following fine spices: 500 shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much (that is, 250 shekels) of fragrant cinnamon, 250 shekels of fragrant cane, 500 shekels of cassia—all according to the sanctuary shekel—and a hin of olive oil...Say to the Israelites, 'This is to be my sacred anointing oil for the generations to come. Do not pour it on men's bodies and do not make any oil with the same formula. It is sacred, and you are to consider it sacred. (Exod 30:22-24 and 31-32)

At first glance this passage seems rather odd. It doesn’t seem to fit into the main teaching of the Bible. However, everything in the Bible is there to teach us.

God gives the recipe for the anointing oil, because through the recipe we discover several important truths about the anointing.

The main ingredient mentioned is olive oil. Not simply any kind of oil. It must be olive oil. Why olive oil?

Olive oil is made by pressing olives through stone wheels. Once the olives are firmly pressed, oil flows. The lesson we learn is this: the more pressure we are put under, the more the anointing flows.

I don’t know about you, but God works greater in me when I’m under pressure.

Pressure should make us into better saints. If you find yourself getting worse under pressure, it’s because you are depending on yourself and not the anointed One and His anointing in you. This goes along with what Paul said about him and his companions:

...We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. (2 Cor 1:8-9)

The best in all of us will never be detected when things are going well, but only when tests and trials come our way. The anointing works best under pressure.

Myrrh

The second main ingredient to the anointing oil is myrrh. Myrrh is a sticky, gummy substance that is hard to remove. The lesson is simple: God’s anointing is permanent.

If God would have skipped myrrh, then the only liquid element would have been oil, and oil is slippery. It would have given the impression that the anointing slides off of us easily. Many believers think this way.

If they mess up, then they believe they are not anointed. They feel that God is looking for reasons to take away His power that He gave them. He’s not.

Jesus said about the Holy Spirit that He will abide with you forever (John 14:16). Concerning Himself, Jesus said, "I will never leave you or forsake you." Like glue, the anointing sticks on you.

Sweet

The final ingredients were sweet smelling fragrances. God is showing that His anointing is sweet, not sour or bitter.

I’ve noticed that when a preacher preaches constantly with anger, people will comment, "Oh, he’s really anointed!" Yet another may preach with kindness and love, and people say, "He’s sweet!" But then don’t see him as anointed.

The truth is, the second preacher was anointed, while the first was not. Don’t associate meanness or harshness with the anointing.

It takes the anointing to constantly preach with love and patience. It’s human nature to get angry at people when they don’t seem to obey the Lord.

The anointing works best when you walk in love towards people.

Don’t Sweat

An important commandment that God gave ministers under the previous covenant was to not sweat.

They are to wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. They must not wear anything that makes them perspire. (Ezek 44:18)

Sweat stinks. This is why we wear perfume and cologne. The anointing oil contained sweet perfume, so that the sweat could not be smelt on the minister.

It is so important that you don’t depend on the sweat of the brow to overcome, but instead, depend on the sweet, smelling anointing oil. Through faith in the Anointed One and His anointing, you can be Nike Man!

By Bishop Tom Browm

What do you really need today?

John 8:58

Sometimes we say "All I have is God, poor me".
What a great place to be dear reader! If today you feel lonely and discouraged take heart in knowing that all you need is Jesus. He is the great "I am". 
Do you need healing for your body today? Jesus IS your healing.
Do you need joy and encouragement today? Jesus IS your joy and encourager.
Do you need finances today? Jesus is your El-Shadai (more than you will ever need) not El-Cheapo.
Do you need some direction and guidance today? Guess what? Jesus Christ is your direction and guidance!

Have a great and fulfilling weekend friend.

Pr R. Davis

Traditions: Why do we do what we do?

Tradition Must Make Sense

By Barrington H. Brennen

Hello there!
Have you ever wondered why we have some traditions in our society? Where they came from? Why do we do what we do?

Today you will find out where the tradition of "Honeymoon" came from; Why do we wear the wedding ring? Why do we wear black in funerals? And other traditions we have! Keep reading and please comment.

"Question: Dear Sir: There are many traditions in our family. But they do not seem to make sense. Sometimes my family members are afraid to depart from these traditions. Shouldn’t traditions make some sense?
Answer: Tradition, according to Random House Webster’s College Dictionary is "the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, and customs, or, a long-established or inherited way of thinking or acting." All the definitions I researched do not mention anything about the rightness or wrongness of tradition. Tradition is simply something you do because you were taught it. Now, that does not mean that there are no traditions based on solid reasoning and good Christian principles. There are many good traditions. However, tradition itself has been one of the main culprits for family discord. Especially when persons involved refuse to view something in a different way. The common response is "we have been doing it that way in our family for years, and no one is going to change it now."

There are people who get sick because they inherited a family traditional method of cooking. Many times, they do not realize that the diabetes that caused the death of their grandfather, uncle, and mother was not due to genetic inheritance, but rather a poor inherited cooking tradition.
On the other hand, tradition does provide a sense of security and safety. There should be family traditions and rituals, but as time changes, even good family traditions may need revision. Do not change for the sake of changing. Rather, have an open mind and heart. Some good family traditions are going to church together, praying, playing and eating together. Do you know why your families do the things they do? Do you know where society obtains some of its tradition and practices? Let us look at a few.

Did you know that about one hundred years ago when someone sent a letter to a friend, the friend paid the postage stamps when he or she received it? Many charitable organizations saved a lot of money with this system. However, soon postal offices were left with so many unwanted, unpaid-for-letters that the postal service accrued losses. Therefore, today everyone who sends a letter to someone must pay for the postage. This tradition makes a lot of good sense.

Why are wedding rings worn on the third finger? Many years ago people thought there was a separate vein, which connected the third finger of the left hand to the heart. So when a young woman promised a young man her heart, he slipped a wedding ring on the third finger of the left hand. We now know there is not connection between this one finger and the heart, but the tradition still remains. We do know that the wearing of the wedding band adds no value to the marriage. It does not guarantee couple togetherness. Married people who wear wedding bands get divorced too. The wedding band is only a symbolic token of the marriage.

It has become a custom for a man and a woman, when they become married to take a wedding trip, we call the "honeymoon." Where could such a strange word have come from? It was the practice of the ancients to drink a certain kind of wine made with honey for thirty days after they were married. The ancient referred to thirty days as a "moon." So they drank the wine for "moon days" (month) The moon has always been associated with lovers and their romances, and romance with a marriage; so the moon or month after marriage has come to be called the "honeymoon." So it is only a tradition. I know of couples who wasted thousands of dollars because of this tradition. If they only knew that they did not have to stay the entire four weeks. The honeymoon was an enduring episode of daily routines. What a painful experience! They used up all the honey and were only left with the moon.

Have you ever wondered why do people wear black when a loved one dies? This is certainly something that can be a sore point for many Bahamian families. Some people would make you believe that it’s scriptural, or sacrilegious if you don’t wear black when your spouse dies. Hundreds of years ago, when someone died, the relative feared that the ghost of the one who had died would return and do them harm. Hence, they tried to disguise themselves so the returning ghost would not know them. At first, they pasted their faces with mud, and later begun to wear a black veil. Then with this black veil came other garments. So wearing black at funerals is only a tradition. Maybe when an elderly person dies, we should feel free to celebrate the long life of the deceased by wearing happy, cheerful colors. That’s a good tradition we can start in our country. Some families insist that when a close relative dies, they must wear black for a certain period of time. Perhaps, this is also a meaningless tradition.

In the olden days, girls who were planning to be married spent a great deal of their time spinning and weaving linen and cloth. From this cloth, they made their wedding gowns and other articles which they used in the wedding and their new home. Since all the girls were so busy "spinning" they were called "spinsters." Thus unmarried women are still called (at least by some people) "spinsters." That’s one tradition that has changed.

Why do we always shake with our right hand? This custom comes down to us from the time when almost everyone carried a sword or knife. If a person met someone whom he thought might not be a friend, he immediately grasped his sword with his right hand, ready to protect himself. But when he met a friend, he extended the right hand to show that he did not have a knife or sword in that hand. So we still follow that tradition of shaking hands, though we have long ago ceased carrying swords. I wonder what did the left-handed people do in those days.

Perhaps the greatest tradition in many Bahamian families lies within the marriage bedroom. Couples would spend many years with the old traditional ways of making love, showing expressions of kindness and tenderness until the love pot runs dry. Many times the marriage needs a change of tradition. Maybe add a mirror in a strategic spot over or in front of the bed. Or, change the color of the light. Or in some cases, add some more light. I often say to couples that perhaps they need to move love making out of the bedroom in the living room. (Not when guests or children are around). The car parked under a dark tree in a no-man’s territory certainly can be refreshing to a married couple’s love life. But if you are hooked on tradition, your love life may always remain dull and dry. Remember variety is the spice of life.

At wedding ceremonies, the tradition is for the man to respond to the question "Who gives this woman to be married to this man" in a proud, stuck-out-chess-fashion with the words "I do." That tradition is far becoming irrelevant in the world of equality and mutuality in marriage. It is often better when both parents of both the bride and groom respond to the question: "Who give these children to be married?" with the words in unison "We do." This concept displays the true picture of total involvement of both parents in the nurture and growth of their children.

Perhaps another foolish tradition in many Christian church weddings is the ceremonial standing of the bridal party during the service. I have witnessed many bridesmaids and groomsmen faint after standing so long. Thirty years, ago I attended a wedding where a groom fainted at the knees of his bride. They were standing for more than two hours. Once again, if a tradition cannot be changed, then it is not worth keeping.

Another tradition that burns a hole in our pocket is the giving of gifts during Christmas time. Families believed that the giving of gifts would bring them together. So they would borrow money from the bank each year just to supply their family members with a lavish Christmas. This is one tradition worth abrogating. When family members come for Christmas dinner, and you do not have the finances to provide a gift of all twenty of them, you can break the tradition and let them know before hand that this year you will be unable to buy gifts for everybody. This is far better than borrowing money and placing yourself in financial trouble.

To keep our families alive, let us be willing to examine our traditions and hold on to those that will build our families and communities and relinquish those that can weaken or destroy it."


See you next time!

Pra. R Davis
MY SITE HERE

Do you know the benefits of Honey and Cinnamon?

Honey and Cinnamon Remedy

Good for your Health and your Beauty

The combination of honey and cinnamon has been used for centuries in both traditional Chinese and Ayurveda, a system of healing founded 5000 years ago in India. The two ingredients with unique healing abilities have a long history as a home remedy. Cinnamon is one of the oldest spices known to mankind and honey's popularity has continued throughout history. Cinnamon's essential oils and honey's enzyme that produces hydrogen peroxide qualify the two "anti-microbial" foods with the ability to help stop the growth of bacteria as well as fungi. Both are used not just as a beverage flavoring and medicine, but also as an embalming agent and are used as alternatives to traditional food preservatives due to their effective antimicrobial properties.

Also, it is worth mentioning that in Ayurvedic medicine, honey is known as 'Yogavahi', which means "the carrier of the healing values of the herbs to the cells and tissues". It is believed that when combined with another substance (eg a herb or spice) in a formulation, the special quality of honey enhances the medicinal qualities of that formulation and helps them reach the deeper tissues in the body more effectively. And honey and cinnamon, which is one of the best-known mixtures, has been reported to be a natural cure for many diseases and a formula for many health benefits:

1) HEART DISEASES: Apply honey and cinnamon powder on bread instead of using jam or butter and eat it regularly for breakfast.

2) ARTHRITIS: Apply a paste made of the two ingredients on the affected part of the body and massage slowly.

3) HAIR LOSS: Apply a paste of hot olive oil, a tablespoon of honey, a teaspoon of cinnamon powder before bath, leave it for 15 min and wash.

4) BLADDER INFECTIONS: Mix cinnamon powder and honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink.

5) TOOTHACHE: Apply a paste of cinnamon powder and honey and on the aching tooth.

6) CHOLESTEROL: Add honey to cinnamon powder mixed in boiled water or green tea and drink.

7) COLDS: Make a glass of lukewarm honey water mixed with cinnamon powder to help boost your immune system during the cold season. It may also help to clear your sinuses.

8) INDIGESTION: Cinnamon powder sprinkled on a spoonful of honey taken before food relieves acidity.

9) LONGEVITY: Regularly take tea made with honey and a little cinnamon powder.

10) PIMPLES: Mix honey with cinnamon powder and apply paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash away the next morning.

11) OBESITY: To reduce weight, daily drink a mixture of a teaspoon of honey with half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder boiled in water with an empty stomach in the morning about half an hour before breakfast. 

Cinnamon has an insulin boosting property (water soluble compounds called polyphenol type A polymers) which have the ability to boost insulin activity about 20 fold and can benefit people who have high sugar levels (obese people, pre-diabetics and diabetics). Also, read the honey hibernation diet theory to find out how honey contributes to the metabolizing of undesirable cholesterol and fatty acid, provides a fueling mechanism for the body, keep blood sugar levels balanced, and let our recovery hormones get on with burning body fat stores.

12) BAD BREATH: Gargle with honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water so that breath stays fresh throughout the day. 


 Honey plus cinnamon together besides being a amazing potential cure for so many illnesses, their total fragrant, sweet and warm taste is also a perfect match for the palate. The combination adds a magic effect to the taste of cakes, breads, biscuits and rolls and is known to make many winning recipes in the world of delicious food, such as the famous, easy-to-make, kids' favorite classic - honey and cinnamon butter toast!

How to Gain Maximum Benefits

Cinnamon and honey can boost your health, both separately and in combination. However, our modern dependence on the pharmaceutical industry has fooled us into believing that medicines should be able to provide a cure regardless of lifestyle. If you follow health news, it becomes obvious that the pharmaceutical industry's "magic bullet" drugs make one set of symptoms disappear, only to create a new set of symptoms.

Disease results from imbalance, so finding health and balance again requires a recalibration of choices about how we live. A couch potato who follows up a dinner of fried chicken and potato chips with a dessert of cinnamon and honey will receive few health benefits. You are more likely to reap the full healing power when you include honey and cinnamon as part of your healthy lifestyle.

Important: I am not a doctor. Check with your M.D. before taking any remedy or medication. If you are pregnant please check with your Ob-gyn before incorporating any of these health tips into your diet.

Source: Natural News
Ayurveda for you
organic facts

God bless

Pr R Davis

Drowning and God seems so quiet!

The Drowning Man

A fellow was stuck on his rooftop in a flood. He was praying to God for help.

Soon a man in a rowboat came by and the fellow shouted to the man on the roof, "Jump in, I can save you."

The stranded fellow shouted back, "No, it's OK, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me."

So the rowboat went on.

Then a motorboat came by. "The fellow in the motorboat shouted, "Jump in, I can save you."

To this the stranded man said, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith."

So the motorboat went on.

Then a helicopter came by and the pilot shouted down, "Grab this rope and I will lift you to safety."

To this the stranded man again replied, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith."

So the helicopter reluctantly flew away.

Soon the water rose above the rooftop and the man drowned. He went to Heaven. He finally got his chance to discuss this whole situation with God, at which point he exclaimed, "I had faith in you but you didn't save me, you let me drown. I don't understand why!"

To this God replied, "I sent you a rowboat and a motorboat and a helicopter, what more did you expect?"

So dear reader, Your miracle might be inside of somebody! Get out of the house every day. Smile a lot. Be nice and kind to everyone. Treat people with love and respect. 
You are special and unique so celebrate that! Learn to respect that on other human beings too. Expect good things to happen to you everyday,  because God wants to bless you!

Have a great and blessed week!

Pr. R. Davis

God the Healer

Hello Dear reader,

So, does God really puts sickness and disease on us to teach us something?

Does He get glory from that?

God wants you well!

We can see from the Old and New Testaments alike that God has always provided healing for His people. Jesus was not the first to introduce healing to the world. God had already introduced it years before.

All Jesus did in His earthly ministry was honor the Abrahamic Covenant. He lived by it, preached it, taught it, performed it—and God backed it with signs following.

Man's Need For Healing
When God first created man, there was no provision for healing because there was no sickness. God's first man, Adam, lived and walked in divine health.

Then Adam committed high treason against God (Gen. 3:1-6), and Satan became the illegitimate stepfather of mankind.

The moment Satan took the reins, everything about the earth became cursed because Satan came to steal, to kill, and to destroy (John 10:10). Adam's nature was perverted. Sickness, disease, doom and destruction spread.

God's Will To Heal
Some people say that God puts sickness and disease on us to teach us, but that's not in the Word of God.

Did Jesus of Nazareth go about breaking the will of God by healing people? No.

When a man cried out for mercy, did Jesus ever say, "I'd sure like to help you, brother, but God told me He is trying to teach you something." No.

Some say that God gets glory out of our being sick; but God is glorified when people are healed or delivered or raised from the dead.

Did Jesus say Lazarus was sick for the glory of God? No. He said, "This is not a sickness unto death, but for the glory of God" (John 11:4). Then He said, "My friend Lazarus is asleep, but I go to awaken him" (v. 11).

Jesus wasn't giving Satan any place. He wasn't going to confess death. God got glory, not by Lazarus dying, but by Jesus raising him up.

When a man begged Jesus to have mercy and heal him, Jesus never said, "I'd like to heal you, but God is getting glory. He even told me to pray cancer on you, so He would get more glory."

In Christ the Healer, one of the best books written on the subject of divine healing, F.F. Bosworth suggests that if sickness is God's will, we owe it to ourselves as believers to stop medical science right now.

If Christians are to do the works of God, perhaps hospitals should be closed and doctors put in jail for breaking the will of God by trying to get people well. Of course, that's foolishness!

Causative X Permissive
Understand that!

Some people think God is the author of sickness and disease because of all the Old Testament scriptures describing the diseases that came as a result of the curse. Here are two examples:
"The Lord shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me".

"The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it."

"The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish."
(Deut. 28:20-22)

"If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee."
(Ex. 15:26)

The verbs used here in The King James Version are causative verbs, making it sound as though God were causing the sickness and disease. The original Hebrew reads an entirely different way because the verbs are permissive, which means that the action was simply allowed to happen.

For example, Deuteronomy 28:22 in The King James Version reads, "The Lord shall smite thee...." In the original Hebrew, that phrase says, "The Lord shall allow you to be smitten...."

In The King James Version, Exodus 15:26 says, "I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians." The Hebrew text says, "I will not allow any of the diseases to come upon you that I allowed to come upon Egypt."

You see, the diseases were already there because of the curse. God allowed them to overtake Egypt because the Egyptians didn't have a covenant with Him. God did not cause the sickness and disease; He simply allowed what was already there to take place. The King James version distorts the true meaning of these verses.

God gets no glory from our sickness or disease (except our being healed!). He takes no pleasure in harming us, and He never will.

Acknowledgments:   Jerry S. Ministries International

See you next time!

Pr R. Davis

8 Destructive thinking patterns - and how to change

Have you ever thought about what you think about? Well you should!

The bible says, "as a man thinks in his heart (mind), so is he". (Prov. 23:7)

"It can be extremely difficult to focus on the good when, seemingly, bad things are happening in your life. However you can train your mind to focus on the good things in your life rather than dwelling on the bad. No it’s not one of those positive thinking articles that you’ve read all over the web and are sick and tired of. This is about changing the way you think, changing your thinking pattern. Do you use any of these thinking patterns in your day to day life?

8 limiting patterns of thinking

(by Steven Aitchison)

1. ‘Life is crap’ Thinking pattern –Everything in life is bad, everybody is not to be trusted and nothing good will ever happen to them e.g. “I won’t get that job, the interviewer didn’t like me, I didn’t particularly like them anyway.”
2. ‘Unsubstantiated conclusive’ Thinking pattern– You tend to make a lot of conclusions without any evidence to back up your conclusions. This can be a really destructive pattern as it can limit you in seeing reality for what it is e.g. “He walks a bit funny, he must be gay.” (I actually heard someone saying this about a colleague last week).
3. ‘Never to me’ Thinking pattern – This is when you think nothing good will ever happen to you. This can be a deep seated way of thinking and it is a deep down inability to believe you are worthy of anything good happening to you e.g. “I’ll never have money, I’ve never had it before so I’ll never have it in the future, might as well carry on with this shitty job, at least it pays the mortgage.”
4. ‘The negative psychic’ Thinking pattern – Presuming you know what people are thinking about you and it’s all bad. e.g. “She thinks I’m an idiot, I’ll try to avoid talking to her.”
5. ‘Should, would, could’ Thinking pattern – This type of person knows what they have to do to change their life, they are capable and they know it and they would do it if only……… e.g. “I know I could go to university and I would, but I’m just to busy with other things right now, I’ll apply next year.”
6. ‘Emotion based’ Thinking pattern – Your emotions control what you are thinking and therefore your vision of what reality is e.g. “I feel incapable of doing that so I must be incapable”.
7. ‘It’s all my fault’ Thinking pattern – You see yourself as being the cause of everything bad that has happened e.g. “It’s my fault he left me for another woman.” You’ll notice this type of person does not take responsibility for the good things that happen.
8. ‘They’re all wrong’ Thinking pattern – You see everyone as incapable of doing anything right and your way is the best way to do it e.g. “He can’t do it right, I’ll stay late tonight and fix it when he’s gone.”

These are just some of the common thinking patterns I have come across in my life and I have used some of them myself, I used to use mix the ‘Never to me’ and ‘The negative psychic’thinking patterns about everything, “She’ll never go out with me she thinks I’m an idiot.” I made a conscious effort to change what I believed about myself and what I believed about the world and it has literally changed my life.

How to change the destructive thinking patterns

The first stage of changing is to recognize the problem – You will find a lot of people in life who just don’t think there is a problem so there is no need to change. If this is you then do nothing. If you want to change you must think there is a need and you will start to recognize what things need to change and it usually starts with your perception of life. Everybody’s perception of life is different, therefore everyone’s reality is different. I don’t live in the same world as you and you don’t live in the same world as me. That might sound a strange concept to some people, but think about it for a few minutes, it could change the way you see the world. I’ll give you an example:

In 2004 I took a redundancy package from my place of employment and received about £10,000 for my troubles, not a lot at all when I was earning £25,000 a year when I left. I was speaking to my friend about it and he thought I was absolutely nuts to do it, especially since I was married with two children. I explained to him how free I felt and what plans I had to start an online book dealing business and my wife was right behind me. He still thought I was crazy. My perception of the world was one of opportunity, life was great and I was free from the rat race for a while and I would get to see my wife and children a lot more than I had, I was ecstatic and if it didn’t work out I had a lot of skills to offer another employer. My friends perception was one of doom and gloom, he needed the security of a full time job even though he hated it and was working 12 hours per day. It turns out I worked at it for 1 year made a good profit but gave it up due to a huge downturn in business. At the end of it I was still optimistic as I knew I was good enough to get another job until I could do something else.

Everybody’s view of the world is different and it all comes down to the thinking patterns you use in your daily life. If you think life is wonderful you will notice the wonderful things in your life, if you think life is crap you will find crap things about life. Change your thoughts and you literally change the world you are living in. First you have to recognize your destructive thinking pattern.

The second stage is to be aware of when you are using the destructive thinking patterns – We can employ different thinking patterns depending on what we are doing in life. For example you could use a positive thinking pattern at work as you are very confident in your ability and yet use a destructive one when it comes to looking for love. Recognizing when you use destructive thinking patterns can help you to change that pattern. Now that you have recognized when you use the destructive thinking patterns it is now time to change it.

The third stage is to replace the bad with the good – This is something that you don’t do immediately. You don’t say to yourself ‘I’ll never be able to do that”, which is you old thinking pattern, to “Oh yes I can”. That won’t work. You have to let the old pattern die slowly whilst slowly introducing your new improved thinking pattern. Here an example:

You are out in a club and you want to talk to someone you are attracted to. Your thoughts are “ She’ll never talk to me, she’s gorgeous.” You will immediately recognize this pattern of thinking and tell yourself something good about yourself e.g. “I’m good at _______(FILL IN THE BLANK), it can be anything. This will not immediately help your situation but it will slowly begin to change your old destructive thinking pattern with a new one.
 I know people want a microwave life, stick it in the micro and it’s ready in 3 minutes, your life is not like that and you cannot change in 1 day, unless something drastic happens.
You can work on more than 1 destructive thinking pattern at a time.

To recap

To change your thinking pattern you have to

Recognize
Be aware
Slowly change and introduce a new thinking pattern
Keep working on all your destructive thinking patterns

Change your life with your new way of thinking

Recognizing and changing your way of thinking can be a long process depending on what patterns of thinking you employ and how badly you want to change. People can change, do change and change for the rest of their lives, I know I have, so don’t be thinking you’ll never be able to change, you can and you will if you really want to."

Hope you have enjoyed this post!

See you next time!

Pr. r. Davis