Monday, August 27, 2012
Where does faith come from?
“Faith is trusting what the eye can’t see. Eyes see the prowling lion. Faith sees Daniel’s angel. Eyes see storms. Faith sees Noah’s rainbow. Your eyes see your faults. Your faith sees your Savior. Your eyes see your guilt. Your faith sees His blood.”
The above is Max Lucado’s paraphrase of Hebrews 11:11(NIV): “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
But where does faith originate?
1. Our Creator wrapped faith in our DNA
Dr. Andrew Newberg, neuroscientist and author of "Why We Believe What We Believe," says our brains seem to have a special place for faith. He has tracked how the human brain processes religion and spirituality. It's all part of new field called neurotheology.
Newberg says the frontal lobe, the area right behind our foreheads, helps us focus our attention in prayer and meditation. The pari-et-al lobe, located near the backs of our skulls, is the seat of our sensory information. He says it's involved in that feeling of becoming part of something greater than oneself. The limbic system, nestled deep in the center, regulates our emotions and is responsible for feelings of awe and joy.
Newberg says similar areas of the brain are affected during prayer and meditation. He suggests brain scans may provide proof that our brains are built to believe in God. He says there may be universal features of the human mind that actually make it easier for us to believe in a higher power.
I believe people search for God because of the “God-shaped void” within. If they haven’t heard the gospel or reject it, they worship the earth, an idol they know is nothing but a figure humans created, or devise their own religion—even making unbelief into doctrine.
2. God has given each person the ability to believe and his own lump of faith: “For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith (Romans 12:2-4).
Often people, who don’t think they believe, find themselves praying when they or a loved one is in danger. A cry for God’s help comes from us spontaneously sometimes in crisis.
3. Faith arises from the need to know our Heavenly Father. Since the Lord gave humankind a choice of whether to serve Him, God prevents us from “proving” He exists and leaves that and other vacancies for our faith to fill.
In my book, Swallowed by LIFE: Mysteries of Death, Resurrection and the Eternal, I tell how medical science and common sense show we’re more than a body, discovering our whole body keeps daying and regenerating cell by cell, parts being removed and sometimes another transplanted from someone else. Yet there is room for doubt when it comes to proving we have a soul that lives forever. We have to believe the evidence.
4. Faith comes through hearing the Word—the gospel.
The Apostle Paul wrote “Faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17NIV).
Because faith is necessary to be redeemed from sin and to have our name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, God “breathed” truth into those who wrote His love message to humankind. It is through that love letter—the Bible—we gain knowledge of Him and why He allows us (anybody) to choose to accept it and love and obey Him.
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2Timothy 3:16KJ).
5. Faith results from acting on what was heard. From Romans 10NIV: “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved…. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
6. Faith comes through the will. We decide whether to believe God’s Word, a false religion, or atheism. Everything about who we are, why we are here and where we are going takes faith. Yet it takes a leap—a decision.
7. Faith is created by combining belief with common-sense actions. James calls it faith and works. (James 2:22).
8. Faith develops out of our hopes. We hope for something, but it takes faith to receive it.
9. Faith can come as a fruit (KJ) and Gift of the Holy Spirit. (Galatians 5:22, 1 Corinthians 12:9).
10. Faith comes from a combination of our will to believe, and the Holy Spirit’s revelation. The Word must be planted, watered, and then our lives bear fruit.
©Ada Brownell 2012
Friday, August 24, 2012
The healing of Dr. Lillian Yeomans
The Healing of Dr. Lillian Yeomans, addicted to drugs
By Dr. Otto Kaiser of Global University
Dr. Lillian Yeomans became a famous medical surgeon. She graduated with a doctorate of medicine from the University of Michigan in 1882. Her father was a doctor. Her grandfather was a doctor. She became a leading specialist in her field or surgery. She was known in the medical field for her successful delicate operations.
To steady her nerves while doing delicate operations, she occasionally took morphine. Then one day she made the terrible discovery that the drug had become her master. She went through terrible agony when she found she did not have the power to break the drug habit.
When be tremendous exercise of will power she stopped taking the drug for 24 hours, her condition was pitiable/ she trembled with weakness. Her body bathed in cold sweat. Her heart fluttered. Her breathing became difficult. Her stomach could not hold water much less food. Her intestines racked with pain. She suffered persistent diarrhea. She could not stand erect. She could not think logically. She could not write her name.
She became a walking skeleton. Her doctor friends urged her to take the drug so that she would not lose what little reason remained. All of her doctor friends expected her wretched life to come to an early end.
Dr. Yeomans heard of the divine healing ministry of Evangelist John Alexander Dowie in Chicago. She went to Chicago and attended his services even though she was suffering intense pain. She listened to his sermons on faith. She saw miracles of healing take place. Faith in the healing power of Jesus began to rise in her heart.
The physician had described herself as a Christian, but followed afar off. She asked Jesus Christ to be her Savior. She promised God that if he healed here she would devote the rest of her life to Him. Evangelist Dowie prayed for her in the name of Jesus and she was totally healed. Her whole mind and body were restored and she kept her promise to God. She left practicing medicine and became a Christian author and editor of Leaves of Healing, a Christian magazine on divine healing.
What God did for D. Lillian Yeomans, He can do for you in whatever need you might have or whatever crisis you face. The Bible says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). What God has done for others, He can do for you.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Grandparenting Through Obstacles
Ada: My guests today are Dianne E. Butts and Renee Gray-Wilburn, co-authors of the book, Grandparenting Through Obstacles. Grandpa and Grandma need wisdom for this phase of life, just as they needed it in parenting. This book helps us understand what to do with the challenges we face as grandparents.
Or by request at your favorite bookstore.
About the Authors:
REACHING GRANDCHILDREN FOR
CHRIST
1. How many grandchildren do you have among
you and what is the range of their ages?
RENEE: Dianne and I
are not grandparents, that’s why we called in the experts to help us write our
book—real grandparents (20 in all) from around the country who have been
through some real-life challenges in trying to impart their faith to their
grandkids.
DIANNE: The way I see it, being a writer is being a
servant. We not only serve the needs of our readers, but we help others share
their stories. Many of the twenty true stories in our book were contributed by
writers, but some people needed help getting their story written. And all of
the contributors needed someone to conceive of, head up the project and pull it
together. That’s what Renee and I did. We also added a lot at the end of each
chapter, including Points to Ponder, Steps to Take, Scriptures to Study, and
One Way to Pray. All the applications we added at the end of the chapters are
related to topics inspired by the story. Renee and I each have a passion for
seeing individuals know Jesus as Christ, so it’s a natural fit, even though
we’re not grandparents ourselves. So that’s how we wrote a grandparenting book
even though neither one of us is a grandparent.
2. How do grandparents wisely show their love
and the importance of living for Jesus?
Dianne: I think in every story in the book readers will see
first and foremost the grandparent living their lives with Jesus being of prime
importance to them. After that, it’s natural to want to share with others what
is most important to you, so wanting to share Christ with the people we love is
showing them love. The inspiring part comes in the how-to’s! Just how do we
show the importance of living for Jesus? Well the answers to that in this book
are very creative. We have grandparents who designed Christian “camp”
experiences for their grandkids. The grandkids come to their house for a week
or weekend in the summer and they have their own Christian camp with activities
and crafts and games and Bible study, of course. We have grannies who got web
cams and learned how to Skype so they could be part of their long-distance
grandkids’ lives. We have families who do missions trips and others who take
the grandkids on vacation to Christian destinations, such as a creation museum.
There are as many ways to wisely show love and the importance of living for
Jesus as there are grandparents!
3. Do we need to pray circles around their
every activity, or is it sufficient to just ask God to bless them?
RENEE: Personally, I believe in praying specifically,
using God’s Word when we pray. Our faith is based on His Word, and He tells us
in Isaiah that His Word will never return to Him void. The way it returns to
Him is through our prayers. The more specific we can get, the more we can
target our faith and have confidence in our prayers. There is a certain place
for speaking blessings over your children and grandchildren, but that’s a
different scenario than praying for them for specific activities,
relationships, their walk with God, and so forth.
4. Do you advise praying for their friends,
their enemies, their teachers, those in the media who influence them? How and
why? Do you worry about undermining what parents and teachers say that is at
odds with faith?
DIANNE: Of course we should pray over all those things. I love
Francine Duckworth’s story “G & G Retreat” because Francine brought her
granddaughter into her home for a whole summer and they did a spiritual retreat
for just the two of them. While the granddaughter was allowed to go out with
friends for fun like shopping or movies, Francine demanded equal time. If the
granddaughter went to the movies, Francine got the same amount of time with her
for discipleship training. Francine was concerned with competing with the world
and its alluring pleasures. Her granddaughter is grown now and Francine has
seen the fruit of that retreat in her life.
As for
undermining parents, Part 4 in the book is all about “Partnering with Parents.”
The stories in this section talk about learning how to work with the parents
without stepping over that hazy boundary of going too far. It’s a difficult
walk, and no one does it perfectly. But these grandparents have learned from
their successes as well as their mistakes, and they share what they’ve learned.
5. Do you pray for the person they are dating,
or will marry? Have you seen results of your prayers? Be as specific as you
can.
RENEE: I currently pray for the future spouses of my
children. They are 15, 11, and 7 years old. None of them are dating yet! But if
they were, I’d be praying even harder! This is an absolute. Eventually they
will want to settle down with one person for all of eternity—I better get God
involved in helping them make the choice of who that person will be and making
sure that is His will for them.
6. How does a grandparent approach spiritual
matters with a grandchild, especially when they don’t see one another often?
What do you do when parents object?
DIANNE: Part 2 of the book deals with long-distance
relationships and shows how these grandparents are finding creative ways to
bridge the gaps. From Skyping to traveling great distances to sending books
with a Christian world view, these grandparents are finding ways to make it
work.
Part 1 of the
book (there are four Parts with five stories in each Part), is all about “The
Challenge of Parents Not Walking With God.” Our first story hits the nail on
the head for your question. When the parents and grandkids came to visit
Marilyn for a rare visit from a foreign country, the kids’ mother had an angry
outburst and threatened never to visit again when Marilyn answered the
children’s questions about God. Marilyn humbled herself and apologized. (Not
the reaction I probably would have had!) That one act (and much prayer) opened
doors for her gain permission to talk to the children about God. After the
family returned to their home in the foreign country, God arranged for the
nanny they hired to be a Christian and have an influence on the children.
With prayer
and God involved, those parents who object to the children knowing Him don’t
stand a chance! <smiling>
7.
Do you worry
about conditions in the world, our nation, and even families that could
drastically affect your grandchildren? What
is the best way to cover grandchildren in prayer when they are going in a
landmine of spiritual battles every day?
RENEE: I don’t know
if worry is a good word, because I have more faith in God’s ability to take
care of them than I do in them getting pulled in the wrong direction. I also
pray God’s armor of protection over them, as well as Psalm 91, and I have
taught them how to do the same. Along with praying for them, I think it’s vital
to be able to teach kids how to pray on their own. You won’t always be with
them or even know what is going on in their lives. I was so blessed to hear a
report of how my two youngest prayed for me, my husband, and their brother
during the fire here in Colorado Springs. They were at a friend’s house across
town, and the rest of my family was literally fleeing our neighborhood ahead of
approaching flames. They were worried about us, but they started praying
together, using Scripture, and having faith that God would take care of us.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
FREE STACI STALLINGS NOVEL Aug. 15 and 16
Many of our followers are familiar with the writing of Staci Stallings, whose articles always get a high number of hits here. Now is your opportunity to receive her latest novel FREE. -- Ada Brownell
Staci Stallings, the author of this article, is a Contemporary Christian author and the founder of Grace & Faith Author Connection. Staci has a special surprise for you today and tomorrow only...
FREE ON KINDLE TWO DAYS ONLY!
August 15 & 16
Staci's "Amazing!" novel:
To Protect & Serve
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Oh, and the firemen in this story, they're smokin' hot! Especially the hero!"
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--Debra, Amazon Reviewer
When control freak Lisa Matheson falls for handsome but shy firefighter, Jeff Taylor, it's possible that life might just be going her way for a change. The only problem is she can't control of Jeff or the death wish he seems to have...
Available as a free download from Amazon!
WHEN GOD KNOWS BEST
October 3, 2011
By: Staci Stallings
There are times in my walk with God
that messages come through–several of them–on the same topic. Sometimes I
know what they mean and why He’s sending them. Sometimes I don’t.
This is one of those messages, so I’m sharing them with you. Maybe this
was meant for one of you rather than for me.
The first time I heard the message
was on the radio. I happen to listen to KLOVE a lot, and every so often
they will have preachers on there with short messages. The first message
was about a young man of deep faith who had gone to Afghanistan in defense of
our country. One night he and his brigade were to accomplish a mission by
going on foot across a vast stretch of sand. However, as they were
preparing, the wind kicked up, and it got worse and worse.
Knowing the mission was important,
the young man prayed long into the night that God would quiet the wind so they
could get the mission done. He prayed and he prayed, but the wind howled
through the night and into the morning hours of darkness. Just after
sunlight, when they could no longer do the mission because of the light, the wind
finally let up. The young man was quite upset. Why had the Lord not
answered his plea?
Then they came out of their covering
and looked out across the sands where they were to run to make the assault,
only to find it strewn with thousands of landmines. Had the wind not
stopped them, they would have been shredded by the mines. Because of the
wind, because of God, they were not.
God knows best.
The second message was similar but
two days later, again on KLOVE and by a different preacher. Now you also
have to know before I tell this one, that I don’t listen to KLOVE
consistently. I listen for a little while in the morning and sometimes in
the afternoon. So these two messages came through though they were
“random” to me.
In the second story, a man was
stranded on a deserted island in the South Pacific. He scrounged for food
and found a coconut tree. The tree had enough food on it to last a week,
so the man ate for a week, thanking God for the provision and praying for
more. On the sixth day, however, the coconut tree caught fire and burned
to the ground. The man was flummoxed. How could God do this to
him? Now he had no food!
Then a short hour later a boat
appeared, and the man was rescued. But how? How did the people on
the boat even know where to look, the man asked. “We saw the smoke and
thought we should investigate.”
Sometimes God does not handle things
the way we would or think He should. It is in those times that we must
remember that God really DOES know best, and He will take us safely through if
we learn to trust Him completely–even in those times when we don’t understand.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Dawn Singer: CAN FANTASY REFLECT REALITY?
NOTE FROM ADA BROWNELL: When I decided to read Dawn Singer I knew fantasy isn’t my
genre. Although I’ve read fantasy before, I took on this book because I’m
interested in what young adults are reading and am curious about how fantasy can
link with Christianity
.
I was quite impressed with Nightmare Academy by Frank
Peretti because with that speculative fiction book, at the end the theme hit like a shot of
medication, sending the message through the reader that everything hinges on
Truth. Here the title, Dawn Singer, made me expect a dramatic spiritual
triumph and joyous song of Salvation. But the paradoxical messages of Dawn Singer were not so
evident to me: Freedom through sacrifice, overcoming prejudice with unity,
serving rather than ruling, and conquering fear.
I cringed a little when truths
of the gospel were slipped into this story. For instance the Word of God being
so powerful it can divide soul and spirit, but it’s not clear as it’s used where
the phrase comes from, and how it applies in this story. Most young people today don’t know the Bible
and would have no idea of the connection.
Perhaps because I’m not of the age group that enjoys dozens
of characters with weird names and battle after battle with exotic enemies, most
of the book was often a mass of confusion. I also could have done without the near-rape
scene.
Yet, I give the work four stars because of writing quality.
I also respect the amount of work expended to create such a novel. Every once
in a while I had to stop as I was reading to absorb the beauty of phrases like
this: “Your words prick like thorns that guard a tender rose.”
It might have helped if the glossary had been at the front instead of the back of the
book. At any rate, reading Dawn Singer exposes the reader to some great
descriptive writing.
About the Author:
From the Back
Cover:
The
High Queen is dying... At the royal summons, Shae mounts a wingabeast and soars
through the air to the high hold of Faeraven, where all is not as it seems.
Visions warn her of danger, and a dark soul touches hers in the night. When she
encounters an attractive but disturbing musician, her wayward heart awakens.
But then there is Kai, a guardian of Faeraven and of Shae. Secrets bind him to
her, and her safety lies at the center of every decision he makes. On a
desperate journey fraught with peril and the unknown, they battle warlike garns,
waevens, ferocious raptors, and the wraiths of their own regrets. Yet, they
must endure the campaign long enough to release the DawnKing—and the salvation
he offers—into a divided land. To prevail, each must learn that sometimes
victory comes only through surrender.
CREATING WORLDS OF BEAUTY AND DANGER
Website: http://janalynvoigt.com
Blog:
http://janalynvoigt.com/blog
BarnesandNoble link: http://ow.ly/cWqVg
http://www.amazon.com/DawnSinger-Janalyn-Voigt/dp/1611162009/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344920522&sr=8-1&keywords=DawnSinger
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
FIND HOPE IN THE MIDST OF TRAGEDY
Don’t miss out on this free Christian inspirational book! FREE on Wednesday 8/8/12 and Thursday 8/9/12
"Finding Hope in the Midst of Tragedy" by Shelley Hitz.
Get your copy here: http://www.bodyandsoulpublishing.com/hope-for-the-hurting-christian-books-for-difficult-times/
Not only
will you be able to download Shelley’s book for free, but also three other
Christian books during her special book launch.
About the Book “Finding Hope in the
Midst of Tragedy”
Have you
been through difficult times in your life? If so, you are not alone. Jesus says
in John 16:33, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I
have overcome the world." Notice that He doesn't say that we might
have trouble or that if we have enough faith we will escape it. He clearly
states that on this side of heaven we will walk through difficult times in our
lives.
And yet we have reason to hope.
This book is Shelley’s own personal journey to finding hope after a tragedy hit
her family. However, she did not want this book to be her story alone. Instead,
she wants it to be a resource for you to find hope in the midst of your own
difficulties. That is why she has added the sections that you will see through
the book called, "From My Life to Yours," where she
includes journaling prompts and reflection questions for you to apply what you
are learning to your life. Her prayer is that God leads you to find His hope no
matter what you are currently walking through.
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
And yet we have reason to hope.
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
What Reviewers are Saying:
"A must
read for anyone who has had storms in their life. I laughed,
cried and got so excited. This book gave me the answers to many of my prayers
and showed me the right way to forgive." - TALoveRocks
"This is a book of hope, trust, faith, forgiveness, and so much more! Highly Recommended!" - Sandra McLeod Humphrey
"Wow! My eyes are full of tears and my heart is full of God's promises
to the author and to each of us. Great book!"
- Kristie
"This is a book of hope, trust, faith, forgiveness, and so much more! Highly Recommended!" - Sandra McLeod Humphrey
Sunday, August 5, 2012
LIFE AND "The Morning After"
When President Barack Obama’s and Health
and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ announced employers, including
religious organizations, must provide women’s reproductive services through
insurance, the national debate quickly shifted from the morning-after and
abortion pills, to traditional contraception.
In media terms,
that’s “spin” and the truth about the morning-after pill vanished.
Obama is trying to
make us think businesses and religions can opt out of the requirement.
Regulators now solicit public input on how to implement the mandate—an
appearance of openness while doing nothing.
I visited Planned Parenthood as a reporter, probably in 1994
or 1995, when I first heard of the “morning-after” pill being used in the
United States.
The way I understand it, when the Food and Drug
Administration wouldn’t approve the abortion pill RU-486 for use in the United
States, Dr. Carl Djerassi, who helped develop the first oral contraceptive pill
and founder of Planned Parenthood, decided a large dose of birth control pills
would keep a fertilized egg from attaching to the womb, and thus he invented
the “morning after pill.” Planned Parenthood began offering the treatment for
women within 72 hours of unprotected sex, although the medication hadn’t been
approved for that use and women sometimes had significant side effects.
The morning-after
medication causes the uterus to shed its lining, preventing a fertilized egg from
attaching to the womb. The dosage also might cause a woman not to ovulate.
Planned Parenthood claimed until the fertilized egg attaches
to the womb, the woman is not pregnant, and that’s true. But invitro
fertilization shows a fertilized egg is pregnant
with life before implantation in the womb.
Certainly not everyone who takes morning-after pills has a
fertilized egg bursting to life and searching for a safe place in the womb. But
some do—and that’s the reason for the pill—to prevent another person from
entering this world.
Evangelicals, Catholics and many Americans believe “Thou
Shalt Not Kill” in the Sixth Commandment includes the unborn. People are
speaking out against the requirement, even after Obama transferred responsibility
to insurance companies.
The U.S. Catholic bishops noted the full range of
contraceptives approved by the FDA that would be available without any co-pay under
Obama Care included “drugs which can attack a developing unborn child before
and after implantation in the mother’s womb.
Yet, because of the world’s exploding population, population
control is a goal of many in government. The number of people on earth who need
food is worrisome, but it’s not a reason to kill—or to force people, especially
those whose conscience or religion forbids it, to assist with the killing.
If killing were the
answer to earth’s problems why do we worry about genocide in Syria, Ruwanda,
and other places? We know in our gut it is wrong and horrific.
I suggest our citizens learn self control where sexuality is
concerned, not population control.
--
Ada Brownell is a retired reporter for The Pueblo Chieftain in Colorado.
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