A Christ Follower: The Journey

Isaiah 53:5 He was wounded for our law breaking, bruised for our pre-meditated sins.  His punishment that brought us peace was placed on him, and by his stripes we are healed .      Well here is another of my favorite scriptures that is definitely good news. Straight from the Prophet Isaiah's mouth, he talks about what would happen to the Messiah.  Hundreds of years later all of what  is described in this scripture happened to Jesus. He was indeed wounded.  Didn't Thomas examine  those wounds in Jesus body before he (Thomas)  would believe? When Herod's crowd beat upon Jesus, he most assuredly was bruised.  Jesus was without a doubt punished and the whip lashing Jesus' back most definitely left stripes on his back. It really is interesting how this was foretold hundreds of years before it happened, and yet it happened down to the very smallest detail ... ad...

Freedom Thinking 3# Identifying The A.N.T.s That Really Sting. You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free -- Jesus John 8:32. The truth of God's word is designed to help us think about those things that are holy and healthy.  According to Jesus, the word of God, which he called "the word of truth" in his John 17 prayer, is just that. When we believe the truth it sets us free.  When we let all kinds of negative thoughts permeate our minds, however, then we get into trouble. Once again, thanks and a tip of the hat to Dr. Daniel Amen, MD for some very compelling insights. Here are nine different ways that your thoughts lie to you to make situations out to be worse than they really are. Think of these nine ways as different species or types of ANTs (automatic negative thoughts). When you can identify the type of ANT, you begin to take away the power it has over you. Let's call these RED A.N.T.s  because these ANTs are p...

TAKING ON THE A.N.T.S As you think in your heart, so you will be. Proverbs 23:7  As we continue helping with freedom producing thinking, we are going to look a little more at those little stingers that we call A.N.T.s   or Automatic  Negative Thinking. Given it is true that your thoughts really can dominate your life, and they can  lead it to a place of either darkness or light, this is important. Indeed A.N.T.s can really complicate a persons life, especially if she or he does not realize that they are stomping daily in a whole bed of those hurtful little but powerful things.  Let's begin looking at a colony of A.N.T.s and see what we can learn.  Much thanks to Daniel Amen (Noted Psychiatrist and author) for these insights. Our overall mind state has a certain tone or flavor based largely on the types of thoughts we think. When the deep limbic system is overactive, it sets the mind's filter on "negative." If you co...

Finding Freedom By How You Think        Freedom thinking is an important accomplishment at which you can arrive. You can do so  by  giving yourself permission to not worry about what others may think or appear to think about you.  I can promise you that, once a person forms an opinion of you, it is highly unlikely that will ever change, and no amount of "dancing on a pin head, " or trying to convince them to change their minds, will be productive. So simply make a conscious decision that the person has your complete and full permission to think what they think.  If you disagree with those thoughts, it really won't matter because you have freed yourself by your permission giving to think and let think. You may have even freed the other person as well. Additionally, you may be misunderstanding how a person is thinking about you by reading them wrongly.  If you are reading them wrongly, and your thinking is way off base,...

Creator Impacted Creative Thinking   As a man thinks in his heart, so is he . Proverbs 23:7 KJV   Our brains are powerful, and the beautiful grace available to Christ Followers is we do not have to let our brain's thoughts take us down the path of darkness and defeat.  For we indeed do have "the mind of Christ!"  This spiritual reality provides us with the power to not be dominated by our thoughts, but it provides us with the grace provided self control to take time out to think about how we are thinking about what we are thinking about.  And once we identify our "stinging thinking,"  then we can do something positive with our thinking: We can do some Divinely God breathed "creative thinking," as our Creator transforms us by the renewing of our minds. Indeed The Almighty makes us the new creations who can actually re- frame the way we think.   Why is this thought reformation so important?  It is important becaus...

God: The Creative Genius Another Favorite Scripture of Mine.   We are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works that He prepared in advance for us to do . Ephesians 2:10     Yeah, yeah, yeah! I have heard it so many times that I am wondering why we say it so much.  Yes! It is true!  And I praise God Almighty for it:  " For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is a gift of God NOT OF WORKS to prevent anyone from boasting." Or so Ephesians 2:8-9 is recorded.  And I really do get it: God's glorious salvation is a gift! The faith we have to believe in Him is a gift ... even the wonderful and inconceivably generous grace is a gift! True people of God certainly would do well to celebrate.   However, something seems to get lost as one of the most powerful statements get's left out, which is this another favorite of mine ... Ephesians 2:10.  Here we have God, not only ...

Freedom Faith Statements From Freedom IN Christ Ministries     Before you look these statements over, I would like to share something extremely important with you. Each of us has a running conversation in our heads, and many of us allow ourselves A.N.T.s.  Automatic Negative Thinking.  When we do this, we are doing "stinking thinking" which results in dark feelings or stinking feeling.  When you think such thoughts, you are not believing the truth.  And if you are feeling real low there is a good possibility your A.N.T.s are stinging you.         Below I have copied these Freedom Statements from www.ficm.org  .  If they spoken over and over again throughout the day, they will help set you free by replacing your A.N.T.s.  If you habitually speak these freedom words, promises or thoughts from the Bible out loud, eventually your emotions will be more balanced and you will walk free.    ...