SelahV Today by hariette petersen

Inflamatory Diseases and Spiritual Aid

I am not weak. My body is. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Yeah, right.  I know what you're thinking. So why do I feel so weak? Well, folks, this is where the mystery of God comes into being; for in our weakness, He is shown to be strong and gets us through stuff we can't even fathom is possible when we're enduring the stress of the trials and daily struggles. Often we don't recognize His strength till we get on the other side of our problems. Once they are resolved, we look back and realize, we never could have made it without His help.

Stress is a parasite that eats your emotional cells like cancer eats physical cells.

I write this just so you know that your battles are real.  They are not imagined.  And part of your pain is due, in large part, to all the stress you encounter-- past, present and future fears, expectations, and unknowns. The more sensitive we are to those around us, the more vulnerable we become.

"All glands are made up of epithelial cells. Functions of epithelial cells include secretion, selective absorption, protection, transcellular transport, and sensing." [For more, go here]

When stress is encountered (and is-- every single day of our lives), secretion of fight or flight hormones increase, absorption of nutrition is decreased, and in some cases blocked altogether, protective barriers are penetrated, nutrients and good stuff fail to be transported throughout our bodies, and our sensitivity is vulnerable to all sorts of attacks. Mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
 
Satan is aware of our weaknesses.  We must put on the whole armor of God to battle the monster. We must rest in Christ's promises, hold onto His shield and cling to the Sword which offers truth.  We are victors in Christ. We have no enemies that cannot be defeated in Christ.  "We won't be defeated, we won't be defeated, we won't be defeated anymore. For Jesus Christ, God's only son, fought the battle and He won, we won't be defeated anymore".... Stand, my friends. Stand.

And while you're standing, eat a donut, then walk around the block singing Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.

"You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You."

Isaiah 26:3

"The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me..." Psalm 138:8

Rebellion Against God by Karen Scott

"Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!” (Psalm 2:1-3)

The world is in rebellion against God. Many people have devoted their lives trying to disprove there is a God. They also want to ignore that His Son, Jesus, died for our sins. Much has been presented to discredit God. Even in the household of faith, we find people who “water down Scripture” in order to feel better about their own personal sins.

There has always been much opposition to Christ. We see it clearly in the world in which we live. The Jesus presented in Scripture is not the Jesus presented in the world today. The world would have us to believe that Jesus is only about love and toleration. Their philosophy is that Jesus loves us and wants us to be happy. They want to ignore that Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

They don’t understand that true happiness only comes from a “saving knowledge” of Him. In other words, it is through repentance and faith that we can know Jesus as our personal Savior. It is through surrendering our will to Him that we can find joy and fulfillment in our lives.

We live in a day when the prevailing philosophy is, “Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us.” People want to be free to do what they wish without any restraints. God’s Word says that is impossible. It won’t work. We have a sinful nature that needs to be restrained. However, the world is always in a “deceptive dance with Satan” to get rid of all restraints.

We see a disturbing picture of the world in which we live. There is confusion, corruption, compromise, and indifference. God has given us laws to follow. Keeping the laws will not change us spiritually. It does not give us salvation. That only comes through Christ. However, adhering to the laws of God will enable us to avoid problems and consequences from embracing sin.  ~by Karen Scott

[Karen Scott is a minister's wife, mother, homemaker and lives in Georgia. She is a devoted follower of Jesus Christ and writes devotionals to honor God from a discerning mind and loyal heart.]

Spiritual Erosion by Karen Scott

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3)

The writer of this Psalm is warning us to resist the temptation to rationalize sin. He wants us to be aware that it will lead to compromising our spiritual walk. Compromise occurs when our behavior fails to reflect our priorities. For Christians compromise undermines our commitment to lead a godly life.

 If we take a firm stand for righteousness, we will be “like a tree firmly planted by streams of water.” We have many examples in Scripture of those who refused to compromise. One such example that comes to mind is Joseph. He refused to allow compromise to enter his life when dealing with the seductive actions of Potiphar’s wife. Joseph was confronted by her numerous times as she tried her best to entrap him and he literally ran from her advances. It ultimately cost him his freedom, but he never waivered or compromised his integrity.

 Psalm 1:1 assures us that we will be blessed if we avoid compromising with evil. God’s Word gives us an absolute standard for how we should live. The psalmist goes on to say that as believers we should “delight” in the Lord’s Word. We don’t view it as a burden or an interruption to life but instead as a road map for life’s journey.

 If we follow the advice of the psalmist, we will delight ourselves in the Word of God. As a result, we will grow spiritually and become better equipped to stand firm in the faith and avoid the erosive effects of compromise. [~~by Karen Scott]