Therapeutic Benefits of Prayer

As I have started praying more often, I am realizing that prayer promotes positive thinking and action. It allows us to focus on being thankful for what we have as well as on the needs of others. It is also a great way to stop negative self-talk

Sacrifices Bring Us Closer To God

I think that a lot of people get hung up on the idea that they have to make sacrifices and endure suffering in order to follow God's guidance. When we realize that we are engaging in behaviors that prevent us from being close to God changing can be painful but in the long run, it is well worth it. As someone recently told me, God only ask us to change in ways that will result in us being better off in the long term. Sometimes this involves sacrifice and suffering as we let go and change, but in the long run, the love of God will more than make up for our lose.

Praying For Enemies?

Though it sounds counter-intuitive, praying for our enemies or those who have hurt us is incredibly powerful. As I have earnestly prayed for those who caused me pain, I realize that it allows me to see them as another one of God's children who makes mistakes and sins just like the rest of us.

Loving God!

It never occurred to me that anyone else might feel as unlovable as I felt before I allowed God into my heart. Now I realize that in addition to loving God, and loving myself, I am tasked with loving others. For those who grew up Christian, this might be obvious but it was a big "ah ha" for me.

Sharing God's Love With Someone Who Has Never Felt It

Not knowing what God's love feels like leads some of us to try and find the love we are missing in "all the wrong places." Because some people are not ready to allow God into their hearts, it is our job to share God's love, just as Christ did, just as Christ's apostles did. By loving one another, we can introduce others to God's love.

Why God's Pronouns Are "He" And "Him"

In an attempt to be politically correct, some religions are attempting to remove God's pronouns and make God genderless. Before I became Christian, I used to think that it didn't matter how we envision God, but after spending time in prayer and reflection, I believe it is critical that we acknowledge God's role as our Heavenly Father. As the role of both mother and father have been undermined, our children are not doing well. Suicide rates are growing at an alarming rate. Our children are suffering from mental health issues and sexually transmitted illness at an ever increasing rate. Studies show that children do better if they are raised in two parent families. For those who don't have two parent families, a loving heavenly father is more important now than every.

The Healing Love Of God As Father

Many of us have searched for male love and affirmation, often when we haven't had a good relationship with our father. I spent my life trying to find a substitute for my father's love and engaged in risky and dangerous behavior in my search. Some people think of God as genderless but for me, envisioning God as father has been healing. I realized that all this time I have been trying to recreate my father's love when God's love is all I needed.

We Can Change Our Identity!

The left encourages people to believe that they are defined by their identity and that our identity is fixed. They go so far as to suggest that gender dysphoric children were born in the wrong body. Rather than holding people responsible for their choices and the consequence of their choices the left implies that we are controlled by our identity. The left denies that we have free agency. This is disempowering. In fact, God helps us change our identity when we realize that our identity is not beneficial. He loves us despite our behavior and choices however, he is always there for us to provide guidance and strength when we are ready to change. This is empowering!

Reimagining Shame

I used to think that shame was something that was brought on by the self-righteousness of those who deemed themselves morally superior to others. As I have opened my heart to God, I realize that the feeling of shame comes not from others but from ourselves. God and our spiritual community help guide us to behaviors that are healthy and safe. When we do something that puts us or others at risk the shame we feel is important feedback that what we are doing isn't good for us. If we don't have God in our life and we don't have a spiritual community to set expectations on our behavior, we might not feel shame when we do something harmful. We might feel like we can do whatever we want, whatever feels good at the time. In the short term we might believe we are happy, but over the long term, living without shame will lead us into harms way. Shame is a gift from God. Shame provides us with feedback that we have stumbled or lost our way.
https://youtu.be/JF4xWLxAFVE