Do this instead of strangling him (or her)

Do this instead of strangling him (or her)

Uncontrolled emotions are relationship-killers. It may sound strange to you that the same energy that brings two people together can also break them apart. But that's exactly how it is.

When you love a person, what he or she does, thinks, or says, affects you a lot more than what other people do, say, or think. Why? Because you are emotionally attached. So when your boss says to you, "This report is crap", you may get upset but will quickly get over it. However, if your husband or wife says the same thing, you may take it with you to your grave — and bring it up in every other argument before you finally pack up.

Here's the advice: 

If your negative emotions are running high — anger, hurt, hate, shame, etc. — then don't pour them all out on your partner. It's not fair on him or her. What should you do about your feelings instead? Whatever helps you soothe and calm yourself down. Cry, if you must. Pray. Scream into a brown bag. Write three pages in your diary in a fury. Go for a walk. Whatever works for you, do it. 

Then, when your emotions are down and your brain is back in control, go and deal with the problem rationally. Emotions are the wrong tool to solve problems.

The flip side: If you find yourself at the foot of your partner's emotional mountain and an avalanche is coming at you, you'll probably have no time to run for cover — nor should you. That would only anger your partner even more. If that happens, here's what you should do:

Incarnate an exemplary customer service representative.

People who work in customer service know this: You can't reason with an angry customer. The best you can do when an irate, annoyed customer unleashes her frustrations on you is to empathize, apologize, understand, and fix her problem. The worst you can do is get upset yourself and respond in kind.

So when your partner behaves like that angry customer, understand there's probably a very good reason for his or her anger. Listen for what it is. Empathize. Apologize if you're responsible for all or part of the problem. And while keeping a cool head, decide what you can and will do to fix the problem. And if a customer rep can do it for the money, you can do it for the love. You just need to decide inside yourself that this will be your new way of dealing with your partner's emotions — and also your own.

Emotions are the wrong tool to solve problems. Your intelligence is the right one.

The fork in the road

The fork in the road

Every day you're faced with tens, even hundreds of choices about everything in your life. From the time you get out of bed, to what you eat for breakfast, to the phone calls you make and take, to the ideas you accept or reject, and everything else after and in between.

Your choices make the life you have. Of course people around you are trying to influence those choices. Family, friends, colleagues, boss, even strangers affect our decisions. And then there are the unseen forces that influence us: advertising, government, culture, social expectations, religion, the economy, and a lot more.

But in spite of all these pressures — I know, it's a lot — you still hold the power to go one way or the other, to do A or B, or perhaps none of the above.

In the end, it's you at the helm of your ship. It's you who can steer your life. And you do it through your choices.

Whatever they are, you'll have to live with them.

Choose well.

The Fast of Daniel—Day Fourteen

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The Kingdom of Heaven is for those who sacrifice

Readers may ask why we insist on talking about sacrifice.
It would be easy not to talk about sacrifice. We would not expose ourselves to criticism, the messages would be lighter, we would please both Greeks and Romans and no one would feel offended.

However, because we do not work according to the rules of this world, we are not merchants of the Word, we do not live off the selling of books, we do not run for political office and are not concerned about attracting religious people, we’ve chosen to follow the inspiration of the Spirit of God and proclaim the truth that sets people free.

Those who believe, go forward. Those who don’t believe, stay behind with the foolish virgins.
The truth is, when sin does not instantly kill, it slowly beats a sinner to death.
Many people, Christian and non-Christian, are groaning and don’t know how to get rid of their agony.

The spirit of sin is possessing mankind and leading them to a state of chaos.
Although many people know the Gospel, only a few have the courage to put it into practice and dwell within the shelter of God.
Most prefer to stick to a message of salvation and avoid the sacrifice of the flesh.

Meanwhile, deceiving and antichristian spirits are free to work, causing relentless suffering in those who believe in God.
These recent days are not very different from the days of John the Baptist. In those days, not only did he preach repentance, he led sincere Jews to confess and abandon their sins. Matthew 3:1-10

Right now, wouldn’t this be God’s will for your life? What’s the point of looking for God’s help in church when you continue to live in adultery, fornication, stealing, lying, etc…

Who do you think you’re fooling?
What do you think you’re going to accomplish?
How long are you going to keep this spirit of sin inside of you?
Sin is a spirit. Whoever says yes to sin, says yes to its spirit.

How can a person get out of this prison?
Sacrifice your flesh until it dies of starvation.
Obviously!
If you sacrifice your flesh, where will the spirit of sin live?

If you want an immediate answer from God, then sacrifice to Him immediately. However, if you do not abandon a life of promiscuity, adultery, lying, stealing, immorality and everything else that pleases the devil, how do you expect the Spirit of God to work in your life?

I want to be known as... in 2012

I was an impossible case. Today I'm a miracle!

Before I was known as:

• A man who lived on a park bench
• An alcoholic
• A man with 6 months to live
• A man who'd destroyed his family

Today I am known as:

• A business owner
• A man who beat alcohol
• A man healed of cirrhosis & hepatitis
• A loved and respected father and husband

When you've had a problem long enough, you start to become known for it. You're labeled-just like Leo, and Elizabethin the Christmas story (Mary's cousin) who had been known for being barren. That's why this year we will not be singing carols or putting up a Christmas tree, but determining a Christmas MIRACLE for you.

"For with God nothing will be impossible." Luke 1:37

This Christmas you are invited to a service like no other, Sunday, December 25th at 10am. For those who DON'T want to be known in 2012 by the problem they have, come and receive your Christmas Miracle! God will change who you are, not just on the outside, but who you are inside. The Bible says that there is nothing impossible for God, and blessed are those who believe. This Christmas, God wants to perform a miracle in your life, invite your family and friends to come with you.

A Christmas Miracle - Sunday, December 25th from 10am to 11:15am

Click here to write down... The Christmas Miracle you want and bring this paper with you on Christmas day.

The Fast of Daniel—Day thirteen

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The lack of oil

Sadly, many see the altar as a haven of safety rather than a place of constant sacrifice.

At the altar they feel “protected” (from a guilty conscience), that their true spiritual state will not be exposed, as if the altar would give them a lifetime warranty, or free them from temptations so that they no longer have to go through the daily fight for their salvation. A sad mistake!

A few weeks ago an incident happen that I’d like to use as a warning to those who find themselves in a similar situation. After being married for seven years, a pastor’s wife cheated on her husband because she was not born of the Holy Spirit.
She had everything. Her husband was dedicated, a friend and a partner, faithful to God and therefore, faithful to his wife. What more could a wife want from her husband?

But, who knows what made her change her mind. She was moved by a spirit of lust that exercised its control over her, and didn’t think about how the consequence of sin is physical and/or spiritual death.
Her husband immediately allowed her to leave him. With nowhere to go, no way out, she returned to her parent’s house.

Then, filled with regret, she came crying to the wife of the bishop in charge, asking for help.
She came looking for support and the assurance that she had lost. She wanted to "borrow oil” from someone she knew would have oil. She was willing to accept any job and submit to any situation as long as she would be close to her old "haven of safety" – a place that gave her the peace she once had, and lost.

This wife wanted to help, but at the same time didn’t want to hinder the work of the Holy Spirit.

So she said to her:
"Do you remember the five foolish virgins? That’s right. When the groom returned, their lamps had run out of oil. They ran over to the five wise virgins and asked to borrow some of their oil. And what was their answer? ‘...we can’t give you the oil from our lamps or we will run out of oil too. Go to the market quickly and buy more’. But there was no time and they were left outside."

The bishop's wife concluded by saying: "I can’t take the oil from my lamp and give it to you. Seek while there is time. Make sure you don’t have a lamp that’s run out of oil when the groom comes to meet you."

Please understand, God’s actions are not based on emotions. No! In the end, He will not feel "pity" for those who are outside knocking on the door.
Right now you have time to go and buy more, and be spiritually rich. Or can’t you see that you’re running out of oil? Of course you do!

But why is it that many only notice they need more oil after they’ve already run out – when not even one drop is left? Many have a false sense of safety because they are close to the altar.

Spiritual blindness tempts people to think they can play around with sensuality and not run the risk of giving birth to an illegitimate child.James 1:14-15

When we sin we lose the rights that we once had. It’s a waste of time to complain, kick or want to justify ourselves...
Only those who submit to Jesus and accept who they are before God, and before men, will receive the POWER TO BECOME children of God. They will receive the Holy Spirit and His anointing.

Sooner or later a lack of oil will make the foolish go knocking on other peoples’ doors.

Viviane Freitas

The Fast of Daniel—Day twelve

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Message for the BRAVE

I doubt that God would require a level of faith from His children beyond what He has already given them!

But whoever wants to know the upper limit of his faith must simply look at the degree of sacrifice that he has been willing to make.

That is why Jesus said: If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself (sacrifice), and take up his cross (sacrifice), and follow Me (sacrifice). Matthew 16.24

It's the same with love.
Whoever wants to know the actual intensity of their love for a loved one, should simply look at the sacrifices they have been willing to make for them.

The size of the faith is measured by the size of the sacrifice.
Whoever does not believe, does not sacrifice;
Whoever believes half way, sacrifices half way;
Whoever believes 100%, sacrifices 100%.

Wasn’t this Jesus’ response to the hypocrites?
Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.Mark 12:29-30

What I mean is this:
Whoever believes with all his heart, all his soul, all his mind and all his strength, will sacrifice with all his heart, all his soul, all his mind and all his strength.
Do you get the spirit of the thing?

In other words:
Sacrifice your heart;
Sacrifice your soul;
Sacrifice your mind;
Sacrifice your strength.
This is a fact. There’s no adding or subtracting to this. It’s hard, raw, pure reality.

Whoever wants to receive everything from God (the Spirit of God) has to completely sacrifice heart, soul, mind and strength.

God’s all for our all.

ALL FOR ALL!
Are you willing to do this?
And I’ll say more, those who believe don’t make excuses, they sacrifice.
But those who do not believe, seek to justify their unbelief by making excuses and blaming others.

Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher,what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and your mother.’” And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.” So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor (sacrifice), and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me (sacrifice). But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful (sacrifice saddens), for he was very rich.Luke 18.18-23

A sacrifice saddens the one making the sacrifice, but shows the quality of his faith to the One receiving the sacrifice.

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has (sacrifice) and buys that field.Matthew 13:44

As you can see, pure faith is about obedience to the Word of God.
Faith requires obedience. And obedience is materialized through sacrifice.
Obedience is impossible without sacrifice.
Abraham was the greatest example of obedience.Hebrews 11.8-17

But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says,“ Abraham believed God (used his faith and sacrificed), and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. James 2.20-24

To summarize: faith without the work of sacrifice does not justify (forgive) anyone before God.

This is why most believers end up as failures, both spiritually and physically. They learned to accept Jesus as Savior, but not as Lord. If Jesus were their Lord, they would sacrifice their lives to serve Him with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.

So then, hear O Israel of the last days, Jesus Christ is only Lord and Savior of THOSE who REALLY serve Him!

My Lord, have compassion on those who are sincere but deceived, and give them another chance. This I implore in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ!