Fellowship with CindyisHis (4) Part one

[CindyisHis]

I'm thankful to have His Word living in me, and to know what to do in life, or be able to find out when I don't know what to do. My credit card slipped out of my wallet while we were at Disney World, without my knowing it. When I realized it, there was the spirit of fear, waiting to for me to allow it to enter, nearly choking the breath out of me. Here we are in Epcot, only 50,000+ people milling about! Immediately, I refused the fear and stood on His Word, knowing I would reap a harvest for seed sown. It was only about an hour earlier I had passed an elderly woman snoozing on a bench, all alone, with her purse next to her, completely detached from her. I backtracked when I saw her out of the corner of my eye, to go back and wake her up enough to slip the strap through her arm. Well, now I needed a kind deed. I grabbed my friend's hand and we agreed in prayer, headed for guest relations, and waited in line declaring the Word, putting a demand on my harvest. Finally, it was my turn. The gentleman asked a few questions, went to a room, and returned with my card!!!!! I rejoiced right there. God is good. God is faithful.

 

[Jere209]

Hey everyone.
It's time for James 4, right?
A quick update on me.. The pain in my rib cage area is gone..I know it had to be the pleuresy, I could feel the "rattle" when I drew in a breath..But better today..
Still no word on anything else..I'm still standing. I feel like He is holding on to me these days, and I am doing all I can do to just stand. When inside I'm on the floor..I know this too shall pass..and I will be better for the trial..
Cindy, that is just awesome about your credit card. You are like me...I will pass by someone or something that just seems not right and the Lord will convict me right there to "backtrack" and help them or do something about the situation. No matter what it is...I feel miserable when I do not do it...
Blessings to you dear friend..

 

[Jere209]

and lol, blessings to everyone else too!! did not mean to leave anyone out..
hugs all around

 

[CindyisHis]

Praise God, you're feeling better! Everything else will come too. Don't you give up.

 

[peacechild4]

Praise God for such good reports.. YAY!! Thank YOU LORD!!

Justin is feeling much better too.. The LORD be praised!!

We head home tomorrow.. and again I praise the LORD for a restful and fun holiday with my precious family..

Could you guys please pray over a book I passed on to my MIL.. I pray she then hands it on to Barry my father in law.. I pray it encourages her in knowing the LORD as her Saviour.. she seemed keen to take it.. The LORD placed that book in my hands.. I read it.. then knew it was to be given to my MIL.. I haven't had much of a chance to speak personally with her but I have peace about that.. I am just praising the LORD because I know the LORD placed this book just for this reason..

Thank you.. To God be the glory..

((HUGS)) to all..

 

[CindyisHis]

Yes, we'll pray! We know it's God's will for she and Barry both to know Him.

Lord, we ask You to speak to them as they read this book. And we thank You for healing Justin.

Glad you had a nice visit. May you have a safe return home.

 

[CindyisHis]

I found this most excellent post and suggest you take a visit there. It's on James 4.

http://christianforums.com/showpost.php?p=47841330&postcount=15

 

[peacechild4]

Thank you Cindy for sharing that post.. I like how this clearly explains that only in Christ are we a new creation!! We must walk that out.. it doesn't just happen to us without our doing something.. We must walk in the blessing and be loving.. and obedient to God.. in that place there is no sin.. no strife.. no flesh can destroy us in that place.. We are lifted up by God..

Humility is so good isn't it.. I don't want to be resisted by God because I am proud.. but rather be lifted up in Christ a new creation.. old has passed away.. the new having come!!

Thank you also for your caring word and prayers.. I do appreciate this very much!!

 

[CindyisHis]

Thank you Cindy for sharing that post.. I like how this clearly explains that only in Christ are we a new creation!! We must walk that out.. it doesn't just happen to us without our doing something.. We must walk in the blessing and be loving.. and obedient to God.. in that place there is no sin.. no strife.. no flesh can destroy us in that place.. We are lifted up by God..

Humility is so good isn't it.. I don't want to be resisted by God because I am proud.. but rather be lifted up in Christ a new creation.. old has passed away.. the new having come!!

Thank you also for your caring word and prayers.. I do appreciate this very much!!

I love you. Of course I care, and pray. Been praying for those dear ladies who are MIAs - Glenda, ral, Irene, and not a lady but - Mark. Irene is revved in revival , Glenda and ral may be vacationing ???? Mark

I expect Jere will show up anytime.

Good comments on James, pc4. You lifted me up.

 

[CindyisHis]

I've been contemplating over verse 5.

James 4:4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?

Does God get jealous? If so, it must be the protective aspect of His character shining through as we do the same over our children when we see their affections leaning toward something that will hurt them. It's not rooted in selfishness, as human jealousy, but in "I want You to love Me, and stay with Me where you will be safe. In this place you have life. Lovers of the world, adulterers have death working in them."

But then there's this version that casts a different light on it.

5 Or do you suppose that the Scripture is speaking to no purpose that says, The Spirit Whom He has caused to dwell in us yearns over us and He yearns for the Spirit [to be welcome] with a jealous love? AMP

Or does what I am saying fit this? I want my mind renewed to what God is saying. I want a full understanding here. I want to know what He says.

There's all these scriptures too.
Exodus 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;


Exodus 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:


Deuteronomy 4:24 For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.


Deuteronomy 5:9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,

Deuteronomy 6:15 (For the LORD thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the LORD thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth.

 

[peacechild4]

This part stood out to me.. James 4:4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.


4:4 -
James shows the seriousness of these believers' selfish, pleasure-oriented lives by identifying them as adulteresses. With their Jewish background they would have quickly understood the significance of what James was writing.
In the Old Testament, Israel is pictured as the wife of Jehovah. Any involvement with other gods is viewed as spiritual adultery (cf. Isa. 54:5;Ezek. 16:6-29; 23:1-49; Hos. 9:1).
In the New Testament, the Church is often depicted as the Bride of Christ (cf. Eph. 5:22-32; 2 Cor. 11:2,3). James is concerned that his readers have not considered the seriousness of their sin.
do you not know - The problem is not a lack of knowledge but a failure to live according to the knowledge they have.
friendship with the world - They have entered into a relationship with the world that makes them unfaithful to God.
friendship (philos) - This is the word for "love," and means beloved, dear, loving, kindly disposed, devoted, and then is used for friend. These believers have developed a relationship of love and affection with the world.
world (kosnos) - "World" stands for the world-system in its alienation and hostility to God (cf. 1 John 2:15-17; 5:19).
hostility (echthra) - This person has set himself in opposition to God (cf. Rom. 8:5-8 [esp. v. 7]).
The person who chooses to enter into a relationship of love and affection with the world makes himself an enemy of God.
wishes to be (boulethe) - It is a deliberate choice (ingressive aorist) made by the individual to become involved with the world.
makes himself (kathistatai) - By the decision to be the friend of the world, this person has made himself the enemy of God.
enemy (echthros) - This word is related to the earlier word hostility (echthra)
The context makes clear what is involved in worldliness or being a friend of the world. The basic issue is a life that centers on self. A selfish determination to satisfy my desires and cravings, to have things my way, identifies me as a friend of the world. We should note that this involves a deliberate choice (wishes to be) to become involved with the world. A person decides that, rather than submit himself to God and His Word, he is going to do what he wants; he is going to have it his way.

I found this here http://www.biblebb.com/files/GR774.HTM

What stood out to me.. is that selfishness, looking to self needs is actually adultery!! And as you share in verse 5 goes on to be idolatary..
Therefore friend of the world doesn't just mean going out and living as the world does.. but actually it is a deliberate choice to self serve.. which is very anti God!!

 

[CindyisHis]

This part stood out to me.. James 4:4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.


4:4 -
James shows the seriousness of these believers' selfish, pleasure-oriented lives by identifying them as adulteresses. With their Jewish background they would have quickly understood the significance of what James was writing.
In the Old Testament, Israel is pictured as the wife of Jehovah. Any involvement with other gods is viewed as spiritual adultery (cf. Isa. 54:5;Ezek. 16:6-29; 23:1-49; Hos. 9:1).
In the New Testament, the Church is often depicted as the Bride of Christ (cf. Eph. 5:22-32; 2 Cor. 11:2,3). James is concerned that his readers have not considered the seriousness of their sin.
do you not know - The problem is not a lack of knowledge but a failure to live according to the knowledge they have.
friendship with the world - They have entered into a relationship with the world that makes them unfaithful to God.
friendship (philos) - This is the word for "love," and means beloved, dear, loving, kindly disposed, devoted, and then is used for friend. These believers have developed a relationship of love and affection with the world.
world (kosnos) - "World" stands for the world-system in its alienation and hostility to God (cf. 1 John 2:15-17; 5:19).
hostility (echthra) - This person has set himself in opposition to God (cf. Rom. 8:5-8 [esp. v. 7]).
The person who chooses to enter into a relationship of love and affection with the world makes himself an enemy of God.
wishes to be (boulethe) - It is a deliberate choice (ingressive aorist) made by the individual to become involved with the world.
makes himself (kathistatai) - By the decision to be the friend of the world, this person has made himself the enemy of God.
enemy (echthros) - This word is related to the earlier word hostility (echthra)
The context makes clear what is involved in worldliness or being a friend of the world. The basic issue is a life that centers on self. A selfish determination to satisfy my desires and cravings, to have things my way, identifies me as a friend of the world. We should note that this involves a deliberate choice (wishes to be) to become involved with the world. A person decides that, rather than submit himself to God and His Word, he is going to do what he wants; he is going to have it his way.

I found this here http://www.biblebb.com/files/GR774.HTM

What stood out to me.. is that selfishness, looking to self needs is actually adultery!! And as you share in verse 5 goes on to be idolatary..
Therefore friend of the world doesn't just mean going out and living as the world does.. but actually it is a deliberate choice to self serve.. which is very anti God!!

This powerful! Thank you for posting it. Whew! Meaty. I love it!

There is a line drawn, we either on one side or the other. We can't serve self and God at the same time. We're either lovers of God or lovers of self. We're either following the Lord and and His plan, walking in His ways, cleaving to Him as we do our mates, or we our walking in whatever seems good to us, serving the dictates of the flesh.

What you posted is so good, making it clear as the Word says it will do, "dividing between soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart" - Hebrews 4:12.

I especially liked this part -

In the Old Testament, Israel is pictured as the wife of Jehovah. Any involvement with other gods is viewed as spiritual adultery (cf. Isa. 54:5;Ezek. 16:6-29; 23:1-49; Hos. 9:1).
In the New Testament, the Church is often depicted as the Bride of Christ (cf. Eph. 5:22-32; 2 Cor. 11:2,3). James is concerned that his readers have not considered the seriousness of their sin.

It's all about relationship. We love Him! We want Him. We want Him more than anything else. He is our Beloved, and we are His.

 

[ralangley]

Great posts everyone! Nothing to add. I posted something yesterday but my computer decided to throw a fit just as I hit "submit" (its been rather temperamental lately).....or perhaps I'm struggling with submission??? I don't know, all I know I grew frustrated and my allotted time on the computer was up. I have to compete for computer time with my girls who have important business to attend to on the Webkins and Penguin sites....

Hope everyone is doing well! We're having beautiful weather up here in the Pacific NW! Tomorrow and Sunday I'll be back at my tent ministry - so fun - and I'll be assisting in a training in dream interpretation (taking notes, actually) on Sunday morning. I'm praying that we can touch people with the gospel who have misconceptions about what it is.

Loving you all! Big hugs . Ral

 

[CindyisHis]

Ha-ha! You're post was delightful. I chuckled more than once.

Well, you have certainly been missed. Pray your time this weekend will be very fruitful. May many see and fear the Lord when they see Him in you. May they be glad and rejoice as they find out Who He is, how much He loves them, and give their lives to Him.

It's Hannah Montana website around here. Lol Although she has been thoroughly enjoying the old series "Little House on the Prairie".

 

[peacechild4]

Great posts everyone! Nothing to add. I posted something yesterday but my computer decided to throw a fit just as I hit "submit" (its been rather temperamental lately).....or perhaps I'm struggling with submission??? I don't know, all I know I grew frustrated and my allotted time on the computer was up. I have to compete for computer time with my girls who have important business to attend to on the Webkins and Penguin sites....

Hope everyone is doing well! We're having beautiful weather up here in the Pacific NW! Tomorrow and Sunday I'll be back at my tent ministry - so fun - and I'll be assisting in a training in dream interpretation (taking notes, actually) on Sunday morning. I'm praying that we can touch people with the gospel who have misconceptions about what it is.

Loving you all! Big hugs . Ral

I have to compete with hubby and 5 children.. LOL.. Yes I am doing well!!

If your computer time is limited.. and I know how frustrating it is to lose something you spent time on writing out when you often don't have to time or the mindset to sit and retype it.. Remember to make a copy as you write or open another program at the same time.. where you can type and save.. That way you can copy it and paste it back here if you lose it.. and you have a copy in case the web decides to close or Christian forums for some reason doesn't work as you hit reply..

Time is precious and although it is a bit of mucking around to do this.. it helps to get your message across if you lose your post for whatever reason!!

I am not sure if it is the enemy or not.. but so many times I have hit the wrong button and poof the whole thing dissapears on me or the web freezes when my computer has been working just fine.. sigh.. If I am writing what I consider something important.. I will make a copy and pray over it.... especially important just before I hit send!!

God bless have a good weekend!!

 

[CindyisHis]

We've been talking about spiritual adultery, of loving the world more than loving God. It wouldn't be right to only think on these things without moving on to the next verse which shows us how to keep from being a friend of the world. We can read the first 5 verses and think we're doomed if we don't know how to avoid that pitfall. It is by grace. God has given the Holy Spirit to us to keep us. Yet we see it lies within us to receive this grace through humility.

James 4:6 But He gives us more and more grace (power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully). That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace [continually] to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it). AMP

God reciprocates what we do. Think of Pharaoh who resisted God. God hardened His heart. On the other side of the coin, we see Moses, a humble man, in fact, the meekest man in all the earth scriptures says, who showed his humility in boldly demanding release of the Hebrew slaves. God's grace was displayed in his life many times over - in every plague, at the Red Sea, at the waters of Meribah, at the rock, and at the mount that shook with the presence of God. Notice this humility is not weak, he went boldly before the enemy demanding release of the captive. Humility enables one to know who he is in the Lord and live from that position in Christ. It demands of the devil, but is generally gentle towards people, with exception in the case of people yielding to the devil. It is not afraid to speak the truth, yet it does so in love.

 

[CindyisHis]

We are children of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

We are blessed coming in and going out.

A righteous man may fall, but he gets up.

God will restore what the enemy has taken.

We can pray. It doesn't matter who is in office leading the nation, we can pray.

Just typing out things that are coming to me. Take what's yours here, and spit out the rest.

We can take God's Word, and call things into existence. Call things that are not as though they were.

Don't give up. Don't let people talk you out of what is yours.

If you can see it in the supernatural, it is yours. You can be debt free. Call it. Don't give up.

God wants to use women. Yes, He wants to use men too, but I'm talking to women right now. Women have been trampled upon, and the church has tried to silence women, but God wants to use women.

 

[peacechild4]

For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. (first part) 2 Chronicles 16:9

Halleujah.. thank you Cindy for strengthening us.. LORD for strengthening us.. because it is YOU who speaks these encouraging words to us through our beloved sister..

Thank YOU for this day.. this is the day that YOU have made we will rejoice and be glad in it!!

 

[find faith here]

Hello. As I was reading several of the posts I find myself encouraged. Thank you for your posts. This has been a hard week for me and staying in his presence has been challengeing. As I read these posts about selfishness and the world and holiness I finallly felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it's hard to get out of selfishness, especially self pity. I'm new. I'm not sure about the rules of this forum. I hope I haven't offended anyone. Be Blessed.

 

[irenemcg]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CINDY!