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How to Make All Things New
Every time I think of the scene in The Passion of the Christ where Jesus tells His mother, Mary, Behold, I am making all things new, I feel my heart lurch. This is the hope of the Christian, isn’t it? That the old life with its hurts, angers, and grief is now dead. Our new lives have begun in Christ. And yet, what a disappointment to wake up to find the old habits piled on oneself like a giant load of dirty laundry. I believe that many pastors mean well when they tell us that we are new creations in Christ without mentioning the hard part. Even now, when I…
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How to Take Painful Memories Captive
The issue of whether or not God heals painful memories can be somewhat controversial within the body of Christ. I had just finished reading an article by a Christian in which he called inner healing a bunch of psychobabble. I am not sure why I bothered to read it because I usually steer clear of articles that are filled to the brim with judgment and contempt. Why court any more condemnation than I already face? But the Lord drew my attention to 1 Corinthians 10:5. Most Christians are familiar with this scripture. It reads: We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we…
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Renewing the Mind: Three Questions to Ask the Holy Spirit
One of the most important tasks we are given as Christians is that of renewing the mind. Learning how to do this is crucial if we want to grow, both in love and power. Renewing the mind is the process of understanding what lies we believe and asking God to replace those lies or tear down those strongholds so He can replace them with His truth. But this means we must become good lie detectors. I find that, often, the filters of my past or even of my emotions can make finding those lies challenging! After all, they are my lies and I have believed them for a long time.…
Healing Through Art & Words
