Insecurities, Bible Study 02/27/14

Posted on February 28, 2014 by growintheword

Insecurities

Synopsis of Bible Study 02/26/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

What’s important to understand is, many people have this issue. Even every hater you have ever had is suffering from this issue called insecurity.

(NKJV) James 1:9 says9 Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation,10 but the rich in his humiliation, because as a flower of the field he will pass away.- This scripture is saying that one person is in a low position and one in a high position. The person in the low position feels that life has given them a bad hand. If you fall in the low position situation, know that it is only temporary. God is able to raise you up in due time. For this reason, it is important to know not to make judgment on people, just because they are not where you think they should to be. If you fall in a position of a high place, it is important for you to be humble. You must remember that God can switch positions with you and the person in the low place at any time.

Insecurities can come out in both situations. In high places, a person can use this to hide and to mask what they are going through. For example, more money won’t make you happy if you don’t deal with your insecurities.

Words were spoken over our lives when we young. When we began confessing those words, we trained our spirit. When you train your spirit, it is hard to un-train your spirit. (NKJV) John 8:32 says 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”- Know the truth and it will make you free

I. You have to declare that you are loved by God

  1. One that is loved by God must understand the totality of that love- (NKJV) Romans 5:8 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.- God loved us so much, he didn’t wait until we got ourselves right to demonstrate his love for us.  God sent his son to die why we were yet still in our sin.

(NKJV) John 17:23 says23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.- Jesus says, He wanted the whole world to know how much God loved them.

(NKJV) John 15:13 says 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.- God was willing to put his son on the cross to demonstrate his love for us.

II. Why isn’t God’s love enough for you?

  1.   Why do we seek others for affirmation? Why   isn’t God’s love enough?It is because of what is explained in(NKJV) Ephesians 3:17 where it says17 that Christ may   dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in   love,18 may be   able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length   and depth and height— 19 to know the love of   Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness   of God.
  2. The reason God’s love isn’t enough, is because we don’t get the full scope of how much God loves us. As a result, we think we need Jesus in addition with something else to be affirmed. As a result, we try to feel that void space that we think we have.
  3. Know that what you fill that gap with, can kill you! We will fill that gap with things that are not good for us sometimes. The job we take, the mate we hook up with, and etc… can all be not good for us. If God loves you, you have to know that this should be enough.
  4. Make sure everything you do in the flesh glorifies God. In our actions and our spirit, we want to let God know that we appreciate how much he loves us.
  5. The enemy will bring up your past, so that you will always remember what you used to be. Know that you were justified.(NKJV) Galatians 2:16 says 16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified. – Justify here means to cause to be free. It doesn’t mean you didn’t do the transgression, but it does mean that you didn’t have to pay the debt! It is like your sentence has been suspended. God forgave us at Cavalry, but we allow people to pull us back into what we used to be. Know that you don’t have to serve time for stuff you used to do. You have already served your sentence.
    1. Your mind has to be purged. (NKJV) Hebrews 9:14 says14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?- Your mind has to be purged. We allow peoples thoughts to consume our minds. You can’t think that old stuff you used to is cursing you. Your insecurities can sometimes come through shame and guilt of things God has already forgiven you for. You must remember that those things are no longer part of you.
    2. Your sins no longer hinder you –(NKJV) John 1:29 says 29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!, (NKJV) Hebrews 10:17 17 then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” q– If God forgot it, why do you still hold on to it?
    3. e.      2 classes of people you should be concerned with:

III. You were purchased with a steep price

I.          Those consumed with your once was.

II.          Those who embrace you’re not yet.

  1. Stop wasting energy on, creating space for, and giving time and conversation to those who are consumed with your once was. Once you give this space, time, and energy on those concerned with your past, you hinder your progress.
  2. Jesus would teach to the disciples and to the multitudes who were going where he was going. He would not address the scribes and Pharisees who stood on the side of the road trying to pick a fight. Jesus knew the folk with him, would testify. So this is where he spent his energy.
  3. Look at Calvary, Jesus never addressed his persecutors. He didn’t even say anything when they stabbed him on the cross. We always say “He (Jesus) never said a mumbling word…” So if this is the case, then why do we (say a mumbling word)?
  4. Two thieves hung on crosses next to Jesus. There was one on right and one on the left. When the one said, “… save us and save yourself, if you are who you say you are…”If you will notice, Jesus never addressed him. The other one said, “… when you come into your kingdom(Jesus’ not yet), remember me…” Jesus did respond to him. This is evident, because Jesus says, “This day that you will with be with me in paradise.”This guy was going where Jesus was going.

IV. How do we do this? How do we keep from responding to those not going where we are going?

  1. The answer is, you have to know who you are in God. When you know who you are in God, you have the peace with God. (NKJV) Romans 5:1 says 1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, -Me and God are cool. All the things in our past, has been worked out with God. The worst thing is for you to be is un-cool with someone who God is cool with. I’m cool with God and God is cool with me! We might not know what God is going to do, but we got peace with God about.
  2. Because of our insecurities, if we are not cool with God, we start coming up with the plan b’s and c’s. We ought to beat a point with God, where we declare, “Anyway you want to bless me God, it is alright with me!”
  3. c.      The peace of God
  4. d.      The peace of God leads to the authority of God. God raised us all up together. It doesn’t matter about your social position. At the end of the day, we all will end with ashes to ashes and dust to dust. The grave will make equals of us all. When people come to look for their grandparents’ grave, they will be stepping over your grave to get there, just like they would anyone else. Know that we have all been made equal.
  5. We all get raised up towards heaven equally. This means we all have equal authority! We all use challenges in our lives as an excuse not to get ahead. Again, we have all have been raised us up together. Yeah in all things, we are more than conquerors through Christ Jesus. Until you embrace the fact that God has raised us up together, and until you quit looking comparably in your lives, you won’t become who you really are in Christ.

10 things to remember

  1. Ask Jesus to transform your heart- Your heart is an issue of moving. If your heart ain’t right, your insecurities kick in. Insecurity + power = disaster. People will use their power to make up for all the insecurities of their former years. Have you seen this?
  2. Discover more about yourself – Learn your strengths, weakness, and insecurities. Ex- Bishop Walker explains that when was called to preach, he lost Joseph. He had to go back and find Joseph again.  Embrace your weakness!  How many of you been told that you are mean? Most of the time, it is the majority of women who answer yes to this. Why is this? Lots of people that think you are hysterical don’t realize that you are just being historical. What happened in the moment triggered you to go back to something that happened before.
  3. Enjoy being you- Be comfortable in your own skin. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. You have to come to place where you are cool with you. Be cool in your skin. Like Bishop explained earlier, he lost who he was (Joseph), came to himself, and told himself that he would never do that again. The reason many are not cool with themselves is because, we look comparably to others, and therefore we feel that we need things or other people to affirm us. Ex- This is like branding. Some people need brand names, because they don’t know the brand of their name. There is a difference between needing name brand and liking name brand name. The moment you get something name brand, you think your stock has gone up. This is evidence that you are not cool in your own skin. You give value to stuff and you don’t think there is value in you.
  4. Red carpet – Bishop explains how he has gone to some events that had Red carpet events. He explains how when celebrity walked the red carpet, there would be the sound of many flashes. He explains later that when he would go through, there would be only the sound of one camera flash. When your self esteem is so low, things like this can really affect you.
  5. Form your own ideas- Don’t regurgitate other people’s ideas, unless God directs you to. you are creative.
  6. Remind yourself regularly of what you have accomplished.
  7. 7.      Do your best with what you have and where you are. If you don’t then you end up trying to buy self esteem!
  8. Work from your strengths – Don’t crush your confidence by working on things you are not good at. What if I tried to sing? This isn’t my strength and therefore, I would be boring you to death while lowering my self esteem.
  9. Celebrate other’s success – Don’t be a hater. Somebody Bishop has known for a long time, asked him to give a definition of a friend. Bishop explained that a friend is one that can celebrate your happiness even if it isn’t them. Most church folk can’t celebrate themselves, without tearing someone else down. They will tell you why they like one place, while telling you how they don’t like another place.
  10. Keep your eyes on the vision- Sometimes God will tell you to lay your vision down so you can work on something greater. You have to be vision driven. There is a reason your windshield is bigger than your rear view mirror.
  11. Stay close to Jesus – You can do all things through Jesus. Know that he who is intimate with God, will never be intimidated by man.
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Rejection, Bible Study 02/19/14

Posted on February 20, 2014 by growintheword

Rejection

Synopsis of Bible Study 02/19/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

Anchor: (NKJV) Luke 6:22 22 Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you,
And revile you, and cast out your name as evil,For the Son of Man’s sake.

(NKJV) John 1:11 11 He came to His own,c and His own did not receive Him.

Understanding what Jesus says about rejection:

Expect people not to want you to be in their company. People who reject you are not part of the design that God has planned for your life. Often you will be rejected more in familiar places than you will strange places. People will accept you more away from your familiar surroundings.

Rejection happens to us in a variety of ways:

a. Rejection is the idea of not being wanted.

Two ways we are rejected:

  • Emotional rejection – This kind of rejection has an emotional impact on you. You ask questions like, “Why didn’t I get picked? Why didn’t you hire me?” This kind of rejection can be devastating!
  • Interpersonal rejection – This is rejection of loved ones. This is severance of a relationship that seemed to be long termed. As result, you feel there is a stigma tied to you, and you develop a fear of being rejected. We begin to speak in the negative about what we really want in the positive, for example “Ya’ll wouldn’t want to hire me, wouldn’t you?”

Why does rejection wound so deeply?

  1. It calls into question your worth and value – This is about your self esteem. You have to know that God loves you, God accepts you, and appreciates you, no matter what anyone else thinks.
  2. God’s word tells us, if we are not rooted and grounded in love, we can’t experience the fullness of God in our lives. This is made evident in (NKJV) Ephesians 3:19 where it says 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.- Rejection has a way of destroying your life in a way that few other things can. Rejection can cause spiritual issues that allow openings for the enemy to come in.
  3. Rejection causes us to have envy, to blame God, and to have jealousy.
  4. Jealousy is built up from rejection. Ex- You not really jealous of your friend getting married, but you have moments that you why it couldn’t be you.
  5. 5.       You start blaming God. You feel like God is not being fair, because you know that you have been faithful. If we would be honest, many of us have had this feeling. All of us deal with rejection in one way or another.

Strategy to deal with rejection

  1. You got to know God for yourself. – God is love. You got to understand and experience God in his fullness. (NKJV) 1 John 4:8 says 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.- God’s love is accepting, loving, and forgiving. No matter what your issue is, know that God is an accepting God.
  2. Know that people can be so self-righteous that they will reject you, because of your issue – If any place should be forgiving and accepting, it should be “the church”. God accepts us all, regardless of our issues.
  3. God is not re-jective – (NKJV) Leviticus 26:11 11 I will set My tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you., (NKJV) Isaiah 41:9 9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its farthest regions , And said to you, You are My servant , I have chosen you and have not cast you away:- God says he will never cast you away, (NKJV) Psalms 94:14 14 For the Lord will not cast off His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance.- God will never cast you away, no matter how much you cast him away. He will never disconnect from you. God sees something in you that is salvageable. He believes in what he has placed in your life.
  4. When you don’t understand the love of God, and you are looking for the acceptance of people, you will spend most of your time trying to get people to unlove others in order for them to love you. You should learn to love God who gives you love every day. (NKJV) 2 Corinthians 4:9 says  9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—- We are not forsaken. – If there is one thing that can make people reject you, it’s persecution. (NKJV) Hebrews 13:5 5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you. p–  Stop coveting others. Be content in what you have!

Satan has plans

  1. Got to love and accept. (NKJV) John 13:34 34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.- You can’t allow people that reject you to be your issue, because when we know God, we know his love can’t be separated from himself. Know that a person can’t love God and not love us. If you know and love God, you got to know and love his children.
  2. Satan is busy – (NKJV) 2 Corinthians 4:4 says 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.- The devil wants to blind your mind. If Satan can cause your mind not to receive God’s word, then he can make your mind blinded. This means you will be blind to the things that God has for you and the things that God wants you to do.
  3. Jesus understood what rejection was. (NKJV) Luke 17:25 25 But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.-  When Luke writes this to this generation (in the scripture), it was prophetic! This scripture says that this generation did not accept him (Jesus). No generation has been more rejective of Christ as this generation is right now. There is a song that says, “… get right church and lets go home…” The the stuff you see go on today in the world today ought to have you on your face trying to get to know God more now than ever before.
  4. People that reject Christ, will often reject you. – When people reject God, it is easy to reject you. If they reject God, it is normal for them to reject you.

How do your respond to people who reject you?

(NKJV) 1 Corinthians 4:12 says 12 And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure;- People reject us and we will still bless them. We refuse to let the rejection of others, become a issue about us.

How do they reject us:

  1. In the natural– This is alleged rejection and repressed memories. There are stuff we hold onto that we haven’t gotten over yet. Ex – Bishop says he remembers the exact day and place and time, when he was rejected for the first time. He wanted to take Pam Evens to prom. With his friends around, he asked her to go to the prom with him. When he asked her, she turned around and said, “Get out of my face ugly boy!” Bishop says it took yrs for him to get over this. As a result, he spent the rest of his time trying to prove her wrong. He made drum major for instance and it was primarily to prove Pam wrong.

 

Bishop says he couldn’t wait for their 10 yr class reunion. Bishop says he drove 9 hrs in his new car, just so he could pull up in front of the gym entrance and let Pam Evans see him. Pam saw him and said “hi” to him, but Bishop says he remembers saying “hi” to everyone else but her (as to minimize her the way she did him yrs ago).  We do the same thing right today. We post new pics of our new boo so that our old boo will see them. We hope that someone will forward  what we posted to the person that rejected us. Know that we can’t live our life trying to find affirmation from the person that rejected us.

We act by fight, fright, flight. Fright is what Bishop experienced in his reaction to Pam. By the time he reached 12th grade, he was scared to ask anyone to the prom. Flight is when we have been rejected and now we are out of here.

  1. Christian response – We have to stop perpetuating a person’s acceptance.
    1. We must find our acceptance in our identity in Christ- God received and accepted us. (NKJV) Romans 15:7 7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us,c to the glory of God.- Stop changing God’s design to get somebody to accept you. Know that you have been accepted by God.
    2. The Lord takes you up. (NKJV) Psalms 27:10 10 When my father and my mother forsake me,
      Then the Lord will take care of me.- If your mother and father drops you, it is the moment where God will take you up. God won’t let your destiny cease. Though Joseph (in the bible) was rejected, he ended up working for the governor in the end. Any rejection that you experience will not stop God’s plan for your life.
    3. Don’t worry about who dropped you. God will pick you up and give you a testimony. Ex-Show up with your powerful testimony. Lots of people who were originally rejected, ended up great!
    4. We must always accept others- (NKJV) Acts 4:9 9 If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, – Peter and John raised a man from gate called Beautiful that many  paid no attention to.
    5. (NKJV) Psalms 118:22 22 The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone.- Jesus was the stone that he builder rejected, but later became the chief cornerstone.
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Dealing with depression, Bible Study 2/5/14

Posted on February 6, 2014 by growintheword

Dealing with depression

Synopsis of Bible Study 02/05/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

 

Depression is something we don’t talk about much in church, but this is something we need to deal will. The Center of Disease Control states that 1 out of 10 people take medication for depression. What is it that we can do as people of faith to address mental illness particularly in the church?

I. Churches need to stop hiding mental illness

When you find yourself disillusioned, know that this could be a mental illness issue. Lots of times we gloss over this in the church and say phrases like, “We are too blessed to be stressed.” We simply put people on the prayer list and forget about it and as a result, this problem never goes away. Know that the church should be the safest place for this issue.

Lots of us are uncomfortable discussing depression and some are even afraid of mental illness issues, but know that we have to confront this issue.

II. Why discuss this now?

If you think about it, Jan and Feb can be some of the most depressing months of the year. Some reasons is because these months are the months that contain gloomy days and gray skies. Another reason is there is nothing to get exited about on January. Christmas has past and now you have to deal with the credit card bills and right around the corner is Valentine’s Day which reminds you that you don’t have anyone.

  1. Dealing with this, doesn’t mean you have flawed faith. Even in Elijah’s time, people dealt with depression. 1 Kings 19:4 (NKJV) says 4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!”- Elijah prayed that he might die. Ex– C. S. Lewis, known to his friends and family as “Jack”, was a novelist, poet, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian, and Christian apologist. C. S. Lewis, became outgoing after his conversion experience and he really had to work hard to get through his depression. Through his working through his depression,  an author Armand M. Nicholi wrote a book called” The Question of God” (link goes to book sample) where he places arguments of C.S. Lewis and another author by the name of Sigmund Freud about the questions of God . Nicholi remarked that “God could not give us happiness outside himself.” In other words, he was saying you can’t be happy without God. Nicholi also said “depart from pleasures.”  He submitted human beings weren’t supposed to be happy. CS Lewis concluded that “True happiness was things that money couldn’t buy.” If you set yourself on the pleasures of life, you can set yourself up for depression.
  2. B.      The bible gives a great array of people that suffered depression. David, Elijah, Job, and many others battled with depression. There are people reading this that have suffered from depression too. Remember 1 kings 18 when the woman gave Elijah her last meal, but never ran out? She had been depressed and had planned to eat her last meal and die. Elijah was hated so much by Jezebel who plotted every day to kill him and it finally got under Elijah’s skin. He felt like his life’s work was hopeless and that all his work had been done in vain. No one but God knew that he was depressed. God finally talked to Elijah and let him know that he knew what Elijah had been feeling, so he affirmed him. Ex- Bishop being transparent:  In 2005 on Jan 17th, Bishop watched his first wife die! He remembered running to the window screaming and not knowing what he was going to do. After the funeral and after he came back from vacation, Bishop filled his schedule with everything he possible could. Whenever he was not booked, he would come home and sit in dark and he found himself setting the table for two people for 8 mths. The point is, Bishop had become depressed and didn’t even know it. Here he was a Leader dealing with depression. You must know that depression hits the pulpit and stretches to the back door of the church. No one is exempt. Bishop was anointed and he had faith, but still he experienced depression.
  3. A.      There is a reason. (NKJV) Proverbs 13:2 says 2 A man shall eat well by the fruit of his mouth, But the soul of the unfaithful feeds on violence. (NKJV) Proverbs 18:14 says 14 The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, But who can bear a broken spirit? – Job going through job 7:6-11 (NKJV) Job 7: 6-11  say 6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, And are spent without hope.7 Oh, remember that my life is a breath! My eye will never again see good. 8 The eye of him who sees me will see me no more; While your eyes are upon me, I shall no longer be.9 As the cloud disappears and vanishes away, So he who goes down to the grave does not come up.10 He shall never return to his house, Nor shall his place know him anymore.11 “Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul. – When we become depressed, we lose hope. When you lose hope, you see no end to your problem. Hope is a bi-product of faith, because faith is the substance of things hoped for. The word of God is placed in my life, to produce faith. When the devil attacks my faith, he is s trying to get my hope.
  4. B.      Wavering in my faith is ok, but the question becomes when? We wonder in our faith is God going to heal us. Will we survive? The hard part is the level that comes after faith. This is called hope. We wonder here does God even care. If God doesn’t care, no one cares, so what is the reason for hope even existing? Once you lose hope this is point where the razor ends up on your wrist or the bottle is in your hand.

III. What does the bible says about depression?

It is at this point, that you are in a hopeless place. This is when you are most vulnerable.(NKJV) Ephesians 6:11 says 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,t against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. – This is why the God says put on the whole armor of God. Your faith is no longer cognitive at this point. It becomes a spiritual battle. When we fight in the sprit realm, we fight above our mind. The devil is looking for access. If we don’t guard our feet, they will lead us to places we don’t need to be. If we don’t guard our loins, then we connect to people we shouldn’t connect to and start producing dysfunction. If we don’t guard our hearts, we start believing in all the wrong things and if we don’t guard our head, we will not believe who we are any more. The devil is always looking for places to get in. (NKJV) 1 Peter 5:6 6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because e your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. – Know that every day, you are being stalked by demonic forces, looking for an opening. Every day you are being stalked.

IV. Where is the first place you should go when you feel depressed?

 (NKJV) Matthew 11:28 says 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. – This was Bishop’s problem when he experienced depression. He had spent the last 10rs yrs growing the church which was approximately 17,000 members at that time. He was in the word preaching for others and he stopped studying for himself. One night, he was in room by himself. God began to call him and assured him that he missed him. The problem was, Bishop needed to reconnect to God. God says to Bishop he will give him something he hadn’t had in years. This something was rest. Bishop had been sleeping, but he had not been resting. God says come unto me all who are heavy laden and he will give you rest.

 (NKJV) Philippians 4:7 says 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.- If you think about it, most things that got you depressed in the past, entered through your heart or your mind. We must guard our hearts and our minds.

V. Where else should you turn when you are discouraged

 (NKJV) Ecclesiastes 4:10 10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up.11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone?12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken., (NKJV) Proverbs 27:10 0 Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend, Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.- God put people into your life for a reason. God says don’t abandon these people, because he put them there for a reason. Don’t put yourself in isolation. The roaring lion goes about seeing whom he may devour. Ex – In the Wild Kingdom, Buffalo work together. Buffalos move together and hang out together. If they catch a lion by themselves, they will kill the lion. They take all their rage caused by other lions, out on that one lion that is caught alone. The buffalo target the weakest in the herd and they get them confused, so that they can separate them from the herd. Much like this, the devil knows that we are a force when we are together (with other church members), but he knows if he can cause enough confusion, he can isolate you to ultimately devour you.

 

VI. What else does the bible say you do to help depression  

You got to learn to laugh – (NKJV) Proverbs 17:22 says 22 A merry heart does good, like medicine,f But a broken spirit dries the bones.– You can’t sit around and frown more than you laugh.  People ask often how Bishop Walker integrates his sermons. His answer is, he injects humor. People don’t laugh enough now days. This scripture says if you don’t laugh, you will dry up. If you are happy and have frown marks, then you frown too much. Ex- Bishop was preaching at a church. He came out to sit in pulpit, before having to deliver his message. The Pastor of this church is friend of Bishop and he has a Pastor Emeritus that sits in the pulpit every Sunday. The problem is, he has gotten so old and he has lost all of his pulpit etiquette now. For example, he talks loud while in pulpit now. It is often loud enough for the congregation to hear what he is saying. Right before Bishop gets up to preach, the Mime Ministry comes out and the Pastor Emeritus asks the Pastor, “What them clowns doing in here? Ain’t no clowns in the bible?” Bishop lost it! The point is, it’s ok to laugh. If you don’t laugh, the enemy attacks your spirit.

Jesus understands our weakness. (NKJV) Hebrews 4:15 says 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. (NKJV) Isaiah 53:3 says 3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. – Jesus experienced the same things that we do, so he identifies with us.

VII. What do I do with my past mistakes, what does God promise to do?

Everything that happens, you blame on something you did in the past. Know that you have been forgiven. God doesn’t punish you for things you have done in the past. You are free from the penalty of sin. (NKJV) Luke 11: 9 – 10 9 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.– Go to God! Stop running to the people whose life is in worse shape than yours.

It is ok to get a spiritual counselor- Pastors are not trained in counseling. They will hear you out, tell you what the bible says about your situation, and if still not resolved, they will refer you to a spirit counselor. Get a Christian Counselor!! It is ok!

VIII. What does God want your mindset to be?

In the bible days, there was martyrdom. Nero took great pride in killing Christians. Some were crucified upside, rolled down hills, burned at stakes, and fed to the lions. Can you imagine what these folk left thought after seeing what happened to fellow people in the ministry? (NKJV) James 1:2 says 2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 for you know that gthe testing of your faith hproduces steadfastness. 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. – You are going through this in order to become whole. (NKJV) Philippians 4:11 says 11 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: 12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christh who strengthens me. – In other words, I’ve learned how to drive with gas the light on. I’ve learned how to keep wearing the same pair of jeans and just changing shirts. When you are content, you are not guilty of the sins of comparison.Psalms 37:7 says, 7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. – You have to stay in God s word and be content. Comparison will drive you into depression.

In conclusion, we leave you with a  scripture that sustained him through his depression- (NKJV) 1 Peter 5:10 says 10 But mayf the God of all grace, who called us g to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.– Perfect in this scripture means mature. May it establish you after you have gone through it. 5 yrs ago, what you have gone through would have broken you, but you are stronger now! You have to come to a point that you are settled in your spirit. You have to say, “I don’t know how or when, but I know who is going to make it happen.” This is when you have come to a place where you have choose to confront depression! It is when you know who is in control that you will overcome our depression!

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Living a life of purpose III, Bible Study 01/22/14

Posted on January 23, 2014 by growintheword

 

Living a life of purpose III

Synopsis of Bible Study 01/22/14

Delivered by Bishop Walker III

(NKJV) Ephesians 2:10 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

God put everything in you that you need to fulfill your purpose. Having said this, know that you weren’t born lazy, you just became lazy. You weren’t born trifling, you just became trifling. You have to live then a life that is pleasing to God

Spiritual gifts are God given capacity to Christians to carry out the functions of Christ. When you understand what your spiritual gifts are, this will help you carry out Gods goals, makes you aware of your location or position, helps your decision making, and more. 

You have to find your gift

In order to do this, you have to make an assessment of your life. (NKJV) 1 Corinthians 12:5 says 5 There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. – We have to understand that the body is full of many different gifts and we must also understand that our gifts were given to us by God.  If we be honest, sometimes we ask God why he didn’t give us a gift like the one somebody else has. We have to know that God knows exactly what to give you, because he knows you and he knows your capacity. God knows what we can handle.

Your gift must be developed once it is identified – (NKJV) Romans 12:4-8 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. – One of the things that are fascinating about Paul’s writings is Paul uses anthropomorphic imagery. In other words, Paul uses human anatomy to explain things. Paul says each part of the body effects the others, so each part has to do what it was designed to do. Ex- Ever woke up from a sleep and everything woke up but your foot? It is not that your body can’t move, but because your foot won’t wake up, you aren’t able to move at the pace that you were originally designed to move. Just like this, when you sleep on your gifts, you hinder the whole body. You can’t operate in the way that God intended for you to move. No part of the body is insignificant. There is no part of your own body that you feel is so insignificant enough that you would want it amputated. The same then goes for the Body of Christ.

 (NKJV) 2 Timothy 1:6 says 6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. – We are here today to tell you to stir up the gift! God has given you something to do. Don’t be guilty of hindering the body by no using your gift!

How do we narrow down what our gift is?

  1. Ask what idea, things, places, or people you are most inspired by?
  2. Ask what are you most complimented on in the Body of Christ?
  3. Ask what do you often give to others?
  4. Ask what do others look to you for?

Exploring areas of passion for purpose

No matter if you are the most reserved person in church, you have passion. (NKJV) Luke 12:34 says 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – Another word for heart is passion. If we could snatch your phone and look at your phone log or examine your credit card statement, we could find out what your passions are. Often, a person invests into what they are passionate about.

Passion can be misguided. Every day you wake up, there is a competition in the spirit realm for your passion. Every day you wake up, the spirit realm is petitioning for your passion. In fact, there are lots of drug dealers on the street that could be CEOs of corporations right now. They are passionate people, but darkness has their passion. The devil wants your passion. You got to learn to put your passions towards the things of God. Remember Samson had passion that was misguided and he ended up with a haircut from hell!

When passion in line with purpose, it indicates that your first passion has become God. People whose first passion is not with God are confused at why you are not passionate about them. This is because you are only passionate for people whose first passion is with God too. If you ever let a person become your first passion, then you become one who is easily let down. God never lets us down!

When you discover your passion, you have to ask these questions:

  1. What is it that I love doing (in the spirit) that keeps me up all night long?
  2. What brings me the most joy?
  3. What do I do, when I lose track of time? Note: Video games don’t count!
  4. What is it that I would do even if I am not paid for it?

You can’t burry what God has given to you. There is great treasure in you!

 (NKJV) 2 Corinthians 4:7 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.-  Treasure buried becomes dormant and does not expand. We then must allow treasure to be cultivated by the spirit of God inside of us. We are nothing but a collection of dirt. God says he will put this treasure or gift inside of us and allow this imperfect person to perform that gift (his gift) and that it still comes out perfect. We often miss benefiting from some gifts, because we get caught up in a person’s vessels. Sometimes, we are amazed that God will choose us to do great things through us as flawed as we are. The gifting and the anointing that flows through you confirms that God puts treasure in trash!

How do we nurture this treasure?

  1. Never think of speak negatively about yourself in a way that puts you in disagreement with God.
  2. Meditate on your God given strength and learn to encourage yourself.
  3. Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Know that you are unique. Be who God made you to be. Stop committing people plagiarism. Coby Bryant wasn’t trying to be the next Michael Jordon, he was trying to just be Coby. Understand who God made you to be. God made you to be original. Why are you trying to be someone else? Don’t minimize yourself based on someone else’ gift.
  4. Don’t focus on your limitations.
  5. Find what you like to do, do it well, and strive for excellence.
  6. Have the courage to be different. Don’t be a people pleaser.
  7. Learn to handle criticism. Don’t be so thin skinned. Remember when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended on him and voice came from heave saying “This is my beloved son of whom I am well pleased” The voice of God said he was pleased with Jesus, yet his haters still hated on him! If they hated Jesus after that, what makes you think that people won’t hate on you?
  8. Determine your own worth instead of letting others do it for you. Walk into the room like you supposed be there. Act like you got it, even if you don’t. Walk in confidence!
  9. Keep your shortcomings in perspective. Know that you are still a work in process. – You think God is going to punish you for things you done three years ago? God is not like that. God is a forgiving God.
    1. Focus on your great source of confidence – which is God. (NKJV) Matthew 25:24-30 (read) 24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’

26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.

29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ – Many of us are guilty of sitting on our gifts. How would you feel if your Pastor got up one Sunday morning and said he didn’t feel like preaching and then passed the mic to one of his associates? What if he did this for six weeks straight? You might understand at first, but eventually you would feel a certain way about this. It isn’t because you are hung up on the Pastor, it would be because you would feel that you have been deprived of his gift. After all, you probably joined that church, because of the gift that is flowing through that Pastor. Keeping this in mind, you must know that Pastors feel the same way about its members. When you just attend church and leave and never share your gift, then you are depriving the ministry of your gift. There is something that you are supposed to deposit in the house to bless the Body of Christ.

 

 (NKJV) Ephesians 4:16 says 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.- Every part of the body has a responsibility to do its share. This means if one person has a gift such as an arm and another had a gift such as a hand, then they have to learn to function together. Say another person has a gift such as a mouth. If the body was to go and eat, we are all depending on the mouth gift to work. If the mouth refuses to open and chew, we can’t eat. Aside from that, if we go to eat and the hand and the arm are at odds with each other, then we can’t eat still. We would depend on them to put the food into the mouth. If they are not getting along, it’s not just a spat, its one part of the body hindering the whole body. Same scenario as stumping your little toe. Everything has to be in sink. It is like the left leg and right leg being at odds with each other. If the left leg wants to leave and the right leg don’t won’t to move, then the body can’t move. When gifts don’t want to flow, you put a strain on the whole body. If you get upset at someone in your house and everyone is paying ¼ of the bills, then we are in trouble at rent time. If 3 have to pay for what was designed for 4 to pay, it puts a strain on the remaining 3. It’s not how many you can count, it’s how many you can count on!

Maximizing your gifts

 (NKJV) 1 Peter 4:10 10 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God., (NKJV) 1 Corinthians 12:13-14 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink intoq one Spirit.14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.- God gives you have capacity to handle what he has called you to do.

How do we maximize our gifts?

  1. Got to be faithful in little. Small beginnings lead to bigger things. God wants to know he can trust you with little before giving you a lot.
  2. Be diligent in your gifts. (NKJV) Proverbs 22:29 29 Do you see a man who excels in his work?
    He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men. – You can’t go through seasons of vacillating.
  3. Overcome your failures. You got to pull yourself together and realize that you are a champions. Know that you going to mess up sometimes, but this doesn’t make you a failure.
  4. Avoid procrastination. (NKJV) Proverbs 13:4 4 The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing;
    But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. – You have to overcome the spirit of procrastination. Do things when they are due. Ex- If you put of answering email, you will have a pile that you can’t answer in a very short time. Do it now!
  5. Seek encouraging surroundings. Surround yourself with people that are encouraging. (NKJV) Proverbs 23:7 7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, But his heart is not with you. – Some people make you want to start drinking, when you’re not a person that drinks. They just simply drain you. Get negativity out of your life!  Say this to yourself, “I am the average of the 5 people I spend the most time with.”
  6. The outcome of your gift must glorify God first. Everyone wants fame and popularity. This is why reality TV has gotten so popular.
  7. Know it is about the grace of God; it is the grace of God that allows us to do what we do. When you walk in purpose, there is a certain grace about it. Somebody will see you take on a crisis and say “Boy you’re a good one”. Ex- Every time you go to pick up your child from the daycare center and see all of the workers working with all those kids, you ought to think it is amazing that they can do this. Most people can’t handle their one kid and these people are handling 20, 30, or 40. This is why God puts into you what you need, in order for you to do what he has called you to do.

 

Ask God to give you the grace to do what you do…

 

 

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