April 18, 2024

Your Faith

SeekingHimLogo

And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years,
And who had endured much suffering under [the hands of] many physicians and had spent all that she had, and was no better but instead grew worse.
She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment,
For she kept saying, If I only touch His garments, I shall be restored to health.
And immediately her flow of blood was dried up at the source, and [suddenly] she felt in her body that she was healed of her [distressing] ailment.
And Jesus, recognizing in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around immediately in the crowd and said, Who touched My clothes?
And the disciples kept saying to Him, You see the crowd pressing hard around You from all sides, and You ask, Who touched Me?
Still He kept looking around to see her who had done it.
But the woman, knowing what had been done for her, though alarmed and frightened and trembling, fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.
And He said to her, Daughter, your faith (your trust and confidence in Me, springing from faith in God) has restored you to health. Go in (into) peace and be continually healed and freed from your [distressing bodily] disease.

Mark 5:25 – 34 AMP

And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”
Luke 8:48 NASB

Recently, John 10:10 has come to my attention a lot!

The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have and enjoy life,
and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).
Amplified Bible version

I got to thinking…if Jesus came
to give us an abundant, overflowing life,
why aren’t we experiencing that kind of life?

I think Mark 5:34a (NLT) holds the key:

And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well.

Our faith must be exercised to have an abundant, overflowing life.  Faith is based on knowing God & studying His words.  Joyce Meyer says “God’s Word is like medicine for the spirit, soul, and body.”  We must apply God’s Word and put our faith into action.  That’s what this woman did.

Look at Mark 5:28 (AMP) –

For she kept saying, If I only touch His garments, I shall be restored to health.

This woman took action.  She reached out in faith—her faith was in Jesus. Why? Well, Old Testament Scripture states:

He sends forth His word and heals them
and rescues them from the pit and destruction.
Psalm 107:20 AMP

Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses)
and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment],
yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy]. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities;
the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him,
and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole.
Isaiah 53:4-5 AMP

For I will restore health to you, and I will heal your wounds, says the Lord.
Jeremiah 30:17a AMP

Jesus is Jehovah Rapha—The Lord Who Heals.  But we can’t just have faith in Him.  Our faith needs to be put into action.  Otherwise, it is like getting a headache and having pain reliever…but not taking it.  It doesn’t do you much good.  Neither does our faith if we don’t use it.  Our faith, when put into action, honors Christ.  In return, Christ puts His royal seal on our faith.  And the end result?  Healing and peace.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Father, thank You so much for being our Healer.  Help us put our faith into action so that we may live in the promise of an abundant, overflowing life.  May our faith always bring honor and glory to You.  In Your Holy Name – Amen, it is so!

Life’s Healing Choices – Week 1 – Admitting Need

“Each of our lives is tangled up with hurts that haunt our hearts, hang-ups that cause us pain, and habits that mess up our lives.” (Baker, page 1)

Ouch! What a sting those simple words can bring. And immediately I begin the defense – I’m only hurt because of what other people did to me. I don’t have hang-ups, that’s just the way I am. Habits? They’re coping skills necessary to deal with life & the people around me. We’ve all done it, allowing the behaviors and attitudes to continue.

But hope is here! January 2013 marks not only a new year, but a new journey in your life. It’s a time for change … to shed the habits, hurts & hang-ups that affect your relationships, your life, and your walk with Christ. Using the book “Life’s Healing Choices” by John Baker as our discussion tool, the GCH: Victorious Healing ministry will lead you on this journey to joyful change, freedom, and blessings only He can provide to us.

RECOVERY. What comes to your mind when you see or hear this word? Do you brush it off as something only addicts or alcoholics deal with? Or do you think only of illness, surgery or other physical ailments? The truth is very simple. We all have hurts in our life that require healing. Some of us choose to symptomatically treat our hurts with food, chemical substances, spending sprees, toxic relationships, and more. But true healing, not just masking of symptoms, is possible only through the power of Christ in our lives. RECOVERY.

There are eight basic principles we will uncover during our study together:

  • Realize I am not God.
  • Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me. Consciously choose to commit my life and will to Christ’s care & control.
  • Openly examine and confess my faults to myself, to God and to someone I trust.
  • Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life.
  • Evaluate all my relationships.
  • Reserve a daily time with God.
  • Yield myself to God to be used to bring His love & Good News to others.

What areas of your life do you have power (control) over? What areas of your life are spinning out of control? What coping skills do you use to get attention, or protect yourself? How do you handle pain & disappointment? What hinders our ability to admit our need for change, or help?

“I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul” (Invictus by Henley). What comes to mind when you read those words? For me, it’s a sad commentary on how many of us live our lives. So often we believe we can handle our lives on our own. We determine our futures and no one will keep us from doing what we want, dream, or desire. Our decisions will only affect us. No one can tell us what to do.  But this idea is what causes so much of our pain. Until we realize that we are not in control of our lives, and allow God to do what He intended for us, our pains, hurts, habits, and hang-ups will continue.

Are you ready to “let go, and let God”?

In “Studies in the Sermon on the Mount” by Oswald Chambers “There must be a dominant, personal, passionate devotion to Him, and only then are all other relationships right.”

God tells us “You can’t heal a wound by saying it’s not there” (Jeremiah 6:14 TLB). How many times do we try to ignore our hurts by saying we’re fine, or nothing’s wrong? How often do we try to tend to issues by our own power because we don’t want to burden others, or appear weak or “out of control?”Denial only hinders our growth more, freezing us in our pain, insecurities, and worry even more. Denial encourages us to keep secrets as we continue to pretend that our lives are going well. Denial brings shame, anxiety, and a false sense of protection from our pain.

The admission of our powerlessness is the first step on our journey. From here, we need to leave to stop denying our pain. There’s only one God, and you ain’t Him, so stop trying to control your life as if you are.

God promises so much more.

  • Light in our darkness (1 John 1:5-7).
  • Rescue from the darkness (Ps 107:13-14).
  • Healing from our pain (Jeremiah 30:17).

So, join us this week as we explore this principle deeper. Instead of packing for a journey, get ready to unpack all that baggage you’ve been carrying around! But I warn you, this journey won’t be an easy one. However, I promise that we have the best Guide with us because He promises to never leave us, nor forsake us. Ever!

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Reading Assignment for Week 1:

Chapter 1 of Life’s Healing Choices
Monday: Laurie will discuss Principle 1
Tuesday: Leslie will discuss The Cause of our Problems
Wednesday: Kim will discuss The Cure for our Problems
Thursday: Amy will discuss Make The Choice, Action Steps to make it real in your life
Friday: Laurie will bring it all back home with a recap of our week

Ps6_2-3

Restoration is possible. Will you move towards this for your life … today?

_________

Principle 1 Power Verses:
Jeremiah 6:14
Ecclesiastes 11:4
Job 30:27
Romans 7:15-17
Proverbs 14:12
Job 17:11
Psalm 6:6-7
2 Corinthians 1:9


If you would like to join this amazing online Bible study, click HERE to sign up. Once you are registered, we will email you further details.

If you would like to send Amy a personal message in regards to today’s blog, please email her at: Amy@girlfriendscoffeehour.com.