Rock of Recovery: Recent Episodes
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Emotional maturity lessons for those with substance use disorder and their families as they work towards the road of recovery.
Romans 16 Paul is wrapping up with final instructions and salutations. He instructs us to receive and assists the Saints, and to cheerfully greet other believers. Paul lets them know that Satan is a defeated foe and that the mystery of the gospel is Jesus Christ!
God is patience and comfort. As we serve the Lord, we will deny ourselves on behalf of others. God is hope. Hope gives us the capability to hold our joy and peace through believing. Confidence comes from the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit gives us boldness. We each have a God given purpose.
We are the Lord's. God is God of the living and the dead. We will all give account of ourselves. Don't judge others. Don't be a stumbling block for others. The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the kingdom. It is by faith that I heal self-condemnation. Whatever I do, must be done in faith. Whatever is not of faith is sin. Finally, we will also identify 12 different kinds of consciences.
Pray for those in authority. In this lesson, we will discover how we bring damnation upon ourselves. We are God's ministers for good. Owe nothing but love. Put on Christ and make no provision for the flesh. We belong to the Lord. Learn to bless yourself and yours with Scripture. Now may you grow to love the Scriptures.
Angie's journey with deadly cancer. The journey of brokenness leads to peace and joy. Let no temporal circumstance steal that peace. When you are helpless to fix, manage or control the thing, give to Jesus and just praise and worship Him. Then you will find that the Lord will never leave you or forsake you!
Prison Ministry 16 Joshua Bohn with Grant Curl and how to stay sober and be part of a community.
Prison Ministry 15 Joshua Bohn and Tosha Linville Teach you the purpose of Proverbs and how to learn to be wise.
Grace is a work of God. Find out why God would give the Spirit of Stupor. When we are abiding in Christ, we are holy because He is holy. This is because we are grafted in the vine and the root is holy.
Jesus is righteousness. Salvation is in Jesus. Faith comes by hearing. So, then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17 So when we position ourselves in the Word of God daily little by little we will grow and mature and learn to hear His voice.
In Christ, our conscience will bear witness with the Holy Spirit. The children of the promise are believers who have allowed their hearts to be circumcised. God used Jacob with his flaws and can use us with our flaws also. God is merciful. Receiving God's mercy activates grace. Receiving grace is an activation of humility.
Spiritually minded is evidence of peace. Suffering, if embraced, will bring you glory. Walking in the Spirit necessitates humility either by choice or circumstance. We are saved in HOPE! If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31
Welcome back Joshua Bohn and his lovely girl Tosha! He won't bring you to what, He won't bring you through. A talk from the heart. Prison Ministry.
The Law is death; the Spirit is Life. When we come to Christ by faith our Spirit comes alive, and we can die or release the carnal life to Him for regeneration and sanctification. Sin deceives us and puts to death my authentic self and then we get stuck in the flesh with toxic emotions. Jesus is our rescuer and the deliverer!
No longer a slave! When I am walking in freedom, I will recognize the inferior and learn to process and release it quickly. If I am a divided spirit and soul, it is because I am giving my power away to the inferior things in my life to rule over me. When I die to my self-will, then the Father can give me a better plan. This is the crucified life. In surrender, there is freedom.
Justification through faith gives us peace with God. Faith is access to God. Faith gives us the ability to stand. Faith gives us the ability to rejoice in hope regardless of circumstances. Faith glorifies God even in tribulation. If we respond to tribulation correctly, we will develop perseverance, character and hope. Faith gives us the ability to feel the love of God. Faith gives me the ability to hold the presence of the Holy Spirit.
We are justified by faith. Works do not justify us. But if we are saved, we will have good works. Iniquities are sins we refuse to confess and renounce. Sometimes we are powerless, but we can continue to repent and develop a hatred for sin. This confession will soon empower us to be set free. It's all about faith! Faith is our righteousness in God's eyes.
We can teach others and still not possess the power to live it out. Knowing what to do and doing it are two different things. My idolatry can be hidden even without my own awareness. It takes a deep understanding of my carnal nature to know myself. It takes an abiding relationship to the vine, Jesus Christ, to develop strong faith.
If you judge them, you cannot love them. "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things." Romans 2:1 If I catch myself judging another, I need to look for this same sin/character flaw in my own life.
This is a 60 day verse by verse question and answer study of the book of Romans. We will learn to walk out our faith. The Holy Spirit will give us grace and peace so we may obey the Word of God. The ones reading and studying the letter of Romans are the called. Spiritual gifts are to make us strong! "I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong."--Romans 1:11
"It is the Lord!" John 21:7 The guys are fishing and they fished all night and caught nothing. Jesus called to them and commands them to cast their net on the other side of the boat. They caught a multitude of fish. And instantly Peter recognizes Jesus and swims to the shore. Do you recognize your Savior?
Prison ministry with Josh and Tosh! We love you guys are are proud of the work you do! The topic is dealing with guilt and shame when you are in prison or when you come out.
John Chapter 20 Mary Magdalene teaches us how to arise early and honor Jesus. She shows us how Christ's love is to be met by our love. Then our ears will be open to recognize His voice and hear Him call our name. Genuine love for Christ doesn't rest until we find His presence. A lifestyle of walking in love is our sacrificial offering of ourselves to God and others.
John Chapter 19 There is no fault in Jesus He is the sinless lamb to redeem mankind. We look at tactics of humiliation and abuse towards Jesus and the effects that even our words have on others. Jesus teaches us how to navigate false accusations, gossip, slander, oppression, people-pleasers, perversion of truth, speaking death and condemnation. Recognition of when we lose our peace and the ability to retrieve it is vital to living the victorious life.
John Chapter 18 Even in betrayal, Jesus says, "I am He." Betrayal does not cling to Jesus. What would it look like if you could navigate betrayal? Jesus protected His own. "I have told you that I am He....let these go their way," Peter lies for self-preservation. The fear of man will always deny Christ and name calling is abuse.
It's a finished work. Jesus prays for us. He prays for us to be one with Him and the Father. Faith prays. Prayer ushers in the glory of God through faith. Eternal Life is that I may know the one true God through Jesus His Son.
Offense is stumbling. The Lord tells us to be of good cheer because He has overcome the world and we need not be offended. The Lord sends us the Holy Spirit as our Comforter. The Holy Spirit guides and helps me correct myself. It also empowers, teaches, and reminds me of the words of Jesus. Pray that your spiritual ears will be open to hear and receive the Words of Life through the Holy Spirit. Now receive a blessing to know Jesus as peace.
Josh and Tosh sharing how they developed disciplines in their lives and those disciplines set them up to be role models for their families and others.
Abide in Me, and I in you.... John 15:4 This is spiritual maturity. As the Lord prunes us we will be free from impurities. As we abide in oneness with the Father through Jesus, we will bear fruit that glorifies the Father. The command is to continue in my love and then our joy will be full.
Josh and Tosha talking about humility, discipline, networking and spirituality. This is strong encouragement for every struggling believer. It is geared towards prisoners and those caught in any addiction that need the hope of recovery and a new life.
Jesus is Life. He is the way, truth and the life and doesn't want our hearts to be troubled. When our belief matures, we can do greater works. The Helper is the Holy Spirit. We are no longer orphans but receive the Holy Spirit, who is our comforter, guide, spirit of truth, and will teach us and remind us of all things. Jesus is peace. It is His peace that He gives to me. His command is: "Don't let your heart be troubled."
A divided heart will lead to betrayal like Judas. Jesus is our example of a servant leader. The beloved (like John, the disciple) can ask to know secrets. The commandment is to love one another. Jesus is love.
Worship is a sweet fragrance to God. Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, anointed Jesus's feet with costly oil. The children sing and worship at the triumphal entry and say "Hosanna!" which means God save or God help. When we die to our fleshly, selfish nature and live for Christ, we experience resurrection life within us.
There is no stumbling with the light of Jesus. Lazarus was sick and Jesus delayed coming for several days. Then Jesus came to declare he was the "resurrection" and he called Lazarus from the tomb even though he had been dead for four days. The resurrection was so "you may believe" and to "glorify the father."
Jesus is the good shepherd and his sheep will hear his voice. Jesus is the door for the sheep. The true sheep will not hear thieves and robbers. Jesus listens to the father's commands. Jesus knows the father loves him. Unbelief causes deafness. Those that do not belong to Jesus cannot hear him.
Often we rehearse death, darkness and curses over ourself. It is vital to speak life to ourself and others. Accepting Christ is life. It is life eternal and life everlasting. This embracing life rejects the words of death that someone else has spoken over us. It is in speaking life and establishing good thinking skills that we will be free to enjoy our days.
Jesus is the light of the world. Truth will always cause division. Fear of people causes us to not stand up for what we know. Jesus can heal the eyes of the physically and spiritually blind. True believers respond with worship.
Belief leads the hearing and hearing leads to understanding. We cannot understand without first believing. Jesus is our light. If we abide in the Word, then we are his disciples. The Word is living and gives life. Truth always exposes lies and sets us free. We must pray for the lies to be exposed.
Josh and Tony talk about Drinking Scriptures from the Bible. We love you guys! Keep up the recovery and sharing the light!
Lesson 15 on Proverbs 26:14 teaches us to identify the inner sloth and challenges us to teach our children to develop self-discipline for success. Lesson 16 helps us learn the principle of justification to teach our little ones that "no one can snatch us out of my Father's hand." John 10:29 Lesson 17 The Lord does not tolerate name calling. Matthew 5:22
John 7 The Jews seek to kill Jesus. When we intentionally obey, then, we will know the will of God. We are taught by Jesus to not judge according to appearances. Teachers who have religion but do not know God will lack understanding. Jesus gives living water to satisfy our souls and the law can never save.
The themes in John 6 teach us that Jesus is there in our time of need. Jesus walks on the storms of life. Miracles are to lead us to believe. Jesus is the bread of life. Murmuring is unbelief. Truth and faith abide together. When I indulge unbelief, I end with offenses. John 6 gives us powerful life lessons.
Jesus warns the healed man to go and sin no more lest something worse come upon him. Jesus can make the sick whole. Belief is passing from death into life. Jesus does what he sees the father do. Fullness in Christ is oneness with the father. Abiding in the Word requires belief. Coming to Jesus and believing in him brings life.
The Book of John Question/Answer discipleship Bible Study. Enjoy getting to know Jesus and his journey with his disciples.
The Book of John Question/Answer discipleship Bible Study. Enjoy getting to know Jesus and his journey with his disciples.
When we have embraced the Spirit of Adoption we can cry "Abba, Father." Then our hearts can be guided with the "peace" of God and we will learn to abide or dwell in the presence of God continually. The Holy Spirit is our teacher and guide. We can learn to align ourselves in oneness with Him.
There is a baptism of the Holy Spirit. He, the Holy Spirit, is our comforter and helps us mature and heal. This lesson outlines Chapter 14 of the book of John and teaches us who the Holy Spirit is meant to be in our lives. We will learn the promises of belief and the instructions to make room for the Holy Spirit to guide our lives. With the baptism of the Holy Spirit you can have confidence in any circumstance.
There needs to be an understanding of who I am in Christ. This lesson will outline God's work and my cooperative work in becoming one with Christ. We will learn to recognize the flesh and how it distracts you off into self-absorption and a place of feeling like an orphan without a Heavenly Father. This behavior makes us very small, isolated and lonely inside. Know who you are and your promised destiny!
Understanding our own immortality leads us to freedom and our divine destiny. Our flesh cannot redeem our flesh. We must surrender to our Heavenly Father. A sanctified holy self with exhibit strength, courage and strong personal boundaries.
Lust and anger are sibling emotions. This is exhibited by the story of Samson. Lust is a self-absorption that destroys healthy relationships. We also look at Proverbs 7 and evaluate a seductress/seducer's behaviors. We will look at the Lure of a Simpleton, consequences of immorality and God's sexual sobriety instructions.
Jesus, Friend of Sinners! Jesus loves the broken. You aren't ever too broken to be accepted by the Lord. If we can nurture a friendship with Jesus, our trauma wounds will resolve. A relationship with the Savior can bring us to a place of self-love and inner fulfillment. Mary Magdalene had 7 demons and yet she was the first one to see the risen Savior. The prostitute washing his feet was forgiven much, therefore, she loved much. The woman at the well was the first one whom Jesus revealed that he was the Messiah. There were four questionable women in the bloodline of Jesus: Tamar, Rahab, the harlot, Ruth the Moabite, and Bathsheba. The Lord never despises the broken and contrite heart. Even the thief on the cross was accepted into the kingdom. Embrace your brokenness and allow the Lord to redeem you. God loves the broken!
Sexual Sobriety is intentional. Casual sex clouds your judgment and attracts toxic relationships. The fear of the Lord is key to recovery. Agreeing with the Word of God is my job. Rationalizing and excusing is dangerous. If God’s Word is true, then it is not debatable. If I am hyper-sexualized, I have emotional wounds and lots of trust issues. We will look at our rationalizations and excuse making, then at the biblical instructions set for our protection. Next, will will work through developing a desire for purity and finding the gift of holiness through repentance. Finally, we discuss a sexual sobriety recovery plan.
A lack of identity and self-worth creates internal chaos which will be acted out externally in relationships. Those experiencing a lack of stability in relationships, particularly in childhood with their parents, will have developed a "fake self" to appease others and will need to work on understanding their own selves and work on building their own identity.
There is a "Building your Own Identity" questionnaire and an identifying your feelings of "unworthiness" and understanding the work that needs to be done to cure your internal self-worth and confidence.
In marriage, it takes two whole healthy people to make one lasting happy marriage. Healthy individuals with be able to securely attach. They will respect each other's boundaries. Kindness and gentleness will be their normal communication skills. There will be a mutual affection and compatibility and disagreements will be dissolved quickly. There is a Mr. or Mrs. Possible Evaluation and an evaluation to know when marriage is right for you. Then there is a relationship evaluation and a motive evaluation. We will work on discovering how broken we really are and how much work we need to do to be emotionally fit enough to give ourselves to another.
Stay or Go. If I agree with lies, I empower the liar. Strong emotions are addictive and develop unhealthy thinking patterns. Toxic thinking gets stuck on a loop in the brain and floods the mind with noise and the body with anxiety and stress. We will look at sick vs healthy love and how strong our chronic grieving cycle is. We will evaluate our marriage and significant relationships and decide intentionally to choose how much of ourselves can safely be present in these relationships.
Complex Post traumatic stress is evident in recovery. This type of trauma develops from continual ongoing repetitive trauma from childhood, chronic illness or domestic violence. Healing toxic thinking and relationship patterns makes space to develop healthy relationship skills. We end up accepting breadcrumbs in relationships and gaslighting and betraying ourselves. This lesson looks at passive vs aggressive relationship sabotage and healing through open communication skills.
Infidelity is reckless and will contaminant your life. Immature conscience, lack of commitment, unhealed betrayal wounds... without healing and development of your own identity you will develop a fake self. Toxic, unhealthy relationships have risk factors for an affair that need to be addressed. This lesson will include a good discussion on fear bonds vs trust bonds. To heal you must learn to love.
Sexual Trauma and Behavior Responses. Healthy love lets us come and go and rejoices in our individuality. There is a self-evaluation of identifying your sexual trauma. Sexual trauma develops skewed thinking and a person will develop learned patterns of survival. We look at the behaviors of a person consumed with devouring another with the inability to securely attach. Other evaluations will include a Fantasy Relationship, and emotionally unavailability,
I cannot love another until I can love myself. A groomer is driven by self-absorption. They are cool and calculated and set traps for another. There is an evaluation to help identify the behaviors of a potential groomer. A list of what a groomer will not do will be discussed and what makes a person easy prey.
True love is never dominance, control or manipulation. Relationship addictions are characterized by confusion and anxiety. A player may have many cyclical relationship addiction patterns but be totally unaware of their behavioral toxicity. They are insecure and always look to connect to someone to make them feel secure and safe. Then their dysfunctional behaviors emerge to control the relationship. But the insecurity is inside of them. So, no matter how secure the relationship is they will always feel insecure and likely sabotage the relationship to repeat new relationships with the same addictive patterns.
A wounded inner core develops fantasy thinking to escape reality and ends in disgrace. Wounded ones are divided and accept partial plate and compromise because they are broken. There is a plan to stop obsessive thinking. Sexual obsessing is an un-sanctified imagination.
Self-absorption misses true love and drops into lust. Lustful thinking patterns dominate unintentional thinking patterns just like any other addiction. These thought patterns must be intentionally interrupted and forced out of the mind. There is a recovery guide to develop pure thinking skills. Also, lust is usually coming from an empty or wounded space that needs healed. Triggers to dysfunctional thinking patterns will be discussed. There is also a true love evaluation and the difference between a trust bond vs. a fear bond.
Painful relationships need distance to bring peace and perspective. This lesson outlines six levels of distance in relationships. There is an evaluation scale to determine what level of distance each of your significant relationships may need. When you are free from a toxic relationship, stand steadfast and do not be entangled again with them. Toxic relationships make us captive in the bondage of confusion. Galatians 5:1 gives us permission to create distance in relationships.
Addictive relationships never bring health or healing. You can only control yourself. Attempting to control another will drive you crazy. If you stay in an addictive relationship, you will not like who you become. This chapter outlines inner healing work that needs done to escape relationship addictions and/or domestic violence. We will learn to recognize maturity and work on our own emotional/relational recovery program. Finally, we will learn to identify quantities of a healthy relationship.
Relationship addictions suck the life out of you. Recognizing a repeated cycle of toxic relationships is vital to stop the cycle. Some are addicted to love feelings but only for selfish gain. Love bombing is emotional manipulation. Relationship addictions are characterized by intense obsessing over another, a lack of identity, dominance and control. An easily observable cycle is intense passion, roller coaster, trauma/drama and chewed up and spit out with the aggressor playing the victim.
Obsession is magnetically strong but is not love. When you are love starved all responses are selfish. Trauma Bonds form from repetitive abuse which can form intense attraction to a new person that holds that same personality characteristic of your past abusers. We will be recognizing red flags and why we are vulnerable to toxic relationships. Next, we will explore rules of engagement for new relationships.
Perversion of truth is manipulation. Selfishness perverts relationships by establishing demands, usurping your authority, and taking control over another's life. This is a relational captivity plot with a goal of total bondage. You will be dominated until you have no identity. This lesson takes us through 2 Corinthians and Galatians and gives us instructions from the apostle Paul on how to handle those who want you zealous for them and not for God. Paul just wishes that these people (perverters of truth) would just cut themselves off.
Healthy relationships require emotional fitness. When I have broken down pillars in my life, I choose broken people. I may develop a rescuer mentality. I may attract insecure attachments or develop other types of problematic attachments. This lesson will include a codependency evaluation. Then we will establish personal boundaries with clear directions for how we allow people to treat us. Next, we will explore sick syndrome questionnaire where we look at ourselves and evaluate our part of the problem. We will introduce limerence which is a receptive romantic thought of another through fantasy thinking. This false thinking pattern will set us up for destructive insecure relationship.
If I am not content alone, I will never be content with another person. Relationship Addictions are toxic patterns that must be unlearned. This lesson will explore trauma bonding, loving bombing, pseudo-loyalty, and enmeshment. Disentangling from a toxic relationship will be messy and may take an act of congress. Your superpower will be placing firm boundaries and standing your ground. Self-evaluation tools will include a relationship addiction evaluation, stuck evaluation, and how to escape the relationship addiction cycle. We will also look at terms like euphoric recall and romanticizing the past that keeps us returning with false hopes. Another exercise will be to make a trouble list of toxic behaviors and setting a level from 1-10 on the confusion in the relationship.
People in toxic relationships give power away to gain power and control over another. When we do this, we lose our own identity. Toxic relationships are built on power and control: emotional dominance, obsessing, isolating and controlling, threatening and manipulating, blaming & denying, and even physical dominance.
Healthy relationships are intentional. It is when I need nothing from a relationship to identify and fulfill me that I can let go of trying to fix another person. This lesson describes a healthy relationship: accountability, open communication, respect of boundaries, respect for other's time and individuality, trust and support, shared power, individual responsibility and seeking to correct yourself and confronting and working through issues.
Freedom to be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer is a progressive journey to subdue the flesh until we receive grace. Now, sin shall not have dominion over you because we are not under the law but under grace. Romans 6:14 Get a vision for your infinite worth. Know your value in the father’s eyes. Let him restore, redeem, comfort, heal and make you whole again. Let the father assure you of your salvation in him.
There is a war for our soul. It is a daily process to continually align our thinking with God’s Word. If I am speaking the Word over my life and the promises of God to myself, it is a powerful force to tear down strongholds. Anything drawing me away from Christ and keeping me distracted and needs to be met in battle. The wrestling match is within me. I must intentionally reflect on my motives and behaviors and search out areas of my weakness to submit them to God to be redeemed.
It's an easier journey when our faith comes alive, and the Spirit of the living God lives and breathes in us. This happens as we release the things in our lives that hinder us as our sacrifice for the day. Then we renew our minds by rehearsing the promises of God to ourselves and aligning our thinking with life and truth. If we walk in the Law of Spirit and Life, we will overcome the Law of Sin and Death which keeps us oppressed. Every moment of everyday we can be rewarded with internal peace and a feeling of great safety. This is the Spirit filled life.
Fellowship with God was a daily and precious blessing in the garden. After the fall of man, there came a deep-seated aversion for God evidenced by Adam and Eve fleeing and hiding from his presence. This is characteristic of the unregenerate flesh and is a hidden defect. We must be willing to surrender our desires and take up our cross and follow the Lord, Jesus. If any man come after me, he must deny himself (flesh), and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever will save his life, will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me, will find it. Matthew 16:24-25
Training the Next Generation is powerful. Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 I find that I am still a child and need reminded and often re-trained by the Word of God. These mini-devotions are for the whole family. They are good conversation starters. The Sweetness of the Tongue. Love is Patient and Love is Kind. Love is... Love is Never... Complaining and Arguing. Happy Heart. Emotions are Blind Guides. Where are you Attached? Do My Emotions Rule? Rules on Comparison. Enjoy my friends!
Although the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Isaiah 30:20 This intense study looks at multiple verses on suffering, Isaiah 48:9-10 says that God's choices were to cut us off forever or give us affliction. If we soften our hearts and cry out to God, he will deliver us. The affliction will test us and show us what is in our hearts that needs dealt with and renounced. Affliction is to produce character and strength and prepare us for the journey ahead. Affliction is the mercy of God. These amazing verse by verse Word studies will build your foundation in Christ Jesus and give you solid ground beneath your feet.
An understanding spirit is an excellent spirit. Daniel 5:12;6:3. Daniel Chapter 6 Daniel in the Lions' Den. Character skills discussed Faith vs. Unbelief. There is a self-evaluation on feeble faith vs. healthy faith. The new ruler, King Darius, favored the elderly Daniel and put him above all his administrators. The other administrations were jealous and tricked the King into signing a decree that no one could pray to anyone but him for 30 days or they would be thrown into the Lions' Den. Daniel, of course, was caught praying and the other administrators accused him before the King. The King realized he had been deceived and was grieved. But the law couldn't be changed and Daniel had to be placed in the lions' den. The King loved Daniel and went to the den to call for him the next morning. "Daniel, was your God able to save you?" He found Daniel alive in the lion's den and punished the accusers by feeding them and their families to the lions.
Authority rises and falls by the hand of the Lord. Psalm 75:7 Daniel Chapter 5 King Belshazzar was having a party and they were drunk. He commanded his servants to go and obtain the vessels of gold and silver from storage. Then Belshazzar defiled God's holy vessels with worship to false gods of gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone. A finger appeared and wrote on the wall. Daniel prophesied the meaning of the message. Belshazzar's kingdom was divided and taken from him that night and he was killed. Darius, the Mede, took over the kingdom.
Training up the Next Generation #2 & #3 Training the difference between being Silly vs Foolish Any area of your family life that is irritating needs structure, discipline or training. Teasing This lesson teaches the rules on teasing. There is no greater armor than acceptance and love within the family to help a child build a healthy identity.
The Daniel Study Chapter 4 The Humbling of Nebuchadnezzar This is the fulfillment of Nebuchadnezzar's dream. He was driven to the field with the beast for 7 years because of his pride. The principle taught is that Pride takes a Man's Reason. The character skills taught are pride vs humility. The self-evaluation skills are to determine our symptoms of pride and our expressions of humility. Parent/Teacher training is a discussion of the fear of man and how to identify if I am a people pleaser. These behaviors will be a snare in my life.
The Daniel Study Chapter 3 Deliverance From the Fiery Furnace But even if God does not deliver us, we want you to know, O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. Daniel 3:18 The principle taught is that "Right living gives us confidence to follow God." The character skill is Boldness vs Fear. Boldness welcomes persecution for doing what is right. The righteous are as bold as lions. There is a self-evaluation questionnaire to learn to recognize our symptoms of fear. When we do, we can purpose to pray for and practice boldness. At the end of each chapter, there are challenge and discussion questions.
This is parenting tips on how to train for first time obedience. As an employee, this is a valuable skill to learn. As an employer, this is a valuable skill to teach.
The Daniel Study Chapter 2 Nebuchadnezzar's Dream of World Empires The character skill taught is obedience vs willfulness. The principle taught is Anger brings dominance, harshness and over corrects. There is a self-evaluation questionnaire to determine if we know how to Honor our Authority. As parents, if we do not honor our authority, our children will not understand the importance of honoring us. The teacher tips teach us when to disobey with God's protection.
Daniel's Daring Decision Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine. Daniel 1:8 This is a children's/family Bible Study on Daniel 1:1-21. Daniel and his three Hebrew friends are captive in Babylon and learn to make a respectful appeal. Because they honored God first, he gave them favor with their authority and made them ten times wiser than others. In this chapter, there is a self-evaluation questionnaire to help us learn if we are mature enough to "Stand Alone" like Daniel did. The character skill discussed is honor vs disrespect.
A close friend that is sincere and asking for correction and giving you gentle corrections from a heart of love is priceless. Don't be yoked together with unbelievers. Come out from among those who are careless with their walk with God and be separate from anything that would rob you of your life's goals. In this study, we look at more Scriptures that teach us about friendships. Pray for a good friend.
What corrupts good manners? What disqualifies us from being a friend of God? What qualified Abraham to be God's friend? What's the difference between unspiritual friends vs wise and understanding friends? Enjoy this outline and teach it to your children. Let them see what the Word of God says about friends.
In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in confidence you will find your strength. Isaiah 30:15 There is a developmental emotional maturity skill of resting. Learning to rest and be free from anxiety means I stop doing my own work. Hebrews 4:10 Let fear, stress or anxiety remind you to trust in the Lord and rest. Learning this lesson will change your life.
This is 14 steps to helping our children discipline their tongue. 1) Are those words going to bring life or death? 2)Lets examine the fruit of our lips. 3) Model to your children humble speech and take advice. 4) Confess often. 5) Break bad habits. 6) Law of our lips must be kindness. 7) No name calling. 8) No comparing. 9) No interrupting. 10) No back talking. 11) Cry quietly. 12) No tattling. 13) Rules on teasing. 14) Answer gently.
Turn from evil, do good, seek peace, and pursue peace. It is impossible to pursue peace if we don't pursue healthy speech. Learning to speak blessings when I want to render evil for evil or railing for railing is a maturity skill that will take practice.
Idle chatter leads to poverty. A lying tongue is a sign of hatred. The tongue can defile the whole body. Our speech, if not tamed by the Holy Spirit, can set the whole course of our lives on fire.
Combating Substance Abuse Bible Study. In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Proverbs 23:32 This study will explore the verses and warnings on the use of mind altering substances. Principle: Mind-altering substances are a compromise and makes you vulnerable.
Obedience is an act of obeying. Obedience heart and consents with contentment and conforms to another. Think voluntary action or under authority. Obedience gives us the power to overcome the world. 1 John 5:4 Rebellion brings us into judgment. Romans 13:2
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. John 10:27-28
Rebellion is an opposition or defiance/resistance to authority. This lesson works through Scripture to find different levels of rebellion: aggressive, common, dutiful, submissive and lethargic. The aggressive rebel is always aggressive. The other four levels of rebellion are passive/aggressive. This is a good lesson to find and correct my own rebellion.
Finding Reward is a study that helps you internalize the beauty of Scripture. The Law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous. Psalm 19:7-9
This study looks at the Romans Road to salvation and a few other key verses. We explore what is my responsibility, why I need a Savior, the promise of salvation and how to increase my faith. It is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8
Abide means remain, continue, abide or dwelling. Abiding in Christ is to continue in him as my source of strength. A branch cannot bear fruit without the life giving source of the vine. When I abide in Christ, I awake with a song in my heart of a Scripture on my tongue.
Purpose in your heart to stand alone! Let's learn to stand boldly and expect persecution for doing what is right.
Daniel 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself.... Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2
Money without love is worthless! Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21
So how do we escape a ravenous beast? Be of sober spirit, be on alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 The lion wants to destroy our testimony and set our lives on a course of destruction. This devotion outline 1 Peter 5:6-11 on how to escape.
For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7The Holy Spirit gives us a boldness and a power. This inherent power reproduces itself but needs a constant indwelling, inflowing of the Holy Spirit to sustain. May you stir up the flame within you and receive the gifts of God in your life.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5We must study to find the treasures in the Word of God. Today we will study many verses on the Word Trust.
We can't indulge anger or bitterness and reap love. We will reap what we sow.
Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Luke 6:38
Discouragement is the enemy's tool to keep us from enjoying life. Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called "Today", so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13.May you receive a joyful happy heart and your bones be fat. Proverbs 15:30 Keep growing my friends.
A heart of peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. Proverbs 14:30This short devotion helps us identify envy and exchange it for peace. May you examine all confusion and reject all strife. May you have a heart of peace to enjoy your days.
We need spiritual food to grow. Jeremiah 15:16 Your words were found, and I did eat them; and your word was unto me joy and rejoicing of my heart: for I am called by your name, O Lord God of hosts. May you hunger and thirst for righteousness and shake yourself out of a spirit of slumber. Let the Word of the Lord be a lamp to your feet and a light unto your path.
Sometimes our past haunts us and we feel unworthy of God's love. But Paul says, "Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14
Principle #12 Detachment means I can enjoy my day. Detachment is not abandonment, but a healthy love for me and others. I can make decisions without fear or emotional manipulation. This includes gradual separation and launching of adult children to independent living. If I coddle other adults, it is more likely they will have a life of suffering and co-dependency.
Principle #11 Detachment means emotionally separating myself from the problem. This is simple, but not easy. Immaturity soaks up the emotions around me and mirrors them back. As I mature emotionally, I can feel my own emotions and let others feel their own. I can change the things I can and release the things I cannot change and purpose to enjoy my day.
Does it sound like some cliche' when you hear people talk about Jesus? Have you prayed for a decade, and he hasn't answered your prayers? It need not be this way. Jesus is near. Philippians 4:5 Salvation is nigh. Psalm 85:9 The master is coming...
A faintheartedness can plague us all with feelings of fear and a general lack of courage. This makes us susceptible to being abused by others and codependent in relationships. Steadfast soundness is characterized by being devoted or loyal in your beliefs and not easily manipulated. Steadfast skills are not learned to hang onto toxicity but to hang onto your vibrant, healthy self.
There is a fainthearted self-evaluation discussed.
Detachment means to allow myself to learn from my mistakes. This means I will not brook, beat myself up or turn to destructive behaviors. It is an honest evaluation of my actions and their outcomes. Then, I can pursue a plan to make my future look different than my past.
This lesson explores brokenness as a death of my expectations and acceptance of the inability to change some people or circumstances. We will talk about boundaries and the difference between functional and severe addiction.
Detachment means to bear another person's crisis, but to allow him to carry his own personal load. A crisis is an accident, injury, severe illness, or natural disaster. A personal load is paying my own rent, utilities, car insurance, car payments, gas, and food. I am not talking about the fiscally responsible working poor, ill or sober homeless.
If I become a pushover for the irresponsible, I will reap the consequences. If I am over-responsible, it will allow others to be under-responsible. This lesson includes an entanglement gauge or reviews true and false recovery markers.
Be not overcome by evil but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21 In this lesson we will study how to rise above our circumstance through a strong prayer life. We will learn to sit, walk, stand and lie down above our problems.
This Detachment Quick Guide will quickly review all 12 detachment principles in one show. Review these 12 principles every night until you can safely detach from toxic thinking and relationships.
Detachment principle #8 Maturity sees a whirlwind of destruction coming and gets out of the way. We are going to explore ways to disentangle from codependent, enabling behaviors. This will happen when we can recognize people who control and manipulate us. I give you Scriptural permission to withdraw from the disorderly. They sow to the wind and will reap the whirlwind. Hosea 8:7We will look at rules for survival. How to identify a lie. How to develop a trust scale. What to do with our unmet needs. And identifying obsessive thinking traps. Finally, we will develop boundaries.
Fear of the future will have your stomach in knots. Extract the emotional DNA lesson from every situation in your life. Instead, calm your fears by crying out for the grace of God and seeing a growth potential to learn to trust God more and more.
Detachment means thinking differently. We will evaluate our self-talk and our false belief system. Then we will learn how to handle holiday get togethers. We will process and make sense of suffering and work on the power to tolerate suffering when we set boundaries with our enabling/rescuing behaviors. Have courage to make little decisions each day to detach from abusive situations and people and work towards healing from a chaotic past.
Detachment means forgiveness, not forgetfulness. Forgiveness can empower me to seek and search for ways to detach from my past and move forward with my life. There will be a discussion on how to forgive and what to do with wounds of bitterness. Forgiveness is separate from reconciliation. Reconciliation if pursued too quickly, may cause a repeat of old patterns of dominance and manipulation. Reconciliation needs to be cautious and careful or may allow repetitive abuse.
Do not stuff or divorce your emotions, they just turn to bitterness and come out some other way. This lesson outlines a structured 5-10 minute plan to process, feel and detach from your emotions. Emotions need to "come to pass" and not "come to stay."
In the lesson we will identify how to use our skills of discernment and analyze a series of questions to determine if we have fake friends. Then, we will identify if we are being fake and how we can tell and correct ourselves.
Detachment means minding my own business. Then I will have the energy to address my issues and be positioned with others who can mentor, encourage and hold me accountable. We will identify some of our dysfunctional behaviors, and learn confrontation skills, repeating patterns, healthier me evaluation, healthier speech evaluation, and reflective thinking questions. Detachment is not about ignoring my emotions. It is about taking responsibility for myself and balancing my empathy for others.
Detachment respects the boundaries of others to make their own choices and to have their own consequences. Allowing others the privilege to experience the elementary lessons of sowing and reaping is vital to developing good decision-making skills and strength to face the next challenge. My responsibility: 1) I can only control my decisions. 2) I cannot control the final outcomes of those decisions. 3) I am only responsible to change myself. 4) I cannot manage another person's life choices. Now, I must set boundaries and then detach from my emotions so I will be strong and unable to be emotionally manipulated.
Detachment is finding a healthy identity. My emotional maturity is not dependent on another person or their sobriety. Maturity self-regulates in chaos. This is vital to survival. Learning to cope with non-sense and detach from it is your emotional stability. This lesson explores higher and lower levels of love. There is an identity evaluation quetionnaire and evaluating whether or not you are a rescuer. Rescuers trust in themselves. However, mature love does not fear but learns to let go and trust even in death. Maturity knows Lord is good and his mercy endures forever.
Principle #2 Detachment brings peace. Detachment is not caring less; but, caring more for my emotional stability. If I make emotional stability my goal, I need to be aware of my instability or imbalance and develop a structured plan to rebalance myself. This lesson includes an Entitlement Evaluation.
Healthy detachment leads to healthy connectedness. Detachment is an emotional developmental maturity skill. Principle #1 Detachment in love without fear. Detachment is not cold, withdrawn or isolated, but a decision to do what is best for myself first. It is a healthy boundary of knowing where my responsibility begins and where it ends.
Courage to Stop the Enabling: Profiling Enablers. There is a prime enabler, primary co-enabler, sympathetic co-enabler, entangled co-enabler, detached co-enablers and unsuspecting co-enablers. Primary enablers are addicted to their loved ones with addiction issues. It is difficult for an enabler to see their own issues because they are so focused on rescuing their loved one with substance use disorder. Enablers need to be confronted and challenged to admit their dysfunctional behaviors.
An enabler is one who empowers another to persist in self-destructive behaviors that are characteristic in substance use disorder by providing excuses or by making it possible to avoid the consequences of such behaviors. An enabler must realize they are not dealing with their rational loved one, but with one driven by the insatiable demon of addiction. There are 5 stages of grieving denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. The road of acceptance leads to peace.
Rather as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses..." 2 Corinthians 6:4 We will learn how to develop the character skill of endurance through suffering. The principle in this lesson is: Activating faith makes me strong in any circumstance.
Therefore, my dear friends, stand firm (steadfast). Let nothing move you. 1 Corinthians 15:58 Steadfast is to be fixed, firm, steady and unlovable. We will evaluate evidence of faintheartedness and identify bondage in our lives. We will learn how to let God's Word build in us steadfast courage. The principle is "Relationships with mental torment are bondage."
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation. I can do (endure) everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:12-13 I can no longer think like a person in spiritual poverty. I must reprogram my thinking and speak to myself with the truth of God's Word. This lesson identifies our imbalances and helps us set goals to balance ourselves. There is another self evaluation scale to determine where the lies are that keep you stuck. Submitting myself to God and resisting the devil is a maturity skill.
Emotional maturity develops as we build faith in Christ. When my faith is weak my emotions are in control. I know this is happening because I can hear myself whining, nagging, complaining, and in general discontent feeding my flesh. This lesson teaches you how to go to higher ground, higher than your emotions.
So, my friend, if the Bible is empty and lifeless to you, persevere until it comes alive in your soul. For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints, and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
Emotional maturity owns complete responsibility to receive instructions and correction. He that has no rule over his own spirit (lacks self-control) is like a city that is broken down, and without walls. Proverbs 25:28
This lesson will look at different levels of foolishness: naive, stubbornness, mockers and scorners. This is an in-depth study of the warnings and instructions in Proverbs. There is a Defilement Questionnaire at the end of the study.
What is it that you know to do that you are not doing? Consider carefully what you hear: with that light (truth) you use, you shall have enough light, and will be given more light (truth). But for you that have light and refuse it, even the light you have will be taken from you. Mark 4:24-25
A child does not have the moral capacity to understand how to accept light and govern themselves through the truth of God's Word. An adult walking in "DARKNESS" has missed this stage. The goal is to retrain our thinking patterns and break the many lies that bind us in destructive behaviors.
Emotional maturity conquers oppressive thinking. If I agree with oppressive attitudes, it empowers them to become stronger. Then every thought I have will validate their need to be indulged. This lesson will explore the oppressive attitudes we agree with that needs to be renounced and we will loose a breakthrough with the good things we need to nurture and grow in our lives. This is an awareness of my emotional suffering and an intentional healing. We will explore who we are in Christ, how to trust God and to choose God first in our thought life. This practice will bring peace and a sound mind.
We need supernatural power to break poor habits.
Until I plow my soul and break up my fallow ground (character/behavioral) defects, I am not going to grow properly and produce a harvest of righteousness and peace with a heart full of quietness and assurance.
Waiting on the Lord is a skill to be cultivated with a quiet and trusting heart. There is a character skill of "waiting" that needs practiced with loved ones where we give them direction gently and wait until they are ready for more guidance.
Emotional maturity allows us to be transparent, confident, and unaffected by rejection. The Spirit of Bondage keeps us looking to man for approval. The Spirit of Adoption knows our security is in Christ and we can be unaffected by the rejection of others. Jesus didn't need acceptance, he was completely unaffected by rejection. He was rejected by his hometown, the pharisees, religious leaders, and even his own people. This lesson will compare and contrast the responses to rejection of the Old Testament King David and his son, Absalom. The principle is that "A need for acceptance makes me vulnerable to repetitive rejection wounds."
When we mourn greatly over our sins or over life's circumstances, does this lead us to repentance or self-destruction? If our sorrow leads to an internal surrender (repentance), this will become the Rock on which to build a strong life that even the gates of hell cannot prevail against.
This is a short devotion about finding connection. We need a healthy support system to pull us out of the ruts of negativity. In this lesson, we will explore connection and how we cope with problems.
...holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and have shipwrecked their faith. 1 Timothy 1:9 If you give up your rights to keep the peace, you may have an immature conscience. If you implode and are destructive you may have a seared conscience. This lesson will explore an immature conscience, the lies we believe that keep us immature, and the twelve different kinds of consciences described in the Bible.
Can you walk on top of your storms? When the disciples were about to die in a terrible storm at sea, Jesus came to them walking on the water and said, "It is I; be not afraid." Matthew 14:27 Could your storms be an opportunity for Jesus to save you? Could you obey the command and not be afraid during a storm, trial, tribulation, affliction, persecution or suffering.
This short devotion identifies five proverbs on contention with the root causes and instructions. The root cause of contention is pride. The cure is to take advice. A person full of love will repair any damage done in relationships quickly if possible.
Undisciplined thinking causes mental instability. Intentional thinking develops mental stability. When I learn to exchange my thoughts for God's thoughts, I have empowered myself to obey this command. "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Colossians 3:2 We will evaluate our undisciplined thinking, futile thinking and structure our thinking to bring us peace. May you understand who you are in Christ and the work of salvation being done in you.
Bitterness blocks the grace of God and causes depression. This lesson teaches how to tear down ungodly strongholds and build godly ones for emotional maturity to weather any storm. There is teaching on how to enlarge our heart to overcome un-forgiveness. We will identify toxic offenders and our responses and how to reprogram them. We will practice how to build righteous character and release old wounds.
What rules your internal world: Passivity or Strength. When we are passive, all kinds of noise will shove its way into our thinking. Passive thinking is anxious, emotionally disturbing, and imbalanced. Strong thinking is intentional. It does not stop all noisy negative thinking, but it gives us the skill to move the thinking outside of ourselves instead of internalizing it. It helps us engage our strong/mature side to rebalance ourselves within minutes. There is no reason to stay stuck in emotions for days, weeks, months, years or even decades.
We are made in three parts: spirit, soul and body. The soul is also in three parts: mind, will, and emotions. The spirit is justified when we are first born again. But the soul must be regenerated, and the body sanctified through Christ. Then we can glorify God, the Father, with our good works. Regeneration of your soul will place it under the dominion of the Holy Spirit and you can learn to rule and reign your internal world through the fruit of the Spirit.
Living in your spirit is your real self. It is peaceful and comfortable and moves and breathes from a higher dimension of love. You will be free to sing and enjoy life and connect with others. The soul is the moral and emotional nature of human beings. it has been described as the mind, will and emotions.
It is my responsibility to listen and hear wisdom. Be attentive and to discipline myself in the Word and grow in wisdom and understanding. I must believe and not be lazy. Then, the Holy Spirit can promote and honor me and give me a garland of grace and a crown of glory.
Oh Lord, enlighten our eyes and help us to know you more!
Prudence is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason. The prudent see danger and takes refuge and hides himself. The simple keep going and suffer for it. The simple believe anything and inherit folly. A fool shows his annoyance or anger, blurts out foolish words, exposes his folly, is deceitful and refuses discipline or authority. The prudent accepts correction and is crowned with knowledge.
Instruction is a direction, calling for compliance; order. Those who hate instructions are called stupid in Proverbs 12:1 The word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105 It is so important to learn to hear and receive instructions and to teach our children to follow instructions.
Knowledge is understanding truth through facts or through reasoning: Cognition. Wise men store up knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. 1 Corinthians 8:1 There must be a balance between knowledge and love or we will become prideful. Everything is rubbish compared to the knowledge of God. Philippians 3:8
Righteousness is acting in accord with divine and moral law; free from guilt or sin. Think of doing what is "right". Justified means God is making us worthy of salvation. The peaceable fruit of righteousness is found through discipline (chastisement). After chastisement, we can be partakers of His holiness. The blessings of righteousness is peace, quietness and confidence.
Truth is a very sobering study. We were born liars. It is only the Holy Spirit that helps us understand truth and walk in truth. Jesus is the way, the truth and life. The Spirit of Truth is the Comforter; the Holy Spirit.
Discernment is the act of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure. It is a keen intellectual vision. There are two paths discerning and simple. A discerning person will listen, pay attention, understand his spiritual side, judge and discern all things and be intentionally developing the mind of Christ. Without discernment the simple will be led astray and will lack morals, good judgment, be on the wrong path, be dull of hearing and need to be continually retaught. In this lesson, learn how to walk in discernment and obtain the blessings of this skill.
Understanding is a mental grasp or the power to comprehend. It is a knowing or intelligence. Turn your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding. Proverbs 2:2 Without understanding we will not know our to apply wisdom to our lives. Pray for an ears to hear and a heart to understand.
Proverbs 14:26 Those who fear the Lord has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge. This lesson will develop how the fear of the Lord can manifest in our life and the character skill that will be prominent with the fear of the Lord.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom. This lesson will outline how to fear the Lord, the promises of fearing the Lord, the warning of what not to fear and how to recognize those who do not fear the Lord. There is also an outline of my instructions and responsibilities to fear the Lord.
Wisdom is accumulated knowledge. It is the ability to discern inner qualities and relationships, insight, good sense, judgment, a wise attitude or course of action. The antonym is foolishness. In Proverbs the Bible personifies "wisdom". To personify something means to represent something as a person or to give it human qualities.
The Seven Pillars of Wisdom are based off the verse in Proverbs 9:1 Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out it's seven pillars. This lesson will help us find foundational pillars in build our lives on a firm foundation. It is exciting to watch children and others find a pillar and then we will proceed to study each pillar to learn more about it.
True freedom is freedom not to sin. Self-control is the power to say no to myself. It is the power to discipline my thoughts, speech and actions to glorify God . It is an inward strength, courage and moral restraint to master myself.
He that has no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls. Proverbs 25:28 Ruling my own spirit is maturity. Children must be intentionally trained to rule themselves. I must intentionally place boundaries in my life to keep myself upright.
We cannot please God without faith. A fretting and complaining is a sure signal that I am spiritually sick. Today's podcasts will explore spiritual sickness, faithlessness, and intentional development of strong faith. There are three commands: come, follow me and abide. We want to grow in the Word and think in principles until the presence of the Lord comes.
At the end, we will evaluate feeble faith vs. strong faith. Without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6
Meekness is freedom from arrogance or stubbornness. Pride is a partition between us and God. Humility requires a child-like faith and deep dependency upon God. Meekness is freedom from anxiety. It is trusting and a faithful walk with the Lord. Freedom from the hindrances of self-consciousness. It is walking with the Lord in gratefulness and not complaining with offenses. May the grumbling of entitlement disappear.
Practicing gentleness, goodness, and kindness is healing. Gentleness is the good fight of faith for spiritual maturity. Let patience be your expression of love. Gentleness, goodness and kindness are the opposite of harshness, bullying and abuse. Unless we nurture ourselves and those around us, we will not be able to reach our full potential. Strong character keeps us from being ineffective and unproductive.
Patience makes others feel loved. Patience is bearing pain or trials calmly and without complaint; manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain; not hasty or impetuous; steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity. A patient person is slow to anger, long-suffering, persevering, waiting, cheerful, and hopeful. Patience does not develop on its own; it is an intentional practice. We must intentionally put-on patience and take off impatience.
Walking in peace is my responsibility. The problem with maintaining peace is that we shift our focus onto people, possessions, or positions to do for us what only God can do. If we expect someone or something else to meet our inner needs this will leave us empty and anxious. Unity and a strong community results in peace. We will discuss six obstacles to finding peace and how to respond in difficult circumstances so you can maintain your peace.
Joy gives strength, health and happiness. We can be joyful and sorrowful at the same time. Joy is a condition of the Spirit and sorrow is a condition of the soul. In this lesson, we will discuss how to increase joy, things that diminish joy, tests that produce joy, reasons to rejoice and what are the steps to rejoicing in Psalm 105. Then, we can practice the development of mature thinking skills in times of trouble. Joy is not a suggestion. It is a command! We are to have joy in trials, tribulation, persecution, afflictions and distresses.
There is a time to love and a time to hate. We will learn 37 expressions of love and 37 expressions of what love is never. There are 4 lower levels of love and 6 levels of higher, mature love.
Lower levels: Self-love, false-love, enabling love, best effort love.
Higher levels: True love, tough love, perfect love, loving your higher power and your neighbor as yourself, love with great peace and everlasting love. An everlasting love never dies and transcends time, space and all eternity and is the definition of being a "beloved".
A happy heart is my responsibility to cultivate. A trained heart is a wise heart. This lesson will teach us to evaluate our heart condition. Do we have a tender heart or a heart of stone? I have hidden your Word in my heart that I might not sin against you.Psalm 119:11
A mature mind is quiet and peaceful. It takes maturity to develop right thinking. My mind will heal when I regulate my thoughts to come in line with true, honest, just, pure, lovely, thoughts of good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy.This lesson will teach us to develop the mind of Christ.
Learn to cry out for deliverance from fear with your whole heart. Pray the deliverance Scriptures in Psalms. Learn all the crying out verses and let the Lord still the storms of suffering fear. God can deliver from all oppressive attitudes. Do not be afraid of men. Develop a trust muscle. Suffering can be for 3 reasons: 1) Chastening to bring you back on the path. 2) Build character to become stronger. 3) To bring God glory.
Grieve the loss. Enough is enough. Now move forward. Leave those that are rebellious and stubborn, go and nurture the innocent and precious ones in your life. Work on your character: humble, gentle and peaceful. Learn to protect your heart and fight psychological warfare with prayer. Find Courage and learn how to let God fight your battles.
Choose not to serve fear! Learn to consider the birds and the flowers and not worry about things. Release your problems to the Lord, trust God and choose faith.
Exploring courage is empowering. Today, we will learn how not to be afraid of others and to be unmoveable and unshakeable. We will discuss the courage of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, Joshua and Nehemiah.
Today, we will learn how to turn our fears into trusting prayers and how to pray Scriptures.
Choose to trust by exercising your trust muscle. We must accept the unchangeable. It's important to not fight or manipulate circumstances. There is a need to develop a realistic view of God and to develop the faith of Job: "Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him."
Today, we will identify the source of our fears. Are they rational, irrational, exaggerated, induced by others, or paranoia. Also, we relate the need to forgiving others and myself to overcoming fear.
Mature thinking skills need solid ground based upon foundational principles, not on emotions or manipulation from others.
1) Today we will learn to think and speak in terms of recovery.
2) Regeneration and renewal leads to restoration.
3) Honorable living produces teachability.
4) Discipline your thinking to stop dwelling on things that are not happening.
5) Press into God's Word until it comes alive and active in your Spirit.
6) Our responsibility is to renew our minds, not to let emotions make us unstable and driven by the wind.
Let your maturity go above your emotions. There will be a Higher Ground Emotional Training at the end to give practical application to your life.
Developing decision-making skills empowers us to escape the mind control trap. Impulsive decisions rarely turn out well. Develop skills to make decisions, set decision-making priorities in relationships, make your own decisions, discuss more difficult decisions and how not to give your decision making power away.
Mind control is defined as causing changes to the mind or behavior of another through persuasion and influence. There are ethical and respectful influences that respect the individual's personality and rights. Then there are negative influences that strip the person of their right to independent thinking. Selfishness is one of the key components of a person exercising mind control over another. Whoever or whatever controls your thinking controls you.
Emotions are fickle and cannot be trusted. If my peace is gone, slow down and process what robbed your peace. Otherwise, you are on the way to an emotional thinking pattern and a mental prison. Spiritual growth and maturity is intentional. Learn to protect the gateways to your soul: eyes, ears, heart and mind.
Overthinking about a negative event or circumstance will be a trap for a mental prison. Today we will examine the negative thinking patterns and identify our carnal thinking.
Today, we will recognize our own Mental Prisons along with the games other people play to control and manipulate. We will identify our own self-inflicted prisons.
Strong leaders are honorable. This lesson uses the book of Daniel to contrast the difference between an arrogant king Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel.
Many of us have had ungodly leaders and do not trust enough to be honorable followers. This lesson discusses the responsibilities of a good follower that will soon be prepared to become an honorable leader.
Recognizing trauma and the things that trigger our unhealthy responses is vital to developing maturity. We will recognize, release & replace, refuse, retrain, reach, and reshape our future through character development and the Fruit of the Spirit. We will also learn how to identify our hidden anger signals, trace our moods, and build a strong fortress of defense.
Understanding our trauma wounds and how to identify our inner core responses and our severe trauma responses is vital to healing. Our subconscious holds our trauma in memory with automatic dysfunctional responses. This lesson will help us recognize and begin to consciously reprogram our trauma wounds and begin healing.
True Freedom is the power of self-determination to command your own internal world by intentionally directing all your speech and actions. This lesson discusses 7 areas of life to command. Govern and manage the smaller things in life and greater things will be easier to command.
Forgiveness releases me from mental bondage. Self-pity, resentment, bitterness, and hatred are prison bars. Forgiveness is the key. So, you say, some people don't deserve forgiveness. I agree, they don't. But you aren't doing it to set them free, but to set yourself free.
Explore how to forgive, what forgiveness is not, four main forgiveness steps and cautions in walking out your forgiveness in a healthy manner.
You can't rise higher than your emotions. Without sober emotions relapse is dangerously close. I find many in recovery for several years are still drunk with emotions. Drinking deeply of negative emotions ingrains us into a trauma cycle. This is a wrestling match. Move toxic thoughts out of your head or they will lead to toxic emotions that will hinder your recovery. Now go and enjoy your day!
What would your life look like if you had never experienced the wound(s) that drive your addiction? Use the emotional thinking skills in this lesson to tell your Mountain of Depression to move. Negativity manifest itself in our lives as anxiety or an uncontrollable behavior. Build boundaries around your weaker self. Learn to rest emotionally. Release any unresolvable problems. They will only rob you of today.
Wounds keep us bitter and emotionally immature. This lesson works us through the wounded heart which looks very similar to the emotional patterns of an addiction cycle. Unhealed emotional wounds will lead to severe emotional responses. This lesson begins digging into a wounded heart and how to start the recovery process. We will be looking at bitterness, self-pity, helplessness, depression and tormented thinking. This is from the Rock of Recovery Overcoming Torment Wounded Heart Lesson 8. Be sure and listen in the next lesson to the Recovery from a Wounded Heart.
Allowing an offense is bondage. This lesson explores 9 reasons to NOT take an offense. 1) Anger will never produce righteousness. 2) Two wrongs don't make a right. 3) It is developing character. 4) God has a plan we cannot see. 5) It is living in the past and not reaching for the future. 6) It will make us weary or faint. 7) We will lose our joy. 8) It is forgetting to trust God. 9) It is a lack of understanding that all things can work for good. Also, there is an emotional Yoke of Slavery Self-Assessment Checklist so you can identify your level of emotional bondage.
Great peace belong to those who learn to not give or take an offense. A blameless person is pleasant and does not take an offense or engage others with exaggerated emotions. Let us quickly recognize when we are offended so we don't develop a wound and end up in a trauma cycle with insecure attachments and emotional triggers. We will also explore reasons to not take an offense and understand who needs a boundary in our life.
Accepting an offense will become a wound. This will trap us, tempt us, and entice us into indulging bitterness. This will cause us deep suffering. An offense is shifting sand. It causes our hearts to become hard, calloused and prideful. We will compensate by wallowing in the deceitfulness of riches and the cares of the world. This feels like thorns poking us with exaggerated emotions. It will rob us of all our effort and choke out our fruitfulness. The answer is to forgive and focus intensely on the truth. Learn to walk as a peacemaker and hold the ground of forgiveness with mercy, courage, compassion, grace, etc.
What would it look like to never be offended? I can enjoy walking in love, joy, peace and the other fruit of the Spirit. This is an intentional daily choice and is my responsibility to pursue through self-discipline and self-control. This is opposite of my nature. I must refuse to be in a sinking boat of double mindedness and stop rolling over for the enemy to destroy my relationships through offenses. I must gear up and prepare for battle!
When we accept an offense, it begins to dismantle our armor. The word offended can be translated "to stumble". If we allow an offense to take root in our lives, we will develop spiritual sickness. This causes an imbalance in our spirit and is manifested by fretfulness, anxiety, fearfulness, restlessness and despair. Offenses need to be dealt with and released quickly. This is a maturity skill, it does not come naturally. This lesson and the next four will give us the skills to release offenses quickly.
Unwinding Tormented Thinking is a maturity skill. The word offended means stumbling. Freedom from mental torment is work. Train your mind in the mental gymnastics of great thinking. The lesson finishes with a thought test and a Mental Torment Evaluation Scale.
Principle: Indulging Exaggerated Emotions produces Chaos and Torment. The Tormented Mind Cycle includes being offended, fretting, anger, bitterness, revenge thinking, anxiety, depression and finally ending up in the Tormentor's Prison. There is an inward, subconscious, and outward expression of torment to be explored along with reasons why we may stay stuck in the Tormentor's Prison.
Peace hides behinds our problems. Learn to let peace guard your heart and mind by learning to surrender. Peace brings potential down into reality.
Anxiety is a cover-up and hides root emotions. Substance Use Disorder or even suicidal thinking is just an attempt to rebalance the inner soul from dysrhythmic emotions. Let's find the hidden emotion and process it!
Unless we can identify the difference between true and false recovery, it is impossible to know if we are beginning to recover. Recovery without change isn't recovery. True recovery is a turning away from destructive behaviors and then turning towards something valuable.
Double mindedness makes us unstable. Instead, find a trustworthy path and focus on the destination and not the distractions. Say "no" to yourself often, think higher thoughts based on truth and unravel confusion by finding your teachers.
There is a mentality that repeats itself over and over without resolution. This feels like a wet dishrag. We are soaking up all the spills around us good or bad. It is time to learn to discern what we will and will not allow in our minds. When we let the truth of God's Word shape right thinking, we are steel.
Emotional resting is intentional. It is the opposite of anxiety. Resting is a maturity skill. Let anxiety remind you to find a quiet place to trust.
Anxiety captures you in the bondage of suffering. Stop being your own enemy and build your identity as a warrior! Reign in your passive thinking.
Principle: You can take authority over your thoughts. We will identify the smaller parts of yourself that fall into a helpless/victim trap and develop a stronger part to nurture, guide and instruct all those little parts. Identifying our helpless behaviors and discipline our thinking is a Developmental Emotional Maturity Skill.
Rock of Recovery is a Christian addiction/enabling recovery series. This lesson teaches us how to turn our worries into prayer. We will learn to recognize obsessive, anxious, and trusting prayer and practice a meditative Scriptural prayer to find lasting peace.
Stop the roller coaster and let me off. A quick fix leads to another problem or a different crisis. Avoiding the hard work of recovery is usually only a temporary fix or temporary relief. Running or avoidance is impulsive and only stops anxiety for a moment. Lasting resolutions come from stepping out of dysfunctional, exaggerated and immature emotions and building lasting character changes through intentionally training your emotions and taking control of your life. Today we will recognize Addictive Thinking Traps and analyze what seeds we are sowing and what harvest we can expect to reap. We will end with an intentional character development plan.
Emotions are blind. Today we will learn how to recognize our anxiety. Anxiety places us in the sympathetic nervous system. This is our fight, flight or freeze response. If this part of our brain is turned on constantly, no wonder we are suffering and exhausted emotionally. Let us examine our emotional, mental, physical, relational symptoms of anxiety and our corresponding dysfunctional behaviors and a few things to do to avoid this trap.
Our internal voice can be noisy. Learning to recognize our internal voice and take dominion over what it is allowed to say is a place of safety. Our world isn't safe or kind. However, we can always be kind to ourself and to others. This does not mean we are lazy, passive, or an excuse maker. It is quite the opposite; we will develop intentional awareness of our thinking patterns that drive our anxiety. If we have anxiety and no internal voice, we probably have stomach issues and other chronic aches and pains. Non-thinkers will need a safe place and safe people to help trace the breadcrumbs back to the lies they believe that cause the intense feelings of anxiety. This does not mean we will never be anxious, it means we will observe our anxiety and develop the skills to move through it and enjoy our day. Follow along as we unravel emotion.