[dwashbur]

Keep up, dwashbur! We went from how formal prayer has to be to throwing in God's will for us and how that affects how we pray. It all makes sense.

Who? Wha? Huh? Where was I? Who was I? Keep up? What were were talking about? :confused::confused:

[Wondergirl]

Who? Wha? Huh? Where was I? Who was I? Keep up? What were were talking about? :confused::confused:

Communication. It all comes down to communication. (Clear your PM cache, dwashbur.)

[hauntinghelper]

Sit back and relax... it will all be OK...

[Hope12]

Hello Preston,
Allow me to relate an experience of someone related to me. This is a true account. Some years ago a Christian met this person who had been in a mental institution. He suffered for ten years from paranoid schizophrenia and his doctors told him that there was no hope of a cure for him. He was very unclean and unkempt in his personal appearance and was living outside the institution only because he was willing to take the required medication, which consisted of thirty-three pills each day.
This person was hard to deal with, yet the Christian minister saw he was sincere about learning about God and so he would sit and read the Bible with him. A Bible study of the scriptures was started where he learned about God's requirements and the wonderful hope of the blessings that will take place under Jesus Christ' rule. He soon learned that there would be no more sickness, no more suffering from paranoid Schizophrenia! Gradually this patient took an interest in his personal appearance. Then he quit smoking, and after eight months he was so improved in his condition that he was able to get along without any drugs. At the end of a year he was taken off the doctor's list, discharged as cured. He is still paranoiac Schizophrenic, but by means of his learning what blessings are in store for those who not only read the Bible but practice what they learn from the Bible. Gain a love of God's laws and even though it will not cure your sickness it teachs you how to cope with it.

I also know from my own experience that study of Bible and applying what it teaches has helped me in my sicknesses also. I have Spastic Cerebral Palsy, where my body shakes constantly. I have trouble eating and drinking because food and drink fall out of my hands because of the continuous muscle spasms. I also suffer from transverse myelitis, which put me in a wheel chair for seven years. I am no longer in the wheel chair but of course I still have Cerebral Palsy and this year I tore my meniscus which cartlige that separates the knee bones and is very painful.

I am telling you this because I want you to know I am very happy even though I suffer from health issues also. I used to hate God because I thought “If God loves me so much, why must I suffer from such sicknesses?” Then I learned that God didn't cause my sickness but the fact that we are all imperfect we will get sick. Then I learned the basic reason why men get sick and die is revealed in a remarkable promise God made to the ancient Israelites: “No resident will say: 'I am sick.' The people that are dwelling in the land will be those pardoned for their error.” (Isa. 33:24) It is here that sickness is connected with “error,” or sin. And freedom from sickness is related to the forgiveness of sin. That original sin Adam had caused by his disobedience to God made us lose our relationship with God. By Jesus death and by our obedience to God's laws brings us back into a personal relationship with God. Without faith in Jesus and love and obedience to God's law, we can not maintain any relationship with Gods.
.

It is well known that certain diseases can be inherited, like paranoid Schizophrenia.
Similarly, sin, imperfection and death are inherited. “Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.” (Rom. 5:12) The heritage Adam gave his children was an imperfect life with vulnerability to sickness and death. That is the basic reason why disease exists today.

Our obedience to God's requirements and our faith In Jesus and his sacrifice is what will help us to become free from sickness and death forever. My suggestion to you is:

Pray --- “Persevere in prayer.”—ROMANS 12:12.
Work in harmony with your prayer.
Read and study the Bible--(John 17:3) 3 This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.

Apply what you learn----(James 1:23-25) 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word, and not a doer, this one is like a man looking at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself, and off he goes and immediately forgets what sort of man he is. 25 But he who peers into the perfect law that belongs to freedom and who persists in [it], this [man], because he has become, not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, will be happy in his doing [it].

Share something positive each day as you learn:
(Hebrews 13:16) 16 Moreover, do not forget the doing of good and the sharing of things with others, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.


Most of all pray for God's Hoy Spirit especially when your sickness gets the best of you. God gives strength beyond what is normal. (2 Corinthians 4:7) 7 However, we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the power beyond what is normal may be God's and not that out of ourselves.

(Philippians 4:13) 13 For all things I have the strength by virtue of him who imparts power to me.

I hope this is of encouragement to you and also helpful. Hang in there and tell God you desire to be closer to him. He knows what is in your heart but like any good parent, it is nice to hear what a child really wants being expressed. Remember, doctors can help but God is all powerful and he created us and knows just what you need.

Peace,

Hope12

[dwashbur]

Sit back and relax...it will all be OK...

Buuuuuuuurp! Okay, much better. HH, I agree that reading the Bible is an essential part of being a Christian and deepening one's faith, but, especially in the OP's case, it needs a plan. Just diving in somewhere like Jonah or Leviticus will do more harm that good because it'd be impossibly boring. I would recommend starting with continuous prayer, just talking with God about anything and everything. I've been doing a lot of that the last couple of days myself for reasons I won't go into, and believe me, it helps!

[hauntinghelper]

Oh I agree. I didn't really think I came off that way... implying that anywhere in the bible is just fine to dive into. It seemed the OP does have a Christian foundation, so I made the assumption that might be common sense to him. My original purpose with the prayer/bible comment was because he wanted to strengthen his faith. Since prayer was being talked about, I just thought I would mention prayer WITH God's promises. I never recommend to anyone just randomly opening the bible, pointing their finger and start reading. Sorry if my comments were confusing.

[dwashbur]

Oh I agree. I didn't really think I came off that way...implying that anywhere in the bible is just fine to dive into. It seemed the OP does have a Christian foundation, so I made the assumption that might be common sense to him. My original purpose with the prayer/bible comment was because he wanted to strengthen his faith. Since prayer was being talked about, I just thought I would mention prayer WITH God's promises. I never recommend to anyone just randomly opening the bible, pointing their finger and start reading. Sorry if my comments were confusing.

May have been my fault. It's possible I read your comments through my own assumptions about the OP. Sounds like we agreed and didn't know it. I can think of worse scenarios!