FEAR, What is good for......

Finally feeling better after a horrible health week. Ended up not going to the doctor. Things are getting better. You would think after struggling with my health for most of my life I would be getting use to it or at least handle it better. Some times I handle it great and than there is those days that I get so frustrated.

One of my biggest fears in life is that I just exist. That I don't make a big impact on peoples life. I have all ways liked being the center of attention. But it is really more than that. Right now in my life I can't do a whole lot. And I fear that I am just existing. I don't know if that make since, but I know I will never be the next Billy Graham or be a famous comedian. I have all ways liked reaching out to people and doing things for folks, but lately I do good to get our of bed.

Another fear of mine is being lonely. It gets lonely being home by yourself all the time. Some times those to fears class and I pray, O.K. God just take me home! The every day battle of my health gets so old sometimes.

Well, my next blog will have answers to these fears of mine. Hope this all makes since.

Health update

What a week I am having. I got out of the hospital two weeks ago and I am not feeling much better. So weak and tired. Don't feel like doing anything. Made a doctor appointment for tomorrow. Just to make sure I am o.k. please keep me in your prayers.

The Problem with Fear: Study 1

This is a bible study I wrote up for the book of Jonah on Fear and Self-Pity

 

 

The Problem with FEAR and SELF-PITY

 

Study #1 I am afraid to go! Jonah

 

Fear is something that most Christians struggle with. There are many fears in this world. In this study we are going to take a look at Jonah. Many of us have read this book and fear does not come to mind. But Jonah was afraid to do what God had asked him to do. He was so afraid that his fear made him run the other direction. Fear all so caused another emotion that we fall into, Self-Pity. How often do we do the wrong thing and then feal sorry for ourselves. It seems that fear is the start of a lot of negative emotions.

 

"When God sent him to warn the pagan city of Nineveh to turn from it's ways, Jonah bolted in the opposite direction. But God used a violent storm, a swimming lesson, and a Mediterranean cruise inside a huge fish to give Jonah a second Chance. Jonah then carried God's message to Nineveh, and thousands of lives were changed- through Jonah's attitude was still out of line. As you read this book, notice how God uses people like us for good in spite of our faults." Recovery Devotional Bible pg. 987

 

Read Jonah 1:1-3

1. Who was Jonah?

 

 

2. What do we know about the people of Nineveh?

 

 

3. What caused Jonah to run away from the Lord and go the opposite direction?

 

4. What things cause us to run away from the Lord?

 

Have you ever felt God leading you somewhere or leading you to reach out to someone and your response was no way God? Jonah knew that these people were bad folks, he might of been scared to go because he thought they would kill him. Or maybe he did not think they deserved God's grace. In any case, we see that his fear drove him to run the other direction.

 

 

Read Jonah 1:4-17

1. What was the consequences of Jonah's fear and disobedience?

 

 

2. Did his actions just effect Jonah, or did it all so effect others?

 

 

3. In your life, how has your fear effected you and others around you?

 

"Perhaps when Jonah told the sailors to throw him overboard, he was making a bold statement of his faith in himself: It's all my fault. I blew it. I'm no good. I might as well be dead." These words and feelings sound very familiar to our actions, but destructive to berate ourselves. Even in the midst of Jonah's self-pity, God saved his life. Similarly, God continues to care about us, even when we don't." Recovery Devotional Bible pg.989

 

 

"When the call of God came to him, Jonah could not see beyond his own selfish desire for God to punish the Assyrians. How could God want him to take a message of mercy to such people? Before Jonah could relay God’s message, he had to be broken. He had to learn something about the mercy of the Lord. Through his flight to Tarshish, his shipwreck, and his time in the great fish, Jonah was convinced in a powerful way that all salvation comes from the Lord (Jonah 2:9). And because of God’s supreme power, only God decides where to pour out His salvation and His mercy (4:11). - See more at: http://www.insight.org/resources/bible/jonah.html#sthash.ulRS7qfy.dpuf

 

Read Jonah 2

1. How would you sum up Jonah's prayer?

 

 

2. Did God listen to Jonah's prayer?

 

 

3. Was there a time in your life that you prayed a prayer of desperation and God listened?

 

God had to bring Jonah to a place that he was ready to cry out to Him. We see God's Grace and Mercy here towards Jonah. There has been times in my life that I have really messed up and have been in the pit, but God heard my cry and showed great Grace and Mercy towards me. None of us deserve God to rescue us in times when we have sinned, but our God is a great God and He rescues us even when we don't deserve it.

 

Read Jonah 3

1. When has God given you a second chance and you obeyed Him?

 

 

 

2. Was what God asked of Jonah an easy task?

 

 

3. What was the response of the King?

 

Again, we see God's Grace and Mercy. The people of Nineveh repented and God had compassion on them. God wants to do this today. He wants us to tell our friends and family about Him so they have the opportunity to repent and come to Him. Maybe today a Nineveh to you is the homeless man, or the drunk, or the drug addict, or the needy family, or God might be calling you to do something in Church you just don't want to do. For us even talking to our neighbors about Christ is scary business.

 

Read Jonah 4

 

"Why was Jonah so angry? Because God didn't do things Jonah's way. Jonah wanted God to show compassion only to the Hebrews, and to punish the people of Nineveh. But God had something better in mind: he wanted to extend his love to everyone, even Israel's enemies. While Jonah had every right to feel his feelings, he did not have the right to tell God which hoop to Jump through. How freeing it ca be for us to let go of our attempts to control God, and instead trust that His purposes are just and good." Recovery Devotional Bible pg.990

 

1. Why was Jonah so angry?

 

 

2. Have you ever been angry at God? How did that work out for you?

 

 

3. Why did Jonah want to die?

 

 

4. Has there been a time in your life that you had fear and that fear became self-pity?

 

 

5. Have you seen yourself in Jonah?

 

At the end of the book God tells Jonah that he was concerned about a vine and yet it seemed that he did not care about the lives of the people in Nineveh. Fear caused Jonah to run and fear devolved into self-pity. Once he obeyed things did not turn out the way he thought they should. How often does that happen in our lives. We see in this book that God's ways are not all ways our ways. Jonah is a good lesson for us. We need to be careful not to act in our fears. Fears ignite other emotions. A big one is self-pity. Other folks in the Bible struggled with this to. Take some time out of your day and ask God to help you to obey Him even when you are scared. Jonah does not end on a positive note. We don't know how he finally responded. But we can respond in a different way. Even if we have been like Jonah in the past, we can change out attitudes and move forward with God. We need to rejoice when anyone comes to the saving knowledge of Christ. Some times it would be easy to only want people like us coming to Him. But His Grace and Mercy is for all! We need to be willing to do what God asks of us even if it is not in our plans!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The night

Night time is the hardest time for me. Its the time I struggle most with being depressed and lonely. I am very tired tonight. And thoughts of giving up go in my head. Satan's lies come in my thoughts. I am thankful that I can lean on Jesus!

Kids

It's been a crazy month for me! Trying to be more like Jesus is not all ways the easiest thing to do. Knowing what the right thing to do it and sometimes knowing what the right thing to do is but not wanting to do it. The Christian life kind be a battle if I don't yield to the Lord's will. Fear is what I am struggling with these days. The fear of every thing. It is easy to fall into fear. But if I keep my eyes on Jesus it is easier not to fear. The next few days I am going to be writing about fear.

But before we start talking about fear. I got to see my kids last weekend and my mom! What a great time. We went to a hotel with a water park. It was great, great fun.