Deborah

I'm specifically praying God will reveal to you the root of these issues, where trauma got a foothold. I've heard testimonies of people being delivered from all kinds of mental issues and God is no respector of persons. I know of one lady who was in a mental hospital for decades and she was miracously set free once her trauma was correctly addressed. Hang in there Jasmine! The body of Christ needs you!

Me, practicing what I'm preaching.

You're welcome! I can tell a similar story about my own son. At the home church two teenage boys there ignored my 10-year-old. David vowed he'd always be as nice as he could to younger people and I can say he's demonstrated that sensitivity for 12 years now. When he was working on his Eagle Scout project his 15 helpers were all younger than him and eager to help their hero. So see? Good fruit can come out of rejection. The enemy didn't win and let's not let him win in your current situation OK? On behalf of the body of Christ I ask your forgiveness for the way your church is treating you and your family and others in your church. I ask everyone who reads these experiences to be especially sensitive to the new people who cross your path, not only in church but out in the world too. It's amazing what something as simple as a smile can do.

Boy, I can relate!!!! I was in a church like that about five years and very little changed in that time as far as the church warming up to me and my family. I lived 45 miles away so it was hard getting involved with the church although I did help with praise and worship and my husband was on the board of trustees. In one year I lost two sisters one to a suicide (probably a murder), I had a cancer scare, I suffered such excruciating back pain I couldn't sit stand or walk much for the next three years, my dog died...well it was a really bad year and I had very little if any support from my church. I felt like an outsider. Eventually my family and I found a home church. I really think the unfriendly church experience was a test of our obedience and being able to empathize with those in similar situations.

So....how did the meet and greet interview go?

Somebody pmed me and told me this was a negative rating she didn't mean to give me. I told her to notify the moderators, yet I see this negative rating is still here. Moderators? Are you listening?

Recently I was listening to a dog trainer who was counseling a lady who had a Sheltie that always barked. The lady, who was a teacher of 30 7th graders, already had a Sheltie that was well behaved but when she brought the new dog into her life it turned her life upside down. The dog was a rescue dog AND SHE FELT SORRY FOR IT. So sorry she didn't exert any control over the dog and he was allowed to have his fits. She could control her 30 junior high students, but not this one little dog. The dog trainer explained the dog misunderstood her bleeding heart as weakness and the dog had taken over as the leader in the house. The dog had to have his authority questioned and become submissive to his owner for peace to reign in the house. The teacher was in her 30's I'd say, a nice attractive lady, but she had trouble with her boyfriends too because she always picked men who needed help and she ended up getting hurt. Listening to this trainer, I got some insight. I thought of a young man who lived with my family 3 months. We had felt sorry for him because his former employers had not paid him, kicked him out of his housing and sneaked into the area where he was sleeping and beat him up. I was actually away from home doing praise and worship at a church a few days when this young man and his dog and cat came to live with us. At first everything seemed to be fine, but I noticed he made more and more demands. He was already getting free food and rent; he wanted garage space too. I said no and WW3 started. Looking back at our conversation I realize now he was trying to get me to feel sorry for him. Instead, I told him I didn't really care about his past. I needed him to live in the present and be responsible and live up to agreements he made with us. If he could afford an $800 tattoo he could certainly afford to feed his dog and cat. Well, he didn't like this and went behind my back and tried to get my husband and son to side with him. Things went from bad to worse. He continued to push the boundaries. One night he borrowed a vehicle to go pick up his girlfriend from the train station and didn't come back until 5:30 in the morning. I told him he had to find another place to stay. He told me he'd be out the next day but he wasn't. I confronted him about that too. When he finally did move out, the cops caught up with him for slashing somebody's tires. So what happened? I've had other young men live with my family and I, but with them, we all knew our boundaries from the beginning. We drew up a contract they signed before they even moved in. This was different because I was not even in the picture in the beginning and my husband and son didn't set any boundaries. Then to top it all off, we felt sorry for the young man and he read this as weakness and tried to take advantage of it. It made things worse when he felt he wasn't fighting a united front he tried to use persuasion to get my family to side against me. The result was a broken relationship. This is unfortunate, but I do know I've learned some valuable lessons. As Christians we are supposed to have compassion on people. But you'll notice when Jesus had compassion on people, he healed them. He didn't allow them to control him, he didn't let them stay in their current state. He healed them. When we feel sorry for somebody we are actually very vulnerable. Con artists know this. It's time we as Christians learn this too. I've seen sooooo many people, good-hearted people with the best intentions, get taken advantage of because the enemy takes advantage of their tender hearts. We need to be wise of the enemy's tactics, not unaware of his schemes.

for you, your grandma and the rest of your family. I pray especially for perfect peace to rest on you all.We are ALL learning to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit and don't always do it perfectly--beating yourself up will only waste valuable strength. Just learn from this and move on.Recently I had to leave a loved one and I soooo didn't want to. God reminded me He never leaves or forsakes and showed me the angels who watched over the one who was close to my heart.

Daisy--I can relate! I experienced much of what you described. I still don't understand why I had to go through what I did but I can tell you three things I learned. First is trust the Lord. Second is realize this is a season. Your daughter will not be in school forever. The third is take one day at a time. You have sufficient grace for today, not for tomorrow and certainly not for next year. Fear is a nasty foul spirit that will try to rob you. God has good plans for your daughter and you and the rest of your family. I remember being so scared for my son, having multiple cry sessions, begging God to deliver my son from his learning disability. Now that my son is an adult I can see how his disability was really a blessing in disguise. It has given him an empathy and sensitivity so-called normal people do not have. Now that he's working his abilities shine and nobody cares his spelling is atrocious. I hope this helps:)

Thanks, Sis! I cried three days after Bear died. Then the Lord let me see Bear in heaven. He was sitting beside a young blond woman and she had her arm around Bear like how I used to put my arm around Bear. They were sitting on some green green grass beside a body of water. She said, "The rest of us will be here soon," and Bear smiled (only dog lovers might understand how a dog can smile but they can) and he looked really happy. I received enormous peace ever since. I'm pretty sure the woman is my daughter.

Oh and I was gonna say, my husband was having trouble sleeping and even a medical doctor recommended melatonin (you can get it at any health food store). It's helped my husband sleep a lot better even though he fights a lot of pain from his back and foot still.

Well, glory! I'm glad you're sleeping better! Food allergies are a big, big thing. I know I'm so tired when I eat wheat. If you do go on natural progesterone, be sure to look on the label (if its topical) and make sure there's no mineral oil in it because mineral oil will stop it from entering your body. Also, start out on a low, low dose--I've heard most people take way too much. I took my son to two neurologists--the last one cost $3,000 that I didn't have--and I can't say either were very helpful although they did offer me encouragement that what I was doing (vitmains, etc) was on the right track.

So any clues from these doctors?

Thanks, D and Mark.

Thank you! I miss Bear very much.

In June 2002, a chocolate lab puppy came into our lives. My son and the young man who was living with us at the time prayed we'd pick the right puppy out of the litter of 11. We took him home and named him "Bear" because he looked like a teddy bear. He loved our farm and loved our family. Bear had soft soft ears and brown eyes that always seemed to understand what his humans were saying. As a puppy, Bear loved chasing the grasshoppers that hopped around our hobby farm. Perhaps Bear saw the free-range chickens chasing and eating the grasshoppers and decided to follow suit. I had to take him to the vet once because of the tummy ache he got from eating grasshoppers; that ended that habit. I can still see my son and the three boys who were living with us at the time praying for Bear to soon be all better from his tummy ache and he was. Bear quickly learned how to sit, come, shake and lie down. He obeyed hand gestures and verbal commands. After only one or two accidents in the house he was potty trained. One day he saw me cleaning up after him in the yard and after that he'd run into the field next to our property to go to bathroom. He seldom barked and never trusted small children. I suspect the small children where he spent the first 8 weeks of his life were mean to him, I'm not sure, but Bear preferred to not be around small children when they came over. He had a way of sizing up adults too. I remember many times when he'd growl a little bit deep in his throat around certain people and time would prove Bear right in his assessment. One time he even urinated on a guy. We never saw that guy again. Bear attended every Boy Scout meeting we had on the farm, he attended every day of class in our homeschool. In fact when my son graduated from high school in 2010, Bear wore a graduation cap too and walked down the aisle with David. Bear didn't much enjoy his cap, but he wore it because he loved his humans. The 40 or so people who came to David's high school graduation from homeschool were amazed with Bear--it seemed like he really understood what it meant to graduate from high school and he was proud of himself. My husband worked long, long hours and then my son worked long, long hours too. Bear was my constant companion in a community that had by and large rejected me. When my husband left for work, Bear would cuddle me and keep me warm until I decided to get up. When I was outside gardening, taking care of the other animals or painting, Bear was always near. Sometimes the neighbor dog, Mia, would come over. She was a black lab and Bear was very much in love with her. She had a way of showing up on major holidays and Bear's birthday (and her humans said they didn't let her out). I'd say, "Mia is here," or "Bear, girlfriend dog!" and Bear would run to the window to look out for the love of his life. One Valentine's Day, I put a picture of Bear with a rose clutched between his teeth and a silly love note written to Mia in my neighbor's mailbox. My neighbor never commented on it; I suspect he thought it was silly. Bear really liked truck rides and van rides. He'd sit in the driver's seat when I left him in the vehicle and I got more than a few coments on my chauffeur. My nephew and I calculated once Bear knew 30 English words, but there was very little I'd say to him that I didn't think he understood. He was never truly happy until my son, husband and I were with him under one roof. So last year, we all went on a family vacation to Glacier National Park. I researched a lot ahead of time and found places to stay and eat that allowed dogs to come along. Bear smiled the whole trip. People would say, "Oh, what a beautiful dog!" Yes, he was beautiful. His brown fur glistened in the sun and he was always in good shape physically from all the walking he did with me. When he went pheasant hunting with the guys, Bear would find a pheasant and hold it to the ground until his humans came around. He hadn't been taught that, he just did it. One time he tangled with a porcupine and Bear sat very still as my husband took all the quills out of his nose. Bear never tangled with a porcupine again. So the years went by. I heard about our nieghbor dog, Mia, dying. I told Bear and he looked really sad but he seemed to already know instinctively she was dead. I noticed Bear was having a harder time getting in and out of vehicles. January 7,2013, I was sitting at the computer and Bear started pacing around. I knew something was wrong. The lights in the house began to dim. The guys in the house were all sleeping and Bear had just recovered from a mysterious infection the veterinarian couldn't explain. I opened the door to my basement; smoked rolled up the stairs. I woke up my family. What had happened was our fusebox had exploded and caught on fire. Ten minutes later, the insurance adjuster later said, and we would have lost our home and our lives too had we all been sleeping. We didn't have any power in our house that night so we relied on our wood stove for heat. Bear woke me up twice that night to tell me to put more wood in the stove. We all stayed warm that night thanks to Bear. Now here it is two weeks later and Bear is in heaven. I brought him into the vet this morning and she said he had in inoperable tumor and needed to be euthanized. All day yesterday Bear was giving each of his humans long loving gazes. He was saying goodbye. Today before his shot he put his chin on my knee and breathed out a long breath. His mission on earth was done. My dog, my Bear, was my very best friend.

Thank you for sharing such a touching story.

I would just add to what Cholette said--love them, pray for them, but also part of loving someone is not allowing him/her to control/manipulate you. If your friend is guilting you into doing things for her, call her on it or at least say no because things will only get worse if you don't.

Just this last Sunday I was praying and had a burden for Israel as I've never had before.

I'm just seeing this post now. May God continue to comfort you and your family especially in this holiday season of Thanksgiving and Christmas. May the spirits of guilt, shame, remorse and despair have NO foothold in your family! May the God of peace guard your hearts and minds as you trust in Him!

I think the running-to-the-doctors marathon is finally over!!!!! The podiatrist said he doesn't need to see my husband again unless there's problems, the pain doctor is on a 2-4 month checkup schedule so praise the Lord we are done until next year!!!!! I've been a caretaker of some sort or another my entire life so now I have to decide what I'm going to do with the rest of my life. My husband isn't back to work yet but is in vocational rehabilitation. So thanks again for all your prayers!--Deborah not wanting to add any sequels to this story.

Your account of that girl reminds me of the girl in Acts 16:16-18 who followed Paul and Silas around for many days saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation." This was a true statement but after many days it says Paul was "greatly annoyed" and rebuked the spirit that was on her and she was delivered. The. Scripture said hers was a spirit of divination and apparently she was pretty accurate in her "prophecy" because she made her masters a lot of money. Cholette. do you think something like this could be operating in the girl you mentioned or is she just really really immature?

I'm revisiting this post because I recently saw a lady preacher called a Jezebel on Facebook just because she was a LADY preacher. The person cited that scripture about how women are to remain silent in the church. Women who have anointing from God to preach teach and prophesy are NOT Jezebels just because they're female!!!!!!

I know a couple who are second cousins and they have a pretty good marriage. The woman only told me about them being cousins in confidence though, like she's ashamed of it--I've noticed when other people ask how she and her husband met, she always cringes and gives a vague answer. Just my two cents....I'm sure too you know the chances of your offspring having a genetic abnormality are higher than those of couples who are not related. The couple I spoke of do not have any offspring.