Author Archives: Nannette

About Nannette

Wife to The Sweetheart, Mom to the Fantastic Six, Nana to six of the cutest littles on the planet, Author, The Daniel Fast, A Devotional. UPCI ministers.

Shut the Front Door! Pt. 5 Gossip & Prayerlessness

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We are also back into our Warning Signs for Christians today…Part 5 is our final installment and we go out with a bang.   If you are just joining us, or missed any of the series you can catch up! Part one is here, Part 2 Lethargy & Rebellion, Part 3 Modesty, and Part 4 Pornography, Fornication & Adultery. 

Shut the Front Door Gossip hopeinthehealing

Shut the Front Door! Pt. 5 Gossip & Prayerlessness

Gossip

Eleanor Roosevelt said it best, “Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.”

Does anyone benefit from gossip? No, absolutely not. In reality, everyone involved is harmed. The one who brings the news has hurt their reputation, the one who decides to stay and hear “the dirt” has done the same and also possibly endures shame and embarrassment, depending on the content.

Then there is the subject of the gossip. If they are innocent, lies are being spread about them and they may not even know it. Even if they are guilty, it is their business and between them and God, the gossip is doing no one any good. It only stirs up more trouble.

The Bible speaks very plainly about those that gossip, only it calls them talebearers. It speaks of younger widows that have cast off their first faith, “And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.” 1 Timothy 5:13.

A person that gossips cannot be trusted. Proverbs 11:13 tells us that, “A talebearer reveals secrets, But he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.”

[Tweet “If so-called friends share secrets about others WITH YOU, they will talk ABOUT YOU to others behind your back!”]

 “A perverse man sows strife, And a whisperer separates the best of friends.” Proverbs 16:28. Here the Word shows us that gossip will literally destroy friendships.

Proverbs 20:19 NKJV. “He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with one who flatters with his lips.”

When you are betrayed by a talebearer it is difficult to trust again and when you are The Whisperer, and gain that reputation, it is something you are likely to never overcome.

[Tweet “If we didn’t carry gossip, it wouldn’t go very far.”]

The Bible tells us to “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice…whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”  Philippians 4:4-9.

Prayerlessness

Finally, the most dangerous pitfall for any Christian is to neglect their prayer life. Like the physical body cannot live without water, the spiritual body cannot survive without prayer. We have to have that communication with our Lord. The more time we spend with Him, the more time we will want to spend with Him!

To go without prayer is to display the attitude that we don’t need God in our lives…we can make it without Him. Oh, we don’t think that in our brain but it is essentially what we are saying with our hearts and living out with our lives! We can handle this God. In the book “How to Pray”, by Ronnie Floyd, he says, “Prayer occurs when you depend on God”, and “Prayerlessness occurs when you depend on yourself.” 

Our Lord set the standard in His ministry for our prayer lives.

“Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” Luke 6:12.

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:16 NIV.

If Jesus showed us how important it was to pray, and even spent 40 days and nights praying and fasting, shouldn’t we heed His example in our own lives?

The answer to every problem, every challenge, every dilemma that we will ever face, can be found on our knees. There really are no excuses, everyone has time. We have to make time, it’s all about our priorities. We have good intentions but we allow other things to get in the way, to take precedence. But the bottom line is that nothing is more important than spending time with the Creator of the Universe!

It is like charging up your cellphone or iPad every day, you have to be “plugged in” to the Source to survive!

The pressures we face in our generation are unprecedented. The coming of the Lord could very well be in our lifetime. The signs are all around us, His return is imminent! Without a relationship we risk hearing Him say, “Depart from Me, I never knew you…”

The enemy literally is working around the clock to distract the Christian like never before. He knows that the more we pray, the more in tune we are with God. And the more in tune we are, the more power we have! When we tap into that power, we are unstoppable. The Bible says even Satan believes and he trembles. If we ever truly get hold of what God intends for us then we can move mountains.

If we want to be a part of the Church of the Living God we know it starts in the prayer closet.

“And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:31.

Pray in the Spirit! When we forget about the time and start praying in the Holy Ghost, Heaven takes notice. Souls are dying lost every day and going out into eternity. Are they worth our time?

Someone prayed for us, will we take the time to stand in the gap for others?

Kingdom2

 

 

 

All for a Purpose…Gretchen’s Miracle!

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I am taking the time out of our series on Warning Signs to Christians to tell you about a miracle. A divine intervention that took place just a little over a week ago to a beautiful lady, inside and out, that I am so blessed to know personally. Jesus Christ still heals and performs miracles today and I wanted you to hear this amazing story of The Sweetheart’s cousin, Gretchen. Be blessed!

Gretchen was born with a congenital birth defect that left her missing a bone in her left ear, where all of the nerves were deformed. She could not hear anything at all in her left ear.  Her doctors had told her that even if she used a hearing aid in that ear that the nerves could never deliver the message to the brain because they were so damaged. She also had only 50% hearing in her right ear due to a childhood illness. So, for her entire life, she has only been able to hear with “half an ear”, as she put it.

Gretchen has always served God, and now teaches her children to love the Lord, taking them to Sunday School in the same church that she grew up in as a child.

Just a week ago this past Sunday, a missionary from Spain was visiting the church. Missionary Nathan Harrod asked for anyone who had a need to come forward and he was going to pray for the sick. Gretchen went for prayer, as did several others in the church.

When he began to pray for Gretchen, he whispered in her LEFT ear and she said she not only heard him but she actually understood what he said! That is something the doctors had said would never happen!

Instantly Gretchen was healed in her RIGHT ear 100%!! And her hearing was restored in her LEFT ear by 50%! 

Needless to say the church was rejoicing, Gretchen was praising God and hearing out of her left ear for the first time in her life. She was overwhelmed with thankfulness to the Lord!

She says, “I feel so blessed to have the most hearing in my life at a time when many people start to lose their hearing. God is so good!”

God is still performing miracles! There is nothing in the Bible that said miracles ended with the Book of Acts! We have proof all around us that it is happening every day. This is FOR us, CHURCH! All we have to do is believe and accept the promises of God! He wants to do these things for us, He wants to show His mighty hand.

But…just because you have NOT been healed does not mean He doesn’t love you or isn’t FOR you…please go read my post titled He Heals Me, He Heals Me Not now, or as soon as you finish reading this post! Not everyone is healed of everything, we all know that. We all have ailments, sicknesses, and impairments that will weaken us or maybe take our life. That is part of living in this earthly vessel. So did the apostles. Sometimes He chooses to heal for a purpose and sometimes He chooses to wait for a purpose and sometimes He chooses not to heal…all for a purpose.

For a Purpose hopeinthehealing

We trust Him in ALL things!

It doesn’t mean He loves us any more or any less because He heals one and doesn’t heal another. Gretchen had went many, many years, and is now a wife and a mother of three before the Lord healed her ears. We do not always understand His ways but we trust His plan. He sees the bigger picture. He knows what’s down the road, what is best for us, what will be a blessing to others, and what will bring Him glory!

Do not be discouraged friend. Whatever your need, He is with you and can make something beautiful out of your disability or trial! He can use you to touch others and bring many into the Kingdom.

The next morning after Gretchen’s healing, she posted on Facebook the following message:

“It’s cold outside but I feel like taking my two ears out for a jog so I can hear what birds sound like in surround sound!!!! Feeling so blessed today!!!”

What can you believe God for today?

GretchenGretchen Weidner is wife to Lance and Mom to Grayson, Abigail, and Alexis. She runs the family farm and works part time for her husband in his real estate appraisal business. She is a farmer at heart who LOVES horses, dogs, reading and running and basically keeping life simple.

Sharing with A little R & R, Women Helping Women, Winsome Wednesday, Wise woman Builds, Walking Redeemed, Encourage One Another, Raising Homemakers, Homemaking Party, Hearts for Home, Time Travel Thursday, Proverbs 31 Thursday, Thriving Thursdays, Grace at Home, Thankful Thursday, Fellowship Fridays, Faithful Fridays, Womanhood with Purpose, Friendship Fridays, Family Fun Friday, Essential Fridays, Faith Filled Friday, Fun Friday, Weekend Brew, Motivation Monday, Heart Reflected, Still Saturday, Memories by the Mile

 

Welcome to Wisdom Wednesday! Be sure and follow your host and co-hosts and visit the neighbor next to you, leaving a friendly comment. Have a blessed Wednesday!




Shut the Front Door! Pt. 4 Pornography, Adultery & Fornication…

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We continue our series on Warning Signs for Christians today…Shut the Front Door! Part 4…Pornography, Adultery & Fornication. Who in the world would want to tackle this one??? I looked around for guest writers but no one was raising their hand! So here we go!  I loved the interaction yesterday. It makes it so much more interesting to have discussion. Of course I kept it short yesterday, we could have went into much detail in many ways in the scripture but time prohibits, and I don’t want to lose you or bore you! So today is a little longer…there was no good place to cut it off. Please leave your thoughts! You can catch up on the series with Part one here, Part two, and Part three.

Shut the Front Door Pornography, Fornication & Adultery hopeinthehealing

Pornography—Pornography?!

This subject is only for the men! Oh, not so. Women need to be warned about the dangers of this modern-day trick of the enemy just as much as men do. “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” Colossians 3:5 NIV.

  • 18% of college women are spending time online for sexual purposes.
  • 56% of divorce cases involve one party who is obsessed or addicted to pornography.
  • Christians watch it too! Those who identify themselves as fundamentalists are 91% more likely to look at pornography.
  • 50% of all Christian men and 20% of all Christian women say they are addicted to pornography.

Idle time on the internet can be dangerous. “Surfing” without protection on your computer is just unwise. All desktops, laptops, any devices in your home should have an internet filter to protect your computer from any unwanted images popping up. They are inexpensive, easy to install and, best of all, they work!

Secondly, all computers should be in out in the “open” in your homes as much as possible.

Now with laptops and iPads, privacy has become even easier to obtain and that is not always a good thing. If you are alone too much you might be tempted to look at things that are not godly. That is why the filter is so helpful and brings accountability.

Monitor your children! Yes, it is your business! If they are living in your home you should be aware of what they are doing on the internet, period. You do not want them to get caught in Satan’s trap of the sin of pornography. He reaches for the very, very young today and once they have been caught, the shame will follow them for years to come. He follows them with guilt and reminds them of their sin over and over again, even if they have repented, it seems they can never rid themselves of this shameful past. The images play in their head for a very long time.

You can keep that from ever happening by making sure again that there are controls on your computers, filters that protect these sinful images from popping up on your PC. It only takes a few minutes and it will save them from a lifetime of hurt.

The Lord desires for us to walk with Him with a pure heart and the way to do that is to fill our hearts and minds with things that are holy and pure. Fill your home with Christian music and things that are uplifting to God, spend time with Him each day and in His Word. Invite Him into your home and your life!

“I will walk within my house with a perfect heart…. I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes…” Psalms 101:2-3.

Chat Rooms are another dangerous area that have lured many in to just talk about seemingly innocent subjects at first. Then before you know it, their new “friends” are all of a sudden their “best friends” and they confide in them more than they do their husbands, wives or family members!

It seems “safe”. They don’t know you, you can tell them anything and they won’t share your secrets. They don’t know your friends, your “circle” and surely they wouldn’t repeat it since they have no one to repeat it to!

It is especially vulnerable for teens. Pedophiles, online predators, cyber stalkers are plentiful in this arena. They strike up conversations with young people and eventually convince them to meet up. Sometimes the teenagers think they are meeting other teens! Other times they might think they have “fallen in love”. Many have been lured in this fashion to run off wit,h or even been taken, by stalkers on the internet!

It is also very addictive.

You can find yourself disconnecting from reality in no time. It is as if the rest of your life doesn’t exist any longer, you must now connect with your “new family”. This is very dangerous because eventually you will want to leave and be with this person that you have never met, know nothing about, except what they have told you…which all could be false!

Fornication, Adultery and Lust

If you struggle with lust, you must take this to prayer!

“Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” 2 Timothy 2:22.

Memorize this verse and repeat it every day, several times a day until you have it in your heart!

Flee youthful lusts…these come from the heart. There is something in the heart that must be dealt with. Even though we are “in Christ”, and we are filled with His spirit, we are flesh and live in a world filled with sin. These things are continually tempting us and nipping at our heels, constantly trying to trip us up.

We have to be careful where we let our mind wander, where we let our eyes wander and where we let our feet wander…

“Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul…” 1 Peter 2:11 NKJV.

Men and women should not even find themselves in compromising situations with others of the opposite sex that are not their spouses. Ever. Even if you do not have any feelings toward him/her, they may be struggling with issues that you are not aware.

If you are not married, then you must take serious the saving of yourself for your future husband or wife.

Today’s society makes it so acceptable to live together before marriage and saving your virginity has become almost laughable. But there is One who still says it is important. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God…” 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 NKJV.

Sexual intimacy outside of marriage is called fornication and it is a sin.

“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. These are the things which defile the man.” Matthew 15:19-20. Again, we see it is a matter of the heart.

There must be a relationship with the Savior! If you are not spending time with Him, if you do not know Him, then the enemy can creep in and start whispering in your ear that these things are okay and you will begin to justify sins.

  • Everyone else is doing it.

  • He will leave me if I don’t sleep with him.

  • Just this once won’t matter.

Yes, friend, it does matter. God’s Word says it matters. “Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.

After your marriage, you have committed to one, it is a covenant relationship just as God’s relationship with the Church as His Bride! The Bible is very plain about stepping outside of the marriage covenant and having an intimate relationship with another, it is called adultery.

It was mentioned in the previous verses with fornication as well. “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” Hebrews 13:4.

When you stood before God and an assembly of family and friends, you took an oath that stated something similar to “…til death do us part”. Words were said over the two of you that pronounced you as “One flesh”.

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24 ESV.

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; …” 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 ESV.

That you know how to control your own body…and then he showed up. He pays attention to you, your husband used to look at you that way you think. But life got in the way. He is busy working two jobs to help pay the mortgage and the newer car you wanted and to put away for the kids’ college education. He is tired when he comes home at night and so are you.

If you aren’t careful, and you listen to those lies, one will lead to another and before you know it you will respond to that look he gave. That will lead to a lunch date and then you are in trouble.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10 ESV.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Latest Census Report, 2009:
  • Number of marriages: 2,096,000
  • Marriage rate: 6.8 per 1,000 total population
  • Divorce rate: 3.6 per 1,000 population (44 reporting States and D.C.)

True, in today’s society the marriage covenant has been trampled upon. Divorce is at an all-time high. Don’t let the enemy convince you that divorce is the answer to every problem. He will tell you that the new boyfriend loves you and you love him; isn’t that what life is all about? He will whisper, “Life is too short to be unhappy.”

But if you loved one another enough to get married, and there is no abuse in the home, it can work again. Put Christ first and see Him work a miracle.

You have to resist and put a stop to it from the very beginning. The Bible is very clear about how to fight the devil! “…Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7. Resist, resist, resist. But wait, we left out something…part of that verse is missing! It seems we hear it quoted that way so often we forget the first part of it. But that is the most important section! Let’s see what it says:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God…”

Aha! That’s the key! Submission! If we submit to Him first then we will be able to resist the devil and he will have to flee from us! Makes it so much easier doesn’t it?

Especially when it comes to the subject of adultery, run; don’t walk, away from old Lucifer! He may be sly and crafty but you have the power within you, the Holy Ghost power to overcome any trick of the devil.

“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.” 1 Samuel 2:9 ESV.

He will guard the feet of the faithful ones. If we strive to be faithful to Him, desiring to be LIKE HIM, realizing we are not perfect but striving for perfection, we can live an overcoming life!

Join us tomorrow for Part 5 of this series on Warning Signs for Christians when we tackle GOSSIP!