Facebook a ministry??

Yes it is true, ALOT of time can be wasted on facebook! And because of this stereo type many have opted to stay away entirely.
But I think that both ends spending too  much time....wasted time, and also the other end not getting on at all,  both perhaps are the wrong perspective.

An older lady who I look up to  asked me "how do you not waste time?"
And I said that whenever I get on here I make it a point to "Redeem the time." I think that we often think of this in the BIG scheme of things...like we say "OVERALL I will redeem the time."

But I ask why not be specific about it? Like I will redeem the time when I get on facebook...when I am at school...when I am eating meals...when I am waiting in a line...when I am____ and you fill in the blank.
Redeeming the time literally means to "buy it back"  how we do that is making the most of the time that God gives us, to use it to bring Him glory. This takes many forms ( encouraging someone....witnessing...studying His Word in such a way that we are preparing to share it when called on....bringing joy to people through our words...gifts...smiles...good attitudes etc.)

But the odd thing is we don't know how much time we have ( this issue I addressed in my other note on here entitled "Dear Bethany I hold your life in my hands-love God" you can read that for more on the frailty/shorness of life).
Since therefore we do not know how much time we have, and since we know God calls us to live every second of it for Him, then that means even every second on facebook!

Thus I have purposed that I whenever I check facebook, I had better be making a ministry out of it.
This could mean sending someone a "hello" or word of encouragement. Statuses are then had better not be about me but rather about God. He died for me, suffered in my place the least I could do would be to LIVE for Him in each and every way possible!

And the amazing thing is, as with every ministry, it has been more a blessing for me than for the people I try to bless!

Take this recent conversation on facebook. A friend of mine on her status asked all her friends to share the hardest time that they have ever gone through and how God got them through ( without that last part it really would not be worth sharing!! Because praise is supposed to be about God not us!)

Anyways I was one of the first one to share...and at first felt that I was "stepping out on a limb" and felt that I should not for I shared a pretty private and hard struggle. And felt that maybe it was too much or that I should not have...but after reading all of the replies I was more encouraged than I have ever been. Like I said often I go into ministry thinking "I am going to get the privilidge to bless people" then often  I come out getting more blessed myself then I could have ever blessed anyone else!

So I would encourage you to make facebook another ministry! Encourage, challenge, even witness to people! Hand your account to God asking Him to use it and to give you opportunities then take them as they come!!

Use everything you say on here,  for it goes A LONG WAYS! I have had people read my notes and comment on them who are not even my "friends" on facebook! This presents itself as a blessing and a challenge, because I must order my conversations and testimony aright on here! Also I was able to see the stuff ( hard stuff) of people's lives ( as Dr. Newman would put it) that I have never even met! And was able to learn from them, and get insight for future issues that may come up, all because one godly lady chose to use Facebook as a ministry and chose to ask her friends to post their hardest "spot" in life that they had been through and how God brought them through it!

So I challenge you all to use facebook as a ministry as well! Go out on a limb, ask people the harder questions, dig into their lives! And share your life and declare God work that He has done in your life  to others!

Funny how just yesterday my devos were on declaring God's works...specifically His faithfulness and His loving kindness

"IT is good to praise the Lord, and make music to your name, OH most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night." PSalm 92:1-2

...and my application that day was to do just that.. to tell others of His faithfulness in my life and of His love toward me. Little did I know that I would have the opporunity to do that on facebook! Of ALL PLACES!!! Don't underestimate what God can use! He can and does use all things ( even sin) for His glory!! So open yourself up to be used in ALL areas! Don't think of "Redeeming the time" as a generality...be specific! FACEBOOK: It's a ministry!

So I thank Kim , for asking the deeper questions! For stepping out on a limb, and for "Redeeming the time" by asking your friends to share the harder stuff of their lives and how God worked! What a blessing! Thank you for your example may I go and do likewise!

And I thought that I would share, what I shared on Kim's (friend of my mother's) status, and also the very unexspected reply to my post! This is just an example of how blessed one can be when they step out and try to minister and just be honest and share!

Kim's status :What is the hardest thing you have ever been through (that you are comfortable sharing publicly)? How did the Lord help you through it?

My reply #1:
My freshmen year at college! not only did I deal with getting adjusted to leaving home and going to school and homework and a new job, but we had a hard time with a girl on campus, treating my sister horriblly and on top of that I had a break-up with my boyfriend that caused havoc not only in my own personal life but also the life of my family and even my church family! How God got me through all that is through His Word! I just got up day in and out and He never failed to meet with me each day, giving me the exact "food" that I needed from His Word to get me through that day. I can't tell you or describe to you how hard those days after the breakup were, nor of the great comfort that God gave to me through His Word!

I learned SO much in that time and also even during the relationship. No matter what new "news" came up about the break-up situation, God got me and my family through it and helped us to keep going! That decision to break-up was the hardest desicion I have ever had to make! But How glad I am that God got a hold of this prodigal daughter of His! And for His forgiveness, in accepting me back after my rebellion and also for His grace! And for working in and through my parents! He shone through them! The day after the break-up I woke up and felt that I had lost alot of people (though I gained my relationship with my parents) I still felt that I had lost alot, but then I was reminded of the quote "There will be days when you will have no one and nothing at all, escept God, and that is ALL you will EVER need!" How true this was, and to think that I had to be broken to come to grips with this, but how glad I am that He broke me!

Heidi ’s reply:

I went through a similar situation, Bethany, when I was 19. I was still living at home & I was engaged to a manipulative, possessive guy for several months. It was God who was able to open my eyes and I broke it off before the wedding. H...owever, my rebellion affected many others, too. I praise the Lord not only for His protection, but also that my parents prayed for me and did not give up on me. I learned to depend on Him and wait for His will and timing for His plan for me. The Lord has blessed with me with a wonderful husband, we've been married for 13 years, and He has blessed us with 4 children here on Earth. 2 more await us in Heaven.
I am most thankful for His mercy and grace and His free gift of Salvation that I have accepted. I no longer carry the weight of guilt for my past choices because He's taken them upon Himself. I praise Him for His unquestioning forgiveness and constant love for me. : )
Thanks, Kim, for encouraging us to share. : )

My reply to Heidi:

Heidi, though I have never met you, your story sounds SO much like mine it was like reading my OWN writing! The guy I had dated was also possesive and manipulative, and extremely disrespectful to my parents. He was pushing for enga...gement and marriage ( we had even talked about just eloping and running off, praise be to God that I did not!) my dad would not allow him to get engaged to me
Thank you SO much for sharing! It is such an encouragement to me to know that someone else went through almost exactly what I did, and how God got a hold of you as He did me! And that you too had parents that were faithful in praying for you ( mine were too) and also that they forgave you as mine have! It was good to hear of it from someone who has gotten farther along in life than myself! For I recently came out of that, while you have been out for a while longer.

It was good to hear about what kind of future is possible for me, despite the mistakes I have made.

" I no longer carry the weight of guilt for my past choices because He's taken them upon Himself." ( this is a quote from you)
For the last year of my life I carried the guilt around, thinking that I could never marry because of my mistakes, until here recently when I was able to talk to a godly woman I look up to ( also the women who God used to get a hold of me about breaking up with the guy I was dating). This lady helped me to be reminded about God's forgiveness, even for the awful things I did. And I finally surrendered to God that if He would have me to marry I would or if He would have me to stay single I would.

What a weight was lifted off! I was closed to marriage entirely, becaus eI thought that I had to stay single, so to hear about your story...of getting married and having children, and of learning and growing through such a hard time, it was a wonderful encouragement to me! Thank you SO much for sharing! Your story gave me more hope and encouragement! And I too Praise God for His forgiveness! I LOVE YOUR quote that I copied above! Something that I will need to constantly remind myself of...because even though I know and believe that I am forgiven, the guilt still creeps up every once in a while.

So thankyou for the reminder :)

Heidi’s reply:

Can ya'll give me any ideas-----we have a young girl in our homeschool group that is dating a very controlling guy. Her Mom is REALLY concerned. Unfortunately, I don't know her well-----just see her for a few minutes every few weeks. Are there any things I could say or mention to get her to think hard about things?

Bethany, thank you so much for sharing this. What a difficult, difficult thing. Praise the Lord for His love and forgiveness and that He was there for you during a very difficult time in your life. By the way, I appreciated the "book" :-) very much. It encouraged me to know the details of how the Lord worked in your life during a very difficult time.

My reply to Kristy:

Kristi Stapler, I would encourage you to share what the godly lady shared with me. She saids that I, though 18, still had the responsibility to obey God by obeying my parents. She reminded me that I was not married yet, thus I was still un...derneath of my parents thus eph. 6:1 was still true for me, I was to obey my parents, and she asked me if my parents wanted me to break up. Of course my answer was "yes" and thus she siad that I had to break-up because they are my parents and I must obey and honor.

You have to understand that while I was dating this guy he was so manipulative that he had me totally wrapped around his finger, I did anything and everything he said...he had become my "god" as it were. So of course I brought up countless arguments to this lady. I fought her like none other...thinking that I would win, that she like my parents and everyone else who had tried to talk to me and who had tried to get me to break-up, but she was different. You see I am a very stubborn person ( I am guessing that this young lady is not much different that I? And since I was very stuck in his ways then, I had many many arguments, but they fell so easliy to her truths.

All the lies I shared, that I thought would win, fell SO short when faced with the Truth that she shared from God's Word in that I needed and was required to obey my parents.

She said to me after that night that I seemed like a totally different person, like I had been brainwashed...not quite sure if I had been but it sure felt like it. After the break up slowly but surely I began to think differently, and it was almost as if his hold that he had on me fell slowly and slowly away with not being with him and influenced by him.

So I am assuming that this girl is not much different, and that this will not be an easy task. Prayer is a HUGE factor in this! ( when is it ever not??!! :) My parents along with many people from my church had been praying for me. Also the lady who counseled me had just begun to pray about me that very day, because she had not known how bad it had gotten ( she lives 2 hrs away). And that night randomly my sister called her and she asked to talk to me and what started out as a normal conversation turned to a long counseling session.

I would encourage everyone that knows this girl to pray, first off. Also to be open and stay open to opportunities that you have to talk to her. She may, like me, be very closed and resentful to her parents, thus she may need someone from the "outside" as it were, to come in and counsel and talk with her. That is what it took for me! My parents could not get through all we ever did was argue, and it usually ended up with me crying and just growing silent. It took someone from the outside (this lady that I am telling you about) to come in, and mind you she is more stubborn than I, and she stuck to her guns.

Also you can remind her that if this guy is trapping her emotionally, and mentally ( since he is being controlling) than who is to say that one day he won't trap her physically? It is a living nightmare to live with a controlling man! I know of three ladies that lived this way. Two no longer are in this situation but one still is, and they say it is the worst decision they ever made to marry such controlling men! It affects everything esp. your service to God!

Also I am sure that like me, this young lady has "idolized" her boyfriend. To her he has become "god". Now that I have broken up the song "give me Jesus" and also "I'd rather have Jesus" never fails to bring tears to my eyes, just because it reminds me of the time when I had allowed someone else to control me and consume me besides my Savior Jesus Christ!

There is SO much more that I could share, but I this reply is forever long...I hope that this has helped you Kristy. If you have any questions or need more information or need more encouragement, please let me know! My heart goes out to this family! And especially to this young girl! I don't like to hear of others who are going through the heart ache that I went through but it is especially hard to hear of girls who like me are stubborn and too blinded by love to see the red flags that are apparent to everyone else.

I hope that this has been of some help! And I apologize again for the "book"See More


Ps. Also this girl is not married yet, and thus she is still Biblically underneath her parents ( notice I said Biblically, legally she may be of age...I don't know her age... she may legally be of age to just run off and get married.) but B...iblically she is not under anyone elses rule except God and her parents ( government teachers etc). Thus her parents can make this couple break-up. My parents did not do that, but had I not broken it off when I did they would have, and my cousin, who is going through this as well, has been forced by her parents to break-up. And no this is not easy, the daughter may be resentful may even stop speaking with her parents ( as in my cousin's case) but with paitence and prayer the relationship can be restored.

God can change hearts...we humans doubt this sometimes but that is probably due to the fact that we cannot even see hearts, or know them, not even our own "The heart is deceitful above all things,And desperately wicked; Who can know it?" Jer.17:9 , but God not only knows hearts HE FASHIONS them toward Himself "He fashions their hearts individually;He considers all their works."- Psalm 33:15
. Thus I would say that it would be better for the parents to make the girl break-up, put whatever stops need to be in place, and save this girl from ruining her life but more importantly her realtionship to God!See More


Prayer, prayer, and more prayer. After I finally broke off the engagement, everything that everyone ever said to me: verses, prayers, warnings, counsel, etc., came back to me. I allowed myself to be deaf and blind to the love of so many.... Then, when I listened to the Lord, my ears and eyes were opened and I was SO thankful to those who did not give up on me. Thinking back, I know I didn't thank everyone. I pray that they know how much I appreciate them allowing the Lord to work in their hearts and speak through them to me--even though I was so close-minded and argumentative.
Ultimately, we each must make a choice: serve God or ourselves. If we choose to allow other people or things to be gods, then we are choosing to serve ourselves. This path will always lead to destruction. If we choose to "...confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Rom 10:9 (ESV) If your whole focus is consumed with anyone or anything other than God, you may need to search your heart and question whether or not you truly are a Believer.

Eph. 6:1-4 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
"Honor your father and mother" (this is the first commandment with a promise),
"that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land."
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.


Heidi's reply to kristy 
It is very important for parents to be conscious of not fanning the flames and driving their child away. In my perspective, when my parents stopped arguing and "fighting" me, and "resorted" to praying and letting me know that they still loved and cared about me, I stopped fighting the Holy Spirit's knocking on my heart. I then began to notice red flags and recognize the very real faults that both the guy and myself had.
One of those "red flags" was that the guy actually told me he believed an engagement was as binding as marriage. (He still believed this even after I broke off the engagement and my parents and I agreed to meet with him 1 time to "listen" to him. My heart had completely done a 180 and his words actually fell on new ears that purposely let his words go in one ear and out the other!) I cannot believe I actually considered that for awhile!

Bethany, I would like to pray for you that the Lord will continue to give you His comfort and peace as you heal. Also, I just wanted to remind you that the Lord has a different plan for everyone. Even though it was not His plan for us to get married when we had planned to, nor to the person we thought we wanted to marry, there are others whom the Lord planned to marry young. I have a friend who did marry when she was 19. The Lord has blessed her and her husband and their grown children. This was the Lord's plan for them.
I am so thankful that my dear husband chose to marry me 13 years' ago--even knowing (and watching) what I'd gone through before.
My husband "took me as I am", just as the Lord does with us.
We can come to Him and bare our souls, and He will heal and comfort.
Bethany, if He has "the one" planned for you, He will reveal him to you in His will and timing. Be willing to wait, and He will give you the desires of your heart. : ) "Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Ps. 37:4

Good-night everyone.
In humble thanks to the One who made me,
Heidi

My reply to Heidi:

Heidi- Thank you SO much for your prayers! I appreciate that and need them! I am content where I am at right now and am just waiting on the Lord to show me what to do ( whether to stay single or get married). But it is such a wonderful thin...g to be totally surrendered to God, in either marriage or singleness! Thank you for your example and for your encouraging words!

 One of those "red flags" was that the guy actually told me he believed an engagement was as binding as marriage. " - This is SO strange because that is exactly what my boyfriend was telling me! WOW! And I too believed it...and still kind of did until a few weeks ago when I was able to talk with someone about it and she shared with me from scripture that it just is not true! Thank you for your example and for sharing it is encouraging to know that I am not the only one out there that is/was naive! I was in fact afraid to seek help about it because I figured that people would think that i was daranged or something! Good to see that I am not the only one! Thankyou SO much!

Kim- Thank you for asking us to share! It has been a wonderful blessing in my heart to see what others have gone through and how God brought them through it! The glory goes to HIM!!

So use your facebook, any computer time...leisure activities not just for you but for others! Change your focus from self to God and see what He blesses you with! Live a life of ministry making the most of every opportunity!! You will be amazed at what He can do in and through you!

"Dear Bethany, I hold your life in my hands!" Love God....

You might be thinking...okay I knew bethany was strange....but after the title to this note, you might be really confused. Let me explain the title...and perhaps you will still think "how odd" but that is okay!
It seems here lately that the title of this note is what God has been saying to me!

God, in my personal time with Him, and also through a conou trip has been reminding me that my life is in His hands, and that He controls when I die. I do not even know if I will be able to live long enough to finish this note, but God does and not only that but He also controls whether I do or not! WOW! What an odd baffling thought!

He has a reason why I am still breathing, and continue to. I don't have to worry about my death or protecting my life because I will only lose my life when God says and I will only die when it is HIS time for me to. Thus I do not need to fear anything that happens to me! And it just seems that lately God has been reminding me of this fact and also of the fact that life is short! And that I need to be doing what I can when I can, while I can!

We are only a moment....a breath from death every second of everyday! There are so many thing that threaten our very lives, every second of our lives. We are so weak and frail and cannot even control nor could possibly know what is going to happen in between right now, and the time when you will read my next sentence! God has been convicting and working in my heart and life about this these past few days in my devotions....in fact it seems to be my current "reoccuring theme" and as with anything, if God keeps telling me the same thing day in and out I think I had better listen the first time anyway but def. all the times after that! So here is what God has taught me over the course of a week!

And the scary thing is He did not just use His word, to reiderate the fact that I cannot control my own life, He also used a canou trip to get my attention in regards to this lesson that He is currently teaching me. Weird thing is I cannot figure out why He is teaching me this ONE lesson...but funny thing is maybe I don't NEED to know....maybe I just need to trust Him and realize that His plans and thoughts are not mine...and that I don't think like He does...nor always see why He does what He does, and that is okay! I just need to take Him at His Word! God says it and whether I accept it or not THAT SETTLES IT!!
I have been studying Psalm 90 and the following are the lessons that I have been taught:

 "Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. - I learned from this verse that even in this world of unknowns God is to be mmy refuge, the Person I trust in... but why should I trust Him? And in the next verse I found the answer


"Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.- I saw here in verse two that I should and can trust Him because He created this earth and has a plan for it and to put it very simply HE IS GOD...Need I any other explanation? This friends, silenced me.( "Be still and know that I AM GOD!"  kind of idea) I should not need any other explanation! The next verse shows just how much He is in control of my life, whether I acknowledge it or not!


So verse two makes verse one absolutely logical! It would only make sense that I the creature, would trust the Creator that made me and knows me better than I know myself! I love how God's Word connects!

"You turn men back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men." - Psalm 90:1-3  God reminded me here that He controls when I die. With this truth I was confronted with the sin of worry! I don't need to worry about death, because I will die when it is His time, not any sooner or later, and it will be what is best for me and for His glory! It is not about me...what I can accomplish in my life, but what GOD accomplishes through me and about HIS GLORY! And I only pray that He will do whatever it takes to show His glory through me, even if it means that I be called home. I will only go home, to my true home when He calls me...when He says 'Return to dust, O sons of men." And He not only controls my death but also everyone elses as well!
Note it said "sons of men" this is everyone!

" For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night." Psalm 90:4 Here God showed me/reminded me that He does not think like I do! And I was convicted of how much I think of Him in human terms! In fact anytime I worry I am thinking of God as a mere human....I am telling Him that "He can't handle this problem...or that person" a lack of trust in God demonstrates that I have forgotten that God is God, and that He is ALL POWERFUL and does what He pleases, He is not human, does not think like I do, and thus I should not think of Him that way!

"You sweep men away in the sleep of death;  they are like the new grass of the morning-
 though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered." Psalm 90:5-6
Here I was reminded that my life is short! It feels like just yesterday I was a freshmaun at college...telling myself that college would take FOREVER! And already I am in my third year ( hard to believe..what a surprise I survived! hee hee) TIME FLYS! It seems to go slow, but then you blink and already the years have flown...the children have grown, and you are five years older!

I remember times when I would get stuck in the trench of thinking, (though not aloud) that I am immortal.  Sometimes I get caught up in living  everyday like my life will never end. Then God does something, or says something to me through His Word and reminds me of how frail I am.  The first lesson I ever had in this happened when I was only eight.  My mom said that we needed to go see dad at his office, so we,  Krista and I and my  brother Joseph hopped into the car and drove to  my dads office at Fellowship Baptist Church  where he was the associate pastor.

 I remember shuffling in there, excited to hear what possible news mom would have for us that would cause us to just get up and go to church.  When we got there she informed us that she was pregnant. We were all very excited! I even remember jumping up and down with Joseph and Krista. This jubilation turned very quickly to mourning when my little brother Joshua was called home to be with Jesus before he could even meet any of us.

I still think about him, what he would have looked like...what it would have beem like to have four brothers...but the lesson I learned ( and the reason I am telling you about Josh is this: I learned at eight the frailty of life. Josh's death came as a shock to everyone. He had gotten the cord wrapped around his kneck and had suffocated...my mom delivered him stillborn. I learned that NO ONE ( not even a baby who has not even taken a breath yet) is garunteed tommorow)  But obviously it did not stick!

For a few years later, when I was 14 or 15, a young boy that my mother used to babysit was killed at the young age of ten in a car accident. Eric was hit by a speeding car when he was crossing the street to go to church for Awana on a cold novemeber evening. His death too came as a shock. It was devastating for me and I did not know him well...I think the reason for this is that he was just a boy...just a kid and he died...just like that!

Yet again a few years later after I repented of my sin of an eating disorder and got back on track with God, He showed me just how close I came to death during my sin. (If you want to know the details on this story you can look up my note on here entitled "My secret: or so i thought?" it has the whole story of my sin and confession and turn around and also explains just how close to death I was ) no I was not hospitalized or anything..but I will say that I was playin with death itself...and if God had not gotten a hold of me, death would have won! So perhaps you are thinking okay you learned your lesson after that....NOPE!

Yet again a few years later I had to be reminded yet again of the frailty of life this time through my sixteen year old cousin's heart attack. She was healthy and strong, playing in a soccer game one minute, the next minute she was lying on the soccer feild...her heart had stopped.  No one had any control or power....we were all powerless to help her, but it was not her time to go for God had other plans! He was in control and had a reason for that...one of which I think was to remind me that life is short and we are not garunteed tommorrow!

So you would think that all these would be enough...that I would have this lesson on the frailty of life and God's control over my life down flat! WRONG!! He still is reminding me of this! But esp. as I have been stating over the past week through Psalm 90...which reminds me...after going through some stories of my life...I think it is time to come back to psalm 90...

And perhaps now I should explain myself a bit. When I do my devotions I usually only end up reading one or two verses at a time, because I am trying to write down and record every single thing about God in each verse of the psalms that I read ( it has become quite a list! The psalms has ALOT to say about Him!) So as I read  this psalm I learned one day about the frailty of life, then the next I learned something else, but then the next day after that the Psalmist goes back to that thought ( the frailty of man) thus it has become a reoccuring theme with me! And again I state that God must have a reason for this!

Psalm 90:10   "The length of our days is seventy years—  or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span  is but trouble and sorrow,        for they quickly pass, and we fly away."- Again after only a few days God reminded me that life is short. Thus in the application part of my notebook I wrote : I need to be redeeming the time..literllly buying it back...for it is SO short!

And can so easlily be wasted...like water spilt on the ground...it cannot be gathered back up...thus all I do is use the rest that is there the best I can! I need to be using the time God gives me wisely...for I am not garunteed tommorrow..and even if I were life is So short and it will end and then what will I have to show for God gave me? How will I have used God's gift of life? I was reminded of the song "Only one life to offer."

Only what is done for Him will last!
And here in my most recent devo God showed me the only right reaction to these truths of the frailty of my life and His control over it and death:
Psalm 90:12
 "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." He showed me that the application that I had been writing all along ("Redeeming the time") was the right application! I need to ask that He teach me to number my days...you see that is why I have to keep being reminded ( and always will) that my life is short. I need too be reminded because I forget! It is not something that comes naturally for me..I do not naturally think to myself every morning "this could be my last day....I could die today...i need to use my time wisely" nope I need to ask God to help me to think this way and not only to think this way but to live this way and to allow this truth to affect ALL I say and do!

Imagine how better my relationships with people would be if I lived these truths out...I mean after all it could be my last time with them...these could be my last words...last discipling moment...will I use it to encourage...or put down...will I take it or just let it go?
Imagine how different my ministries would be! This could be my last time singing in church...playing....teaching...calling on people.
Imagine how it would affect my evangelism!

No wonder God calls this WISE thinking! For it would help EVERY situation if I would just number my days and redeem the time!!
And it not only states numbering your days ( or living in light of the fact that life is short) is wise here but it also states it again in Eph. 5:16-17 (redeeming the time passage)
"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." Did you catch it too? It is wise to redeem the time, to use and see our time for what it really is a stewardship and as with any stewardship, we are only given so much of it and for such a time...but the time will come when it will be taken back by its rightful owner ( in our case God) and will He be pleased with how I have used HIS time? It is not mine. Funny how when we borrow a book, or a movie, or anything from someone we always take better care of it than we do of our own book or movie, or you fill in the blank...should it not be the SAME with GOD?

Okay now that I have taken you through how God taught me this lesson through His marvelous word, let me share how He taught me this through an event in my life...and I really hate to do this..but if you want to know about this you are going to have to read the second note I will post on here about it to get "the rest of the story" until then may you just reflect on the truths from God's Word!...plus this note has gotten longer than expected...so I think it will be safer to just write a second note..so be looking for it :)

"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." Eph. 5:16-17

REDEEM THE TIME FOR WE ARE NOT PROMISED TOMMORROW:
"You sweep men away in the sleep of death;they are like the new grass of the morning-
though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered." Psalm 90: 5-6

Discipleship: happens every moment!

Every one counsels every moment of every day, in the words we say and the things we do, we demonstrate to others what we believe about God (practical theology), and we show them what to believe and do in accordance to that belief. So the question is never "will I counsel people" but rather how I will counsel...will it bring people to God? Will it bring glory to God?

I am currently in the counseling program at the college I am enrolled at (Faith Baptist Bible College) and a requirement of this program is to write a philosophy of counseling paper. The following is just that. And I hope that it gives you some encouragement to take more seriously all of the interactions you are privilidged to have! This is def. not something that I have a total handle on, and is something I am working on. So I hope that you like I, will be challenged from the Word of God to take more seriously the everyday relationships and interactions!

On a mountain, in the days of Moses ten commands were given from the very hand of God, put into rock, expected to be followed. 

 On another mountain stood the very Word of God, His One and only Son, and from His mouth came the charge, the command to the church.

           

Often I look down on the Israelites for not being able to keep the Ten Commandments, but I am not better for all I have is one. Of course, when followed, it encompasses all commands of God that still apply today.

            This new command seems to be four-fold: to go, to make disciples, to baptize and to teach. But in reality the first is an assumption, in that it assumes that I will go.

            The latter two commands (to baptize/teach) are just two steps that need to come after I follow the first command.

            The first and main command is to make disciples. And this is what counseling in the details is! What I do when I counsel is make disciples. The question is not if I will counsel, or if I will make disciples, but rather how I will counsel and what kind of disciples I will make, this is why Christ added “teaching them to observe whatsoever I have commanded you.” The kind of disciples I am to make are ones that follow Christ and His commands!

            So therefore since I make disciples everyday, I counsel every day as well. So this is then and therefore a very serious ministry, one I never cease to do. Thus it is highly important that I do it correctly, in a way that brings all honor and glory to God.

            This is not a philosophy of ministry paper, but rather a philosophy of life paper. These are things that I need to implement every moment in every interaction I am privileged to have!

Commitment to the sufficiency of God’s Word:

            “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”

For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”

            I believe that this time has come! The time when people do not put up with sound doctrine is not a day far off in the future, it is here now! Instead of turning to the Word of God, people are flocking by the dozens to Psychologists offices.  When hard times or depression or other things hit, instead of looking to God’s Word, people run to the nearest Psychologists office to find the next medication or therapy that will help them. They are choosing to cope when they could hope! They have as Paul said they would gathered a great number of teachers. They have itching ears that turn them away from the truth to myths! And though it seems good and sounds good, it is futile and foolishness:

            “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, ‘He catches the wise in their own craftiness’ and again,” The LORD knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”  1 Cor. 3:19-20

            As a counselor one of the main things I will do is to call people back to God’s Word because:

            A. Everyone lives in faith:

            No matter what we would like to think, all people (even atheists) live with faith in someone or something. And who we have faith in, is who we will live for and worship.      And thus I must call people to live with faith in God alone, and the only way that faith in God comes about it through the Word of God : 

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17

            B. The real problem is the heart:

            The psychologists want us to believe that our problems stem from our environment, from our childhood, or from our biology, pretty much anything but ourselves. And while it is true that there are some legitimate cases where our problems do stem from our biology, we are not bound by them. They may contribute but they certainly are not solely the reason for our problems!

            God’s Word teaches that most of our problems stem from the heart : the worship center of every person. And so my ministry to others will aim and have its goal at the heart, not behavior.  

            We as humans cannot see our own hearts, let alone someone else’s.  The Bible says that my heart is so wicked I can’t even fully know it: Jerimiah 17:9.

            The only One who can is God, and the amazing thing is He not only sees every single heart, but fashions them toward Himself:

“He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works.” Psalm 33:15.

And the way He fashions our hearts is through His Word!

            “For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. “ Hebrews 4:12

            God’s Word is the only thing that can discern the thoughts and intents of our heart! He does this through His Word thus it is important that I have a commitment to the Bible!

C. God’s Word lasts: 1 Peter 1:23

            Psychology is constantly changing, jumping from one method/philosophy to another, without any real hope. But God’s Word has not changed and will not. It will stand forever, and its answers will always hold true! If I am accurately using it, it will never return void, it will never fail:

            “having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.” 1 Peter 1:23

            D. It is rich and interpretive:

            It is not that I make God’s Word relevant to people’s situations, but rather I demonstrate that it is! No it does not speak specifically to every issue, but it does help us to think like God does, so that when we encounter situations/issues that God’s Word does not speak specifically to, we will be able to think Biblically (like He does) about it and make the decision that He would make! This is how it speaks to everyone, every problem every situation! It truly is rich and interpretive, it holds all the answers!

And it is the only way that I can counsel people effectively. I must know the Word well, and not just that but be living it out, so that it will become second nature to me, that is the only way that I can truly be of help to people:

            “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”  Col. 3:16

 Commitment to the sufficiency of Christ:

Christ is the only true hope every person has and needs:

A. Christ is the answer to every need (so of course He can handle the smaller things) Romans 5:21 Romans 8:1, 2 Cor. 5:21, 1 John 1:17, James 1:15, 1 John 3:5

           

            Man’s greatest need is salvation from sin and death in hell. So many are caught up in this life, this moment, not even considering the truth that this life is just but for a moment, and in light of eternity it will matter nothing, if we have not accepted Christ. Our greatest concern is not to be so much this life but the life to come.

            And Christ is the answer to our greatest need! He is the only salvation from sin and death in Hell. And since He has answered our greatest need, of course He can handle our smaller problems. If He is our only hope and security in the next life, then He is also our hope and security for today.

            My main ministry to others will be to call them to faith in Christ (if they are unsaved), or to call them to continue in their faith (if they are saved). This is the only true hope that I can offer!

            B. He is the only hope for real change

            I do not want to offer people cope. I don’t want them flitting about from one solution to the next seeking in vain and never finding any real hope. I want them to not just change for a day, or even a year, I want them to have real change, real hope and the only way that can happen is through Jesus Christ!

Commitment to the sufficiency of God’s process of change:

            The only way real change can come about is sanctification. But there are some key things that I must remember about sanctification if I am to be used effectively by God:

            A. Process not an event Phil. 3:12, Eph. 4:15

      We live in a microwave society. We want things now! I mean just look at the lunch hour! Many will choose a fast food restaurant versus a sit-in one because we don’t want to sit and wait. The most popular meals today are fast food, foods that can be nuked in the microwave and made in less then ten minutes. The most popular internet services are the fast ones, and they are constantly modifying them to be faster! The most popular way of communication is texting because it is faster. The most popular exercises today are the ones that don’t take too much time.

Why? Because we value time, and we don’t like waiting.

      And often this attitude carries over into my view of sanctification and sadly not just in my life, but those around me as well. I want change in my life and others’ lives to happen now, right away, but I must remember that sanctification takes time, it is not an event (like a microwave meal, or WIFI, or instant chatting) but rather a process (like a full thanksgiving dinner, or dial up, or snail mail). It takes time, and patience.

      “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” Phil. 3:12

      If anyone had arrived in my eyes, it would have been Paul. He seemed to have it together, he of all people was godly, someone that no sin is ever mentioned of him after salvation. And yet we see here that he had not been perfected, and that he was going to continue to press on. This verse is proof that sanctification on this earth is never done, I will never fully get there, but is something I must keep striving for and call others to as well!

 “speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—“ Eph. 4:15

            There is not “easy button” for sanctification! Here Paul states that to become like Christ (what sanctification’s end is aimed at), we must grow up into it. A baby does not come to the physical stature of an adult, and training to come to the full mental, and emotional, state of an adult. And so it is in our walk with Christ. It is something we grow up into! We start out as babes, just baby Christians feeding on milk, and gradually we move onto the meatier truths of the faith. Step by step, we gradually transition into spiritual adulthood.

1. Grace alone

            Salvation is by grace alone ( Eph. 2:8-9), it is not something we can in and of ourselves attain, it is God giving to us what we otherwise could not have. And the same is true for sanctification! It is not something that I can attain on my own:

            “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”  1 Cor. 15:10

            In counseling people I must always remember that it is only by God’s grace that they will ever handle their problems correctly. This helps me in two ways:

            First it gives me a proper view of myself, in that I am never the counselee’s savior! It is never my work, but God’s through me and I am then and therefore only a mirror instrument. Keeps me humble!

            Secondly gives me a right view of the counselee. Often I struggle in thinking “well at least I am not like that person” like as if I myself am able to keep me on the right path, but it is only by God’s grace if I am not like them! And besides if I am truly looking at them honestly and being truly honest with myself, I would realize that I am like them in some way shape, or form, and it is only by the grace of God that I am not just like them!

            “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have abundance for every good work.” 2 Cor. 9:8

            When we realize that we can’t do it on our own, and realize that our sanctification is through God alone, is when we are headed in the right direction.

Commitment to the sufficiency the church

            The church cannot be set aside! In this day and age, there are many who are forsaking the church and who are moving towards a different philosophy, one of worship on our own. And while it is true one can worship God alone, God still commands us to get together, to encourage and uplift one another and to be encouraged :

            “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” Heb. 10:5

            We were not made as independent creatures, but inter-dependent! We need God and others in our walk with Christ!

A. Not a separate entity: matt. 28:19-20

      God gave the command to disciple (counsel) to the church, thus I can never serve as a separate entity but always must serve and counsel others with the goal of getting them back into the church.

Conclusion:

            God has given me everything I need to be godly, but I must use what He has given: His Word, His Son, His Process and His Church!

            These things all need to be utilized and implemented in not only my counseling but my daily walk as well!

            I counsel every moment of everyday, may I realize the serious gravity there is in that statement and always be striving to be godly so that I can be a better instrument fit for the Father’s use. And may I always humbly serve, realizing that I am only a mere instrument! We don’t praise a violin after a wonderful concert that would be absurd! No we praise the instrumentalist, the one who used the violin to make music.

           

 The same goes for counseling (and really every ministry I am privileged to be used in) the ministry should never be about me, what I get out of it, but about God because it is His work not mine :

            1 Cor. 3:5-7 ^“Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.”

           

I don’t want to be gathering my rewards here on this earth like the Pharisees (“surely they have their reward). I don’t want the mere praise of depraved men, but the praise of the Almighty God! Yes I will have to wait for it but oh how much better to hear the words “well done thou good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord.” This ought always to be my aim, to lay hold of treasures in heaven, not on this earth.

Thankyou for taking the time to read. If you have any further thoughts I would love to hear your insights! If you have any further questions I welcome those as well!
God bless and keep you! May All Glory go to Him!

When crisis hits!

No one wants a crisis to come, but perhaps we should! We are always trying to protect ourselves from pain. In todays day and age we go to great lengths to either make pain easier or to get rid of it as much as we can.  God through the writer James tells us that we need to "count it all a JOY" when we encounter trials, and you see that "count it all joy" in the greek carries with it the idea of a hero riding in from the battle and all the people are yelling "hail welcome", and that is a picture of what we are to do with crisis. We should be able to say "hail welcome" to trouble, but why don't we? Why do we find this so hard?

Perhaps it is because we have the wrong veiw of crisis, though.... I hope that through this paper perhaps your eyes will be opened to the wondrous works that God brings about through crisis, if we but trust Him through each trouble we face. Perhaps at the end you will be able to radically say with James "Hail welcome!" to your next trial!

This is a philosophy of crisis paper that I wrote for a class of mine. It is currently twelve pages long but we are only allowed for it to be 4 to 5 pages...so obviously I have some work to do! But I hope that maybe it gives you some insight into crisis, so that you will be able to either be encouraged in your current crisis, or you will be better prepared for the ones that lie ahead!

A ten year old boy crosses the street on his way to awana club, when a car comes speeding down the street and hits the youth. The child is killed instantly right in front of his own house, by a drugged up teenage driver. The little boy’s brother witnesses the whole thing, and now blames himself for even letting his brother cross the street.

            A family is heart-broken by the news that there sporadically forgetful mother has Alzheimer’s, and now she can’t even remember who they are.

           

A godly mother of five is devastated when she discovers that her husband is involved in an affair and will not repent of it. Her son is now having thoughts of suicide because he is not sure why God would allow his mother, a godly Christian woman, to go through the heartache of losing her husband to an affair. 

           

A sixteen year old girl suffers a heart attack, and her family is gripped by the fear that she may not wake up from her coma.

            Many people think that crisis counseling is not important because one would rarely come into contact with situations where this would actually be needed.

            I know personally each of the families above.  I am just from small-town Iowa, I mean if anyone was going to “miss out” on witnessing crisis opportunities, it would be me. But no matter where we are in the world, or what our occupation ends up being, we are going to come into contact with crisis within our own lives and in the lives of others.         

Our lives are lived within a fallen world. They are not a not bed of roses, they are filled with thorns and the curse, mix that in with your sinful self, and a bunch of other sinful selves, and Satan,  and one would have to ask their self  “why would we ever come to the conclusion that we would never come into contact with crisis?” 

           

The families above, though different in the crisis’ they are in, have many things in common. They all are going to be called upon to make some serious changes. Things will never be the same for them in, they all need direction. They are all gripped by fear and they desperately need help, and if I have come into contact with these crises in the lives of those I know just in the short years of my life, there will definitely be more to come.  I must be prepared to help people face their particular crises in a way that pleases God and brings glory to Him. I must be able to point them to the God of all comfort!

           The Word of God does not always speak directly (word for word) to every possible problem or crisis that we will ever face. But it does help us to think like God in such a way that when we do face something that the Bible does not clearly speak on, we will be able to make the decision that God would have us to make.

The Bible also uses many different words for crisis. The following are just a few examples:

1. Trouble Psalm 107:26-28
2. Trial James 1:2
3. Temptation  James 1:12

            As with every aspect of our lives, God has a purpose in crisis. He is not that little boy on the anthill with a magnifying glass, searching for His next victim whom He can inflict pain and suffering on. No He is our loving heavenly Father who knows, and only sends, what is best and what is needed for our growth in our relationship with Him! The following are some of the purposes that God has in sending us crisis:

 To test our faith

            If you can’t test it you can’t trust it! When I go to sit on any chair, I never know if it is going to hold up under my weight until I sit on it, until pressure is placed on it. The same is true of our faith! We don’t know if it is real, if it is more than words, until pressure is placed on it, and the only way that pressure can come about is through hardship, and often this comes in the form of a crisis.

            James 1:3-4 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

            An example of this would be Job. He had done nothing wrong; it was just a test to see how strong his faith was. Also another example would be Abraham sacrificing Isaac.        To lose a child is a huge devastation, a huge crisis. Abraham had to trust God. We must all live with faith in Christ and often the way that this comes about is through crisis.

 To produce growth:

            When we accept Christ as our Savior we enter into a process of growth known as sanctification. And one of the ways that God brings growth about is through crisis.

            Often crisis is what it takes to shake us out of our apathy to see the sin that we were previously blinded to. Or sometimes it is just an opportunity to cause us to grow in our faith in Christ, in our dependence upon Him alone: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4

 To bring about our personal good

            When we are in the midst of a crisis we often struggle to see past the pain, past the situation, to the greater good that God is trying to bring about. Often in hind-sight, when we have stepped out of the trouble, we are able to see just what good God brought about.

            God promises in Romans 8:28 that He will work out all things for our good. That “all” there is encompassing because it includes everything from that wonderful visit at the doctor’s office where we are told that we have been cured of our cancer, to that car accident that takes the life of our son, we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that everything that happens to us is for our ultimate good whether we can see that “good” right away or not!

To bring about the good of others

            We are often told, ‘trials are for YOUR greater good.” And while this is true, perhaps there is an even higher reason for the sending of trials and crisis.

 I think of Phil. 2:3-4: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.  Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

            Life is not to be about just me. I have died to myself: so now I don’t live for me or even surrender to a trial just for me, but for Christ who lives within me.
            “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Gal. 2:20
           

Thus my trials and crisis, are never just about me. There really is a higher reason for the struggles we face, the surrenders that we make, than just our personal greater good, just our mere betterment.

            Oh yes there is greater good in it for me, but perhaps this is just a benefit, not the goal in and of itself! This is just the milk (our greater good), but there is meat to be found and strived for (the good of others)!

\To bring about God’s glory and plan

            But perhaps an even higher plain to focus on in crisis is the glory of God!

The glory of God is always to be our aim in everything we do:

            “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31

           

So whether we are sinking our teeth into a juicy steak and sipping sweet lemonade at a church barbeque, or whether we are in the hospital too gripped by fear to even eat, while we await the news from the doctor on the babies surgery, we are to do all of this for the glory of God! So that He can bring about His glory and plan. And though we may not see it right away we can know and trust that He will do as He promised and finish the work He started:

            “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;” Phil 1:6

            As an instrument in the hand of God, He has given me the following responsibilities to the counselee:

Remind the counselee of the purposes’ of God:

            Often in the midst of the crisis, people are so bogged down not only by the situation itself, but especially by their experience within that situation, that they can’t even come to grips with the truth that God has a purpose in all of this mess they are in.        My ministry to them will be to get to know them and the situation and their struggles within, and then to lovingly help them to lift their head above their situation and the struggles, to the God of all comfort. To the God who has a three-fold purpose in their trials: For their greater good (good), for the good of others (better), for the glory and plan of God (Best)!

B. Loving the counselee:

            This will involve my loving them enough to listen to them (really listen), and then to reach out and get to know, find out what they are struggling with. I must love them enough to see past the situation that they are in, to seeing them as a person, and find out what has them in its grip!

             Romans 13:8 is my life verse, because love in the end is all that will remain, and it is to be the guiding force in every interaction, especially in the midst of crisis:

            “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.” Romans 13:8.

C. Knowing the counselee:

            A lot of ministry opportunities are missed because of my failure to know people and to know them well. I need to know some key things within the counselee’s heart and the only way to do this is to ask good questions. Thus a huge part of my ministry will involve listening to the counselee and asking questions so I can better know how to speak the truth of God in such a way to them that His work can be accomplished:

            “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Col. 4:6

            The only way I can know how to answer people is to really listen to them and get to know them. To do anything to the contrary is selfish and foolish:

            “He who gives an answer before he hears, It is folly and shame to him.”

Prov. 18:13

D. Speaking God’s truth to Counselee:=

            I want to offer more than just coping with the situation, I want to offer them hope! And the only place that is found is in the Word of God. My responsibility will be to bring God’s Word to bear on their crisis, demonstrating the sufficiency of His Word. Speaking the only truth they can have:

            “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. “ Eph. 4:13

            “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. “ Col. 3:16

E. Providing accountability

            And lastly I need to be there for them, to provide accountability and to help them trust in the only One who can help them to make the changes that they will be called on to make. This will look different in each situation with each person, but one thing I must always do is:

            “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

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Gal. 6:2

The counselee’s responsibilities

            As a counselor I will be used of God to help call the counselee to the responsibilities that they have within each crisis. They must:

A. Recoginize God in their crisis:

            Again I will state that in the midst of a crisis (whether real or imagined) people are so gripped by the situation and their struggle in it, that they cannot see past it all to the God behind it all. It is as if they are stuck in quick sand, so focused on the quick sand (situation itself) and the fact that they are sinking down into it (their struggle) that they do not even see the hand that is just within arms reach, ready to pull them out. My goal then is to get them to recognize that hand, and to trust that hand, that the One behind everything can and will accomplish what He has set out to do: James 1:2-4, Ps, 105:16-19. God is at work in their crisis and I must remind them of this!

B. Either to come to faith in Christ or live with faith in Christ:

            Every person on the planet has one purpose, and that is to please God and bring glory to our Maker ( 1 Cor. 10:31)

            And they only way we can do this is by living with Faith in Christ:

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 1:16

            As a counselor my ministry to others will be to call them to faith in Christ (if they are unsaved), or to call them to live with faith in Christ (saved) especially in the midst of their crisis.

C. Remember that God is up to something good:

            Often in trials and crisis the most focus and emphasis is placed on the truth that God is up to something good for us, as an individual. But there are two even higher purposes, two higher focus’ that I must always call the counselee to.

Instead of placing the main focus on their good, I need to help them place their focus first on God’s purpose of His glory, then on God’s purpose for others, and lastly on God’s purpose for their own personal good.

            Take the example of Joseph. He faced some very hard, even painful (emotionally and physically) circumstances (Ps. 105: 16-22)

           

 And yes His troubles were good for him, he learned from them, but they were not just good for him. His troubles were also good for his brother’s, They learned some great lessons. His troubles were also good for his father and family, in that they had the food they desperately needed. His troubles also brought about the greatergood of Egypt in that they survived the famine as well. But perhaps an even higher reality than all of that is the ultimate good of ALL mankind ( even you and I today).
           

I say this because if God had not provided a leader in Joseph, all of Jacob and his sons would have died.  And perhaps that does not seem significant, but who came through their line? Jesus Christ did! If they had died their line would have died with it as well!
            So crisis is never just about the counselee’s good, but rather about God and His plan and His glory! I must call them to this higher aim!

Romans 8:28 Our greater good (good focus).

Gen. 50:20 The greater good of others (better focus)

1 Cor. 10:13 The Glory of God (Best focus)

D. Get involved in what God is doing

            This will obviously look different and vary from person to person. I mean look at Job, in his crisis he was called to just endure some very hard and painful experiences, and that he was called on to trust in God day in and out, facing the ridicule of his wife and friends, and not curse God.

Then we look at Joseph, who also went through some very difficult trials.

We see that he was called on to serve as a slave

Psalm 105:16-19

            “God called down famine on the land and destroyed all their supplies of food; and he sent a man before them— Joseph, sold as a slave.

And we also see that he was called to lead:

            “The king sent and released him, the ruler of peoples set him free. He made him master of his household, ruler over all he possessed, to instruct his princes as he pleased and teach his elders wisdom.” Psalm 105: 20-22

Sometimes we may be called to just sit and wait and to trust God, other times we will be called to more actively be involved. But either way you dice it, we are always called to live with faith in God and to live for His glory and praise and to serve and love others!

Conclusion

            Crisis counseling is highly important, because no life is ever totally free from crisis (whether real or imagined). And I must always be available to be used of God as an instrument in the life of another. This will mean that I have to endure trials myself, because that is the only way that God can use me effectively in the life of another:

            “Who comforts us in all our tribulation that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. But the emphasis and focus is never to be placed upon me as a counselor, for I cannot really help people, I am just an instrument, and the player of the instrument is the One we always focus on, the One I call others to focus on as well, for all else fails:

            “Give us help from trouble, For the help of man is useless.” Ps. 108:12