When you get married, intuitively you sign up to have fun. You know there will be some responsibility, but really you think there will also be some fun involved. After all, it took you all these years to find your ultimate playmate, your spouse!
This may or may not come as a surprise to you, but so many people blame God for their out of control behavior. How many of you have seen the T-shirts “born to shop” or “born for chocolate?” I know we all laugh, but unfortunately for some, we actually believe in our hearts that somehow God himself has some responsibility for the out of control areas of our life.
As a counselor, I have helped many people grieve many different events or realities in their lives. In grief counseling, the model for grief comes from Kübler Ross who studied people dying. She identified the grief stage as: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, sadness, and acceptance.
It is time to get emotionally stronger! This exercise is going to take you to another level of experiencing your emotions and expanding your ability to feel any emotion you choose. Remember, emotions are not cognitions or thoughts. Emotions are an entirely different way through which we experience, process, and influence our environment and relationships.
Revelation 2:20 introduces the “woman Jezebel.” The Lord is using a name from the Old Testament to describe this woman’s character. The original Jezebel was introduced in the book of 1 Kings as the wife of King Ahab. She had profound influence and used it for evil. She quickly became the most feared person in Israel. The Bible records several incidents that made her infamous for evil deeds ranging from false accusations to mass murder to assassination to forgery. The name Jezebel is casually used as a woman who cheats, is immoral or controlling. She derived her power from her sexuality; she got all dolled up for Jehu even though he killed her husband, King Ahab and used it to dominate, control, manipulate, and murder. From that one sin came all the other evils that plagued Israel during her reign. One result of her seduction was the massacre of the prophets of the Lord. She even struck fear into Elijah’s heart, one of the most powerful prophets ever to walk the earth. In…
Marriage being a trinity between God, man, and woman is what separates a Christian definition of marriage from every version or perversion of marriage any culture or individual can decide upon.
Legend has it that there was a day not so long ago when men were more sexually pure. There was a day when a man gave his word on his wedding day to forsake all others, and he did exactly what he said he would do. He stayed married and faithful to the wife God gave to him to cherish. In that day, it was expected that men would keep their word to their wives and to others. A man was as good as his word, as the stories say.
One of the top five lies that lust likes to use is, “You can handle this by yourself.” Once you believe this lie, all hope of you getting better is gone.
For the most part, my career has been dedicated to helping addicts get sober and become amazing emotional, spiritual, and moral adults. I see the miracle of recovery from addiction every week.
I’m going to get a little theological for a moment to explain where your healing and freedom is and why. I want to share with you a revelation that helped me make sense of why I needed to confess to another person to be made free. This is why “just Jesus and I” wasn’t working, and why I couldn’t get free earlier in my life.
I have counseled with many men over the years who have doubled or more than doubled their income shortly after cleaning up the area of sexuality in their lives.
The phrase “not possible” is by far the most paralyzing lie lust has in its arsenal. The lie, “it’s not possible to be lust-free” is quite simple, but its impact can have decades of results.
Everyone has their own journey down the river of growth and change. Many of us have rapids to overcome--otherwise known as behaviors we just can’t seem to get control over. For some of you the behavior may be rage, for others it’s complacency, apathy or even addictions to work, food or exercise.
Maintaining sexual success while you build whatever kingdom you are trying to build is the cornerstone. A sexually healthy brain is critical.
Since founded, Heart to Heart Counseling Center has always maintained a holistic approach of treating clients.Studies show that 80 percent of women suffer from hormonal imbalances. Some women live with these imbalances without even realizing it; in fact, 70 percent are unaware of conditions that may have manifested due to hormonal irregularities. For men, studies indicate that hormone levels fall nearly one percent each year after they reach 30 years old. The human body produces hundreds of hormones, but the following four of them have a direct influence on brain health/mental health:
Reported affairs for ministry and local church leaders appear at almost epidemic levels. We all see the newspapers and other news media that seem to salivate at another allegation of an affair in the body of Christ. I, for one, would like us to do as much as possible to affair-proof the marriages of our Christian leaders as well as the members of our churches. I want you to take these ideas and put them into action (James 1:22) to inoculate your marriage from an affair and truly enjoy your marriage to the fullest.
John is 40 years old and has been married for more than 12 years and has 2 children. He has been fortunate to have climbed a corporate ladder and is making more than $200K a year.
Pornography?
The biggest lie I have heard among Christian men about their sexual addiction is that “it’s not hurting anybody else.” Nothing could be further from the truth of God’s Word or His Heart.
Adultery and fornication are real, and according to Scripture have many consequences for you and your family. Your future, in so many ways, can be destroyed in this specific area. As a psychologist who hears about these tough situations every day, I have seen families, careers, ministries, and fortunes destroyed by men who traveled this road to trouble, never believing there would be a toll to pay for being on it.
John is 40 years old and has been married for more than 12 years and has 2 children. He has been fortunate to have climbed a corporate ladder and is making more than 200K a year.
I want to take a few minutes to talk to you about the gift of your spouse. If you have kids, as a good parent, you take the gifts of your children very seriously. You realize God gave you that child or children as gift(s), and that each child has several gifts inside his or her little being. That is the way I think it ought to be, at least.
Lust has so many different angles it uses to lie to you. One of the oldest lies told to men is, “Different is better.” It’s the same as the old adage, “The grass is always greener on the other side.”
As an American or Western believer, culturally we are trained to appreciate the instantaneous in our lives, whether it be instant coffee, instant microwaveable food or popcorn, instant Internet access, instant cell phone access, and more. How many times a day do we push a button of some type and something occurs instantly?