Category: <span>God’s Psychology</span>

“…what is capable of strength must be made strong. This is the Divine Law throughout all of life…” The Expositors Bible., “The world is ‘a vale of soul making,’ a great sculptors shop, and we are the statues.” “…the statues must endure many blows of the chisel and be hardened in the fire.” “This is not optional.” “…without it we have no face with which to face God.” Kreeft quotes C.S.Lewis from one of his allegorical books, “How can we meet the gods face to face till we have faces?” “That is the meaning of life: getting a face, becoming real…” Peter Kreeft. A person acquires a face? “Aaron, the high priest, went into the Holy of Holies once a year, he had to burn incense on the coals coming out from the outer altar so that he couldn’t see the mercy seat. He had to look up, because he wasn’t…

Wonderment, bewilderment, elation, happiness, joviality, dreaming, wishing and hoping; 1. sleepy and groggy 2. excitement 3. pure joy 4. especially nice 5. tipsy and giggly. 6. arguments 7.  happy 8.  gluttony 9. impatience 10. Absolute delight 11. fit to burst. 12. competitive 13. Laughter and cringing 14. Uncomfortably full 15. Sleepy but proud 16. Delirious 17. dozy but content.  From housebeautiful: Feelings happen Yule-tide but then there’s a unique one to the season: “The holidays can bring nostalgia, an emotion with important benefits, according to a nostalgia expert.” “Holidays bring holiday memories, and, often a sense of nostalgia for good times long gone, perhaps even loved ones long gone.” “This bittersweet nostalgia helps us feel connected, both around the holidays and at other times. And, it can be a salve to those suffering through hard times, according to nostalgia expert Krystine Batcho, a professor of psychology at Le Moyne College in New York. it was originally coined in 1688 by a medical physician as a term to indicate homesickness in young soldiers. He viewed homesickness as a physical illness…

“Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,  Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” Job 38:1-2 “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily?” Psalm 13:2 “O my God, my soul is cast down within me:” Psalm 42:6 “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me?” Psalm 42:6 “lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death — hope thou in God.” There are four characteristics of a person who hides in their self counsel. First, they live in self-preservation. Secondly, a person who is hiding in Adam lives in self-defense mechanisms. The third characteristic  is self-absorption. Fourth, self-occupation According  to Dr. Carl H. Stevens, founder of Greater Grace Church in  Baltimore Md. these 4 characteristics progress in the self-counseled soul. The self-absorbed become distracted and blinded to God’s viewpoint and…

    “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Timothy 1:5 “Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.” 1 Timothy 3:9 “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck.” 1 Timothy 1:19 Faith seems to depend on conscience, but what about these; purity, love? Faith grasps a mystery, a secret. Faith holds function in a (katheros) conscience. our English derivative is katharsis which is a cleansing. The blood of Christ, applied by the Spirit,  cleanses our conscience from dead works, to serve the living God, simply put. Conscience accuses or excuses the owner.  A good conscience has good constitution or nature, is useful, good, pleasant, agreeable, and joyful..” A good conscience functions right. What else does it do?  It bears witness, producing a “knowledge by the side of the original consciousness…

Common sense can cure some depression but folks who renege at receiving God’s grace may be the source of their own problem. Common sense often requires no spiritual insight, and unchristian men and women may handle their depression by simple coping. They understand things like “no sense crying over spilled milk.” Here are some more common sense sayings: “Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.” Edmund Burke blrainyquote.com “The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.”  H. Jackson Brown, Jr.”  brainyquote.com How could these men know these things? Martyn Lloyd Jones said this, “Christianity is common sense and much more, but it includes common sense.” He goes on: “Let us then lay this down as a principle…We must never for a second worry about anything that cannot be affected or changed by us…It is a waste of energy…if you can…

  “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” Philippians 4:11-12 I’m good at abounding but not so much with abasement. Why does God allow abasement? It means “to humble,” which conjures up thoughts of pain, so this is why most folks don’t get content with it. Yes, pain we cringe at, but humility itself brings something special. Paul became content since humility brings self-satisfying; it brings us closer to God . “The perfect meekness that comes from self-humbling brings with it an all-embracing concentration on the goodness and love of God.” “None of the acts of God, whether in…

  Routine means: conventional, regular, unremarkable, usual, familiar, general and like words. Routine’s opposite means: abnormal, different, eccentric, extraordinary, irregular, special, strange, uncommon, unconventional, unusual, variable, breaking, original, untraditional. ”     Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus,  The Christian life carries both elements, but, too much “routine” becomes unchristian. Frankly the idea of “special” was added to our routine existence at the point of salvation. Unusual events began, untraditional acts exhilarated us, extraordinary gifts were being discovered, and unconventional wisdom began to rule over our familiar and general existence. Christ entered our heart and mind! Paul taught us: “When Christ, who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Collosians 3:4 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”  Philippians 1:21 “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we…

  “In consequence of the first sin, the internal nature of man became possessed by death. How? …by the (decomposing) of the previous unity of the (many human) powers (complimenting one another) … in the life of the spirit and of the soul, and of the disappearance of the spiritual life in God’s image, and its reflection in the soul.” from Delitzsch and Wallis “A System of Biblical Psychology” paraphrase “…when Satanic thoughts of a loveless God found entrance into man’s mind, then entered enmity (an enemy) into the place of love … soul, at peace in God, fell into confusion, and kindled in passionate eagerness opposed to God.” Same source. “The tree of knowledge was to lead man to the knowledge of good and evil; and, according to the divine intention, this was to be attained through his not eating of its fruit. This end was to be accomplished… through obedience to the…

  Blessings are upon the head of the righteous (man or woman), their:  lips feed many memory is blessed mouth is a well of life labor tends to life walk is sure tongue is as choice silver desire shall be granted hope is gladness lips know what is acceptable mouth brings forth wisdom integrity shall guide them righteousness shall direct their steps life shall be delivered and seed also desire is only good. When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted Righteousness exalts a nation Proverbs 10 and 11 above, declare the fruit of righteousness. Who is righteous? All who are in Christ. “But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness,…:”  1 Corinthians 1:30 How do I get it? “Abraham believed God… it was counted unto him as…

And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. Genesis 6:5-8 With: Licentiousness raging. Violence prevailing. Corruption deepening; But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Mattthew 24:37-39 People will be: self-loving, money-loving,  proud, arrogant, insulting, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, uncontrolled, brutal, hateful of good, traitorous, headstrong,…