Category: depression (Page 3 of 6)

There is Fear Because of Wild Fires, Riots, and the Pandemic

September 11, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

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The wild fires are out of control. Two big fires are about to merge here, and then that area will be an inferno. I pray that you are not affected by the fires. We are on a stage one here right now. The fires are about 15-20 miles away. That is pretty close.

So may people are under tremendous stress right now. There are the wild fires, rioting in the big cities, looting and arson, plus the pandemic. It is pretty overwhelming for the average Joe like me.

This is suicide prevention month. I fear that many people are thinking there is no more hope and are considering this. Do not let the dark side overcome you! Go to the light of Jesus. He is your fortress, your comfort, and your savior. Pray to him for your families and your safety.

If you are at the end of your rope and can’t go on, there is a toll free number to call for help. There are highly qualified counsleors there to help you. They will not hang up until the know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255

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When I think of all of this turmoil, I think of Paul, who was shipwrecked, beaten, put in jail, bitten by a snake, and disliked by many people.

Yet, this man fought hard for the Lord. He loved the people. He reached out to them, and gave them comfort.

This was a man that was killing Jews, and dispised by his fellow people. He had his awaking on the road to Damascus. Jesus wondered why he was so against Him. Paul fell down and was blinded for a while. That woke him up big time.

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Where are you at today? Do you dispise the way God is running the show? Do you wish He would end all of the tragic happens? I am with you there. I so would like all this pain to go away, but we have to always remember, GOD IS IN CHARGE!

He knows what is happening, and there is a reason for His approach.

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We, as Christians have to be strong to show those who do not believe how we react, and then they will say, “I want to be like them.”

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If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit for the site, please let them know about it. Your comments will not be seen by other people, just me, and I will connect with you to see if you are OK to share it.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

It is Pretty Depressing to be in This World Right now

September 4, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

It has been hard times here in Salem, Oregon. I live very close to Portland, Oregon, and it is breaking my heart to see all the violence and looting going on there. Another person has been shot and killed.

We are living in very different times. In Portland, there was a time when they closed the streets to go to church. Now they close the streets to rioting.

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We need to look beyond the struggle. We need to seek what ahead of us.

I was fearing for our country, and yet my fear doesn’t stand a chance when I stand with God’s love. It seems we are all broken at this point. We need healing.

Every night before I go to sleep I pray the following prayers:

I pray for the leaders of our country.

I pray for the local leaders of Oregon.

I pray for my children and their spouses.

I pray for my grandchildren.

I pray for my wife.

I pray for all my relatives.

I fall asleep in the hope of the Lord.

We need to have important people in our lives to also give us hope. This is needed in case we fall. We are better together. We can not take on this world on our own.

There are some who are happy, some are sad. Some are healthy, and some are ill. There are many who are poor and others who are rich. This is the main reason we need to come together as one. Reaching out to each other. Giving support to those who need it.

Does it seem too hard in our world today? We need to get back to when it wasn’t hard.

Do I love the rioters? Am I really concerned about their well being? If I truly follow Jesus, I do love them and are concerned for them. If we don’t have God as our center piece we will fail.

We need to find encouragement in discouraging times. It is hard, I know. We need to seek it, and we can find it in the Bible. It has a complete guide for encouragement.

I thought about all of this and it honestly sounded pretty depressing. Again I remembered that God doesn’t purposely take us down the worst path, He takes us through the best path possible for us.

He knows there are good things coming. He knows that we will be freed from our burdens. We can’t think that God has turned away from us, we will lose all hope. He is there with you each and every day.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all….never, ever, give up!

Do You Hate Being Told What to do?

August 28, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

We struggle with criticism. It is hard to be told what to do.

Proverbs says, “Timely advice is like gold and apples in a silver basket.” Another verse from Proverbs says, “The ones who listen to advice is like a gold earring. “

Why is it so hard to accept criticism? I know that we all hope we never receive criticism. It hurts, and make us feel unworthy.

At this time we need to realize that others opinions does not define us.

Now that I have said all of that, let me say that most criticism is good for us. The wise listen to others. We need to receive and assess.

So, why am I harping on criticism and being told what to do.?

If I am truly listening and assessing, it helps me growing. I filter out the negative and thrive on the good ideas.

Proverbs once again tells us, “Iron sharpens iron.” Meaning that to have someone criticise me, means I am getting sharper at what I need to do in life.

Words have power. They can help you, or they can hurt you.

Through all of this we often get down and depressed. It is can be easy to be broken and hurting. We need healing. That’s where God comes in. He is always there to soften the blows of criticism, and anger. He will be there to hold your hand, and help you to face the storm.

Have you been criticised? Were you felt knocked down and find it hard to get back up? I certainly have been there. When it happens to me is when I need to closest to God. I need to lean on Him for His love and compassion. My fear of criticism doesn’t stand a chance when I stand in God’s love.

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I have been battling lately because of the Pandemic. I have been on lock down, because I have several underlying problems. Thankfully I am able to get out and walk, but that is about it. I never thought that going on walks would be so precious to me.

My wife and I often just get in the car and drive to nowhere in particular. We have seen some places we have never been before right in our city. It has been a fresh air feeling.

There are other things that can drag you down. The rioting, shootings, looting, etc. It is very hard for me to watch the news anymore. Most of it is very negative. I have to find other things to do. I came up with a novel idea. READ THE BIBLE! (creative right?)

I make 10:00am my reading time. There are times when I learn something new every time I read. I have the Bible through several times, and yet each time I read again, I find something that I learned that was new.

Stay strong!

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Through Afflictions, We Know That God Will Do Something Better

August 14, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

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The dictionary says:

Affliction: A state of pain, distress, grief, or misery.

That is a sorry state of affairs. Who would want to be afflicted?

Some examples of affliction:

A single mom with one child has to work had to provide for her son, and also pay the bills.
A young college student is taking 18 units of credits. He has a job to help pay for his tuition. Then he goes home on the weekends to care for his ailing mother.

Those afflictions are hard to bear, but in each case the person is doing it out of love.

Do you have overwhelming burdens?

Is life not good to you?

Here is a recipe for a cure for all of this:

Be joyful.
Be prayfull.
Be grateful.

You are saying WHAT? You want me to do all that during my afflictions?

Yes, and I am saying for you to do those three things without ceasing. During these times we need to have a running conversation with God.

He is our fortress, our protector, and He is our loving Father.

He knows what each of us is going through. God is not ignoring us. He is taking the same steps we do, and is walking beside us each step of the way.

I have had my share of physical afflictions, and some wonder how I can be upbeat through all of my pain. It is simple for me, but hard to understand. The more afflictions I have the more help I can give others who are going through the same things.

When I think about my afflictions, I think of Paul who had many more afflictions then anyone can emagine.

He was shipwrecked, bitten by a snake, beaten, thrown in prison, and people wanted to kill him.

His thoughts on that were that he too could use those moments to reach out more to others.

Another person who had way more afflictions than we can grasp was Jesus Christ. He was shunned by his own people. They cursed at him, spit upon him, beat Him, put thorns on His head. They even crucified Him.

He had many afflictions, but He knew that God had something better through all of His torture.

How about you? Do you feel overburdened? Are you thinking the world is out to get you?

You are not alone. Many people are feeling the same way with all the turmoil that is around us. There are the Pandemic, rioting, shootings, killings, threats from our enemies.

We are under daily afflictions.

Stay strong! Be grateful for what God has in mind for you. Pray without ceasing, and, yes even be joyful.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all….never, ever, give up!

Are You Desperate for God’s Word?

August 13, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

I am as bad as some are who don’t read their Bible every day. I think about God often. I pray to Him every day. I never miss a prayer, but I miss times I could be reading and learning.

In my prayers I need to start asking God to give me the desire to read His Word. I need to be hungry for it. I need to realize that it is life’s manual for survival.

I have come up with a plan to stop whatever I am doing and read every day at 10:00am. It doesn’t need to be a long time in the book. Just read!

It just happens to be 10:00 am, so I best be reading.

(Later)

I felt the need to read Proverbs. Most of Proverbs was written by Solomon, the son of David, who was the King of Israel.

Solomon was a very wise man. He made judgements for people. They lined up to ask him his advice.

One day two women came before him both claiming that a child was there’s. He asked them many questions to see who the real mother was and then he said, “I will have the child cut in half and you both can have him.” One woman screamed, “No Master! This woman can have my son so he will still be alive.”

Solomon instantly knew who the real mother was, and gave her the son. She truly loved her son enough to give him away so that he could live.

That is what I learned by reading today. I am blessed!

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Are you struggling during all the turmoil right now? A pandemic is killing our people. There is rioting in many cities. There are many people out of work because of the pandemic.

How can we survive all of this?

Go to the top of this page and read again. We need to be in God’s word to survive. We need to find comfort and hope through His Word.

God’s Word is a manual of guidance we can all use. Just take one half hour of each day to read His Word and grow.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

You have to Go Through Basic Training to Survive in This World

August 11, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

I was in the Military. I am a Army veteran. I was deployed to South Korea. My heart goes out to all those who are serving now around the world.

Before you get trained in your MOS (job,) you need to go through basic training. This is eight week of torture and pain.

You have the crawling on the ground with live ammo go over your head. You have a gas chamber you have to go through without a mask. You throw grenades hoping you get it out of your hand. Then there is the shooting range. Don’t forget the many push-ups you do all day, because the drill sergeant loves you.

Now think of this as a Christian. You have to go through basic training once you accept christ into your heart.

Being a Christian is not for sissies.

God wants you to be part of His Army. He wants to train us in a certain way. The grace that saves us is the same grace that trains us.

When we have storms and trials, we should consider them as training.

Where do we get the training? The Bible. Even long time Christians need the Bible. We are never too old to need to learn more. The Bible bridges all racial, cultural, and social deviations. The Bible is for everyone, not just Christians.

Reading the Bible is not the goal. The goal is to grow spiritually while reading the Bible.

However, just reading the Bible is not enough.

We go to church.
We Read the Bible.
We serve in the church.

What we really need to do is to be concerned about God’s glory.

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How are you doing? Do you feel you still need a lot of training? Are there times when you slide just a little bit and not go to church one Sunday? That is where it starts. Never shrink backwards when it comes to God.

Always keep learning. Always keep training. The world is tough out there. Put on the armor of God, and be ready for what comes.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

The Best Four Letter Word in the World is Hope

August 9, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

Times are not friendly on our planet. There are riots, pandemics, shootings, and violence.

Some people do not know what hope is. They hide in their basements and try to not face the world.

You often see the picture of an animal sticking his head in the sand out of fear. That is what we are facing.

What things do we need to do to overcome all of this?

Suggestions:

God never wavers. He is always by your side.
Jesus went all the way for you and I to have eternal life.
99% of what we worry about never happens.
When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Block out all the negative stuff in your brain and replace it with positive stuff.
Walls form. Work your way around them, through them, or under them.

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In the title I mentioned that hope is the best four letter word in the world. Well, the worst word in the world is hopelessness. Just the opposite of hope.

Hope is an anchor for our lives. This anchor solidifies like a boat in the wind. our hopes are in the promises of God.

Hope is my favorite word. I have two books with the word hope in them. The first one is Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World. This book won a national award from the Readers Favorite Awards. You can order a copy from this site.

My second book that is almost finished is called, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life. This book is reaching out to veterans and current service members who may be struggling with PTSD, TBI, depression, anxiety, etc.

Why am I writing this book? I am heart broken that 22 veterans or service members, are taking their own lives every day. Yes, I said every day. I am hoping this book will help bring that number down to zero.

Cling to hope. Hope gives you a chance to face life as we know it today.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

There Are “Karens,” Out There Who are Racist

August 3, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

There is far too much anger floating around. I saw a Facebook page that shows a “Karen,” yelling racist words at two girls who were from Asia. The words were of course hurtful. The two girls took it, and kept walking.

I have no idea where they came up with the term “Karens,” I have friends who have that name. However, it is now a label, and you see far too much of them hurting people.

Makes me think of the Bible. In Luke: 25-37 we are told that Samaritans were hated by the Jews. People ignored them and were forbidden to associate with them.

Jesus told a parable about this.

A man was walking on a road back to his home. A thief attacked him and took all of his belongings. He left the person for dead on the road.

He laid there bleeding and dying. Along came a priest. When he saw the man he went to the other side of the road to pass him. Likewise a Levite also went to the other side of the road to avoid him. But a Samaritan came to where he was and had deep compassion. He fixed up his wounds and put him on his own animal. He took him to an Inn, and asked them to care for him. He said he would pay for anything they used to help him.

Jesus told his disciples to do like the Samaritan.

Which one are you of the three men do you fit into? Are you the Priest, Levite, or the Samaritan?

It is so easy to get angry. It happens to all of us. We probably wouldn’t attack someone and take all their belongings, but we do get overly angry at times.

I try to think about someone who may have made me angry. I have learned that love extends further than pride. We need to swallow our pride, and forgive people.

Who has the lord placed in your path to make you angry. Make a list right now. I have done that. It is sitting right next to me.

Thank of each one of them. What did they do to make you angry? Is it worth it to just go on like it didn’t happen?

I think not.

Love is not just love. It is love in action.

Using words like you are expendable, or you are worthless, should be in our vocabulary.

The sad part is that we seem to define ourselves by who we disagree with.

It is OK to disagree, but not to hate.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never unloved.

You are never forsaken.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

Do What God Wants You to Do, Not What You Want to Do.

July 31, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

Not long ago I saw a fly trying to get out by banging on a window with its head. It was getting nowhere. He never gave up. He kept pounding that window over and over again.

I finally opened the window to let him out to the fresh air. Guess what? He still stayed in his spot and kept hitting the window.

Many of us are like that. We struggle on our own and try to face life without God. We need to end that! We need to stop trying do do what we want to do for our lives, and do what God wants for our lives.

We go around like using a GPS in our car. If we make a wrong turn it says recalculate.

Well, you have your own personal GPS. You may think it is guiding you in the right direction, then you hit the wall. That is when God says, “recalculate!”

Let ME guide you!

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What are you favorite foods? I love pumpkin pie. I also love peanut butter. Both of these sweeten my tooth and soothes me.

Here are some better sweeteners:

Wisdom sweetens your soul.
Optimism (gluten free by the way) also sweetens your soul.

These sweeteners are non fattening, and good for you.

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Some thoughts about God:

God will never abandon you.
God’s power is much greater than any evil.
God fits into your plan.
God’s Son died to provide eternal life.
God has promised to help you when you are in need.

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Take an inventory of your life. Are things going in the right direction for you? If not, what is causing you to not be going in the right direction?

God allows U-turns. Now is the time to turn around.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…Never, ever, give up!

God Never Calls us to do Something easy

July 29, 2020 / Butch / 0 Comments

We are certainly in tough times in our country. The Pandemic virus is growing fast. There is mass rioting throughout our country. People are out of work because of the Pandemic. Children can not go back to school to learn.

I was told the other day that this is a huge sign of the end times.

It may be, but what do we do if it is?

We need to have FAITH!

1 Faith is always true.

2. Faith always goes forward.

3. When God speaks to us we have enough faith to say yes.

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God is in the business of doing the impossible. It sure makes you wonder why he is allowing so much chaos. Remember…God is in charge.

The world was shocked when President Trump won the presidential election. Shouldn’t have happened? GOD IS IN CHARGE!

He is watching over us. The next question is… Why is He allowing so much tragedy to happen? This is a tough question. However, God gave us choices. He allowed us to make our own decisions, and then face Him later. That is why dictators exist. That is why there is sex trafficking. That is why there are wars. That is hard for us to have to face, but it is reality with god.

All the rioters, seem to think what they are doing and is noble. They think they are heroes. God will be speaking to each of them later.

How about you? Are you walking the narrow path, or the wide path to destruction? God knows and you know. He knows every hair on your head. There is no place to hide from Him.

Now, I have made God sound like a mean, awful person. Know that He loves you very much. He made you in His own image. He wants the best for you.

BUT, we have to abide by His rules, not ours. There is a wonderful manual to guide you on how to act and how to be. It is called the Bible. If you read and live by it, you are in God loving graces.

So, God never calls us to do anything easy. A friend once told me,”Life is tough and then you die.” Pretty sad. That was many years ago that he told me that, but it still sticks with me today.

Don’t be allowing the dark side to overcome you. Look to the light, which is Jesus Christ our Lord. He died so that you have a chance for eternal life. I say you have a chance, because you have to accept him as your personal savior to receive that gift.

Life IS tough, but be strong and know that God is with you during your storms.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…Never, ever, give up!

Category: depression (Page 3 of 6)

There is Fear Because of Wild Fires, Riots, and the Pandemic

It is Pretty Depressing to be in This World Right now

Do You Hate Being Told What to do?

Through Afflictions, We Know That God Will Do Something Better

Are You Desperate for God’s Word?

The Best Four Letter Word in the World is Hope

There Are “Karens,” Out There Who are Racist

Do What God Wants You to Do, Not What You Want to Do.

God Never Calls us to do Something easy

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