God’s Plan For Single Women
fEBRUARY 2011
Transformation and Process with Nicole Guyton
Interview with Gospel Artist:
Martha Munizzi
ARE YOU LIVING THE PROVERBS LIFE?
IS UNFORGIVENESS HINDERING YOU?
Contents
Table of Contents
Editor ’s Letter
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Transformation and Process...Page 4 Interview With Martha Munizzi...Page 6 Go Down To The Potter’s House...Page 8
roverbs Life Magazine is growing leaps and bounds! I am truly amazed at how God has opened up doors for this magazine. after being online for 3 and a half years. This issue features Martha Munizzi, a gospel artist sensation! We have been truly honored with receiving such an interview with Mrs. Munizzi. On top of other things, I just wanted to personally encourage each and every one of you to press toward the mark! Sometimes, things may not look it it’s working out, and perhaps, it may seem true...IN THE NATURAL. My advice is to keep your eyes focused on Jesus and lean not to your own understanding.
All In A Day’s Blog...Page 13 The Case of Unforgiveness...Page 15 God’s Plan For Single Women...Page 18 Testimony Street...Page 21
I cannot stress the importance of staying focused! Distractions happen all the time, but understand that you have the power to control your thoughts. Proverbs Life Magazine emphasizes on how to use wisdom on a daily basis in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle in Jesus Christ. As Proverbs Life Magazine grows, it is my prayer that each and every one of you will be blessed and encouraged by what Proverbs Life Magazine produces! Keep the faith fam! I love each and every one of you!
In Christ,
Proverb of the Month
Kaylania Chapman 2
“A discerning person keeps wisdom in view, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth” - Proverbs 17:24
Staff and Credits Our Author and Finisher
CEO/Editor In Chief Kaylania Chapman Contributing Writers & Content Specialists Minister Belinda Beach Pamela Yvonne Hatter Monica Michelle Ronald “DJ Ronnie Ron” Smith Shatara Crittenden Kimberly Thomas Patrice Alvarez Patricia Taylor Patrice Helligar Nikia Hastie Noni Tate
Proverbs Life Magazine Contact Information Snail mail: Proverbs Life Magazine P.O. BOX 150903
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Kaylania Chapman
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Transformation and Process by Nicole Guyton, MA, LPCC
What does it really mean to have faith? I always said that Job is my hero, because he stood on his faith in God. He did not let anyone or anything diminish his faith. How many of us let situ tions take us away from God’s promise and His word? How many times do we start off in the spirit, but end in the flesh? MANY! I say this boldly because of the state of the church and the mentality of our people. There are fallen communities, youth, families, and even ministers of the Gospel that have broken hearts and broken dreams. Some even struggle with shame and guilt from the past. We ask God for 100% and give him and His people fifty. We lend without having,give with other motives, and praise God with false expectations! It is impossible to please Him without faith and when you revert to the World’s law and way of doing things, it is being done in the flesh without faith. When you get scared or begin to doubt, you are in the flesh without faith. When Satan knocks on your door, your finances are down, and you revert to the flesh thinking you can handle it on your own, you are without faith. I use to stand guilty of this atrocity towards God. My conscious would always try to
work things out, instead of turning to God and allowing Him to work it out for me. Four years ago, I gave up everything for a vision and a dream and I knew that it was God’s timing. It was hard to let go of everything I worked hard for to realize later that everything I owned and everything I am belongs to God. I’ve always been on top, was praised for my work, but no one would hire me.
If you have any current problems or situations in the areas of relationships, parenting, careers, or just life in general that you are struggling with and would like some Biblical guidance or direction, email: nguyton@proverbslifemagazine.com.
Choose Blessings and Life, RESISTANCE IS FATAL! (Deuteronomy 30:19) NG Disclosure: Nicole will discuss your situation in the next issue of Proverbs Life Magazine. In order to keep strict confidentiality between you and Nicole, your name and email will not be used. This commentary is not for counseling or giving advice. It is solely for the purpose of Christian empowerment pertaining to life situations.
People were lying on me, thought bad of me, and it was a lonely “PROCESS”. I was down to my last “PRIDE”. Today, I thank God for “TRANSFORMATION”! I was down to nothing in order to be able to better serve God and show the world His greatness. Now I utilize faith! I know now that Pride is an ugly thing that is not apparent in the beginning, but after God knocks you down enough, you can find out the root of your ways. Thank God for Mercy, Grace, and Understanding, because I was able to see the error in my ways and I allowed the Word of God to fix them. I learned that I can’t fix anything without God no matter how hard I tried. Now I submit to allowing God to use me and He will use you too, but only if you submit to His will!
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Nicole Guyton Proverbs Life Magazine Contributing Writer
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SPOTLIGHT
Interview with Gospel Recording sensation: Martha Munizzi! Interview by Yvonne “Tehillah” Hatter
Interview with Martha Munizzi Welcome to the Proverbs Life Magazine Artist Spotlight. I look forward to sharing the testimonies and music of independent gospel artists with you in every issue of Proverbs Life Magazine. The Spotlight for this issue is shining on Grammy Award nominated, and Stellar Award winning artist, Martha Munizzi. I had the honor of interviewing Minister Martha and was truly blessed by her testimony and sweet spirit. Here is an excerpt of our chat: Tehillah: Hello Sis. Martha and thank you Woman of God for taking time out of your busy schedule to chat with us today. Martha Munizzi: Thank you Tehillah, I am honored to be a part. Tehillah: What is the name of your new project? Martha Munizzi: The project I currently have out now is ‘Change The World’. It was released a couple of years ago, and we just recorded our brand new CD entitled ‘Make It Loud’ which will be released in the Spring of 2011. It is a combination of great musicians and singers from Central Florida. My husband and I have a burden on our heart for our hometown here in Orlando, Florida to host what we call ‘Nights of Epic Worship’ where we go to different churches, and the Pastors have graciously opened their doors to us. We use all local singers and musicians from our city, who are busy working in their local churches. It’s been incredible! Tehillah: Minister Martha the world has praised and worshipped to your music for years and it would seem that you’ve reached the pinnacle of your career, then God elevates you even higher with another awesome CD. So what is the vision God has given you for the next 5 – 10 years? Martha Munizzi: My next focus is actually my children and helping to encourage them and promote their music. My husband and I are also starting a mentoring institute here in Central Florida through Epic, to pour into up and coming artists, and also I know there are more books I am assigned to write this year. Next year we will also release the movie ‘The Drop’ which is based on a true story that happened to my brother-in-law. Tehillah: Now Sis. Martha I know you’ve been doing ministry in music for years, being brought up in ministry with your parents, so tell our listeners and readers what keeps you motivated after all these years to continue in ministry? Martha Munizzi: Wow, I probably would have had a different answer 10 years ago, because our motivations change. What motivates me is the call of God on my life. There comes a time when you just think, I’ve done the work and now can I just sit back a little, but God won’t let me do that. He gives me a new direction or a new experience that needs to be either written about, sung about, talked about, and every time I grow and change in God, that’s something for me to share with someone else. What also motivates me is the Body of Christ as well as folks that don’t know the Lord, and maybe don’t feel encouraged and need to know I’ve been through it too, and let me tell you how I came out. And that really keeps me motivated. Tehillah: Can you share, as a seasoned artist, a word of encouragement and exhortation to up and coming artists? Martha Munizzi: I want new artists to understand how important it is to dig in deep in the Word and walk close to God. Not trying to wow folks with your gift, but to always get in His presence to replenish and refill, feeding your spirit so your music comes out of an overflow of God’s presence and not an empty well. Well, there you have it, ladies and gentlemen, a candid chat with Minster Martha Munizzi. I pray this excerpt has been a blessing to you. If you’d like to receive a free audio of the whole interview feel free to email me at yhatter@proverbslifemagazine.com.
Pamela Yvonne “Tehillah” Hatter Proverbs Life Magazine Entertainment Reporter
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Go Down To the Potter's House by: Kimberly Thomas
But now, O lord, thou art our Father, We are the clay, and thou our potter, And we all are the work of thy hand (Is 64:8). Nothing is more heart-filling than experiencing the pain we fill when we are being broken. Broken places in our lives are truly the hand print of God. In Jacob’s wrestling match with the Angel, the bible says, …he [Angel] touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint (Genesis 32:25).
work of His hand.
When things come out of joint, and dislocated in our lives, we stop fighting with God and start clinging to Him. He is our Maker and We are the
GATHERS THE CLAY God gathers all type of clays. Fat clay, thin clay, and medium clay. We who are fat are overpowered by the flesh. When we walk in the flesh, we fulfill the lust of the flesh. We who are thin clay lacks fullness. We have a weak force and are not concentrated. And we who are the medium clay are in-between and indecisive. God gathers such a people as these and pick the one He knows will be willing clay. Many be called, but few are chosen (Mt 20:16). BREAKS THE CLAY The clay God chooses is broken. God cannot use a person who is not broken. When a man becomes whole within himself, he will experience a great fall. If a person is not broken, he will not appreciate the newness of being whole and complete. God can work better with us when we become broken because we are more surrendered and yielded to Him. God breaks us by allowing us to go through intense suffering and grief. He will allow you to be persecuted. For God knows with pressure comes growth, and with growth comes maturity. A broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise (Ps 51:17). WASHES THE CLAY After the clay is broken, it is soaked in water to be rid from all of its impurities. God will allow us to see our mistakes, our faults, our bad decisions, and our ugly attitudes. He will allow us to see our selves in the water of conviction and in the mirror of truth. Just as wood, hay, leaves, roots, paper, and small stones rise from the clay, so does our unrighteousness and sinful ways. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin (Ps 51:2). SIFTS THE CLAY After the clay is washed, it is tested again through a strainer. The strainer is there to sift any hidden impurities that may have been left in the clay. God searches us, and He tries our ways. Not that He may know, but for you to know “it’s still there.” He wants you to know you still have that bad attitude you just have not been in the right environment for it to be tested. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Ps 139:23-24). (....continued on page 9)
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Go Down To the Potter's House by: Kimberly Thomas
MIXES THE CLAY
The more clay is mixed, the more strength it gains. It gives birth to life. Mixing is a slow, continuous process. God is constantly mixing us and seasoning us with must needed ingredients: He adds a little JOY A little PAIN He adds some ACCOMPLISHMENTS Along with some FAILURES He sprinkles in a little LAUGHTER A little MOURNING With a measure of SMILES and FROWNS A few VICTORIES A few DEFEATS He pours in LOVE, PATIENCE, and LONG-SUFFERING With a speck of TEARS and SILENCE He dashes in TRIALS, OBSTACLES, TRIBULATIONS, with a pinch of DISCIPLINE and DETERMINATION. He blends all of these flavors together and they become one. He is just preparing us for the next stage. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you (1 Pet 5:10). SPLITS THE CLAY After mixing, then the clay is cut down the middle with a fine wire to remove all traces of air bubbles. God’s Word is as a wire, it keeps up grounded. He works on those things that cause us to think more highly of ourselves than we ought to. We give off false bubbles, false testimonies, false deeds, false efforts, and false love. We rise within our own hearts and within our own minds. These bubbles last but for a while, and then they burst and becomes that liquid that should have came out during the washing stage. The Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and intents of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb 4:12). STORES THE CLAY This is the waiting process. We are still learning to wait. We don’t like to wait on God. He gets us out there and then we want to leave Him. We want to jump right into our ministry, we want to jump right into a new house, we want to jump right into a new state, we want to jump right into a new car, we want to jump right into a marriage, and we want to jump right into riches. Those things may be ready for you, but you may not be ready for them. God has to prepare you to handle prestige and power, or else you may become another Hitler. He has to prepare you for your ministry; or else, you may lead someone the wrong way. He has to prepare you for a new state; or else, you may get your identity confused. If you allow God to prepare, the less He’ll have to repair. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and whole, wanting nothing (Jm. 1:4)
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Go Down To the Potter's House by: Kimberly Thomas
PRESSES THE CLAY During the season of waiting, God impregnates within us a part of Him. Then He puts us in the press to induce our birth, our labor, our praise, our worship, our giving, and our loving. Under God’s press, there is pressure and under pressure, we gain strength. God knows what it takes to make you strong. He knows how hard to squeeze to get you to open your mouth. He knows how far to pull to get you out of your seat. That is His way of stimulating us. When you are being pressed everything comes out. The tears, the hurt, the secret sin, the past, the way you really feel, what you really think, what you really want to do, who you really are. Oh, yeah, it all comes out in the press. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation (Jm 1:12). DRIES THE CLAY This is the stage God does not miss. It is in this process that we become stable. God has strange ways of drying us out. We will lose our taste for those things we once desired, and have an unquenchable thirst for God. Those places you used to go are not as comfortable as they used to be. Those friends you used to hang out with are not as cool as you thought they were. Those things you used to say are not as lifting as they once sounded. Those things you used to do are not as fulfilling as they once portrayed. God will put you in a place where your feet are firm and your steps are sure. He dries us out by letting us die out of ourselves. And you begin to wonder why nothing is happening. You wonder why everything is at a stand still. You do not have any money coming in. Your phone has stop ringing. You don’t know if your Boaz will ever come. What’s going on! Do not worry about it, you are just drying out. Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, there with to be content (Ph 4:11). OPENS THE CLAY When God opens us up, we are free within His boundaries, and we can spread out like a Green Bay tree. You are open but you are not filled. So you have to be careful to not let the wrong thing fall into your clay, your pot, your vessel, your spirit, your mind, your heart, your eyes, and your ears. You are responsible for keeping yourself clean. This is the most vulnerable stage because the devil sees an open door and will try to deceive you. Keep your pot clean until God fills it with holiness. But wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me...ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence (Acts 1:4-5). DRAWS THE CLAY God draws the open clay. Those who are His will follow. He, Himself will not pull you, but His attraction will pull you. His love will pull you. His grace will pull you. You will be drawn because there is a deep craving down in your soul. You can be in a crowd and you will run behind Him. You can be alone and shout, “JESUS!” You can wake up at three o’clock in the morning and whisper, “I love you so much, Lord.” You can be on a job and throw your hands up and say, “Hallelujah.” You can be riding down the road in your car and think of the goodness of God, and how He has stood with you when every one else stood against you. And how He has comforted you when no one else seem to care. And how He has understood you when every one else could not understand. And how He has forgiven you when every one else is still holding it against you. And how He has kept the hands of death off you when the devil tried to take your life. Tears will stream from your eyes because you know that the Lord has been good to you. No man can come to me, except the Father which has sent me draw him; and I will raise Him up at the last day (Jh 6:44). (....continued on page 11)
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Go Down To the Potter's House by: Kimberly Thomas
SHAPES THE CLAY This is the good part. Here, God does His trimming, His cutting, His carving, His molding. He prepares us spiritually and emotionally. When God shapes us, He shapes us in a fashion that we take on His characteristics. He makes sure we are whole and filled. He makes sure there are no cracks in His pots. A lot of times, in the shaping, cracks are detected. God does not want any broken pots. How much water can a broken glass hold? Who rushes out to buy broken kitchenware? God will let you know, “Hey, there’s a crack here, and you got one right there.” There is a crack in your attitude. There is a crack in your marriage. There is a crack in your ministry. There is a crack in your saved lifestyle. There is a crack in your giving. There is a crack in your heart. There is a crack in your thought pattern. God can’t use cracked pots. The potter wants to put you back together again. Cannot I do with you as this potter? Saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hands, so are ye in mine hand (Jer 18:6). DESIGNS THE CLAY God has already sketched out the design he has especially for you. He has created a masterpiece. He altered your identity. He shaped your character. He wove a pattern of Himself all over you. You glow in light of His Holy Spirit. People will look at you and say, “It’s something about you.” God marks those who are His and upon them He puts His seal. When man begins to shape us and mold us to become what they want us to be, and what they want us to do, and what they want us to say, and how they want us to feel, and how they want us to move, they are creating something they can destroy. Whoever creates you, you will be subject to. So, let us be willing clay in the hands of the Maker. To send comments, questions, or feedback for Kimberly Thomas please email her at: kthomas@proverbslifemagazine.com
Kimberly Thomas Proverbs Life Magazine Contributing Writer
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ALL IN A DAY’S BLOG Could God Be Lighting A Match Under Your Foot? by: Kaylania Chapman www.kaylaniachapman.com/blog As many of you have experienced, we are in a season of great change in the things of the Lord. I, myself, and very excited about the shift that is taking place in the spirit. As God increases, have you noticed that trouble, trails, testing, and persecution have increased? We understand that as Believers and followers of Jesus Christ, nothing should surprise us when it comes to the things of God. 1 Peter 4:12 -14 says: “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.14If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.” Even in the midst of our trials, we are to give thanks to our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Not all issues and testing comes from the devil. I believe that God knows that some of us will get lax and lazy in our prayer lives or daily walk, so He will ALLOW things to happen so we can remain closer and more faithful to Him. Romans 5:1-5 states: “1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” If our and suffering can produce character, then we know that God’s plan is to make sure that we are walking in the spirit of TRUTH and excellence. Sometimes our feet have to stay hot to be on fire of God. Sometimes our feet have to stay hot so we can remain obedient and not fall into temptation. Sometimes our feet have to stay hot so we can get the courage to finally start our ministry, business, or apply for college as God instructed. What could God be telling you to run to? Are you sitting on your goals and dreams? Has your prayer life dissipated and you’ve gotten lazy? Does God have to light a match under your feet to continue to move in the things of Lord? Does drama, trials, and tribulations continue to come when we have become too comfortable and complacent, and God has to “spice” things up a bit? My theory is this: It’s better to go ahead and be obedient to God and do as instructed so your feet won’t get burned.
You can view this and other blogs on Kaylania’s hit blog at: www.kaylaniachapman.com/blog
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POISON, ANYONE? THE CASE AGAINST UNFORGIVENESS AND A STEP-BY-STEP SOLUTION By: Patricia “Pat” Taylor To forgive, or not to forgive, THAT is the question! It’s almost a more vital question than, “To Be, or not to Be!!” That’s because when we begin to operate in unforgiveness, it is a poison that will affect our entire life, including relationships, emotions, and health, and it can also keep us from the goodness of God’s promises. We just can afford unforgiveness! And every human being has been in situations which forced us into this vital choice. However, I want to state right here that I know that the things I went through are NOTHING compared to what some of you have gone through, but also that these steps will still work! There are many scripture verses that help us see this is true, plus, anyone that has watched humanity can attest to it. How many men and women do you know that are bitter, unhappy people because they are still holding onto some hurt that happened long ago? And how many have become harsh, unlovely, miserable people that no one wants to know! Furthermore, and even more scary, the Bible says that we owe it to Jesus, this debt of forgiving others! This is made clear in a parable in Mt. 18:21-35 in this parable, a servant owed his master a huge amount of money (probably around 1 million dollars in today’s currency.) Because of this debt, he and his whole family were about to be sold as slaves; but he begged for forgiveness and his master forgave him of it ALL. However, when he found out about someone that owed him a tiny amount, he turned around and tortured his debtor. Jesus compares us to this man, He wants us to see that when He has given His life, His body to stripes and the cross, and His heart to be broken for us, we owe forgiveness to those who have hurt us. If He can forgive humanity (all of us) that crucified Him, we must at least pay Him back a little by forgiving those around us who have done us harm. We OWE IT to HIM! That is what this parable is saying. God has forgiven all our rebellion and our sins against Him, so at least we can forgive in our turn. If we don’t, we really have no respect for what was done for us in the sacrifice of Christ! And His laws are eternal and unchangeable, not paying Him that ONE debt we owe will keep Him from being able to forgive us! (As we are told at the end of the Lord’s prayer, where Jesus says, “If you do not forgive, God can’t forgive you. Mt. 6:14,15.) And He will also not be able to give us His blessings in any other area, not because we are no longer His children, but because we have broken the relationship. (But remember, this is not talking about your salvation, but your relationship, because your salvation stays the same, but your relationship with God can vary.) Believe me, I know how impossible it can look to forgive, I had a difficult childhood which tended to make me an angry person before I became a Christian. Then when the love of my life, my husband, was killed in an accident, I had to forgive the person that ran into him, my relatives that wanted me to get in strife and sue, among others. In the next year, several people were used to try to destroy me emotionally and financially— but I had to forgive or lose any hope of either walking strongly with God or ever getting over my grief. Being under some very good teaching, God began to show me a step at a time what to do, and these are the steps I’d like to share with you. First of all we have to begin to accept that FORGIVENESS IS NOT A FEELING! This is the farthest thing from the truth, and what keeps many people from even trying to forgive! No, it is an act of the will! You can choose to forgive, whether or not you will ever feel like it, and God counts it as done. Eventually your feelings will fall in line! So the first step is saying, “I put my will in motion and choose to forgive.” And yes, it’s very important to say, “I forgive,” because it’s true that if you put your mouth in gear, it will be easier to put your will in gear! And your will is what you must put in motion to get this process started! So speaking your intentions out loud is vital!
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POISON, ANYONE? THE CASE AGAINST UNFORGIVENESS AND A STEP-BY-STEP SOLUTION By: Patricia “Pat” Taylor A single’s pastor I know says it very well this way, “Your feelings, when you are trying to forgive are just like the caboose on a train. When the engine starts moving, the caboose is the last thing to get in line, but eventually, as the pull from the engine takes over and moves car after car, the caboose will follow along. When you make a choice to forgive, and keep faith with it, your feelings will, one by one, follow along just like that caboose.”
The second step in the process is to separate the person from the anger we feel toward them. If all I can see is what they did to me, my angry emotions will never allow me to forgive them; I will therefore have to be able to separate them from their sin, I will have to be able to see them as valuable and precious in the sight of God (no matter how much my logic disagrees with that, it is Bible, Jesus died for them too!) This step is important because if we can separate them from their sin, we can see them as people who need God’s love and help just like we do. And that will set us free for the next step. But here we also have to get our mouth in gear. Remember, saying it puts our will in motion, and bypasses our emotions so they can’t control us. So we’ll have to say, “I choose to separate this person from their sin, I choose to see them as valuable and precious in the sight of God! I choose to forgive.” Here we also need to realize that no matter how we feel about the person that has hurt us at the moment, they are still a person Christ died for, and they are precious to Him. After all, Jesus suffered all the horror of the cross for them just as much as for us, so that means they are infinitely valuable to Him just as we are! Now we are making progress in this journey of forgiveness and we only have a couple of steps left, the next of which is to learn to let God handle that person. I find this step to be VERY helpful, because it is one of the things that does the most to help us to forgive. You will never be truly able to forgive unless you release the person to God, and trust Him to deal with them. Our main problem here is that we feel that the person deserves consequences, and if we forgive them, they will go scot free! And most of us just can’t stand that! Unfortunately, you WILL NOT truly be able to forgive if you continue letting this take control of your thinking! And another thing that will help us here is to remember the verse in Romans 12:19 that says, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place (stand aside) for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘ I will repay,’ says the Lord!” In this verse, the Lord Himself is saying that we can TRUST HIM to deal with the person, and every situation, but we have to let go, or He will NOT take it out of our hands and change things. The hard truth is that, unless we let go of that person by forgiving them, God’s hands are tied in their life, and He will NEVER, be able to help them change! So the next vocalization we need to make is, ”Father, I totally release this person to you, for You to deal with them in any way you see fit, hard or soft, long or short, harsh or easy.” This may sound funny, but this really helps me absolutely let go of the person and the consequences I think he should suffer, and helps me realize that God will handle it. The final step is to actually use our will and forgive. This also has to be vocal, for the same reasons as above, and also because it sets our will in motion, and once we have done that, we have essentially won the battle. So we must say, “I forgive______(put their name). I choose to do so as an act of my will, even though I don’t feel like it.”
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POISON, ANYONE? THE CASE AGAINST UNFORGIVENESS AND A STEP-BY-STEP SOLUTION
By: Patricia “Pat” Taylor The last step of all, the one that will totally set us free; is to commit to pray for the person every time they come into our mind. This will make that emotional caboose get where it belongs! Remember, none of this is easy, but it is very do-able! And when we choice to take these steps, we must remember that it IS a process and our emotions may not get in line in an instant! But if you keep your will in line, they will eventually! Right here I want to insert a note about keeping your will in line. After you finish this process, you may find that in order to keep your emotions from dragging you back into unforgiveness, you may have to go back and repeat some of the process until your feelings obey your will. In serious cases, you may have to pray consistently for the person that has hurt you so that you can really see a change in your attitude. Now let’s recap the vocalizations necessary in this process. • “I choose to separate this person from their sin, I choose to see them as valuable and precious in the sight of God!” • “ Father, I totally let go of this person and give them to God, for Him to deal with however He sees fit, long or short, hard or soft, harsh or easy!” •
“I forgive______(put their name). I choose to do so as an act of my will, even though I do not feel like it.
Now what you have on your hands is a victory! All you have to do is stand on that choice until you KNOW you are free. Now, you have released yourself from a bitter burden that would have ruined your life. Now, God’s promises are all available to work in your life! You can love life again! And you are a bigger, greater person than you would have been even before the incident happened that caused the unforgiveness. And you will see a change in your life, in prayers quickly answered, in great peace, and closeness to God. Now you are on shouting ground!
To send comments, questions, or feedback for Patricia Taylor, please email her at: ptaylor@proverbslifemagazine.com
Patricia “Pat” Taylor Proverbs Life Magazine Contributing Writer
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God’s Plan for Single Women - Part 1 by: Kaylania Chapman
As a single (divorced) woman of God, I must admit, it has not been easy. I was married for 5 years and use to blame myself when it didn’t work out. I will share more of my testimony at a later date. Being single is NOT a curse...it is a BLESSING, ladies. Before most of us had gotten saved, finding (and keeping) a man was simple! We could go to the clubs, parties, outings, etc. to find a mate. But what about after we have received the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal savior, does the “soul-searching” begin and end? The Bible says in Galatians 6:4, “But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” Let’s be honest ladies, have we REALLY thought about what God’s plan for us while we are single as Women of God? The time and effort that we put into finding (and attracting) a mate, is the time we need to give to God! None of us are perfect, but once we fully understand what our responsibility is as Christian single women is, the easier it will be for us to have a more serious relationship with our Lord and personal Savior! God’s plan for single women is to enjoy ourselves, , learn about ourselves, learn more about Christ, and share more of the gospel with other single women! We need to spend our free time ministering to others, evangelizing, worshiping, and investing in our gifts and talents that God has given us. Don’t get me wrong! I never said that there will never be any lonely nights (Lord knows I have plenty), but being single is a blessing and a privilege. Singleness is a time of reflection. Even single mothers can get more done spiritually and emotionally. Alone time does not mean “alone” in the spirit. We must not let the world dictate that being a single woman is a bad things or that “something is wrong” with us. 2 Corinthians 5:16 says: “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.” Some of us know we would be a mess to our future mates if God had not come to our rescue before we mess that man up. Enjoy time well spent with the Lord, ladies! To send comments, questions, or feedback for Kaylania Chapman, please email her at: kaylania@proverbslifemagazine.com
Kaylania Chapman Proverbs Life Magazine Editor In Chief - CEO/Founder
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Francesca Battistelli “A Hundred More Years” Album Release
March 1, 2011 Get your Copy!
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We Want Your Testimony! Do you have a compelling story that you need to tell? Has God delivered you out of a situation? Do you have a praise report? Send use your testimony and set other’s free! Email us at: testimonies@proverbslifemagazine.com
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