Was the Red Sea frozen?

Here's something I thought I would share concerning the crossing of the Red Sea. We read about this miraculous event in Exodus 14. It gives us details of the sea's parting making a passage way for Moses and the children of Israel to escape Egypt and Pharaoh's army. The Bible also says they walked on dry ground and the waters were a wall to them on the right and left (verse 22). Then later in the same chapter, we read about the destruction of Pharaoh and his army as they tried to cross as well.

Of course there are many things to discuss surrounding this powerful act of God's deliverance, but I want to share with you an often overlooked detail. When we look at the next chapter in Exodus 15, we read about the song that Moses and the others were singing how God delivered them. In the lyrics of the song, we find something interesting of how God may have held the water up combined with the 'strong east wind' (14:21).

According to Exodus 15:8, it mentions how the depths were 'congealed.' The word 'congealed' is defined as "to freeze; coagulate---To pass from a fluid to a solid state." So, did God FREEZE the Red Sea to perform this miracle? It appears He may have. But no matter what, God can deliver us anyway He chooses.

November 10th (The day Paradise was lost according to Ussher)

I wrote in an earlier blog on October 7th about a man named, James Ussher. He studied and determined when key moments in Bible history happened such as the Creation of the world, the Flood in the days of Noah, and the call of Abraham just to name a few. I mentioned in my earlier blog titled "This is the Week of Creation (According to Old Historian)" that he documented his dates and his methods of how he determined them in his work titled The Annals of the World back in 1658.

Well, according to Ussher, November 10th (which is today as I'm writing this) is the day when Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden. He calculated that it precisely happened on Monday, November 10, 4004 BC. By the way, today also happens to be Veterans Day. So thank a Veteran for their service to our country and I guess it's ironic since, according to Ussher, this is the day that began all conflicts.

A Poem of the Books of the Bible (interesting)

In Genesis the world was made by God's creative hand
In Exodus the Hebrews march to gain the Promised Land
Leviticus contains the Law, holy, just, and good
Numbers records the tribes enrolled, all the sons of Abraham's blood
Moses in Deuteronomy records God's mighty deeds
Brave Joshua into Canaan's land the host of Israel leads

In Judges their rebellion oft provokes the Lord to smite
But Ruth records the faith of one well pleasing in his sight
In 1st and 2nd Samuel of Jesse's son we read
Ten tribes in 1st and 2nd Kings revolted from his seed
In 1st and 2nd Chronicles we see Judah captive made
But Ezra leads the remnant back by princely Cyrus' aid

The city walls of Zion Nehemiah builds again
While Esther saves her people from the plots of wicked men
In Job we read how faith will live beneath afflictions' rod
And David's Psalms are precious songs to every child of God
The Proverbs, like goodly string of choicest pearls, appear
Ecclesiastes teaches men how vain are all things here

The Song of Solomon exalts sweet Sharon's lovely rose
While Christ the Savior and the King the rapt Isaiah shows
The admonishing Jeremiah apostate Israel warns
His plaintive Lamentations their awful downfall mourns
Ezekiel tells in wondrous words the Kingdom's mysteries
While God's great Kingdom yet to come Daniel in vision sees

Of judgment and of mercy Hosea loves to tell
Joel describes the blessed days when God with man will dwell
Among Tekoa's herdmen Amos received his call
And Obadiah prophesies of Edom's final fall
Jonah enshrines a wondrous type of Christ, our risen Lord
Micah pronounces Judah lost--lost but to be restored

Nahum declares on Nineveh just judgment shall be poured
When Christ our risen Savior shall come to be adored
A view of Chaldees' coming doom Habakkuk's vision gives
While Zephaniah warns the Jews to turn, repent, and live
Haggai wrote to those who saw the Temple built again
Zechariah prophesies of Christ's triumphant reign

Malachi was the last to touch that high prophetic cord
His final notes sublimely show the coming of the Lord
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John the Gospel story give
Describing how the Savior was born and died that man may live
Acts tells how well the apostles preached with signs in every place
And Paul in Romans proves that man is saved through faith by grace

The Apostle in Corinthians instructs, exhorts, reproves
Galatians proves that faith in Christ alone the Father approves
Ephesians and Philippians tell what Christians ought to be
Colossians bids us live for God and from all sin be free
In Thessalonians we are taught the Lord will come from Heaven
In Timothy and Titus a shepherd's rule is given

Philemon marks brother's love as only brethren know
Hebrews reveals Christ's priestly works prefigured long ago
James teaches without holiness, faith is but vain and dead
While Peter points the narrow way in which the saints are led
John in his three epistles on love delights to dwell
But Jude gives warning terrible of those once who fell

The Revelation prophesies that tremendous day
When all the kingdoms of the earth with noise shall pass away
'Even so, come, Lord Jesus.'

Author Unknown

What to Remember When You Fail God.

Most of us have heard about 'THE GREAT COMMANDMENT' where Jesus was asked by a Pharisee of "which is the great commandment in the law?" found in Matthew 22:36. Jesus responded in verse 37, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart, and with ALL thy soul, and with ALL thy mind." Then He goes on to say how that is the first and great commandment and followed by a second that is like unto the first which is to love your neighbor as yourself.

Notice that I emphasized the word 'ALL' in verse 37. It is that word that makes me feel like a failure to God when I start to honestly examine myself only to find I don't really love God with ALL my heart, soul, and mind. By the way, in Mark 12:30, Jesus includes to love God "with ALL thy strength." Oh goodness, I definitely don't use ALL my strength for God since there's a lot of demands here on earth that requires attention. Just as our love is divided between God, family, friends, and so on. And you can definitely forget about me honestly loving God with ALL my mind since my mind seems to have a mind of it's own at times.

May I share with you some good news before you give up and throw in the towel? Although Jesus answered this in the New Testament, He was answering what the great commandment was 'in the LAW' (verse 36). He was giving us the 'GREAT COMMANDMENT' according to the OLD TESTAMENT. Be sure and read verse 40 when Jesus said "these two commandments hang ALL THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS." Understand that the law DEMANDED love while grace GIVES love and makes it available to us who fall short in giving God ALL of our whole being.

When we fail to realize this, we will continue to live a continuous cycle of performance-driven Christianity where it's every person for themselves and constantly manipulating others to make ourselves look spiritual in the sight of men. We will continue to put on our facades and never actually show the real person underneath the surface. It's a life lived out of INSECURITY rather than living loved by God. I like how a dear Christian brother, Wayne Jacobsen, states it about how we live our lives based on 'COMMITMENT' rather than love. Just like a married couple can be together just solely based on 'commitment' and really not love each other. As Wayne puts it, "Commitment becomes a substitute for not really loving others or God." It's kind of like the church of Ephesus in Revelation. They had the commitment but they left their 'first love.'

So, if there's a GREAT COMMANDMENT for the OLD covenant then what is the commandment for the NEW? Jesus gives it to us in John 13:34, "A NEW COMMANDMENT I give unto you, That ye love one another; AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, that ye also love one another." You see, we love one another when we know we are loved by Him. How much does the Father love you? Jesus tells us later on in His prayer in John 17:23 that the Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus. Of course, many people will abuse that and use the love of God to live their own way and they will have to answer to Him for that. But this is for the true believer who is struggling with doubts whether God loves them or not (and yes, also to the non-believer who thinks God would never love them).

Just know that He understands when we fall short of our ALL to Him. That's why Jesus paid it ALL by showing His love to us on the cross. And it is that love toward us that makes us want to love Him back with our words and actions rather than being motivated by our 'commitment.'

If Columbus discovered America, then why aren't we called COLUMBIA?

Have you ever wondered why we are called AMERICA? Many of us are unaware by the REAL person who discovered our land we call America (as opposed to San Salvador). His name was Amerigo Vespucci who was born in 1454 and died in the year 1512. From his contributions of being an explorer and cartographer (a map drawer), the continents of North and South America bear his name. His first name AMERIGO is what our land mass is named after but was changed to a feminine version, AMERICA.

It is said that this was an attempt (don't ask me why) to be consistent with the feminine names of Asia and Europe, since they were named after women. A lot more can be said about our guy, Amerigo Vespucci. But that's something you can study about on your own time. As for Columbus, he was basically an explorer with strict obedience to the Pope during his time (his ship the "Santa Maria" is Spanish for "Holy Mary"....hint hint).

We're usually not told about the story of how Columbus was sent back to Spain in chains and shackles. This is detailed by the esteemed biographer of Columbus, Samuel Eliot Morrison. He gives very grim statistics of the torture and genocide Columbus authorized upon the natives. He was sent back to Spain as a common criminal. When I think about the true founding of America, I think about another ship. That is, the MAYFLOWER, which sailed a little over a century later. Unlike other explorers, the Pilgrims were not searching for GOLD....they were searching for GOD!

Anyway, Happy Columbus Day (it's at least a day off for some people...haha)!

Pain & Suffering (an interesting quote from C.S. Lewis)

Lately, I have been reading devotions from C.S. Lewis. The daily devotions combine quotes from his classic works. One of those works that is featured is The Problem of Pain. In one of the excerpts from that book, Lewis describes pain as 'God's Megaphone.' Allow me to share this quote with you:

The human spirit will not even begin to try to surrender self-will as long as all seems to be well with it. Now error and sin both have this property, that the deeper they are the less their victim suspects their existence, they are masked evil. Pain is unmasked, unmistakable evil; every man knows that something is wrong when he is being hurt.....And pain is not only immediately recognizable evil, but evil impossible to ignore. We can rest contentedly in our sins and in our stupidities; and anyone who has watched gluttons shoveling down the most exquisite foods as if they did not know what they were eating, will admit that we can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world. -C.S. Lewis


Now, the way this speaks to me, is that pain is God's non-verbal but 'LOUD' way to get my attention. His 'shout' is not always a cry of pointing out sin and wickedness we have done (and yes, sometimes it is). But either way, He desires for us to draw closer to Him. Just in case you haven't noticed, isn't it always GOD who is usually the first one we think about when pain arises. (Selah, meditate on that)

This is the week of Creation (according to old historian).

Back in 1658, a man by the name of James Ussher wrote a book titled "The Annals of the World." He studied a lot of the solar and lunar cycles along with the different calendars of various civilizations. With all that being said (and a LOT more can be said), Ussher concluded that the creation of the world found in Genesis 1 was completed on Saturday, October 9, 4004 B.C. and that the first day of creation (according to our calendar) was on Sunday, October 2, 4004 B.C.

If you have noticed your calendar, this is the week (in 2010 A.D.) where October 2nd fell on a Sunday and this Saturday will be the 9th. So, according to Ussher, this is the actual week of creation. So, what should I do on 'Creation Week?' Well, I'm writing this on Thursday which would be day 5 of creation. That's when the animals were created (Genesis 1:20-23). Hmmmm...anyone wanna go to the zoo today?

Bipolar (my own Biblical analysis)

This blog combined with your willingness can be a help to you. Let us begin with some common symptoms of Bipolar Disorder (which is the updated label for manic depression since they actually go hand in hand). It's the combination of two extreme emotions (that's what the word 'bi' in Bipolar comes in since 'bi' means two). On the upside emotion, they are infatuated with their own ideas and try to act out their fantasies in reality. This usually leads to financial problems as well as other problems. When things don't go their way, they blame shift it on others and other circumstances but it's never their fault according to them. Their fantasies write checks that reality can never cash in the end.

On the downside, they can be extremely irritable and possibly violent but they can usually be all bark and no bite in most cases. They usually have (in both states of emotion) a perfectionist attitude and can be very competitive and bossy. They can cry uncontrollably and turn around and be extremely excited the next. There are a lot more examples to be mentioned but I will now focus on the Biblical source of this label by examining a couple of characters in the Bible who would be diagnosed with this in our modern day.

King Saul
If you read about the life of King Saul in 1 Samuel, you will find that he would go from one extreme to the other in his emotions. He would get so angry that he would try to kill David but then turn around and be nice to him. I think King Saul was spoiled and centered his life around 'stuff' rather than substance. As in 1 Samuel 10:22 in the time when King Saul was first presented to the people (although it was not God's will for them to have a king in verse 19) he was nowhere to be found because in verse 22, "....he hath hid himself among the stuff."

In my own experience with talking to people labeled Bipolar, I find they have the same situation as King Saul. Some of them come from backgrounds where they inherited money and were spoiled. They later have a situation where they are rejected (such as King Saul was later rejected and David was anointed king and tried to prevent him taking the throne). They substitute that rejection with rebellion and they substitute their disappointment with 'stuff.' It's important to examine the person and find what I call the 'idol of the heart' that is hindering the will of God for their life.

As the Scripture reveals, Saul was very rebellious and stubborn which Samuel pointed out to him in 1 Samuel 15:23. This was also caused by Saul wanting to be EVERYTHING to EVERYBODY. He interfered in the priestly office which was forbidden of him as a king. People with bipolar tend to want to be the shepherd as well as the sheep and they go into denial once they realize they can't be both. Another king in the Bible had this same problem and he winded up with a bizarre behavior in which he ate grass like an ox and no longer took care of himself. His name was Nebuchadnezzar and you will find this story in Daniel 4.

Near the end of that chapter you will find how his sanity was restored which is the main solution to people that fall into this category. Now we will examine another person who would have the Bipolar label today but from a different perspective.

King David
There's an interesting occasion in David's life on how he avoided danger when nothing else was available to him. In 1 Samuel 21:13, David "changed his behavior before them, and feigned (or pretended) himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down his beard." If you read the context, he saved his own life by doing this because they sent him away from a king who would have put him to death. This is the case of what I call the 'camoufladger' where people willing act bizarre to be catered to or get what they want. You will be amazed at how many people who are labeled with a 'mental illness' actually that by their own choice.

When we were babies, we knew how to manipulate our environment by crying. It's already in our nature to use behavior to manipulate. As we grow older, we get more advanced in how we get catered to. We move from crying to other behavior patterns under the disguise of mental illness. But there is also another case in the life of David that must be addressed. Later on in 2 Samuel 12:5, he had already committed adultery with Bathsheba and got her pregnant. He also set up the murder of her husband so he could quickly marry her before she started showing.

The Lord then sent a prophet Nathan to let him know that he didn't get by with it. Before he let David know he was referring to him in the story he gave in 2 Samuel 12:1-4, David (in verse 5) was extremely angry and toward the man Nathan told about who killed another man's lamb. Now, understand that the penalty for killing another man's sheep in Old Testament law was not punishable by death. They just restored the lamb fourfold but David wanted to also kill the man. In other words, people who are overly angry and overly judgmental toward others usually do that because they want to hide something awful they are guilty of.

I call this 'covering up your log with other people's splinters.' Most people who stay in the downside emotion of Bipolar Disorder are usually hiding a deep, dark secret underneath that will always affect their conscience until they confront it. I always tell the person who fits this category that what you try to cover, God will uncover. But what you uncover, God will cover (read Proverbs 28:13)! It's important to also note that the 'secret' underneath is not always something that they did sinful. Maybe something sinful happened to them (such as rape, molestation, etc.) but they feel ashamed to open up about it.

The result will be constant dependence on medications, alcohol, or illegal drugs which will only relieve the symptoms for a little while. The source is never dealt with and they will always attempt to FEEL good without BEING good. There's more that can be said but I will close with a couple of verses of Scripture to meditate upon.

-Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (James 5:16)

-If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:8-9)

God's answer to Atheism (Part 1)

I hope you will take the time to read this with an open mind and an open heart. Atheism is at an all-time high but we must remember that this is nothing new. It is written in Psalm 14:1 and Psalm 53:1 that "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God" and if you read the rest of the verses in those two Psalms you will find that people who claim this are people who just don't know the love of God or trying to hide something vile and wicked in their life and fail to confront it by repenting to God for forgiveness.

First of all, it is philosophically inaccurate to say that there is no God. For someone to make that an accurate claim, they would have to know EVERYTHING there is to know about this universe and galaxies beyond here. They would have to know this in all honesty and without the term of "theory" since theory is something that is not proven to be fact. So, if someone were truly honest enough to admit they don't know everything and there are mysteries in life they can't explain, then they cannot accurately call themselves an atheist unless they are in outright denial based upon their opinions and not facts.

Another thing, it is scientifically inaccurate to claim there is no God. Yes, you heard me correctly and I will show you that the burden of proof lies upon the atheist and not me. I must share with you a warning in 1 Timothy 6:20 that we are to avoid "...oppositions of science falsely so called." Did you know that it was considered "true science" for 250 years that there were only 1,022 stars in the sky and later it was counted 1,056. Then about 1300 years later, a man by the name of Galileo invented the telescope and found out what the Bible had already said from the beginning.

God already showed us in Genesis 15:5 and Jeremiah 33:22 that the stars cannot be numbered and this was BEFORE the telescope was invented thousands of years later. Then you had people such as the Hindus who thought the world was held up on the backs of giant elephants. The Greeks thought the world was held up on the back of a gigantic man called Atlas. But God already told us in Old Testament times and before satellite imagery was invented that God "hangeth the earth upon nothing" (Job 26:7). Too bad this isn't taught in science class in schools!

Then you heard in the year 1492 how Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue. But he had better not go too far because he might fall off the face of the earth since some people thought the world was flat. But did you know God already shows us in Isaiah 40:22 that the earth is a "circle" which comes from the Hebrew word "chuwg" that refers to a sphere or a ball. Then you have the question of the dinosaurs. Well, you must first realize that the word "dinosaur" which means "terrible lizard" was not a term until around the early 1900s or so. But you can read about a certain creature called "leviathan" in Job 41 (the whole chapter) which is basically a dinosaur.

After the flood in Noah's day, the ocean waters destroyed plant life which produces high amounts of oxygen. The larger animals such as dinosaurs didn't receive the large amounts of oxygen they needed to survive but also we read about "leviathan" was a sea creature and was probably destroyed since he was a type of Satan (Job 41:34). And by the way, isn't a rhinoceros a part of the dinosaur family except we don't spell and pronounce it as "rhinosaurus" if you know what I mean? Remember, it's Sci-Fi movies that make these creatures to be all monsters and all that.

One thing that needs to be understood also is that true science doesn't change or "evolve." The speed of light is still the same speed as always. God created various species "after their kind" which is a phrase you will read repeatedly in Genesis chapter 1 and they haven't changed or overlapped since He made them. For example, you never go to a zoo and see an ape change into a man do you? Of course not, and if it doesn't happen now then it never happened back then either. That's true science because true science is always consistent past, present, and future.

Then you have the "links" of evolution people talk about. Well, to be honest, evolution doesn't even have a chain to begin with. One of the "links" of evolution happens to be the remains of a man found in a cave that had a severe case of arthritis. I also remember in high school the photos of a rabbit embryo and how they match the embryo of a human only to find out later that they were comic drawings by a man that was thrown out in a court case years ago for being unscientific. But still it was in my Biology textbook presented to me as fact. Oh well, I guess people have to work at it to be that ignorant who God already calls a "fool" (Psalm 14:1, Psalm 53:1, Romans 1:22).

But just to let you know, the famous atheist of our time in the 1960s known as Madelyn Murray O'Hara admitted in her diary what her real problem was from which her atheism was based. In case you didn't know, she was missing for sometime back in the 1990s and it was later known that she was brutally murdered by one of her staff members in her organization which I do not know the exact name of at this time. But in her diary was her confession that all she ever wanted was for someone to love her. Many people put on different kind of fronts to hide what's beneath the surface. And atheism is one of those many fronts which she used to conceal the root of her bitterness.

But let me leave you with these words. I believe that the single cause of atheism today is Christians who honor Christ with their lips but deny Him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable! Also, did you know that demons are not atheists? According to James 2:19, "...the devils also believe and tremble." I mean they shouldn't have a problem believing in God since He kicked them out of Heaven. But salvation is not a belief in God of the "head" but of the HEART (read Romans 10:9-10).

My radio show...

My internet radio show will debut on February 25, 2010 (on a Thursday) at 6pm EST. If you miss it live, you can still listen to it recorded anytime. I hope you will join me as I will take some calls later on in the show while a chat room will be open the whole time. Here's a link to my show page below:

Listen to Hodgepodge Horizon on Blog Talk Radio

Hearing the Voice of God

This is a study from Psalm 29. Open your Bible and follow along with me. If you read Psalm 29, you'll notice that it mentions the 'voice of the Lord' from
verses 3 through 9. I happen to be using a King James Version in this because of the beautiful word study it presents. Are you ready?

1. God's voice is available to everyone (verse 3). It mentions in verse 3 that
it is upon 'waters' and that is symbolic of multitudes of people when
you compare that to Revelation 17:5. But that does not mean
that everyone hears it. It just means that it is available to
all and I'll give you the reason why many of us don't hear Him before
this is over. But for now let's move to the next point.

2. God's voice is convicting and majestic (verses 4-5). It can
stir us up and it's good to compare Hebrews 4:12 with this. It
describes how God's Word is powerful and it describes how it
penetrates the INSIDE of the hearer that no others can experience
unless they are willing. In verse 5, 'cedars' are mentioned and
trees usually describe people throughout the Old Testament.
Cedars represent those who trust Him (read Psalm 104:16).

3. God's voice brings us comfort and joy (verse 6). It mentions
how He makes them (the cedars) 'skip like a calf.' This
represents joy in the victory found in the Lord. I think of
David who danced when the ark of the covenant was brought back to
Jerusalem. Lebanon and Sirion are mentioned. These names
of these places mean 'white' (Lebanon) and 'sacred' (Sirion).
Salvation seems to be pictured here and also unity is also symbolized
by the 'unicorn.' A unicorn is simply any animal that has one
horn. A horn represents power and here it is one horn just as
the Body of Christ is ONE body. It is more powerful when we are
unified by being led by His Word.

4. God's voice brings ORDER; not CONFUSION (verse 7). The term 'flames of fire' can refer to servants of God, whether they be human or angelic. Hebrews 1:7 says that God "...maketh his angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire." Here in Psalm 29:7 it says the the voice of the Lord divides them. This is a picture of order and finding the will of God for your life for His purpose. 1 Corinthians 14:40 says, "Let all things be done decently and in order." So, when you get in tune with God, he'll reveal what plans he has for you.

5. God's voice shakes our pride (verse 8). The 'wilderness' in this verse refers to the flesh or carnal nature that goes against the Holy Spirit. Kadesh is where Moses smote the rock the second time out of his anger and was not allowed to enter the promised land in his lifetime. When we feed upon God's Word it makes our spiritual side stronger.

6. God's voice reveals brings revival and testimony (verse 9). The 'hinds feet' represents revival and joy in the midst of trouble according to Habakkuk 3:19. The 'forests' in this verse can point to secret sins of the flesh we succumb to and the voice of God sheds light on it to confess it before Him. This whole verse represents a new beginning in life by repentance toward God.

The remaining verses (10-11) give glory and praise unto God along with the promise strength and blessing to His people. But I must share with you HOW DO YOU RECEIVE GOD'S VOICE. Well, if you haven't noticed by now I didn't share with you the first TWO VERSES of this chapter yet. In verses (1-2), it reveals to us what we must do before the voice of the Lord appears in verse 3.

It tells us in verse 1 to 'Give unto the Lord' especially if you are mighty. This refers to us not trusting in our own strength and ability and give up our self-reliance. It's a picture of salvation and also service. Then the next verse begins with 'Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name.' It goes on to say 'worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.' This refers to praise because of his saving grace. The word 'beauty' has a reference to grace in the Old Testament. To sum it all up, we must be SAVED, SERVING, and WORSHIPING. Let me close with this illustration.

Before refrigerators were used, people used icehouses to preserve food. Large blocks of ice were cut out of frozen streams and lakes during the winter and hauled to the icehouses and covered with sawdust. The ice would usually last into the summer. One man lost a valuable watch while working in an icehouse one day. He searched diligently, raking through the sawdust but didn't find it. His co-workers searched and couldn't find it either. A small boy who heard about the search slipped into the icehouse during the noon hour and he found it. Amazed, the men asked him how he found it.

He replied, "I closed the door and laid down in the sawdust and kept very still. Soon I heard the watch ticking." Often the question is not whether God is speaking, but whether we are being STILL enough, and QUIET enough to hear!

A Biblical way of dealing with Depression

Here is a brief outline to help you cope with depression (the Biblical way). Before I share it with you, It's important that you have a relationship with God. This is only through Jesus Christ since He is the only mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). This outline is for Christians who have the Holy Spirit to help them cope with this issue. Christians still are not exempt from these issues while upon the earth. As I always say, we're not SINLESS but we're supposed to 'SIN....LESS.' Open your Bible to Psalm 77:

Psalm 77 (dealing with depression and to be used with an open Bible).

1. Cry out to God. He's not surprised how we feel and wants us to be honest. (verses 1-3)

2. Recall past blessings that God has done for you. You know you have gotten this far by His grace and He didn't lead you this far to forsake you. (verses 4-6)

3. Ask God some hard questions. (verses 7-9)

4. Choose to redirect your thoughts by His grace. (verses 10-12)

5. Magnify God to diminish your problems. His presence is manifested when we praise Him no matter how we feel. (verses 13-18) And on an interesting note, I know someone personally who overcame a spell of anxiety by having the wind blow in their face. I say this because these verses mention about God's actions in nature.

6. Trust God to be your deliverer and Him alone regardless of how unscientific or unreasonable it may sound. (verses 19-20)