Crying out to God Archives - Page 2 of 2

Be a Bondage Breaker

by Cynthia L Simmons | Jan 15, 2016 | Authority of Scripture, Bible, Bondage breaker, Christmas, Church, Commitment to Christ, Communication, Crying out to God, Design, Doing Family God's Way, Educating your children, Emotions, Encouragement, Family, Forgiveness, Freedom, Guilt, Heart of the Matter, Hope, Love, Marriage, Parenting, Prayer, surrender, Truth, Walking by Faith

Be a Bondage Breaker

Surely everyone would want to be released from bondage. Right? You can be a bondage breaker.

There’s an interesting story told in the OT about that.

Theologians dubbed Jeremiah the weeping prophet. He had to deliver bad news and was often despondent. The spiritual failures of his nation tormented him because God had revealed his plan. Bondage. Jeremiah didn’t want his job, but the heartrending message burned inside him. He worked hard delivering God’s decrees, even employing creative imagery. His fellow citizens, however, preferred the soothing messages of the false prophets. Despite Jeremiah’s concern, his people plotted against him and threw him into prison. What a burden he carried.

Jeremiah had prophesied an upcoming invasion. And As he predicted, in 605 B.C. the Babylonians attacked and carried away the first captives. Daniel another prophet in the Old Testament was in that group. King Nebuchadnezzar deposed the King Jehoiachin who reigned in Jerusalem and placed Zedekiah, a man Nebuchadnezzar thought he could control.

Now, I don’t know about you, but after that incident, I like to think I would have listened to Jeremiah. He was correct. But most of the people continued living exactly the same way. Ignoring the alarm. After that event, Jeremiah predicted the fall of Jerusalem

I find it so interesting that King Zedekiah called Jeremiah to the palace and asked him what to do. Jeremiah told the king he would live if he gave himself up to the King of Babylon. The king refused and suffered the fated Jeremiah predicted.

I can relate to this story. I want our nation to turn back to God and avoid the judgment that will come. I want to be a bondage breaker.

Singer and song writer, Dennis Jernigan is my guest today. He’s written a book and completed a video series called, Stand in Love. It’s for churches and others who want to break their bondage.

Learn more about Dennis and his ministry here.

Dennis Jernigan

Bondage Breaker

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Fiery Trials

by Cynthia L Simmons | Oct 16, 2015 | Bible, Cancer, Commitment to Christ, Communication, Crying out to God, Death, Emotions, Encouragement, Family, Finding Meaning, Freedom, Grief, Heart of the Matter, Hope, Living through heartache, Love, Perseverance, Praise, Trust, Truth, Walking by Faith

Fiery Trials

Once I heard someone describe the song Amazing Grace as a white spiritual. After getting over my shock, I realized this man thought the song was written to express our disappointment over life’s hardships. Clearly he didn’t grasp redemption, but all of us realize things aren’t right. Let’s face it, our world is broken. God didn’t design us to live in a damaged world.

Romans chapter eight talks about this. My husband calls this passage groaning 101. Verse twenty-two and twenty-three say, “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”

Sometimes those groans blaze into a raging fire. What then?

Today I have Carol McLeod. Her ministry is all about suffering. Her latest book is Refined.

Learn more about Carol here.

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Letters from My Fathers Murderer

by Cynthia L Simmons | Sep 18, 2015 | Bible, Commitment to Christ, Communication, Crying out to God, Death, Emotions, Family, Forgiveness, Goals, Grief, Guilt, Hope, Leaving a legacy, Living through heartache, Love, Perseverance, Respect, Rights, Surrender to Christ, Walking by Faith, Writing

Letters from My Fathers Murderer

We have a strong inborn sense of justice that comes from God. You’ll hear young children say, “That’s not fair.” Or “You’re wrong.”

I’ve heard Christian leaders say we have no rights, and I strongly disagree. The OT makes it clear that we do. The Ten Commandments state that someone should not steal our possessions or speak against us. I cannot steal your money or your watch. And much of the OT laws taught proportional justice. When someone harmed you, or violated your rights, the punishment should match the crime.

For instance, if you borrowed someone’s ax and broke it, you had to replace it. Or if you borrowed a horse that died while you cared for it, you had to buy another horse for that person.

The punishment matched the crime.

Now when someone violates one of those rights, you feel harmed and want that made right. Sometimes, an apology is enough. In others restitution needs to take place. There are times when someone hurts you and the outcome is not up to you`. For instance a pastor hurt my husband once and never humbled himself to say he was sorry. It was hard to forgive that man, but it was important that I do that.

Laurie Coombs tells the story of her father’s murder and her journey toward forgiveness.

Learn more about Laurie here.

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Build a Great Marriage

by Cynthia L Simmons | Sep 4, 2015 | Bible, Commitment to Christ, Communication, Crying out to God, Dating, Divorce, Doing Family God's Way, Emotions, Family, Forgiveness, Freedom, Heart of the Matter, Hope, Love, Marriage, Perseverance, Prayer, Respect, Romance, Sex, Submission, surrender, Trust, Truth, Worry

Build a Great Marriage:

Popular media today seldom depicts enduring love in marriage. Many people seem to be on a quest for that special someone who will fulfill their dreams and make them happy, while other choose never to marry. All the while the divorce rate climbs and many despair.

However, you and your spouse can build a great marriage. In Ephesians five God reveals his design for marriage, which depicts the relationship of Christ and the church. God issues that very unpopular command for a wife to submit to her husband. But he also says he man should love his wife enough to die for her.

Greg and Julie Gorman share how God helped them untangle the knots in their relationship. You’ll enjoy listening to both Greg and Julie open their hearts.

You may reach Julie here.

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Heart of the Matter Radio

How does a godly woman live in a world out of sync? Anxiety, pressure, and constant change unsettle us all. Through glimpses of history combined with a sensible approach to Scripture, Heart of the Matter Radio opens the path through the chaos. There’s a message for everyone—authors, young moms, mothers of teens, homeschool moms, emptynesters. Here’s a place to talk, rest, and learn.

I recently took my granddaughter to the park. I enjoyed watching as she threw herself into making friends and enjoying the equipment. She was peaceful.

Unfortunately, that freedom and peace she felt disappears as we get older. All kinds of thoughts crowd our mind. We worry about what people think of us and wonder how we appear.

My guest this week was Tracy Taris. She recently wrote a book about sorting out the voices we hear. Rather than just accept what society screams at us, we need to evaluate. She gave guidance on finding peace of mind.