Lack of Faith/Doubt

Being Doers During Our Child’s Illness by Kimberly Ehlers

by Kimberly on January 4, 2012

Mary Kane blessed us with an incredibly important Bible Study yesterday on James 1:21-15.  For me, it was also a tough topic – being a doer of God’s Word, not just a hearer.  I find it much easier to read or hear Scripture and hope it works some “magic” in me, changing me as I listen.  The fact is, and as Mary’s study points out, the more time I spend in the Bible the more I realize that God expects me to do the sometimes hard work of living out my faith.  There are times in life when we come to a fork in the road and have to decide if we are going act in faith or not.

What does it look like to be a doer of the work (verse 25) when your child has a serious illness?  We must begin by looking at our own “filthiness and overflow of wickedness” (verse 21), as my New King James Version puts it.  Sometimes, when we read such strong words, it can be easy to think, “I’m not that bad!”  When asked to describe ourselves, I don’t think many of us would say, “I’m overflowing with wickedness.”  Let’s read a couple of different versions to help us get a clearer picture of what James was talking about…

So throw all spoiled virtue and cancerous evil in the garbage.  In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.

~ The Message

Put out of your life all that is unclean and wrong. Receive with a gentle spirit the Word that was taught. It has the power to save your souls from the punishment of sin.

~ New Life Version

Has the enemy whispered to you that God doesn’t really care, or that He can’t help you?  Has he predicted evil and darkness over your child’s life?  Has he condemned you with the lie that God is silent and/or causing this because you are too sinful?  It is wrong, a cancerous evil, and, yes, wicked to believe the enemy’s lies over our Father’s promises and truths.

Once we begin treating his lies as truth and let it haunt our minds, we open the door to more filth – fear, doubts about God and His goodness or power, avoiding God because our sinfulness overwhelms us and makes us wrongly afraid of Him, trusting man (doctors) more than we trust God.  Have you said or heard someone else say, “If God is loving, why did He let this (children starving in Africa, Hitler slaughter millions of Jews, my child’s illness, etc.) happen?”  Doesn’t that question sound familiar? (Underlining is mine.)

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

 ~  Genesis 3:1, New International Version

Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

~ Matthew 4:3, New King James Version

and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘ He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and,‘ In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”

~ Matthew 4:6, New King James Version

 

It may very well be your biggest work as a Christian to daily reject those lies and practice living the truth.

    Our enemy is clever, his lies are mixed with small doses of truth.  Every question he asks, every statement he makes is designed to plant a seed of doubt that he knows will grow rapidly.  If we do not keep that seed from taking root in our souls, he has successfully made us hearers of the word only.  We can not be doers of God’s word and His kingdom works because we are too afraid of God and the future.  It may very well be your biggest work as a Christian to daily reject those lies and practice living the truth.

My prayer is that as you read this article, you will hear God’s word for you and not the enemy’s because I fearfully understand that he could use this post to heap guilt onto you.  May you be free from any false-guilt that is not yours to carry, but may He shine His healing light on any sin He wants to help you remove.

I’d like to leave you with some verses to help you to begin, right now, to reject the lies of our enemy.  I encourage you to keep track of the promises and truths of God as you find them in your own Bible readings.  Jot them done on index cards or a page in your journal, anywhere that’s easy for you to read often.

(In speaking to the Jews who did not believe in Him, Jesus said,) You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.

 ~ John 8:44, New King James Version

But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.”

~ Psalm 31:14, NKJV

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

~ John 4:8, NKJV

O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

~ Isaiah 25:1, NKJV

In His Love,

Kimberly

kimberly@kimberlyehlers.com

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The Temperature of Your Faith by Kimberly Ehlers

by Kimberly on June 21, 2011

“‘I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other!  But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth,’” (Revelation 3:15-16, New Living Translation).

     Sometimes people think that this passage means that God would rather have us hot, on fire for Him or cold and against Him.  I know that for a very long time I thought that “cold” referred to someone who was either angry with God or rejected Him, as in giving God the cold-shoulder.
     My pastor explained that at that time there were two types of springs in the area of this particular church.  One spring was a hot spring.  The warmth was comforting and people drank from it like we drink hot tea or coffee.  The other spring was cold.  It provided people with a refreshing drink.  Lukewarm water just doesn’t taste as good as the others!
Understanding that, makes God’s meaning in these verses much clearer.
     If you listened to my audio “Day of Miracles” (grab your copy by signing up for The Heart Connection Ezine), you heard me tell of Seth’s big moment of choice.  As he walked to the operating room he had to decide if he was going to trust God or not.  He chose to trust.  (I didn’t know about this decision until days later.)
     Moments like Seth’s are the kind of moments that can leave us passionate about God.  When we face something that terrifies us or we hit rock bottom, we are also coming to the point where our only choice is to either grab onto God’s hand and trust Him or stay stuck in our pit.  When we choose Him and we experience His powerful love protecting, helping and saving us or faith grows.  We’re excited about what He’s done and it renews our spirits.  We fall deeply in love with God.
     That passion, though, often fades.  Our faith neither refreshes our spirit or leaves us comforted, trusting in Him.  Our faith becomes something we simply believe – we become lukewarm.
     This passage from Revelation tells us what kind of faith God wants for us.  He wants our faith in Him to renew us when things get tough – like a cold glass of water after mowing in the hot sun.  He wants it to give us peace in the middle of a storm – like hot chocolate during a blizzard.  It’s an active faith that dictates our lives.
     Are you there, my friend, living the faith God wants for you or have you fallen into a pitfall of doubt?  Does your faith really matter to you?  Not sure?  Pick up your copy of my free report “Does Faith Matter?”  Find out what the pitfalls are that we so easily fall in to (yes, there’s more than one), how to avoid or get out of them, and the incredible blessings God has for you when you are “hot or cold”, walking in true, life-changing faith.  Don’t go another day without it!

 In His Love,

Kimberly

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Reaching for Faith by Kimberly Ehlers

by Kimberly on June 20, 2011

You may have heard me say before that I originally wrote “The Faith Challenge” for my family.  We were facing Seth’s open-heart surgery, and I wanted to get back to the days after Seth’s birth, when my faith was its absolute strongest.  I wanted my family, especially Seth since he was the one having the major surgery, to have that kind of faith too.  I can’t get away from the fact that when I look back on the roller coaster ride my faith has been on, the peaks have always come when I lived on and believed God’s Word.  The times when faith really carried me came from reading Scripture, thinking about it, and applying it to my life.  Makes sense, doesn’t it?  But it’s not so easy to do.  Oh, we can read His Word, but we often resort back to doing what our feelings urge us to do in times of trouble.
In the early morning hours before one of Seth’s appointments years ago, I read 2 Kings 6:16-17, “So he answered, ‘Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’  And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha,” (New King James Version).  How timely God is.  While I am very thankful for the care Seth has always received, the hospital we go to is state funded and works very had to keep God out.  I have to say that Seth’s current doctor is a blessing, and we wish we had always had him, but for many years, we struggled with our doctors.  When your child is so seriously ill, you would love for your doctor to be a Christian.  It would have been a relief, and we would have felt more like a team with the doctor.  Instead, we always felt that we had to be guarded and prayed for lots of protection because doctors seemed to look at Seth as an experiment.  His case was rare, and we worried that the things they wanted to try were more for the sake of science than for Seth’s best.  His appointments felt like us vs. them.  So, after reading these verses, I walked into the hospital praying for eyes to see those with us.  While I didn’t see the Heavenly warriors, I knew we were surrounded.  Anxiety was replaced by peace.
On my Facebook page, we have something called “Faith Fridays”.  I share a healing verse along with a couple of thoughts.  Last Friday’s verse is one of my favorites, and on that day, it really caused me to think, so I’d like to share our latest Faith Friday post with all of you.  This is what I wrote, “These verses make me cry.  The woman’s years trying one thing after another, hoping each time that this will finally be the thing that cures her – that’s easy to relate to, isn’t it?  Her miraculous belief even after all her struggles that just a touch of Jesus would heal her… And sweet, compassionate Jesus’ response.  It wasn’t enough for Him to heal someone; He had to know the person too.  He had to look her in the eyes and bless her with not just healing, but love.  Are you weary of trying this and that?  Are you desperate to touch Him?  Dear One, He’s longing for you too…

     This verse comes from Mark 5:25-34, New King James Version:

     ‘Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”  

     Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.  And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”  
     But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’”  
     And He looked around to see her who had done this thing.  But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.  And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”’ 

     I’ve experienced the help of faith, this woman clearly did, what about you?  How has your faith helped you?  Is there a particular time that your faith got you through?  Has it helped you to endure?  Please share your story of faith below.
Also, if you would like to continue growing your faith, click this link and sign up to get your FREE copy of my report “Does Faith Matter?”  Find out just how much it DOES matter and how to remove the junk keeping you from great faith.

In His Love,
Kimberly
P.S.  Why not join us on Facebook?  We’d love to have you there!

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What’s So Bad About a Lack of Faith? An audio by Kimberly Ehlers

by Kimberly on June 16, 2011

Yep, it’s another audio!  As I explain in the audio, I have a message that I believe is incredibly important and the best way to share it is to say it!

Here’s a hint – Doubts in God’s trustworthiness and goodness are common to someone whose child has a serious illness.  But do you know just how dangerous those doubts can become?  They’re no joke and they’re nothing to tolerate.

Join me in discussing the serious pitfalls of a lack of faith, how you can aviod them, and, best of all, open yourself up to receive all the blessings God wants to heap upon you!

(The blessings alone are worth 30 minutes of your time, don’t ya think?  Plus you’ll help ease my guilty conscious for not sharing this sooner! :) )

Grab your free report! (You’ll understand this after listening to the audio!)

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In His Love,

Kimberly

 

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Unleashing Powerful Prayers by Kimberly Ehlers

by Kimberly on March 30, 2011

If you are signed up for my ezine “The Heart Connection”, you received some pages I created to help you better see your immense value to God, who He really is, and what His promises to you are.

I have a promise I’d like you to add to your list.  It comes from James 5:16b and says, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective,” (New International Version 2011). 

I confess that I have missed this verse, and I don’t want you to miss it!  Your prayers for your child and their illness are powerful and effective!  Did you know that?  Do you believe it?

Dear One, it doesn’t matter if you feel righteous or not.  If you have trusted in Jesus as your Savior, you have been made righteous.  “For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become [endued with, viewed as being in, and examples of] the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness],” (2 Corinthians 5:21, Amplified Bible).  I like this version because it does such a good job of defining what righteous really is.  Being righteous simply means to be right with God.   Your belief in Jesus has placed you under His wing where you are covered in His righteousness.  It’s not yours to create, it’s His free gift, which you received just because you said, “Yes, I believe!”

If your prayers don’t feel powerful, as if they’re causing great things to happen, look at how you’re praying.  Are you praying in confidence of your righteousness in Christ, coming boldly to the throne room of your Father who loves you deeply, or are you praying in fear and doubt?  It’s OK, Dear One, if your confidence is shaken right now.  God has more than enough grace to cover your doubts.  Never forget the Mark 9:24 father’s prayer, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”  It’s a prayer Jesus honors.

Start where you are.  Ask God to help your unbelief and fight off your fears.  Fear is not of God.  It belongs solely to the enemy.  (Of course, we’re not talking about the good fear or awe of God or the fear He gives us to protect us from danger.  It’s wise to be afraid to walk down a dark alley at night by yourself.)  Ask Him to help you understand and believe in your righteousness through Christ.  Then, Sweet Friend, make the effort to believe the truth about who you are. 

What is on your heart right now?  What do you need God to do for your child?  Take a chance.  If you don’t feel confident in your righteousness, fake it!  See yourself as the person you will be; the woman living in a right relationship with God.  Soon, you will trust in Christ’s gift of righteousness and fully accept it.  You will be able to call God, “Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15) and pray powerfully with expectation.

As I mentioned in the beginning, my latest edition of “The Heart Connection” focused on knowing who we are to God and how to immerse ourselves in His Truth.  When we know the Truth we can reject the enemy’s lies and pray confidently – 2 things Mom’s of children with serious illness really need to do!  If you’d like a copy of this ezine, sign up using the form on the right of the page, and I’ll send you one ASAP :) . 

In His Love,
Kimberly
Kimberly@kimberlyehlers.com

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The Words a Mommy Never Wants to Hear – Something is Wrong with Your Baby

February 23, 2011
Sharing is Caring!

As many of you know,  my husband and I have one child, a boy, now 12.  There are a couple of reasons I remember his birth like it was yesterday.  First, it was the most incredible life changing experience I’ve ever had.  Yes, even bigger than getting married.  After all, I knew the man I was [...]

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Has Your Heart Become Hardened? By Kimberly Ehlers

August 12, 2010
Sharing is Caring!

“The worst prison would be a closed heart.” Pope John Paul II The prison of a heart is dark and lonely.   Too hurt from the past, the door remains securely locked, tightly shut off from everything good.  Hope knocks on the door, only to be ignored.  Peace and Happiness, even Joy, want to come in, [...]

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