I intend to continue going through Captivating on here. The last 6 or so weeks have been a whirl wind. Between boards (which I nailed!) and going to the most beautifully amazing wedding ever in the Dominican Republic, I've not had as much time as I wanted to blog. I've also been voraciously reading other books that have been touching my soul, refining me, and enabling me to more fully rely on God.
I'm trying to decide how much I'm willing to share on here of what I am learning about myself and God's love. Pain is required for growth. What I have learned is that by hiding and shutting people out due to fear of pain will actually cause more pain then letting people in. So while I process more, and work on blogging the rest of Captivating, I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes from a great book.
The book is "Victory over the Darkness" by Neil. T. Anderson. I highly recommend this book everyone. It really helps you put your life into a proper perspective, especially the part about goals vs desires. It helps solidify your identity in Christ.
"If what you believe does not reflect the truth, then what you feel does not reflect reality." pg 156
"The peace of God is internal, not external. Peace with God is something you already have. The peace of God is something that you need to appropriate daily in your inner world in the midst of the storms that rage in the external world." pg 140
"God is a rational God and He does work through our ability to reason. The problem is that our ability to reason is limited and prone to rationalization...We are incapable of determining God's thoughts through human reasoning; therefore, we are dependent on divine revelation." pg 150
"Satan's strategy is to introduce his thoughts and ideas into your mind and deceive you into believing they are yours." pg 159
This next chunk was the part of the book that struck me the most. It is so true. There is a lot of science behind it as well.
"In a general sense, your emotions are a product of your thought life. If you are not thinking right, if your mind is not being renewed, if you are not perceiving God and His Word properly, it will show up in your emotional life. If you fail to acknowledge your emotions appropriately, you may become spiritually vulnerable. ... In reality we have very little control over our emotions, but we do have control over our thoughts, and our thoughts determine our feelings and our responses. That is why it is so important that you fill your mind with the knowledge of God and His Word. You need to see life form God's perspective and respond accordingly." pgs 170-171
This last quote sums up everything I have been struggling with for the last 10 years.
"Fear compels people to do what they should not do and inhibits them from doing what they should do." pg 221
*But we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured our in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Romans 5: 3-5
My brethern, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. James 1: 2-3
2 comments:
Great thoughts, Vicki! Thanks for sharing. I haven't read this book but it sounds like it would be very helpful to many of the people I have/do counsel. This urges me to pray for them (and you!) in a fresh way.
Nicole, it's a great book. I'd recommend it to everyone, especially someone like you who works with people in crisis. I really does help with directing prayer too!
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