Heart Problems

 by Victoria Armstead

“Lord, what’s wrong with me? Where’s this coming from? What happened? Why me? How do I shake this feeling? “ 

Have you ever felt like there was something, beyond your intellect, standing in the way of you loving God with your WHOLE heart? Do you find yourself constantly “feeling some type of way”?  Are you unexplainably angry and bitter? Yea? Well sir/ma’am you have a CURABLE case of heart problems!

No, not those kind silly! I’m not prophesying a heart attack, stroke, or anything of that nature over your life. These heart problems, however, can cost you your life, if you’re not careful. These heart problems break down your spirit man and hold up your destiny. They give you a harsh disposition and strain your ability to love. Now, usually you’d have to make an appointment to talk to a doctor about your condition, but in this case, your answer is just one “Father in the name of Jesus” away. 

Typically, when you have an unusual ache or pain in your body, you want to know where it’s coming from so, you research your symptoms and causes of your affliction. After you get an idea of what the problem might me, you go to the doctor to gain more knowledge about what’s happening to you and to understand the seriousness of the situation, how it can be treated, and how it’ll impact your future. The doctor runs tests, gives you a diagnosis, explains preventative measures, and prescribes you medicine to cure your ailment. Now, you just have to do your part to get rid of it!

Well, as believers, we have to apply the same tenacity towards being better followers of Jesus Christ and that can’t be done if we carry around these heart problems. Some of us have experienced things that left us with hardened hearts. I know, for me, relationship blues and work drama alone took to me to that “forget everything and everyone” point. Some of you may have experienced abandonment, abuse (emotional/physical/verbal/sexual), rejection, church hurt, and many other unfortunate circumstances. Whatever it is, the burden of it ends after you read this blog in Jesus name!

I guess your next question is, “How do these things lead to heart problems?” See, the thing with heart problems is that you may never know of their existence until something triggers them. If you can, imagine an overly-filled garbage bag. You’re too lazy to take it out, so you just keep pilling stuff in and one day it just pops! It stinks up the whole place, you’re furious and there’s garbage everywhere! Imagine your heart as that garbage bag and your life as the place that gets the funky odor.  Not pretty, right? These problems creep by us for so long until something big happens and nearly destroys us. This is why the bible tells us to guard our hearts, for it determines the course of our lives (Proverbs 4:23). We’ve become a generation who deals with our problems by “sweeping them under the rug” and developing an “it is what it is “mentality. We only play ourselves by allowing something that Jesus took to the cross to eat away at us. We have to become masters at casting our cares on the Lord because he cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). If not those heart problems will continue to develop so, take out the garbage!

Here are some steps towards recovery:

1.    Pray! Ask God to reveal what’s going on with you (Jeremiah 33:3)

2.    Confess it all (1 John 1:19; Romans 10:10)

3.    Ask for forgiveness and you MUST forgive others (Matthew 6:14-15; Acts 3:19)

4.    Search His Word for answers, not people. (Proverbs 30:5)

5.    Ask God to cleanse your heart (Psalm 51:10; Ezekiel 36:26)

6.    Guard your heart …be careful what goes in and comes out of it. (Proverbs 4:23)

7.    LOVE (1 Peter 4:8; 1 John 4:7-8; Matthew 22:37-39)

Remember, you’ve been healed since the beginning of time! Bitterness and anger have no power or dominion over you! Bye, bye heart problems. We’re FREE!!!!!!! You’ve been cured and the curse is broken!!!

Fight The Good Fight

By: Ayana Bryant-Weekes 

Raise your hand if you’re not really feeling what’s going on in our country right now [raises both hands…HIGH]. With all the tragedy and corruption that has bombarded us on what seems like a daily basis, it’s safe to say we are all fed up, frustrated with the fact that we can hardly trust our government officials and law enforces to serve AND protect us, our friends, and our families. Unfortunately, the mishandling of an entire population’s trust has resulted in social unrest – riots, protests, and demonstrations across the country have been organized as a pushback to a heartbreaking reality we face.

Even more frustrating is the question of what to do as Christians, believers in Jesus Christ still living and operating in this natural world. In our case, it seems the options for action live on two opposite sides of the spectrum. On one hand we have rioters, looters and protestors who are seemingly being counterproductive to the movement by reacting out of anger (which is an understood emotion), and on the other hand we have the more hands off approach that involves prayer and fasting on behalf of the movement, which is still necessary (1 Timothy 2:1-3) but, doesn’t seem to satisfy the urge to get up and do something. I found myself literally asking, What Would Jesus Do? Would Jesus be among the multitude of people flooding the streets to march and chant in protest? Would He be found passing out sandwiches to hungry demonstrators? Would we possibly see Jesus rioting? Channeling the same anger we saw when He overturned tables in the temples? Or would we find Jesus somewhere facilitating a citywide consecration?

Political action can become really confusing for believers because there is the desire to join movements, and fight the power but there is also the call to be a beacon of light and love, and to be Christ-like; above all else compelling others to follow Him as well. We’ve come to a place in our society where, whether protesting or praying, the fight has been against injustice by inaction in our legal system—elected officials have failed to sustain the expectations of their citizens and it leaves people feeling hopeless and helpless. Nonetheless, I believe as the body of Christ, we can begin to change the face of our government.

Deuteronomy 16:18-20 “You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment. We have been blessed with cities and towns and also blessed with the opportunity to choose who we want to represent us.  It is our responsibility to act with discernment when electing officials, since their decisions will ultimately affect our lives.

  

 Meet Baltimore's State's Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby, the prosecuting attorney who criminally charged six police officers in the death of Freddie Gray Friday May 1, 2015.  Mosby is a practicing Christian who said at a recent prayer breakfast in Baltimore, MD that God "put me in this position for a reason." The new state's attorney lives blocks away from the poverty-stricken community in West Baltimore where riots broke out on Monday after Gray's funeral.  Mosby is the youngest top prosecutor of any major city in the United States and is experiencing what could become one of the biggest civil rights cases of her career.  

(Photo: Courtesy of Bilingual Christian Church)

Baltimore state's attorney Marilyn Mosby prays with church leaders, including Bishop Angel Nunez, during a prayer breakfast in Baltimore, Maryland, on April 28, 2014

"And I say this all the time 'Fear not for I am with you, be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.' And that is what kept me grounded whenever I had that self-doubt, whenever I said this is too much for me to handle as a wife, as a mother, as an attorney. I've got to tell you that God got me through and I have to believe that He put me here for a reason," – State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby

The obligation of a God fearing elected official is pure justice.  Deuteronomy 16:19-20 You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality, and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous. Justice, and only justice, you shall follow, that you may live and inherit the land that the Lord your God is giving you. I can’t help but imagine what our world would be like if our government was led by more people like Marilyn Mosby. Pure justice? Impartiality? Yes, please!

As believers it is imperative to give our goals and dreams to God and allow him to use us and send us where we need to be. We have to go beyond being “church famous”, not rejecting the support of other believers but using them as a support system, understanding that the world needs our gifts and talents. We can’t be so opposed to pop culture that we alienate ourselves from society and become selfish with the treasure we’ve found in Jesus. The world needs law makers and officials, entertainers, chefs, designers etc. that are led by God to become the influencers of the world.