Are gays ‘born that way’? Most Americans now say yes, but science says no

 

PRINCETON, NJ, May 20, 2015 (LifeSiteNews.com) -- For the first time, a majority of Americans say that homosexuals are "born that way."

According to the latest Gallup poll, 51 percent of Americans say that people are born gay or lesbian, while only 30 percent say outside factors such as upbringing and environment determine sexual orientation.
However, science would not bear that out. No fewer than eight major studies from around the world have found homosexuality is not a genetic condition.
Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council says that these numerous, rigorous studies of identical twins have now made it impossible to argue that there is a "gay gene." If homosexuality were inborn and predetermined, then when one identical twin is homosexual, the other should be, as well.
Yet one study from Yale and Columbia Universities found homosexuality common to only 6.7 percent of male identical twins and 5.3 percent of female identical twins.
The low rate of common homosexuality in identical twins – around six percent – is easily explained by nurture, not nature.
Researchers Peter Bearman and Hannah Brueckner concluded that environment was the determining factor. They rejected outright that "genetic influence independent of social context" as the reason for homosexuality. "(O)ur results support the hypothesis that less gendered socialization in early childhood and preadolescence shapes subsequent same-sex romantic preferences."
"Less gendered socialization" means, a boy was without a positive father figure, or a girl was without a positive mother figure.
In light of the evidence, Sprigg said simply, "No one is born gay."
Psychiatrists William Byne and Bruce Parsons summarize the science: "Critical review shows the evidence favoring a biologic theory to be lacking. ... In fact, the current trend may be to underrate the explanatory power of extant psychosocial models." In other words, homosexuality is a psychological malady, not something people are born with.
Some homosexuals openly admit that their lifestyle is a choice. Lindsay Miller, who describes herself as a "queer woman," complained in The Atlantic monthly, "I get frustrated with the veiled condescension of straight people who believe that queers 'can't help it,' and thus should be treated with tolerance and pity.”
“I was not born this way,” she wrote. “The life I have now is not something I ended up with because I had no other options. Make no mistake – it's a life I chose.”
"It's time to send the 'born that way' myth to the graveyard of misbegotten ideas, buried in the plot next to the myth that the sun revolves around the earth,” Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association has written.
And yet, the myth continues to gain believers, even among conservatives. According to the new Gallup poll, Republicans are divided on whether Americans are born homosexual (40 percent) or whether same-sex orientation is determined by environmental factors (36 percent).
In previous polls, a majority of Republicans have said homosexuality is not innate. Now, according to this poll, they are equally likely to view sexual orientation as inherent, rather than a choice or a consequence of how people were raised. In all, 62 percent of Democrats believe homosexuals were born that way.
The issue affects Republican politicians who, like all politicians, base their public statements on the polls. Presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson recently apologized for merely suggesting people choose to be gay or lesbian. Sen. Marco Rubio has said that, while he does not support same-sex "marriage," he believes that people are born gay or lesbian.
Fischer says our society and particularly our presidential candidates should make policy based on medical and scientific reality, not polls. "If homosexual behavior is a choice, then our public policy can freely be shaped by an honest look at whether this behavioral choice is healthy and should be encouraged, or unhealthy and dangerous and consequently discouraged," he wrote.

Click "like" if you want to defend true marriage.

There is no debate over the health threats posed by engaging in the homosexual lifestyle. Fischer notes that the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association admits homosexuals are at greater risk of AIDS, substance and alcohol abuse, depression and anxiety, hepatitis, STDs, and prostate and colon cancer.
"This is not behavior that any rational society should condone, endorse, subsidize, reward, promote or sanction in domestic policy or in the marketplace,” Fischer wrote. “It's a choice, and a bad one at that."
The Gallup poll, taken May 6-10, also reports a new record high number of Americans support same-sex "marriage."
The poll is based on telephone interviews with a random sample of 1,024 adults, aged 18 and older, living in the United States. The organization says its margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.

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Why I am a Christian Democrat

I am a Democrat because, in many churches (including mine), being a Christian Democrat is not an oxymoron. None of us practice a pure faith. Our faith is always influenced by both the Christian and wider cultures in which we live. I have spent my whole life worshipping in churches that lean left, where being a Christian and a Democrat is neither remarkable nor unusual. But conservative evangelicals, and to some extent the media, continue to put forth the fallacy that a “Christian” voter is a conservative evangelical voter, equating the evangelical subculture with the wider church. Underlying this fallacy is an assumption that anyone who fails to see a straight line connecting their faith tenets to the Republican party platform must have an insubstantial, lip-service faith corrupted by cultural influences. This assumption is dangerous, but mostly, it’s just wrong.

I am a Democrat because I understand that theological conservatism and political conservatism are two different things. I am theologically conservative, meaning that I believe all that stuff in the Nicene Creed about the virgin birth and the resurrection. Especially the resurrection. But theological conservatism and political/social conservatism are entirely different things. Jesus was not conservative or liberal, and the idea that Jesus would identify wholly with either of our political parties is ludicrous. But Jesus was radical. Jesus turned the values of his world and ours (giving priority to the pursuit of wealth and comfort, might makes right, individual success over the common good) upside down. I am not radical enough for Jesus (most of us, regardless of party affiliation, aren’t), and I certainly don’t think the Democratic Party platform is radical enough for Jesus. But as a follower of the incarnate God who put the last first, whose ministry focused on those on the margins of his culture, I align myself with the political party that most consistently puts the interests of marginalized Americans on their national agenda.

I am a Democrat because I daily appreciate the ways in which government improves individual lives and the common good. I harbor no illusions that our government is, or is likely to become, a paragon of efficiency, honesty, and effectiveness. But looked at through global and historical lenses, the extent to which our democratic (lower case “d”) government provides safety and opportunity to its citizens is remarkable. In much of the world, the government-funded resources available here (well-kept roads, food stamps, free public schools, unemployment insurance, relatively effective and non-corrupt law enforcement, etc.) simply don’t exist. Governments can do horrid things in the name of the common good, but our government often manages to do much of value for the common good. Today’s Democratic Party appears more willing than the Republican Party to believe that government has a responsibility to use its power for the common good, rather than leaving that good solely in the hands of a diverse (and divided) citizenry, or the free market.

I am a Democrat because I see a difference between “fairness” and “justice.” I was struck, in reading the comments to my colleague’s husband’s essay, by how many people called for “fair” economic policies. “Fair” appeared to mean that those who obtain much wealth are not asked to give a good chunk of it up to help those who have little. But in God’s math, we don’t always get what is fair or what we deserve by the world’s standards, either for our hard work (e.g., the parable of the day laborers, Matthew 20:1–16) or our sinfulness. God is not about fairness. God is about justice. God is about all people being treated with dignity as those made in God’s image, about extravagant generosity regardless of merit, about those stuck in bad luck or the consequences of bad decisions getting second (and third and fourth and seventy-seventh) chances, about everyone giving out of what they have so that all have what they need (e.g., the Loaves and Fishes, Matthew 14:13–21). It may be unfair for the very wealthy to be taxed at a higher rate than the middle class, but in God’s economy, it is just.

I am a Democrat because “Biblical” values are far from clear cut, so I focus on what Jesus chose to focus on in his earthly ministry. Jesus understood, I think, that our holy scriptures are not always consistent when it comes to details, even such important details as the character of God (Did the same God who called the little children to him really mastermind the murder of every first-born son of the Egyptians?*). So Jesus made it simple for us. Jesus said there are two things we must do: Love God. Love our neighbors as ourselves. To figure out in practical terms what it means to love God and others, we look to what Jesus did and said, searching for common threads. The most obvious common thread is that Jesus continually reached out and offered hospitality, healing, hope, and help to those who were poor, sick, powerless, or reviled.

Jesus’s continual emphasis on our duty toward the poor and marginalized is most beautifully and memorably expressed in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31–46). Jesus says, quite simply, that any time we offer concrete help to someone suffering from hunger or cold or imprisonment or sickness or lack of welcome, we are loving God. And Jesus doesn’t instruct us to first decide if those in need of a cloak or a drink of water deserve our help. Jesus doesn’t say we can first figure out whether it’s fair to ask me to give away my only cloak or offer a stranger a drink from the well I built with my own two hands, with my wealth, to nurture me and my family.

Time and time and time again, Jesus put caring for “the least of these” at the center of his ministry and his message. These days, neither party is doing a particularly good job of making the poor central to their message, preferring to focus instead on the middle class, who are more likely than the poor to vote. But when it comes time for me to color in a circle on my voting card, I’m going to choose the candidate whose party has shown, most recently via the adoption of universal health care, that it takes seriously our societal obligation to care for those who cannot, for whatever reason, care adequately for themselves.

I am a Democrat because adequately caring for the least of these requires some government support. Many Republican Christians argue that Jesus’s mandate to care for the “least of these” was meant for his followers, not for our governments. Let individuals and churches care for the poor, they say, and let the government perform a limited role, primarily in defense. Although I believe that all Christians and churches (including me and my church) could do much more for the poor and marginalized than we are doing, we are also limited to providing help within our cultural, societal, and governmental structures.

We can drive a sick, uninsured child to a hospital, but if a long hospitalization or surgery is required, that child’s parents will have to either scrape together thousands or dollars (and perhaps eventually lose their home or declare bankruptcy as a result) or hope that the hospital has charity funds available. We can help an immigrant learn English and a marketable skill, but if the law doesn’t offer him a reasonable avenue toward legal work status, we can’t help him get a job that will support a family.  We can provide pregnancy counseling and baby supplies to a young unwed mother, but if that mother is unable to afford groceries, decent housing, quality daycare, and additional education for herself , she and her child will likely end up in unsafe housing, poorly nourished, un- or underemployed, and stuck in a cycle of poverty that isn’t just a problem for that family, but (in God’s economy) for all of us. Without government safety nets such as subsidized housing and daycare, food stamps, education grants, health insurance, and support for immigrants, private charity can only do so much to ease the burden of poverty.

Our government is far from perfect, but it is still, in my mind, the greatest example of the good that be done via a democratic government of, by, and for the people. As Christians, we have an obligation to care for all of God’s people—even when it doesn’t seem quite fair; even when poverty results from a toxic and convoluted mix of a sinful communal history, bad or nonexistent policies, and poor personal decisions; even when our initial efforts to fix a problem as big as our nation’s healthcare inequalities might be clumsy and in need of fine-tuning.

To put it simply, I am a Democrat because the Democratic Party is doing more than the Republican Party to care for the “least of these,” however imperfectly. And Jesus made it absolutely clear that caring for the least of these is central to our identity as his followers.

* I revised this sentence to correct an error in the first draft, in which I referred to the murder “of the innocents,” not the murder of all of Egypt’s first-born sons as told in Exodus 12:12). The murder of the innocents refers to Herod the Great’s murder of first-born sons after the birth of Jesus.

my testimony

I had always known that I was a Christian. I was not saved until I heard a song by FFH on November 16, 2003, When I recited there prayer of salvation. I was brought up in the church. I did not actually become a hardcore Christian until 2005. I was baptized by immersion on April 10th, 2005. On I was hanging out with the wrong crowd. I have begun to say no to the temptations that the enemy is sending towards me. I also said to God all I want to do is serve him. I surrendered him. I went to the one thing Conference in Kansas City and realized that it was a confirmation that I am to be a church planter. I don’t when or where but God will revile that to me someday.

I received a great blessing from going to the one thing Conference in Kansas City. I use to listen to country music only. Since 2005 I only listen to Christian music. I grew up in the church. But for some reason I think we were just playing church. Over the past three years I have discovered the lord. How great he is. A girl I was dating in high school she and I would go to church together on a regular basis. I did not know until I attended the one thing conference in Kansas City that God is lovesick over us.

There are so many pressures on us that the world is putting on us. I do not like the fact that there are people in the United States trying to force their agenda on us. It makes me sick. But prophecies from the bible are being fulfilled every day. I felt a calling to go to Kansas City and it was a blessing. I also feel that I am being called back to Kansas City to do an internship there. I had never heard of IHOP until a fellow Christian in my life group asked me if I wanted to go to Kansas City for the IHOP Conference. I loved IHOP so much that I will do anything to go back. I also feel the training that I will receive will help me grow in Christ even more.

There was one of the speakers there that spoke right into my heart. I love god and I know that god loves me and gives us trials to see how great our faith in him really his. I had gone on a church retreat in March of 2006 and that is where I first learned that I was supposed to be a minister. Then when I went to IHOP. That was a confirmation that I needed to pursue ministry. I told god in a prayer that all I want to do is serve him. I also discovered that I need to read my bible more. My favorite scripture is from Isaiah 40:31 NLT

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.

They will soar high on wings like eagles.

They will run and not grow weary.

They will walk and not faint.

Before 2005 I was hanging out with the wrong people and drinking. I would listen to all kinds of music and then in 2005 with the help of a friend from my church in Lubbock. I began listening to David Phelps and Toby Mac. Now all I listen to is Christian music. I can thank god that he changed the music that I listen to. God has changed me in a radical way and I praise him for it. I have several different scriptures memorized but I need to memorize some more I think that I will start memorizing Romans 8.

Rom 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

Rom 8:3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,

Rom 8:4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Rom 8:5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

Rom 8:6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

This means that we are not in condemnation for we belong to Christ. For our sin Christ died on the cross for us. We are not worthy because of our flesh we can let our flesh get the way of our fellowship of God. I know I did. I confess my sins daily. I also that through God all things are possible. I let the enemy in and started attacking me because of hurt that happened in my past. The first was the fact that a male cousin on my mom's side took advantage of me at a very young age and took away my innocence. Then when I was twelve years old my parents got a divorce. I let the enemy attack that and also tell me that it was my step mother's fault. But that was a lie from the enemy that I was healed from during the John 8:32 weekend at Beltway. I am fully and 100% healed from those wounds and I am on fire for God and all I want to do is serve him. I am God's Favorite and I know that he loves being around me even though I had ran from him from 2001- 2003. I felt the Holy Spirit come in and tell me that I needed to be in church. So I started looking and I found a great little church in Stamford called Trinity Baptist Church. I became a member there. Then when I got my current Job with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. I moved to Lubbock, Texas in January of 2005 where I started going to Southcrest Baptist Church and became a member there in March of 2005. Then I felt a call to go to Family Harvest Church. I fell in love with that church and in March of 2006. I got filled with the Holy Spirit. I was refilled with the Holy Spirit on April 1st, 2010 at the 2010 Dangerous Men's Advance. I have been involved with Youth through the Texas Brigades. It breaks my heart that we are letting our youth down by not sharing the Word of God with them like we should.

I rebelled against God while working at TDCJ by experimenting in homosexuality and dressing as a drag queen. I hit rock bottom in 2011 when I screwed up and lost a great job at the Robertson Unit in Abilene, Texas. I was blessed in 2012 when I got a job at the Rolling Plains Regional Jail and Detention Center. I was blessed in 2013 when I got promoted to the rank of Sergeant. In July of 2013 I received the greatest blessing of all when I met the love of my life and we were married on June 21^st of 2014. In January of 2014 my wife was blessed by going on a walk to Emmaus. In March of 2014 I was blessed as well by going on a walk to Emmaus. Satan took us to rock bottom again at beginning of 2015 when I was tempted and cheated on my wife. We were okay until December of 2015 when I found out that my wife had cheated on me. I was letting Satan beat me up by bringing up the subject of divorce.

11/16/03 “this is the day that I gave my heart to Jesus”

Spiritual Fitness

Spiritual Fitness
1Ti 4:7-8 NLT  Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives' tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly.  (8)  "Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come."
 


1Ti 4:8 AMP  For physical training is of some value (useful for a little), but godliness (spiritual training) is useful and of value in everything and in every way, for it holds promise for the present life and also for the life which is to come.
Isa 40:31 AMP  But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired. [Heb. 12:1-3.]

The Way to think


We have control over what were thinking

Satan can target our mind

We have to re direct our thoughts

The Way you choose

1st Corinthians 9:27
1Co 9:27 AMP  But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships] and subdue it, for fear that after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit [not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit].

As christians we have to be discplined in our minds, thoughts, emotions, and everything

Heb 12:11 ESV  For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

If we don't discpline our minds and our emotions we are going to live in ruin

We have to have a balanced spiritual diet

You can't exercise your way out of a bad diet

Being spiritual fit is a journey not a destination

God just wants us to spend time with him

1Ti 4:7-8 MSG  Stay clear of silly stories that get dressed up as religion. Exercise daily in God--no spiritual flabbiness, please!  (8)  Workouts in the gymnasium are useful, but a disciplined life in God is far more so, making you fit both today and forever.

We become healthy physically and spiritual the exact same way we have eliminate what is harmful and cultivate what is helpful

Bad food and friends can bring us down

Can You Be Grateful In ALL Things?

Rarely are things as they first appear, not what happens but how we respond… Thank God no matter what happens… The challenge = Can you be grateful “in” all circumstances?

Remember what I have been teaching all month: What you appreciate, appreciates… When you learn to appreciate more of what you already have, you will find yourself having more to appreciate.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV), “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (MSG), “Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.”

V23, “May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ. The One who called you is completely dependable. If he said it, he'll do it!”

God has a “BIG LIFE” for you!! He has designed a blessed & successful life for you to enjoy, one that has: Peace & Purpose, Joy, Goodness & Wholeness, Wealth & Health.

3 John 2 (KJV), “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper (Greek means: “succeed in reaching, have a successful journey”) and be in health, (Greek means: “be well, to be safe, sound & whole”) even as thy soul prospereth.”

I want you to see it- A BIG GOD… BEING big IN YOU… & DOING big THROUGH YOU! A life of : Vitality, energy & stamina, Clarity, Love, value & significance, Provision & Supply, Purpose, meaning & fullness… AND SO MUCH MORE!

Jeremiah 32:27 (KJV), “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?”

Something is going to shift in you that KNOWS – you cannot go to a higher ground if you are hanging on to a lower level. A Big God doesn’t live in little places, therefore, God does His part & I must do mine.

Look for What is Right and Appreciate It: The word “appreciate” has several meanings- To be thankful or show gratitude; To raise or increase in value.
Think of everything you criticize regularly and you will see where you have failed to appreciate or find value. The moment you participate in the “depreciation” process (you stop valuing) and that is the moment you block your ability to experience gratefulness and ultimately abundance.
Catch people doing something right! THEN tell everyone about it! The Law of Recognition: What you don’t recognize will eventually exit your life. What you celebrate, appreciates. Anything unrecognized remains uncelebrated- a gift, a miracle, a person. And what you respect, you attract!
As I have stated before- You can’t conquer what you don’t confront, and you can’t confront what you don’t identify! So LET’S LOOK AT SOME OF THE OBSTACLES TO BEING GRATEFUL:
Familiarity can be fatal, It’s where you begin to take things for granted. It’s when you go through life unaware of the multitudes of blessings and gifts that are here each and every moment .
Psalm 90:12 (NIV), “Teach each of us to number our days aright, that me may gain a heart of wisdom”
Romans 3:23-24, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”
You must extend yourself and others the same love and mercy that God extended to you!
Ephesians 2:4-5, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved.” That means I must live the same patterns and practices of Jesus (to be non-judgmental) and practice forgiveness.
Gratitude comes with forgiving any offense, hurt, pain, anything... Letting it all go and extending grace & love! By walking in forgiveness you relieve yourself of the burden of carrying the hurt, anger pain, isolation, and all that occurred as the result of an “act” against you.
“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive he who is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us… –Martin Luther King Jr.
Once you make compassion a higher priority then judgment, it makes sense to forgive. So to be a person of non-judgment means to be a person of grace. This doesn’t mean you have compromise and no conviction, that you just “trust” everything and every one.”
Romans 6:1, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” No – because we died to ‘sin” in Christ, therefore how can we live IN IT any longer?
“Fault-finding” is not a matter of what you observe in your world but when you choose a critical or angry point of view! Its what you do with what you see. It’s what you do with what you see.
Counteract Complacency: Consciously be grateful for the good in your life. The brain is wired to filter out the good and hold on to the ‘bad’. Whatever isn’t hurtful, fearful or physically moving the brain filters causing us to take for granted and forget all our blessings.
Make a list of what you are thankful for. Keep it before you daily! Keep a “gratitude journal.” Have gratitude ‘flings” – be grateful for little things, big things, EVERY THING!
Cultivating an Attitude of Gratitude- Develop an awareness of yourself as a recipient, not a victim. Philippians 4:13 (KJV), “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.” Say, “Thank you” - Psalm 100:4 (KJV), “Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.” Tell those around you how much you appreciate them! John 15:12 (KJV), “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”
Cut off complaining and criticizing- Psalm 34:13 (NIV), “keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.”
Proverbs 10:31-32 (NIV), “The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out. The lips of the righteous know what is fitting, but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse.”
Change your way of thinking to powerful and positive! Philippians 4:8 (KJV), “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
Remember, it’s the nature of thought to increase. The more your thoughts center on what is missing, the more deficient you will feel. Attitudes create atmospheres, which create actions. The natural extension of being grateful is the development of a generous heart.
If it’s too much to give, it’s too much to receive!

Keys to life pt 9 Self Esteem

Keys to life pt 9
 Self Esteem - The foundation of life
 Deu 30:19  I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
Deu 30:20  loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them."

prayer - the power of life
relationships- the network of Life
change- the way of life
desire- the motivation of life
vision - the blue print of life
faith - the force of life
discpline - the strength of life

8th Key Self Esteem - The foundation of life

Pro 23:7  For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, "Eat and drink!" But his heart is not with you.

2Co 3:18  All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him.

My thoughts about myself control my actions toward others, my faith in God and how far I go in life. 

The greatest difficulties come from unbiblical self image

An ubiblical self image breeds inferiority, and inferiority breeds insecurity breeds fear and anxiety and defensiveness and arrogance and then a controlling attitude and all that goes along with that

A healthy self image produces:
confidence without arrogance
discipline without legalism
generosity without strings attached
leadership without control
wisdom without manipulation
conviction without independence

To lead others and ourselves we must walk in his image
I will love God and serve God in proportion to how I love myself

Mat 22:36-40 ESV  "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?"  (37)  And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (38)  This is the great and first commandment. (39)  And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (40)  On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."

1Jn 4:16  So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

Poor Self-esteem casuses many to have a weak faith in God and a negative view of their world

Ex. Israel in the wilderness


Num 13:29-33 ESV  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan."  (30)  But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it."  (31)  Then the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are."  (32)  So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, "The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height.  (33)  And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them."

Never see yourself as a minority, special group or one who needs others to take care of them

God had to change Gideon's view of himself before he could enable him to fulfill his destiny

Jdg 6:6-16 ESV  And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the LORD.  (7)  When the people of Israel cried out to the LORD on account of the Midianites,  (8)  the LORD sent a prophet to the people of Israel. And he said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery.  (9)  And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land.  (10)  And I said to you, 'I am the LORD your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.' But you have not obeyed my voice."  (11)  Now the angel of the LORD came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites.  (12)  And the angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor."  (13)  And Gideon said to him, "Please, sir, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian."  (14)  And the LORD turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?"  (15)  And he said to him, "Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house."  (16)  And the LORD said to him, "But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man."

The image, picture or thoughts I have about myself must be based on what my father says about me!

Possessing our inheritance

Possessing our inheritance

Pastor Bracken

Eph 3:1  This is why I, Paul, am in jail for Christ, having taken up the cause of you outsiders, so-called.

Eph 3:2  I take it that you're familiar with the part I was given in God's plan for including everybody.

Eph 3:3  I got the inside story on this from God himself, as I just wrote you in brief.

Eph 3:4  As you read over what I have written to you, you'll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ.

Eph 3:5  None of our ancestors understood this. Only in our time has it been made clear by God's Spirit through his holy apostles and prophets of this new order.

Eph 3:6  The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives (what I've been calling outsiders and insiders) stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.

Eph 3:11  All this is proceeding along lines planned all along by God and then executed in Christ Jesus.

Col 1:12  thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us.

2Pe 1:2  Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master.

2Pe 1:3  Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received!

2Pe 1:4  We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you--your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.

Act 26:16  But now, up on your feet--I have a job for you. I've handpicked you to be a servant and witness to what's happened today, and to what I am going to show you.

Act 26:17  "'I'm sending you off

Act 26:18  to open the eyes of the outsiders so they can see the difference between dark and light, and choose light, see the difference between Satan and God, and choose God. I'm sending you off to present my offer of sins forgiven, and a place in the family, inviting them into the company of those who begin real living by believing in me.'

Act 20:32  "Now I'm turning you over to God, our marvelous God whose gracious Word can make you into what he wants you to be and give you everything you could possibly need in this community of holy friends.

Rom 8:16  God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children.

Rom 8:17  And we know we are going to get what's coming to us--an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!

Gal 3:29  Also, since you are Christ's family, then you are Abraham's famous "descendant," heirs according to the covenant promises.

Gal 4:6  And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"

Gal 4:7  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Rom 4:13  For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 1Co 2:9  But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him"—

1Co 2:10  these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

1Co 2:11  For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

1Co 2:12  Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.

1Co 10:11  Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.

In the old testament Canaan is a type of inheritance today.

They had a promised land - we have a land of promises they were lead by Joshua we are lead by Jesus

Caleb meands bold 4 Truths concerning Caleb's life

The Spirit of Dominion

The Spirit of Declaration

The Spirit of Determination

The Spirit of Demonstration

Jos 14:6  Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me.

Jos 14:7  I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart.

Jos 14:8  But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God.

Jos 14:9  And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.'

Jos 14:10  And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old.

Jos 14:11  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.

Jos 14:12  So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said."

Jos 14:13  Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.

Jos 14:14  Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.

Possessing our inheritance part 2  Pastor Bracken

It's up to us to set in motion what God has for us!

Eph 1:11  In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,

Act 20:32  And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

1Co 10:11  Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.

Jos 14:6  Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me.

Jos 14:7  I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart.

Jos 14:8  But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God.

Jos 14:9  And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.'

Jos 14:10  And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old.

Jos 14:11  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.

Jos 14:12  So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said."

Jos 14:13  Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.

Jos 14:14  Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.

4 Truths Concerning Caleb's Life

1. The spirit of Dominion-Num 13:2  "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them."

Gen 1:26  Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

Eph 2:5  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

Psa 8:4  what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?

Psa 8:5  Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.

Psa 8:6  You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,

Mat 28:18  And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

1Jn 4:17  By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.

God want us on a quest to become all he has for us

You Release authority through your speech!

2. The spirit of Declaration- Num 14:24  But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.

WE all have to make some changes in life to possess and walk in our inheritance

2Co 4:13  Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, "I believed, and so I spoke," we also believe, and so we also speak,

Num 13:30  But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it."

Possessing your inheritance Pt. 3

Eph 1:11  In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,

Act 20:32  And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Jos 14:6  Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me.

Jos 14:7  I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart.

Jos 14:8  But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God.

Jos 14:9  And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.'

Jos 14:10  And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old.

Jos 14:11  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.

Jos 14:12  So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said."

Jos 14:13  Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.

Jos 14:14  Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.

Caleb means bold

4 truths concerning Caleb's Life

The spirit of dominion

The spirit of declaration

The spirit of determination

The spirit of demonstration

Num 24:14  And now, behold, I am going to my people. Come, I will let you know what this people will do to your people in the latter days."

We all have to make some changes in life to possess and walk in our inheritance

2Co 4:13  Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, "I believed, and so I spoke," we also believe, and so we also speak,

Num 13:30  But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it."

The spirit of declaration say's what God says in a difficult situation

Possessing your inheritance pt 4

Eph 1:11 ESV  In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,

Act 20:32 ESV  And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Jos 14:6-14 ESV  Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me.  (7)  I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart.  (8)  But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the LORD my God.  (9)  And Moses swore on that day, saying, 'Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God.'  (10)  And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old.  (11)  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.  (12)  So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said."  (13)  Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.  (14)  Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.

4 truths concerning Caleb's Life

The spirit of dominion

The spirit of declaration

The spirit of determination

The spirit of demonstration

3. The Spirit of determination

Jos 14:11 ESV  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.

2Co 1:20 ESV  For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.

Php 2:13 ESV  for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. ( Motivation &  determination)

4. The spirit of demonstration

Jos 14:12 ESV  So now give me this hill country of which the LORD spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the LORD said."

That Mountain represented 2 things

1. What God had promised

2. That enemies had his territory- his stuff

The spirit of demonstration is not based on what you want

Rom 8:32 ESV  He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

You are going to have capture your inheritance- do it!

Pro 10:4 ESV  A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

Pro 12:24 ESV  The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor.