Since this is a very important time in our nation, it’s my heart felt hope and prayer that each and every man and woman standing for marriage restoration will exercise your right and responsibility to vote tomorrow if you have not yet done so. And I pray that we all will vote in accordance with the very same Word of God on which we stand in faith and obedience for the restoration of our marriages.

Many Christians seem to believe that as Christians we shouldn’t be involved in politics, which is a bit incredulous since it was our Lord’s stand against all that was “politically correct” in His time that ultimately led to his crucifixion He stood steadfastly on the Word of God and refused to be moved from it regardless of the criticism and threats leveled against Him. And it is sadly because of such misguided Christian attitudes that atheists were able to get prayer removed from our schools; along with any godly teaching such as the Ten Commandments and even “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Tragically, in the same way, the unwillingness of Christians to take a meaningful stand for what we profess to believe has led to the legalized murder of millions of babies in what God intended to be the safety of their mothers’ wombs, and we now see our country moving forward to legalize homosexual marriage the same way adultery is now legalized in marriage and even accepted and condoned in our churches.. At what point will we truly say enough is enough and start taking a stand for the Word of God, especially since that’s the very same Word we are standing on as we put our faith and confidence in Him to uphold the covenant of our marriages?

How can we on one hand go to God in prayer and remind Him of the power and promise of His Word as we ask for His favor, provision, protection and blessings in the restoration of our marriages and families, and then on the other hand use our votes to elect leaders of our towns, cities, counties, states and country we absolutely know will govern in total opposition to much of what is written in that same Word? When Proverbs 3:6 instructs us to acknowledge God in ALL our ways and promises to direct our paths, that obviously doesn’t exclude our politics and how we vote. On the other hand, when Proverbs 28:9 warns us that if we don’t incline our ear to His law, our prayers are an abomination to God, that definitely includes our politics and how we vote. So I pray that everyone will take a stand for God’s Word and ways as you vote and carefully consider whether or not you are voting for men and women who will not protect the life of the unborn, who support and will promote the legalization of homosexual marriage and who believe that our Constitution promotes the separation of church and state instead of guaranteeing our freedom of religion by barring the government from establishing any laws that govern or dictate our rights to exercise our religious freedoms.

If we truly believe in God’s Holy covenant of marriage and the sanctity of life, then let’s take a stand for that with our votes and carefully consider those we elect and if they are likely to pass laws that respect neither. After all, our actions do speak louder than words and we will stand before the Lord and give account for all that we do and say, which will include how we vote.

The following are just a few scriptures to consider before casting your vote tomorrow:
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. - Psalm 139:13-16

Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. - Isaiah 46:3-4

The word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” - Jeremiah 1:4-5

Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done? - Proverbs 24:11-12

For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.” - Romans 1:26-28

Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” - Matthew 19:4-6

As for the man who does this, whoever he may be, may the LORD remove him from the tents of Jacob—even though he brings an offering to the LORD Almighty. Another thing you do: You flood the LORD’s altar with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer looks with favor on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands. You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth. - Malachi 2:12-15

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:6 (NASB)

He who turns away his ear from listening to the law, even his prayer is an abomination. - Proverbs 28:9 (NASB)

It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’” So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. - Romans 14:11-12

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. - Hebrews 4:13

They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. - 1 Peter 4:4-5

if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. - 2 Chronicles 7:14

What a truly wonderful and blessed summer it’s been for FAM Fellowship members as we’ve witnessed God’s mighty hand moving so suddenly and supernaturally to restore one marriage after another! In the past week alone, we have been in utter awe and amazement as we read one breathtakingly miraculous Restored Marriage testimony after another and were blessed to share in the joy of the restoration of five of our members’ marriages-and there’s a sixth that hasn’t even been posted yet! That’s a new weekly record for FAMM and what joy and excitement it has created in our midst! We were also blessed by two awesome marriage restoration testimonies in July, so with those and the one shared here from June, by the power of God’s mighty hand, we have watched as nine marriages were miraculously restored before our very eyes this summer!

We also started putting our conference call line to good and godly use earlier in the summer and it’s quite obvious that we’ve been seeing the fruit of that labor as hearts and minds are changed, transformed and renewed by the power and promise of God’s Word! We started out the summer conference calls reading and studying Joyce Meyer’s book, The Battlefield of the Mind, on Friday nights. Dan’s been reading for us and then we have a time for discussion after each chapter and then at the end of the call, we share what impacted us the most about our study. And then I started hosting Bible studies on Monday nights, where we really get into the Word in depth and examine and consider how what we’re learning applies as we stand for the restoration of our marriages. And since it’s not possible for many of our members to join us, the calls are recorded and members can go back and listen to them whenever they want to. Of course, the goal of all of this is to make the Word of God come alive in our hearts, minds and spirits so that we can and will be blessed with all that Jesus Christ died and rose again to make possible in us, our lives and our marriages; so it’s a joy and thrill beyond description and compare to see that happening!

And since I just don’t have the time I’d love to devote to writing Seeds Of Faith posts as I did in the earlier years of the ministry, I have asked for permission to share some of our awesome and inspiring Restored Marriage testimonies here, and the one I’m sharing today is from a young man who was totally lost and had no sense of what to do when he first joined FAM soon after leaving the military and his separation. He even moved out of state and went back “home” after his separation, so I had to “persuade” him TWICE to get right back where he belonged and was blessed to watch how he took the counsel of God’s Word to heart and got his act together and prepared to be the husband and father he so longed to be. He and his wife were separated when he first joined the fellowship and were blessed with a brief time of restoration, which we knew nothing about until after they had separated again (the second time I had to get him to go back where he belonged! LOL!). But he learned a lot through that experience and truly got serious about his walk and relationship with the Lord and his stand for the full and complete restoration of his marriage; even though this time his wife had divorced him and was moving on with her life with someone else. BUT, as we always say around here…that wasn’t GOD’S plan! And God’s plan included blessing MNO (member name omitted) with the desires of his heart to be a dad and to see his marriage restored, so when he and his wife separated and divorced, what they didn’t know was that she was pregnant! And as only God could orchestrate, within days of her new relationship coming to an end, their baby had to be delivered thre months prematurely due to complications, and God used that to bring MNO and his wife back together. So here’s his awesome Restored Marriage testimony of how God worked so suddenly and powerfully in the worst of circumstances to bring about the best of circumstances for him and his family! I loved the title he chose above, because hearing something like “Wow” from MNO was a real big deal since he’s usually very low key! And I’m happy to report that they are planning to remarry and that even though their son did amazingly well from the very first day he was born, he had a bit of a set back due to a staph infection, but he is on the mend and we’re confident that he will be going home soon! So be blessed and encouraged…AND GET READY…GOD IS MOVING!

*****
Hello Everyone,

I want to thank you all for your prayers, and SNO (spouse name omitted)wants to thank you as well. God has really been doing a lot in my life lately. Our son is still in the hospital and will have to stay a little longer. Even though he wasn’t supposed to be born until September 14th, he is doing great and the doctors can’t find anything wrong with him!

From what I’ve been told, they could not find his heartbeat, so they had to deliver him early. SNO said he always moved whenever the doctors put anything on her stomach and that he was just hiding. And he’s very active at his young age of just eight days old! He was born weighing one pound and twelve ounces and is now two pounds and one ounce.

Before all of this took place (about three weeks ago), I received a phone call from the NCP. I didn’t know who it was at first because it was around midnight when he called. But he called to apologize for messing up my family and for causing so many problems. He said it was not his place to raise this child and that he had broken up with my wife and had to call to tell me that he was sorry. That’s when things started to change and a few days later, my wife sent the ultrasound pictures that I’d been waiting for. I never said anything to her about the NCP, but it was obvious that there was a change in her.

She was hospitalized the following week after a visit to the doctor, and our son was born two days later. I really wasn’t sure what was going to happen since SNO and I hadn’t talked in six months. But I was able to see my son when he was born, and it is truly amazing just to look at him; yet it still hasn’t quite settled in that I’m a dad! Since he was born prematurely, I had to have a wrist band to visit him and I didn’t have one. So, when he was three days old, I texted my wife to ask if she would take me down to see him and she said yes. And when I arrived at the hospital, we talked for an hour even though we had not talked for more than ten minutes in the previous six months up to that point, and that was just once.

Since then, we have been going to the hospital together to see our son every day, and we are constantly talking and making plans together for raising our son together. It seems that in one instant, things changed so completely and so quickly. It was definitely not the way I saw it coming, but as always, God’s plans are far better than ours. SNO believes that God brought our son into this world early to bring us back together since there is absolutely nothing wrong with him, and if he wasn’t here, we would not be talking again. I really don’t know what to say other than, “Wow, God is amazing!”

So I’m very happy to claim that my marriage is restored and, Linda, you can move us over to the restored marriage list! This is truly an amazing time, and I know that it was only God that could have done something like this. I am thankful every day for what He has done, and I look forward to the many wonders I know He will continue to do. And I’ll do my best to update you all as much as I can. I’m really sorry that it took so long to post this, and I finally just had to make an effort to give God the praise He deserves!

As I’ve often shared, one of the most amazing things I’m blessed to see God do over and over again is confirm the work done here, which often feels like He is very personally saying that we’re doing a good job! So imagine my awe and delight when I saw the following message from Glenn Jackson this morning—after our awesome Bible study last night, Why We Struggle, which used the same scripture (John 15:4-5)!

For the first time, our call was interrupted and it took a while for the lines to be available again, and then my computer malfunctioned, so it’s obvious the devil didn’t want that Bible study to take place! BUT our God is bigger and just as He declared in Proverbs 21:30, NO wisdom, NO insight and NO plan CAN succeed against God! So we had a great time of fellowship and study and I strongly encourage everyone who wasn’t able to participate to listen to the calls-it’s in two parts. And I know you will all be very blessed and encouraged by Glenn’s awesome and timely message!

*****
EXHORTATIONS FROM THE FATHER [Reflections Of The Father’s Heart]
August 10th 2010
VISION
- I entered a room and saw [literally] a million piece jig-saw puzzle lying in pieces on the floor. I immediately perceived the complete and utter hopelessness of the task of putting it together other than “entirely” by supernatural means.
The Father spoke to me and said: The “million pieces” of the puzzle represent the million facets of My Will that I am carrying out “behind the scenes” in any given moment on the behalf of My children [and all those in their “sphere of existence”] with a view to the perfect fulfillment of their destiny, in Christ. The fact that they were strewn about the room represents the fact that it is humanly impossible
for one to piece together the “puzzle” [mystery of their life and calling] properly. For even if one could put the pieces together it is certain that they could not do it in the “divine order” [piece by piece in the perfect order that is known only to My heart] that is necessary to both bring about and fulfil My highest Will and purpose in their lives - and the lives that they will touch [and the lives that will touch them] between now and the end of the age.
“strewn” - to let fall in separate pieces over a surface; scattered;
….”Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in [being vitally united to] the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much [abundant] fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing”…. John 15:4-5
The Amplified Translation
….”we consider and look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are visible are temporal [brief and fleeting], but the things that are invisible are deathless and everlasting”…. 2 Corinthians 4:18
The Amplified Translation
*****
You can read all of Glenn’s messages or sign up to receive them each day by email on his website.

FAM members were truly blessed by the following testimony, which MNO (member name omitted) posted about two weeks ago, and I greatly appreciate her permission to share it here as well.

MNO and her husband have been separated for about four years and he was living with a NCP (non-covenant person) up until a few months ago. But she greatly struggled through most of those years to experience the joy and peace Jesus died to give all of us, and it was heart breaking to see her ongoing grief. So from my perspective, the above title of her Restored Marriage Testimony just couldn’t be more appropriate as God has truly turned her mourning into dancing, and it’s been a great blessing to witness how mightily He has moved in her heart and life, and now in the restoration of her marriage!

So I hope and pray that the word of MNO’s testimony will greatly bless and encourage everyone standing in faith and obedience on the power and promise of God’s Word for marriage restoration because God is ever so faithful to do exactly what His Word declares (Isaiah 46:10-11 and Isaiah 55:10-11)! And that’s something we all know so well in the FAM Fellowship because last year alone, we were blessed by the Restored Marriage Testimonies of twenty-eight of our members and we’ve already been blessed by six Restored marriage restoration testimonies so far this year! We are also blessed to be growing at an amazing rate, adding an average of fifteen to twenty new members each month, and I regret not having the time I used to for writing Seeds Of Faith posts, which is why it’s such a blessing to be able to share what God is doing in our midst on the public site from time to time. So be blessed and encouraged and GET READY…GOD IS MOVING!!!

*****
Hi Everyone,

It has been about six months since my last post, and my, how God has changed things in that time!

First, I want to say that my praise is to God alone! He does answer prayer, so believe that and believe Him with all your heart. Believe that as you surrender it all to the Lord Jesus Christ, He hears and answers. And don’t give up; keep trusting that the Lord is totally capable of doing ALL that needs doing in our situations, which includes working on us.

Last Christmas, I shared how God had really worked in my heart and head. He had turned my mourning into dancing and I was and still am so incredibly grateful for His healing touch in my life. But about a month or so after that post, I realized that I still had a twinge of anger and unforgiveness in my heart for my husband. And I didn’t want it there, so I told God I didn’t want that in my heart anymore and asked Him to take it away. After all, I’d been dealing with it for almost four years! Well, He removed it, and I could write a lot more about what God did before He started changing my circumstances. We are, after all, such multi-faceted people. But let it suffice to say that when we work with Him, stay close to Him, honor and glorify Him, we won’t be disappointed!

As I also mentioned in a previous post, I used a journal to write everything down; praises, prayers, thanksgiving and everything. And God really used that to work in my heart about a lot of things. So I can tell you today that God is working in your circumstances; even when you don’t see it. He certainly did in mine!

My husband and I see each other often now and have contact in many different forms every day. And he has shared his desire to work on us and be something again. Woohoo!!! And we all know what that something is! God is moving us toward a completely restored marriage each day, and I believe one reason He answered my prayers, in the natural, is because He knew I was ready.

Our spouses are often not right with God when circumstances start changing, so we have to be ready for that! When our prodigal spouses return to our lives, they return with so much “stuff” and we have to be able to stand firm in the Lord when that happens. I’m also better able to “see” what God wants me to pray for now and can therefore be more specific in my prayers. I still surrender it all to God every day because I know only He can fix anything! Not by my might, not by my power, but by His Spirit, God will level the mountains and make the paths straight. And as I see God working every day, I’m reminded of Chris Tomlin’s song, Our God, which says “If our God is for us (he is), who can ever stop us, if our God is for us, who can stand against us”. Nothing. So in faith, I claim my husband restored to God and returned to our marriage and family! Throughout my journey, God gave me compounded faith, much like compounded interest. One way our faith grows is through our words, and since I want to let God know that I believe Him and His Word; Linda, please move us to the Restored Marriage list!

I also want to give special thanks to Diane in Canada and Amy in North Carolina because your posts about God working on us, waiting, praying, and standing when God is moving are invaluable and I refer back to them on a regular basis.

So hang on. Don’t give up. My circumstances were so hopeless, and I was a mess. But today, I am no longer hopeless or a mess, but a daughter of the High King. Wait, trust, hope in the Lord, and He will work it all out for His glory, honor, fame and praise. Be encouraged, dear brothers and sisters in Christ.

Many recent conversations with FAM members have been about the vital necessity of truly knowing God because it’s simply not possible for anyone to believe, love, trust or obey God if we don’t know Him. So this week’s message from Charles Stanley, Standing Tall and Strong through Prayer, which gets into how important it is to know WHO we’re praying to is another awesome example of God’s faithfulness to confirm the things He wants us to know and understand. So I strongly encourage everyone to listen to Dr. Stanley’s message, and you can follow along with his Sermon Outline, which includes links to the scripture references he uses.

Then I received an email message from my former church, Calvary Chapel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, entitled “Learn the Names of God” with this link to even more messages about God by my former pastor, Bob Coy! There’s obviously no doubt that God is serious about confirming the importance of truly knowing Who He is so that we can victoriously stand in faith and obedience on the power and promise of His Word for the full and complete restoration of our marriages and families! And our Spanish speaking members will be very happy to see that there are a couple of Spanish translations available at the above link as well.

Since this is so vitally important to EVERYTHING we do as Christians, I hope and pray that everyone will make getting to know and understand God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, a top priority. And the only way to do that is to get very serious about reading and studying His Word and listening to messages like the ones linked to above. After all, the Bible is God’s love letter to us and our owner’s manual, so why do we think we can afford not to read or fully understand it? We can’t, because Jesus taught that loving Him with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength is the most important commandment of all (Mark 12:29-31) and that we will be blessed with His provision by seeking FIRST His kingdom and His righteousness (Matthew 6:31-33), and according to James 4:15-17, failure to do so is sin. And we simply can’t afford that because of the warning found in Psalm 66:17-19, which declares, I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Therefore, we’ll never do ANYTHING more important, blessed or rewarding than doing whatever it takes to truly get to know our most awesome and sovereign God and heavenly Father!

This week’s TV broadcast message from Charles Stanley is such a powerful and important message for everyone standing for marriage restoration that I just had to share it, and I hope everyone will take the time to watch or listen to it!

As I listened to Dr. Stanley talk about the necessity of EXPECTING God to answer our prayers, Colossians 4:2Philippians 4:6-7 came to mind because they so clearly instruct us to pray with expectancy and with an attitude of thanksgiving; obviously watching for the answers to our prayers and thanking God even before we see them manifest in the natural realm of our lives. And as he continued to talk about having to believe the things we’ve heard God say no matter what we see and hear, I was reminded of Romans 4:17-21 and how important it is for us to SPEAK in agreement with the things we know God promises even before we see them fully manifested in our lives and even if everything we see and hear in the natural indicates just the opposite of what we believe; which further reminded me of the power of Proverbs 18:20-21, Psalm 103:20 and Numbers 14:28.

Then as Dr. Stanley continued teaching that even the sins we tend to consider insignificant keep us from trusting God, I was reminded of Song of Solomon 2:15 because it teaches us that it’s the “little foxes” that ruin the vineyard—the vineyards that are in bloom, which means about to produce fruit. And then in 1 Corinthians 5:6-7, we’re taught that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough and that we have to get rid of the old yeast; that we are a new batch without yeast because of the sacrifice Jesus made for us.

And as Dr. Stanley talked about the importance of our motives and that they must be to glorify the Lord, I was reminded of the warning given in James 4:3-4 that when we are motivated by our own gain and pleasure, we have no reason to expect God to answer our prayers; especially since Ephesians 1:3-14 makes it so clear that the only thing that motivates God is bringing honor and glory to His Son, Jesus Christ.

So listen to this week’s message, The Thrill of Trusting God, and learn how important it is to trust God as we stand in faith and obedience on the power and Promise of His Word and EXPECT HIM TO PERFORM IT (Isaiah 46:10-11, Isaiah 55:10-11 and 1 Thessalonians 5:24)! And here’s the Sermon Outline for The Thrill of Trusting God, with links to the scripture for references. As always, it all just comes down to whether or not we believe God, and there’s just no way to listen to a powerful message like this without being blessed and encouraged…so listen and GET READY BECAUSE GOD IS MOVING!

I want to share Joyce Meyer’s TV broadcast message from today because it’s about peace, and I particularly loved what she said about peace making us powerful! She used Mark 3 (AMP) and noted the first verse and that if we don’t understand this parable, we can’t understand any of the parables, so IT’S PRETTY IMPORTANT:
13 And He said to them, Do you not discern and understand this parable? How then is it possible for you to discern and understand all the parables?
14 The sower sows the Word.
15 The ones along the path are those who have the Word sown [in their hearts], but when they hear, Satan comes at once and [by force] takes away the message which is sown in them.
16 And in the same way the ones sown upon stony ground are those who, when they hear the Word, at once receive and accept and welcome it with joy;
17 And they have no real root in themselves, and so they endure for a little while; then when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Word, they immediately are offended (become displeased, indignant, resentful) and they stumble and fall away.
18 And the ones sown among the thorns are others who hear the Word;
19 Then the cares and anxieties of the world and distractions of the age, and the pleasure and delight and false glamour and deceitfulness of riches, and the craving and passionate desire for other things creep in and choke and suffocate the Word, and it becomes fruitless.
20 And those sown on the good (well-adapted) soil are the ones who hear the Word and receive and accept and welcome it and bear fruit-some thirty times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some [even] a hundred times as much.

And then she went to James 3:18 (AMP), which powerfully speaks for itself because it says And the harvest of righteousness (of conformity to God’s will in thought and deed) is [the fruit of the seed] sown in peace by those who work for and make peace [in themselves and in others, that peace which means concord, agreement, and harmony between individuals, with undisturbedness, in a peaceful mind free from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts].

Please study and meditate on these passages of scripture because they hold so much wisdom and understanding for all of us and reveal just how vitally important peace is as we stand for marriage restoration or any kind of miracle in our lives and in the lives of those we love. And this is a very powerful and important message, which I encourage everyone to listen to. It’s a two part message titled Hold Your Peace, and you can watch both of them at this link.

Be blessed and be encouraged to live and walk in peace because that is what Jesus came to enable us to do and it is one of the most powerful magnets we have to draw our spouses back to us and to the Lord; not to mention all of those we come into contact with. Peace is a very powerful force in all of our lives and something we all underestimate the importance of, especially since it’s often a lack of peace at home that drives our spouses elsewhere or keeps them from coming back home. So understanding the power and importance of peace is one of the most significant things we all must do to “get ready.” GOD IS MOVING…SO DO GET READY!!!

Just by virtue of the fact that most of us are Americans and live in one of the wealthiest countries in the world and have a roof over our heads and luxuries that most people in the rest of the world couldn’t even begin to imagine should be enough to have all of us on our faces before God giving thanks to the Lord and praising His name every single day of our lives; not to mention at a time we call “Thanksgiving!” Yet it seems that we often need a refresher on what is praise and thanksgiving and what is not and the blessings and curses brought on accordingly.

After a day of literally not being on the private site more than a few minutes due to some major computer issues, resulting in the purchase of a new one and spending all afternoon with my computer technician to set up my new system and get everything moved over and updated…all a HUGE praise), I logged in Wednesday night truly expecting to see some posts filled with praise and thanksgiving; especially after one member’s invitation to do just that and the awesome example another member has set for all of us in the past few weeks! So I couldn’t believe what I saw and ended up deleting several post without even reading them all the way through…which is something I’ve NEVER done before!!! I love you all dearly, but I have to admit that I just don’t understand why it is so difficult to GENUINELY praise God with hearts filled to overflowing with praise and thanksgiving for our many blessings. And that should not and does not depend on or have anything to do with what any other person in our lives does or doesn’t do, or on what circumstances we face at any given time when we truly know WHO OUR GOD IS AND HOW MUCH HE LOVES US AND HOW FAITHFUL HE IS TO uphold and fulfill HIS WORD!

So perhaps we need to be reminded of the definition of “praise” to better understand what it means to PRAISE GOD. And then we might need to be reminded of the definition of ”thanksgiving” so we know what that means as well; because we’re not doing either when what we write is full of all the ways we’re “struggling”…”being attacked”…”broken hearted”disappointed”…”suffering” and everything else I saw in posts Wednesday night that actually had the words praise and/or thanksgiving in their titles. And as we can see by reading the following Seeds Of Faith posts, the history of FAM just proves that when the praises go up, so do the number of restorations, and when the site is filled with woes and self pity posts that tend to magnify the works of the flesh and devil instead, there are no restorations. So with that in mind, I’m just not going to even bother reading posts that do that in the future; I’m going to delete them and have instructed our other editors to do the same thing.

Yes, we all have struggles as human beings, particularly as we face the challenges of separation and/or divorce, and they too are an important part of our testimonies because they glorify and draw attention to the awesome work God is doing in our hearts and lives and His UNFAILING FAITHFULNESS TO UPHOLD THE POWER AND PROMISE OF HIS WORD. BUT a post with very few words of praise and thanksgiving sprinkled in what really just lists all the details of why someone ISN’T all that happy, not truly praising God and DOESN’T even come close to having a heart filled with thanksgiving does neither! So I’d STRONGLY suggest reading and taking to heart, Understanding what Happens when We Magnify and Validate the Work of the Devil , and then the following SOF posts to truly understand what praise and thanksgiving is and what it isn’t and what happens when we praise and truly give thanks to God and when we don’t:
Praise in ALL THINGS
If Only We Could Understand the SUPERNATURAL Power of Praise and Thanksgiving!
Speak Words of Praise and Thanksgiving for Life and Blessings!
Let Everything that has Breath Praise the Lord!
Recognizing the Power of Praise and that it is Our Purpose
The Awesome Power of Praise and Thanksgiving

If we want the power and promise of God’s Word to be manifested in our lives, then I hope and pray that we will learn to truly praise God and truly have thanksgiving in our hearts because God would be a liar and make a mockery of His Word if He blessed and rewarded mumbling and grumbling with the awesome miracle of restored marriages. And when what seems like restoration happens by our own hand instead of by the SUPERNATURAL power of God; it doesn’t last because as Psalm 127:1 declares, everything done by our own hand is in vain and does not last.

So I pray that all of us will come to know and live according to the awesome promise of Psalm 100:3-5, which says Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

And I pray that those whose posts I deleted Wednesday night will realize that they in particular have SO much to be praising and thanking God for this Thanksgiving; if a restored marriage and spending the holiday alone with our spouse, being blessed with the gift of a huge material blessing that so radically changes our life, a spouse demonstrating a total change in divorce plans and God working to deliver us from what has been a great burden for years isn’t enough to warrant and elicit NOTHING BUT JOYFUL PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING FROM US, then why should God even bother blessing us with anything else? After all, that just demonstrates an unbelievable lack of gratitude and thanksgiving, so there’s no reason for Gog to expect anything more from us in the future when we obviously don’t truly appreciate what He has already done for us.

As the FAM members know, God has truly blessed me beyond belief in the past few months and NOTHING could keep me from singing His praises every day for the rest of my life and all day long! But I can assure you that if I had spent most of my time thinking about the challenges I faced, what I didn’t have, how long it was taking to see my prayers answered and those things I wanted and didn’t have, or diminished every praise with posts filled with those things, I wouldn’t be looking forward to the future with my husband today. So we ALL need to remember that the Bible warns us that the “little foxes spoil the vine” (Song of Solomon 2:15) and “A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough” (Galatians 5:9 NASB).” And I pray that the Lord will fill your hearts with so much praise and thanksgiving that there’s no room for anything else. And when that happens, we’ll start seeing more and more names moved to the Restored Marriage list!

Sadly, I know of at least ffive marriages that have been restored in the past year, and there’s not one word about them on the site, and I get call after call filled with great praises of how God is moving, which never make it on the site either. So I suggest that we all read, study and take to heart the very important revelation found in Ephesians 1:3-14 because bringing praise and glory to the name of Jesus is the ONLY thing that motivates and moves the hand of God to move in our lives, marriages and in ALL circumstances! And if we really want Him to do that, we had better learn what it means to praise God and GIVE THANKS IN EVERYTHING (1 Thessalonians 5:18)!

I meant to share this last Friday, but it was a crazy day since I was very busy and I had a problem with Outlook Express and lost a lot of email in my inbox (and can’t read much of what’s left) that day. But this is such a powerful message that I went to Lorraine’s site to copy it and share it here. By the way, you can read all of her archived Coffee Break devotionals here. Anyone who have talked to me much at all, know that I am convinced that what we do with the Word of God is the key to EVERYTHING ELSE in our lives, including the restoration of our marriages; so it’s no wonder that I so appreciated the following message from Lorraine. Read it, take it to heart and you wil without a doubt be blessed and encouraged beyond belief!

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“It Will Change You” by Lorraine Ezell
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Romans 12:2

Yesterday I passed by a church and the sign on the marquee said, “You won’t change His message, but His message will change you.” So many people try to “change” God’s word and make it say what they want it to say. They try to twist it to where it will condone what they do. They try to make it fit their situation. They try to make it line up with what they desire. Try as you may, God’s word is unchanging. You may try to make it mean one thing, but God will always judge you through His word by what He means and says.

The reason some try to do this is because they think that if they can “change” it, then it won’t change them- because basically they don’t want to change and line up with it. You can’t read the word or hear the word- the true, uncompromised, un-waterd down, kept in context word- and it not bring about change in your life. The word will convict, it will reprove, it will instruct, it will correct, it will guide and it will provoke you to righteousness. When you read or hear the word you will either have to conform to it or rebel against it.

As you conform your live to the teachings, statues and commands of God’s word a change will come, a transformation will take place in you. Your actions, your attitude, your speech, your way of thinking will all begin to change. You won’t be the same person you once were- which is the goal. The word is intended to bring such a transformation in you as you allow it to do it’s work in you through heeding and applying it to your life that you will no longer look like you, but like its Author- Jesus.

In conclusion I want to ask a question- are you trying to change God’s word to make it say, fit and line up with what you want, or are you allowing it to do a change in you; a transforming change?

Have a great day. God’s word is eternal and forever established, it will not change, but if you will let it, it will change you.
For further reading:
Psalm 119:89-93, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, James 1:23-25, Matthew 7:24 and 2 Peter 1:1-8

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell, and available online and sent by email free of charge for the asking from About the Master’s Business Ministry, Inc.
So please feel free to call Lorraine at (601) 833-5278 or E-mail her at [email protected]
And you can visit her on the web at MastersBusiness.org.

While this is something I’ve thought of from time to time in the past, it is a very important reminder to all of us and I love how perfectly Lorraine expressed it! So I want to share it here as well. Not only does the way we react to our circumstances inform us and others of where we are in our walk and relationship with the Lord, it also sends a very clear signal to the devil of where to most effectively attack us when he comes to steal, kill, destroy and devour us (John 10:10 and 1 Peter 5:8). So let’s keep that in mind in the future and be more thoughtful and deliberate in our reactions to the situations and circumstances we have no control over. If we take this to heart, there’s no doubt that we will be blessed and encouraged beyond belief!

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“The Enemy Knows” by Lorraine Ezell

“And she said unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.” Joshua 2:9

Rahab had never met these Israeli spies yet she knew some things about them. She knew that the Lord had given them the land, she knew that the whole city was in terror because of them, and she knew that all the inhabitants of the land- the whole country- was faint because of them. I want to ask you this morning, what does the enemy know about you?

We talked yesterday about how times of trials, testing and problems help define us and reveal to us what is on the inside in our hearts. They also let your enemy know what’s in you. When a trial comes your way, how do you react? With faith or fear? When tempted in a certain area, do you give in or stand strong in resistance? What comes out of your mouth when you are going through a hardship? Worry, doubt, unbelief, praise? These times reveal your strengths and weaknesses, and in doing so lets the enemy know where you are and aren’t vulnerable to his attacks to destroy you.

When temptations came to Jesus in the wilderness, He stood unwavering against them. Therefore, the enemy could find nothing in Him to attack Him with. Remember Daniel
when his enemies plotted against him, they could not find any area to accuse him in. Look at Peter, his reaction in the garden- pulling out the sword to kill those coming after them- let the enemy know that he was afraid to die. So where was he attacked? He denied Christ three times so as to not suffer death with Him that night.

The way you handle the situations you face lets you know, others know and the enemy know what’s inside of you. So what does your enemy know about you from your reactions, from your attitude, from your words, from your daily activities. Does he know that you know you are victorious over him? Or does he know that you can be easily defeated?

Have a great day. What does your enemy know about you? Does it need to change?
For further reading:
Daniel 6:4, Matthew 26:35, Mark 14:31 and 1 Peter 5:8,9

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell, and available online and sent by email free of charge for the asking from About the Master’s Business Ministry, Inc.
So please feel free to call Lorraine at (601) 833-5278 or E-mail her at [email protected]
And you can visit her on the web at MastersBusiness.org.

As I talk with the men, I often hear, “if only I could have peace as I am standing, it would be so much easier” or “God has called me to stand, so why don’t I have peace while doing it?” So I have contemplated those thoughts over the past several weeks.

Then last weekend, as I was reading or listening to something, I came across the statement, “We need not focus on praying for peace but for righteousness, for when we live in obedience, we will receive the peace of God.” And that was one of those times when I felt like God was speaking directly to me. So I decided that I needed to investigate more about God’s peace.

As I reflected on my own life and my journey to attain peace, I realized that obedience was exactly how peace came about for me. It’s been since I have God’s Word in my heart, and not just in my head, that I have grown in righteousness and obedience, which in turn has produced the peace I now enjoy. As I began living in accordance with God’s Word, I was filling my heart with God’s peace. And I believe that by having our minds focused on God and trusting in Him, we can come to His perfect peace in our hearts.

Peace is the absence of fear, whether that fear is manifested in doubt, unbelief, a feeling of unworthiness, a lack of faith, unforgiveness, leaning on our own understanding, or interpreting what our circumstances look like. And when we allow those things into our head, they prevent or interfere with our ability to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Yet, when we are saturated with the Word and seek knowledge and understanding of the scripture, we know the truth and “fear” has no place in God’s plan and purpose for our lives.

Jesus died on the cross to purchase peace for us, and the Holy Spirit lives in us to maintain that peace. And real peace comes from faith in God because He alone represents all the characteristics of peace. So in Christ, there is absolutely no need to fear the present or the future. And doubt, fear, and worry forfeit peace and keep us from all God wants to give us. When we sin, our peace is interrupted by our conscience and we are convicted by God. And sin opens the door for Satan’s accusations, which make us feel unworthy of anything God’s love provides. But because sin’s power over us has been broken by Christ’s death and resurrection, we can have peace in every area of our lives, so we have an extraordinary opportunity to witness for Jesus by living in peace and attributing that peace to Him for the glory of God.

Peace comes as we yield everything to the Lord and demonstrate absolute dependency on Him and surrender our will to His. Like all that God has made available to us, we have to accept peace; it is a gift from our Father. He gave it to us through Jesus Christ, but we must receive it, open it, and use it. And we must hunger and thirst for righteousness, and give up our desires for God’s desires. Obedience to God always leads to peace, and as we focus on God’s promises and trust Him to do what He says according to what is written in the Bible, we are assured of answered prayers, and He will guide and direct us to live our lives in Him.

Jesus came that we have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10). So why don’t most people have peace and the abundant life God planned for us? Adam and Eve chose to disobey and went their own way. And we are still choosing to go our own way today, which results in separation from God. Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose from the grave, so He paid the penalty for our sins and gave us the opportunity to have a personal relationship with God. And because of His unfailing love and faithfulness, we can receive the abundant life; which includes peace.

We can read, study, and meditate on the Bible every day to know God better. We can talk to Him all through the day and night in prayer. We can share His truth and extend the love, grace, and mercy to all others that God brings our way. We can worship, fellowship, and serve others in a Bible-based church. So there is no secret to peace. God did not make peace difficult to achieve; that’s something we do on our own. It is a gift from God, and we can receive and accept it by trusting in the Word of God and living righteous and obedient lives. We can hang on to our anxieties, fears, and stresses and concentrate on our circumstances or we can let Christ’s peace live in us. He is willing and just waiting for us to hand our burdens over to Him.

Numbers 25:12-13: “Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him My covenant of peace; {13} ‘and it shall be to him and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.'”

1 Chronicles 22:9: “‘Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days.'”

Proverbs 16:7: “When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”

Isaiah 26:3-4: “You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. {4} Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.”

Isaiah 32:17-18: “The work of righteousness will be peace, And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. {18} My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

Isaiah 38:16-17: “O LORD, by these things men live; And in all these things is the life of my spirit; So You will restore me and make me live. {17} Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.”

Isaiah 54:13: “All your children shall be taught by the LORD, And great shall be the peace of your children.”

Isaiah 57:1-2: “The righteous perishes, And no man takes it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, While no one considers That the righteous is taken away from evil. {2} He shall enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each one walking in his uprightness.”

Ezekiel 34:25-26: “I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. {26} “I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing.”

Ezekiel 37:26-27: “Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. {27} “My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

Luke 10:5-6: “But whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ {6} “And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.”

John 14:26-27: “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. {27} “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Romans 15:33: “Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.”

2 Corinthians 13:11: “Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.”

Galatians 5:22-23: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, {23} gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

Philippians 4:6-7: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; {7} and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Colossians 3:14-15: “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. {15} And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.”

1 Thessalonians 5:22-24: Abstain from every form of evil. {23} Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. {24} He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.”

2 John 1:3: “Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.”

Jude 1:2: “Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.”

Isaiah 48:22: “There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked”

The following messages from Bill and Marsha Burns and Lorraine Ezell sure are timely in light of recent conversations and posts on the private FAM site, so I want to share them here as well, and hope and pray that they will bless and encourage everyone this morning as they have me! GOD IS MOVING…SO GET READY!!!

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THE TRUMPET by Bill Burns — Sept. 28, 2009:
You will no longer have to wait for the manifestation of My presence, says the Lord. For these are the days in which I shall come and touch. These are the days in which I shall come and breathe upon you. These are the days that I shall come and release My people from the bondages of the enemy. For there is a cry going forth across the land; the cry of My Spirit; the cry of My voice. Listen and you shall hear. Watch and see and you shall know for I am about to perform in this land and among My people the greatest manifestation of My glory that ever has been seen on this earth. In the days of old they watched for the fire upon the tent; in those days they watched for the cloud. In these days you will watch for the manifest presence of the Holy One and the breath of the Spirit shall come upon you and move you as the wind of His glory; into the fullness of His purposes. For I the Lord God have not forgotten My people.
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SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by Marsha Burns — Sept. 28, 2009:
Refuse to allow fear or worry to keep you from My blessings, says the Lord. Quiet your soul and be resolute in belief that I am bringing complete restoration to every area of your life. Do not doubt or be double-minded. Stand strong and unwavering in your faith, for I will do all that I have promised.
Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

You can read or sign up to receive messages from the Burns and others by email, on the Spirit of Prophecy website.

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Coffee Break - “Leeks And Garlic” by Lorraine Ezell

“We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick.” Numbers 11:5

The Lord miraculously delivered the Israelites out of the land of Egypt and was going to take them into the land of Canaan- a land that He had promised to give them. During their journey they began to murmur and complain. They wanted to go back to Egypt with its leeks and garlic. Can you imagine, God wanted to give them milk and honey and they wanted onions and garlic!

Aren’t we often the same way? God is trying to give us something so much better than we have and we keep wanting to hold on to the lesser instead. Why is that? Look back at Israel. In order to get to the milk and honey, they had to move, they had to get away from their familiar surroundings, they had to cross the desert, they had to go through a wilderness, they had to face some heat. When the Lord is trying to get something to us, He doesn’t always just “drop it in our laps”. Sometimes we have to make a move. Sometimes we have to get out of our comfort zones. Sometimes it means going through a desert, through a wilderness or even through a dry place. And because getting the good thing (the milk and honey) that the Lord wants us to have comes at a price, we would rather settle for what we have (leeks and garlic) than pay it.

Whatever you have to go through in order to receive God’s will for you will be well worth it in the end like we talked about last week. The problem is not on God’s end. He wants to bless you. He wants you in His will. He wants to give you good and perfect gifts. He wants to take you from glory to glory. The problem is with us when receiving involves some sort of sacrifice, self denial or commitment on our part. That being the case we have to ask ourselves, “Do I really want to settle for the “leeks and garlic”? Or do I want to receive all that God desires to give me, even if it cost something on my part?”

Have a great day. Is God trying to give you milk and honey but you are still wanting onions and garlic because you don’t want to go through what it takes to get the milk and honey?

For further reading: 2 Corinthians 3:18, Acts 14:22, Isaiah 1:19, and Luke 4:1-14

Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell, and available online and sent by email free of charge for the asking from About the Master’s Business Ministry, Inc.
So please feel free to call Lorraine at (601) 833-5278 or E-mail her at [email protected]
And you can visit her on the web at MastersBusiness.org.

(Note from Linda: I just LOVE this message from Glenn Jackson, and know you all will as well! So be blessed and encouraged…AND GET READY…GOD IS MOVING!!!)

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THE LIFE OF FAITH AND THE GLORIOUS CHURCH - 2009
SEPTEMBER 27TH
“CONSEQUENCES”
….”whatever is not from faith is sin”…. Romans 14:23b NASB
….”If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]”…. 1 John 1:9 The Amplified Translation
….”And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love [who continually obey] God, to those who are called according to His purpose”…. Romans 8:28 NASB
….”If you love Me, you will keep My commandments”…. John 14:15 NASB

Any “consequences” of our previous sin[s] that still remain are now but “tools” in the Father’s hand to not only rectify that situation [or situations] in the best way possible, but also to bring forth “fruit” from our diligent efforts in love and faith that will bring forth God’s greatest eternal benefit - both in our lives and in the lives of all those with whom we have [or have had] to do with. Any “consequences” that one is still dealing with MUST be brought to the foot of the Cross KNOWING that in EVERY way the precious Blood of Jesus and the grace of God are more than sufficient to overcome - even the most seemingly impossible circumstances and situations. As one seeks [and gains] a revelation from the Throne Room concerning whatever “consequence” they are still faced with from their previous activities [which were carried out apart from the Holy Spirit] and, then, they begin to set their heart in love on the Father’s highest will and most holy purpose for all involved THEN, as the days and weeks go by, they will be entirely delivered from any “bad feelings”, memories, scars or effects of their words or actions.
THE “PLACE OF HEALING AND DIVINE RESTORATION”
From this place of healing in their own lives they shall then become a vessel of healing and light [revelation] to the greatest “possible” degree to all those in their “past” - regardless of how tragic or horrible the situations they were facing had been. When one factors in that we are about to experience the greatest outpouring of God’s presence in the earth [and that all things are truly possible to the one that will only believe] THEN one can “begin” to understand the potentially staggering possibilities for the “restoration” of the lives that have been hurt - or, at the very least been affected in adverse ways. This is the time of perfect restoration - particularly in “relationships” and, as the love of the Father is poured forth in “torrents” through His holy vessels, we shall most certainly begin to see amazing miracles in this area. So to all those whose deepest desire is the forsaking of all unforgiveness in their own lives and the “restoration” of all those with whom they have to do - seek the Father on any consequences [circumstances that may still be attempting to cling to you and hinder you from coming into the fullness of His plan.
In both gaining the necessary revelation, and setting yourself in that holy place of abiding in love, you shall soon see great and mighty events in your life and circumstances - events that shall be a great sign and wonder to all those who have crossed - and who will cross - your path. The Father will surely turn all that the Devil meant for your greatest harm into His greatest good and purpose for you as you continue on in obedience. This is indeed the hour wherein the seemingly impossible will become possible. Let faith and patience rule your life and you will surely inherit the fullness of the Father’s promise in all things.
Related Scriptures: Hebrews 6:11-12

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You can read all of Glenn’s messages online or sign up to receive them daily by email.

One of the most frequent questions I’m asked might well be how to pray, and there just isn’t any better answer to that question than the one Dr. Charles Stanley provided in his sermon this past weekend, A Life-Changing Prayer. So I strongly encourage everyone to read his Sermon Outline, which is based on Colossians 1:9-14. And it would be a very good idea to print that out and keep it for future reference and you can watch the message or listen to it at the appropriate link provided above.

As Dr. Stanley said, this prayer really does cover everyone in every situation and there’s nothing more powerful than praying the manifestation of God’s Word into someone’s life and circumstances, especially when we fully understand and recognize the amazing, yet simple declaration found in Psalm 103:20! So I for one fully intend to take this message to heart and to put it into practice in my prayers for myself and those I love, and then I fully expect to be amazed by the great and mighty things I know God will do! And there’s NO DOUBT that when we pray this way, we will be blessed and encouraged as we see the hand of God moving mightily in our circumstances and in the restoration of our marriages and families…SO GET READY!!!

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Colossians 1:9-14 - For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

One of the most personally rewarding experiences of marriage restoration ministry is witnessing how an individual’s attitude and life are totally transformed when they truly learn to surrender everything to the Lord and become the men and women God always intended them to be as they learn to TRUST AND OBEY. And FAM members have truly been blessed to witness such a transformation over the past year and a half in the life of a young lady (who I will just call “A”) since she became a FAM Fellowship member at the young age of twenty-three.

When A came to the ministry, she was so full of self pity and so caught up in her identity as a victim that some of her posts couldn’t even be posted because her life was such a mess and, according to her, it was always someone’s fault other than her own. She wasn’t willing to do anything to help herself; much less acknowledge that it wasn’t everyone else’s responsibility to do so. She was living with her parents, but seemed to have no appreciation at all for how their lives had been totally turned upside-down just to take her and her young daughter into their home. She ended up dropping out of school, lost her driver’s license and car due to unpaid tickets and repairs she thought someone else should take care of (and resented that they didn’t), and the list could go on and on. Unfortunately, she wasn’t doing ANYTHING to improve her situation and no matter how much I tried, she just couldn’t be motivated to make the changes necessary before the Lord would work in her circumstances and to restore her marriage and family; which is ALWAYS quite frustrating.. But last December, the Lord intervened and provided the perfect opportunity to get through to A, and as we have all been blessed to witness, it sure has paid off because that was just what it took to sart her on the journey from victim to victor in Christ; something every man and woman standing for marriage restoration must do at some point in time.

What an awesome transformation it was when A developed a genuine and sincere attitude of praise and thanksgiving and took responsibility for her life an the lives of her children (she and her estranged hubby managed to get together long enough for her to get pregnant again during their separation). She truly let her husband go, submitted to and respected his wishes to divorce her and focused on her walk and relationship with the Lord and doing something to improve her circumstances. And it’s nothing short of miraculous to see how quickly everything in her life turned around once she changed her attitude and started to do something for herself instead of painting every aspect of her life with the self destructive brush of victim mentality! However, God has definitely blessed and rewarded A’s faithfulness and obedience because she will be moving from her parents’ home into a three bedroom and two bath home of her own later this month with terms that seem TOTALLY IMPOSSIBLE and which “just happens” (no way!) to be right on the bus route and within walking distance to where her llittle girl will go to school. Of course, there’s no doubt that in time, God will provide a car too. And all of this just came about in the past couple of weeks…BUT, as there ALWAYS is with God, there’s more! While her life was really going great for the first time since her separation, her husband’s life was falling apart, which is exactly what God’s Word says will happen to those caught in the devil’s trap of adultery according to Proverbs 5 and Proverbs 7. So read A’s awesome Restored Marriage Testimony below and be blessed and encouraged because what God does for one, He will do for all and He is no respecter of persons! We just need to learn to truly TRUST AND OBEY, because as that old song says, there is NO OTHER WAY TO BE HAPPY IN JESUS!

*****

A Man Can Plan his Course, But God Determines his Steps by A

Hello FAM Family,

I must say that blessings have been raining down on me at such a rapid pace, that I am in total awe and adoration of the God we serve. And I apologize for not getting this post up sooner, but I wanted to make sure it was good. And with my move quickly approaching on October 1st, I have been a very busy girl trying to get things done and in order.

When I came to Faith And Marriage Ministries, I was so broken; just as were many of us. Not only that; I came here with a lot of anger, frustration and guilt for things that had taken place in my marriage. But I particularly came here with a huge VICTIM mentality, which took me quite sometime to shake.

SNO (spouse name omitted) and I had been having trouble for a while in our marriage; always arguing over totally unnecessary things and nit picking at one another. So in August of 2007, after taking some awful advice and listening to friends (who were not married by the way), I moved out of our apartment. I mistakenly thought, “If SNO loves me he will change and then I’ll go back home.” Was I ever wrong, because he didn’t come around that much, and when he did, all he did was beg me to take him back. But with my self righteous attitude and my VICTIM mentality, all I ever said was “You have to show me that you have changed.” And he always responded with “How can I show you if I’m not with you?” So, due to my own selfishness, I did not “see” that he was changing and in November of 2007, I filed for a divorce. Unfortunately, when I received SNO’s response and saw that he had gotten a lawyer, and wanted joint custody (5050) of our daughter, things got very nasty between us. And it was not until Christmas that I realized, “This is not the life I want; I want to be with my husband.”

So in January of 2008, I called SNO and asked him to meet me, and we talked and decided to work things out. And he told me then that the NCP was just a friend helping him through a hard time. But about a week later, he suddenly changed his mind and said that he was going to be with the NCP. After that, I became sick and after a five day stay in the hospital, decided that I could not do this anymore and gave my life back to the Lord.

Then in February of 2008, with desperate attempts through Google searches to find out how to save my marriage, I found Faith And Marriage Ministries and completed a Member Profile. That’s when Linda called me and without an ounce of sympathy, began to tell me about myself. So it was here that I began to find a release and really learn the biblical principals of standing for marriage restoration. It took me a while, a few mishaps and failed attempts, but after some time, I began to get the hang of it. And reading the testimonies of other members really gave me so much insight into my own circumstances, and I could finally see that there were other people in the world going through the same thing I was going through. And I had the pleasure of witnessing many, many marriages get restored, and with each one, hope would fill my heart. Yet I must confess that I questioned God a few times about when it would be my turn.

However, it wasn’t until the VICTIM SMACK DOWN (Note from Linda: read that in responses below) Linda had to give me in December of 2008 that I really saw the “yuk” in me. But after that, I REALLY let go of SNO, and began to move forward with my life. I think we all have fear inside of us about letting go, and I would often tell Melissa, “It feels weird because it’s almost like I don’t care.” But she would quickly remind me that it’s not that I didn’t care because that’s what it means to truly let go; to go on with my life, trusting that GOD will do whatever it takes to restore my marriage. And that was a huge burden lifted off of me, because I no longer had to wonder, worry and think about what he was doing or what was going to happen.

My husband has repeatedly told me “It is over”…”We will never be together again”…”I’m with someone else”…”Please hurry up and sign the papers so we can be divorced”…. I have heard it all, and people thought I was crazy to believe that SNO would ever change his mind; but I didn’t believe in SNO, I believed in Someone much bigger!

Then early last Tuesday morning, at about 2:30.a.m, SNO called and asked what I was doing! I told him I was sleeping, and he said “Well, what if I needed to come and talk to you?” I told him that was okay; that I would just have to get up. And he said that he was on his way and for me to be awake because he didn’t have a cell phone to call me when he got here.

When he arrived, he was quiet and didn’t really jump right into what he had to say. But he played with our youngest daughter, which was a great sight to see, since he has not been involved in her life since she was born. And she was very receptive to him too, even when he held her. Then he lay beside me on the bed and started off by saying that he does not hate me, but he hates what I did to him. He said that he is only twenty-four and is already having stress ulcers and strokes and that he wishes that we would have just stuck it out. He asked why I gave up on him and I just told him that it was because I was selfish and mean. He said that I was his everything and that he still needed me to be that, and that he thought about me every single day even when he tried his hardest not too. He told me that he was sorry because he has messed everything up now, because the NCP and their daughter together would be a burden on me. I assured him that was not true and that I loved her because she was his daughter. But he responded that he knows me and he knows that it would hurt me because he would have to bring her around. I just told him that everything would be okay. He also said that he tried really hard to get the divorce finalized, but it just would not go through. And I told him that was God and he said “I know.” He also told me that he loved me and that he had missed me so much. I have not heard him say he loved me since January of 2008, so that brought tears to my eyes. He told me that he did not know what to do about the NCP and their daughter, and I just said that he will figure it out and I know that when he does it will be the right thing. He just kept telling me how beautiful I was and he even rubbed my feet! He stayed the night and it was just so amazing to have my family together under one roof again.

FAMM has made what seemed like such a long journey fly by, and now after all of those times I wondered when it would be my turn; Linda, I would love it if you would please move me and my husband, SNO, over to the RESTORED MARRIAGE list! I know that his physical body is not in our home yet, but his heart is and I am confident that God
will complete the good work he has obviously begun! SNO had it all planned out in his heart, but God has surely been and will continue directing his steps (Proverbs 16:9)!

Since I know the true challenge of marriage restoration takes place once our spouses come home, I am asking my FAMM family to pray in agreement with me for SNO’s physical return; and that I will lean not to my own understanding in anything, and in all things trust God. I can’t wait to experience the new marriage God has just for me; but don’t worry, I already know about that trap of “unmet expectations.” Since my meeting with my husband on Tuesday, I have not heard anything from him. But I’ve talked with Melissa and had a conversation with Linda, and they both told me to beware of that trap and that SNO has a lot on his plate right now. Even though I was a bit disappointed that he could come over and say such wonderful things to me and then just “disappear,” I was quickly reminded to take my thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ. SNO really does have a lot on his plate to deal with right now; a lot more so than I do. And I can’t afford to fall back into my pattern of being a VICTIM and selfish.

I have to say that I am in complete awe of the things that the Lord is doing in my life, and how quickly everything has begun to happen. And I want to say to everyone here who is still waiting for that day to just keep trusting God no matter what because He is faithful to complete the work He starts. Do everything His way and you will indeed get His results and lastly, just LET GO! You will find that life without the presence of your spouse can actually be much more peaceful if you just let go completely and let God do the work that needs to be done.

Thank you so much, everyone, for all of your love and support, and I will keep you updated. Also, my gas and electric are scheduled to be turned on in my new house on September 29th and the new carpet is being put in on September 25th. And I’m just so excited!!!