November 2015

November 2015 

“The Masked Saint” Unmasked 

Pro Wrestler Turned... Pastor? 

Looking 

for Love 

In the Right 

Place 

Five Promises 

That Will 

Never be 

Broken

Faith Filled Family 

CONTENTS 

FEATURES: 

GOD DOESN’T MAKE MISTAKES.........................09 

God has a plan and purpose for your life, and no 

matter what someone may have spoken over your life, 

you are not a mistake! 

PLAN AND PURPOSE............................................16 

Age is never a factor when it comes to your God-given 

destiny. Don’t let any excuse hold you back from 

acheiving what God has in store. 

I AM WHO GOD SAYS I AM....................................25 

Our identity and purpose in life is an age-old question. 

There is an easy way to find out your identity, and once 

you do, there is no turning back. 

FIGHTING FOR THEIR FUTURE............................34 

Can God reveal your children’s future to you? If so, 

what is the purpose? Find out in this article. 

THE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF CHRISTIANITY......46 

There are various levels that we go through in our 

Christian walk. Discover where you are! 

LOOKING FOR LOVE IN ALL BUT ONE PLACE..50 

Everyone is searching for love, but it seems to evade 

us. You can find the love you so desperately thirst for 

in a place that you may have never considered. 

ABSENT PARENTS: FILLING THE VOID.................56 

Some of us grow up with just one or no parents. Learn 

how to heal from past wounds, and learn how to be the 

parent that God designed you to be. 

FIVE PROMISES.....................................................58 

God’s promises are yes and amen, according to 

scripture. Learn what God promises and walk in the 

faith that they will come to pass over your life. 

DON’T TALK BACK!...............................................65 

Negative self talk can prevent you from walking in the 

fulfillment of God’s vision for your life. Discover how to 

renew your mind to a “yes I can” attitude. 

GOD WANTS YOU AND YOU ARE IMPORTANT..68 

Lost and saved: we are all important to God, and that 

is why He seeks us. Yet Heaven rejoices when one 

sinner repents and gives their life. Do you know how 

important you are to Him? Feel God’s touch in this 

article that will transform your life.

GENDER IDENTITY.................................................72 

There is no confusion when it comes to gender, 

according to God. So why do some of us feel we are 

one gender and not another? Did God get it wrong? 

I LOVE YOU NO MATTER WHAT............................78 

Never let a bad past detract you from coming to God. 

He loves you just as you are! 

FINDING CONTENTMENT......................................81 

Work is never dreary when God is involved! Loving 

what you do is possible, and not as far off as you may 

think. Find out how to walk in your destiny, and enjoy 

every day of it! 

TO BE LIKE CHRIST...............................................86 

It seems like a tall order, but when we become Christlike, 

Heaven opens up to us. Find out what blessings 

obedience to God brings in all areas. 

MENTORSHIP.........................................................90 

Mentorship is important and is part of being a mature 

Christian. However, it is an area that many of us are 

lacking in. What wisdom can you share with another 

person, and how can you, yourself, benefit from having 

a mentor in your life. 

INTERVIEWS: 

FAITHBOX MAKES THE PERFECT GIFT..............12 

Gift giving made... exciting! Learn more about 

this product and it’s benefits. 

“REEL” TALK WITH DICK ROLFE........................20 

The Dove Channel has been released! What’s it 

about? 

AUTHOR PAUL WILBUR .......................................31 

Paul discusses his latest book, “Touching the Heart of 

God”. 

INTERVIEW WITH DAVID BATTY...........................38 

David discusses his latest word-for word movie, The 

Book of John. 

MUSIC SPOTLIGHT: DANEN KANE......................42 

ASHLEY BRETCHER: PRINCESS CUT.................54 

Ashley discusses life on-set of “Princess Cut”. 

THE “MASKED SAINT” UNMASKED....................62 

Chris Whaley and Brett Granstaff discuss their 

latest movie, “The Unmasked Saint”. 

Faith Filled Family

EDITORIAL 

PUBLISHER 

Michelle Danko 

mcdanko@eyeworship.org 

ASSISTANT PUBLISHER 

Vernita Simmons (Interviews) 

vsimmons@eyeworship.org 

Kathy Smith (Features) 

kathy.smith@eyeworship.org 

Lynn Dunn (Current Events) 

ldunn@eyeworship.org 

EDITOR 

Jill King 

jillking@eyeworship.org 

Matt Poe 

mattpoe@eyeworship.org 

SALES 

Mark M. Danko 

mmdanko@faithfilledfamily.com 

IMAGES: 

COVER PHOTO 

Shock@kozzi.com 

PHOTOGRAPHERS 

David Castillo Donimici, magann, Zurijetta, sergey Nivens, Joyonnig, 

LCrespi, mast3r, Kozzi Inc., shock, Piedmont Photo, Stuart 

Miles, Elnur, highwaystarz, vaicheslav, Adam 121, madhourse, 

awesomeaki, HalfPoint, cuteimage, yayayoyo, vision, shock, and 

iconspro and Jale IBrak @ Kozzi.com 

SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEEDBACK: 

For subscriptions or feedback, please visit our website at : 

www.faithfilledfamily.comIinfo@faithfilledfamily.com 

© Faith Filled Family Magazine, November Edition, Yumpu 2015 

All material is strictly copyright and all rights reserved. Reproduction 

in whole or in part without the written permission of Faith Filled 

Family is expressly forbidden.

Publisher’s Letter 

GOD HAS A PLAN AND PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE 

I learned that almost six years ago when God answered 

my prayers as to what He wanted me to do with my life 

and Faith Filled Family Magazine was born. 

I tell my children that when you walk in your God-given 

destiny, work is pleasurable and a joy every day. I love 

what I do, and couldn’t imagine doing anything different. 

I am doing what God created me to do, and glorifying His 

kingdom. 

You, too, can find this type of success in your life if you 

just ask God and be open to His leading. He will take you 

to places that you had never imagined, and open doors 

that no man can shut. If He created it, and designed it, 

it will come to pass, but only if we are willing to walk in it. 

This type of success seems like a “no-brainer” doesn’t it? 

So why do we offer excuses, like Moses, as to why we 

can’t when God guarantees our happiness? 

Overcome anything that holds you back from your destiny 

in this issue on “Resolving an Identity Disorder”. Who 

does God say you are? 

It’s time to find out! 

Be Blessed! 

Michelle Danko 

Publisher 

Faith Filled Family Magazine

God Doesn’t Make 

Mistakes 

By Ben Blair 

Psalm 139 13-14 For it was You that formed my 

inward parts; You knit me together in my mother’s 

womb. I praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully 

made. 

My grandmother took great pride in her 

quilting. She would go to the fabric store 

and pick out her fabrics. With a loving 

smile she would gather some blue, some lighter 

blue, some darker blue, almost imperceptibly different 

shades. The design was already in her 

head although as I watched her I had no way of 

knowing what these yards of cloth would eventually 

become. When she would return home her 

scissors would dance. The once orderly rectangles 

were now stars and flowers. Not to mention 

all the oddly shaped scraps she would kindly 

ask me to collect and dispose of when she was 

done. After the swatches were stitched together 

the designs looked spectacular. How she made 

all those intricate shapes fit together in concentric 

pattern I’ll never understand. I asked her once 

how she got so good at quilting and she said 

when she was younger she made a lot of mistakes. 

Many quilting attempts had to be thrown 

away. With practice she had mastered her craft. 

This labor of love was not easy. The needle work 

was hard on her aged eyes and arthritic fingers. 

Each finished product was unique and imperfect 

but they still made her smile with pride. We still 

have a couple of grandma’s quilts tucked into a 

closet. They only come out on very cold nights. 

Cuddling under one always gives me a sense of 

comfort and security like a warm hug. When I 

gaze into the puzzle of fabrics I can still see her 

smiling face. I wish we had saved more of those 

quilts. 

Humans make mistakes. God does not. God is 

perfect and we are made by His perfect hand but 

we as humans are far from perfect. It is our little 

imperfections that make us unique just like those 

quilts. Long before we were formed He had our 

design in mind. When our parents first meet I 

can imagine God getting the crocheting hook and 

needle ready. God must have a loving smile on 

his face as He gathers the materials He will use 

to create us. He starts with our eternal soul which 

is the basis that He will wrap everything else 

around. Carefully he adds a heart, some pride, 

lays a pair of lungs on top and surrounds that with 

ribs and muscles. With precision he stiches each 

sinew to hold our bones together. Each organ He 

connects together for functionality. Each personality 

trait is embedded deep within us to shape 

how we interact with the world. He rolls out long

strands of clay that will be our 

arms and legs. He rolls the clay 

into a ball that will form our skull. 

He chooses a couple of eyes and 

fixes them into their sockets. His 

hand paints on a crooked smile 

and plants a field of hair onto our 

heads. With a breath into our 

nostrils He gives us the Spirit of 

life. God’s hands dance as they 

create us in a way we will never 

be able to fully understand. My 

grandmother stitched each quilt 

together with love. How much 

more so does God the Father 

love us as he knits us together in 

our mother’s wombs. 

There are several places in the 

bible that commands us to “fear 

God”. I’ve often wondered what 

that really means. I don’t think 

it means to be afraid of our creator. 

I believe it is more of a reverence 

or respect for God, the 

same way you’d feel about an 

earthly father or a mentor. We 

want to impress Him, we want to 

do our best for Him, but there is 

still that legitimate fear of being 

punished if we mess up too bad. 

So, what is the psalmist trying to 

say when he says we are fearfully 

made? I believe that God 

is taking extra special care and 

caution each and every time He 

creates one of us. God does not 

make mistakes. He is the wonderful 

Creator so of course His 

creations are wonderfully made. 

“For we are God’s handiwork, 

created in Jesus Christ to do 

good works, which God prepared 

in advance for us to do.” 

Ephesians 2:10 

Before your grandparents met, 

before their grandparents met, 

before The Lord separated the 

light from the dark God had 

already conceived of you. He 

has already drawn out the major 

acts of your life. He has already 

planned the major challenges 

you have and will face. He has 

already given you the strength 

and perseverance to overcome 

whatever obstacle He feels will 

better grow you as a Christian. 

He has already made a list of all 

the good works He wants you to 

accomplish in Christ’s name. In 

biblical terms these good works 

are called bearing fruit. The time 

or money you donate to charity, 

the ear you lend to someone 

who needs to talk, the grace you 

show to your fellow human being 

in need, these are all examples 

of good fruit. Anything that can 

be considered as loving each 

other as Christ loves us. Jesus 

says “he who abides in me and 

I in him will bear much fruit; for 

apart from me you can do nothing.” 

John 15:5. If we depend on 

our own selfish nature it typically 

prevents us from putting others 

before ourselves. If we wait until 

we are no longer short on time or 

money we will never get around 

to bearing good fruit. Jesus also 

said “By this people will know 

that you are my disciples, by the 

love you show to others.” John 

13:35. There are average every 

day fruit we can bear/love we can 

show such as giving the homeless 

man on the corner a couple 

bucks. There are also the good 

fruit that God prepared for us to 

bear long ago. These are called 

divine appointments. You will 

not be able to see them coming 

but when you are in the middle 

of one there will be no doubt 

that something out of the ordinary 

is happening. These may 

take the form of a friend who is 

a non-believer coming to you 

with a problem and you take the 

opportunity to share how your 

faith has affected your life. Perhaps 

someone is in need and the 

only solution just happens to be 

your one special talent. Maybe 

you are down on your luck and 

a friend is down on his luck but 

together you two are able to 

accomplish more than either one 

of you ever could on your own. 

God put you on this Earth for a 

reason, or more than likely several 

reasons. It is your job to discover 

these reasons. Don’t be 

like Jonah running from his divine 

appointment. God followed him 

and gave him an appointment 

with a whale to make sure Jonah 

fulfilled his purpose. As Christians 

our goal in this life should 

be that when we get to the next 

life we hear our Creator tell us 

“Well done, my good and faithful 

servant.” The last thing we want 

is to reach the pearly gates and 

watch as God unrolls a scroll listing 

all the divine appointments 

He made for us and then retrieve 

a post-it note containing the ones 

we actually fulfilled. 

Personally, I did not turn to God 

until later in life. On February 

8, 2012 I gave my life to Jesus 

Christ. Before that I was an 

atheist. I had a life altering event 

occur not long after Christmas 

the previous year. I truly believe 

it was God tapping me on the 

shoulder telling me “You’re going 

the wrong way, stupid. Turn 

around. Let Me show you the 

way.” Learn from me and turn 

to God sooner rather than later. 

Don’t make God chase you. 

Just like Jonah and I, you may 

not like what he sends. Although 

my relationship with my wife and 

children improved significantly 

after my conversion it does 

not mean you will never have

another problem in this world 

simply because you are now a 

Christian. In fact, if we refer back 

to John 15 we see that those 

that do bear fruit get pruned so 

that they may bear even more 

fruit. I’ve trimmed a few plants 

in my day and the thought of 

someone taking clippers to me 

does not exactly fill me with 

anticipation. God the creator 

took the upmost care when He 

knit us together in our mother’s 

womb. God the gardener will 

also take the upmost care when 

He prunes us, cutting away the 

dead leaves and branches until 

only the righteousness remains. 

God is intentional, God is faithful, 

and God is full of love for His 

children. Trust in His process 

and trust that He has plans for 

you that are for good and not for 

evil. The maker burns off impurities 

as gold is purified in fire. 

How does the maker know when 

the gold is pure? When He can 

see his reflection. 

God does not make mistakes, but 

we here on Earth sure do. When 

God consecrated His chosen 

people, the Jews, he did it with 

a covenant that required adherence 

to a set of laws. He did this 

knowing that the Spirit is willing 

but human flesh is always weak 

and his chosen people would fall 

short of the law again, and again, 

and again. It was then that he 

sent His only son to die for our 

sins. It is only through the blood 

of Jesus Christ that we are made 

righteous. It doesn’t matter how 

many mistakes you made in the 

past or how many you make in 

the future once you’ve started to 

walk the Christian path. Every 

sin past, present, and future was 

pierced into the body of Jesus 

Christ the moment he died upon 

the cross. Does that mean you 

can spend your life in sin and 

just do a quick death bed conversion 

to get into heaven? It 

doesn’t work like that. If you 

have truly accepted Jesus into 

your heart, truly understand that 

we are all children of God, you 

will want to turn from sin and turn 

toward God. You would not want 

to add one more twinge of pain 

to your Savior in the moment of 

His death. God gives us free 

will because He wants us to love 

Him just as much as He loves 

us. If we cannot choose to turn 

towards God (or away), if we are 

forced to only do what is right 

and are not given the opportunity 

or temptation to sin then it 

makes the turning towards God 

much less meaningful. I once 

heard an easy definition of good 

and evil. Good is anything that 

brings you closer to God. Evil is 

anything that takes you further 

from God. This world is not perfect. 

In fact this world is broken 

and fallen. This world was never 

intended to be our reward. That 

reward does not come until we 

take our last breath in this world 

and our first breath in heaven. 

That reward is to be in the eternal 

presence of our Creator. 

So, stop kicking yourself for 

mistakes you’ve made in the 

past, those mistakes have been 

redeemed by the blood of Jesus 

Christ. Stop feeling depressed 

that your life has no meaning, 

this is a lie you have been telling 

yourself or someone else 

has been telling you. Do not 

listen to the lie. It’s a lie that the 

enemy, the accuser, the devil 

has been using to discourage 

God’s children since time began. 

Of course your life has meaning 

because Jesus has made it 

meaningful. Of course your life 

has a purpose because God 

created you with a purpose in 

mind. Now take a deep breath, 

get on your knees, and pray. 

Not a quick prayer but turn off 

all electronic devices, find a nice 

quite room in the house or take a 

peaceful walk if you have a safe 

place to do so, and really spend 

some time with God. What is 

the point of asking God a question 

if you never give Him time 

to answer? Prayer is the only 

time on this side of eternity that 

we will get to have a conversation 

with God. Maybe God has 

already given you the answer. 

Remember the parable of the 

talents in Mathew 25:14-30. The 

“talents” in this passage are bags 

of silver but I don’t think we are 

too far off the biblical mark if we 

include the other English meaning 

of talent as in something that 

you are good at. If you bury your 

God given talent in the backyard 

as the foolish servant did 

do you think you are truly fulfilling 

God’s purpose for your life? 

Pray to find your spiritual gifts, 

pray to find your true purpose 

in life, and remember that God 

does not make mistakes. You, 

however, are not God so you will 

make plenty of mistakes. Proverbs 

24:16 teaches us “For the 

righteous may trip seven times, 

but they will get up again. One 

mistake is enough to cause the 

wicked to stumble.” Find rest in 

the strength of our Creator. He 

is perfect so you don’t have to 

be. 

Ben Blair is a husband and father 

of three. He currently works as a 

pharmacist but his passion is the 

written word.

Faithbox Makes The Perfect 

Inspirational Gift 

By Sharon S. Johnson 

Are you looking for a great gift for that someone special? Something 

that is meaningful and inspirational? Something practical and unique? 

Maybe you’ve even had the idea that you’d like to give a gift that contains 

a little bit of this and a little bit of that. But these days, who has 

the time to hunt around for just the right mix? 

If you’re like me, you welcome any help you can get in making life a 

little bit simpler. So I’m sure you’ll want to keep reading as I explore 

Faithbox, a subscription service that delivers Christian inspiration to 

your doorstep, or the doorstep of someone you love, every month. 

Willie Morris is the founder and CEO of Faithbox and it is my pleasure 

to speak with him today. 

I’ve been reading that one of the latest trends out there is subscription 

box services, and that through those services people 

can get anything from makeup to food to books, and more. But 

you seem to have chosen to offer something that is kind of unique 

with Faithbox. So can you tell me exactly what is Faithbox?

As consumers, each of us realizes 

what kind of impact we can 

have every day and through our 

lifetime. And probably the biggest 

impact that we also have 

is what companies we support, 

what products we buy every day. 

And so as a Christian consumer, 

I feel like I was called to make 

sure I was supporting the right 

companies. Companies that 

weren’t getting in trouble for bad 

labor practices, child trafficking, 

destroying the environment, 

and those kinds of things. So 

with Faithbox, we really wanted 

to have that conversation with 

people and say, “We’re Christian, 

we’re consumers. We 

need to be supporting the right 

companies, companies that are 

responsible, companies that 

respect creation.” And so every 

month, we try to find really great 

companies that have very nice 

products that can fit into your 

own lifestyle, and companies 

that we feel like uphold Christian 

ideals when it comes to consumers. 

So that is what really 

started it. 

We realized that we have this 

really great opportunity to touch 

people every month and impact 

them. We started off offering 

reflections every week in the 

box, and that has actually turned 

into a daily devotional that we 

also publish every month. It has 

short-form content for each day 

of the month--everything from 

prayers to scriptures to really 

great positive quotes about positive 

living and living your faith 

every day--just to kind of help 

people take a few minutes out of 

their day to center themselves, 

reflect on their relationship with 

Christ, and help keep their faith 

relevant throughout the day and 

throughout the month. [This is 

good] especially in places like 

New York, where there is so 

much going on. We wanted to 

give people something that was 

bite-sized, something they could 

cling to every day and reflect on. 

That definitely sounds like 

an interesting and unique 

service. I read that the three 

tenets of your company are 

Growth, Discovery and Giving. 

And I can definitely see that 

the contents of Faithbox 

would help individuals grow 

and discover more about their 

faith. Can you talk a little bit 

more about the philanthropic 

aspect, or the giving aspect, 

that’s really tied in here and 

how that relates not only to 

the company but to the consumer 

who’s purchasing this 

service? 

For us, a lot of the companies 

that we work with and help 

people discover are companies 

that have one-to-one missions 

or are involved with specific philanthropic 

organizations. This is 

something I’m really passionate 

about anyway. So I wanted to 

make sure that not only are we 

helping people discover those 

companies but that by becoming 

a part of our community, we are 

that type of company as well. So 

we met the guys at Rice Bowls 

(http://ricebowls.org/) about a 

year ago now. And they are this 

awesome philanthropic organization 

that supports Christian 

orphanages all throughout 

the world and the orphanages 

rely on them 100 percent for 

their food…all the donations go 

straight to the kids. I was super 

inspired by them so we thought, 

as our first charity to work with, 

let’s work with these guys to see 

what we can make happen “per 

box.” So now for every box that 

we ship, our community ends up 

donating three meals to hungry 

kids all over the world, which 

for me is really cool. I think we 

donated over 15,000 meals, and 

they send pictures of the kids. 

It feels great and it allows our 

community to have even more of 

an impact--like a direct worldly 

impact that we wanted to have 

as a company. 

For your clients—how important 

do you think it is for 

them that they be able to not 

only receive something that’s 

inspirational for themselves 

but to be able to impact others 

in that way? 

From the feedback we get, I 

think it’s really important. I think 

people like knowing that even 

if they’re too busy they can 

research and find a charity that is 

really good and Christian. They 

know that we are going to take 

care of that for them. It makes 

it easier on people knowing that 

they get this cool stuff but that 

they are also giving back. They 

know that Faithbox is going to 

make sure that we’re giving to a 

great charity, and that the money 

is not going to our overhead or 

administration fees. 

When did you actually start 

Faithbox? I read that you did 

a soft launch of the company 

late last year. 

Yes, we sent out a couple dozen 

boxes last November or December. 

But we really didn’t officially 

start sending to the public until 

January, so just about 9 months. 

And are you surprised by 

the impact that Faithbox has 

had already in terms of the

esponse you’re seeing from 

new clients? Are you surprised 

by how fast it’s catching 

on? 

I am. You know it’s one of those 

things. When you’re starting a 

new company, you’re always 

kind of nervous. Will people 

respond to this? Am I doing 

the right thing? Especially with 

it being a Christian company, 

you wonder “am I following the 

right path that He’s set out for 

me?” I think that the outpouring 

of e-mails we get and the 

intimacy that people share with 

us about how it’s affected their 

lives—sharing the struggles they 

are going through, wanting us to 

pray for them--that kind of stuff 

has really helped keep that passion 

going and confirm that we 

feel like we are doing the right 

thing as a team. 

Our team that works on customer 

support and social media 

tells us on a daily basis now 

that there is something that we 

should check out—a beautiful 

email that someone has written 

about what they’ve been going 

through, or just creative little stories 

people share with us. This 

is something I never would have 

expected. It’s one of the things 

that I didn’t think about being so 

personal until we got it out there. 

I gathered that your experiences 

from your own Christian 

walk really seemed to help 

lay the foundation that led you 

to the creation of Faithbox? 

Are there any particular experiences 

that really stand out 

for you as you were making 

this decision to launch Faithbox 

that felt like an “aha” 

moment that said yes, this is 

what I should be doing at this 

moment? 

I don’t think there was any “aha” 

moment. I knew I wanted to use 

the skills I had to create something 

meaningful and to create 

something that would be a positive 

impact to the community, but 

I didn’t really know what that was. 

There wasn’t any specific time 

when I felt that this is definitely 

it. Even now, as the company 

grows, there are always questions 

of “are we making the right 

decisions as we move forward?” 

That is something you have to 

pray about and trust a little bit, 

and know that you’re doing it for 

the right reasons, which is tricky. 

But [for me] there is definitely 

coming back into Christianity 

and avowing that yes, I was an 

atheist for awhile and now that 

I’m Christian, I want to do something 

that reflects on that. That 

was the scariest thing for me- 

-not knowing how people would 

react. It was a little bit of fear, I 

think, but I felt like I was going in 

the right direction. As I started 

Faithbox, I met these great guys 

through Bible study which gave 

me that community I needed in 

a small group setting. And I think 

those kinds of things--those little 

events that at the time I didn’t 

really think about--were the 

things that really helped me get 

through the moments of doubt 

early on. 

It definitely sounds like the 

relationships you’ve formed 

are actually as important a 

part of the Faithbox story as 

the actual service itself. It 

sounds like you’ve learned 

some valuable lessons about 

the importance of relationship 

with God’s people. 

Yes definitely. I grew up Catholic. 

I grew up Christian in a Christian 

home. I went to church, I 

went to Catholic school. I had 

that community, but when I came 

back to Christianity, it was a very 

personal thing and I didn’t really 

latch onto the [Christian] community 

again until I got to New

York. Faithbox opened me back 

up to that because I was working 

with people who are all believers 

and people were sharing 

these real stories about what 

they’d gone through and their 

paths, and that really opened 

me back up to that community 

setting which has been great. 

Fortunately, I get to meet amazing 

people who are doing things 

in His name or people who have 

these incredible journeys, so I 

think that’s been the coolest part 

about Faithbox and is definitely 

one of those other unexpected 

things! 

I think your story is a good 

example of how the Christian 

walk that you were on is all 

part of your journey, which 

has ultimately led to this particular 

part of your life. So I 

think it will be good for our 

readers to see that everything 

does indeed come together for 

wherever they may be at this 

moment in their own lives. 

I think that’s the most powerful 

thing when I talk to people 

because basically people are 

reluctant to talk about that—the 

fact that there may be times that 

they doubt or don’t feel close to 

God, but you know, we probably 

all feel like that. It’s part of the 

journey. 

Thank you, that is a great message. 

So back to the Faithbox 

itself. Can you give me a little 

bit more specifics of what 

might be contained in a certain 

month’s box? 

One of the things we’ve tried to 

implement is to feature upcoming 

books. We’ve had Jefferson 

Bethke’s new book, It’s Not What 

You Think, and the cool thing is 

that we were able to give the 

books to our community before 

the official launch, so people got 

to read it beforehand. We’re 

going to do the same thing in 

November with Rich Wilkerson 

Jr.’s new book called Sandcastle 

Kings, which is really phenomenal… 

We work with authors and 

try to curate some of the things 

they like to include in the box. 

We usually try to include a snack 

box, and then there is usually 

a lifestyle component, like sunglasses 

in June for example. We 

try to keep it varied so that even 

if one month there is something 

that doesn’t quite meet your personal 

tastes hopefully the next 

month you’ll find something that 

applies to you and that you will 

enjoy. 

And how does the subscription 

service work? 

We have month-to-month, three 

months, and a year. Monthto-month 

is the most flexible 

because you can cancel whenever 

you want, so you can try it 

out and if you really like it you 

can go to three months or a 

year. For gift service subscriptions, 

we offer three month, six 

month and a year. We do have 

some exciting stuff coming up for 

Christmas. We’re going to have 

a “Limited Edition” box that is just 

for single purchase. We talked 

to people who said they’d love to 

do a [one-time] gift for someone 

[during that time of year]. 

Do your customers get 

advanced notice through 

social media about what’s 

coming every month or is it a 

surprise? 

No, we try to keep it a surprise. 

Sometimes we’ll do like a “sneak 

peek.” I think a lot of the enjoyment 

of getting a box every 

month so we try to keep it under 

wraps. 

Wow, I would sure like to know 

what’s in the contents of that 

“Limited Edition” Christmas 

box, wouldn’t you? 

Willie Morris describes himself 

as being happier and more passionate 

about what he’s doing 

than he has ever been before. 

His advice to our readers is to 

not only strive to find passion 

but to bring your beliefs, your 

Christianity, into your every day 

life, no matter what your station 

in life. I can definitely tell from 

our conversation that Mr. Morris 

has been and continues to be 

excited about all phases of the 

Faithbox process, from curating 

gift items to supporting charities 

to providing eco-friendly products. 

And most important seems 

to be the spiritual growth of his 

clients and himself through their 

experiences with Faithbox. 

Faithbox sure seems to be something 

that could help consumers 

Grow, Discover and Give. And it 

also sounds like something that 

could help save some time when 

it comes to trying to find a great, 

inspirational and unique gift for 

that special someone. 

Well, I’m still curious about that 

“Limited Edition” Christmas box. 

So if you’re like me and you want 

to know more about Faithbox, 

check them out at http://www. 

faithbox.com or on face book at 

https://www.facebook.com/getfaithbox?_rdr. 

Think of someone 

in your life who could benefit 

from getting a little inspiration 

sent to his or her doorstep. Or 

better yet, send one to yourself. 

That’s what I plan to do!

Plan and Purpose 

You are Never Too Old 

for God to Use You! 

By Vernita Simmons 

Certainly, God has a plan and purpose for each person in the world. For I know the thoughts and 

plans I have for you says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to 

give you hope in your final outcome. (Jeremiah 29:11). Precious, God thinks highly of you. He 

already see you thriving as you place your life in His hands to serve through. Therefore, your destiny 

can began while you’re young or later in life. Hence; during your early years, though you may not realize 

it, God is preparing you for the plan and purpose He destined for your life. You may require counsel 

or an Overseer to aide in the development of your artistry and potential in making wise decisions and 

using such for the Kingdom of God until as such time the Lord fully releases you to go forth to minister. 

Now - In order for the purpose of your life to be revealed, it would be behoove you to seek God in earnest 

prayer. Perhaps; God is preparing you as you sing in the choir. Maybe as you participate in various 

activates whether at church, school or within your community. It could be in your courage in taking a 

stand for what is right. It could be thrust upon you as an inheritance. Such was the example of Josiah 

who became King of Jerusalem at the tender age of eight. (I King’s 22:1-23; - 30; II Chronicles 34:1- 

35:27). Unlike his father Amon and grandfather Manasseh, he did what was right in the sight of God. 

(II Kings 21:1-3; 18-22). He reigned for thirty one years. Under his leadership, he reformed and brought 

down the worship of idols throughout Judah and Jerusalem.

In fact; I was merely nine years old when I wrote 

my first play and God began to unveil His purpose 

for my life. When I was a child, I often read 

the Bible to my grandmother who was blind. She 

was a remarkable woman who divinely touched 

me by her ability to dictate letters to my cousin. I 

later realized my grandmother had inspired me to 

become a writer. We became trusted companions 

when she attended the monthly “Mother’s Board 

Meetings” at Antioch Baptist Church. 

On occasion, I was encouraged and given the 

opportunity to make a comment. With my passion 

and love for God, little did I know all this would 

develop into the plan and purpose God ordained 

for my life. This expanded into a passionate gift 

as I became an adult and began writing sermons 

and speaking at various church functions; teaching 

Sunday School and writing books. 

Surely, it’s not about your age because everyone 

has something for God to work with. Neither; 

are your social status, financial portfolio or lack 

thereof; credentials nor experiences a pre – requisite 

to qualify to fulfill the commission God has 

decree for you. However; it is in coming to the 

realization God has called you and your willingness 

to surrender your heart to Him. You must 

yield and obey and harness your talents and gifts 

and apply them to bring God glory. 

Is it too late for God to use you? 

Regardless of your age or your physical or mental 

capabilities or disabilities, God can yet fulfill the 

destiny He designed for your life. Beloved, you 

have something unique and special to offer that 

no one else has. Truly, God has no respecter of 

person and He has need of you. And Peter opened 

his mouth and said: Most certainly and thoroughly 

I now perceive and understand that God shows 

no partiality and is no respecter of persons. (Acts 

20:34-35). If you are willing and submit, He will 

work mighty thru you. All is required is: 

A surrendered heart to serve 

A willing to obey 

A mind to go and do what you can where you 

are in this moment and time 

Whoever has a desire burning inside to be used 

of God; He will use every resource at His disposal 

to move you forward in accomplishing what you 

thought you never could. He did this for Moses 

as the Lord had begun to fashion skills in him thru 

acquiring knowledge in all the ways and customs 

of the Egyptians under Pharaoh’s guidance. At 

age forty, Moses came to the defense of his brethren 

being beaten by an Egyptian. In his defense, 

he killed him and fearing for his own life, flees and 

dwells in the land of Midian. (Exodus 2:11-25; 3:1- 

14). He becomes the keeper of his father-in-law’s 

sheep. Then, for another forty years, God uses 

this to further train, equip and prepare Moses for 

the ultimate call He had on his life. 

As can be seen, at age eighty; the Lord anoints 

Moses as an awesome ruler and deliver and sends 

him back to Egypt to set his His chosen people, the 

Israelites free from under the harsh afflictions of 

Pharoah. (Acts 7:23-37; Exodus chapters 3-14). I 

experience a similar appointment from God when I 

began to utilize worship dancing in my forties. First, 

I started dancing with Streamers during praise and 

worship at Pentecostal Church of Christ. Eventually, 

Pastor James and Dorothy Howard appointed 

me as the Leader of the Children’s Dance Ministry. 

This gift further developed when I served as a Minister 

in Training at Beth-El Love Christian Center in 

Orange, NJ. It was at Beth-El, I met the anointed 

Pastors Robert and Dorothy Wilson. They allowed 

me to use my collective gifts as a Majestic Dance 

Worshiper, in November of 2010, to spearhead 

my first “Praise and Worship Conference”. Each 

year, people gathered throughout the region to be 

taught, equipped and charged that worship was a 

lifestyle which needed to permeate every aspect of 

their lives and they were to help usher others into 

an awesome encounter with God. This open doors 

beyond what I imagined as it expanded opportunities 

to evangelize. Given this evidence, it is not too 

late for God to use you, too. 

What is the purpose of God’s plan for your life? 

Most assuredly, I am on a mission. One of the most 

essential accomplishments I desire, is to apply the 

gifts and talents as a Writer/Publisher ~ Teacher 

~ Majestic Dance Worshiper, which the Lord has 

graciously bestowed upon me to use as a Platform 

to “Empower” the lives of others. Now, I am going 

to share with you exactly how the Lord’s plan and

purpose for my life transitioned me from a small 

child who loved reading the Bible to her grandmother 

~ to a single parent on welfare, trusting 

God, to a Substitute Teacher ~ being unemployed 

for more than two years without any means of 

income for more than eighteen months, an Evangelist 

~ Freelance Writer to an aspiring published 

Author. 

Too often, people wait for their circumstances to 

change or get better before taking a leap of faith. 

They procrastinate and make excuses. They 

become immobile to do anything while they go 

through trying times. You don’t have to wait until 

the perfect opportunity to come along, neither for 

your financial situation to improve or anything to 

get better, thus, missing out on an opportunity of 

a lifetime. 

Faith ushers God into your current equation of 

life’s trials and is the perfect way to bring opportunity 

of change along. 

The Lord has graciously blessed you with gifts, 

talents, skills, knowledge and potential. You can 

apply these amazing qualities with your faith in 

God at any time and propel yourself in going forward. 

Anyone who applies; it doesn’t make “No 

Sense Faith” in God, He will Show ~ Up and Show 

~ Off! 

You see – it was never my intentions to join a 

social media site. However, God was in the process 

of using all things at His disposal to move me 

forward in my writings. He used a longtime friend, 

mentor, Pastor Gloria to invite me to connect with 

her on LinkedIn. Reluctantly, I accepted and 

began writing comments, sharing updates, joining 

groups and initiate discussions. 

Consequently, I started to touch and minister to 

many lives. I began to write Posts on LinkedIn 

Pulse, Community Christian Service Workers and 

Faith Filled Family. I even branched out to opening, 

at no charge, a website of created inspirational 

writings that created my name as a brand. That 

opened the door for possibilities as GOD’S Words 

are My Voice in writings to encourage, inspire and 

empower the lives of others. It became a platform 

to minister to the nation to realize God placed 

greatness inside of them and He had need of 

them. Therefore, I began to transfer these Devotionals 

into a book. 

All be it, I didn’t have the finances to use the typical 

publishing company, despite inquiring of several. 

Just as I was about to apply the services of a printing 

company; SUDDENLY, something happen, 

something only God could had orchestrated. 

The Lord used an unlikely encounter with a dear 

friend, Lynn, who I had reconnected with on Facebook; 

which would change the course of my life 

forever and for the better, enabling me to publish 

my first book. God can do the same for you, For 

with God nothing is ever impossible and no word 

from God shall be without power or impossible of 

fulfillment. (Luke 1:37 AMP). 

To hear the whole story of this amazing journey, 

revealing why you should see yourself as God see 

you, and how He has designed a specific destiny 

for your life; Come……..travel with me in my book; 

“Capturing The Spirit Of Gold’s Word with Vernita”; 

(http://www.createspace.com ~ http://www. 

amazon.com); and taste of the Amazing love of 

God and discover why He’ll never stop loving you 

no matter what you do. Be encouraged to hold 

on through the darkest times for God will never 

leave nor forsake you. Learn the power of God’s 

Forgiving Grace and how to experience Him as 

“More Than Enough”. I hope these Inspirational 

Readings will stir your heart and Refresh your 

soul. Only God will restore your brokenness and 

heal you that you may move forward to a Progressive 

Life of Wholeness and Victory! Come….. Be 

refreshed in the river of life! 

This is GOD’S plan and purpose for my life. Are 

you ready to venture out and allow Him to manifest 

what He has chosen you to do? Go For It! God 

Loves You!

“Reel” 

Dick 

By 

How friendly is familyfriendly 

entertainment 

these days? How can you 

gain access to movies and television 

programs that you know 

are good for your children to 

watch? Can you really trust the 

rating PG-13? For the answers 

to these and many other questions 

you may have about what 

to allow for family viewing, stay 

tuned. Mr. Dick Rolfe, the CEO 

and Co-founder of The Dove 

Foundation has many years 

of experience both asking and 

answering these and many other 

questions parents need to know. 

He takes “family-friendliness” 

very seriously and has made it 

his life’s work to ensure parents 

are aware of the good programming 

that is available, as well as 

to warn parents of the programming 

that isn’t so good for their 

children. 

For 25 years, Mr. Rolfe and 

his staff have taken the time 

to study and discern various 

types of television programs 

and movies in order to produce 

recommendations for families. 

These are recommendations 

you the parent can trust as they 

adhere to a set of standards that 

they have observed without fail 

for these many years. Now, the 

foundation has taken it a step 

further. They are now providing 

access to the programming they 

recommend for families through 

The Dove Channel. The launch 

of this new channel will provide 

families with the tools they need 

to be certain they are watching

Talk with 

Rolfe 

Lisa Carter 

wholesome entertainment, no 

more guess work. The work has 

already been done for you. 

It is this kind of tireless effort 

and energy that has made The 

Dove Foundation known and its 

Dove-approved seal so widely 

coveted amongst the filmmaking 

industry. A trip to the movies can 

be expensive for families these 

days. With the new Dove Channel, 

families can make a trip to 

the movies a treat for every now 

and then. Yet, they can also 

enjoy making movie night at 

home special without having to 

worry about content. 

This makes it even easier to help 

parents guard the hearts of their 

children as they are being entertained. 

Faith Filled Family spoke 

with Mr. Dick Rolfe of The Dove 

Foundation as he answered the 

questions parents want to know, 

and shared some insight into the 

new Dove Channel launching 

soon. 

Thank you for talking with 

me, Mr. Rolfe. I appreciate 

you taking the time to answer 

some questions for me. The 

Dove Foundation has been 

in the business of reviewing 

and critiquing programs and 

movies for family-friendliness 

for a long time now (25 yrs). 

How did the idea for a new 

platform, The Dove Channel, 

come into play? And why do 

you believe that now is the 

time for this new platform? 

Well, as you pointed out, Dove 

has been around for 25 years. We 

were started by myself and a 

group of other parents who were 

concerned about our kids and 

we wanted to pre-screen movies 

before we allowed them to watch 

them. So for the last 25 years, 

we’ve been doing that and provide 

detailed reviews for caring 

families so that they can be forewarned 

before they go to a theater, 

or rent, or buy a video. 

With a recent development of 

technology moving into the digital 

world, the selection of content 

and the availability of content 

has skyrocketed to the point 

where it has become even more 

confusing and more difficult for 

families to protect their children 

and to find content that is 

reflective of their values. So we 

felt that the time was right for 

us to move from providing information 

about movies to providing 

access to movies that were 

approved for family viewing by 

The Dove Foundation. 

What kind of programming will 

the Dove Channel feature? 

Well, a wide variety of content. 

We will have content that is classified. 

We have five different seals 

of approval. We have the familyapproved 

seal for all ages, ages 

12 and up. That’s general family 

entertainment. It just has a good 

uplifting message and a good 

positive message for the family 

to enjoy – comedies, dramas, 

action films, and so on. Then 

there is the faith-friendly seal 

which we launched in request of 

the Christian Retail Association 

about four years ago. 

That helps to identify films 

that arein the family-approved 

range of content but with faith 

messages – messages of 

redemption, reconciliation, and 

forgiveness, and other Christcentered 

messages. Then we 

have a faith-based seal which is 

designed specifically for those 

movies that deal with difficult 

subjects such as drug and alcohol 

use, or human trafficking or 

violence such as crucifixions, 

things of that nature. But they 

have such a powerful redemptive 

message, we felt compelled 

to award them a recommendation 

with a caution for the content. 

When you say you didn’t trust 

the motion picture ratings, 

what do you mean by that? 

Well, I had a conversation with

Jack Valente who was at the 

time the head of the Motion Picture 

Association of America (the 

MPAA). I asked him if a PG-13 

movie today (when I asked him), 

would be rated R a few years 

ago, he said, ‘Of c o u r s e . ’ 

He said, ‘You must understand 

our rating system reflects the 

changes of society.’ So I challenged 

him. I said, ‘Jack, what 

you’re telling me is that the standard 

is no standard at all. A pound 

that is 16 ounces today could be 

15 ounces tomorrow.’ He chuckled, 

but agreed that they do try 

and reflect where society is at. 

I responded and said, ‘The difference 

between your standards 

and ours is that we serve a 

standard that changes not.’ 

So true. How will viewers be 

able to get the Dove Channel 

in their homes? Will they be 

given the option to add the 

feature to their already existing 

cable packages? 

It’s not going to be available on 

demand cable at this point. It’s 

going to launch on the web. It will 

be at Dovechannel.com and then 

it will also be available on various 

set-top boxes such as Roku, 

mobile apps, Apple IOS and for 

Android systems, tablets and 

televisions and smart phones 

and so on. Then very shortly 

after that, it will be expanded to

include various gaming devices 

such other types of gaming 

devices like X-Box, the Amazon 

Fire, Apple TV and so many 

other options. Pretty much anywhere 

you will find Netflix, you 

will also be able to find the Dove 

Channel. 

Do you anticipate any competition 

with other channels that 

may be considered 

somewhat family-friendly? 

(such as Hallmark channel)? 

Not really. Obviously everybody 

is going to try in their own way 

to appeal to the family audience. 

Even Netflix tries to develop a 

category for kids. Unfortunately, 

I don’t agree with their standards. 

I wouldn’t allow my kids to 

subscribe to Netflix for kids. We 

have a different set of standards 

than even the Hallmark channel, 

I think. There are some Hallmark 

approved movies that would not 

necessarily be Dove approved. 

One of the things that we’re 

doing is creating a walled garden 

– a safe place where families 

can subscribe to our service and 

feel free to make the content 

available to all family members. 

For that purpose, we’ve actually 

created a segmentation system 

so that once a person becomes 

a member, they can go in and 

select a category of films that 

appeal to their own tastes. 

For example, if they want only 

family-friendly they can make 

that available for all ages for 

their kids, they can select that 

category and they can protect 

that with a password so that 

the kids can watch only those 

movies that mom and dad feel 

are appropriate for them. Yet, 

mom and dad can still watch 

content with a more mature subject. 

So we’ve provided families an 

opportunity to take control of their 

entertainment choices which 

is something that the people I 

talked to in my own family, we 

really look forward to being able 

to do that. 

Is there a difference between 

“family-friendly” and “wholesome”? 

Well, the term wholesome is a 

term that can be interpreted by a 

lot of different people. Even family-friendly 

can be interpreted differently 

by a lot of people. The 

Dove Foundation has created 

strict criteria for what we call 

family-approved, which is content 

that will receive our Dove 

Seal of approval. So we have 

very specific and very strict 

content rules that apply to the 

definition family-approved. 

“Faith-friendly” entertainment 

includes programs that highlight 

values that we as believers 

hold dear. How much of 

the programming featured 

on the Dove Channel will be 

“faith-friendly” as opposed to 

just “family-approved”? 

Right now the content is going 

to be pretty much 50-50. About 

half of it will be family-approved, 

and half of it will be faith-friendly. 

Only a small portion will be in the 

more intense faith-based category. 

According to your National 

Opinion Poll, “93% believe 

that offensive material seen 

in TV, movies, and the internet 

is on the rise.” Is this your 

belief, and what can be done 

to actively counter that? 

Well, yes. I think it’s pretty commonly 

known that Hollywood 

has kind of lost its grip on the 

family. And The Dove Foundation 

and other organizations are 

trying to persuade them to provide 

more content that meets 

our standards and that families 

consider to be safe. We’re 

having some influence in that 

Hollywood is beginning to listen 

to the faith audience and the 

family audience. 

For example, as recently as two 

or three years ago, there were 

only two faith-based movies 

out in theaters. Next year, there 

will be 15 faith-based films in 

the theaters, so we’re having 

some impact. The problem is 

for families at home to be able 

to find those movies and by 

gaining access to them. Maybe 

they can’t afford to go to the 

theater and spend $10 to $12 

per person. For a family of five 

that gets pretty expensive. So 

by providing the Dove Channel, 

we’re offering the opportunity, for 

$5.00 a month, for families to be 

able to watch as much wholesome 

entertainment as they 

wish. 

What is your opinion about 

movies and programming that 

represents a certain “faithbased” 

characteristic, but 

is not true to scripture? For 

example, with the movie Noah 

– the director seemed more 

interested in getting his own 

message across instead of 

telling the story how it was. 

What category would you 

place a movie like that in? 

I would call Noah Science Fiction, 

I would not call it a Bible 

story. Unfortunately, Darren 

Aronofsky the director, not only 

offended Christians, but he

offended virtually every organized 

religion on the face of the 

planet. Because the Noah story 

belongs to Jews and Muslims 

as much as it does to Christians. 

So he made a big calculated 

error when he tried to moderate 

or modify the story to fit his 

own tastes ignoring the tastes 

of the people of many faiths 

who attribute Noah to their 

belief system. 

Fortunately, the good news is 

Paramount has listened to the 

audience and they are coming 

out with two new movies that 

are going to be from all appearances, 

true to Bible principles. 

One is called Captive which 

is a story about Ashley Smith 

who was the young lady who 

was held captive at her home 

by a murderer and was able to 

mediate that situation by reading 

passages from Rick Warren’s 

Purpose Driven Life, it’s a 

wonderful story, we’ve seen the 

movie and we totally endorse it. 

Another movie which Mark Burnett 

and Roma Downey are 

working on which will be coming 

out next year, is a retelling of 

Ben Hur. Those are both being 

released by Paramount. So I 

think the studio has learned its 

lesson from Noah. 

What’s the criteria for receiving 

the coveted Dove Seal of 

approval? 

Well, for movies we consider 

six ingredients when we look 

at a film for content purposes 

– one is “sexuality”, one is 

“language”, one is “violence”, 

another is “nudity”, another is 

“drug/alcohol use”, and a sixth 

category is “other” which refers 

to such things as disrespect for 

authority, some extreme types 

of behavior. So we have standards 

within each of those categories 

as to the intensity or the 

graphic nature of those six categories. 

We rate them between 

zero and five – zero being none 

and five being the most intense 

and in order to receive a Dove 

seal, the categories must all be a 

two or less, if it’s a three or four 

above in intensity it does not 

receive Dove approval. 

I’m curious. There’s a movie, 

it’s kind of older, called Land 

of the Lost starring Will Ferrell. 

It’s considered somewhat 

family-friendly but there are 

comments made by the characters 

referring to sex for 

example that is inappropriate 

for kids. Did you ever have a 

chance to review that one? 

Yes, and it is not recommended 

for families. I just looked it up on 

our website. If you go to Dove. 

org you can find the recommendation. 

Actually, sex and language 

are the two reasons we 

could not approve the movie. 

What else would you like our 

viewers to know about The 

Dove Channel? When will it 

launch? 

The launch date is September 

15th. We’re very excited about 

that. We want parents to know 

that finally they will be able to get 

their families a safety net and 

give them control over their viewing 

of entertainment, movies, 

and television programs. There’s 

going to be a vast library within 

this walled garden as I call it 

of over 900 hours of entertainment 

for a mere $4.99 a month, 

that’s a pretty good deal. Even 

for families who can’t afford the 

subscription, there’s going to be 

quite of bit of free content for 

them to view that will be ad-supported. 

And you will be constantly, I 

assume, adding to your library 

correct? 

Yes, as a matter of fact, there’s 

some original content that 

we’re hoping to be able to 

announce at launch that we’ll be 

adding to the Dove Channel. So 

we’re looking forward to those 

announcements. 

Will that include classic television 

shows? 

There will be some. For example, 

we have the entire, I believe, six 

seasons of Highway to Heaven 

starring Michael Landon. We 

also have Veggie Tales for the 

kids, and 321 Penguins. We have 

a wide array of content. We also 

have a wonderful series, Sue 

Thomas: F.B. Eye, which is kind 

of a crime drama show w i t h 

a faith message in it. It’s about a 

woman who was hired by the FBI 

because she was deaf and she 

could read lips from a distance. 

That was a very popular series 

on PAX TV for five seasons. 

We’re very happy to include that 

in our programming. 

Faith Filled Family would like to 

thank Mr. Dick Rolfe for sharing 

his insight and wisdom into 

what’s needed in entertainment 

for today’s Christian families. 

We are so pleased and thankful 

to Mr. Rolfe and his staff at 

the Dove Foundation for all their 

hard work and their dedication 

over the years. We pray for much 

success as they launch the new 

Dove Channel this month. We 

look forward to supporting their 

endeavors to bring good wholesome 

Dove-approved entertainment 

to our families.

I am 

Who God Says I am 

Finding Your True 

Self (Identity) in 

the Word of God 

By Terri Bell 

Who am I? 

Why am I here? 

Where can I find the answers? 

Before time began; in the 

midst of no created thing; 

in the center of void and 

darkness, there was God! Earth 

as we know it and its solar companions 

were once without form 

or substance, not fashioned to 

function as they exist today. Nothing 

was created, only a description 

of darkness gives way to 

our imagination about what we 

now call life. Who is capable of 

providing this description of nonexistence 

if no-thing existed? 

Finding the oracle to this mystery 

would surely shed “light” 

and give “life” to those who find 

themselves living in this present 

world with questions about their 

identity and purpose in the earth. 

How do we find the answer to 

this mystery? 

“In the beginning was the Word, 

and the Word was with God, and 

the Word was God. The same 

was in the beginning with God. 

All things were made by him; 

and without him was not any 

thing made that was made. In 

him was life; and the life was 

the light of men. And the light 

shineth in darkness; and the 

darkness comprehended it not.” 

John 1:1-6 

We Were Created By The Word 

of God 

When looking for answers to 

life’s questions like; “Who am I 

and why am I here”, we have to 

look to the Originator; the “Alpha 

and Omega”, the One who made 

everything! God is our heavenly 

Father and His Word says that 

we are His children. Let us take 

a look at where this all started; In 

the Word of God, He says He created 

heaven and the earth; God 

began the process of creation by 

speaking it into existence. The 

first thing that God said was, “Let 

there be light” and light appeared. 

Everything that proceeded out of 

the mouth of God gave light and 

life. In Genesis 1, God created

man and woman in His image 

and likeness. Every attribute 

of God, we as His creation possesses. 

So how did we get off 

track? How did God who created 

everything, create children 

who do not know their identity 

and purpose? 

True or false…“Sticks and 

stones may break my bones but 

words will never hurt me”? This 

age old adage has been around 

for as long as I can remember. 

When children would tease one 

another, it wasn’t a surprise to 

hear this rebuttal used as a way 

to guard oneself from the sting 

of hurtful words that were sent to 

make the target feel bad about 

themselves. If successful in 

hitting the mark, those harmful 

words could change the truth into 

a lie and taint ones self-esteem, 

image and worth. Growing up, I 

was a victim of hurtful words and 

I can remember my Mom asking 

me, “Are you what they say you 

are”? My reply would be, “no 

ma’am”. My Mom would say, 

“don’t let their lie become your 

truth, you are God’s child and 

not what others say about you”. 

I must be honest and say that, 

I didn’t know what Mom meant 

at the time, her words sure didn’t 

make me feel any better about 

myself because there were 

others whose words were still 

unkind to me. As I grew older 

my Mom’s advice became quite 

clear. It has been 40 years now 

and I have been blessed to 

work with children for over half 

of that time. The biggest challenge 

I have is getting children to 

believe they have worth. Even 

while working with preschoolers 

I found that their day could 

be totally ruined because some 

other child wouldn’t play with 

them or be their friend. I spent 

a lot of time teaching adults and 

children that we belong to God 

because (as Mom said) His 

Word says so. God created us 

and He alone decides who we 

are and what we will be. When 

sharing the power of words with 

young children, I tell them that 

words are like super-powers; 

they can be used for good or 

evil! I share with adults too that 

once words are released into the 

atmosphere you put them on an 

assignment and whose job it is 

to perform those words is predicated 

on what you say. 

For example, words that are in 

alignment with what God says, 

gives Him permission to perfect 

and perform those things. 

(Psalm 138:8) It’s great to know 

that if we say what God says, 

we can begin to know who He is 

and who we are as His children. 

That’s using your superpowers 

for good. In direct contrast, if 

words are spoken that are contradictory 

to the Word of God, 

those words are put on a more 

dangerous assignment that the 

devil is more than happy to do 

whatever he can to make those 

words come to life. You see, 

he is the villain, the one whose 

sole purpose is to kill, steal and 

destroy. His diabolical plan is to 

inundate the people of God with 

lies and untruths that if successful 

in its delivery, will divert Gods 

people from ever knowing who 

He is and who they are in Him. 

It’s a calculated plan; the enemy 

knows that the Word of God is 

our life source and the avenue 

by which we live and are saved. 

Without the Word of God, we are 

left here on earth without guidance, 

instructions and knowledge 

about our Creator God. It’s 

like someone building a mansion 

for a homeless person without 

giving that person directions to 

the house, instructions on how 

to maintain and sustain it. The 

homeless person is left destitute 

and without a place to live 

even though the truth is there 

is a home prepared for Him; He 

just needs to be given directions 

to get there. As Christians we 

need the Word of God and its 

truth to live a life of purpose. So 

what does God say about this? 

The Word of God Is Our Secret 

Weapon 

Proverbs 18:21 tells us that 

“death” and “life” reside in the 

words that we speak. Our words 

can give life or cause death; so 

what we say to ourselves and 

others is very important and 

what we believe and receive as 

truth is sure to put an indelible 

blueprint on who we are. Let us 

consider this; 

John 1:1-4 says that before there 

was life, God and His Holy Word 

existed. The Word of God also 

states that “EVERYTHING” was 

made by God! I love the correlation 

between the 4th verse 

of John 1 and the 1st verse of 

Genesis 1. In Genesis, the first 

words God said was, “Let there 

be light…” In the 1st chapter of 

John, God is characterized as 

light and “His life is the light of all 

men”. We can glean from these 

passages of scripture that the 

power and origin of God’s word 

gives us life! The B.I.B.L.E, 

yes that’s the book for me! God’s 

Holy Word is powerful and it is 

a lamp unto our feet and a light 

unto our path (Psalms 119:115). 

Whether we chose to receive the 

Word of God as truth, the validity 

of it or its origin, the Bible is

the written Word of God. It is 

the conduit by which God uses 

to communicate with us. In 

God’s Word we find that we are 

His chosen children and He is 

our Heavenly Father. Just like 

an earthly father cares for his 

children and wants the best for 

them, likewise our God shares 

the same sentiments for us. We 

can find the heart of God in His 

Word! He is the model by which 

we live and love! The beauty of 

this awesome Father is that He 

alone created us in His image 

and likeness (Genesis 1:26) and 

it was by His words, His very 

thoughts that we were intricately 

designed and by way of His 

Spirit, the breath and essence of 

God that we exist today. What a 

loving God whose sole purpose 

for “speaking” life into existence 

was to establish a relationship 

with us; to give us life. Do you 

know who you are? 

The Truth, The Whole Truth 

and Nothing But The Truth 

So help me “believe” God 

I am fearfully and wonderfully 

made by God… created in secret 

and everything I need to know 

about myself is provided for me 

in the Word of God. (Psalms 

139: 14-16 paraphrased) 

When we read the Word of God 

it is filled with life affirmations 

about our true identity. God says 

that we are: 

His children (John 1:12) 

(Romans 8:16) 

The “Apple of His Eye” (Deuteronomy 

32:9-11) 

Filled with wisdom, knowledge 

and understanding (Colossians 

1:9) 

Conduits of Him through Christ 

Jesus (John 15:1, 5) 

One spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 

6:17) 

Of royal decent, chosen by Him 

(1 Peter 2:9a) 

Free in Him (John 8:36) 

A new creation in Him (2 Corinthians 

5:17) 

The Righteousness of Him in 

Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21) 

No longer slaves but children 

and heirs (Galatians 4:7) 

These are just a few examples 

of what God says about who we 

are in His Word. The Bible is 

filled with examples of how God 

loves us and how He feels about 

us. He tells us that if we believe 

Him, we have power to become 

His sons and daughters. (John 

1:12) We are in Christ Jesus. 

Our identity and self-worth is 

found in Him alone. Ephesians 

1:5 tells us that we were chosen 

by God and when we give our 

lives to Him we become His 

adopted children with the same 

rights and privileges as His only 

Son, Jesus Christ. We become 

one with Christ. God made this 

decision before heaven and 

earth were formed, it was predestined. 

(See 1 Corinthians 12:27, 

Galatians 3:27-28, Romans 6:6, 

Jeremiah 1:5, Colossians 3:1-3) 

The Truth Shall Set You Free 

For what if some did not believe? 

Shall their unbelief make the 

faith of God without effect? 

God forbid: yea, let God be true, 

but every man a liar; 

(Romans 3:3-4a) 

The only way to know who we 

are in God; what He has said 

about our lives is by reading and 

believing His Word. There just 

isn’t any other way around it. I 

remember when I was a new 

convert with major self-esteem 

and image issues; I had a distorted 

opinion about myself and 

how God viewed my life. My 

mentor would always say, “What 

does God say about that?” or 

“Show me that God feels that 

way in His Word”. When my 

thoughts about myself were 

skewed, she always directed me 

to the source, the Word of God. 

She would often say, “Everything 

you want to know about yourself, 

you will find it in the Word 

of God and every lie that was 

ever told and you believed will 

be replaced with God’s truth.” I 

began reading and learning who 

I was and the unwavering love 

of God when I made a decision 

to dedicate myself to the studying 

of His Word. When sharing 

God’s love with others, I explain 

my conversion by telling people, 

“The light came on”. How befitting 

is that symbolism of “light” 

that I found in reading God’s 

Word. In 2 Timothy 2:15, God 

tells us to study (read, learn and 

educated) ourselves from His 

Word so that we will know assuredly 

who we are and who He is 

so that we can boldly share that 

truth with others and live our 

best life. (paraphrased) God 

knew that if we would dedicate 

ourselves to getting to know 

Him, we would be so filled with 

the truth of who He is and who 

we are that we would be confident 

and not ashamed to live our 

lives for Him. Don’t you wonder

sometimes why Christian folks 

are suffering from depression 

or low self-esteem and identity 

crisis? Our society seems to be 

behaving like bastard children, 

looking for love and acceptance 

anywhere they can find it. Living 

a life for Christ now, I can understand 

because before I began 

the journey of establishing a relationship 

with God, I was a Christian 

who loved God and tried 

to live a good life but I did not 

“know” God. I was acquainted 

with Him; I knew He existed and 

believed in the foundations of 

Jesus’ life, death and resurrection 

but I would say I had a form 

of godliness but I was living a life 

with no power (2 Timothy 3:5) . I 

believed God existed but I really 

didn’t believe what He said in 

His Word about me. Everything 

begins and ends with the Word 

of God. 

For Every Truth, There Is A Lie 

When we recap the beautiful love 

story in the book of Genesis, we 

see that it tragically ended when 

Adam and Eve decided that the 

Word of God and the Life it provided 

was no longer true and sufficient 

for them. Most remember 

the story, when the evil adversary; 

clothed in slithery scaled 

apparel, approached God’s creation 

with a lie. Ironically, God 

had given His “Word” of instructions 

that Adam and Eve could 

live a life of love eternally with 

Him if they did not reject the 

Word and eat of the fruit of “The 

tree of the knowledge of good 

and evil”. God told them that 

“if you eat of the tree, you shall 

surely die”. Well, we know the 

disastrous end to this story; our 

first parents disobeyed God and 

were expelled from the Garden, 

separated from the eternal life 

they were created to live with 

Him. We often equate the consequences 

of their actions as 

losing fellowship eternally with 

God and that is the truth but 

there is another valuable lesson 

we can learn from the Word of 

God in this passage. When 

God created Adam and Eve 

they possessed Godly attributes 

like: Identity, Self-Esteem, Confidence 

and Self-Worth. God 

gave them dominion over everything 

that existed in the earth 

and it was with great fulfillment 

and confidence that they ruled. 

Adam and Eve lost the ever 

present TRUTH of God’s Word 

when they disobeyed God and 

believed the LIE of satan. They 

lived in a world where the truth of 

God was with them. They never 

had to search for it or question 

its motives or intent. They had a 

choice to rebuke satan and live 

under God’s protective truth forever. 

Believing the Word of God 

wasn’t a learned behavior in the 

Garden, it was inherent. There 

was a thief with lying lips, who 

came to kill, steal and destroy 

the life of every child of God. 

He was on the scene then and 

he exists to do likewise today. 

(John 10:9-11) Hallelujah, Jesus 

came to destroy the works of 

the devil and displace every lie 

of the enemy! We are who God 

says that we are! 

For this purpose the Son of God 

was manifested, that he might 

destroy the works of the devil. 

(1 John 3-8b) 

Whoever Has Your Ear, Has 

Your Destiny 

As children, we didn’t have a 

choice in who our parents were 

or the type of life we were born 

into. Everything we were taught 

growing up came from what was 

said, seen or experienced. Children 

who grow up with loving 

parents or adults are taught 

how to live their lives the same 

way they were taught. Some 

are fortunate to have experienced 

love’s expression as a 

child. We can surmise that there 

is a great correlation between 

who we are, based on what is 

said and shown to us. In contrast, 

those who grow up in an 

environment where there was a 

lack of loves expression; where 

ungodly words were spoken or 

expressed were equally affected 

by what was said or not said. 

I’m sure you can agree that it is 

difficult to give what you don’t 

have. For example if I lived in 

a home where my good behavior 

was constantly recognized 

and rewarded, it would be easy 

for me to recognize that behavior 

in others and in turn extend 

that same courtesy to someone 

else but if I did not live in an environment 

where my life was validated 

or appreciated, it would 

be difficult for me to recognize, 

receive and believe that love 

exist and someone could extend 

kind sentiments to me. This is 

why it is challenging for some to 

show love and receive it. There 

is good news! No matter who 

you are or what situations you 

may have found yourself in, God 

loves you and He has given His 

Word to show you the way, the 

truth and life. Give God your ear, 

and let Him show you your destiny! 

How Can I Find My Way? 

This book of the law shall not 

depart out of thy mouth; but thou 

shalt meditate therein day and 

night, that thou mayest observe 

to do according to all that is writ-

ten therein: for then thou shalt 

make thy way prosperous, and 

then thou shalt have good success. 

(Joshua 1:8) 

Jesus saith unto him, I am the 

way, the truth, and the life: no 

man cometh unto the Father, but 

by me.(John 14:6) 

As you can see, the only way 

to find the truth for your life is 

through the Word of God. The 

Bible is the roadmap to a relationship 

with Him. Every person 

God created can live a life full 

of self-identity and purpose with 

just one decision, “BELIEVE” 

God. We are all one decision 

away from living our best life. 

In the Word of God recorded in 

John 5:24a it says, “Verily, verily, 

I say unto you, He that heareth 

my word, and believeth on him 

that sent me, hath everlasting 

life”. To further reiterate the 

gateway to God’s word, He says 

in John 10:9 that if we believe in 

His Word, we can live a saved 

life. It’s interesting to note that 

some of the synonyms for the 

word saved are; freed, rescued, 

healed, protected, safe, maintained 

and redeemed. My God! 

Look at the power that exists in 

the Words of God! If we believe 

what the Word of God says 

about us, we are redeemed, 

healed and protected by the 

One who created us, God himself. 

Spending quality time in 

God’s Word; allowing Him to 

speak to us, open up the pages 

of His heart to us will change our 

lives. God says to meditate on 

His Word, day and night. God’s 

Word is like a flashlight shining 

bright in the dark and confused 

places in our lives. It allows us 

the opportunity to see things 

clearly. We can know the way 

to take because God’s Word is 

leading and guiding us. Before 

we know it, not only will we be 

able to find out who we are and 

what we are called to do but we 

will be able to share God’s truth 

with others so they might “know” 

Him too. So what does God’s 

Word say about it? 

God Says I Am a New Creature 

I beseech you therefore, brethren, 

by the mercies of God, that 

ye present your bodies a living 

sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto 

God, which is your reasonable 

service. 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 12:1-2) 

As we begin to spend time with 

God through His Word, we start 

to experience a change in the 

way we think about ourselves 

and the people around us. 2 

Corinthians 5:17 explains it best, 

God says that if we are in Christ 

Jesus, we are “new creatures” 

and old things (mindsets, attitudes 

and behaviors) become a 

part of our past and everything 

that pertains to our life becomes 

new (different and changed). 

How awesome is our God? This 

is confirmation that His Word is 

light and life! God says in this 

passage of scripture that if we 

live our life for Christ (Christ-like 

and in Christ) we will be transformed 

into a “new” creation! 

This is how the transformation 

begins. It’s like a butterfly that 

initially starts in the cocoon. 

It’s covered and protected from 

the elements as God provides 

everything it needs (time and 

nourishment) to break free and 

soar and serve its purpose in 

the earth. The process of this 

metamorphosis (conversion & 

transformation) takes time but it 

is all in God’s perfect plan. God 

has called us all on purpose for 

a purpose. The path to knowing 

our purpose and true identity is 

found in the volume of the book 

that was written for us. (Hebrews 

10:7) 

The Word of God will change 

your life! So if you or someone 

you know is dealing with low 

self-esteem or trying to find their 

true identity and purpose in this 

world, remember that everything 

begins and ends with the Word 

of God! It is God who made us 

and He longs to have a relationship 

with us so that He can share 

His heart and show us who we 

were created to be. We can find 

our true selves in the Word of 

God and be transformed in to 

the person He has called us to 

be. All we have to do is believe 

God and let His Words illuminate 

our path and guide us into a life 

filled with truth, love and great 

purpose. 

Scriptural Reference: 

King James Version (KJV) 

Dictionary.com 

Terri is the author of, “I am who 

God says that I am” Teaching 

young children who they are in 

God. It’s a colorful story that 

teaches spiritual identity, selfesteem 

and purpose. For more 

information, check out her website 

at www.kingdomkidsbooks. 

com or via e

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Author 

Paul Wilbur 

Teaches 

About 

Touching 

the Heart of 

God 

By Brandon Knight 

Have you ever thought 

about what it will be like 

to be in united with God 

in His Kingdom? Have 

you ever thought about how 

God’s Kingdom on earth should 

look like now? Have you ever 

wondered if the “Feasts of the 

Lord” outlined in the Old Testament 

have any meaning to New 

Testament Christians? If you 

answered yes to any of those 

questions then you need to look 

into Paul Wilbur’s new book 

“Touching the Heart of God.” 

Paul Wilbur, who has been 

recording Messianic styled worship 

music for forty years, has 

recently released a new book all 

about the Kingdom and how the 

“Feasts of the Lord” should play 

an impact in the lives of modern 

day Christians. I got a chance 

to have a conversation with Mr. 

Wilbur about his book and also 

got the opportunity to get to 

know him and the other ministries 

he is involved in. 

Tell us about yourself 

My name is Paul Wilbur. I was 

born in the Boston area in 1951 

to a Jewish dad and a Baptist 

mom. We were in and out of 

churches while I was growing 

up, but I chose a Reform Synagogue 

when going to college 

in Cleveland, Ohio. Between 

my music and Temple life I 

decided to train as a cantor 

and an opera singer like Richard 

Tucker, another Jewish guy who 

was very successful at both. 

While in graduate school at Indiana 

University I met a man who 

changed my life by introducing 

me to the real Jesus, who I later 

came to know as Yeshua, Israel’s 

Messiah. Since March 26, 

1977 I have dedicated my life to 

knowing Him and making Him 

known…”to the Jew first and also 

to the nations.” (Roms.1:16). I 

have made records with major 

record labels for nearly 40 years, 

and after 25 of those years I 

continue to this day with Integrity 

Music. We have made more 

than 20 records in 5 languages 

with millions sold worldwide. My

passion for the message, music 

and ministry only grows stronger 

by the day. 

What inspired you to write 

your new book, “Touching the 

calendar every year and invites 

His people (Jew and Gentile) 

to come to His house and celebrate 

His victories and more. 

Remember, there are only two 

kingdoms on earth; the Kingdom 

Heart of God”? 

I have seen so much written 

about the Kingdom, its economy, 

government, growth, etc., but 

very little to nothing on the subject 

I have tackled in this book. 

There is a growing passion for all 

things “Jewish” in many nations 

of the world, so I wanted to put 

some of these things in perspective 

and encourage the Body 

of Christ worldwide to consider 

these thoughts. 

So what’s the general premise 

of your book? 

My book begins with a look at The 

Kingdom. What is a kingdom, 

how does it work, operate, who 

runs the show, etc. The premise 

being that every kingdom on 

earth has a similar structure, but 

most importantly to this book, 

every kingdom has a history with 

a calendar that celebrates the 

king’s victories over his enemies, 

and a schedule for their celebration. 

The Kingdom of God is no 

different in this matter, but many 

of the citizens of this Kingdom 

are largely unaware of the invitations 

to celebrate. So, my book 

is hopefully an ‘eye-opener’ for 

the Church to these celebrations 

and that they are invited to join 

the parade. 

Why do you think Christians 

should observe the Jewish 

Festivals? 

First of all, as outlined in the 

book, these are not primarily 

Jewish Festivals; they are the 

‘Feasts of the Lord’ as stated 

over and over again in Leviticus 

23. The word translated as 

“feasts” is actually the Hebrew 

word ‘moedim’ which means 

‘appointed times’ or ‘appointments’! 

In other words, God 

has these celebrations on His

of Darkness where Satan rules 

as king, and the Kingdom of God 

where Yeshua (Jesus) reigns as 

King of All Kings. Since these 

are Kingdom expressions, why 

wouldn’t the Kings people want 

to celebrate with Him?! 

What would be the benefits 

to a Christian who started 

observing the Feasts of the 

Lord? 

The benefits to anyone are huge! 

First of all you are obeying the 

call of the King to set aside your 

own personal agenda and honor 

Him. We go to the House of God 

with Kingdom family to worship, 

pray, hear the Word of God, 

fellowship, grow in faith, learn 

about the King we all love and 

serve…need I go on? 

Did your music background 

play an influence at all in the 

writing of your book? 

My music and worship has been 

the opening of many doors in 

my life, and the writing is no 

exception. I have found after 

many years of writing newsletters, 

blogs and the like that I 

have some level of ability in writing 

and languages. So, with so 

much to say, I have taken up the 

computer to substitute for pen 

and paper to put my thoughts in 

print along with the music. 

Do you foresee yourself writing 

more books in the future? 

The next book is already begun 

with an outline and provoking 

title which I will hold back for the 

time being. I also have another 

book well thought out in my mind, 

and another that was self-published 

several years ago entitled 

“Order in the Courts” intended to 

bring some sense of order to all 

the charismatic worship styles 

involving congregational participation 

with dance, tambourines, 

shofars, banners, flags and the 

like. 

What other ministries are you 

engaged in, of course there is 

your music career… 

I do wear several hats. I am the 

General Secretary for the International 

Messianic Jewish Alliance, 

a 150 year old organization 

for the edifying and comfort of 

the international Messianic community. 

I am the Pastor of Jewish 

Ministries and Artist in Residence 

for Celebration Church in Jacksonville, 

Florida. We are a large 

church of more than 11,000 in 

weekly attendance with multiple 

campuses internationally. I lead 

Wilbur Ministries since 1994 and 

sit on several boards of ministries 

both in the US and in Israel. 

One last question, where could 

someone get a hold of “Touching 

the Heart of God”? 

The book is available on Amazon. 

com as well as our website at 

PaulWilbur.com, and will hopefully 

be available in Christian 

bookstores as well. It’s available 

in print or as a download for your 

Kindle or iPad. The book is an 

easy read of 140 pages, and my 

wife believes well worth the time! 

Thank you very much for your 

time! Any final comments? 

There is a growing passion for 

Israel, her people and God’s purpose 

to be fulfilled. If the Church 

would take these thoughts to 

heart and begin to embrace 

the King’s calendar, I believe it 

would go a long ways in helping 

to open the eyes of our Jewish 

brothers and sisters, and bring 

us all that much closer to the day 

when ‘all Israel will be saved’! 

Brandon Knight is a young gun, 

a martial artist, and a freelance 

writer. He resides in northwest 

Indiana and recently began seminary 

through Moody Theological 

Seminary. Brandon has a passion 

for preaching the Gospel 

and seeing it transform lives. He 

loves Jesus, comic books, and 

the Chicago Cubs.

Fighting 

for Their 

Future 

“Pour out your heart like water before 

the presence of the Lord! Lift your 

hands to him for the lives of your children... 

“ Lamentations 2:19 

By Heather Bolinger 

“I want to be a warrior for Jesus!!” 

My son was only four when these words were first 

spoken. With a light saber sword at his side and 

tiny, metal trash can lid for a shield, he just knew 

he wanted to be in “God’s army”. And with a name 

that means “Shining, warlike protector of humanity”, 

is it any wonder? 

Fearless to his very core, he would run with the 

children on the playground shouting “Do you know 

God is your Savior?!” It’s the kind of picture that 

would make any faith-filled parent smile. 

Now, at 16, that desire is still there. Mixed with the 

same doubts every teenager has, his battle rages. 

Did his faith come from his own belief or simply 

because his parents believe? What does God’s 

word say about the kind of warrior he is meant to 

be? HOW does he fight? WHEN will he know for 

sure? And how do I, as his mother, help guide him? 

Few things plague the heart of a parent as much 

as thoughts of our children’s future. It seems that 

from the moment they are born (and, for many, 

when they are still on the way), we feel the clock 

ticking. “18 years until they are an adult; 17, 16, 

15...” I can feel my blood pressure rising just thinking 

about it. 

I didn’t know my calling until I was in my early to 

mid-30s. For some, that may seem like the appropriate 

time to “discover yourself”. But what if I had 

known earlier? What if I hadn’t spent my 20s being 

distracted by insignificant problems and tossed 

around by mere guessing? 

“Maybe I’m supposed to work with children. I’m 

good at singing; am I supposed to sing? I can 

act; am I supposed to be on TV? I’m good with 

a budget; am I supposed to be a financial counselor?...” 

and the list goes on. What if I had known 

my calling 10 years ago? Better yet, 20 years ago?

Where would I be now? 

Direction breeds confidence and purpose. It helps 

someone set goals and encourages motivation. 

A person with no goals can waste years drifting 

through life; complacent and unfocused. What happens 

to them then? 10 years later... 20...30...40? 

You’ve heard it before; but how long does it take 

before we start to listen? Time goes by so fast; 

and, once it’s gone...it’s gone for good. 

As I have mentioned before, in a previous article, 

we only get this time with our children once. One 

chance...one childhood to help guide them as 

much as we can; and, when they are grown, we 

can never get that time back. I don’t know one 

parent who wants to waste that time. The problem 

is - it can be hard to figure out our own direction 

so we can help them find theirs. And that is where 

we must begin. God does give parents authority 

over their children; and with that authority, we can 

either hurt them or help them. But, before we can 

help them, we need direction on HOW. 

As believers in Christ, most of us understand the

main concept behind our admonition to “Train up a 

child in the way they should go” (Proverbs 22:6). It 

means instructing a child in knowledge of the word 

and of faith, in order to help them navigate through 

life, right? Right - and more. 

God is truly a master of placing an all-encompassing 

message in one simple verse. What’s even 

more astounding is the freedom HE gives us in 

this one instruction. This verse takes us out of the 

box and allows for all the nuances and variety that 

come with raising a multitude of personalities; to 

train THAT child in the way THEY should go. After 

all, how often do we find two children who are 

exactly alike? That’s why it’s so important to see 

beyond the foundation of moral training. 

There are two kinds of training our children need. 

One is the fixed instruction found in God’s word - 

don’t lie, cheat, or steal. Love your neighbor and 

your enemy. Bless those who curse you. Bring 

your whole tithes to the storehouse, etc. 

Throughout the Old and New Testament, there 

are instructions and promises that cover our entire 

lives. The teachings are for anyone willing to listen; 

as are the promises - equally for all - because God 

does not show favoritism (Romans 2:11). In this, 

you can find answers through the multitude of 

commentaries, cross references and study tools. 

Pick a subject and type it into your favorite search 

engine and up pops a landslide of resources to 

study and learn from. 

It is in these instructions that we help our children 

to build a strong foundation. That foundation is, 

beyond question, the most important first step in 

preparing them for walking in their calling with victory. 

Without blessing our children with confidence 

in God’s word - as their compass and their rock, 

their anchor and their stronghold - the rest doesn’t 

matter. That foundation is what will keep them 

steady and sure in those uncertain times when 

their world is turned upside down. And there is no 

better testimony, of a job well done, than to hear 

our children say 

“I have learned in whatever situation I am to be 

content. I know how to be brought low, and I know 

how to abound. In any and every circumstance, 

I have learned the secret of facing plenty and 

hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things 

through him who strengthens me.” ~Philippians 

4:11-13 

The second kind of training, which branches off 

the first, is individual instruction. After each one of 

us learns how to study, trust His voice and obey 

His commands, there comes the benefit of our 

diligence - a personal relationship with our Father. 

In this relationship, we are guided into our specific 

purpose and calling. We are shown our path; 

along with what decisions will help us walk in it. 

This is the part that can often be overlooked; 

even with the most faithful of parents. We seek 

for opportunities to teach them how to walk in the 

Fruit of the Spirit and reach out to others. We take 

them to church and even try to get them involved 

in volunteering. We can teach our children enough 

to know they HAVE a calling; but what else? When 

we think of helping our children reach their full 

potential, what tends to come to our mind first - the 

spiritual or the natural? 

As parents, we can spend so much time trying to 

help our children excel. We get them involved in 

sports, debate, band and other activities in order 

to teach them team work, social skills, and the 

victory that comes from working hard. And, let’s 

be honest – sometimes, we get them involved (at 

least in part) so we can show off and say “That’s 

my kid”. We want them to study and do their homework 

so they can get good grades, be accepted 

into a good college, and have a successful career 

(and so we can show off a little). 

I know it seems like a bit of a rabbit trail; but it’s 

important to recognize all of our motives if we are 

to weed out the ones that don’t support our efforts 

to honestly help our children reach their eternal 

purpose. How much of our efforts are really just for 

our children? Are we more interested in our own 

pride – in “showing off” our kids – than in what 

really matters? Are the goals of this world the 

height of our efforts to help them succeed? What 

good is all the teamwork and social skills; of what 

benefit are the grades and the education and the 

lucrative career if our children leave this world 

without fulfilling the whole reason why they were 

created in the first place?

The trophies won’t follow them when they leave 

this world. Neither will the degree or the money or 

the house or the car. All the success in the world 

means nothing once this life is gone. The day our 

children stand before the Lord, the only thing that 

will matter is if they have the chance to hear “Well 

done.” 

With that in mind, I must stop and ask myself if 

my priorities are straight. Getting a good education, 

learning diligence and social skills, how to 

work hard and reach goals - all of these things are 

important. But, they should never be so important 

that they overshadow the real reason they are 

needed - to live a life of purpose. 

What I have found is that, the more I know the 

reason I was created, the more I care about obtaining 

and strengthening those basic skills. 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the 

LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, 

plans to give you hope and a future. ~Jeremiah 

29:11 

There is hope in knowing that God has a plan for 

your life. And, from hope, many great things have 

been born. So, if finding purpose becomes our priority, 

when we are raising our children; then gaining 

the tools they need to walk in that purpose will 

have more meaning to them. And as anyone who 

has ever dealt with a teenager can attest to - if 

they understand why something is important, it’s a 

heck of a lot easier to get them to care. 

So, now that we have established how to build a 

foundation and prioritize our motives (as parents), 

the next step is the most elusive. With all the different 

personalities and calling, which God has created 

for each individual child, what is the best way 

to get pointed in the right direction? 

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will 

find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” 

~Matt 7:7 

This is a point that has been vital to my own efforts 

to help my children know why they are here. I 

cannot do this on my own; I need God to show me 

what matters most with each of my children. So, I 

knock… and I seek… and I ask. 

I seek for ways to learn– and I find resources. Right 

now, I am reading the book Raising Children on 

Purpose: Helping Your Children Find Their God- 

Given Calling by WESLEY H. FLEMING. 

I ask – 

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, 

who gives generously to all without finding fault, 

and it will be given to you.” ~James 1:5 

When a parent prays for their children, God hears. 

So, I ask God to show me what gifts each of my 

children, and step children, have been given. I 

ask Him to open my eyes to their gifts and needs 

and provide the means for us to nourish and meet 

them. I ask for discernment; so I can stay in balance 

as a parent. And I thank Him for being everything 

I can’t be. 

I knock by reaching out to those wiser than myself 

and taking an active role in finding doors. I make 

myself available to the teachers, who show a real 

interest in helping my children, so they can give 

me ideas and ways I can help shape them. I reach 

out to other parents, who have been through what 

I am going through and have achieved the success 

and direction I desire. And I watch for opportunities 

to encourage my child’s passion; be it art 

or writing or debate, sports, leading, teaching… 

wherever they seem most gifted. 

And, above all else, we must remember that we are 

fighting for a future the enemy wants to steal from 

the one’s we love. For this very reason, I trust God 

with my children more than I trust myself. After all, 

they were His before they were mine; and, when 

all is said and done, they will be His once again. 

Biography 

Heather Bolinger is a devoted daughter of God; 

a wife, mother of 3, step-mother of 2, writer, bible 

teacher, public speaker and co-founder (with her 

wonderful husband) of Single Hope Ministries for 

single parents. Her passion, calling and focus 

are to be God’s vessel to minister to the broken 

hearted, provide direction to the lost and bring 

hope to the hopeless. 

You can connect with Heather on www.facebook. 

com/foreverchanged1Sam106

Gospel of 

John 

Interview with 

David Batty 

By Micayla Greathouse 

Lionsgate Home Entertainment’s 

The Gospel of John, 

released on October 6th, 

brings the Bible to life onscreen 

in a way that has never been 

done before. This exceptional 

film is the first ever, word-forword 

version of the biblical text 

of the book of John, telling the 

story of Jesus (played by Selva 

Rasalingam), narrated by David 

Harewood and Brian Cox. The 

biblical text of John “deals so 

brilliantly with Jesus as a character 

and the two different sides to 

him – his divinity and his humanity,” 

says Director David Batty. 

In an interview with Faith Filled 

Family, Batty discusses the 

behind-the-scenes process of 

the making of the film, the inspiration 

behind it, and bringing it to 

life. 

The Gospel of John is the first 

filmed version of the wordfor-word 

biblical text. What 

inspired or prompted you to 

do this? 

It was the brainchild of my producer, 

Hannah Leader. By day 

she is a very successful and 

experienced film producer but 

at the weekend she is a devoted 

Sunday School teacher. About 7 

years ago she was trying to find 

some video material to show her 

kids. She searched high and 

low on DVDs and the internet 

but couldn’t find anything that 

she thought was suitable or of 

a decent enough quality that 

would inspire them. Then she 

had a moment of inspiration: 

why didn’t she make the material 

herself. After all she was a film 

producer. So why didn’t she use 

all her professional skills to bring 

the Gospels to life. And so was 

born The Lumo Project (http:// 

www.lumoproject.com/) with the 

ambition to film all four Gospels 

as feature films. My involvement 

began with a phone call, when 

I was told by my assistant that 

there was a film producer on the 

line who says she wants you 

to film the bible! To be honest I 

thought it was a crank call and 

almost put the phone down. I am 

glad I didn’t as Hannah is definitely 

not a crank. What I didn’t

know at the time was that I would 

spend the next 5 years making 

these films. Although it’s been a 

labour of love it has been very 

tough at times. 

Why did you decide to start 

with the gospel of John as 

opposed to the other gospels? 

John is the most mystical and 

wordy of all the Gospels that is 

true. It’s full of long speeches 

by Jesus expounding his teaching 

and philosophy, but actually 

strangely we found it was 

the most filmic, the most like a 

modern film script of all the Gospels. 

The big reason for this is 

that it deals so brilliantly with 

Jesus as a character and the two 

different sides to him - his divinity 

and his humanity. Since making 

the film, it’s become my favourite 

Gospel, not least because of the 

intense poetic nature of so much 

of its content. It has one of the 

greatest opening passages of 

any book I have ever read. 

This was shot on-location in 

Morocco. How did you decide 

on this location to recreate the 

world of first-century Palestine? 

Were there any special 

challenges presented by this 

location? 

We spent a lot of time agonizing 

as to where to film this. 

Our first choice was obviously 

Israel/Palestine which I know 

very well as I have made a lot 

of films there over the years. 

I love the place but the trouble 

with Israel/Palestine is just that 

- trouble. It can break out at a 

moment’s notice and can get 

very hairy. Also it’s a fairly developed 

and modern country with 

lots of modern intrusions such 

as electricity pylons which are 

a nightmare if you are trying to 

film landscapes. We then looked 

at several other Middle Eastern 

and North African countries with 

similar landscape and climate 

and eventually hit on Morocco 

which in the end was the perfect 

choice. We did almost all of our 

filming in or around a small city 

in the desert called Ouarzazate 

which is Morocco’s equivalent 

of Hollywood. Several biblical 

epics have been filmed there in 

the past and there are lots of old 

sets that we were able to rent. 

For example there are two large 

Jerusalem sets, including an 

almost full scale replica of The 

Temple. 

The accuracy and attention 

to detail is incredible. Were 

there any specific ways you 

made sure to have an accurate 

script? 

Yes we intentionally spent a lot of 

time and effort trying to get this 

right. We always had an on-set 

expert ready to advise on any 

costumes and sets and details; 

but we also had a team of willing 

experts back home who we 

could call on for advice and help. 

I come from a documentary filmmaking 

background so reality 

and accuracy are very important 

to me. 

There are currently three different 

biblical text translations, 

correct? How did you 

decide which versions to produce? 

There are probably hundreds of 

different translations and versions 

of the bible in a host of 

different languages. We initially 

chose the NIV and KJV as being 

relatively popular and well used 

versions for an English-speaking 

audience; but our intention 

- over time - is to dub this film 

into as many versions and language 

as we can. I know that 

Hannah’s ultimate ambition is 

have it in 1000 languages but 

that may take a bit of time. It’s 

already been dubbed into Spanish, 

French, German, Norwegian, 

Danish and Finish so that’s 

a start. 

In the movie, the actors are 

speaking Aramaic in the background, 

with a narrator as the 

main voice telling the story in 

the chosen translation. What 

made you decide to choose 

this method rather than the 

actors voicing their parts with 

no narrator?

The reason we did it like this was 

that the original people involved 

in this story - Jesus and his Disciples 

and all the others in First 

Century Palestine - didn’t speak 

English and my view is that as 

soon as you have your actors 

speaking English you give the 

impression that the bible was 

written in English for Englishspeakers 

only which of course 

it wasn’t. It should be available 

for everyone whatever language 

they speak. 

What were some challenges 

involved with directing a script 

like this one, word-for-word? 

Well at first I was very worried 

about not having the usual 

option to alter or re-write the 

script but the more we got into 

it, the more liberating it was. We 

knew we couldn’t change a word 

so we just got on with it. The 

challenge was making the words 

come alive in a visual and entertaining 

way. The Gospels are 

obviously full of long speeches 

from Jesus but I always tried 

to avoid these being static. My 

view is that Jesus was an incredibly 

dynamic teacher and that he 

would be on the move all the 

time, working the crowds, getting 

inspiration from the people 

and events around him. So that’s 

how we tried to film it. 

What was your favorite part 

of the process of creating this 

film? 

My favourite process is always 

the filming itself, seeing all those 

ideas come to fruition. 

What type of preparation did 

your actors have to undergo 

to best portray their characters? 

I tried to get each of the major 

actors to imagine their character 

as a real person; not a mythical, 

legendary person but a real flesh 

and blood character with all the 

human emotions and that way 

I felt we could make this story 

real. 

Were there any special 

moments where you observed 

God’s hand providing in special 

ways throughout the filming 

process? 

The most special moment was 

when we actually finished the 

last film. The very last scene we 

filmed was a parable from Luke - 

The Rich man and Lazarus - and 

it was a very fitting one to end on 

as we had had a major struggle 

to get the whole project funded 

and there were many times 

when we thought we would have 

to give up...but Hannah (our producer) 

persisted and we managed 

to complete 100 days of 

filming. All four Gospels add up 

to over 12 hours of screen-time. 

To give you a comparison - Peter 

Jackson’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ 

was a similar length and had a 

budget of almost $300 million. 

Our budget was just $5 million! 

Are there any films in the process 

that we can expect after 

this one? 

The Gospel of John is just the 

first of four Gospel films - Matthew, 

Mark, Luke and John. I am 

just finishing off the post production 

of the last one now and it 

will be complete by Christmas 

2015. So after John, the other 

three will be released in time. In 

the end they will be put up on the 

internet on YouVersion (a Bible 

app for all mobile devices) for 

anyone to view for free. And as 

I have already said hopefully in 

time they will be translated into 

a myriad of different languages 

and versions. 

The Gospel of John is now available 

on DVD, Digital HD, and On 

Demand. Viewers will find this 

film both fascinating and educational. 

The Gospel of John is a 

definite “must-see.” 

A special thanks to Director 

David Batty for this interview.

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Music Spotlight 

Being 

Danen Kane 

By Lisa Carter 

If you had asked him what he wanted to be when he 

grew up, he may have said a basketball player. He 

simply loved the game as a kid and focused on little 

else. What he became instead is a Christian music 

singer, musician, and songwriter taking advantage 

of every opportunity to give God glory through music. 

Danen Kane believes that music is a gift and can be 

used to bring healing to all those who hear it. Music 

has certainly been that and more to him. Through struggles 

and battles at different stages in life, his music has 

always been there as a medium of comfort and strength. 

Danen Kane is a believer that we are all born an original 

and that it’s worth it to be exactly who you were created 

to be. He translates this well through his music with 

thoughtful and inspirational tunes such as “Love Song”, 

and “I Need You”, from his latest album Flesh and Soul. 

He left behind what he thought he loved, sports, and 

pursued his faith more heavily and the path God had 

chosen for him. Once he discovered music, the kind of 

music he didn’t even know existed at the time, there 

was no looking back. Danen had found his calling. 

Faith Filled Family had the chance to ask Danen Kane 

a few questions about his faith journey and his music 

ministry. Here’s what he had to say:

of music? 

I guess musically it would fall under Pop Rock, but 

I think my music has subtle influences of a lot of different 

genres. I write in a very non-traditional way 

because I never “learned” how to write a song, I 

just wrote down what came out. My songs are 

honest life from a Christian perspective. I write a 

lot about my struggles and tend to write directly 

towards God lyrically. 

Hi Danen, thank you for talking with me. Music 

is something I read you didn’t really know you 

were into until about the age of 20 is that right? 

Tell us how you became fascinated with music 

and how it changed your life. 

I grew up in a small town in Wisconsin and was 

heavy into sports. Basketball was my love and 

focus and music wasn’t really on the radar at 

all. I’d listen to the radio here and there and also 

appreciated music, but as far as playing it, I didn’t 

have any concept of even where to start in learning 

an instrument. The only instruments I would 

see in my town were the more traditional instruments 

in the high school band and I really didn’t 

have much interest in that. 

When I got to college, it seemed like there was 

someone playing guitar around every corner. It 

was crazy. It was when I got involved with a college 

ministry on my campus that I really saw music 

for the first time, music being used to glorify God. 

I thought it was incredibly beautiful and something 

about it just drew me in and completely resonated 

with something in my heart. 

Wanting to be a part of that, I picked up a guitar 

for the first time and tried to learn. I just wanted to 

be a part of those worship times and help facilitate 

in different environments. I had no big aspirations 

other than that, but almost immediately I 

started writing simple songs that seemed to really 

resonate with people. God started opening doors 

for me to share those songs all over the place. I 

never saw it coming and it’s crazy to think of all the 

places it has taken me over the past 10 years. 

How would you describe your particular style 

I love rhythmic things, so I tend to incorporate 

some Latin and R&B flavors here and there, but I 

also tend to like the melodic tones of more British 

pop rock stuff. From song to song, my songwriting 

can change quite a bit and I like that. I don’t like 

listening to albums where all 10-12 songs sound 

like they came from the same idea. I like variety 

so I try to let each song have the identity I think 

it needs, while staying within the same relative 

musical realm. 

You state on your site, “There is a battle 

between flesh and spirit, a tension of living in 

our brokenness and our bodies and yet very 

much desiring God in every single moment.” 

Why do you feel it’s so important to acknowledge 

that “battle” and give ourselves permission 

to struggle and not try to be perfect? 

I think it is incredibly necessary to come to grips 

with our own depravity – to realize that we all make 

mistakes, we all struggle, and we all have different 

things we go to that are unhealthy. A huge part of 

the gospel and where it all begins is that we have 

all fallen short of the glory of God. We are, in fact, 

all in need of a savior. The Word of God says that 

‘our righteousness is like filthy rags to Him.’ 

Our best attempt at perfection is so far from the 

holiness of God that we can’t even comprehend 

the depths of both His perfection and our lack 

thereof. When we start to grasp that, we start to 

understand that every ounce of the glory goes 

to Him. We start to grasp how powerful His love 

really is, that He forgives a multitude of sins, and 

still loved us enough to die for us. 

And the more we grasp the reality of our need for 

Him every single day, the more we tend to extend 

grace to those around us, because we look at 

the world with eyes of grace instead of with eyes 

of condemnation. The more we understand and

admit our own sin, the more we point to Christ in 

worship and gratitude instead of puffing our chests 

out with a false understanding of self-righteousness. 

The world needs Jesus. 

They don’t need fallen people acting perfect. We 

need to point them to Jesus and stop acting like 

we don’t have problems or struggles. Should we 

be working on our issues and walking out the 

sanctification process? Absolutely. Should we be 

doing everything we possibly can to worship God 

with our obedience and rooting sin out in our life? 

Absolutely. But that process is a life-long process, 

and in the meantime, on this side of Heaven, we 

need to be authentic in where we actually 

are in that process. 

The world knows we aren’t perfect, so when we try 

to seem like we are, it looks ridiculous. The gospel 

is that we need Jesus because we are all pretty 

much a walking disaster. And yet He adores us 

and still wants us. THAT is a powerful thing. And 

THAT is what will change the world. 

I wanted to talk with you about a subject not 

many people like to deal with but it’s important 

to do so – it’s about depression. Please 

share with us what your thoughts are about 

the illness. Have you yourself had bouts with 

depression? 

Depression has had a presence in my life as long 

as I can remember and I have been starting to be 

more open about that fact the past couple years. 

Depression is a bit of a taboo subject, especially 

for Christians, because there is a stigma attached 

to it. It assigns some kind of blame to the person 

for not having enough faith, or not ‘choosing joy’ 

enough, or whatever else people who don’t actually 

know what’s like to struggle with depression 

say about it. Depression is a hard thing to understand 

because it has so many different layers and 

causes. It has elements that are spiritual, physiological, 

psychological, and circumstantial. If it 

was as easy as ‘choosing joy,’ I don’t think people 

would be having trouble physically getting out of 

bed in the morning because they feel so overwhelmed 

by it they can’t think straight. 

I think everyone who is affected by it has a little bit 

different experience and there are definitely different 

severities. I can only speak from my experience, 

which is that it is something that is definitely 

a challenge in my life, something I have p r a y e d 

for God to deliver me from, and something that 

has remained to be a challenge I have had to deal 

with. 

For me, I have chosen to look at it like any obstacle 

or difficult thing that comes my way. It is an 

opportunity to take it to God and depend on Him 

instead of depending on myself. To find my joy in 

Heaven and not in the things of this world. It has 

helped me have more compassion for the hurting 

people in this world. It has given me empathy and 

not just sympathy. 

That continuing reminder that God is my only hope, 

my only righteousness, and that I am here to be a 

servant to those around me instead of living life for 

what I can attain, I consider a blessing. As strange 

as that sounds, I have come to learn that all challenges 

in life, from a biblical perspective, really are 

a blessing. 

In your opinion, what kind of an outlet can 

music offer for those who suffer from an illness 

like depression? And what about those 

who don’t play an instrument or sing? 

I think music is an incredible outlet, both playing it 

and listening to it. God created music and I believe 

He created it in a way that speaks to the heart like 

nothing else does. It is emotional and allows us, 

and even sometimes gives us permission to feel 

and express things inside of us that we didn’t even 

know were there. When I first started learning 

guitar, I would play for hours and hours. I couldn’t 

put it down. 

Strumming those chords and belting out those 

songs lifted what felt like a thousand pounds of 

weight off my heart. Music is kind of a tool to reach 

deeper places. To express things that need to be 

expressed and are sometimes hard to access. 

It is a beautiful thing and I am very grateful for 

it. But if someone doesn’t engage with music or 

doesn’t have access to learn an instrument, I think 

it’s important for a person to find that thing that 

does give them that outlet; whether it’s a love of 

nature, sports, or photography. 

There are millions of things that God has created 

to reach those deeper places in us and we are

all designed with a different key to that door. I just 

encourage people to find those things that awaken 

their hearts and invest time in those places of 

emotional release. 

What can we do as a Christian community to 

be of help to those around us who may be suffering 

from depression? 

Listen. Reach out. Don’t try to give answers 

to something you don’t understand or try to fix 

something that maybe isn’t supposed to be fixed. 

Depression has many faces, many causes, and 

many expressions. The best way to help anyone 

is to listen to their story and listen to what they 

are going through. Don’t assume you know the 

answers before you know their situation. Love 

people where they are at, not where ‘they should 

be.’ 

The Bible says to “Rejoice with those who rejoice, 

and mourn with those who mourn.” God has purposes 

for both the highs and the lows and I think 

the biggest mistake we can make sometimes is 

being scared of the lows and avoiding them like 

the plague. A lot can be learned when we are in 

sorrow. We grow the most when we are in those 

places, so I would say meet them where they are. 

Join them in love and walk with them in what 

God is doing through it. 

What are some of the signs and symptoms to 

look out for? 

It really does look different depending on what type 

of depression the person is dealing with. Some of 

the most outwardly happy people in the world are 

the most depressed. Statistically, there appears 

to be a very high rate of depression in comedians 

and entertainers, which based on their outward 

expression, you would never guess. Often 

it’s people that desperately want the world to laugh 

and feel happy because inwardly they feel anything 

but that. 

I’m sure there are signs, but honestly, my best 

advice is to just love people well. Reach out 

beyond your normal circles and invite people into 

your life. Depression is a lonely place and the more 

people reach out and include others in their lives 

the better. Simple invitations seem so small but 

could mean the world to someone that you would 

never imagine longs for connection. 

Please share with us what completion of your 

new album Flesh and Soul means to you at this 

time in your life? 

It is always a mix of emotions to finish a project like 

this. We worked extremely hard on this album for 

over the past two years and I’m really proud of 

what came out. It feels great to finally allow people 

to hear all of that work and see what God does 

with it, while it’s always incredibly nerve-racking 

as well. I have my insecurities just like anyone 

else so it’s always hard to put your heart out there 

and see what the reaction will be. 

But I’m excited to see how God will use it and finally 

get out of the studio world and see people all 

over the country again. I love people, and releasing 

a project like this allows me the opportunity 

to share Christ with people all over the world. I 

love that more than I could ever explain and music 

gives me a great platform to accomplish that. 

What would be your favorite song from the 

album and why? 

It’s always so hard for me to pick just one. They all 

mean a lot to me for different reasons, musically 

and lyrically. Probably I Miss You, The Song That 

Set Us Free, and No Words, resonate the most 

with others and I am very happy with the way they 

turned out. They speak a lot about love and loss, 

and trusting God in the midst of difficult days. 

That kind of sums up the record well I think. Just 

being real and honest with where you are at, turning 

to God in the midst of it, and trusting that His 

plan is a great one even when we can’t see it yet. 

What’s next for Danen Kane? 

A lot of touring. The plan is just to play everywhere 

and anywhere God opens a door and see where 

He takes it. We will be doing about 225 shows 

over the next 12 months and the goal is to hit all 

48 lower states, so it’s going to be busy. I usually 

release dates about three months at a time and 

most of them will be available to the public and 

posted on my website www.danenkane.com . 

Thank you, Danen! We pray you have favor with 

God and man on your tour and that many souls 

come to Christ. We wish you victorious success 

with the album as you share your gift of music and 

endeavor to please Him in all you do. God bless.

THE 

Different Levels 

OF CHRISTANITY 

By Dr. Stan DeKoven

“I am writing to you, little children, 

because your sins have 

been forgiven you for His name’s 

sake. I am writing to you, fathers, 

because you know Him who 

has been from the beginning. I 

am writing to you, young men, 

because you have overcome the 

evil one. I have written to you, 

children, because you know the 

Father. I have written to you, 

fathers, because you know Him 

who has been from the beginning. 

I have written to you, young 

men, because you are strong, 

and the word of God abides in 

you, and you have overcome the 

evil one.” 1 John 2:12-14 

For years I struggled in my Christian 

walk to arrive at a place 

where I could live my life according 

to biblical principles. Most 

people I have ministered to over 

the years share this same desire: 

to become all that God has created 

them to be. As I observed 

fellow believers, I would sometimes 

envy those who seemed 

to have it “all together,” who 

seemed to live a life of “perfect” 

biblical balance. 

Yet, what I have found, through 

years of counseling experience, 

is that despite outward appearances, 

most believers struggle 

with deep inner issues -- issues 

such as sin and lack of self-discipline. 

As a Western Christian, I have 

tried hard to do things “right.” I 

have punched all the right tickets 

on this train of life -- having completed 

a university education, 

obtained a modicum of success 

in my professional career, and 

have been faithful to the local 

church. 

Despite these “right” steps, in 

many ways, I (seemingly) went 

in the wrong direction. In truth, I 

probably gave more emphasis to 

psychology than to Bible training 

and ministry. For many years, I 

thought I had made a mistake in 

the direction that I selected; yet, 

today I am convinced the Lord’s 

hand was in it all. 

Through my selection of psychology 

as a profession, God 

has allowed me to study human 

behavior, marriage and family 

counseling, as well as to prepare 

more fully for the ministry. You 

see, the Lord knew the overall 

plan and purpose for my life -- 

He knew the beginning, and He 

knows the end. 

The same is true for your life! 

God knows where you are now, 

and no matter how fragmented 

the parts of your life might seem 

at the moment, He knows where 

you are going -- and your life 

has a purpose! One thing is for 

certain…his plan for us is to be 

whole; complete; mature, which 

begins when we are born again, 

and continues throughout our 

life in Christ. 

Parallels 

In this first letter by John to the 

church, he writes of his purpose…which 

is to see everyone 

come into their maturity. If you 

will, he presents three stages 

of our growth in God (not our 

worth, for we are fully in Christ 

when we are born again), Children, 

Young men and Fathers. 

With each stage, there are goals 

to be accomplished, issues to 

be dealt with, and virtues to be 

developed. Each are briefly discussed 

below, while using some 

illustrations for natural human 

development. 

Intimacy 

I remember so well when my first 

daughter was born. What beauty, 

what potential…how frightening! 

This new life was our primary 

responsibility, as she was completely 

dependent on our ability 

to care for her. In similar ways, 

new converts are very much like 

children. Children have basic 

needs, both naturally and spiritually. 

In the natural, children need 

love, to be fed and trained, with a 

goal of preparing them for eventual 

independent living. This all 

starts with healthy bonding…intimacy, 

between child and parent. 

From a spiritual viewpoint, new 

converts need to know that they 

are truly forgiven of their sin 

because of the name of Jesus 

(Jesus’ reputation requires he 

forgive when we seek him), and 

that we know who our “daddy” is. 

That is, we are not the child of 

the world, the devil, religion, or 

any competing philosophy, but 

we are the children of God. This 

knowledge provides the child of 

God acceptance and security, 

the foundation for future growth. 

Our responsibility in the natural 

and spiritual is to provide an 

atmosphere of trust and love, 

and provide necessary information 

for success in life (basic 

teaching, etc.). 

Healing Community: Overcoming 

Iniquity 

In time, all children are to grow 

in responsibility, characterized 

by John as young men. From 

a natural view, children must go 

to school, learn to get along with 

others, follow rules, etc. in Luke 

2:52, the word says that Jesus 

grew in wisdom and knowledge

and in favor with God and man. 

If Jesus had to grow, how much 

more do we? 

In the Christian life, young men 

and women must be overcomers 

(meaning they will face battles, 

mainly within the self) by having 

the Word of God abiding (intimate 

understanding of Christ and 

the Word) in them. Thus, when 

temptations and trials come, as 

they naturally will, they can overcome 

as Christ did through the 

Word of God. Temptations of life 

come to all of us, rooted in the 

twisted character passed down 

to us by our generations, which 

the bible calls iniquity. Though 

iniquity and all sin is forgiven, 

the seed sown still must be dealt 

with in our individual lives. Rather 

than become as the disobedient 

children of Israel, wandering in 

the wilderness and never entering 

the full promises of God, we 

enter the land of promise, for 

we are already more than conquerors 

in Christ, but must possess 

our possessions (Ob 17) by 

grace in faith. How to overcome 

is more process than event, and 

is discussed in detail in many 

excellent books. 1 

The Compassionate Life: 

Integrity 

Our goal is maturity, described by 

John as fathers. The best word 

to describe maturity in scripture 

is telios, often interpreted 

as perfect. In reality, flawless 

perfection is neither expected 

by God nor achievable by man. 

However, maturity (being all God 

intended) is expected and readily 

achievable, described best by 

the action of Christ himself, who 

came to reveal the Father…full 

of grace, truth and compassions. 

There comes a time in every 

young man and woman’s life 

that they take responsibility for 

themselves and others. This is 

maturity. Fathers (and mothers; 

inheritors) in the faith have a 

unique relationship with Christ. 

They know him, not as children 

do, by identification, but by experience. 

As Paul stated, 

“That I may know him, in the 

power of his resurrection, and 

in the fellowship of his suffering, 

being conformed unto his death 

(Philippians 3:10).” 

Fathers know God’s works, but 

also his ways. They are not perfect, 

but sufficiently mature to 

help others on their journey in 

Christ. This is the goal for our 

lives…again, not perfection, but 

having the maturity to take full 

responsibility for one’s own life, 

while helping others to achieve 

their God given purpose. 

My underlying assumption is that 

the key to complete wholeness 

in Christ is the application of 

clearly appropriated biblical principles 

which when consistently 

applied to our lives will lead to 

a change in lifestyle (what we 

call “true repentance”). We are 

all in process, somewhere along 

the line of growth as presented 

by John. Wherever you are is 

where you are…growth is in the 

hands of the Holy Spirit and us… 

may the Lord, by his grace, help 

you in achieving his purpose. 

For more on the topic of growth 

and change, see Journey to 

Wholeness: Principles of Change 

and “I Want To Be Like You, Dad: 

Overcoming in Life, both by Dr. 

Stan DeKoven through Vision 

Publishing, www.booksbyvision. 

com or www.drstandekoven.com

Tough Times Don’t Last, 

But Tough People Do! 

Order at: 

http://www.createspace.com 

http://www.amazon.com 

Barnes & Noble, Border Books and other distributors 

Come, be refreshed and encouraged 

through these inspirational readings 

for the heart, mind, and soul! 

Life doesn’t guarantee that you’ll 

never face hardships or difficulties. 

Travel with Vernita as she shares 

with you how she went from a single 

parent on welfare trusting God no 

matter what, to becoming an aspiring 

author. 

Her transition brought her through 

being a substitute teacher, minister, 

freelance writer, more than two years 

unemployed and no income coming in 

for over a year. She would encourage 

you to hold on during the darkest and 

toughest times of your life. She will 

prove that the Lord will never leave 

you nor forsake you. Only God can 

restore what was broken, renew 

what was lost and heal that you may 

move forward into a Progressive life 

of Wholeness and Victory. He did it 

for her and He most definitely can 

and will do it for you. 

God Loves You With An Everlasting 

Love! 

Contact Vernita for Book Signings and other Services: 

http://vsworshiper7.wix.com/godwordsmyvoice87 

Godwords35@yahoo.com

Looking for Love 

In All But One P 

By Julie

Merin 

lace 

Eight pounds, 5 ounces. Little fingers. 

Little toes. Little lungs let 

loose with a lusty cry. Newborn 

baby expressing to the world 

his deepest needs. He is hungry. He 

is cold. He is wet. He feels alone. He 

needs someone to take care of him. To 

provide for him. To love him. A woman’s 

soft voice speaks gentle words that he 

cannot yet understand, yet they bring 

comfort. Warm arms pick him up and 

hold him close. The woman feeds him. 

Her reassuring sounds quiet his frantic 

cries. A man’s face looks over her shoulder. 

A strong but gentle hand strokes 

the little one’s soft hair. The infant’s 

most basic needs for nourishment and 

shelter are met. In the tender embrace 

of his parents, the infant’s need for love 

and belonging are also met. 

The tiny girl who cries in the bassinet 

next to his is not so fortunate. Her 

mother was not sure of the identity of 

the father of her child. The mother herself 

did not see how she could possibly 

take care of a baby. Overwhelmed 

and in desperation, the young mother 

left her infant in a cardboard box on the 

steps of a hospital. An orderly had heard 

her cries and brought her inside. There 

in the hospital, nurses take care of her. 

They feed her. They change her diaper. 

They make sure she is warm enough. 

The nurses are busy, though. There 

are many other patients who need their 

attention. There is little time for anyone 

to sit and hold her close. There is no 

one to sing soft lullabyes in her ear. No 

one to whom she belongs. Her basic 

physical needs are met. Yet in her tiny 

heart and soul, there is a hunger, an 

aching void that longs to be filled. 

A young woman dresses up to go to 

a party. Maybe tonight, she will meet 

someone special. Someone who will 

love her for who she is. Someone 

who wants her. Someone who will be 

there for her through good and bad 

times. She has long cherished this 

hope. There have been many parties. 

Many men have promised to be all 

she hoped they would be. Each and 

every one of them had let her down. 

What masquerades as love can never 

fill the deep longing, her insatiable 

hunger for genuine love that refuses 

to die. Still, the longing simply won’t 

fade away, and so she holds on to 

a fragile hope that maybe this time, 

things will be different. 

The clean-shaven face in the mirror, 

to all appearances, belongs to a man 

who has life all together. He brushes 

his teeth and combs his hair. He puts 

on a red tie and slips his arms into 

an expensive, black suit coat. Satisfied 

that he looks the part of a successful 

businessman, he picks up his 

black leather briefcase and strides 

down the stairs. After pouring a cup of 

coffee, he slips out the front door and 

drives away in his late model BMW to 

go to his office. He is powerful. He is 

wealthy. He is admired for his business 

savvy. This should be enough, 

he thinks. But somehow, it isn’t. No 

matter how much money he earns, 

no matter how often his accomplishments 

are lauded, he is aware of a 

hunger, an emptiness deep inside 

him. An emptiness that seems to grow 

bigger with each so-called success. 

As the emptiness consumes him, he 

tries to fill it from a glass in a bar…and 

the little white pills that promise relief, 

at least for a little while. When the 

effect of the pills and the drinks wear 

off, the emptiness is still there, even 

bigger than before. A deep, dark pit of 

emptiness that nothing is able to fill. 

A middle-aged wife and mother of 

three closes the front door of her home 

and leans against it. She and her husband 

have just returned from dropping 

their youngest child off at college. 

She wishes her husband had stayed 

home to be with her in this moment, 

but he had gone to the office to catch

up on some work that needed 

attention. There was always 

something at the office that 

urgently needed his attention. 

She has long found her identity 

and worth in being a mother, in 

being needed by them. Now, for 

the first time in twenty-five years, 

she has no child living at home 

needing her care. No child at 

home to love and to love her in 

return. Suddenly, she becomes 

aware of a longing, a hunger for 

a kind of love she never received 

from her children or from her 

husband. What could possibly 

fill it this deep, cavernous void? 

The Great Hunger 

People hunger for many things. 

Health. Wealth. Fame. Power. 

Position. Possessions. Yet one 

longing – one hunger – is more 

basic and insatiable than all of 

these. The hunger for love is at 

the heart of all other hungers. 

In fact, as we franticly try to satisfy 

all these other hungers, it is 

merely a misplaced attempt to 

meet our basic need for love. 

It never works out. One can be 

healthy, yet hopeless. Famous 

and wealthy, yet alone. In a powerful 

position, yet powerless to 

fill the void that his possessions 

can never fill. 

In the Song of Songs 8:7b, we 

read, “If one were to give all the 

wealth of one’s house for love, it 

would be utterly scorned.” Basically, 

you can’t buy love. Why 

is this? Why do human beings 

have such a hunger? More 

importantly, where do we go to 

fill it. 

Created By Love 

We are told in 1 John 14:6, “… 

we know and rely on the love 

God has for us. God is love. 

Whoever lives in love lives in 

God, and God in them.” One of 

the most basic reasons we have 

such a deep hunger for love is 

that we were created by Love. 

“God is love.” This is one of the 

most basic truths that little children 

are taught if they are raised 

in a Bible-teaching church. The 

One Who made us for Himself 

is love. We rely on the love God 

has for us to meet our needs. 

Even those who do not acknowledge 

the existence of God rely 

on Good’s love, whether they 

realize it or not. How much fuller 

and greater that love is realized 

by those who do have a relationship 

with the God Who is, in His 

very nature, Love. 

Created to Love 

When Jesus was asked what 

was the greatest commandment, 

he replied, “‘Love the Lord 

your God with all your heart and 

with all your soul and with all 

your mind.’ This is the first and 

greatest commandment. And 

the second is like it: ‘Love your 

neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 

22:37-38 

In love, and out of His very 

nature, God created us. He created 

us to live always knowing 

His limitless love pouring out into 

our lives. Not only that, He created 

us to love Him in return and 

to share the love He pours out 

on us with others. 

Created for Love 

This longing for love was built 

into the human race from the 

very beginning. When God said 

in Genesis 1:26, “Let us make 

mankind in our image”, He was 

doing far more than just creating 

a workforce to take care of 

the rest of His creation. The very 

words “Let us” point to the relationship 

that existed between 

the Father, the Son and the Holy 

Spirit. 

When God made mankind in 

His image, he made us with 

that capacity for relationship, 

the capacity for love, that exists 

within the Trinity. What is more, 

He didn’t just plant the longing 

for love in the human heart. He 

also planned to fill that longing in 

relationship with Himself. 

The Broken Link 

When the first man and woman 

fell into sin that relationship was 

broken. 

Then the man and his wife heard 

the sound of the LORD God as 

he was walking in the garden in 

the cool of the day, and they hid 

from the LORD God among the 

trees of the garden. 9 But the 

LORD God called to the man, 

“Where are you? Genesis 3:8-9 

Where are you? We are not told 

much about how Adam and Eve 

spent their time in the Garden 

of Eden, but we can infer from 

these verses that they spent 

time with the Lord God in the 

cool of the evening. There was 

relationship there. Closeness. 

Love. Sin changed all that. Relationship 

was broken. People 

started to hide from the only One 

Who can fill the heart-hunger for 

love. The hunger was still there, 

but shame blocked the way back 

to the Source. Why the great 

hunger? We hunger because we 

were created for love. 

When sin marred the perfect 

closeness God intended to exist, 

mankind was left with a gnawing 

hunger for the lost relationship

that could be filled by nothing 

else. Some try to fill it with 

wealth, but wealth isn’t enough. 

Some try to fill it with power, but 

power leaves nothing but emptiness. 

Some try to satisfy the 

hunger with sex, yet the hunger 

only grows. Some strive for 

fame, position, or recognition, 

hoping the praise of others will fill 

the void. For a time, these futile 

attempts may seem to work. 

Even as a candy bar may provide 

a sugar high, only to lead 

to an inevitable crash, these 

attempts to assuage the lovehunger 

only provide temporary 

satisfaction. A candy bar doesn’t 

satisfy physical hunger the way a 

steak dinner does. All these love 

counterfeits can never satisfy 

the hunger in our souls ¬¬¬the 

way God’s love can. 

The Misplaced Longing 

How do we know when we have 

misplaced our genuine, Godgiven 

hunger for love? What are 

the signs? What are the symptoms? 

Misplaced Treasure 

“For where your treasure is, 

there your heart will be also.” 

We read this in Matthew 6:21. 

We know we have misplaced our 

desire for love when our treasure 

is anywhere other than the one 

true Source of love. When other 

things become more important 

to us than our relationship with 

God, we can be certain that we 

are trying to satisfy our hunger in 

the wrong place. 

Presence of Conflict 

In James 4:2 we read, “You 

desire but do not have, so you 

kill. You covet but you cannot 

get what you want, so you quarrel 

and fight. You do not have 

because you do not ask God.” 

Even though most people do not 

literally kill another person to get 

what they desire, harmful words 

and actions bring their own kind 

of death. When we quarrel and 

fight, when we are irritable and 

sharp-tongued, that is a sure 

sign that we are being unsuccessful 

at filling our misplaced 

hunger for God’s love. 

Unfruitful Lives 

The God of love sends His Holy 

Spirit to grow fruit in those who 

are in relationship with him. In 

Galatians 5:22-23, we read, “But 

the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, 

peace, forbearance (patience), 

kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness and self-control. 

Against such things there is 

no law.” When our lives are characterized 

by the fruit of the Spirit, 

we can be sure we are living in 

connection with the God of love. 

Conversely, when this fruit is 

lacking, we can be assured that 

we are seeking to fill our lovehunger 

from other sources that 

will never satisfy. 

Whether a person has trusted 

Jesus as Savior or not, it is still 

possible to misplace the longing 

for love. That lack will inevitably 

show up. Galatians 5:19-21 says, 

“The acts of the flesh are obvious: 

sexual immorality, impurity 

and debauchery; idolatry and 

witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, 

fits of rage, selfish ambition, 

dissensions, factions and 

envy; drunkenness, orgies, and 

the like.” 

Let’s not be too quick to dismiss 

this verse as irrelevant because 

witchcraft is not a part of our 

lives. Are we filling our minds 

with impure thoughts through 

the things we watch, read, or 

listen to? Do we harbor envy 

in our hearts. Do we find ourselves 

quarreling, or becoming 

easily angered? Do we find ourselves 

trying to climb to the top, 

no matter who we step on? Are 

we attempting to fill the void with 

alcohol, drugs, or even food? 

The list could go on. When we 

are trying to assuage our hunger 

for love with anything other than 

God, the Source of love, we will 

inevitably find fruit other than the 

fruit of the Spirit growing in our 

lives. 

Back to the Source 

Let’s stop seeking to fulfill our 

God-given need for love from 

sources other than Him. Nothing 

else and no one else will satisfy. 

We have an invitation from our 

Heavenly Father to come to Him 

to have all our needs supplied. 

Matthew 1:28 says, “Come to 

me, all you who are weary and 

burdened, and I will give you 

rest.” He will gives us rest from 

the longing, the hunger, the 

relentless striving to meet our 

deepest need for love that can 

only be met in him. The Apostle 

Paul wrote a great promise in 

Philippians 4:19. We can hold 

onto this promise. We can be 

assured that this promise will not 

fail because it comes from the 

only One Who never fails. 

Here is the promise. “And my 

God will meet all your needs 

according to the riches of his 

glory in Christ Jesus.” Go to the 

One Who can satisfy. Like a child 

in the arms of loving parents, 

we will find that in God’s loving 

embrace, all our deepest needs 

for love are met…and we will be 

satisfied.

Ashley Bretcher Inspires Audiences in 

“Princess Cut” 

By Lisa Stillwell 

For those of you who are looking 

for a romantic movie with a pure 

message, look no further than 

“Princess Cut”. 

Ashley is described as a “charismatic 

Carolina girl”. She was 

born and raised in a small southern 

town. Ashley graduated with 

honors from Campbell University 

and holds a bachelor of arts 

degree in Graphic Design. 

Ashley began acting when she 

received the role of Olivia in the 

comedy, 50 Shades of Olivia, 

and was nominated for Best 

Regional Short in the 2013 Cape 

Fear Independent Film Festival. 

After that, she received roles in 

Sothern Comfort, The Perfect 

Summer, The Dempsey Sisters, 

and finally “Grace” In Princess 

Cut. 

Ashley Bratcher spends her time 

these days acting in movies to 

give others hope. Ashley’s willing 

heart also inspires the lives 

of so many people on a “day 

to day” basis. During a recent 

screening of Princess Cut I was 

able to meet her in person. She 

has a sweet attitude and you can 

sense the love of God all around 

her. Ashley’s responses below 

are more than just words but 

they are wisdom that we can all 

learn from. 

Without spoiling the movie... 

What is Princess Cut about? 

Princess Cut is the story of a 

rural Carolina girl in search of 

love. The only problem is... she 

hasn’t quite figured out what true 

love looks like. After a series of 

bad dates and heartbreak she 

steps back and begins to allow 

God to work in her life. There 

are still a few hiccups along the 

way but throughout her journey 

she comes to understand what 

it means to truly love another 

person. 

Who is the director? 

Paul Munger is the director and 

this is actually his directorial 

debut. Paul is a powerhouse. 

Not only did he direct, but he 

also produced and co-wrote the 

film with his wife, Sheilah. 

How long did it take to make 

the movie? 

About 20 very long days. 

Do you personally know any 

of the people in Princess Cut 

that you acted with? 

Going into the project I didn’t 

know a soul, but now I feel like 

everyone is part of my family! 

You spend so much time with 

these people over the course 

of a few weeks that you really 

grow close to one another. 

How did you feel as you

played the part of Grace? 

Could you relate to her in real 

life? 

The role of Grace came to me at 

a time that I could really identify 

with her struggles. Not necessarily 

in terms of romance, rather 

how difficult and scary it can be 

to fully seek and submit to the 

will of God in your life. I was at 

a point in my life where I really 

just threw my hands up and 

said, “Okay God, if this is where 

you want me then please make 

it happen.” We don’t always get 

the answers we want when we 

pray but we can rest confident 

knowing that God’s plan is ultimately 

what is best for us. Much 

like Grace, I was learning that 

lesson myself. 

What made you decide that 

you wanted to be in this 

movie? 

I felt strongly about the message 

and wanted to have a positive 

impact on young girls. It was a 

breath of fresh air to see a film 

promoting wholesome courtship. 

How did you hear about auditioning 

for a part? 

It was actually pretty random. 

One day on facebook, I noticed 

that a friend of mine had liked this 

casting director’s page 

(Katrina Cook) and so 

I decided to check out 

the page. That’s when 

I noticed the casting 

call for Princess Cut. 

I actually did NOT 

match the breakdown 

for the lead character, 

Grace, but I did submit 

for the best friend role 

of Tessa. After I auditioned 

for that role, 

Katrina emailed me 

back and asked me to 

read for the lead. Within a few 

days I had the offer and was 

ecstatic. 

What town was the movie produced 

in? 

We shot in several areas around 

Winston Salem and actually shot 

in the town East Bend featured 

in the movie. 

How long have you been 

acting and what is your first 

memory of acting? 

Professionally since 2012, overall 

a little longer. I didn’t really 

pursue acting until after college 

but in high school I dabbled a 

little in theater. My first big role 

was playing Snow White in our 

High School production. 

What movies other than Princess 

Cut have you acted in? 

This year has been a really good 

one for me. You can catch me 

opposite Kate Bosworth in 90 

Minutes in Heaven in theaters 

now. I also have a film out called 

Badge of Faith which is based 

on the real life story of a Roanoke 

officer named Bryan Lawrence 

who was critically injured 

on duty. I also had a role in the 

Kendrick Brothers’ War Room, 

and I just wrapped on two different 

TV shows this month. 

Where can people go to buy 

some of these movies? 

It is my understanding that some 

of them will be available on 

ChristianCinema.com beginning 

in November. 

What is the most rewarding 

part of acting? 

Being able to have a positive 

impact on people’s lives. 

What are your future goals? 

I just hope that I can continue on 

this path and ultimately go where 

God guides me. 

Do you have a lot of family 

and friends supporting your 

endeavors? 

Absolutely! There is no way I 

would be where I am today without 

their support. Especially my 

husband who has watched my 

career blossom over the course 

of several years. It’s not an easy 

industry, faith and family is what 

keeps me grounded. 

Do you have a website where 

others can stay up to date with 

all that you are doing? 

My official site is www.Ashley- 

Bratcher.com and there are 

links to all of my social media 

accounts on that site. 

What is your favorite Bible 

verse? 

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord 

with all your heart, and do not 

lean on your own understanding. 

In all your ways acknowledge 

him, and he will make straight 

your paths. 

Is there a word of wisdom that 

you would like to leave our 

readers with? 

Every day you have an opportunity 

to give people hope. You 

can be darkness or you can be 

light, the choice is yours. 

Thank you for being willing to let 

Faith Filled Family interview you! 

We wish you much success with 

everything that you set out to do. 

For further information, theater 

information, and to purchase 

tickets, please visit: 

www.princesscutmovie.com

Absent 

Parents 

Filling the 

Void 

By Don Ford 

At age 15, I suddenly ound 

myself without a mother or a 

father. After seven children and 

19 years of marriage, my Dad 

decided to call it quits with my 

Mom. 

Dad decided to bring his younger 

girlfriend home to meet Mom. 

Mom, of course, had a nervous 

breakdown - what was he 

thinking? She collapsed on the 

kitchen floor as this new woman 

arrived at our home. 

The three oldest, myself 

included, were ‘farmed’ out to 

other peoples’ homes. Did it 

matter who it was that kept us? 

Apparently not; since Dad was 

in love again, and Mom drank 

herself into a stupor each night, 

having lost her children to this 

other woman. 

So, I was out in the cold without 

a Mom or Dad. In my case, God 

had his hand on my life, and 

I ended up being placed in a 

Christian family’s home. Three 

times a week we attended some 

sort of church event and I just 

went along, since I didn’t want to 

be left back at their place alone. 

What I was hearing in church 

services began to ring true in 

my own heart. When I finally 

went forward to receive Christ 

in my heart, it was so real, and 

I actually felt his presence move 

right into my life!

Now I was this NEW CREATION 

that others spoke about. I 

wanted to please God in all I did. 

Yes, I praise God to this very 

day that he rescued me from 

homelessness. God became 

my Father and my Mother. 

“Can they in turn become good 

parents?” We have two children, 

and I’ve been married to this 

same gal for 45 years from 

September 12, 1970. So, I have 

let you all into a large corner of 

my life and heart, now won’t you 

let Jesus Christ into your heart 

also? 

First, a person needs to believe 

Jesus Christ is real. He has 

been my personal savior from 

age 15; I could never deny him. 

Once you get to know who Christ 

is you, won’t let go of Him either. 

Getting to know Jesus is the key 

to all of life, following him is an 

even greater thrill. However, we 

get to know Him over time, not 

over night. 

I was probably an unlikely 

candidate to ever meet God, 

except I was looking for 

something to fill that void in my 

heart, when I realized I had no 

mom or dad, so God became 

both for me. 

God filled the void that was left by 

parents who were unable to be 

there for one reason or another, 

and He made me whole. 

“It is the Lord who goes before 

you. He will be with you; he will 

not leave you or forsake you. 

Do not fear or be dismayed.” 

Deuteronomy 31:8 

“Fear not, for I am with you; be 

not dismayed, for I am your God; 

I will strengthen you, I will help 

you, I will uphold you with my 

righteous right hand. Behold, 

all who are incensed against 

you shall be put to shame and 

confounded; those who strive 

against you shall be as nothing 

and shall perish. You shall seek 

those who contend with you, but 

you shall not find them; those 

who war against you shall be as 

nothing at all. For I, the Lord your 

God, hold your right hand; it is I 

who say to you, “Fear not, I am 

the one who helps you.” Isaiah 

41:10-13 

God will always be there. 

Scripture says that He will never 

leave, nor forsake you. It also 

says that He will be there when 

you need HIm. 

There are those of us whose 

parent(s) have left them, and 

we have wondered why. When 

we become, or contemplate, 

parenthood ourselves, our past 

can weigh heavily on our minds. 

Some wonder, “Will I be just like 

them? Will I be able to give this 

child everything he/she needs 

when my parents didn’t provide 

the best example for me?” 

The answer is yes, you can 

be a wonderful parent! God is 

your father, and can teach you 

through a relationship with Him 

how to be a good parent for your 

child. He can take brokenness 

and make you whole again. He is 

the perfect father, and therefore 

the perfect example. 

Best of all, God loves you 

unconditioanlly. He will fill a 

void, if one exists, of love. Even 

though God is an intangible, His 

presence can always be felt. It 

permeates a room, and you feel 

it deep within your soul. 

There is no love like God’s love. 

I could share story after story 

of a God who was always there 

when we prayed. The rest of my 

answers to prayer stories are 

found here in a book I wrote, so 

I would never forget all of His 

benefits to us. See Raising Hope 

here! https://www.createspace. 

com/4351286

Five Promises 

That Will never 

be Broken 

By Kerry Nenn

“I pinky swear.” I do solemnly 

swear...” “I vow to…” “I guarantee…” 

Oaths. Assurances. 

Pledges. We make them all the 

time. Do we keep them? In our 

broken sinful state, probably not 

every time. It’s likely we have 

broken a promise or two. It’s also 

likely others have broken promises 

made to us. 

This may make it hard to put any 

weight into promises. Are they 

merely words with no special 

meaning? Coming from humans, 

it’s possible this is all they are. 

Coming from God, promises 

have unparalleled power. His 

promises should make us stand 

up and take notice. His promises 

are rock-solid foundations on 

which we can build. God’s promises 

are never changed, never 

retracted, and never broken. We 

can trust Him to deliver on every 

single promise he has made to 

us. 

What are these promises? God’s 

Word is filled with them. Let’s 

take a look at five which, combined, 

touch on every facet of 

our lives. God tells us: 

Promise #1: “I love you no 

matter what.” 

“But God shows his love for us in 

that while we were still sinners, 

Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation 

for those who are in 

Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1 

“Neither death nor life, neither 

angels nor demons, neither the 

present nor the future, nor any 

powers, neither height nor depth, 

nor anything else in all creation, 

will be able to separate us from 

the love of God that is in Christ 

Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38- 

39 

If this doesn’t get our fire going, 

our wood must be wet. Nothing 

we can do can separate us 

from God’s love. Nothing? Yes, 

nothing. The worst sin we can 

imagine holds miniscule weight 

compared to the mighty power 

of God’s love. We can run away 

all we want, fight his calling all 

we want, commit all the atrocious 

acts we want, and God’s 

love is never swayed. We can 

fail in every category we set up 

for ourselves, but we can never 

make God fail. His love remains 

steady through it all. 

We can refuse to accept God’s 

love. We can try to hide, turn 

away, or turn it down. This does 

not diminish God’s love in any 

way. He does not change. We 

do. Just because we refuse to 

accept it, doesn’t mean it’s not 

there. Jesus still stands at the 

door knocking, just waiting for us 

to let him in. He wants to forgive 

us and have a relationship with 

us. But, he already loves us from 

the other side of the door, even if 

we never let Him in. Nothing can 

separate us from His love. Nothing. 

If only we could truly grasp the 

depths of this amazing love. It 

can transform our lives. This is 

why Paul prayed for the Ephesians: 

“And I pray that you, 

being rooted and established in 

love, may have power, together 

with all the Lord’s holy people, 

to grasp how wide and long 

and high and deep is the love 

of Christ, and to know this love 

that surpasses knowledge—that 

you may be filled to the measure 

of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 

3:17-19 

To be filled with God’s love is His 

promise to us. Though deserving 

of nothing but judgment, we 

can bask in God’s love each and 

every moment of each and every 

day He gives us. 

He promises His love. 

Promise #2: “I am working for 

your good.” 

“And we know that in all things 

God works for the good of those 

who love him, who have been 

called according to his purpose.” 

Romans 8:28 

Do we believe this? Too often, 

we don’t. We can’t understand 

how God is using something in 

our lives, so we start running 

in circles with our hands in the 

air, bemoaning our situation, all 

Godly perspective lost. It’s easy 

to get to this place of panic. How 

could God possibly be using 

this illness, this death, this job 

loss, this irritating co-worker, this 

bonus check, this sunny day, this 

sale on potatoes, to work for my 

good? That’s not always for us to 

know. What we can know is that 

in all of these things, God works 

for our good. 

There is one caveat. Notice we 

are told this is a promise for 

those who love him, who have 

been called according to his 

purpose. This promise is not for 

everyone. It is for believers. For 

those following Christ, God is 

working all things for our good. 

He is orchestrating His plan for 

His redeemed, and every note is 

played for their benefit.

Even when it is impossible for us 

to see His work, we can rest in 

the knowledge of this promise. 

We know He is working. It may 

be hard to comprehend, but 

we also know that He can do 

immeasurably more than all 

we ask or imagine. (Ephesians 

3:20) If His work is beyond our 

imagination, we cannot expect 

to always see His plan clearly. 

What we can expect is that 

everything He is doing is working 

for his purposes and our good. 

He promises His care. 

Promise #3: “You don’t have 

to worry.” 

“Therefore I tell you, do not 

worry about your life, what you 

will eat or drink; or about your 

body, what you will wear. Is not 

life more than food, and the body 

more than clothes? Look at the 

birds of the air; they do not sow 

or reap or store away in barns, 

and yet your heavenly Father 

feeds them. Are you not much 

more valuable than they? Can 

any one of you by worrying add a 

single hour to your life? And why 

do you worry about clothes? See 

how the flowers of the field grow. 

They do not labor or spin. Yet I 

tell you that not even Solomon in 

all his splendor was dressed like 

one of these. If that is how God 

clothes the grass of the field, 

which is here today and tomorrow 

is thrown into the fire, will he not 

much more clothe you—you 

of little faith? So do not worry, 

saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or 

‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What 

shall we wear?’ For the pagans 

run after all these things, and 

your heavenly Father knows that 

you need them. But seek first his 

kingdom and his righteousness, 

and all these things will be given 

to you as well. Therefore do 

not worry about tomorrow, for 

tomorrow will worry about itself. 

Each day has enough trouble of 

its own.” Matthew 6:25-34 

“Do not be anxious about 

anything, but in every situation, 

by prayer and petition, with 

thanksgiving, present your 

requests to God. And the peace 

of God, which transcends all 

understanding, will guard your 

hearts and your minds in Christ 

Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 

God essentially tells us “I’ve 

got this.” We can worry and fret 

all we want, but it doesn’t get 

us anywhere good or gain us 

anything useful. Instead, we can 

take all our concerns to God, for 

He cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7) 

We can know His arm is long 

enough to reach any need. We 

can pray about every concern 

and experience His peace. He 

is a good Father who will always 

provide for His children. As we 

seek Him, He meets all our 

needs. 

The secret is, we must seek 

Him. (Matthew 6:33) If we put 

His kingdom first, he promises 

to meet all these other basic 

concerns. We have no need 

to worry. When God is our first 

priority, everything else falls into 

place. Martha ran about, worried 

about getting everything done, 

but Mary simply sat at Jesus’ 

feet, which we are told was the 

better choice. (Luke 10:41-42) 

Do we simply sit in God’s 

presence, trusting Him to meet 

our needs? Leaning into this 

promise, we can. Christians can 

be ulcer free, anxiety free, worry 

free. We can relax. Be still. We 

can cast our worries aside, rest 

assured we serve a God who 

has everything under control. Go 

to Him. “He’s got this.” 

He promises His provision. He 

promises His peace. 

Promise #4: “You can do this.” 

“I can do all things through 

Christ who strengthens me.” 

Philippians 4:8 

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is 

sufficient for you, for my power 

is made perfect in weakness.’ 

Therefore I will boast all the more 

gladly about my weaknesses, 

so that Christ’s power may rest 

on me. That is why, for Christ’s 

sake, I delight in weaknesses, 

in insults, in hardships, in 

persecutions, in difficulties. For 

when I am weak, then I am 

strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 

Christians often say “God won’t 

give us more than we can 

handle.” This is simply not true. 

What the Bible tells us is that God 

will not let us be tempted beyond 

what we can bear, but, when 

we are tempted, will provide a 

way out so that we can endure 

it. (1 Corinthians 10:13) This is 

not the same claim. The first 

implies we are doing things on 

our own, God knows how much 

we can do, and he will keep us 

from becoming overwhelmed. 

The second assures us we will 

be tempted, but reminds us God 

will help us resist the temptation, 

always providing a way out. 

What is God’s promise, then? 

Will He give us more than we 

can handle? Most definitely. We 

can’t handle our sin. We can’t 

obtain our own forgiveness. We

frequently do that which we don’t 

want to do. (Romans 7:19) We 

are weak – on our own. 

God’s miraculous promise is 

not that He won’t give us more 

than we can handle. His promise 

is: “You can do this – with me.” 

Philippians 4:8 does not claim 

“I can do all things.” The crucial 

part of the verse is the end – 

“through Christ who strengthens 

me.” Paul is speaking here about 

being content in all situations. 

Whether we have little or have 

a lot, whether things are going 

great or down the gutter, we 

can be content in Christ, doing 

it through His strength, not our 

own. 

In 2 Corinthians, Paul talks 

about the thorn in his flesh that 

was not removed from his life. 

Instead, God’s grace was to be 

sufficient for him, and for us. We 

will experience times when we 

are weak, insulted, persecuted, 

or simply face hard situations. 

This is not only ok, it’s something 

we can delight in. It is during 

these times that Christ makes us 

strong in our weakness, through 

His power. He is the strength that 

gets us through. Yes, we can 

do it, but it is His provision, His 

grace, that makes it possible. 

He promises His strength. 

Promise #5: “You are my 

child.” 

Father. Sister. Worker. Friend. 

Baseball fan. Volunteer. Crafter. 

Coach. Who were you today? 

Far too often, our identity is 

spread too thin. Trying to live up 

to the expectations in each of 

these roles leaves us weary and 

unsatisfied. Why? They aren’t 

our true identity. They may be 

important parts of our lives. They 

can be used for God’s glory. 

Ultimately, though, they are far 

secondary to our first and real 

identity in Christ. You are a child 

of God. 

“See what great love the 

Father has lavished on us, that 

we should be called children 

of God! And that is what we 

are!” 1 John 3:1 

No matter what happens. No 

matter who else we think we are. 

No matter who anyone else tells 

us we are. It all boils down to 

this. You are His child. You were 

bought with a price, and are now 

sealed in Him. (1 Corinthians 

6:20, Ephesians 1:13) You don’t 

have to wonder about who you 

are, your purpose, or where all 

this is going. Your anchor holding 

you steadfast and secure is 

Christ. (Hebrews 6:19) This is 

your identity. 

God has graciously given us this 

identity we could not create for 

ourselves. Jesus paid the price 

so we could be His children. Like 

the prodigal son, he welcomes 

us into His family with open 

arms. He clothes us in His robe 

of righteousness. He showers us 

with his love. He rejoices when 

we come home to Him. Let us 

fully embrace this identity as His 

child. May we put off all attempts 

to get our identity elsewhere. 

Christ is our hope. He is who we 

are. 

He is also our future. As God’s 

children, we have an eternal 

inheritance. Not only can we rest 

secure in Him while in this life, we 

can have an eternal perspective. 

We know what our future as 

God’s children holds in store for 

us. Heaven. His kingdom come. 

Eternal life. A place at His table. 

A home in His eternal city. Let 

us rejoice! God calls us His own 

and welcomes us into his family 

for eternity. 

He promises His inheritance. 

How can these promises be 

active in our lives? 

Faith. We must trust God to 

fulfill them. We must pray for this 

faith. When we doubt, we can 

pray as the father in Mark 9:24 

asked Jesus, “I believe; help my 

unbelief!” When we continue to 

pray and seek God, our faith 

grows as we encounter Him. Our 

prayers allow us to taste and see 

that the Lord is good. (Psalm 

34:8) As we draw near to God, 

He draws near to us. (James 

4:8) The faith He gives us allows 

us to trust in His promises and 

see their work in our lives. 

The Word. We must study, 

meditate on, memorize, and pray 

through the scriptures that tell us 

of these promises. Let them be 

written on our hearts and minds 

and guide our daily thoughts and 

actions. They will renew and 

transform us, for God’s word is 

living and active, and it will bring 

to life His promises in our lives.

“The Masked Saint” 

Unmasked 

Pro-Wrestler Turns... Pastor? 

By Kerry Nenn 

Convicting sermons often “pin us to the mat.” 

One pastor has taken this idea literally. 

While Jacob may have wrestled with God, 

Chris Whaley wrestled for God. This “Masked 

Saint” stood in the pulpit on Sunday mornings, and 

in the wrestling ring on Saturday night. In Pastor 

Whaley’s case, he did “wrestle against flesh and 

blood” – a lot of it. 

Brett Granstaff’s award-wining film, “The Masked 

Saint,” shares the remarkable story of this surprising 

man, both pastor and pro wrestler. 

In an interview with Faith Filled Family Magazine, 

Chris provided the ring-side scoop on his life story 

and the movie that tells it. Tag-teaming to give further 

insight into the movie is Brett Granstaff, writer 

of the film and star of “The Masked Saint.” 

Chris, how does a person transition from wrestler 

to pastor? 

It’s amazing. I was already in the ministry before I 

got into wrestling. I wrestled the entire time I was 

in seminary. Just before I started wrestling, I was 

really working out hard in the gym and was in 

great shape. I saw an ad in the paper wanting pro 

wrestlers. I had more time on my hands than I was 

used to having. I answered the ad. 

Chris, were you always into wrestling? 

When growing up, I was in and out of the hospital 

every year until junior high school. I had pneumonia 

almost every year. In fourth grade, I had polio. 

I was in the hospital for three moths. When in the 

hospital, I could not sleep because of fevers and 

other symptoms. When I was awake at night, I 

would turn the TV on, and that was when pro wrestling 

was on. I got hooked on it. My dad would

take me to wresting matches. I was a wrestling 

fanatic, so when I saw the ad, I said that’s for me. 

I got hooked the moment I walked in. 

Chris, in the movie, the Masked Saint becomes 

a bit of a masked vigilante. Did you really beat 

up street thugs? Ever body slam the church 

body? 

I didn’t put a mask on and go out at night but did 

have my share of physical encounters with people. 

A young lady came in one Sunday with sunglasses 

on. When she approached me after service, crying, 

I removed the sunglasses, and she had two black 

eyes. I told her I was going to visit her husband. 

She warned me not to. I went to their house. I 

didn’t hit him, but told him that I would come back 

and see how he did against someone who could 

hit back if I ever saw another mark on his wife. He 

never hit her again. That was how it got started. 

I had several events that took place while I was 

there that I didn’t handle the way a pastor would 

normally handle. The basketball court scene in the 

movie is based on similar events that occurred on 

the softball field in real life. 

Chris, what do you hope viewers take away 

from your story? 

I hope they take away that we serve an awesome 

God - the God of a second chance. I certainly had 

my share of second chances, and I’m so thankful 

for that. I have served three congregations who 

loved me warts and all, which is great because 

that’s how God loves us too. 

is redeemable no matter where they are. All the 

people in the film - they all have things going on in 

their lives, but by the end they are all redeemed. 

Everyone takes away something different from the 

film. There is a “don’t be a bully” aspect. We have 

strong women characters. Instead of hitting one 

central theme, we hit on a lot of areas. Depending 

on where you are in your life, you can take away 

something different. 

How did this story become a movie? 

Brett: When I first heard about this story, I was 

intrigued. He’s a pastor and a professional wrestler, 

and doesn’t always turn the other cheek. He 

would hold charity events that involved wrestling. 

He intervened in a couple robberies and saved a 

woman in a parking lot. God put him in the right 

place at the right time. It’s such a unique story, and 

I really wanted to tell it. 

Chris: When I wrote the book based on my life, I 

was just hoping that I might get someone to look 

at it for a possible TV series. Michael Landon 

inspired me. He was the only one who was putting 

anything moral and good on TV. No one else 

was doing that after he died. I was hoping to do a 

series. I couldn’t get any publishers to talk to me. I 

self published the book. The movie was a long pro- 

I also think the things I fought for were worth 

fighting for. My humanity entered into a couple of 

them, but Psalm 82:3 says to defend the weak and 

fatherless. I think there is such a thing as righteous 

indignation, to be angry about things that make 

God angry. Any time those who are not able to 

protect themselves, someone has to help protect 

them. Not always in the way I did it, but I wouldn’t 

change anything. I helped people, and that’s part 

of what I do as a pastor – to protect the people 

God has given me to care for. 

Brett, what do you view as the main message 

of the film? 

We hit on everything. Honor. Redemption. Pride 

is a slippery slope. The big one for me though 

is redemption, and how pretty much everyone

cess, so long that while the producer was considering 

it I had put it on the shelf and forgotten about 

it. Then he called me in February of 2013 and told 

me they were going to make it into a movie. This 

was amazing to me that they were going to make 

my book into a movie. I was thrilled to death. 

Brett, how has this movie impacted the spiritual 

lives of those involved in its making? 

This character is always in the right place at the 

right time (or wrong, depending on how you see it.) 

For me personally, it has made me more aware of 

my surroundings, less shy, and less prone to keep 

my head down and do my own thing. I now always 

look twice around me, to see if there is anything 

going on. Maybe God has put me in that particular 

place at that time to act. 

Brett, what was the biggest challenge of playing 

The Masked Saint? 

I did all my own stunts. I was trained by the man 

who plays the Reaper in the film. Everyone says 

wrestling is fake, but there is nothing fake about 

wresting. You still hit the mat and ropes and get 

slammed. What you have to put your body through 

is tough. We filmed five matches over three days. 

One match we filmed 14 times for different scenes 

and angles. I’ve never done that much stunt work. 

As an actor, the hardest thing was how to get the 

two roles of pastor and wrestler together. Looking 

from the outside, it seems like a strange concept. 

As a wrestler, I have to play to the audience, and 

as a pastor, I have to look after the flock. Rationalizing 

pro wrestler and pastor was difficult. 

Brett, in what ways did God show up during 

the making of this film? 

The fact that we filmed it in 15 days was a miracle. 

Also, twice during production, financing completely 

fell apart. We ended up having people come in and 

say “we like this film, and we will make it happen.” 

Twice. If this had not happened, we would not 

have the film. 

With as much wresting as we did, it was shocking 

that no one was seriously injured. We did a lot 

of stunt work. The stunt coordinator was surprised 

that no one got hurt, even with pros-only moves 

and intense action. No one was hurt at all. 

It worked out. The fact that we finished on time 

and on budget was God showing up. Everyone 

was amazing, but there was definitely some higher 

help for sure. We missed major snow storms. Little 

things like that, which, looking back, easily could 

have been really bad. The whole production itself 

was really blessed. 

What else would you like readers to know 

about this film? 

Chris: I am so thrilled that faith-based movies 

are doing well. However, if we continue to make 

the same kind of faith-based movies, it’s going to 

grow old. Most are salvation movies, but it’s predominantly 

Christians who are going to see them. 

Why can’t we just have some great clean Christian 

films of different genres? I see this as the first 

faith-based action movie. 

I think people want to see good clean films they 

can take their kids to. I think that’s why they are so 

popular. Families can go and see them together. I 

hope that people will enjoy it because it ‘s a good 

Christian film with good triumphing over evil. 

Brett: The movie has an incredible cast. Diahann 

Carroll plays a church elder. She truly is a legend. 

The late Roddy Piper did an amazing job in it. The 

movie won Best Picture at the 2015 International 

Christian Film Festival. It also received three other 

nominations, making it the most nominated movie 

of any film there. 

Everyone from a five-year-old kid to an 85-year-old 

grandmother can enjoy the movie. There is something 

for everyone. It truly doesn’t matter your age 

or what you enjoy. You will find something in this 

film that you will gravitate to. 

Brett, when and where can we see “The Masked 

Saint”? 

It will be released January 8, 2016. The release 

will be nationwide, on 600 screens in most major 

cities. 

For more behind the scenes info, check out www. 

themaskedsaint.com. Watch the trailer, get to 

know the actors and their characters, and view 

inspirational pieces from the film. 

www.themaskedsaint.com

Don’t Talk 

Back! 

Freedom from Negative 

Words 

By Julie B. Cosgrove 

A 

tried and true saying 

states, “We are our own 

worst enemies.” As a 

suffer of low self-esteem most 

of my life, I get that. People like 

me who have poor self-images 

surround ourselves by catalysts 

that will pound the fact into our 

brains on a regular basis that 

we are not worthy to take up 

space on this planet. 

We have a tendency to be more 

intolerant of traits and imperfections 

in ourselves than we are of 

those in others. We see the log 

in our eye way too much and 

make everyone else’s appear 

like a splinter in comparison. 

Being hard on ourselves is a 

way of life, patterned after years 

of hearing it from others until it 

became engrained as the truth. 

Perhaps we align ourselves to 

others who constantly “put us 

down” to reiterate what we have 

come to believe—we are who 

we thought we were all along: 

nobodies who can’t do anything 

right. We seek out companionship 

with those who elevate 

themselves by cutting down 

others. Being battered by criticism 

becomes the norm. And if 

it ceases, we wonder what we 

have done wrong. 

Over time we watered that 

seed and fed it more negativity 

until its roots intertwined in our 

subconscious— 

“You are dumb.” 

“You are fat.” 

“Who could love a loser like 

you?” 

“You can never do anything

ight.” 

“You will never amount to anything.” 

I lived with an emotional abusive 

parent and was bullied relentlessly 

by my peers for seven 

years in school, so of course I 

married a man who also had that 

tendency. After all, it felt normal 

to me for him to always point 

out my faults, scoff, and rarely, if 

ever, compliment me. 

After his death, I had no one to 

put me down. One day I stared 

at myself in the mirror and realized 

I had begun to do that to 

myself. I actually had gotten into 

the habit of verbalizing my negative 

thoughts to fill the void since 

I had no one else to say them to 

me! 

God opened my eyes and my 

heart that day. It was as if a 

dirty, encrusted film had been 

cleansed from the window panes 

of my soul. Sunlight poured in. 

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I had 

heard the alternative messages 

all my life. 

“God only creates good.” 

“God doesn’t make junk.” 

“God loves you as you are.” 

“God has plans to prosper you 

and not harm you, to give you 

a hope and a future.” Jeremiah 

29:11. 

As a child, I sang, “Red and 

yellow black and white, we are 

precious in His sight.” 

However, a deep part of me 

claimed “king’s x.” Doesn’t apply, 

not to me. Sure, God could love 

me— 

except that… 

if it weren’t for the fact that… 

if I wasn’t so… 

I’d roll my eyes when some 

woman speaker would tell us 

were fearfully and wonderfully 

made. Our bodies and how they 

function, perhaps. Their ability 

to heal themselves, the fact 

our hearts beat and our brains 

store so much knowledge, sure. 

I could claim the statement 

generically, but never personally. 

Being overweight a vast majority 

of my life, partially due to genetics 

but more to poor food choices 

and turning to food for comfort, I 

begged to differ. God may have 

created me as wonderful, but 

I had changed that, thank you 

very much. My fault. 

Thus, the negativity bopped 

me down again like a game of 

“whack-a-mole.” 

The times Christ broke through 

the dam of pessimism and 

proved His unending love for me, 

I’d fall to my knees in tears and 

disbelief. I couldn’t think upon 

the cross and that the Savior 

would do that for me. Everyone 

else in the world, sure. But not 

for me. Surely, You’re mistaken, 

God. You must have meant Your 

merciful grace for someone else. 

Perhaps this resonates with you. 

If so, you are not alone. Low 

self-esteem is in epidemic proportions 

in our modern world. 

Seeds are planted as small children 

by an emotionally abusive 

parent or teacher or grandparent 

or peer who also probably suffered 

from this mental affliction. 

Misery does indeed love company. 

The evil one thrives on whispering 

sweet nothings into our 

soul’s ears. Thoughts which 

make us feel like “nothings.” 

Nothing good, nothing smart, 

nothing pretty, nothing of worth. 

Such negative talk keeps us 

focused on ourselves and not our 

Lord. It divides us from others by 

stirring up envy and jealousy. It 

bars us from utilizing our Godgiven 

talents to be His hands 

and feet because we feel so low 

we have to look up to view a caterpillar’s 

belly. It keeps us weak, 

vulnerable and incompetent. 

Some of us disguise this phenomenon 

as humility. But it is anything 

but that. Low self-esteem 

is just as sinful as pridefulness. 

Both place the emphasis on ourselves 

and our capabilities, not 

on God. And that is exactly what 

Satan wants. 

We companion with those we can 

never “live up to” in our eyes. We 

seek out people who will chop 

us down to stumps if we start to 

grow. Abusive talk becomes so 

normal anything else seems placating 

and patronizing. 

How do you shut off the negative 

talk, be it from others or 

yourselves? The answer lies in 

Scripture. Recall what Paul told 

the Ephesians in Chapter 6— 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and 

in his mighty power. Put on the 

full armor of God, so that you can 

take your stand against the devil’s 

schemes. For our struggle is 

not against flesh and blood, but

against the rulers, against the 

authorities, against the powers 

of this dark world and against 

the spiritual forces of evil in the 

heavenly realms. Therefore put 

on the full armor of God, so 

that when the day of evil comes, 

you may be able to stand your 

ground, and after you have 

done everything, to stand. Stand 

firm then, with the belt of truth 

buckled around your waist, with 

the breastplate of righteousness 

in place, and with your feet fitted 

with the readiness that comes 

from the gospel of peace. In 

addition to all this, take up the 

shield of faith, with which you 

can extinguish all the flaming 

arrows of the evil one. Take 

the helmet of salvation and the 

sword of the Spirit, which is the 

word of God. (vs. 10-18, emphasis 

mine) 

You can find many sermons, 

books and videos on these 

verses. Read them, listen to 

them, allow them soak in. Negativity 

is a vicious opponent. However, 

each time it is encountered, 

you can, by the mercy of God, 

arm yourself against it. 

Read the Word of God and let it 

seep into your very soul. Believe 

God’s love to be true and choose 

to accept it as a faith-fact even 

if you are still blind to the evidence. 

Embrace the righteousness 

of Christ and the fact He 

loved you enough to die for you 

so you can become a new creation 

In Him. Highlight verses 

that speak to you in a positive, 

uplifting manner. Take these 

words and repeat them until 

they become the threads tightly 

woven in fabric of your psyche. 

Plaster them on your mirror, the 

fridge door, the visor of your 

car, in front of a desk drawer, in 

folded up in your change pocket. 

Pray for a shield to keep the 

negativity from permeating you. 

When a demeaning thought 

enters your brain, counter it out 

loud with a positive verse. Ask 

God to forgive you and cleanse 

you of that belittling, stinking 

thinking. 

And if it comes from those you’ve 

surrounded yourself with, pray 

for them. Pray that their arrows 

will no longer penetrate you. 

Pray for them to also experience 

God’s love in their souls. Do not 

retaliate or cower. Stand firm, 

just as Paul advises. Yes, the 

abuse may worsen, but eventually 

like any growling animal, 

they will back off. 

Of course, if the abuse turns 

physical, seek shelter and help 

immediately for yourself and 

then for them. Seek godly and 

legal counsel. And keep praying 

for God to turn the evil into a 

good purpose. 

Want to know the bare bone 

truth? This may be the hardest, 

longest battle you ever fought. 

The war may not end until you 

fall into the arms of Jesus in 

eternity, but the skirmishes will 

become fewer and further in 

between. 

Know the victory has already 

been achieved by Christ. 

Embrace it, pick up your armor, 

mold it to yourself, and carry 

on, confident in the fact you can 

beat this. Your world does not 

have to be a belittling, negative 

and defeating one. 

As the famous hymn states, 

march “onward Christian soldier…with 

the cross of Jesus 

going on before.”

GOD WANTS 

You 

& 

You 

ARE IMPORTANT 

TO GOD 

By Saviela Edwards Thorne 

Sometimes it is hard to 

believe that we are the 

children of God. 

To be a child, you must first 

be born into or adopted into a 

family. In Romans 8:17 KJV 

states, “And if children, then 

heirs; heirs of God, and jointheirs 

with Christ; if so be that we 

suffer with him, that we may also 

glorified together.” When Jesus 

Christ died on the cross for our 

sins, he left his most precious 

gift with us and that is His Holy 

Spirit. As born again Christians, 

we have the spirit of God dwelling 

within us, which connects us 

to Christ, thus making us children 

of God. As a natural father 

desires the best for his children, 

it’s the same for God. We can rest 

assured that God has our best 

interests at heart and as stated

in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know 

that thoughts that I think toward 

you, saith the Lord, thoughts of 

peace, and not of evil to give you 

an expected end.” 

“Before 

I formed 

thee in 

the belly I 

knew thee; 

and before 

thou 

camest 

forth out of 

the womb 

I sanctified 

thee…” 

Jeremiah 

1:5. 

Below are a few reasons we 

know that we are important to 

God: 

You are Loved by God 

Love is the very essence of 

God as stated in 1 John 4:7-8, 

“Beloved let us love one another: 

for love is of God; and every one 

that loveth is born of God, and 

knoweth God. He that loveth 

not knoweth not God; for God is 

love.” There is no question about 

God’s love toward mankind. 

Anyone who would willingly give 

up their only son proves their 

unconditional love. In St. John 

3:16, the word of God states,

“For God so loved the world, that 

he gave his only begotten Son, 

that whosoever believeth in him 

should not perish, but have everlasting 

life.” 

God is madly in love with us 

and we have the assurance 

that nothing will ever separate 

His love from us. Romans 8:39 

NIV confirms “neither height nor 

depth, nor anything else in all 

creation, will be able to separate 

us from the love of God that is 

in Christ Jesus our Lord.” God’s 

love for us is not conditioned 

on our goodness or what we do 

for him but His love for us is an 

everlasting love. No matter how 

far we go from Christ, His love 

will always be there. He is married 

to the backslider as mentioned 

in Jeremiah 3:14, “Turn, 

O backsliding children, saith the 

LORD; for I am married unto 

you: and I will take you one of a 

city, and two of a family, and I will 

bring you to Zion.” God’s love for 

us is not based on what we do 

or don’t do but his love is based 

on his desire that none should 

perish but that all will come into 

repentance (2 Peter 3:9). We 

are commanded by God to walk 

in that same unconditional love 

towards others. If we don’t, then 

we are not considered his children. 

Only those that love is born 

of God (1 John 4:7). 

You are Special to God 

When you are important to 

someone, you are special to 

them. You are considered valuable 

and treasured by that 

person. Deuteronomy 7:6 shows 

us how God sees us, “For thou 

art an holy people unto the Lord 

thy God: the Lord thy God hath 

chosen thee to be a special 

people unto himself, above all 

people that are upon the face 

of the earth.” It’s not about how 

others view you but how God 

sees you and in his eyes you are 

special to Him. God cares about 

you so much that he even know 

the number of hairs on your 

head (St. Matthew 10: 30, St. 

Luke 12:7). You are priceless to 

God. Not only are you special to 

God, but you are also chosen by 

him, “But ye are a chosen generation, 

a royal priesthood, an holy 

nation, a peculiar people; that 

ye should shew forth the praises 

of him who hath called you out 

of darkness into his marvelous 

light” - 1 Peter 2:9. You can hold 

you head up high knowing that 

you are part of royalty. You are 

a child of the One True King, 

Jesus Christ. Being a child of 

God, you have special privileges 

that the unsaved do you have. 

When you understand who you 

belong to, you begin to walk in 

your purpose. 

You have purpose in God 

He knew you before you were 

born “Before I formed thee in 

the belly I knew thee; and before 

thou camest forth out of the 

womb I sanctified thee…” Jeremiah 

1:5. You aren’t place in 

this world just to live but to live 

with a purpose. God has blessed 

each and every person with a 

purpose. It is up to you to seek 

after God for him to reveal your 

God given purpose. Most people 

confuse talent with purpose. You 

have a natural talent in an area, 

but that does not mean that is 

your God given purpose. Think 

about it, what are you most passionate 

about? If there were no 

limitations what would you do 

right now for the rest of your life? 

There were areas of my life that 

I struggled with and sometimes 

are still a struggle. I wasn’t sure 

why I seem to always deal with 

these issues. I later realized that 

the areas, in which you struggle 

with the most, are usually the 

areas of your ministry. My experience 

going through became my 

platform and because I was able 

to go through, I am now able to 

teach others. There is purpose 

in your pain. Whatever you are 

going through right now, there is 

purpose for it. God is building you 

up and creating a ministry within 

you to bless others. You are on 

the potter’s wheel so continue 

to praise God as he molds and 

makes you into the vessel that 

he needs you to be. Don’t rush 

the process, but rest assured 

that “… all things God works for 

the good of those who love him, 

who have been called according 

to his purpose” – Romans 8:28 

NIV. 

You are important to God 

because you are loved by Him, 

you are special to Him and you 

have purpose within Him. God 

has great and mighty things in 

stored for you, but he first needs 

your complete trust. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 encourages us 

to, 

“Trust in the LORD with all thine 

heart; and lean not unto thine 

own understanding. In all thy 

ways acknowledge him, and he 

shall direct thy paths.” 

When you trust God with your 

life, you will begin to go places 

and do things that you never 

imagined. God wants to do “… 

exceeding abundantly above all 

that we ask or think, according 

to the power that worketh in us,” 

(Ephesians 3:20) but we must

first allow Him to work within us. 

As children of God we are indeed 

blessed beyond measure. Continue 

to walk in your purpose. 

Saviela Edwards Thorne 

Visit her at https://saviela.wordpress.com 

Saviela is an inspirational author 

and a motivational speaker who 

loves to encourage and empower 

the women of God through her 

life experiences.

Gender Identity 

Who Does God Say We Are? 

By Pastor James Hill, MA, MDiv

I 

have been asked to write an 

article about “gender identity,” 

commonly discussed today 

under the rubric of transgenderism. 

This is a condition 

wherein, in its classical or most 

characteristic form, a person 

strongly believes that he or she, 

while clearly of one sex biologically 

is truly, in their own mind, 

of the opposite sex, for example 

wherein a biological male, 

with functioning male anatomical 

body parts, believes that he 

really is, or really ought to be, a 

female, and, vice versa, where a 

female, similarly has a properly 

functioning female anatomy but 

firmly believes herself to properly 

be a boy. Their belief is that 

his or her self-understanding is 

not wrong but his or her body is 

wrong. In the fullest form, this 

may lead to living as the opposite 

sex, hormone treatment to 

increase characteristics of the 

opposite sex, and, ultimately, sex 

reassignment surgery, wherein 

characteristically male or female 

gonads are removed, secondary 

sex characteristics may be 

surgically altered, and some 

tissue is re-purposed to create 

approximations of the characteristic 

sexual organs of the opposite 

sex, as well as continuing 

life-long hormone treatments 

to sustain the characteristics of 

the opposite sex. I am asked to 

consider if there is such a thing 

as gender identity in God’s eyes, 

and according to scripture, to 

answer the etiology, or origins, 

or causation of gender identity 

dysphoria, and to consider 

whether or not this condition can 

be changed. 

I feel inadequate to address 

this issue as I might like to for 

two reasons. One, my reading 

in this specific field is too slight, 

and two, my experience of dealing 

with persons who report 

themselves as transgendered or 

who once thought of themselves 

as transgendered is modest. 

However, I do have considerable 

experience of dealing with persons 

who have come to experience 

very great transformations 

in their life and outlook, transformations 

unexpected and transformations 

towards thought and 

conduct consistent with biblical 

patterns, and transformations 

leading to greater peace and 

contentment for the persons so 

transformed. In some measure 

I have dealt with such material 

in my book To Be Made Whole: 

A Handbook for Inner Healing. I 

have also dealt at some depth 

with persons who do or have 

experienced homosexual ideation, 

some who have remained 

of the opinion that their condition 

was inevitable and some who 

have come to see themselves 

as no longer homosexual and 

who have satisfying relations 

with persons of the opposite sex. 

This material I have dealt with 

in my book The Gay Emperor 

Is Naked: A Critique of Homosexuality. 

I have seen in this 

area many reasons to view their 

condition as caused by what I 

would call spiritual causes, but 

others might call psychological 

causes, and I suspect that some 

of the insight gained in this area 

is likely relevant to the arguably 

related area of transgenderism. 

It is because of the inadequacies 

with which I approach my subject 

that I say it is only “towards” a 

Christian understanding, meaning 

that it is but a beginning. 

Until recently, this phenomenon 

of gender identity discomfort 

was dealt with in the field of 

psychology as “Gender Identity 

Disorder.” However, now the 

preferred term in that field is 

“Gender Dysphoria.” Every term 

implies assumptions. It was felt 

that “Gender Identity Disorder” 

proclaimed that the “transgendered” 

person was dis-ordered. 

In the secular world, the general 

movement with regards to 

sexual orientation and activity is 

to call very little, if anything, disordered. 

Persons or actions are 

not “disordered,” but only “different.” 

Thus, the term “gender 

dysphoria” focuses on the discomfort 

of the individual, not any 

possible disorder. The use of 

this term also implies that there 

is no particular order. 

One key characteristic of the discussion 

supporting the “merely 

different” position is the great 

weight given to reported feelings. 

There is general or philosophical 

discomfort with any set 

scheme of understanding, or 

any order. If this does not wholly 

follow from, it is at least a part 

with the general movement to 

relativism and deconstructionism 

characteristic of the increasingly 

anti-supernatural stance of 

modern thought. If one reports 

that they feel gay, for example, 

then that must be who they 

“are.” If one reports that they 

feel female or male, then that 

must be who they “are.” But is 

it? Others report that they are 

truly alcoholic and that that is 

who they “are.” Are we obliged 

to accept their conclusion? 

Others report that they feel sex 

with minors is appropriate and 

that desiring such activity is who 

they truly are. Are we obliged to 

accept one’s view of who they 

“are” because they have strong

feelings of one sort or another? 

Can feelings be wrong? Now, 

do not think for a moment that 

the reported feelings of persons 

believing themselves transgendered 

are casual, or frivolous, 

or intentionally willful. That is 

rarely, if ever, so. They are sincere, 

and they are strong. Persons 

holding such beliefs should 

be accorded respect for the sincerity 

and intensity of their feelings. 

They are persons made in 

the image of God, at least so I 

would say (although they, apparently, 

might not), and as such 

are worthy of great respect! And 

that still does not convince me 

that they are correct. 

It is said that in contemporary 

Christian culture, relationship 

matters more than conduct, and 

thus good relations should be 

maintained with others virtually 

without regard to their conduct. 

While I can affirm civility, respect, 

and grace in personal relations, 

and I can affirm that many times 

we should let the Holy Spirit do 

the convincing, and we are not 

obliged the “brow-beat” others 

into submission, nor should we 

generally try to do so, but still I 

cannot affirm that personal feelings 

are invariably the authoritative 

road to truth. I don’t think 

they are. 

Theologically, all discussions 

I have seen to put a biblical 

seal of approval on sexually 

abnormal, or sexually diverse, 

conduct are convoluted. They 

require multiple steps, and specific 

conclusions from general 

conclusions, which are in conflict 

with the clearest scriptures 

which might seem to speak to 

the subject. Alfred North Whitehead 

in Science and the Modern 

Mind credits the Judeo-Christian 

belief in an ordered creation with 

the birth of the scientific method. 

The study of the world is thought 

possible because it is ordered, 

contrary to the belief of some 

religions. And such science is 

encouraged because God is 

revealed in that order. Genesis 

1:1-31 speaks of God ordering 

the universe, and in 1:31 that 

order is said to be true. Psalm 19 

and Romans 1:18-32 are others 

scriptures supporting the notion 

that God has revealed himself in 

the created order and are among 

those influences which have 

led to the rise of the scientific 

method in Christian civilization. 

That there is an order is not a 

new idea, nor is a small one, nor 

is it without great fruit, nor is it an 

idea abandoned without great 

peril to sound knowledge. But if 

one looks at the clearest scriptures 

on sex and gender specific 

roles they speak of a male and 

female duality. 

In Genesis 1:27 we find: “So 

God created man in his own 

image, in the image of God He 

created him; male and female 

He created them.” Now if God 

is the all-knowing God Christian 

faith has understood him to be, 

then He could just as easily have 

said that “God created man in 

his own image; male and female 

and gay and lesbian and bisexual 

and transgendered, He created 

him,” but He did not. God 

could have had some vague 

allusion to other genders made, 

but He did not. Either God is 

not an all-knowing God, or the 

Bible is only partially inspired, or 

God or the authors of the Bible 

choose to willfully mislead us 

due to their belief that mankind 

could not handle the truth. I am 

not pleased with any of those 

alternatives. Furthermore, such 

a diminished view of scriptural 

authority easily leads to a doit-yourself- 

theology in general, 

guided not by scripture, but by 

changing intellectual fashion. 

In Genesis 2:18-25, we find that 

Adam was inadequate in himself, 

and that the fulfillment was 

in Eve. In Mark 10:6-8, we find 

Jesus reinforcing that value of 

male-female creation. In Deuteronomy 

22:5, we find that even 

the wearing of clothing characteristic 

of the opposite sex is 

prohibited, which tends to support 

the importance of maintaining 

the male/female differences 

in some way. 

In Deuteronomy 23:1 you do 

have the barring from the assembly 

of the Lord he who is emasculated, 

which may bespeak 

a rejection of such practices 

among other religions or which 

may bespeak a desire to reflect 

the perfection of God, but certainly 

seems to seems to speak 

ill of downplaying God’s sexual 

design of man, however, in Matthew 

19:12 you have the possi-

ly more ambiguous language 

of Jesus about eunuchs. Yet 

upon consideration, Jesus says 

nothing to encourage the notion 

of multiple sexes. He speaks 

of eunuchs from their mother’s 

womb, presumably persons born 

with what would be considered a 

birth defect; eunuchs made so 

by men, who are persons emasculated 

by others and thus not 

responsible for a choice they did 

not make; and eunuchs made so 

by themselves, which has generally, 

though not universally, been 

understood to mean those who 

choose to abstain from sexual 

relations, not those who physically 

castrated themselves. In 

Acts 8:26-40, you have the story 

of the Ethiopian eunuch, who 

is informed by Philip, based on 

Isaiah 53:7-8, that his physical 

affliction by no means bars him 

from salvation, but his affliction 

was not one he chose and his 

salvation came from his new 

faith in Christ; and the passage 

offers no word of approval of his 

affliction, but of him and despite 

his affliction. None of this offers 

any clear support for multiple 

varieties of gender. I know of 

no scriptural support for the idea 

that there are six or seven or so 

varieties of gender in God’s plan. 

Innumerable times I have seen 

cases wherein unknown trauma 

was the origin of some subsequent 

physical, social psychological, 

emotional, or spiritual 

ailment. Sixty-plus year old Mrs. 

A came to me with pain in her 

left eye from shingles. God 

revealed to her an incident in 

which she had been molested 

as a child by her father, with her 

left eye shoved against a bedpost. 

We had prayer in Jesus’ 

name and her shingles ended. 

Fifty-plus year old Mr. B came to 

me with scheduled surgery for 

a long-time ailment from which 

his father before him had also 

suffered. God revealed to him 

a childhood incident wherein 

his father did not give him the 

approval he needed. After 

prayer, his fifteen year problem 

disappeared, the surgery was 

canceled, and the affected organ 

was later found to be whole by 

the same doctors who had said 

it had to be removed. Forty-plus 

year old Mr. C came to me with 

deep regret about his betrayal of 

his wife’s trust. His only answer 

was to be more disciplined. 

God revealed to him and incident 

he had completely forgotten 

in which his older brother 

had molested him. We prayed 

and he had a new release, not 

mere resolve, and no relapse. 

Forty year old Miss D came to 

me with foul nightmares of her 

doing things to children she 

would never do. God revealed 

the source of her nightmares in 

early childhood actions he had 

been pressed into at a boarding 

school. Forty-plus year old Mr. E 

came most reluctantly, with certainty 

that his unwanted sexual 

attraction to another man could 

not be ended. Three, four or 

five times he came, each time 

expecting no help, each time 

sure of failure, each time leaving 

feeling great release, each 

time being set more free, and 

he is now quite set free of the 

attractions he was drawn into by 

molestation done to him many 

years before, and he has not 

come to me to deal with such 

things for some years now. He 

is happily married and has even 

reconciled, in a healthy way, 

with his uncle molester. Fiftyplus 

year old Mr. F came to me 

with general discontent about 

life, God, and most everyone he 

knew, and also with a few aches 

and pains. God revealed to him, 

not to me, to him, his mother’s 

anxiety when he was in the 

womb and that that set him up 

for a lifetime of doubt about his 

worth. He left happy, in love with 

God and the world, and mostly 

pain free. 

I could give you many more 

such illustrations, but they 

serve to illustrate my point that 

many times there are causes, 

not known or remembered or 

understood by the person who 

suffers from an affliction of the 

soul. Many times when God’s 

help is asked to uncover some 

relevant thing, a relevant incident 

is brought to mind. Many 

times when these afflictions are 

dealt with in accord with biblical 

principles such as mourning, 

forgiveness, repentance, transformation 

by renewing the mind, 

and deliverance, a great transformation 

is achieved. Causes 

were not known. Time and again, 

the persons involved, and others 

in their lives, thought “that’s just 

the way it is,” “or that’s just the 

way so-and-so is.” It was not. 

It was caused. And it could be 

uncaused. And it was. Based 

on the innumerable times when I 

have seen a correlation between 

an existing ailment for persons 

and the discovery of prior spiritual 

wounding, I suspect that is a 

probable and sound framework 

of understanding for a great host 

of ailments, probably including 

transgendered ideation. (Some 

of this kind of trauma and transformation 

I consider further in 

my book To Be Made Whole: a 

Handbook for Inner Healing.)

In the possibly related area of 

homosexual ideation, I know 

that there are many indicators 

of discontent in the lives of 

those who report themselves 

as homosexuals and that these 

numerous indicators of discontent 

bespeak a disorder which 

will not be eased by approval, 

but rather bespeak an abiding, 

underlying problem of which the 

homosexual ideation is a symptom. 

There dreadful health consequences, 

and there are many 

troubling relationship practices 

which seem to characterize persons 

with homosexual ideation. 

I suspect that as more studies 

are made, similarly troubling patterns 

will be seen to be a normal 

part of the lives of transgendered 

persons. 

The one “transgendered” person 

I know best had many dramatic 

troubles in early childhood. 

At one point some crisis was 

reached and there was some 

sort of resolution. Based on 

inadequate but suggestive information, 

I suspect that there was 

another spirit within this person, 

wrestling for supremacy, and that 

the other spirit was allowed to 

prevail, not the one who was the 

true inhabitant of the body, but 

an alternate of another gender, 

allowing a cessation of the great 

turmoil, but not peace. I suspect 

that all the hormone treatments 

and surgery and approval by 

well-meaning friends will never 

bring the peace the person 

seeks. 

In the literature on transgenderism 

multiple causes are considered 

or alleged. Some strongly 

argue for a brain differential of 

some sort. However, studies 

are rarely duplicated, are almost 

always small, and are unable 

to filter out whether the physical 

brain difference they claim 

to find is cause or consequence 

or concomitant. Others propose 

that hormonal influence causes 

the gender dysphoria, either as 

an aspect of the body’s normal 

production or as an aspect of 

the mother’s or child’s hormonal 

levels during gestation. But 

again, the studies are of small 

numbers, are generally not duplicated, 

and cannot determine 

whether an alleged factor is a 

cause or a consequence of later 

hormone therapy or something 

that comes from some other 

factor. There are those who 

suggest psychological factors 

determine gender identity disorder. 

So far, my own reading, 

based on far too little evidence, 

would most nearly dovetail with 

this latter theory of the etiology 

or origin or cause. 

The full response to the transgendered 

person’s discomfort, 

by current secular standards, is 

to perform very radical surgery, 

eliminating perfectly healthy 

body parts for the sake of the 

person’s disorder or perceived 

discomfort. This is a surgery 

which one hospital which was 

a pioneer in it discontinued 

because of the high incidence 

of reported discontent after the 

surgery was performed. I am 

told that when persons present 

themselves to counselors as 

being transgendered, they go 

through extensive counseling. If 

they persist in their reported feelings, 

they will be obliged to get 

hormone treatment, and then to 

live as a member of the opposite 

sex for a long period before any 

sex reassignment surgery would 

be performed. Perhaps one or 

two percent of the people initially 

reporting such feelings would 

eventually be approved for such 

surgery. After the surgery is performed, 

I am told, half will subsequently 

express regret at having 

had the surgery performed. Now 

I do not know the precise nature 

of their expressed regrets. (I also 

acknowledge that a Wikipedia 

article cites a source as claiming 

that the results were vaguely 

good.) Still, I would think that 

after having had such a radical 

procedure performed, with some 

irreversible results, one would 

be strongly motivated to approve 

one’s decision, and yet, to the 

best of my knowledge, that is not 

so. Furthermore, if 98 to 99% of 

persons initially believing themselves 

to be transgendered are 

not subsequently approved for 

a radical surgery they initially 

desire, what happened with 

their desires? Did they change? 

Some must have. Nearly all? 

Whatever the number, what 

does that mean? It may mean 

that most “outgrow” their transgenderism. 

Or it may mean that 

in most cases the doctors and 

psychologists involved fairly 

clearly see reasons why these 

persons desire a bad choice for 

themselves. 

I do know of persons who have 

had such surgery, had thought, it 

was appropriate, and have later 

made a commitment to Christ, 

who came to regret seeing themselves 

as transgendered and 

who came to regret their choice 

to have such surgery, and have 

since lived as the biological sex 

of their birth to the best of their 

ability in light of whatever surgery 

had been performed. So, 

change in thought pattern for 

seemingly transgendered per-

sons is possible. There are other 

persons, whom I have met, who 

previously thought themselves 

transgendered, yet of whom I 

did not make extensive inquiries, 

but who have subsequently 

chosen to live as a member of 

their biological sex since coming 

to Christ and who report peace, 

fulfillment, and joy in their new 

life and their new relationship 

in Christ. Their regret was for 

their prior sense of “transgenderedness,” 

not for their current 

choice to live as they now understand 

God to have made them, 

in the male or female bodies with 

which they were born. 

I see no scriptural support for 

affirming transgenderism. I do 

indeed see support for affirming 

individuals, for treating them 

with respect, for gentleness and 

civility. I see support for listening 

carefully. I see support for 

affirming the core person and 

for affirming God’s love for them. 

I can see support for walking 

alongside someone and not 

requiring their immediate conformity 

to one’s own ideas. I 

see an emphasis on maintaining 

the right in the Old Testament 

superseded by an emphasis on 

redemption and transformation, 

but without letting go of the right 

in the New Testament; consider 

John 81:12 and Romans 12:2. 

All have sinned and fallen short 

of the glory of God, true; but sin 

is still sin; and while we love the 

sinner, and we have no need to 

humiliate someone; still we need 

to know the truth and to live it. If 

we know what we stand for, it is 

likely that others will know what 

we stand for even if we do not 

always proclaim it each time we 

meet someone new. Still, I suspect 

that affirming the transgendered 

perspective will not be an 

aspect of sharing God’s love. I 

believe that Christ can change 

lives. I have seen it, many 

times. I know persons who have 

come out of serial adultery, drug 

addiction, alcoholism, homosexuality, 

feeling themselves 

transgendered, rage, great 

fear, and innumerable kinds of 

abuse. I do not say it is easy. 

I do not say that one can see 

how one can change at first, but 

one can. I affirm that God does 

have patterns, and that they are 

good, and that falling away from 

those patterns is almost always 

(always?) a sign of a troubled 

soul. Whatever the trouble, I 

believe that God can help. May 

God bless all who struggle in 

this area, whether it be a personal 

struggle or a struggle for 

the soul of a loved one. May 

God bless those who agree with 

me and those who disagree with 

me. And may God bless me with 

greater insight, especially where 

I am wrong. Amen. 

Pastor Jim Hill, MA, MDiv, is 

pastor of Clairemont Christian 

Fellowship: A Spirit-filled United 

Methodist Church in San Diego, 

California 

He has written three published 

books: The Drinks Are on the 

Kingdom: a Study of the Wedding 

at Can; To Be Made Whole: 

a Handbook for Inner Healing; 

and The Gay Emperor Is Naked: 

A Critique of Homosexuality. He 

is also published in the American 

Journal of Pastoral Counseling, 

and has chapters in books 

edited by H. Newton Malony and 

Maxie Dunnam.

I LOVE YOU 

No Matter What 

God Loves You No Matter What Your 

Past 

By C D Swanson

For God so loved the world 

that He gave His only begotten 

Son, that whoever believes in 

Him should not perish but have 

everlasting life. …John 3:16 

I went to lunch with a good friend 

of mine who brought her cousin 

visiting from out of state. It was a 

pleasant experience and by the 

time dessert arrived, the cousin 

began to open up about her 

“lifestyle.” She voiced concern 

that with her less than honorable 

past she was condemned for 

life, with no chance of being 

redeemed. 

This began a deeply penetrating 

conversation that was both 

provocative and sincere. The 

cousin—JoAnn—with tearstreaked 

cheeks asked me, “Do 

you honestly believe that God 

can forgive me? I mean I’m a 

horrible person…and I only told 

you about a tenth of what I’ve 

done. I’ve been a wild party-girl 

and did some pretty despicable 

things, I doubt God even cares 

about me anymore, or if He ever 

did.” 

Marie looked at me with 

knitted brow; her expression 

clearly one of discomfort. She 

apparently was waiting for me 

to say something to JoAnn. I 

said a silent prayer to the Lord 

to provide wisdom and gentle 

guidance thereby giving me 

the proper “balm” to soothe her 

aching soul. 

“JoAnn, God loves you more 

than you know. He doesn’t like 

“sin” but He loves you. His voice 

can be heard so succinctly if 

you’d take the time to listen.” 

“Where is His voice? I don’t hear 

it!” JoAnn looked at me wideeyed 

as she searched my face 

anxious for an answer. 

“It’s in the wind. It’s in the air 

you breathe. It’s the cry of a 

brand new baby. It’s the joy 

of a successful operation. It’s 

arriving ten minutes late for an 

appointment which, although 

you’re late, has kept you from 

being in an accident. But most 

important…it’s in His word…the 

Bible. God sent His only begotten 

Son to save His children. That 

includes you JoAnn. He loves 

us and wants us to be with Him 

now and always. But, there are 

a couple of provisions you need 

to do” 

“What? How can I believe this 

and get Him to forgive me?” 

“Just ask…tell Him you’re sorry 

and that you believe in His Son 

and accept Him fully as your 

Lord and Savior. Then love Him 

with all of your heart, mind, and 

soul.” 

JoAnn had many questions 

that day. I opened my pocket 

Bible and offered her verse and 

scripture to reassure her of God’s 

unconditional love. I made it 

clear that from the beginning of 

time God helped His children, 

always forgiving them and giving 

them countless opportunities 

to walk in His ways. I gave an 

overview of Moses wandering 

in the desert with ungrateful 

children who muttered and 

moaned. Even with God’s 

miracles before their eyes. The 

parting of the Red Sea to kill 

Pharaoh’s army, the clothing 

and sandals always intact and 

never worn from wandering 

in the desert for 40 years; the 

provision of water; the endless 

manna sent from heaven; and 

the quail. The presence of the 

Lord was always with them, 

cloud by day and fire by night, 

His presence secure within the 

children of Israel. But, still they

disobeyed and went against His 

word and His law. But, He still 

loved them…and tried over and 

over to help them. He created 

their very souls, He was there for 

their first breath, and was there 

for their last. All with a pure 

loving heart and willing hands 

of grace and mercy. That’s our 

Father. 

God isn’t hiding behind every 

bush or rock wanting to “zap” His 

children because they’ve sinned. 

Of course not! He waits patiently 

for us to come to Him and ask for 

forgiveness. He accepts us no 

matter what. The Bible tells us 

there is no unforgiveable sin but 

one. Jesus tells us so clearly in 

Matthew what the unpardonable 

sin is: “Therefore I say to you, 

every sin and blasphemy will be 

forgiven men, but the blasphemy 

against the Spirit will not be 

forgiven men.” (Matthew 12:31) 

Allow the Holy Spirit to work—let 

Him flow freely within giving Him 

full control —to guide and bring 

you conviction. 

With a contrite spirit—remember 

He knows our every thought and 

our hearts— a path of truth and 

obedience; He will forgive and 

love us always. If we confess 

our sins, He is faithful and just to 

forgive us our sins and to cleanse 

us from all unrighteousness. (1 

John 1:9)) 

By the time we were finished with 

dessert; JoAnn had accepted 

Jesus as her Lord and Savior 

and cried openly as she asked 

for forgiveness. She was finally 

able to realize that she was a 

worthy person and that God 

loved her no matter what…she 

was free at last. 

Her eyes were no longer cloudy 

that day… instead… her beautiful 

blue eyes were filled with a light 

from within. 

C D SWANSON has published 

17 books and writes for the glory 

of God. She writes for several 

magazines and devotional 

websites.

Finding 

Contentment 

Follow God’s Call in Your 

Daily Life 

By Charlaine Martin 

Maybe you sat in the 

congregation on Saturday 

night or Sunday 

morning listening to a 

missionary or your pastor talk 

about God’s call to ministry. 

Have you ever wondered if God 

is calling you to ministry? Maybe 

you feel a burning desire to help 

at a local mission or to go on a 

mission trip. Or perhaps you 

are a newer Christian wondering 

how you can serve in your community 

or help in the church. Yet, 

you may feel your work is unfulfilling. 

You do not see a connection 

between ministry and daily 

living. God has a purpose for 

you to serve where you already 

are. Wherever you are in your 

Christian walk, there is satisfaction 

serving Christ right in 

your work, your home, and your 

neighborhood. Wonderful blessings 

abound as you minister to 

others in Jesus’ name wherever 

God calls you to serve. 

It is important to have a basic 

understanding of what being 

called to ministry means. After 

all, we are all commanded by 

Jesus to go make disciples of all 

nations (Matthew 28:18-20). So, 

what is a call to ministry? What 

does that look like? Not everyone 

has an obvious burning bush 

moment like Moses in Exodus 3 

or a blinding light moment like 

Paul in Acts 9. Many Christians 

have said that there was a distinct 

moment when they heard 

from the Lord saying He wanted 

them to serve Him. Sometimes 

God is specific, but not always. 

Others have said that there was 

a slow, gradual realization God 

had something He wanted them 

to do to either reach people 

for Christ or to disciple other 

believers. The call from God is

ecognizable because we have 

the Holy Spirit discerning God’s 

voice for us. A call is basically 

God asking His people to join 

Him in building His Kingdom. 

God gives us different tools to 

use as we share Him with others 

like serving in a soup kitchen 

to meet a physical need within 

a Christian context. Some are 

called to vocational ministry 

such as pastors, missionaries, 

chaplains, and even writers like 

me. Others are called to personal 

ministry in their workplace, 

schools, community, churches, 

and homes. For example, a man 

at seminary in one of my classes 

believed he was called to pastor 

a church. He had a bachelor’s 

degree in computer science then 

went on to seminary for a Master’s 

of Divinity degree; however, 

God used something he had an 

interest in with his earlier education 

to oversee the technology 

ministry at a mega church 

with multiple campuses. He prepares 

us ahead of time for what 

He specifically for desires us to 

accomplish in His name. 

God places us where we may 

reach or simply influence people 

in ways no one else can. Consider 

Moses’ or Joseph’s unique 

positions in Pharaoh’s court. 

Each one had special circumstances, 

gifts, and talents 

uniquely qualifying them for the 

tasks God gave each of them. 

He does that with us today. 

When God invites us to join Him 

in His work, according to Henry 

Blackeby in his book “Experiencing 

God”, we are the best candidates 

for that particular task in 

that specific place with the exact 

people who need the ministry we 

provide. Someone else may be 

able do it, but not in the manner 

in which He has prepared us. 

We are privileged to serve our 

Lord with the very things we love 

to do and do well. 

Ministry in the Workplace 

Some Christians serve through 

their workplace in ways that, 

only the position He places us 

within, may touch someone’s life 

at work. Recently I spoke with 

an executive in the automotive 

industry about his personal ministry 

through his position as a 

department manager where he 

leads a team of intelligent, creative 

individuals. He said there 

are restrictions set by the company 

regarding conversations 

of a religious nature. They may 

freely talk about their faith and 

witness peer to peer. So as a 

manager, he is free to talk about 

his faith with others at management 

level and higher, but not 

with those who work under his 

leadership. An employee who 

directly reports to him might 

feel pressured, threatened, or 

harassed by a superior sharing 

his faith. Instead, He is able to 

create an environment for his 

employees to share their faith 

in a reasonable manner at their 

level within the company. Part 

of his ministry is to managers 

who would otherwise never hear 

the gospel in a manner that is 

articulate and with rational apologetics. 

He also leads through 

influence by his own example 

insisting upon high standards of 

customer satisfaction and quality 

products. God has placed him 

in the unique position to minister 

to people from several countries 

and religious backgrounds 

through his lifestyle and management 

style, praying for them 

personally and in general conversations. 

People come to him 

to talk about concerns, so he 

prays for them and offers wise 

counsel. He counts it a privilege 

to serve the Lord where he 

works. This manager also feels 

that the real reason he is in this 

position and has survived for so 

long in the so-called “corporate 

meat grinder” that has caused 

many of his predecessors the 

demise of their positions. 

There are Christians serving in 

multiple areas, with the workplace 

as one of many ways. 

Mike Sztanyo, a professional 

airline pilot, describes his ministry 

call as a gradual realization, 

“From before I knew how 

God would use me, I understood 

that there was not a category for 

‘wallflower’ Christians. I knew 

that even if it was in the encouragement 

I give someone else 

by faithfully attending church, 

or even by just participating in a 

church meeting discussion, He 

was involving me. That is how 

it started in my own case. His 

use of me you might call small, 

and perhaps so were the fruits.” 

While attending college, He was 

ready to drop his studies to serve 

on the mission field, although he 

had no clear idea of how. “I was 

wisely advised to continue in my 

studies. But my interest in studies 

didn’t really lie along this field 

of service. At the end of school, 

I wanted to fly commercial airplanes.” 

So he became a airline 

pilot. He shares his faith through 

example as well as casual conversations 

with other airline personnel, 

his peers. Sometimes 

he realizes a conversation with 

another pilot in the cockpit could 

become hostile, so Mike allows 

the Lord to shine through his 

clean language and strong work

ethic. The chain of command 

also determines how much or 

how little he is able to share. 

Mike serves Christ in three different 

avenues: home, church, 

and at work. He leads an adult 

Sunday school class in his 

church. He and his wife also 

home educate their children 

while working with a home 

school cooperative group. 

According to Mike, “It is now, 

within the last two or three years, 

that I understand a little how He 

has prepared me for the role He 

has for me. Now I am teaching 

nine through eleven year olds in 

English grammar and writing in 

a Christian home school community. 

We home school our 

five children. I am also teaching 

an adult Sunday school. I joke 

that I also moonlight as an airline 

pilot. I am no preacher, and I am 

not a missionary, but I hear that 

my teaching is appreciated. And 

if that is true, then I am so grateful 

that I can minister through 

that gift of Jesus Christ to build 

up His church, for His glory.” 

Mike feels blessed to serve 

Christ in all areas of his life. 

He added, “When I obey Him, 

I feel that favor like a child who 

obeys his father or mother. And 

I know that is the best thing for 

me anyway. But the biggest 

blessing of all is to experience 

the favor of God. I feel like the 

five year old, hammering a useless 

nail in a single board beside 

his father building a house, smiling 

down on me. We both know 

that I want to help, even if it all 

depends on Him, and there is joy 

and peace.” 

Yet other Christians serve the 

Lord side-by-side, much like 

Aquilla and Priscilla did in the 

book of Acts. My first husband 

and I served the Lord through 

bi-vocational ministry while he 

was a pastor. I helped develop 

the Christian education department 

in that church as a support 

to his pastoral ministry. My 

personal ministry extended to 

individuals through my work as 

a health and fitness professional 

in a local YMCA. He had been 

an engineer before following 

God’s call to become a pastor. 

God used his engineering 

knowledge at Owens Corning 

Cultured Stone oddly as a general 

laborer. It was not a position 

he would have normally chosen 

nor did he enjoy the work; however, 

he recognized the spiritual 

needs in the people he worked 

with on daily basis. This venue 

which gave him a place in the 

community to reach people for 

Christ, pray for them, listen with

compassion to their struggles, 

and ultimately baptize a couple 

of them in the pool at the YMCA 

where I worked. I volunteered to 

guard the pool while he served 

them by performing baptisms 

for these new believers. It was 

such a blessing for me to have 

the opportunity to partner with 

him in his ministry, while sharing 

Christ with several YMCA members. 

I witnessed several lives 

change and prayed with them. 

He felt blessed to minister to 

co-workers while leading a tiny 

congregation in spiritual growth. 

Both of us had gifts, talents, and 

vocations uniquely qualifying us 

to serve together in the manner 

needed at that time. 

Blessings to Following God’s 

Call 

There are blessings as we follow 

God’s call to serve Him in our 

daily lives. Taking part in the 

transformation of co-workers’ 

and neighbors’ lives is an awesome 

privilege. Thankfully, we 

do not have this ministry alone 

as we can do nothing without 

Christ (John 15:5). It is God at 

work around and through us 

while we are simply the instruments 

He chooses to use (2 

Corinthians 4:6-8). Not only that, 

there are others also planting 

seeds, tilling the soil, and reaping 

the harvest before you and 

with you. Paul said to the Corinthians 

that one waters, one 

sows, and another reaps, but 

God gives the increase (1 Corinthians 

3:5-9). We are also to 

work for the Lord, not for people, 

because what we do is for Christ 

(Colossians 3:23-24). We do not 

work alone. As part of the body 

of Christ, God coordinates us 

together like that of a conductor 

of a beautiful symphony. 

Witnessing the Beginning of 

New Life 

Praying with someone who 

accepts Christ is an amazing 

privilege. There is nothing we 

can do to cause this to happen 

except to obediently listen to the 

Holy Spirit’s prompting when we 

allow Him to interrupt our busyness 

for someone’s needs. The 

burden of knowing someone is 

destined to eternal separation 

from God, should weigh heavily 

on our hearts. But for someone 

whom God has gifted and talented 

to evangelize, it weights 

even heavier on their hearts than 

for someone called to disciple 

others. There is nothing else they 

feel they can do except share 

Christ with people. It brings a joy 

like no other for them. 

Witnessing Changed Lives 

Discipling new Christians while 

aiding more seasoned Christians, 

is a boomerang blessing. 

As we dig into the Bible to lead 

people into a deeper walk with 

the Lord, we grow too. This is 

certainly not why we teach, but 

rather a natural effect. It does 

not mean all of those who teach 

are Sunday school or Bible study 

leaders. Sometimes, we are 

simply helping someone searching 

for answers to life’s questions. 

People ask God’s servants 

about pressing issues on their 

hearts. One of the best things we

can do is take the time to show 

them how to discover God’s 

truth for themselves. We must 

be ready to give an answer for 

our faith (1 Peter 3:15). We grow 

while we search for the answers 

they seek. What a delight to see 

someone’s eyes sparkle when 

they come back to tell us about 

the treasures they have discovered 

or the changes they have 

made as a result of our service. 

Meeting Needs 

Our world is full of hurting, needy 

people. An inner city ministry 

outreach of a church where my 

family attended was the Baptist 

Center in Toledo, Ohio. The missionary 

who led this mission was 

often surrounded by excited children 

after school. They were so 

eager to learn the Bible because 

they were accepted without judgment. 

They loved to be entrusted 

with age-appropriate responsibilities. 

Volunteers came to help 

lead songs and play games with 

the children. Others would help 

sort clothing for the clothing 

closet so people could find items 

for their families without cost. 

There are always many missions 

and para-church ministries in 

need of help. Christian brothers 

and sisters help distribute food, 

Bibles, and tracts with a food 

pantry. Yet others feel led to give 

financially to ministries so they 

may continue operations. You 

may be called to give aid to ministries 

like these, sharing Christ 

as you meet physical needs. It 

is gratifying to see relief come 

across faces who know they are 

not judged because they asked 

for help. We can be a part of 

giving as to the Lord (Matthew 

25:34-40) when we allow God 

to interrupt our lives for His kingdom. 

A Deeper Walk with God 

When God works in us our lives, 

we are never the same again. 

He reveals more of Himself to 

us as we serve when we see His 

work through us for the benefit 

of others. Our communication 

with Him grows more intimate. 

We lay our lives before Him to 

use when we spend more concentrated 

time in prayer. Those 

prayers are no longer a laundry 

list of needs, but a rich, deep 

conversation with our Heavenly 

Father. He gives us insight into 

life situations with a wisdom not 

our own. What a precious relationship 

we can experience by 

serving God out of gratitude for 

His tremendous love for us. 

Seeing God’s Word Come to Life 

When God opens His word up 

to us more deeply, we find ourselves 

awestruck as we see the 

reality of God’s Word for others 

lives as well as our own. The 

Bible is a storehouse of treasures. 

The Holy Spirit guides us 

to discover more life-changing 

truth when we dig deeper into 

Scripture. Our faith matures from 

the spiritual milk of God’s Word 

to solid food, as the Apostle Paul 

writes in 1 Corinthians 3:1. What 

a great opportunity for growth! 

His Blessing and Provision 

Blessings come as we meet the 

needs of others in ways that only 

God has uniquely qualified us 

to do. He opens up doors that 

would normally be closed. He 

provides for needs in ways that 

can only be described as miraculous. 

He protects our time with 

others when our efforts would 

normally be sidelined. 

Mixed Blessings 

Pastors and missionaries often 

find themselves in horrible circumstances. 

It is as if a target 

is painted on their backs. Yet 

in an awful, but joyful way they 

witness God working in people 

through those circumstances. 

Opposition at work, in school, 

and in the other areas of influence 

we have, will come. Still we 

are called to rejoice when various 

trials happen (James 1:2-4). 

Our reward is not here. As God 

told Abraham in Genesis 15:1, “I 

am your shield, your very great 

Reward.” 

We have a ministry in our workplace. 

God places us where we 

are for His purposes and His 

glory, not our own. Times come 

when a work situation is lessthan-ideal. 

It may be very difficult 

to feel the blessings. Nonetheless, 

God has placed you where 

you are for a reason. Satisfaction 

can be found in those situations 

simply because the Lord 

has chosen you to fulfill His purposes. 

Sometimes we are only 

allowed to show Christ to people 

through our attitudes and actions 

because our verbal witness is 

silenced. Those around you will 

take notice of the difference 

in your life compared to those 

of non-believers. In all circumstances 

we are told to give God 

the praise and glory, like Paul 

did in his less-than-ideal circumstances 

(Philippians 4:11-13). At 

such times, the biggest blessings 

will be learning to see God 

working in you, around you, and 

through you. What a reward you 

will receive on this side of eternity. 

You are called and uniquely 

qualified where you are. Serve 

the Lord where He has placed 

and give Him the glory in all 

things.

To Be Like 

Christ: 

A Journey of 

Transformation 

By Sebra W. Ferrell 

There’s an old Shakespearean saying, “To thine 

own self be true.” In thinking about transformation, 

being “true to self” fascinated me, so I looked 

it up to find the original quote. It goes like this, “This 

above all, to thine own self be true, And it must follow, 

as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to 

any man.” In looking at the interpretation given, I find it 

very interesting that being false to one’s self was purported 

to mean not doing things that would harm self, 

such as “borrowing money, loaning money, carousing 

with women of dubious character, and other intemperate 

pursuits” (as in lacking self-control). On the other 

hand, being true was purported to mean, “being loyal 

to your own best interests.” As the interpretation further 

explains, “Take care of yourself first…and that way 

you’ll be in position to take care of others.i Yet, as I 

contemplated this quote, two things came to mind: it 

only addresses one aspect of self and it puts self before 

others. It is these two key points I would like 

to explore as we answer some specific questions: 

How can we transform ourselves to be 

more Christ-like and how do we get through 

making some tough decisions for our own betterment? 

Let’s begin by looking at what Scripture says 

about how we can transform ourselves to be 

more Christ-like. When it comes to transformation, 

one of the most important things I learned 

was to identify and understand the two selves 

every born-again believer must come face-toface 

with: the old self and the new self. Some 

versions refer to this as the old and new man 

or the old and new nature, but in keeping with 

our Shakespearean quote, let’s stick with old 

self and new self.

“That, in reference to your former 

manner of life, you lay aside the old 

self, which is being corrupted in 

accordance with the lusts of deceit, 

23 and that you be renewed in the 

spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the 

new self, which in the likeness of God 

has been created in righteousness 

and holiness of the truth” Ephesians 

4:22 

Even though the concept of old self and new 

self is explained in various books of the Bible, I’ll 

begin our journey by looking at Ephesians 4:22- 

24, which says, “that, in reference to your former 

manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which 

is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of 

deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit 

of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which 

in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness 

and holiness of the truth” (NASB) (bold 

added). By examining these verses, we find some 

key points on how we can transform ourselves to 

be more Christ-like. Let’s begin with laying aside 

the old self, which is described as “being corrupted 

in accordance with the lusts of deceit.” 

I don’t know about anyone else, but if I am going 

to lay aside something, I first need to know what 

that something looks like. Thus, if I’m to lay aside 

my old self, I need to know how it expresses itself, 

and quite honestly, “being corrupted in accordance 

with the lusts of deceit” does not provide me the 

information I need. However, one of the things I 

absolutely love about Scripture is, if we allow it to, 

it will interpret itself and provide us all the answers 

we need. This is most definitely one of those 

times. For example, if we read further in Ephesians 

4, we see the old self operates in “bitterness, 

rage, anger, violent assertiveness and slander, 

along with all spitefulness” (v31 CJB). Likewise, if 

we turn to Galatians 5, we see a similar, but more 

expansive list of ways we know the old self is in 

charge of our lives: “sexual immorality, impurity 

and indecency; 20involvement with the occult and 

with drugs; in feuding, fighting, becoming jealous 

and getting angry; in selfish ambition, factionalism, 

intrigue [heresies] 21 and envy; in drunkenness, 

orgies and things like these” (v19-21 CJB). 

Granted, these lists are not all-inclusive, but they

do give us a better idea of how the old self acts, 

which helps us better identify when our old self is 

making the decisions in our life and when it is not. 

Now that we have an idea of what our old self looks 

like, we are faced with the challenge of how to lay it 

aside. The good news is the apostle Paul actually 

gives us a way when he tells us to “be renewed in 

the spirit of your mind” (Ephesians 4:23 NASB). 

However, through personal experience and observation 

of others, being able to renew our mind 

means we have to be able to know when our mind 

needs to be renewed, for it is very easy to walk 

in deception and not even know it! The simplest 

answer I have found for knowing when my old self 

is having its way in my life is to examine the fruit in 

my life. One of the things I like to say is if I’m being 

tormented somehow, there is a lie of the devil at 

work. Find the lie. Replace it with truth, and the 

torment will go away. Or, as I learned from James 

4:7, if I submit to God, I can resist the devil and he 

will flee, taking his torment with him! 

Submitting to God means I have to identify and 

circumcise from my thought processes everything 

that is feeding my old self. This is what the apostle 

Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 as “pulling 

down strongholds, casting down arguments and 

every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge 

of God, bringing every thought into captivity 

to the obedience of Christ,” In short, anything in my 

mind that causes me to disobey Christ has to be 

evicted, and the most effective way I have found 

to do that is through praying God’s Word, because 

it is only through prayer that I can stay committed 

to the tough decisions required to become more 

Christ-like, which leads us to our second question: 

how do we get through making some tough decisions 

for our own betterment? 

If we look back at our Shakespearean quote, on 

the surface, it looks good, because it appears to 

be telling us we harm self when we pursue things 

detrimental to our well being. However, in my personal 

journey of understanding my two selves, I 

learned transformation requires making decisions 

that deprive our old self of what it wants so our 

new self can express the righteousness we inherit 

in Christ Jesus. Therefore, the first decision we 

have to make is to decide which self do we want to 

better: the old self or the new self? Nevertheless, 

when we are willing to make the decisions that 

better the new self, our transformation becomes 

about so much more than the outward acts of just 

avoiding the borrowing and lending of money, 

staying away from those of the opposite sex who 

give us cause to question their character, and 

practicing self-control. Our decisions become 

about the inner transformation of actually putting 

“on the new self, which in the likeness of God has 

been created in righteousness and holiness of the 

truth” (NASB). 

What exactly does it mean to put on the new 

self? Again, we can find answers in Scripture. 

For instance, in Ephesians 4, the apostle Paul 

describes the new self as one who speaks truth, 

doesn’t sin in his or her anger, doesn’t give the 

devil an opportunity, “labors, performing with his 

own hands what is good, so that he will have 

something to share with one who has need,” 

“speaks what is good for edification according to 

the need of the moment, so that it will give grace 

to those who hear,” and is “kind to one another, 

tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God 

in Christ also has forgiven [them]: (v25-32 NASB). 

Likewise, in Galatians 5:25, the apostle Paul tells 

us “If we live by the Spirit, let us walk by the Spirit” 

(NASB), and if we are walking by the Spirit we 

will produce the fruit of the spirit which is “love, 

joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

gentleness, self-control” (v22-23). He even 

goes on to tell us, “Now those who belong to Christ 

Jesus have crucified the flesh [the old self] and its 

passions and desires” (v24). 

Ephesians 4:24 reminds me of a question I heard 

a long time ago. I’m not sure where or when I 

heard it, but the essence of the question was why 

do churches have a cross on top, and the answer 

was something about it being filled with a bunch 

of dead people. If I remember correctly, the comment 

was spoken as though the church being full 

of dead people was somehow negative. Honestly, 

I’m not sure what I thought at the time, but I can 

now, with full confidence, say a church filled with 

dead people is the most glorious church of all. 

Why? Because that means they have crucified 

the old self so the new self can live, and that new 

self, “which in the likeness of God has been created 

in righteousness and holiness of the truth”

desires nothing more than to bring glory, honor, 

and praise to the name of Jesus. 

However, if we are to have the wherewithal to 

make those hard decisions to better ourselves, we 

need to make sure our decisions are focused on 

ensuring we better the right version of self! For 

that to happen, we have to fully commit all that we 

are to the Lordship of Jesus and the sanctification 

His salvation brings in our lives. That means 

instead of continuing in our present way of thinking 

and doing what we’ve always done, we must seek 

to renew our minds, so we “will know what God 

wants and will agree that what he wants is good, 

satisfying and able to succeed” (Romans 12:2 

CJB). What I like about this version is it highlights 

two things: we have to know what God wants and 

we have to agree that what He wants is good, it is 

satisfying, and it is able to succeed. 

Take a moment and ask yourself this question. 

When you read something in Scripture you don’t 

agree with, how do you respond? Do, you argue 

with the Scripture or do you respond according to 

2 Timothy 3:16, knowing that “All Scripture is Godbreathed 

and is valuable for teaching the truth, 

convicting of sin, correcting faults and training in 

right living” (CJB)? I know I have spent far more 

years arguing with Scripture than I have responding 

by allowing it to teach me truth, convict me of 

sin, correct my faults and train me in right living. 

Yet, I have also learned that arguing with Scripture 

is the same as arguing with God and that is a 

no-win scenario, for He is God and I am not! 

Therefore, when I am confronted with Scripture 

that reveals my old self is at work, I have a decision 

to make. I can choose to continue on the path 

I am on or I can choose to get off that path. What 

I decide is governed by whom do I love more: my 

old self or the Lord my God. If I choose to love 

my old self more, I’m going to walk out what the 

interpretation of the Shakespearean quote says: 

“being loyal to your own best interests.” Furthermore, 

when we operate in the same mindset 

as the Shakespearean quote and put self before 

others, we are operating in direct contrast to how 

Jesus approached life. He did not put Himself first. 

In addition to saying He came to serve and not be 

served (an outward focus on others), Scripture is 

clear that He put His Father’s will before His own. 

Two such examples are found in John 4:34, and 

Luke 22:42. In John 4:34, He tells us, “My food 

is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish 

His work” (NKJV), and in Luke 22:42, He shares, 

“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from 

Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” 

Learning to yield my will to the Lord is the single 

most important decision I have ever made in learning 

in how to make the tough decisions that allow 

me to ensure I’m bettering my new self—the one 

that walks according to the Spirit—and not somehow 

bettering my old self—the one that walks 

according to the flesh. For I cannot truly love God 

with all my heart, with all my soul, and with all my 

mind (Matthew 22:37) if I’m not willing to say yes 

to His will in the same manner as Jesus did. 

Therefore, as I sum up my journey of transformation, 

I do so with these words. Transformation is 

about being willing to die to self and live for Christ 

(Philippians 1:21). If I do not see the gain in dying 

to self, I cannot be transformed into the image of 

His glory (2 Corinthians 3:18). Likewise, if I don’t 

see the value in Scripture and allow it to teach me 

truth, convict me of sin, correct my faults, or train 

me in right living, I will not be able to die to self. 

Instead I will choose to renew my mind with God’s 

truth and bring every thought into the obedience 

of Christ. I will continue to make my decisions and 

live my life based on the strongholds, arguments 

and every high thing that exalts itself against 

God’s knowledge, because giving free reign to my 

old self will only choke the life out of my new self! 

After all, Scripture teaches us if we are doubleminded 

we cannot expect to receive anything from 

God (James 1:7-8 NKJV), and there is nothing 

more double-minded than when we try to satisfy 

two masters: the old self and the new self. One 

must die so the other can live. Shakespearean 

philosophy or Scripture? The ways of the world or 

God’s ways? Those are the decisions that stand 

between us and true transformation. And, it is 

only when we take up or cross and give our will to 

the Lordship of Jesus just as He gave His will to 

the Father that we can truly become the new self, 

“which in the likeness of God has been created in 

righteousness and holiness of the truth.” Can life 

be any better than that?

Mentorship 

Leading By Example 

By Braden Becknell 

The word “mentor” is defined as “a wise and 

trusted counselor or teacher.” Mentoring”, 

the word itself, doesn’t appear in the Bible, 

Scripture does give us several examples of mentoring. 

Moses was mentored by his father-in-law 

Jethro, first as son-in-law and then as a leader. The 

mentoring connection between Eli and Samuel 

equipped Samuel for the jobs and tasks that were 

his after Eli’s passing. Even Jesus mentored His 

disciples, and both Barnabas and Paul shined in 

mentoring. 

Jesus made it clear about his view and style of 

mentoring others. He led in such a way that we 

can follow Him through our everyday lives. Jesus 

said in Matthew 16:24-26, “If anyone will come 

after me, let him deny himself, and take up his 

cross and follow me”. Since He is our leader, we 

are to follow Him as Christians. Mentoring others 

is part of the Christian faith and is a cycle dependent 

upon submission to Jesus Christ. The mentor 

and mentored do not control the friendship, but act 

upon the friendship based on the way Jesus disciple 

others. The process of mentoring others is 

best described by a mutual friendship with trust, 

care, and sharing that enriches the life of everyone 

involved when it comes to work, relationships, 

and life in general. Through this model, the mentor 

leans on the Holy Spirit for guidance when it comes 

to teaching, providing insight, and changing each 

other’s lives. 

Paul the Apostle brought a different view on mentoring 

through his leadership model in a genuine 

yet simple manner. In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul 

says “Follow my example as I follow the example

of Christ”. Then he goes on to say, in Philippians 

4:9, “Whatever you have learned or received or 

heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice”. 

Basically, he is saying, “Let me mentor 

you. Let me be your role model.” Throughout the 

course of the New Testament, Paul keeps reminding 

Christians to follow the mentorship, especially 

to the new Christians in Thessalonica. In 2 

Thessalonians 3:7 Paul says “For you yourselves 

know how you ought to follow our example”. Live 

by example, teach others, and model what it is to 

be a Christian. These are some of the aspects of 

mentoring which are vital in emerging completely 

fervent followers of Jesus Christ and in spreading 

the conviction from one generation to the next. 

With the model in mind, it goes without saying that 

if mentors expect others to listen and follow what 

they say, then they should do what they say as 

well. Although the saying “do what I say, not what 

I do”, is very popular and common it goes against 

the Christian view of mentorship and could completely 

destroy the mentor and any advice previously 

given. 

Jesus and the apostles weren’t the only mentors 

during the Biblical times. The heads of the church 

also mentored others. As it is said in 1 Peter 5:3, 

“Be examples to the flock”. Paul explained in Acts 

20 what mentorship should be by telling the elders 

in Ephesus “You know how I lived the whole time 

I was with you.” By watching the example set by 

Jesus and further shown through Paul, it becomes 

clear that any Christian who claims to be a leader 

and is not mentoring someone, then they are not 

living out their life up to the calling of The Lord. 

The Lord filled the church with many people of all 

ages, gifts, and experiences. The church leaders 

simply cannot mentor everyone they meet. For 

this reason, there are many other people within 

the church who can disciple and mentor others. 

While it is not possible for everyone to individually 

and purposefully, mentor others through hands-on 

activities, everyone can help out by seeking out 

and finding godly mentors. With the rising rates of 

born-again Christians, it becomes necessary that 

churches start equipping their members with the 

knowledge and tools necessary to mentor others. 

Most Christians agree with the insight and benefits 

of mentoring. Throughout Titus, Paul encourages 

the church to mentor other generations. This 

can be seen most clearly in Titus 2:3-5,”Likewise, 

teach the older women to be reverent in the way 

they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much 

wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can 

urge the younger women to love their husbands 

and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to 

be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject 

to their husbands, so that no one will malign the 

word of God.” Through this example, we can see 

that Paul wished that the older more wise women 

would explain and be an example for godliness in 

the church. 

Many people desire a mentor, both young woman 

and young men. The difference is that men find 

it harder to admit they need or want help. Older 

women, statistically, have a hard time with mentoring 

because they generally feel unqualified, 

disconcerted and afraid of over committing. The 

qualities of a good mentor are not absurdly hard, 

but simply a love for God and a love for people. 

Here are a few qualities of an effective and beneficial 

mentoring relationship. 

Be accessible 

You do not have to be a Biblical scholar or a 

pastor, but you should love The Lord and desire 

to follow and abide by His Holy Word, the Bible. 

There are no special degrees that will qualify you 

to be a disciple. Younger generations need the 

experience, endurance, and example from the 

older generations. Timely and godly advice can 

make the difference for any believer at any given 

level. Discipleship is best done by breaking up the 

genders. Men cannot be mothers, daughters or 

wives and women cannot be fathers, sons, or husbands. 

Women need women and men need men 

for mentorships. When it comes to deciding if you 

are ready for a multitude of decision, the best way, 

can sometimes be praying about the upcoming 

decision. However, mentorship is a command and 

as said by Norma Becker, member of the board of 

directions of Campus Crusade for Christ, Canada, 

“We don’t pray about commands.” Praying can 

help when pursuing discernment over how often 

and how long to mentor someone. 

Be persistent 

Understand what the mentored is seeking and 

desiring. Do they simply want a relationship built 

on Jesus or do they wish to better understand

the Bible? After answering this question, decide 

what to focus on during the course of the mentorship. 

Not all mentorships have to be Bible studies. 

Maybe they simply want a prayer partner, an 

accountability partner, or someone to learn from. 

Be inspired 

Some activities are better suited for each group 

for mentorship. Maybe you both enjoy walking or 

hiking. Christian mentorship isn’t about the time, 

place, or intense spirituality, but more about the 

growing and building of relationships. Going out 

for a bite to eat, working out together, and meeting 

for coffee in the middle of a hectic week could be 

all that is desire. 

Be a listener 

It has been said, The Lord gave you two ears and 

one mouth for a reason. Listen twice as much as 

you speak. When you meet this new friend try listening 

and allowing them to truly open up to you. 

However, don’t be the typically parenting figure 

offering advice for every single topic and making a 

bigger deal out of everything said. Wait until they 

request your views and opinions before offering 

them. Be dependable. Be trustworthy. 

Be authentic 

Honesty truly does make you vulnerable and more 

accessibly. We have all sinned and have been 

saved by grace, yet we still continue to sin. Transforming 

into the image of Jesus Christ is a desire 

and should be a goal, but no one is perfect and 

we should not act as such. Be genuine and show 

your weaknesses. Sometimes our weakness will 

let others know they aren’t alone in their struggle. 

Be a model 

Mentors must show that they are truly trustworthy 

and love God as they say they do. The common 

saying “Do as I say, not as I do,” is treacherous 

when it comes to mentorship. Let’s be like Paul, 

who cheered on the Corinthian church to do as he 

did in 1 Corinthians 11:1-2 “Follow my example, 

as I follow the example of Christ. I praise you for 

remembering me in everything and for holding to 

the teachings, just as I passed them on to you.” 

Finish well 

Mentoring should not be the same as a governmental 

position that lasts a lifetime. Commit to a 

certain period of time then reevaluate at that time. 

Is something not working? Is the goal complete? 

The friendship will and can last a lifetime but the 

regular meetings do not have to.

When a pet owner dies or becomes disabled, what happens to their pets? 

According to the ASPCA, 8 to 12 million dogs and cats enter shelters nationwide every year and 5 to 9 

million are euthanized (60% of dogs and 70% of cats). Of the animals surrendered to shelters, 2% to 3% are 

relinquished due to the death or disability of their human caregivers. 

“Orphaned” pets do not adjust well to the experience in a shelter—they refuse to eat, they are despondent, 

and they are often labeled “unadoptable.” Sadly, many healthy, adoptable pets are euthanized simply 

because their pet owners did not plan for their continuous care. 

Pet owners should identify committed caregivers who can care for their pets, maintain written care 

instructions and set up a finance plan or set aside funds to cover the expenses for the continued care of 

their pets. 

For more information, to volunteer or to donate please visit www@2ndchance4pets.org. 

2nd Chance 4 Pets is a 501c3 all-volunteer nonprofit advocacy organization. Our team is working to reduce the number of pets 

euthanized due to the death or disability of the pet owner. For more information, please visit 2ndchance4pets.org. Our tax ID 

number is 13-4280812. 

www.2ndchance4pets.org

November 2015

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