Spirituality Tips Guides

Laying on of hands has become almost a mass industry where people are hoping for an instant solution but does God work that way?

‘Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, and do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure’. (1 Tim 5 v 22) Have you ever stopped to wonder why this command is in the Bible?

Have you ever been to a meeting or a conference where people have flocked forward for prayer with the laying on of hands? Have you yourself perhaps gone forward? Why? What were you looking for?

A quick look at Scripture will show that the laying on of hands was generally for consecration, blessing and commissioning.

Jacob pronounces a blessing on Ephraim and Manasseh by laying his hands on their heads. (Gen 48 v 14)

In Numbers 27 v 22-23 Moses places Joshua before the priest and before the congregation and then lays his hands on him to commission him as instructed by the Lord.

The result of which was seen in Joshua, ‘Now Joshua son of Nun, was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him.’ (Deut 34 v 9)

Paul says to Timothy, ‘For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands’. (2Tim 1 v 6)

Then we have several places where Jesus lays his hands on people or touches them as he frees them from their sicknesses. (Lk 13 v 13)

Healing is an important point to mention here. If we are believers our first port of call is NOT the doctor but to call for the elders.(James 5 v 14-16)

If we go first to the doctor then we are being disobedient to the Lord by not obeying His Word. How many of us are still ill because we go to the doctor first?

It is to the evangelist who preaches to the non-believer who will see his word confirmed by signs and wonders as he lays his hands on the unsaved for healing.(Mk 16 v 17-18)

Evangelist David Hathaway ministers extensively in Russia to large numbers of non-believers.

On one occasion when about 800 people came forward to commit their lives to following Jesus, he was keen that they should understand who this God really was.

He asked those who had broken limbs to come forward. About 11 did. David said, ‘that you might know who this God is, His power and His love, He is going to heal each one of you’ and He did.

Wow! What boldness but how exciting.

If we are so desperate to be healed and receive from God that we allow all and sundry to lay hands on us we are in grave danger of receiving from their spirit and so ’share in their sins’.

We are to, ‘keep ourselves pure’.

Many people are becoming aware that they have received prayer with the laying on of hands from people they know next to nothing about.

At some later stage they have found that it has been necessary for them to repent, because in their ignorance, unhealthy stuff has come their way.

Surely we need to do a bit of investigation about a person before we allow them to lay hands on us?

Let’s focus first on the Lord and truly learn to love Him, worship Him, get to know Him and give to Him.

As our intimacy with Him develops and our ability to know what pleases Him increases, we can trust that He will guide us into all truth.

He’s longing for us to delight ourselves in Him first. Seek ye first the Kingdom of God. God is the King of that Kingdom.

Tips and Guides: Copyright 2008 Penny Shellswell Jointly leads training courses in Intimacy with the Father. Holy Spirit is stirring believers across the UK to intercession. True intercession is touching God’s heart for His strategy, with our prayer and travail until God’s assurance is received. The goal? Winning the lost and dying of the UK through the setting up of 800 Intercession groups. http://www.OutOfAfrica-uk.org

In every situation, in every day life, there are always going to be tools you can utilize and this is no different with the Law of Attraction. By definition, positive affirmations are positive daily statements you can use to align the energy in your life. When you are saying these positive affirmations and positive words you are in turn rewriting you internal programming, from negative thinking to positive thinking and from negative results to positive results. Yea, this is one of the hardest things to do, but think of the ending results, think of what’s possible!

Positive affirmations may start as a daily to-do list, however, you will find that the affirmations will not seem like a chore to you anymore but instead as natural as the process of us breathing. When we breath, we don’t think about it (though some say we should). Its just one of those natural things that happens. And for those interested, no, us positive thinkers are not blind to the problems of the world, we just choose to focus on what is good rather than what is bad. This is more of a choice than anything else. It not only helps us stay positive, but it in turn helps us to receive the every day gifts we do receive.

The brain is constantly being bombarded by words, images, thoughts, impressions, and reactions. The brain works as a super computer, it is the center of all of this, and it must deal with all this “input” and make sense of it. When the mind is overwhelmed with negative thoughts, negative feelings through the body and spirit are its reactions. Medical science has countless studies showing that constant negativity is harmful to your immune system, nervous system and your health in general!

Further more, negative people are more prone to high blood pressure, heart attacks, stroke, and immune system disorders. Psychologists teach a technique called reframing. If you have a wonderfully beautiful painting that begins to look shabby because of the old, splintered frame, then change it. Place the old painting inside a new frame, and the picture will instantly look better and more valuable. That’s a metaphor for reframing responses to situations. You cannot control the situation, but you can control your response to it.

Changing your response can significantly change your feelings about the situation. For instance, think of the last time you were stuck in traffic on your way to work or on your way to important meeting. I’m sure you were angry, annoyed and you may have even cussed a few people out. Things didn’t get better, did they? The more you yelled, the more you made a stink out of the situation, the worse it probably got. Instead of just keeping quiet, or better yet saying oh this is no big deal, I’m going to make great time! You instead made things worse by complaining. Remember the universe is all about the energy! If you bring negative thoughts, in turn, negative things will happen. On the other hand if you bring positive thoughts, positive things will happen.

Positive thinking generates energy and power while negative thinking drains power and energy. Which one do you want in your life? Make a choice today!

Tips and Guides: This author is a HUGE fan of Apply “The Secret” to your life. Visit www.envisionfreedom.net to see where the Secret Left off

I once heard a teaching story about 2 grizzled hunters who met in a bar in the Yukon. After a few drinks, they started to argue about the existence of God. One man insisted that there was a God while his opponent was just as sure there was no God. “Yes there is!” “No there isn’t!” “God exists!” “No He doesn’t, and I can prove it.”

The non-believer said, “I was out hunting when a snow storm caught me. The snow came down hard and obliterated the trail. I was lost. I didn’t know what to do, so I got down on my knees and prayed, God, if there is a God, please help me now.” “You are here.That proves that God exists,” said the believer. “No it doesn’t,” said his opponent. “Some darn Eskimo came along and showed me the way back to town!”

We all have Eskimos who come into our lives and show us the way. My definition of Eskimos is that they are strangers who come into our life and give us information or opportunities that lead us forward toward a positive experience or goal. Lately, I have been looking back on my life, trying to figure out which Eskimos helped me and how it occurred.

Thirty years ago I came across a wonderful book about a new approach to weight loss. It was a self-published book that wasn’t sold in the stores but was circulated by word of mouth. The book combined what we now call Behavior Modification with spirituality. I was so taken with the ideas that I wrote the author, Elizabeth Keyes, a letter explaining my own issues and how I was inspired by her belief that we can be “free of the bondage of food.” Amazingly, she replied, and offered me ideas.

Elizabeth became my mentor. She guided me to start a class and tell people about what she named the “art of gentle eating.” Her generosity and love sustained me as I taught more and more classes, usually through local adult education facilities. Interpreting her ideas eventually led me to write my own book, How to Stop Playing the Weighting Game.

In time, various people in my classes asked to see me alone to discuss personal problems. Therapists heard about my classes and I was invited to give a presentation at a counseling center. Then another Eskimo appeared. The director of the center suggested that I look into getting licensed as a psychotherapist. At that time I was a single parent and could not afford the time or the money to go back to school, however I promised to contact the state agency to inquire. I did and was told that in one month the law was going to change to mandate that Marriage and Family Therapists had to have a Masters degree in psychology, but for another thirty days people with advanced degrees in Education or Sociology were eligible for licensing. I got in under the wire with my degree in Education and was able to qualify and get my license in a short time.

I owe my most recent success as author and practitioner in the field of energy psychology to another Eskimo. More than 10 years ago I was attending a workshop. During the break, as I was leaving the room, the man next to me began a conversation. As we talked, he mentioned that there was a strange technique called Thought Field Therapy that he had seen created by someone named Dr. Roger Callahan. Callahan tapped on the face of a person who was afraid of heights and took away the fear in minutes. Since I didn’t like heights either, the stranger demonstrated as we stood at a second floor balcony. I was soon able to look over the balcony and was very impressed.

The next day I began to look into this strange process with little luck, but I was so enthralled I kept trying. Eventually, I discovered that a workshop in TFT was available nearby. That training changed my life and the way I practiced psychotherapy. I did not see my Eskimo for seven years. Then I bumped into him at a party. I was delighted to share with him how that chance encounter had turned my life around. Was he surprised!

As I look over the course of my life I am aware of even more Eskimos who have come my way, and I feel grateful. Think about the strangers who have changed the course of your life.

One day, as I was coming out of the bank, a woman stopped me and told me that as a result of taking one of my classes, she had decided to go back to school and study law. I was thrilled that I had been her Eskimo. Perhaps you have been someone’s Eskimo too.

Tips and Guides: Gloria Arenson, MFT, treats stress, anxiety, trauma, phobias, and compulsions. She has authored How to Stop Playing the Weighting Game, A Substance Called Food, Born To Spend, Five Simple Steps to Emotional Healing, Freedom At Your Fingertips and Procrastination Nation. http://www.GloriaArenson.com