Bruce A. Shields

Vain Imaginations and Lying to Ourselves https://ift.tt/pT7LRV2 One of the biggest roadblocks, or "stumbling block," as scripture calls it, we face in our spiritual walk is the fact that we cannot only lie to ourselves but also believe our own lies. "The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" - Jeremiah 17:9 We sometimes lie to ourselves because we cannot face the truth. Unable to take on the responsibility and work that the truth may bring to us. It becomes easier to believe the lie and remain complacent in our lives. Sometimes, this happens because we lack knowledge or understanding of the word of God. "The wisdom of the sensible is to understand his way, But the foolishness of fools is deceit." - Proverbs 14:8 Sometimes, we know the word of God but ignore it in hopes of not having to deal with difficult truths, thus not being "doers" of God's word. "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves." - James 1:22 "If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth;" - 1 John 1:6 Sometimes, we reject the truth, not only because we feel it is too much to "deal with" or accept, but to continue the illusion of truth we have built around us in our lives and create our own reality, where we no longer have to deal with seemingly overwhelming issues. This is referred to in scripture as "vain imaginations" and pride. "Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise." - 1 Corinthians 3:18 "For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself." - Galatians 6:3 Whenever we think we know more than scripture or consider ourselves more "wise," we deceive ourselves. When we believe we have control or create illusions for ourselves to avoid difficulties in this life, we deceive ourselves. Our vain imaginations may create the illusion we desire to keep us from facing the uncomfortable or seemingly insurmountable truth. However, ignoring scripture and closing your eyes to the reality around you in hopes of avoiding the difficulties will not change reality, and there will still be consequences. "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap." - Galatians 6:7 "Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself; For emptiness will be his reward." - Job 15:31 The grand illusion of deceiving yourself may give you a brief respite from reality, but if you allow it to go on, you will only suffer from the consequences of what you were trying to avoid. "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must test himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world." 1 Corinthians 11:27-32 Let us stand outside ourselves and judge ourselves through the eyes of scripture. Pray the Lord allows you to see the truth in the matter and guide His word in you so that you may have the strength in Him to overcome whatever you face in this world rather than fool yourself into thinking there is nothing to deal with. Ignoring the reality will always lead to pain and suffering. In contrast, the truth of God's Holy Word will always bring peace and healing. https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2f5c0c_9352878790d642a882506de77c116e34/720p/mp4/file.mp4 To discover more about spiritual maturity and what may be keeping you from growing in the Lord, check out my latest book, Drowning in Milk: A Guide to Spiritual Maturity, available now on Amazon. I wrote this book to help Christians recognize the symptoms of spiritual immaturity and identify the possible root cause to remove the stumbling block from our growth in the Lord. It is filled with scripture that both describes what the spiritually mature and immature act like and what the bible suggests be done about it. I believe this book will help anyone who wishes to grow closer to the Lord, mature spiritually, and, through understanding scripture and oneself, successfully navigate a life that continuously places us around others who may not be mature in the Lord. I believe by focusing on our own spiritual maturity, we will not only be able to have a deeper relationship with God but also become equipped to help others mature through mentoring, studies, and small group discussions. This is why I put a Bible Study and Small Group Discussion at the end of the book. Drowning in Milk: A Guide to Spiritual Maturity is a great tool for Christian growth, and I believe it is an excellent tool for any Christian or pastor to have as a reference in their library. Grab your copy today! Don't forget this would make a great Christmas gift as well! via Author B. A. Shields Official Website https://ift.tt/KuBeAVT November 10, 2023 at 07:51AM

Drowning in Milk: A Guide to Spiritual Maturity https://ift.tt/KX0yEoF I am excited to announce that I have finished the final edit of my latest book, Drowning in Milk: A Guide to Spiritual Maturity. After taking a little time off from writing my last science fiction novel (Losing Dani Strumm), I was ready for a change and wanted to write a book on Christian spiritual maturity. I have wanted to write this book since I began teaching nearly twenty years ago at the Baptist church where I served as an Elder. It had become evident that many in the church had attended for years, behaving as if they had only discovered Christianity. As an Elder, some of my responsibilities were dealing with family issues, marriage counseling, pre-marital counseling, etc. It had become painfully apparent after a short time that nearly all of the perceived problems within these situations, as well as the perceived problems within the church congregation, could be resolved with a bit of maturity, spiritual maturity, to be precise. I call them "perceived" because they were not the actual root cause of the issues, but rather, the symptoms of a deeper and more problematic issue we face in the church today: Spiritual Maturity, or lack thereof. Over the years, I have had many experiences dealing with problems in the congregation, especially after serving as interim pastor at the Baptist church and later as the senior pastor of the church I pastor today. I have seen many churches drift away from the small groups and bible studies, especially after COVID-19, and the results are congregation members not growing spiritually because they are no longer surrounded by other believers discussing the scripture together. I began to look deeper into the issues and recognized that the perceived problems were symptoms, and the matter was immature Christian behavior, which I found can be caused by a few different "root" issues. In my latest book, Drowning in Milk: A Guide to Spiritual Maturity, I break down what the scriptures say about the spiritually mature (and immature) as well as take a close look at the signs of immaturity (symptoms) to try and discern the root cause and deal with it. To help with the matter, I also include a Discussion Guide and Small Group Topics in my book to help the readers examine the issue and better understand how to grow spiritually and experience a more peaceful walk with Christ. I pray this book blesses you and helps you better understand yourself and your relationship with God and others. via Author B. A. Shields Official Website https://ift.tt/zn5g0S4 October 23, 2023 at 10:51AM