Hope's Harbor Podcast - Gritty Bible Devotions

Warfare surrounds us - spiritual warfare. To go through each day unprotected is begging for assault from a determined enemy.

Discover what the armor is and how it is important to understand each piece and how to don it correctly.

Get ready, for if you will complete this study during the next 7 episodes you'll be ready for war, and to fight the LORD's battles.

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Forgiving others may be the most difficult requirement GOD makes of us. But if we will join Him by forgiving others we find it sets us free.

Free to move on.

Forgiveness does not excuse the one who wronged you and caused so much pain and loss.

Neither is forgiving others a requirement you stay in a relationship or even in contact with the one who betrayed you. Especially abusers. And especially when it is a family member.

Or even worse, if it is the whole clan you were born into who's turned against you. This happened to me years ago. It started with one abuser and spread.

Discover in this episode the benefits to us when we forgive and release that burden we've carried for too long.

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Unjustified anger is toxic. This episode examines ways to reduce harmful anger and possibly rid ourselves of it altogether.
 
 The example from the Bible is an event in the life of David when he was on the run for his life. A greedy man caused David's anger to flare leading David to gird on his sword and lead 400 men at arms against this man.
 
 Find out what happens when a good woman intervenes with David and saves her household in the process. She also saves David from committing murder before he becomes king.
 
 There are resources for helping with anger named in the episode and also contained in the 
Show Notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Moses was an angry man. Even though GOD was patient with His servant, Moses's anger cost him dearly at the end of his life.

Unreasonable anger - do you have it? It is toxic, you know.

Toxic anger. If you've been on the receiving end of it you know how destructive it is. Anger, when it is wrong, causes damage not only to those being abused by it but also it causes harm to the one carrying it.

Have you heard the saying anger is like acid and eats the container holding it? Yeah, anger carries a high price for everyone, even the angry one.

Anger, when it is right, is rare. We should be angry at injustice, theft, and assault against innocent people, especially violence against children.

But what to do when anger overcomes us?

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

This episode touches lightly on PTSD, its symptoms and looks at a few common treatments.

PTSD is too complex to examine fully here. Even though I was diagnosed with it in 2010, the level I experience is minor compared to those with complex PTSD.

One benefit I intend here is to point out that having this affliction does not make us crazy.

GOD did not create us for trauma. Our brains and minds and spirits aren't equipped to handle it well. Yes, some are able to function better than others. But that's not the point.

Trauma causes a wound to the spirit, the mind, and to emotions. It's all tied together although the effects become evident in different ways depending on each person's strengths and weaknesses.

Another benefit I hope to convey is we can manage the effects of PTSD with knowledge gained through counseling, as difficult as that can be. And yes, it takes work.

Show notes may be found at hopesharbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

When you go after fear. What does this mean?

It means when you stop giving into fears, the phobias keeping you in a prison of misery.

You go after them using resources available whether through counseling or reading some self-help book, or learning from online resources like MayoClinic.org. 

Fears can be faced and overcome, at least to the point they no longer control your life. This may take professional counseling. The point is to take action. This episode examines a couple of methods used by counselors to reduce the effects of fear and in some cases remove them altogether.

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Fear can have a useful influence on us, like when we come up on a snake, or get too close to the edge of a cliff.

Unreasonable fear can be unhealthy and keep us from enjoying life to the fullest. Like when fear keeps us from applying for a job we really want but are too afraid to try.

Unreasonable fear can keep us from having friends, especially when we've been burned before.

Unhealthy fear can keep us from resting through peaceful sleep and this is normally exhibited by anxiety.

Unhealthy fear can bring deep anger to the surface.

Find out in this episode whether you have unreasonable, unhealthy fear controlling you.

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Fear is without question a fact of life. The question is what can we do about it. This episode explains fear as it relates to GOD.  (Parts 2 and 3 present ways to understand and manage fear in everyday life.)

There are two types of fear concerning GOD.

It is necessary to fully understand fear in its components, especially where GOD is concerned; and it is necessary to understand how fear affects the way we live, and what to do about unhealthy fear. Many Christians have an unhealthy fear of GOD.

I've experienced unhealthy fear related to GOD and life around me. It is evident by the anxiety it brings. The principles contained in this episode (E64) and the next two, E65 and 66, are effective in helping to understand fear and manage it, and listen, not only manage it but in some cases remove it entirely.

Show notes at hopesharbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Grace is one of those Bible words that are more than just a word. It is a characteristic, it is descriptive of GOD, a desired quality for us, and more.

The Bible declares that we are saved by grace and why:

Ephesians 2:4 - 'But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us...'

Ephesians 2:7 - 'That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:8 - 'For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Ephesians 2:9 - 'Not of works, lest anyone should boast.'

GOD's Grace is free.

Show notes at Hopesharbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

GOD's Word as found in the Bible is full of promises. Claiming those promises by faith takes understanding which promises apply to us today, and when we find the ones we need, they must be claimed by faith.

This is not name-it-and-claim-it heresy. We must avoid presumption upon GOD. Rather it's understanding GOD's promises when they apply to us are meant to bring a blessing in due time. This is where faith definitely comes in.

The exciting part? GOD is waiting on us to ask.

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net

Show notes at HopesHarbor.net