Need Pain Relief? A two-stage remedy

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Need Pain Relief?

A two-stage remedy

 by Victor Kubik Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

It's one thing to hurt physically, but when you have mental and emotional anguish, Jesus Christ is there to take on your burdens.

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Where do you go for pain relief from what’s plaguing your mind and spirit?

“The pain is too much…it’s more than I can bear!”

God—through His Son Jesus Christ—makes available real spiritual power to calm and heal a distressed mind.

I want to talk about pain that comes not from injury or health, but from emotional and mental distress. For physical pain there are physical remedies, but where do you go for pain relief from what’s plaguing your mind and spirit? Emotional pain can hurt worse than physical injury. It can flood in relentlessly when we unexpectedly suffer the loss of a loved one. We can anguish over finances, over hurt from a betrayal or a broken relationship. The list of causes is long. As physical pain comes from accidents or mistakes, the same is true for emotional agony. We have all said and done things that have brought on painful consequences. We have also been victims of someone else’s actions.
Is relief—even outright release—from this kind of distressing pain available?
Knowing full well the human condition, God—through His Son Jesus Christ—makes available real spiritual power to calm and heal a distressed mind.
Here’s remedy number one: “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7, New International Version). Peter here of course refers to Jesus Christ, whom the Bible identifies as our elder brother.
The Greek word translated “cast” is transliterated epiriptó . It means to throw, cast with purpose.
If we’re worried about something—and who isn’t in this day and age—we’re to literally take those worries and cast them, throw them, onto our Elder Brother Jesus Christ. During His earthly life, Jesus experienced the whole scale of human emotion—He knows how we feel, and He knows how to comfort us. And He knew what to do about it when He regularly prayed to His Father for help.
But have you ever found that sometimes, even if we pray: “Father, I will do what I read and know. I cast my worries and fears on you; you may have them,” we have a tendency to take these very worries and fears back? It can be tough to let our fears, our anxieties, and our concerns go. For many people, we’re not wired that way. We want to fix, manage and control wherever we find ourselves.
So to achieve real pain relief from emotional and spiritual distress, the first part is to let go and turn your problems and challenges over to God.
What’s the second part? That involves trust. As we turn our problems and challenges over to God, yielding our will and lives to Him, we ask Him to lead us, and we expect that He will do so, even if it’s in a direction that we did not previously consider.
That leads us to a favorite verse of mine: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Did you notice that this verse ends with a major promise? God will direct us; He will provide pain relief. To “trust” in God means to believe that He will do what He says He will do, and then allow Him to do it!
We all have our part in resolving a difficulty that results in pain. Relief often occurs when we yield and actually start to trust God. The Proverb raises the trust bar high: “with all your heart.” So as much as our strength allows, we strive to fulfill this.
God will answer that prayer today.
Once we’ve yielded, we ask God to calm our mind. Sometimes it takes time. Medical research shows that our physical state often changes when we’re distressed. Together with our mind, our whole body needs to “stand down.” As our spiritual trust is rewarded and increased, a peace—sometimes even a fresh joy—emerges in its place as we recover.
Some tough emotional pain lasts for a while, and it lasts for good reason. For example, the tragic loss of a loved one is not something that someone simply “gets over” quickly. Many emotional and spiritual wounds can—and often do—take time to heal.
But wherever you may be on the spectrum of emotional or spiritual pain, God and Jesus Christ are there to help you.
I can confidently tell you that this works. Since I work so much with people, and I am often pained by what I observe or experience by the actions of others and myself, I have had many instances where I’ve seen this work. When I literally throw the pain and situation to God the Father and to Jesus Christ, They help relieve that pain.
But They do more than that. By casting my care upon God, I learn from the experience. I may learn what I could have done better or what I could have done to prevent or lessen the pain. Like strengthening our physical health or taking care to avoid accidents, we learn how to avoid emotional pain.
A mind filled with pain sometimes could use the comfort and solace that comes from talking things out. You might be interested to know that we have trained pastors all over the United States and in international areas who are available to speak with you. I invite you to visit our “Congregations” section of our website . When you find one that’s close by, click or tap, and it will give you the phone number and e-mail access to our local pastor and his wife. Please feel free to contact them.
Need pain relief? Powerful spiritual resources are available to you right now!
 

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  Victor Kubik

  United Church of God President

  Active in the ministry of Jesus Christ for more than four decades, Victor Kubik is a long-time pastor and Christian writer who, together with his wife Beverly, has served in pastoral and administrative roles in churches and regions in the American Midwest, Europe, Asia and Africa. In addition to his broad speaking role, he regularly contributes to church publications and writes a blog for the Beyond Today and UCG web sites. He was named president of the United Church of God in 2013 by the Church’s 12-man Council of Elders.
  

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Mumbai Attacks Highlight Threat from Radical Islam

Posted on Jul 12, 2006 by Darris McNeely Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

From WNP Senior Writer Melvin Rhodes:

After the train bombings in the Indian city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay) on July 11th,  there was fairly extensive reporting on the terror attacks in the Lansing State Journal, the daily newspaper that serves the state capital of Michigan.   The chief suspects, according to the Associated Press article, were “Kashmiri separatists”.

Not once were the words “Moslem” or “Islamic” mentioned, in keeping with the tenets of political correctness which still maintain that all religions are equally valid and that Islam is really a religion of peace!  However, Kashmiri separatists are all Moslems, fighting to break away from predominantly Hindu India and unite with the Islamic nation of Pakistan.  At the same time, it should be noted that a number of trains were blown up in Mumbai, all within eleven minutes.  Simultaneous attacks are a trademark of al-Qaeda.  These attacks on the rapid transit system in India's financial capital are very similar to previous attacks in Madrid in 2004 and in London in 2005.

Following the 7/11 attacks, security was heightened in New York, America's financial capital.  It appears increasingly as if al-Qaeda is targeting financial centers in an attempt to bring down the western financial system.  Mumbai, the financial center at the heart of one of the world's fastest growing economies, was the most likely target in India for this reason.  The bombings all took place in the rush hour, again copying those in Madrid and London.  The bombings will likely turn out to be the responsibility of a local al-Qaeda affiliate, as Muslim militants around the world increasingly work together to achieve the common goal of Islamic domination.

The bombings in Mumbai were just one incident that hit the headlines for one day in what is increasingly being called “The Long War”, a conflict seemingly without end.

Increasingly, it appears that the radical followers of Islam are winning against a western world that is more and more divided, both between the various governments and also within the individual countries themselves.

It should be clear to all that the threat from radical Islam is growing.  It should also be noted that the focus of worldwide terrorism does seem to be on financial targets like London, New York and Mumbai, in a clear attempt to destroy confidence, upon which the western economic system is built.

(The remainder of this article will appear in the August WNP)

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  Darris McNeely

  Beyond Today Presenter

  Darris McNeely works at the United Church of God home office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He and his wife, Debbie, have served in the ministry for more than 32 years. They have two sons, both married. Darris is the Associate Media Producer for the Church. He also is a guest instructor in Early Church History at the Ambassador Bible College. He enjoys hunting, travel and reading.
  

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Immigration How a Foreign Invasion Is Reshaping the West

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Immigration

How a Foreign Invasion Is Reshaping the West

Posted on Aug 1, 2010 by Melvin Rhodes Listen 

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In the last 50 years, millions of people from the Third World have moved into the Western democracies. Many have contributed to the welfare of these nations, but others lack work skills, proper education and democratic convictions. What will it mean if and when these ever-growing minorities begin to constitute the majority in several key countries?

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Immigration: How a Foreign Invasion Is Reshaping the West

Suddenly, immigration is becoming a bigger issue throughout the Western world. Governments around the globe are very concerned about potential problems that massive immigration may bring.
The American state of Arizona, which borders Mexico, recently passed a law authorizing police to inquire of people they've stopped for other legitimate reasons if they are in the United States legally, should there be sufficient reason to suspect otherwise, and to ask for proof of their legal status in such case. Illegal immigrants have contributed to mounting crime, increasing health and educational costs and other problems in the state.
Most of Arizona's citizens support the law, though some organizations outside the state have announced boycotts, which could cost it a great deal. Even the federal government is considering filing lawsuits to prevent the law from being implemented.

Immigration reshaping Western countries

A car bomb placed in New York City's Times Square on May 1, 2010, was the 11th attempted terrorist act in the city of New York since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The bomb—which, thankfully, failed to go off as planned—raised some deeply troubling questions about even legal immigration.
How could a young Pakistani immigrant who lived the American dream possibly want to kill hundreds of his fellow citizens? The United States and other Western democracies, still coming to terms with radical Islam, are finding it hard to fathom. It just doesn't fit into the multicultural ideal!
France, Belgium, Italy and other European countries are passing laws to block Islamic women from wearing full veils in public. Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel is insisting the country's large Turkish population should assimilate, while the Turkish prime minister insists they should have their own separate schools to protect their Islamic identity.
Meanwhile, a Danish cartoonist whose cartoon depicting the prophet Muhammad led to riots in a number of countries was threatened by an ax-wielding intruder, and a Swedish cartoonist was physically attacked by protesters shouting “Allah is great!” as he gave a lecture on free speech. Muslims insist that freedom of speech, long cherished in the West, has its limits.
In Britain, the issue of immigration may have cost Prime Minister Gordon Brown the recent election. When a 65-year-old supporter of his own party approached him during the campaign and expressed concern about all the immigrants from Eastern Europe flowing into her neighborhood, Mr. Brown was overheard in his car describing her as a “bigoted woman.”  Leaders clearly don't like the sensitive issue of immigration being brought up.
But it's not going to go away.

Majorities becoming minorities in their own land

People are feeling increasingly threatened by the changing demographics in their own nations. The ethnic composition of Western countries is rapidly altering due to massive immigration in the last few decades. The United States alone took in 10 million more immigrants in the seven years following Sept. 11, 2001—many of them from countries rife with radical Islamists. To many citizens, this just doesn't make sense.
An increasing number of Americans are aware that these demographic changes will lead to a majority nonwhite population in their own lifetimes. How they handle this will determine the country's future. As Time magazine put it: “How the current majority reacts to its incipient minority status is the most crucial socio-demographic issue facing the country” (Gregory Rodriguez, “The White Anxiety Crisis,” March 22, 2010, international edition).
In an amazing break from tradition, many Western nations changed their immigration policies after World War II and welcomed millions of people from the Third World. Even the United States, often deemed a cultural “melting pot,” had an immigration policy prior to 1965 that favored maintaining the racial status quo.
The late Senator Edward Kennedy's 1965 immigration bill deliberately changed earlier policy, welcoming a big influx of immigrants from the world's poorer nations. At the time, Americans were assured it would not alter the ethnic mix and social fabric of their nation.
Now it's evident this assurance was false. One could easily make the argument that the election of America's first African-American president would not have happened without the reality of changing demographics.

Immigration leading to unrest

The issue of immigration was briefly discussed on NBC's Chris Matthews Show on May 9, 2010.
During the program, John Heilemann of New York magazine observed: “We're going through one of these once-in-a-century transformations that cuts across a lot of different things—cultural change, there's big demographic change, there's big economic change, and technological change, and it makes people really nervous. It's been going on for about 15 years in America—the sense of anxiety, the sense we've lost control of our lives.”
Also on the show was Cynthia Tucker, a columnist with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, who offered this perspective: “I've always thought that this great melting pot or salad, however you want to describe this diverse nation, works as long as the economy is good, as long as the pie is growing and every American believes he or she has an opportunity to get a piece of that pie, we're all pretty happy.”
However, now that the economy is not doing so well, the United States could be in for a more stressful time when it comes to assimilating the various ethnic groups that now live in the country.
The same applies elsewhere, of course. Some of the eurozone countries are on the brink of financial collapse due to decades of overspending. Severe government spending cuts are inevitable. The nations have already seen unemployment rise. Without jobs, many are already blaming immigrants for their situation.
In the latest election in Britain, the anti-immigrant British National Party almost tripled the share of the vote it received in the 2005 election. In fact, anti-immigrant parties are seeing growing support in a number of European countries.
The perceived threat applies on several different levels.

Security a growing concern

Besides feeling that their way of life is threatened, both culturally and economically, people are also becoming more concerned about security as radical terror movements increasingly recruit homegrown terrorists. Commenting on the recent attempted bombing in Times Square, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies professor Fouad Ajami wrote the following in the May 10, 2010, Wall Street Journal:
“'A Muslim has no nationality except his belief,' the intellectual godfather of the Islamists, Egyptian Sayyid Qutb, wrote decades ago. Qutb's 'children' are everywhere now; they carry the nationalities of foreign lands and plot against them. The Pakistani-born Faisal Shahzad [who set up the car bomb] is a devotee of Sayyid Qutb's doctrine, and Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter, was another.
“Qutb was executed by the secular dictatorship of [Egyptian President] Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1966. But his thoughts and legacy endure. Globalization, the shaking up of continents, the ease of travel, and the doors for immigration flung wide open by Western liberal societies have given Qutb's worldview greater power and relevance. What can we make of a young man like Shahzad working for [the cosmetics company] Elizabeth Arden, receiving that all-American degree, the MBA, jogging in the evening in Bridgeport, then plotting mass mayhem in Times Square?
“The Islamists are now within the gates. They fled the fires and the failures of the Islamic world but brought the ruin with them. They mock national borders and identities. A parliamentary report issued by Britain's House of Commons on the London Underground bombings of July 7, 2005, lays bare this menace and the challenge it poses to a system of open borders and modern citizenship.
“The four men who pulled off those brutal attacks, the report noted, 'were apparently well integrated into British society.' Three of them were second-generation Britons born in West Yorkshire. The oldest, a 30-year-old father of a 14-month-old infant, 'appeared to others as a role model to young people.' One of the four, 22 years of age, was a boy of some privilege; he owned a red Mercedes given to him by his father and was given to fashionable hairstyles and designer clothing…Two of the four, rather like Faisal Shahzad, had spent time in Pakistan before they pulled off their deed.
“A year after the London terror, hitherto tranquil Canada had its own encounter with the new Islamism. A ring of radical Islamists were charged with plotting to attack targets in southern Ontario with fertilizer bombs. A school-bus driver was one of the leaders of these would-be jihadists.
“A report by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service unintentionally echoed the British House of Commons findings. 'These individuals are part of Western society, and their “Canadianness” makes detection more difficult. Increasingly, we are learning of more and more extremists that are homegrown. The implications of this shift are profound'” (“Islam's Nowhere Men: Millions Like Faisal Shahzad Are Unsettled by a Modern World They Can Neither Master nor Reject,” emphasis added).

Prophecy warned of consequences for national sins

The modern descendants of the ancient Israelites include many of the nations that make up today's Western world. In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, God promised tremendous physical blessings if they would obey Him, but He also warned them of the dire consequences of disobedience. The promised blessings for obedience are awe-inspiring; the assurances of punishment for sins are deeply troubling.
These chapters make for sobering reading when we consider trends in recent years. In Deuteronomy 32, verse 25 warns of “terror within”—a prophecy clearly being fulfilled now, with an even greater increase in the problem likely still to come.
The apostle Paul spoke of how God created “from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings” (Acts 17:26).
Of course, this passage does not mean that correctly controlled immigration is inherently wrong, seeing that when the Israelites left Egypt the door was opened for a certain number of non-Israelites to dwell among them. However, they had to leave their culture behind and abide by the same laws God gave the Israelites. We are now learning the negative consequences of the multicultural society that has been propagated for the last 50 years.
Mixing cultures, and especially religions, can be volatile! We should have known that before the change in immigration laws just by looking at history and at other societies where mixing religions has led to serious tension and conflict.
The people of Europe feel particularly threatened. With higher population densities than the United States and closer proximity to the volatile Middle East, many West European nations have significantly high Muslim populations. Add to this Europe's low birthrate in contrast to the high Islamic birthrate, and the potential for violent conflict only increases.
And as we've seen, it's not just security that is threatened. Economics also play a major role. God Himself warned of serious consequences for the native peoples as a result of immigration: “The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail” (Deuteronomy 28:43-44).
In other words, the strangers—those of foreign cultures and religions—will end up on top, in control and in time possibly dictating a way of life foreign to the indigenous population.
This is, of course, exactly what happened when European settlers started arriving in North America, Australia and elsewhere—they ended up on top and in control, displacing the native populations. Now, two or three centuries later, they are the ones losing control to newer arrivals.
Immigration trends and birthrates show that sometime in this century the peoples who currently dominate most of the Western nations will be minorities in their own lands. Whatever you may think of the ethnic mix, the reality is that significant change is underway, and it's threatening no less than the future of Western civilization. GN

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  Melvin Rhodes

  Melvin Rhodes is a member of the United Church of God congregation in Lansing, Michigan. You can read his blog at melvinrhodes.wordpress.com.
  

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Criminal activity runs in some families

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World News and Trends

Criminal activity runs in some families

  by Jerold Aust, John Ross Schroeder Estimated reading time: 1 minute

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Crime in America tends to run in families. Nearly half of inmates in state prisons have family members who either are or have been incarcerated.

Crime in America tends to run in families. Nearly half of inmates in state prisons have family members who either are or have been incarcerated.
Three brothers in Louisiana are all convicted murderers serving life sentences in the state prison system. Among the many prisoners awaiting capital punishment in California are six sets of brothers. Texas has already executed six sets of siblings, and two sets of cousins are on death row.
In addition to female partner Bonnie Parker, the 1930s notorious robber and murderer Clyde Barrow also had a brother who occasionally joined him in robbing banks. Brothers Jesse and Frank James made a career of crime in the late 1800s.
Clearly family members influence one another for better or for worse. According to USA Today,“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says an estimated 2 million children with one or both parents incarcerated face the greatest risk of perpetuating the cycle of crime across generations” (Jan. 29, 2008).
Breaking the cycle of family crime is a supremely difficult, but necessary, national challenge, and one that must start in the home. You can learn many foundational principles in our free booklets Making Life Work and Marriage and Family: The Missing Dimension . (Source: USA Today. )

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World News and Trends: President promotes perversion

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article by Jerold Aust, John Ross Schroeder

LGBT is an acronym that stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender." You'll probably be seeing it more often in the coming months, especially after U.S. President Barack Obama declared June 2009 "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month" for the United States.

LGBT is an acronym that stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender." You'll probably be seeing it more often in the coming months, especially after U.S. President Barack Obama declared June 2009 "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month" for the United States.
"LGBT Americans have made, and continue to make, great and lasting contributions that continue to strengthen the fabric of American society," his proclamation stated. "I am proud to be the first President to appoint openly LGBT candidates to Senate-confirmed positions in the first 100 days of an Administration. These individuals embody the best qualities we seek in public servants . . . The LGBT rights movement has achieved great progress, but there is more work to be done."
The president went on to explain his intent to promote such causes, declaring, "My Administration has partnered with the LGBT community to advance a wide range of initiatives." He listed international efforts to decriminalize homosexuality and domestic efforts to strengthen hate crimes laws, support for homosexual civil unions and adoption rights, outlawing workplace discrimination and ending the U.S. military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
"During LGBT Pride Month, I call upon the LGBT community, the Congress, and the American people to work together to promote equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity," his proclamation continued.
Not surprisingly, we find no mention in the proclamation of a biblical perspective, though it isn't hard to find in the Bible. God's view is easily discerned in Leviticus:18:22Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.; 20:13; Romans:1:24-28 [24] Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
[25] Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
[26] For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
[27] And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
[28] And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;; 1 Corinthians:6:9-10 [9] Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
[10] Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. and Deuteronomy:22:5The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God..
An ongoing lament throughout the Bible is God's sorrow over leaders who reject Him, leading their people astray. Particularly poignant in this instance is Isaiah:3:9-12 [9] The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.
[10] Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
[11] Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
[12] As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.: "They declare their sin as Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves ... O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths" (emphasis added).
The people of America (and the same goes for any other nation) will surely rue the day they "call evil good, and good evil" (Isaiah:5:20Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!). (Source: White House presidential proclamation, June 1, 2009.)

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3 Bible Tips on Avoiding Pornography and Lust

1. Looking with lust is mental adultery.
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell" (Matthew 5:27-29).
Jesus used hyperbole here to make a strong point: if the only way to avoid lust were to pluck out an eye, that would be better than eternal death. Thankfully that's not the only way!
2. Like all sins, the best way to avoid pornography is to avoid the source. Block such sites on your computer, etc.
"Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body" (1 Corinthians 6:18).
3. God's Spirit can give us help to avoid giving in to lust.
"I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16).
For more on avoiding pornography, see Pornography: Definitely Not for Adults.

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Does the Bible forbid women from wearing pants?

What does the biblical statute about a woman not wearing anything that pertains to a man mean today?

Answer: Deuteronomy:22:5The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God. says: "A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God." Like many of the statutes, this law had to do with pagan customs of the time, and as we will see, does not refer to women wearing pants. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary explains:
"Disguises were assumed at certain times in pagan temples. Maimonides...mentions that a man attired in a coloured female dress, in honour of Venus, Ashtaroth, or Astarte, and a woman equipped in armour, worshipped at the shrine of the statue of Mars...
"Asiatics, when they engaged in the worship of Ashtaroth, were accustomed, according to Philocorus, quoted by Townley (in his edition of Maimonides, note 33), to exchange the male and female dresses. In fact, all idolators confounded the sexes of their deities—representing them sometimes as male, at other times as female; and hence, their worshippers, male and female, fell gradually into the custom, which became extensively prevalent, of changing their attire in adaptation to the sex of a particular divinity."
God's command to Israel forbade the people from incorporating pagan religious rites into true worship. In spite of this instruction, today's Christianity commonly mixes paganism in with the worship of Christ.
Does Deuteronomy:22:5The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God. forbid women from wearing pants? No, it doesn't. In fact, even men in the Middle East through the history of the Old and New Testaments did not wear pants; they wore a robelike garment. However, there is an underlying principle that applies today. Men should dress in an appropriately masculine manner and women should dress in an appropriately feminine manner. Clothing manufacturers make pants designed for men and pants designed for women.
For more insight, please read our article The Modesty Question: How Far is Too Far?

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The Gay Agenda: Coming to a School Near You

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article by Tom Robinson

Fox News radio commentator Todd Starnes observes in his new book God Less America that those in "the militant gay rights community . . . not only expect you to accept their lifestyle, but they also want you to affirm it. They want your children exposed to it in their public school classrooms. They want private business owners to endorse their court-sanctioned 'marriages.' And woe be to any person who dares object" (2014, p. 64).

In 2007 a Massachusetts federal judge ruled that the gay agenda must be taught in public school, "ordering that it is reasonable, indeed there is an obligation, for public schools to teach young children to accept and endorse homosexuality" (Bob Unruh, "Judge Orders 'Gay' Agenda Taught to Christian Children," WND.com, Feb. 24, 2007).
And it's happening: "An elementary school in Oakland, California, topped off its school year with a 'Pride Day' celebrating all types of families, including those in which the parents consider themselves to be lesbian, 'gay' bisexual, transgender or queer," complete with indoctrinating lectures, videos and a sing-along (Leo Hohmann, "5-Year Olds Taught to Celebrate 'Queer Pride," WND, June 16, 2014).
Again, it's not only in America. LifeSiteNews reports on Scotland: "While Scottish government draft guidelines currently allow teachers with moral objections to opt-out of certain aspects of the country's new sex-ed curriculum [such as teaching about gay marriage], several National Health Service boards have objected to the opt-out clause. They are also objecting to provisions allowing parents to opt their children out of the classes . . .
"Another NHS board warned against allowing parents too much influence over children, saying that the decision about whether to attend the classes should be left up to the students, even if their parents object" (Hilary White, "Teachers Cannot Opt Out of Teaching Gay 'Marriage' in School Sex-Ed Classes: Scottish NHS," May 15, 2014, emphasis added throughout).
It's truly disturbing to read a recent report from the pro-family organization MassResistance titled "'GLBT' Teachers Conference in Boston Reveals Latest Plans to Push Homosexuality Even Further Into Schools. Well Organized, Fueled With Taxpayer Dollars" (May 13, 2014).
The report states: "GLSEN (Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network) is the nation's largest homosexual and transgender activist organization working inside schools in all 50 states. It has set up 'gay straight alliance' student clubs (GSAs) inside thousands of high schools (and even some middle schools) across the country.
"GLSEN pushes a wide range of psychologically penetrating homosexual and transgender programs and activities into the schools . . . It also directly organizes and trains teachers to integrate their techniques throughout the curriculum . . .
"In 2000, the Boston-area GLSEN Conference gained national outrage when MassResistance (then known as Parents' Rights Coalition) exposed the sickening . . . workshop which involved adults teaching young kids explicit sex acts."
In this workshop students as young as 12 were given graphic instruction in homosexual sex acts by state employees. The Massachusetts Legislature, along with several U.S. corporations, continues to support the organization.
Some of the 2014 conference workshops for training teachers, administrators and activist students included how to start a "gay-straight alliance" in middle schools (for students aged 10-14!) and "Queering the Classroom" to provide "a safe environment for GLBTQ youth" and "a more comfortable, creative environment for all students."
For those concerned about their children, it's highly disturbing to see a picture of a sign behind conference speakers that proudly proclaims, "GLSEN: Making a Difference in K-12 Schools."
No doubt this has had an effect—along with all the other forces pushing young people to accept and embrace homosexuality. "As evidence of a major cultural shift . . . [one family advocate] pointed to a recent poll by the Pew Research Center indicating a full 70 percent of Millennials (born in 1981 or later) support same-sex marriage.
"By contrast, 49 percent of those in Generation X [born between the early 1960s and 1980], 38 percent of Baby Boomers [born between 1946 and the early 1960s] and just 21 percent from the Silent Generation [born between late 1920s and 1945] support homosexual marriage" (Chelsea Schilling, "Claim: Christians Sin By Putting Kids in Public School," WND, May 17, 2014).
In the Fort Worth, Texas, area, when discussion in a ninth-grade German class shifted to religion and homosexuality, as it often did, 14-year-old Dakota Ary turned to a friend and said "that he was a Christian and that 'being a homosexual is wrong' . . . [whereupon] Dakota was sentenced to one day of in-school suspension and two days of full suspension" (Starnes, p. 122).
This was in a classroom where the teacher's "world wall" had a picture of two men kissing that offended some students. "He told the students this is happening all over the world and you need to accept the fact that homosexuality is just part of our culture now," said Liberty Counsel attorney Matt Krause (Starnes, p. 123).
The superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools sought to evict a Baptist church renting space in one of their buildings because the congregation opposed homosexuality, stating that renting to those who hold such views "appears to be contrary to school board policy as well as the basic principles of humanity" and calling the eviction a "rejection of prejudice and intolerance" (quoted by Starnes, p. 81).
Students across Massachusetts were warned by a Department of Education directive to affirm transgender classmates. "And if little girls took issue with sharing a bathroom with a transgender boy [a boy claiming to be a girl], the state said those little girls could be punished" (p. 119).

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