Category Archives: encouragement

First century therapy groups . . .

A First Century Therapy Group . . . –The early Christ-followers formed therapy groups to help them heal from the dysfunction in their culture and in their personal lives. There is a description of how those therapy groups met to … Continue reading

Posted in 1 Corinthians 14:26, 12 step group, addiction, cell groups, discovery group, encounter group, encouragement, freedom, group interaction, health care, mental health, one anothering, one anothers, overcoming addiction, recovery groups, Salvation Army, Salvation Army ARC, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Nashville, self-help group, small groups, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Jesus didn’t say to follow a preacher, a program, or a curriculum. He said: “Follow Me.”

Doing my daily Bible reading, I saw Paul describe a Christ-led support group in Romans 1:11-12. He wrote: “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you … Continue reading

Posted in Bible one anothers, Bible teaching, church format, church program, church programming, curriculum, curriculum-free, encouragement, faith, mutual ministry, one anothers, preacher, teaching, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shall we overcome?

Shall we overcome? Don’t succumb to discouragement, self-destruction, and depression. Overcome through the reality of Christ’s love. “Deep in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome someday!” The lost word of the Bible is a recovery word. It can … Continue reading

Posted in African American experience, African Americans, black history, Black history month, Christianity, Deep in my heart I do believe, depression, discouragement, encouragement, equal rights, equality, human rights, lyrics, overcoming circumstances, overcoming depression, overcoming hate, overcoming setbacks, overcoming temptation, posters, quote, Uncategorized, wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The beach ball in my heart . . .

The Beach Ball In My Heart –When life shoves me under And tries to hold me down, The beach ball in my heart Comes bounding back, Thrusting me to the surface Like a jack-in-the-box And keeping me afloat, Displacing sadness with … Continue reading

Posted in beach party, beaching it, broken heart, brokenhearted, Create in me a clean heart, discouragement, encouragement, feelings, fire in the heart, happiness, heart, heart connection, heart is deceitful, heart monitor, heart of gold, heart strangely warmed, heart-felt, heart-felt love, heartbreak, hopeful, hopefullness, how to be happy, how to cope, how to flow in the spirit, human heart, inner joy, inner peace, joy, light hearted, motivation, ocean thoughts, optimism, overcoming circumstances, overcoming depression, overcoming setbacks, overcoming temptation, peace, peace of mind, poetry, pop up, sadness, secrets of your heart, shined in our hearts, speaking from the heart, the door of your heart, the heart of worship, thoughts from the beach, Uncategorized, unhappiness | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

3 Streams Of Human Thought-Talk (Internal Communication)

3 Streams of Internal Human Communication The flow of thought-talk (internal communication) through the human mind is called often self-talk or the stream of consciousness.  Many people are confused and falsely believe that all of the thought that passes through their … Continue reading

Posted in addiction, anger, angst, anxiety, attitude, compulsion, cravings, encountering God, encouragement, hearing, hearing God, hearing the Holy Spirit, hearing voices, human psyche, human thoughts, mind, overcoming temptation, power of a whisper, pride, Quaker light, self, self-control, self-destruction, self-hate, self-help, self-improvement, self-mastery, self-restraint, selfish desires, soul, soul food, temptation, thinking, thought pattern, thoughts, torment, tormenting thoughts, whispering, whispers | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Type F Church or Type R Church?

Types Of Church Services (Type F Church & Type R Church) Type F (Familiar) Church — The same man reports on his biblical studies each week, while the congregation listens in a formal setting. Type R (Rare) Church — Various … Continue reading

Posted in Bible, Bible study, biblical, biblical studies, Christianity, creativity, encouragement, gifts of the Spirit, innovation, innovators, organic church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvation Army women, Salvationists, Scriptures, Tennessee, testimonies, testimony, The Salvation Army, TN, types of church | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Don’t Settle For Glee When You Can Have Worglee!

Don’t settle for Glee on TV, when you can have worglee in your daily life.  Worglee is anticipating and expecting good things to happen to you and to the people you love.  It’s the opposite of worry.  Although the process … Continue reading

Posted in adventure, angst, anxiety, anxious thoughts, belief, belief system, blessings, bummer, celebration, celebrations, change, change management, choice, comfort, compassion, contemplation, creativity, decision-making, discomfort, disconnect, discouragement, doubts, encouragement, experiment, faith, freedom, guidance, habit, health, health care, insight, inspiration, joy, language, lifestyles, making decisions, message, misery, motivation, revelation, security, self-image, self-talk, stop worrying, television, testimonies, testimony, thoughts, TV, values, words | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Optimize Your Faith With Participatory Church

Faith can be enhanced or it can be diminished.  It is the responsibility of each individual to cultivate, nourish, and grow her/his faith or to allow it to wither away and possibly die.  Jesus illustrated this principle in the Parable … Continue reading

Posted in AA, Alcoholics Anonymous, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Bible, Christ, Christ followers, Christ-centered, Christian, Christian organizations, Christian values, church, church meetings, church program, church programs, church roles, church services, church structure, corps, encouragement, faith, faith-based, followers of Christ, freedom, honesty, Houston, improv, improvisation, insight, kingdom of God, lifestyle Christianity, lifestyles, mysticism, Nashville, New Testament, organic church, participatory church, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, Salvationists, simple church, spiritual athletes, spiritual awakening, spiritual disciplines, spiritual growth, spiritual interaction, spiritual training, spiritual warfare, testimonies, testimony | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Giving Tuesday — A Great Idea

In the midst of the shopping celebrations (Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday) we now have a day for giving back — Giving Tuesday.  American charities and non-profits have come together to create the first Giving Tuesday, tomorrow, … Continue reading

Posted in adventure, advertising, alternative lifestyle, attitude, belief, belief system, Bell Ringers, Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Biblical concept, Black Friday, blog, charity, church, compassion, creativity, Cyber Monday, donations, encouragement, gifts, giving, giving to The Salvation Army, holiday, holidays, joy, lifestyles, makes change, movement, nonprofit, philanthropy, prosperity, Red Kettle, Salvation Army, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, sharing, Small Business Saturday, Thanksgiving Day, The Salvation Army | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Are You Tired Of Watching Decadence In Movies & On TV?

Are you tired of movies and TV shows showing people acting out anger and angst, disrespect and disdain?  Are you fed up with watching people lying, cheating, deceiving, stealing, fighting, and killing?  Have you had enough of being brainwashed by … Continue reading

Posted in anger, angst, attitude, brainwashed, brainwashing, casual sex, cheating, compromise, conscience, contemporary society, corrupt culture, cyber space, deception, decision-making, denial, dishonesty, disrespect, electronic media, encouragement, entertainment, environment, harmful thinking, indecency, insight, inspiration, lifestyles, mature language, moral principles, moral restraints, morality, morality-phobic, morals, movies, popular culture, pull of evil, reality TV, right and wrong, right conduct, right living, seduction, seduction of self-destruction, sex, shame, society, thinking, TV network, Unconditional, values, Won't Back Down | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments