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This was shared with me via email today, thought I'd pass it along. It's amazing what a wonderful Lord He is!
HOW TO FORGIVE (WOW)
One day a while back,
a man, his heart heavy with grief,
was walking in the woods.
As he thought about his life this day,
he knew many things were not right.
He thought about those who had lied about him
back when he had a job.
His thoughts turned to those
who had stolen his things and cheated him.
He remembered family that had passed on.
His mind turned to the illness
he had that no one could cure.
His very soul was filled with anger,
resentment and frustration.
Standing there this day,
searching for answers he could not find,
knowing all else had failed him,
he knelt at the base of an old oak tree
to seek the one he knew would always be there.
And with tears in his eyes, he prayed:
"Lord- You have done wonderful things
for me in this life.
You have told me to do many things for you,
and I happily obeyed.
Today, you have told me to forgive.
I am sad, Lord, because I cannot.
I don't know how.
It is not fair Lord.
I didn't deserve these wrongs
that were done against me
and I shouldn't have to forgive.
As perfect as your way is Lord,
this one thing I cannot do,
for I don't know how to forgive.
My anger is so deep Lord,
I fear I may not hear you,
but I pray that you teach me
to do this one thing I cannot do
-Teach me To Forgive."
As he knelt there in the quiet shade of that old oak tree,
he felt something fall onto his shoulder.
He opened his eyes.
Out of the corner of one eye,
he saw something red on his shirt.
He could not turn to see what it was
because where the oak tree had been
was a large square piece of wood in the ground.
He raised his head
and saw two feet held to the wood
with a large spike through them.
He raised his head more,
and tears came to his eyes
as he saw Jesus hanging on a cross.
He saw spikes in His hands, a gash in His side,
a torn and battered body,
deep thorns sunk into His head.
Finally he saw the suffering
and pain on His precious face.
As their eyes met,
the man's tears turned to sobbing,
and Jesus began to speak.
"Have you ever told a lie?" He asked?
The man answered - "yes, Lord."
"Have you ever been given too much change and kept it?"
The man answered - " yes. Lord."
And the man sobbed more and more.
"Have you ever taken something
from work that wasn't yours?" Jesus asked?
And the man answered - "yes, Lord."
"Have you ever sworn, using my Father's name in vain? "
The man, crying now, answered - "yes, Lord."
As Jesus asked many more times,
"Have you ever"?
The man's crying became uncontrollable,
for he could only answer - "yes, Lord."
Then Jesus turned His head from one side
to the other, and the man felt something
fall on his other shoulder.
He looked and saw that it was the blood of Jesus.
When he looked back up, his eyes met those of Jesus,
and there was a look of love the man
had never seen or known before.
Jesus said, "I didn't deserve this either,
but I forgive you."
It may be hard to see
how you're going to get through something,
but when you look back in life,
you realize how true this statement is.
Read the following first line slowly and let it sink in.
If God brings you to it - He will bring you through it.
Lord I love You and I need You,
come into my heart, today.
For without You
I can do nothing.
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Hi, everyone!
I've been so amazed to see how many of us would welcome some sort of online encouragement from Scripture. It seemed to really strike a chord! I've been "noodling" about this and I agree with another post - keeping the encouragement on this board would help other Christians and seekers find us and join in if they'd like. (Our "regular" posts would go on the board as usual - questions about foods, recipes, symptoms, etc.) We would need to be really mindful of the purpose of the IBS board so that we wouldn't "take up too much room". This is a great board, very well organized and moderated - but it could be confusing to others if the subject line was not exactly IBS-related. If we posted a bunch of messages with subject lines in "Christian-speak", it might be confusing, cluttering and seem sort of clique-ish. In other words, we would need to be extra-considerate!
I'm a very low-tech person myself, so I don't have any idea how web sites, message boards, etc., are created and maintained. However, one thought I have is: would it be possible for us to establish a Scripture-based encouragement thread and keep it going? Anyone who wanted to could post/read/reply via the thread (or just lurk). I'm thinking about Matthew 4:4 (based on Deuteronomy 8:3) -- when Jesus says, "...The Scriptures say, 'People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God.' " (New Living Translation) Also, Psalm 34:8, "Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!" (NKJV) In my "Experiencing God Every Day" calendar, the page with Ps. 34:8 has this prayer at the bottom: "Food for my life, that is what You are. I am nothing without daily nourishment from You. You invite me to taste. I will. Feed me, LORD, from Yourself. That is all I need. Amen" With all of our dietary restrictions and difficulties, isn't it wonderful to know that there is "food" which will always be available, digestible, nutritious and tasty?!
Anyway, back to the encouragement thread: if we started out with just a place to share Scripture from our quiet times, or from a Bible study we're involved in, from a praise song or hymn, etc., it could be very simple and easy to use - and we would trust the Holy Spirit to speak to each of us as we read and meditate on what is shared. We could share email addresses and encourage one another that way, too, in more depth - whoever is willing.
One tricky area is doctrinal beliefs. I'm sure there are some differences in some areas. I've been part of a Christian women's online encouragement board before and these differences were usually handled with great tact and respect. However, I'd personally prefer to stay away from posts about doctrines - just stick to wisdom and encouragement straight from the Word! Look what's happened already, from just a couple of posts! I think it's so important to remember that God does the work in us - He, by His Holy Spirit, will be our guide and teacher.
Paul tells us in Colossians 3:16-17, "Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use His words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through Him to God the Father."
Is anyone interested in pursuing this? What would we name the thread, so that its content / purpose would be readily identifiable but not seem "exclusive"? I've run out of ideas! Heather, could we try something like this?
God bless you all - and may He remind us to lift up the needs of the entire board in prayer!
Kaybee C
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You're welcome, Heidi! I was so blessed when someone taught me that praise is powerful: God inhabits the praises of His people! (That's a paraphrase - I don't have the exact Scripture reference and my concordance is at my mom's).
Blessings,
Kaybee C
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Hi, Barbara!
I just posted tonight, 7/16, "? Prayer/Praise/Scripture sharing"..... What do you think?
Blessings,
Kaybee C
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Hi Kaybee - Thanks for such a thoughtful post and suggestions. I've been wondering how to handle this, as the scriptures thread has become quite long and I do want to keep the diet and other boards focused, and I also don't want new people to see threads that may make them feel excluded. So, I'm floating the idea of a new board that is for non-IBS thoughts and discussions, where a scriptures thread like this one would be appropriate (along with whatever else folks want to talk about - it would be wide open, as long as people remained courteous). You'll see the poll about this at the top of the page - tell me what you think!
Best,
Heather
--------------------
Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
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I think it is a wonderful idea. My email address is shinelikestars@bigpond.com if any one wants to write to me. I would love to have a board where we could share!
In Him
Trish
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Hi Kaybee,
I loved the story! Great illustration about how God forgives us and wipes our slate clean. My pastor recently read a story similar to this one and you could hear the sniffles it church. My pastor reminds us of the importance of forgiveness durning his sermons a lot.
I have a personal testimony about forgiveness and how much better I felt.
Gotta go and pick my boys up from summer school.
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Heather, I can't see where to enter my opinion in the poll. I'm sort of illiterate in the chat board world. Where do I find the poll spot, or do I enter my opinion here? I would like a poll spot where we could share spiritual things which are helpful to us as Christians. Anyone could enter what they want to share, or just read without comment if this is not their "world". However, I wouldn't want others to jump in to attack us Christians for sharing how our spiritual lives are affecting and helping us cope with IBS, though. For a Christian with IBS our spiritual lives are one of our main coping mechanisms for IBS and the anxiety it causes. There are some posts on the yoga board that are demeaning to Christians, whom the author labeled as "extreme fundamentalists", if I recall the wording correctly. Some of us do not participate in yoga because of our spiritual views, and we should be able to feel that way without others poo-pooing our reservations, or sticking a label on us. Many on this board may have chosen Pilates, or other exercise regiments, just for that reason. So far, we have just been chatting amongst ourselves about how our spiritual lives affect how we cope with IBS, and we have been trying to offer spiritual encouragement to each other. Would it be possible to maintain something like this?
Found the poll, Heather. :} Would it possible for those of us who want to continue to encourage each other like this with scripture to do that on the "General Chat" poll?
Edited by busymom (07/18/03 05:07 PM)
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Hi there - You should see a "yes" and "no" button when you click in here web page where you can vote. But I'll count you as a "yes" even if you can't work the poll. 
The new non-IBS board (which, given the favorable response to the poll, I will be creating) would offer you the place to share spiritual things as you request. It would not be a debate forum - folks who didn't share the point of view of any particular thread would simply be asked to refrain from joining that discussion. They could start their own thread on another topic of interest to them, and others could join them. People would be welcome to post on any non-IBS topic that interests them, spiritual or otherwise, and the environment will be moderated to ensure that things remain friendly and supportive.
Could you please point out to me specifically any posts on the yoga board that you find demeaning? This is the first I've heard of this, and I check that board every day, so I'd really like to see what you're talking about as this greatly concerns me. You can just copy the link to those specific posts and email me at heatherandcompany@yahoo.com
In general, yoga should be an option for people of any religious faith, and a yoga teacher should never impose his or her own personal beliefs on their students. Any spiritual aspects of yoga are strictly individual, do not require any specific beliefs or faiths, and do not interfere with a person's religious traditions or lack thereof. So, please don't feel that yoga isn't an option for you if you're otherwise interested in it. It's such a great option for helping IBS and its practice shouldn't be considered irreconcilable with Christian beliefs. That's a great loss to both Christians and the yoga tradition. 
So, I'll post when the new board goes live, and I'll move the spiritual thread, and you will be warmly welcomed to continue it and any other topics that help you in whatever way possible. That, after all, is the whole point of these boards.
Hugs,
Heather
--------------------
Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
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Praise music has been one of the main tools I have used, along with my Bible study, in dealing with the fear and anxiety IBS produces. It has such a powerful effect on my heart and the fear I feel. Corinne commented on how helpful it was for her to lead the praise and worship music in her church. It really is a key tool for a Christian, not just for this but for many other areas of our lives.
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