SUCCESS SEMINAR January 31, 2013

My Calling

"Your purpose is not what you do, it is who you are" (Dr. Lauretta Justin).

GOD VS. SCIENCE

GOD vs. SCIENCE 1921 (Genius)! In hopes that all our college students are able to articulate this well. In a College classroom with a professor teaching a philosophy lesson....... 'Let me explain the problem science has with religion.' The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand. 'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?' 'Yes sir,' the student says. 'So you believe in God?' 'Absolutely.. ' 'Is God good?' 'Sure! God's good.' 'Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?' 'Yes' 'Are you good or evil?' 'The Bible says I'm evil.' The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible! He considers for a moment. 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him.. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?' 'Yes sir, I would.' 'So you're good...!' 'I wouldn't say that.' 'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.' The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Can you answer that one?' The student remains silent. 'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. 'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?' 'Er..yes,' the student says. 'Is Satan good?' The student doesn't hesitate on this one. 'No.' 'Then where does Satan come from?' The student falters. 'From God' 'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?' 'Yes, sir.' 'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?' 'Yes' 'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.' Again, the student has no answer. 'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?' The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.' So who created them?' The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question. 'Who created them?' There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. 'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?' The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.' The old man stops pacing. 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?' 'No sir.. I've never seen Him.' 'Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?' 'No, sir, I have not.' 'Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?' 'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.' 'Yet you still believe in him?' 'Yes,' 'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?' 'Nothing,' the student replies. 'I only have my faith.' 'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith. The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of His own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat?' 'Yes.' 'And is there such a thing as cold?' 'Yes, son, there's cold too.' 'No sir, there isn't.' The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain. 'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit down to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees. Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.' Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer. 'What about darkness, professor.. Is there such a thing as darkness?' 'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?' 'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?' The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?' 'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.' The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. 'Flawed? Can you explain how?' 'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains.. 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.' 'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it.' 'Now tell me, professor... Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?' 'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.' 'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?' The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed. 'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?' The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided. 'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.' The student looks around the room. 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into laughter. 'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelt the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.' 'So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?' Now the room is silent... The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. 'I Guess you'll have to take them on faith.' 'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,' the student continues. 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?' Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We see it Everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man.. It is in The multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.' To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.' The professor sat down. If you read it all the way through and had a smile on your face when you finished, mail to your friends and family with the title 'God vs Science' PS: the student was Albert Einstein Albert Einstein wrote a book titled God vs Science in 1921.....

LOW SELF-ESTEEM

A Different Look at Low Self-Esteem By Shirley Powell, ND “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. But if you look at Christ, you’ll be at rest.” – Corrie Ten Boom Many of us blame our problems or the problems of others on low self-esteem, often claiming that it stems back to some childhood issue(s). But let’s take a moment and explore just a little about what exactly is going on with the concept of low self-esteem. Low self-esteem is looking at what we think about ourselves instead of what God thinks about us. Low self-esteem takes our eyes off of God and causes us to look more at ourselves. Might low self-esteem be just another expression of self-centeredness? Might low self-esteem and poor self image just be simply different manifestations of pride? It does not matter whether we are full of pride or even full of self-hatred, either way we are still full of ourselves. God, however, wants us to be empty of ourselves and full of Him. Part of being empty of ourselves is being humble, which is very different than low self-esteem. Humility is a desirably character trait based on God’s standards, and low self-esteem is man’s perspective of himself based on limited human thinking. It takes a healthy and godly sense of who we are in Christ to walk in godly humility. Otherwise we will be too insecure or too proud to be humble. When we walk in humility, we will neither attempt to cover our mistakes or faults, nor will we try to appear to be more than we really are. Covering our faults and living a lie are said to be symptoms of low self-esteem, but it actually may be, again, a manifestation of pride. Either way, it is deceitful, self-centered and destructive. It is a far cry from the humility that the Lord requires of us. Based on a humanistic worldview, man would be released from the shackles of his limitations that cause him to fail and not experience great success if only he was empowered to realize his great human personal potential, if only he had more SELF confidence (versus God confidence). Yes, we’ve come to believe that all we need for joy and contentment is to boost our low self-esteem before man. The irony is, what is given as the solution is exactly what the problem is – that we revel in our own glory and imagine our potential to be something of value in and of itself — outside of God. The Bible continues to warn us about that very thing — thinking too highly of ourselves. We need not occupy ourselves with lifting our own esteem, for when live to please God (and not man), He will exalt us in due time. Our true identity is found in Christ; not in self. When we are Christ-centered and not self-centered, we can begin to be who we were created to be in the likeness and image of God. So our hearts cry should be to be more Christ-like. It is then that we can begin to experience real life – real inner peace, joy, and fulfillment. Luke 16:15 (NKJV) “And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Matthew 23:11-12 (NIV) “The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” James 4:10 – (NASB) – “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.” 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 (MSG Paraphrase) “Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.” Colossians 3:23-24 (NKJV) “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” Shirley D. Powell is a Doctor of Naturopathy, Certified Health Practitioner, Certified Nutrition Counselor, author, and presenter. She has a private practice, Temple Care Natural Healing and Wellness Clinic, with offices in northeast Alabama and the Washington, DC metro area. The focus is on supporting the body’s God-given ability to heal itself naturally, with the proper diet, herbs, supplements, detoxification, natural therapies, and lifestyle, taking a whole-person approach. Individual and family appointments are available. Also, in response to God’s calling, she also launched Temple Care International Ministries. The ministry focuses on bringing the truth about health and wellness God’s way to the body of Christ and all who have ears to hear, with the desire and intent to facilitate others to experience life more abundantly and be fit to stand to fulfill God’s plan for their lives. She can be reached at s.powell [at] temple-care.net, or (256) 582-4100. Her website is www.temple-care.net.

HABITS

We are creatures of habit. Our habits lead us closer to our purpose one step out of time or move us away from our purpose each day. It is easier to form a new habit than to remove an old one. The habit you practice privately will be exposed publicly. What habit are you developing today?

FREEDOM IS NOT FREE

"Freedom is not free, it requires the choice, the cost and the commitment." What is stopping you from unleashing your true potential? Fear is usually one of the factors.

Stress

Stress today? Try prayer! 15 minutes of meditation can save you 15 years from stress. Check out our book on prayer by visiting www.myfreedomliving.con