THE GIVING RACE

Do you ever feel weary from having to give gifts to all and sundry at this time of year? Christmas has become a season of gift buying, card posting, and feeding the relatives. When charities jangle their collection plates under our noses, we toss in a few coins to sooth our conscience and then carry on partying.

Like millions around the world, I became caught up in the shopping madness. Not only did I give my siblings and mother gifts but I bought each member of a charismatic house church a present. This caused me great hardship, particularly when I went to high school and when I was unemployed in December of 1980.

After I left the church in 1987, I still gave gifts to family and friends. As the years passed, I became increasingly tired of the yearly shopping ritual. Giving inexpensive presents to people and receiving the same seemed crazy. Having thought it over, I dropped out of the Christmas rat race in 1992.

When I resumed my walk with the Lord in 1996, I decided to refrain from giving my rich friends gifts. Instead, I donated to various charities such as The Salvation Army and Hope Mission. Christ taught that when we invite people to a  dinner, we should call the poor to it instead of our comparatively well-off friends. The poor can't pay us back but God will consider our charity as treasure in heaven. Reasoning along that line in regard to Christmas, I gave to the poor. Christ also said that helping the unfortunate was like helping him.  Giving to the destitute makes much more sense in light of his teaching than buying trashy gifts for my friends who can buy those items for themselves.

I wrote extensively about that house church in my newly-published memoir, How I Was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity. Please check it out at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm.

THE PERSONHOOD OF GOD

Have you ever read something so outrageous in a newspaper that you felt compelled to write the editor? That happened to me in September of 1980. In fact, I had my letter printed in The Edmonton Sun the next week.

Back then, my sight was good enough that I could read newspapers with a magnifying glass. I had plenty of time to read during my security guard shifts as well. One news story attracted my attention. A man, convicted of starting forest fires in B.C., was caught on a surveillance tape praying that God would get him out of his perdiciment. The Crown's lawyer objected that the recording from the holding cell couldn't be admissable because God wasn't a person.

As soon as I arrived home that morning, I wrote a letter to the editor which stated that God was indeed a person and that many believers around the world maintained that belief. Though I doubted that anything would happen, the letter appeared in the paper the next week.

After the Wednesday evening Bible study, the minister of the house church I attended complemented me about the letter. I felt so proud. The elderly woman in whose house we met often criticized my activities and also restricted the time I could have alone with the minister. Receiving his praise blessed me and boosted  my confidence.

Though it wasn't the first time my name got into the newspaper, I kept the well-edited letter as a memento. Never did I suspect back then that I'd be a writer and that I'd publish a book on how God led me out of that toxic church. Thanks to modern technology, I'm able to write, edit, and publish just like a fully-sighted person.

I wrote extensively about that house church in my newly-published memoir, How I Was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity. Please check it out at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm.

JESUS CHRIST IS THE BEST MEDICINE.

Have you noticed how many different psychological problems "science" has come up with these days. So many emotional problems appear to be solvable with pills of some sort or another. Thanks to
Hope in the Night, June gave me the answer that actually helped me ditch most of my emotional suffering from the wrongs done to me.

June told me that my emotional burden was like having stones tied to the back of a car's bumper. When I unhooked them and let Jesus place them on his bumper, I could make much better progress.  Being much greater than us, Jesus can cary our burdens much easier than we could. June based her answer on 1 Peter 5:6and  7. "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you."

June then asked me to make a list of all the people who hurt me during my life. Then she said that I should tell Christ how I felt about the incidents. She told me to pray that the Lord would take away both the pain and the terrible emotions that I felt regarding each specific incident.

The next day, I sat at my computer and made the list. Then I followed June's instructions. Whenever an unpleasant memory began to anger me, I took it to Jesus in prayer. Though the tormenting thoughts didn't immediately vanish, I've noticed the strength of the bitterness steadily waning .

I've forgiven those who hurt me with lies and cruel words but I still hate what they did. The worst offences against me were abuses of my eagerness to learn more about Christianity. In an effort to warn and comfort fellow Christians, I wrote How I Was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity. This paperback and e-book chronicles the guidence of the heavenly Father and his patience with me. Since millions of people have been harmed by toxic churches, My memoir is a valuable resource to them and their loved ones.

How I Was Razed is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Virtual Bookworm Publishers