GUILT GOD - Meeting (again) for the First Time

July 31, 2017

Our journey has come to the end. For the past 4 weeks we've been looking at REdiscovering the God we thought we know - aka, Meeting (again) for the First Time. This week we looked at the false god that many of us grew up with, GUILT GOD - the god who loves you but doesn't like you.

Special thanks to my good friend Emmanuel Gergis, the academic dean for Holy Transfiguration College, for sharing his personal experience on the subject. If you struggle with guilt and forgiving yourself, YOU NEED to listen to the message above.

My "AHA" Moment

May 19, 2017

A recent sermon by Fr. Anthony talked about evangelism. How do we go around and talk about Jesus, and how do we bring Jesus to the people around us. I am surrounded by friends who are atheists. They are aware of my belief and respect my religion and are aware of my fasting time and have seen the many pictures of St. Mary and Jesus Christ in my room.

Despite that I always feel the need to be cautious when we talk because of fear of being teased and embarrassment, and sometimes because I think I will be offending them.

When You Fall Over

July 8, 2016

Have you ever felt like you ran ahead of God and then made a “big” mistake?

Like a small child when learning to run in the momentary joys of running with the wind, inevitably trips and stumbles over his own feet and falls grazing his hands and knees. This pain inflicted causes him to cry out with many tears for his daddy to help him.

This is the very picture of us.

DOWN WITH DESPAIR - Fighting Failure, Part 5

June 29, 2015

"The Christian life may not be MISTAKE-free, but it can be GUILT-free."

The finale in the Fighting Failure series brought us face to face with the greatest enemy of them all...DESPAIR! And specifically, we talked about the despair that comes from guilt and shame - feeling like I've gone too far and messed up too badly.

If you struggle with guilt and have a hard time forgiving yourself after you've repented, YOU MUST LISTEN TO THIS MESSAGE and see for yourself what God has to say about your guilt and your sin.

IT'S TIME TO FIGHT - Fighting Failure, Part 1

June 1, 2015

"Your problem isn’t that you aren’t worthy of God’s love. Your problem is that you don’t believe it."

Kicked off a new series yesterday about a topic that everyone can relate to...FAILURE. Feeling like you're not good enough, or that you'll never get past your struggles, or that you've let God/others/yourself down. We're talking about what to do with guilt and shame and doubt and despair and all the other feelings that come with failing time and time again.

The theme of the series is this: God wants to work THROUGH your mistakes and shortcomings, not IN SPITE of them.

Shame: Your Freedom or Your Prison?

January 23, 2015

Shortly after starting my Masters program, I was seeking to do something a little more to give back to the community; so I entered coaching school. For those who aren’t familiar with life coaching, it’s goal is to address everyday issues to help someone move forward from good to great – as opposed to therapy which aims to help people move from dysfunction to functional.

Utilizing my former psychology degree to expand into coaching, I noticed a common thread between many of my clients-- it’s that dirty little feeling we like to avoid and run away from whenever possible; that gremlin that forces us to cower in pain as reminders of our past shortcomings, sins, and faults come to light…SHAME!

Letting Go of Your Past (video)

January 13, 2014

"I cannot REALIZE my future if I'm still REACTING to my past."

Ever tried to drive a car looking exclusively in the rear view mirror? Think you'd be able to get very far that way? I'd say that your chances of crashing are significantly higher than your chances of success. Right?

Well, that's how many of us are living today - especially when it comes to relationships with friends, family and loved ones. We think we moving forward but the truth is that we're just dragging the past with us. And it is SABOTAGING THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIPS IN OUR LIVES!

That's why today's message at The Well is a must-listen. Listen to it prayerfully and with an open heart and God just might open your eyes to something that you've never seen before.

Seeing through GOD'S EYES

August 2, 2013

Have you ever had a moment when you feel so negative about yourself? It's as though you can do nothing right but everything wrong. You are tired with your current situation and are frustrated with yourself.

I have these days, and they aren't fun. For example, I remember feeling like this when I got a bad mark on one of my exams. Why had I done so terribly? How could I be such a failure? Why is there so much wrong with me? God, why is this happening? I hate myself - there is nothing good about me!

The day kept getting worse. After receiving the bad mark, I realized that I had also forgotten to submit a payment for one of my accounts. Great! Now it would be overdue and I would be charged interest. Later on in the day, I acted out rudely with one my friends and hurt their feelings. Then I went home and was miserable to my family. I was angry - more at myself than at anyone else. I felt so bad about myself.

How Did I End Up in Here?

March 27, 2012

“Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.” You’ve heard that before haven’t you? That famous line was spoken at the end of every episode of G.I. Joe (which if you’re part of my generation, you grew up watching these religiously). At the end of every show, they’d present some type of public service announcement and end each one with that phrase. So now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

I couldn’t agree more. I need to know how I got into my pit in order to figure out how to get out. They say that history repeats itself. Well, in the case of falling into a pit, I agree 100%. It doesn’t need to repeat itself – but unless we take the time to figure out what caused it, the likelihood of repeating it increases significantly.

So with that said, the 2nd talk at the retreat was titled HOW DID I GET IN HERE? We identified 3 ways that we end up in pits. Either we jump in, or we slip in, or we’re thrown in. Let’s break them down one at a time.

SPIRITUAL GROWTH | PERSONAL GROWTH | RELATIONSHIPS | ENCOURAGEMENT | STSA Church | GUEST POSTS

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