Jeremiah 29:11

How To deal with Jealous People As A Godly Woman?

Jealousy is one of the hardest things to deal with in relationships. And, it especially hurts if it's a close friend who appears jealous of where God is taking you in a relationship. Have you experienced this before? Has someone who you hoped would be happy for you exhibited signs of jealousy? Did they seem to despise you because of your blissful relationship? I'm sure many of us have been through this. This is exactly what a Facebook friend of mine experienced and was led to share her question with me. With her permission, I am address it in this column.

Her question was, "I seem to be around a lot of jealous folks, "relationship killers", that try to destroy everything I get- even relationships. It seems, some people get mad, especially if they are miserable. So what should I do?"

Unfortunately, people who are battling, struggling and fighting with deep issues often have a hard time celebrating someone else who is happy. It's an unfortunate truth that I have personally faced on many occasions. There are individuals who say they love you, support you and are there for you. But the truth is, they have ulterior motives and inwardly, they are battling ugly vices like deep-rooted jealousy and envy.

Years ago, I experienced a similar situation. I was dating a guy who happened to be good friends with members of a family that appeared to be very sweet. So naturally, he introduced me to these individuals he highly regarded. In this family was a mother who was married with three beautiful daughters- one was my age at the time. Well, my relationship with this gentleman was going perfectly fine until his "friends" began treating me completely differently in his absence. I ended up alone with them a couple of times while he was busy with other matters. He had no idea how uncomfortable I was. This not-so-friendly family was so mean-spirited, they nearly discouraged me from continuing on in my relationship with a guy who was so blind to the truth. Whenever we were together as a couple in this family's company, everyone was all smiles. But deep down, they bristled when they saw how well he treated me.

Finally, once I came to grips with what this scheme they had going on, I addressed it and nipped it in the bud. Later, I discovered that the married mother secretly had a crush on my beau; she treated me so poorly because she was in an unhappy marriage and wanted to be romantically involved with the very man I was dating. Somehow, seeing how well he treated me stirred up jealousy and envy in her. She resented me simply because she wanted what she could not have. After that experience, the popular quote that says, "Hurting people hurt other people," took on a whole new meaning for me. Individuals who fall into this category take their issues out on others rather than dealing with their internal struggles. In my case, that's exactly what it was. This may be true in your case as well.

So then, the question is, how do you deal with people like this? Here are a few simple tips that might help you if you find yourself in this situation.

1. Know the signs.

 When someone is emotionally healthy and truly loves you, they don't mind celebrating with you and building you up with their words. Beware of individuals who are consistently cynical, critical, and moody in response to your happiness. If your friend or family member cannot rejoice when you rejoice as Romans 12:15 instructs, take notice of that. And if you feel unsure of what to make of any negative signs, always pray for discernment from God. According to Jeremiah 17:9,10 He is the only one who knows the true intent of a person's heart.

2. Keep it to yourself. 

One of the best things you can do is keep your personal life personal and only with God's permission, share what he's doing for you in your relationship. Remember in Genesis 37 when Joseph revealed his dreams to his brothers and ended up in big trouble? You can't confide in everyone! You see,allowing everyone into your close, intimate space is probably not such a good idea. It would be great if everyone's motives were pure, but they are not. We live in world where evil always has an agenda which is, on occasion, carried out through other people. So practice using discretion. If you must share your great news of how God has blessed you with that God-sent man, confide in those you know and trust as true, and loyal confidants. This can help prevent heartache.

3. Pray for those who are envious. 

The word enemy is a strong one, but it's a very real one too. We have friends and we have enemies. The Bible talks about this in Matthew 5:44 where Jesus says, "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;" Sure betrayal hurts and it's a natural reaction to seek retaliation. But, you have to be the better person and love those who are jealous, envious, and conniving anyway. Pray for them. Pray for their happiness. Pray that God would bless them.

I'd like to encourage you to not allow other people to be a stumbling block in your life. You keep moving forward even in the face of jealousy and envy; be confident that God is on your side. And that's what matters most.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6212501

The signs of Jesus' second coming.

The New Jerusalem

Revelation 21 

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’^[b] or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

 ⁵ He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
 ⁶ He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. ⁷ Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. ⁸ But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb

 ⁹ One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. ¹¹ It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear ascrystal. ¹² It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. ¹³ There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. ¹⁴ The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ¹⁵ The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. ¹⁶ The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia^[c] in length, and as wide and high as it is long. ¹⁷ The angel measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits^[d]thick.^[e] 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. ¹⁹ The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰ the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.^[f] 21The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.
 ²² I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. ²³ The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ²⁴ The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. ²⁵ On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. ²⁶ The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. ²⁷ Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

What will our relationships be like in heaven? Will we recognize each other?

For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.

— Matthew 22:30

What will our relationships be like in heaven? Will we recognize each other?

Here is the operative truth: We will know more in heaven than we know on earth—not less. Our minds will be working in full capacity. There is a supernatural knowledge that God will give to us, and the encumbrances of sin will be removed. In heaven, things are different and similar, but certainly better.

So of course we will recognize one another. 

The Scripture gives no indication of a memory wipe that leaves us unable to recognize family and friends. Do you recognize people now? If you haven't seen someone for a long time and then happen to run into them, you may not even know it is the same person. But generally, we recognize one another. And this is great news for those of us who have been temporarily separated from loved ones. We will be reunited. This means that our absence from our loved ones is a comma, not a period.

But will we still be related? Will husbands and wives still be married? That is a question the Sadducees posed to Jesus. He told them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven" (Matthew 22:29–30).

God designed us with a desire for companionship. We are social people, although some are more so than others. Our desire for companionship has been given to us by God. So when we get to heaven, the Lord is the One we will worship, but we will interact with one another.

God is the focus of heaven. We will worship the Lord in heaven, and He is sufficient to meet all of our needs.

Greg Laurie