Bible Verses for Life
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: 2 Timothy 3:16 says: All scripture is written by inspiration of God and useful for teaching for reproof for instruction in righteousness. Pastor Denise, please explain how all the verses can be useful to everyone equally for instruction? After all, everyone’s situation is different and how do you practically benefit personally by studying it?
A: The Bible was written for everyone because the Bible says, about itself, it’s a lamp unto our feet.
I know that, most every time I go to bed, my husband is already in bed, he goes to bed really early. So I come in with my cellphone, not with the flashlight, but just touching it so it brings light. And I shine that light on the floor because I don’t want to wake him but I can see a little.
But the Bible is a light unto your path! It has answers for every one of us. Romans 12:2 says, “and do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is good and acceptable in the perfect will of God.” So you see, for us, the temptation is to be like everyone else in this world. Think like the world, be in unforgiveness and bitterness and fear.
But the Bible says, we’re not to be conformed to this world. We’re not to think like this world. There’s a higher way of thinking. It’s God’s word. Listen to this scripture! Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So when we read His word, we are renewing our mind to the truth.
Years ago I would feel this condemnation all the time. I knew I was christian but I just felt like if I wasn’t doing every single thing right, that God still loves me, but I wasn’t sure if He accepted me.
But that’s just like religion. That we’re trying to make ourselves acceptable. That’s what the world thinks.
But Christianity is that he came for us in our horrible sinful state. It’s not about us trying to get to him, he’s already come to us. But we have to open our hearts.
But how are you going to know that, how was I going to get free of this wrong thinking? It was the word of God! It changed me! This one verse changed me, Romans 3:26 “ to demonstrate at this present time his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him who believes on Jesus.”
You see, I believe on Jesus but I didn’t know I was righteous. Through the blood of Jesus God already made me acceptable. But I didn’t know that and it was through the love of God that we read in Romans chapter twelve that transforms our mind to think like God.
So your question is how to practically benefit personally by studying the Bible. You’re going to know the good and acceptable and perfect will of God!
Fear of Death
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: What do I do when the fear of death haunts me? How do I free myself from that fear?
A: It is important to realize that for Christians, fear is never from God. Our assurance and comfort come from what is written in the Bible.
When Jesus died and went to hell for us and conquered death, not only did He conquer death for Himself, He also conquered it for you and me! Jesus removed the sting of death and for the Christian, death is like moving to a new address.
The Bible says that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we have a deposit of Heaven on the inside of us right now! Christ in YOU, the hope of glory!
Overcoming fear is not about what we can figure out in our brain; it is about what God has given us through His Word and believing that His Word is true. We are given the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. If you are born again, when you breathe your last breath, your body will just lay there; but the real you, your spirit, will go straight to Heaven! The Bible says, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
It is so important to get scriptures into your heart and mind. Fear wants to hold you in a place of believing a lie. What defeats the lie is believing the Truth.
All who are joined to the Lord through the new birth are one in spirit! Your body is a tabernacle, a house. This flesh is your house, but the real you is your spirit and will live forever and ever with Jesus! You are not your own, you were bought with a price.
First Corinthians 6:20 says, “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” Your body is a house for the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit lives in your human spirit!
I hope that you are encouraged by this answer because I remember a time when I was a little bit afraid of death. I understand what you are feeling. But once I learned what the Bible teaches us about death, that fear completely left! The Bible says His people perish for lack of knowledge. It is so important for us to know what the Bible teaches or we will begin believing the lies of the devil.
If you will take hold of this truth, the spirit of fear will have no place in your life!
Honoring One Another
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: What does it mean to honor someone above yourself?
A: Philippians 2:3 says, “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than themselves.”
This scripture contains incredible direction for us. It is not a suggestion.
When I first heard your question, I thought about marriages. We are all tempted, in our human flesh, to only think about ourselves. The Word of God teaches us to think of others as better than himself.
Esteeming others, which is putting others first above our own wants and desires, is such a great position to hold, especially in marriage. In marriage, we can tend to selfishly think, “Okay, you are supposed to make me happy in this relationship.” This mindset can often happen in new marriages. Many young couples who get married tend to think, “You need to put me first,” and have the attitude “It’s all about me,” but this verse is saying to put the other person first.
Instead of thinking about what your spouse can do for you, you need to think about what you can do for them.
Years ago I had my own complaints and thought, “Oh, if only Rick would do this and that,” but you know what came across my mind? “Denise, you’re not thinking about Rick, you’re thinking about you.” I was being selfish! This scripture is definitely telling us to think about the other person first.
Don’t try to be right all of the time! Don’t always have to have the last word. That kind of attitude is all about you; it’s not about you preferring that other person!
That is what this word in Philippians 2:3 is saying. And the Word of God is not trying to condemn us. This instruction is to help us in our relationships.
Practice having the heart attitude that says, “I will prefer you over me. I will hold back what I really want to say and yield to you.” That is you preferring the other person! That’s you moving in the love of God, and that is powerful!
What’s really more important? That you be right or that you have peace in your relationships?
Friend, God’s ways are right and they always work!
Why Are We Strong in Our Weaknesses?
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: Why does the Bible say we are strong in our infirmities if Jesus has already taken all things upon Himself?
A: The Bible says in Second Corinthians 4:7, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” We have treasure and power on this earth, but it’s not found in our earthen vessels.
In other words, this verse is telling us that even though we may feel weak at times, we can say, “Even in my weakness, He is made strong.” We aren’t trusting in our faults and weaknesses, but in our strength — God within us!
I’m weak, but I’m not going to concentrate on my weaknesses. I’m going to concentrate on the Lord’s strength within me.
God said to Paul in Second Corinthians 12:9, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness….’”
The Bible thinks about weakness in one way, but the world thinks of weakness in another way.
The Bible says if you give it will be given back to you, but the world says if you give, you’re going to lose. The Bible says if you give mercy, you’ll receive mercy. But the world says if you give mercy, you’ll be trampled on and taken advantage of. The world says if you’re weak, you’re only getting weaker. But the Bible says that in your weakness, the Lord’s strength is made perfect. When you’re weak and trust in Him, you find that His strength is perfect — it’s always exactly what you need!
Second Corinthians 12:9 continues, “…Therefore, most gladly, I will rather boast in my infirmity that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
There have been times when I felt ill and weakened. These are times when the enemy says, “Oh, you really messed up now! It’s all your fault. It’s not going to work out.” The enemy comes to accuse, right? When I know the enemy is accusing me, I say, “I boast in my weakness in order that the power of Christ would rest in me.”
When you take a stand against those accusations and trust in the Lord’s perfect strength, you’re turning to Him. He is the One with the answers! He doesn’t pressure you to figure everything out. He’s saying, “Come to Me as you are, and I will give you strength.”
Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” You are not cursed because you’re weak — your weakness is a place where the Lord’s perfect strength can come through you!
Debunking the Gossipers
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: What do you do if a church member is gossiping and your pastor doesn’t address it or even approves of this behavior?
A: The very first thing you do in such a situation is to forgive. It is absolutely a fact.
Gossiping within a congregation is a detriment to the church, and you’re not just imagining it or being paranoid. Maybe you see a group of people talking, and you believe they’re talking about you, but you’re really not sure what they’re actually talking about. But if you actually know they’re gossiping about you, you have to forgive.
The last thing you want is to have offense living in and taking root in your heart. I want to tell you about an example of this from my own life. Many, many years ago, one of my relatives whom I deeply respected and loved so much started spreading a rumor — a lie — about me.
The reason I know about this rumor is that she talked to a relative, that relative went to tell another relative, and then that relative told the rumor to my sister. How do rumors get spread? Because one person tells another, who tells another, and pretty soon everyone is aware of this made-up lie, participating in a transmission of gossip. And that’s what happened to my relatives in my own family!
When my sister heard about this rumor, she came to me — she called me “Niecy” — and said, “Niecy, do you know what they’re saying about you?” I said, “Trula, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” So she proceeds to tell me this lie. It accused me of something immoral, which I was in no way guilty of. When she told me the rumor, I thought, Oh, Trula, that’s just ridiculous! I even started laughing.
But when I really thought about this cruel lie being spread about me by my family, I wondered, How could they? I love them so much. How could they talk about me this way and believe this? I began to get hurt. It felt as if I was trapped in a cage. I was only in my twenties, and I felt completely trapped in a birdcage because of this vicious rumor.
I pictured the rounded bars and the small perch inside. I thought, I’m in that cage.
I said to the Lord, “Lord, this really hurts.” He said to me, “You have to forgive.” And by faith, I forgave them. And I really forgave them.
Forgiveness always opens the door to Heaven. I was so completely free!
A few short months later, I was at a gathering with all the relatives who had participated in spreading that rumor about me. My sister looked at me and said, “Are you going to go up to them?” And I said, “Of course!” So I went to be with them.
I was absolutely free. And that was the end of it!
When you give forgiveness, you’re the one with power. Not the enemy trying to stir up feelings of unforgiveness and bitterness. These are the things that keep you trapped inside that birdcage. Forgiveness is an act of love, and love covers a multitude of sins.
Watching people gossip within your church community and even seeing the pastor take it lightly can be troubling, but what I suggest to you is to forgive them. Let them go!
Ask God what the real truth is. Because when you forgive, peace will enter your heart and you will be set free. You’ll be able to hear the truth from God, not from your heart.
Hearing God’s Voice
Discovering Ruth Q & A
Q: How do I hear God’s voice? When thoughts, desires, and ideas arise within me to do something, how do I know if it’s God’s will and direction, or if it’s just my own?
A: Thank you for this question! Many people have this question. You can even spend your whole life dedicated to the Lord and still have this question. But Jesus gave us a beautiful promise in John 9:27:
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
Read that again: “My sheep hear my voice.” That is such a promise! Many years ago, before I married my husband, I was in a situation where I didn’t know what to do. My job had ended in one city, and I didn’t know whether I should stay in that city or move to another one. I thought, “What am I supposed to do?” I didn’t have anyone directing me, so this is what I did instead: for one week, I repeated this verse over and over again. I said, “I am His sheep, and I know His voice.”
I don’t know exactly how many times I said John 10:27 during that week. You see, the Word of God brings light — it lets you see things you can’t normally see. In the middle of the night one night, I was seeking the Lord about some questions, and I was studying His Word. I meditated on the Word, but I didn’t feel like I was getting any answers while I was meditating. But the Word gives light.
After I quit reading the Word and started praying, God started to bring me answer after answer. He cares more about your questions and giving you the answers than you do! And according to John 10:27, Jesus said that you know the Lord’s voice, and a stranger’s voice you will not follow.
We don’t realize just how much the Holy Spirit leads us. We often think we’re just planning our lives as we go along, but in reality, the Holy Spirit is leading us — that’s how much He loves you!
Say, “Holy Spirit, if Jesus says I know your voice, then I know your voice. And as I read your Word, it will bring the answers to my questions.”
First Corinthians 6:17 says:
But he who is joined in the Lord is one spirit with Him.
You are one spirit with the Lord! We aren’t separated — we share a spirit with Him! And that means you can hear His voice.
It’s so important that when you’re asking these questions, you believe in God’s Word and what it says about you. If you believe what the Word says about you and say, “Lord, I believe your Word, and I can hear your voice. A stranger’s voice I will not follow.” When you do this, you’re aligning yourself with the Holy Spirit to hear the voice of God.
I want you to have the faith that God wants you to know the answer! God wants you to know the answer, therefore, you will know the answer! You’re not dependent on yourself — you’re dependent on Him. God is always faithful, and when you put your trust in Him, peace comes.
Discovering Ruth
Q: How do I protect myself from control and manipulation?
Denise’s Answer: I want to thank you for your question. I believe many people have similar concerns. If someone seems to be trying to control everyone around them, it’s important to distinguish between someone who is simply meticulous or passionate about doing things correctly and someone who has a controlling spirit. Being particular and caring about doing things well is a gift. However, a controlling spirit is different—it’s not about the person, but the spirit driving them.
What’s crucial to remember is that you have something more powerful than that controlling spirit. When someone exhibits a controlling attitude, it often stems from a place of fear. The foundation of their desire to control is fear.
You don’t combat fear with more fear; instead, you fight fear with love. As it says in First John 4:18:
There is not fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.
It says, “Perfect love casts out fear.” When you were born again, Romans 5:5 says, “The Holy Spirit came inside and brought with Him the very love of God and put it inside your heart.” So you have the love of God in your heart. The very love of God! Not a lesser version! You have the very same love — this is amazing — the very love of God that God loves Jesus with is in your heart!
And that perfect love casts out fear. I looked this up in the Greek language, and to “cast out fear” means that you are in control. Fear is not in contro — love is in control! Hallelujah! That is powerful! You are in control, and what love does is it absolutely silences and disciplines the voice of fear.
Friend, you need to know who you are. We all need to know who we are! There is power inside of us — the love of God inside of us — that casts out fear! We need to recognize and agree with that love, and say, “I don’t have to be intimidated by that person because of the love of God inside of me. I even have the love of God inside me for that person!”
The Bible says love never fails (see 1 Corinthians 15:. Unless you’re thinking, “Oh, you just don’t know my situation—I just don’t know how to love.” That might be a problem. You have to agree with this love inside of you. Humble yourself and agree with God about what He put inside of you. It will cast out fear, and you won’t be intimidated.
I’ll show you one more verse in Proverbs 15:1. Listen to this wisdom!
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh words stirs up anger.
— Proverbs 15:1
A soft answer turns away wrath.This means that from that presence of the love of God inside you, you can have a softness, a peace, and absolutely rebuke the wrath of that other person. Isn’t that powerful? Friend, we have to recognize the power of God inside of us.
Our enemy is not the person showing you wrath! Our enemy is the spirit of fear — and love conquers that spirit of fear! If anyone had a reason to be fearful in their life, it was Jesus. He was manipulated, betrayed, and denied — but the love of God conquered. Love isn’t about how good of a peson you are — it’s about this great and beautiful salvation! When Christ came into our life, He brought everything — He brought His love — and that love will discipline and cast out all fear. You have power from the love of God living inside you, all you need to do is acknowledge this love and allow it to show through you!
Discovering Ruth
Q: How do you make yourself act lovingly or act with love toward others?
Denise’s Answer: That’s a very interesting question, and I believe the Bible has some guidance for us! It’s not about forcing ourselves to love people, but rather about recognizing and letting the love of God inside us flow out. Let’s spend a moment describing the love of God that resides within us.
Think about how much God loves you that He would leave Heaven, come down to Earth, and suffer immensely for our salvation. He was betrayed, denied, beaten, mocked, and blasphemed. Yet, on the Cross, He said, “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they are doing.” (see Luke 23:34). Furthermore, He took on our punishment. What kind of love is this?
When you became born-again, the Lord put that exact same love inside your spirit. We can’t force ourselves to love, but we can allow this love within us, agree with this love, and give this love. You see, when Jesus said that if He forgives us, we must forgive others, He wasn’t being unfair because the very love of God has been set upon our hearts by the Holy Spirit (see Matthew 6:14-15). We have been given all we need to act with love.
We just have to humble ourselves before the Lord and say, “Lord, help me recognize this power within me and give this love.” For a Christian, it’s entirely normal to love one another because of the love of God. We may have to forgive repeatedly or overlook what someone else does, but we have the capacity to do it and can give that love.
Discovering Ruth
Q: According to Colossians 4:6, how can you practice letting your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone?
Denise’s Answer: The first scripture I want to direct you to is James 1:19, which says:
Let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation.
You want your words to be seasoned with salt, so you need to think about what you say. Don’t just speak without thinking, especially if you’re in a conflict, talking to someone you don’t like, or talking to someone you’re intimidated by. Think about what you’re going to say before you say it.
The Bible says in Proverbs 15:1:
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
I’m just telling you how powerful your words can be. If you choose to give a soft answer when someone is speaking to you in wrath, it will absolutely silence their wrath.
Now you said, “practically.” You have to purpose in your heart what you’re going to say. And I’m going to give you a very good suggestion. The Bible says we are to bless one another. But what does that mean? It comes from the Greek word meaning eulogy. A eulogy is usually something that people say at funerals, where they speak good words about the deceased person. The person cannot hear these good words. While it’s nice to say these kind words, if you want to bless someone, say good words to them while they’re living.
For instance, let’s take Irena as an example. I could say to her, “Oh, Irena, I’m so tired. I don’t know how we’re going to do these programs.” Or, I can purpose my mouth to bless her and say, “Irena, you are so smart and I just appreciate all the studying you’ve already done. And you don’t know this, but she’s a lawyer — she’s really smart. Irena, you’re such a blessing to people. You help people and you have a big heart. Do you see what I’m talking about? I am blessing her with my words!
Let’s say you’re offended by someone and you say, “Oh, God bless them.” That’s not blessing them. Blessing them is talking about them to the Lord. For example, if I’m speaking about one of my daughters-in-law, I can say, “Lord, thank you that she’s so smart. She’s a great mother. She is a wonderful wife to my son and so committed to what she does. She has so much courage.” Those are good words coming out of my mouth — on purpose.
You asked how you can do this practically. I’m telling you that if you purpose in your heart to speak good words toward others, you will fulfill the Scripture passage that says, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
Discovering Ruth
Q: I’m a prayerful person, but I’m not receiving answers to my prayers. What should I do?
Denise’s Answer: Many times when you pray for or want something, it can take a lot of continuous prayer. Or if you’re praying for God to do something in someone else’s life, it seems to take a while. I know of a woman who prayed for over twenty-five years for her husband’s salvation, and when he got saved, he was a wonderful, devoted Christian and the most loving husband. So even thought it took a while for her prayer to be answered, what she received from God was more than she ever dreamed of! There’s no such thing as believing too much!
Many people have lived before us, and when they left the earth, they didn’t receive what they prayed for. But that didn’t mean they stopped praying! My mother, for example, prayed and prayed for my brother. My mother has been in Heaven now for ten years, but the changes she prayed for are happening right now in my brother. She didn’t see it in her lifetime on Earth, but the power of her prayers continued!
The Bible says in Psalm 141:2, “Let my prayer be set before You as incense, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” The Lord hears your prayers — they’re like incense to Him — so don’t let the enemy tell you that God doesn’t care! He cares so much for you that He saves every one of your tears (see Psalm 56:8).
I want to discuss the attitude of faith with you. God is a faithful God. When you’re struggling to receive your answer, faith says, “Okay Lord, I don’t see the answer with my eyes right now, but I see it in my heart, and I’m not letting go.”
Let’s look at Daniel 3. This passage describes when the Hebrew children refused to bow down before the false idols presented by King Nebuchadnezzar. If they didn’t bow, they would be thrown into the fiery furnace. I want you to pay attention to their attitudes. Verse 17 says, “If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.” Look at the attitude of faith they show in verse 18. It says, “But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”
You see, an attitude of faith says, “Lord, I don’t see it with my eyes yet, but I’m not letting go of it from my heart. I will press forward, and I will believe You.” When you put on that attitude of faith, you’re able to receive from God. Say you’re believing for something, but the enemy is trying to push on you to let it go because you don’t see any results with your eyes. But if you refuse to give up and keep your heart open, it gives God the room to continue giving you revelation about believing and receiving from Him.
When God healed my face, it was such a miracle. I’ve told you this story before. I had a disease on my face for 13 years, and I saw no changes even after I started praying — but I didn’t stop praying. I didn’t stop believing for my healing. One day God gave me such an eye-opening revelation that when I realized what He was telling me, I said, “Lord, I don’t want this sickness! I want to be healed.” It was only about two weeks after that revelation that I received my miracle.
You see, God holds the keys to your prayers getting answered. He even knows about other people you’re praying for and what and why they’re holding onto something they shouldn’t. Our place as an intercessor is very powerful because maybe these people have given up. But what’s important is that you don’t give up. You have to believe in what God has told you He is going to do! Stick with the truths God has placed inside your heart, pray exactly how He tells you to pray, come against the power of the evil one, and do not give up!