Saturday, July 9, 2016

So, You Want to Commit Suicide?

If you’re a Christ-follower reading this, you’re probably wondering if I’ve lost my mind. Why would a follower of Jesus Christ want to kill himself?

 The truth is that suicide is increasing among teenagers in general and among Christian teens in particular. So, it’s time to take action against suicide and look at it for what it really is: Satan’s attempt to rob you of your God-given destiny.

 Why is suicide increasing among teens?
Because teens see the world as becoming more and more hopeless. They may also be experiencing personal problems that seem hopeless--like strife in the home, parental divorce, overwhelming temptations, identity crises, concern about their futures, and a host of other things that drag them down into depression.

 Suicide is always the result of believing a lie--or more than one. Let’s take a look at some of the lies that lead to teen suicide and the truth that will set you free:

 ---LIE:  Your pain will never go away.

 ---TRUTH: No pain on this earth lasts forever. The only things that will last forever are God and His Word, your spirit and soul, and the virtues of faith, hope, and love. 

 Scripture says this: “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long.  Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever.  So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen.  For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” (2 Corinthians 4: 17-18)

 ---LIE: Your life is your own. You can do whatever you want with it.

 ---TRUTH:  Your life is not your own. It was bought and paid for by Jesus Christ with His Blood. Therefore, you have no right to take your own life. 

 Scripture says this: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 - "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”

---LIE: My family and friends will be better off without me.

 ---TRUTH: For every suicide, there will be 13-15 people who are directly affected and whose lives will never be the same. To kill oneself is an extreme act of selfishness in that the person committing suicide is thinking only of himself.
Scripture says this: "Do nothing from selfishness . . . .” (Philippians 2: 3)

 Suicide is the third leading cause of death among teens. Most suicide victims were deeply depressed before killing themselves. Depressed people thing wrong thoughts that contradict God’s Word. Thinking wrong thoughts leads to chemical changes in the body that cause illness.

“Suicide is always the result of believing a lie--or more than one.” ~ Dr. MaryAnn Diorio

If you are struggling with the temptation to kill yourself, consider this:

 1-Jesus loves you and has a great plan for your life. Satan hates you and wants to thwart God’s great plan for you.

 2-You can overcome depression by reading and obeying God’s Word. When you are tempted to be depressed, begin praising God. Satan hates praise directed toward God, so when you praise God, Satan will flee.

 In our next post, I will discuss depression and how to get rid of it.

 Now, it’s YOUR TURN: Have you struggled with thoughts of suicide? Do you have a friend who struggles with such thoughts? Do you know of someone who has committed suicide? How did that person’s suicide affect you? Please post your comment in the box below. Thanks! :)

 TWEETABLE:
“Suicide is always the result of believing a lie--or more than one.” ~ Dr. MaryAnn Diorio (CLICK TO TWEET)
______________________________________________________
Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Guy, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
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Friday, July 1, 2016

5 Ways to Grow in Christ

Hey, Gabriel Guys!

I trust you’re having a great summer! No matter what you do this summer, don’t forget to spend time with Jesus.

Of all your relationships, your relationship with Jesus Christ is the most important relationship you will ever have. It will last forever, into eternity. So don’t you agree it’s vital that you keep working on that relationship?

If you don’t yet have a relationship with Jesus Christ, I urge you to establish one. Click here to learn how to do so. 

Okay, now let’s talk about five ways to grow your relationship in Christ:

1) Dig deep into God’s Word. God’s Word is the Bible. The Bible and Jesus are actually one and the same, so if you dig deep into the Bible, you will be digging deep into Jesus. Why is this important? Because the better you get to know Jesus, the more you will be like Him, and the more like Him you are, the better your life will be.

Check out Psalm 119: 1-3: Happy are all who perfectly follow the laws of God. Happy are all who search for God and always do his will, rejecting compromise with evil and walking only in his paths. 

If you want to be truly happy, follow Jesus! 

2) Pray.  Prayer is a two-way conversation with God. He talks to you, and you talk to Him. Be sure to do
twice as much listening as you do talking, however, because God is far smarter than you are. :)

I keep a Prayer Journal of my conversations with God. It’s really cool to go back and read over the things God has spoken to me over the years. Most of all, keeping a Prayer Journal will remind you of how much God cares, especially when you’re going through tough times.


3) Obey what God tells you to do. How do you know what God tells you to do? The best place to find that answer is in the Bible. God has written down all that He wants you to do. It can be summed up in two commands found in Luke 10: 27: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.’”  Obey these two commands and you’ll be just fine. :)  

4) Meet with other Christ-Followers. We all need the support of others on our journey with Jesus. Fellow believers lift us up when we are down, and vice versa. The Bible says this about meeting with fellow believers: Let us not neglect our church meetings, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near (Hebrews 10: 25). We do not necessarily have to meet in church buildings, because we are the Church. But we should meet regularly with other Christ-Followers, especially during these dangerous times right before Christ’s return.

5) Tell others about Jesus. I am so thankful for the young woman who told me about Jesus and about my need to be born again. Even though I thought she was crazy at first, I eventually realized that she was telling me the truth. Were it not for her courage, I would not be writing this blog post today. 

So, be bold in your witness for Jesus Christ. You have the truth, and by sharing the truth with others, you will prevent many from spending eternity in Hell.

There you have it: 5 Ways to Grow in Christ. Now all you have to do is put these 5 ways into practice. You will be amazed at how much your life will change for the better!

Now, it's YOUR TURN: What ways do you practice to grow in Christ? Please share with our fellow Gabriel Guys in the comment box below. Thanks! We're eagerly waiting to hear from you. Your opinion matters!

TWEETABLE:


______________________________________________________
Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
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Saturday, June 11, 2016

Are You Being Sucked in by the Great Apostasy?

No, it’s not a monster. Nor is it an alien from another planet (Those are called fallen angels.)  It’s an Apostasy!

 What’s an apostasy? In simplest terms, an apostasy is a defection. It is a renunciation of what one formerly believed. The word “apostasy” comes from the Greek word apostasis which means a revolt or a rebellion.

 According to Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, an apostasy is “an abandonment of what one has professed; a total desertion, or departure from one's faith or religion.” In short, an apostasy is a turning away from the Truth.


The Apostle Paul warns us of a coming apostasy, a coming falling away from the truths of the Bible. Hear what Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 2: 3:

 "Don't let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first.” 
If you are not already aware of it, we are smack in the middle of that apostasy right now. Churches everywhere are falling away from the truths of Scripture and establishing belief systems that clearly contradict the Word of God.

How can you recognize apostasy? In particular, how can you recognize an apostate church? Most important of all, how can you make sure you are not attending an apostate church?

Here are some signs of an apostate church:

1-An apostate church teaches Replacement Theology. Replacement theology teaches that the Church has replaced the nation of Israel regarding the Scriptural purposes and plan of God. This is a heretical teaching that contradicts the promises of God regarding Israel as found in the prophetical writings of the Old Testament.

2-An apostate church condones activities and attitudes that the the Bible clearly calls sin. For example, an apostate church approves of abortion, homosexuality, transgenderism, socialism, and New Age philosophies, among other anti-Biblical practices.

3-An apostate church mixes good and evil and confuses the two. An apostate church calls good evil and evil good. It calls darkness light and light darkness. For example, an apostate church teaches that all paths lead to God and that all religions are equally good. This is an outright lie. The Bible says that Jesus is the only Way to God: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14: 6).

Remember this: Adam and Eve’s sin of rebellion resulted in their eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Did you notice that this tree included the knowledge of good as well as the knowledge of evil?  The reason is that Satan always mixes some truth in with the evil so as to deceive. If he presented only evil, most people would run from it. But, Satan mixes truth in with falsehood so that his lie sounds like truth and people will buy into it.

As the days grow spiritually darker, make sure you are growing closer to the Light Who is Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah.  Only be remaining in the Light will you be able to discern the darkness and, discerning it, you will be able to flee from it.

Now, it's YOUR TURN: Have you encountered apostasy? If so, where and when?

You can post your comments in the box below. Thanks! We're eagerly waiting to hear from you. Your opinion matters!

TWEETABLE:

______________________________________________________
Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Guy, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maryann-diorio



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Thursday, May 26, 2016

Who Is Your God?

Hey, Gabriel Guy,
Is there another god in your life besides Jesus Christ? Before you shout a resounding No!, let's stop and take a look.

 False gods come in many forms and weasel their way into our lives in subtle ways. Here are some false gods that may be hiding in your heart without your realizing it:


1--Sports - Do you cheer more for your favorite sports team than you do for Jesus? Do you get more excited about going to a game than you do about going to church? If you play on a team, do you spend more time practicing than you do reading your Bible and praying? If so, your favorite sport is an idol in your life.
 
2--Hobbies - Do you spend more time pursuing your hobbies than you do pursuing Jesus? If so, your hobby is an idol in your life.

3--Food - Do you eat when you are not hungry?  Do you eat for comfort when you are upset or hurting? Do you eat more than your body needs? If so, food is an idol in your life.

4--Money - Is your ultimate goal in life to become wealthy financially? Do you make decisions based on money alone? Is your only reason for considering a certain career the financial return it will provide? If so, money is an idol in your life.

 Idols have a way of creeping into our hearts unawares. Ask Holy Spirit to reveal to you the idols in your heart. Then repent of them and turn away from them. Make Jesus Christ the only Lord of your life. He alone deserves your whole heart!

Now, it's YOUR TURN: What idols are in your life? Chances are good that others reading this have some of the same idols. So, let's share with your fellow Gabriel Guys and encourage one another to get rid of all idols. You can post your comments in the box below. Thanks! We're eagerly waiting to hear from you. Your opinion matters!

TWEETABLE:
"I am the Lord your God . . . . You must not have any other god but me." - Exodus 20: 2-3 (CLICK TO TWEET)
______________________________________________________

Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Guy, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/drmaryanndiorio/
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Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Are You an Evil-Stopper?

Hey, Gabriel Guy,

 Today's post is a two-for-one. That means I'm writing the same post for both the Gabriel Guys blog and the Gabriel Girls blog.  (You didn't know you had a sister group, did you? Well, now you know!)

That said, here is my huge question to you this week: What are you doing to stop evil in the world?

I hope I'm not hearing silence on the other end. :) 

What I am probably hearing is, "What can I do?"

Great question!  Here are some suggestions you can apply to stop evil in the world:

1-Always stand up for what is right. There will be times in your daily life that your friends or teachers or others will state positions that contradict the Word of God. For example, they may say things like this:
  • Homosexuality and transgenderism are okay;
  • Sex before marriage is fine;
  • There is no God;
  • Science is the ultimate arbiter of truth.
  • The aborted baby is not a human.
Such people will use ridicule or bullying to pressure you into coming over to their position. Don't do it! They will accuse you of being intolerant, ignorant, or just plain stupid. Well, they're wrong!  

You will discover that those who call themselves "tolerant" are the most intolerant of all. If you don't agree with them, they will criticize you unkindly, curse you, and, in some instances, even kill you. 

Truly tolerant people will respect your opinion even if they don't agree with you. They will be kind and courteous to you and engage in friendly discussion. Not so, the falsely tolerant.

2-Stay alert for half-truths. The lie usually comes couched in a partial truth. Otherwise, it would be easy to detect a lie. Satan always tempts with half-truths. Here are a few examples:
  • God is good and won't let anyone go to hell.
  • There are many ways to be saved.
  • What's right for you may not be right for me (and vice versa).
3-Set love as your top priority. We are commanded to do this in I Corinthians 14: 14. Love is the greatest power of all. Love will never fail.

Especially love your brothers and sisters in Christ. Jesus said this about us: "Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples" (John 13: 35).

In the 1930s, as Hitler was rising to power, Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer said this: 
"Silence in the face of evil is itself evil. God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act." 

Another famous man, Albert Einstein, said this: "The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything." ~ Albert Einstein

Let's not be one who watches others do evil while we ourselves keep our mouths shut. We are Followers of Yeshua the Messiah. We know the Truth, and we have a mandate from our Lord to be a Light in the midst of a world that is growing increasingly dark.

 Remember this: Light will always overcome darkness! Jesus said, "You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5: 14). Shine your light into your world!

Now, it's YOUR TURN: What are your thoughts about how to stop evil in the world? Please share them with your fellow Gabriel Guys and Gabriel Girls. You can post your comments in the box below. Thanks! We're eagerly waiting to hear from you. Your opinion matters!


______________________________________________________

Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Girl or Gabriel Guy, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/drmaryanndiorio/
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Monday, May 16, 2016

How Much Does Good Character Cost?

Hey, Gabriel Guys! 

Good character. It is so rare today, isn't it? In fact, when electing public officials, we separate their character from their accomplishments.  But is this logical?

Not at all. One's character can no more be separated from what one does than the root of a tree can be separated from its fruit. In other words, if the root of a tree is bad, the fruit of that tree will also be bad. Conversely, if the root of a tree is good, its fruit will also be good.

Character flows out of your root, which is your spirit, just as surely and predictably as fruit flows out of its root.  So, what can you do to make sure your root is good so your fruit will also be good?

Photo Source: Lightstock 62571

Here are a few tips:

1) Make your relationship with Jesus Christ the top priority in your life. Let nothing interfere with it--not your schoolwork, your job, your family, or your friends. Jesus is our example. He put His relationship with the Father above His own family. 

Once, when he was teaching, someone told him that His mother and brothers were standing outside and couldn't get in because of the crowd. Jesus replied, "My mother and my brothers are all those who hear God's word and obey it"(Luke 8: 21).  According to this statement, would you qualify as a member of God's family?

2)  Be faithful and consistent in prayer. As busy as Jesus was, He always made time to pray. Notice I said made time not found time. We always make time for what we really want to do. 

 Prayer is a major tool in helping you stay close to Jesus and a major weapon in fighting off the enemy.  Do not neglect prayer. Start your day with it, end your day with it, and pray throughout the day. Prayer is simply talking to the Father, so keep a running conversation with Him. 

 3) Run from evil. There will be many times in your life when friends, classmates, or, sadly, even family members who do not know Jesus will entice you to do wrong. Resist their enticements firmly yet lovingly. Remember you are a soldier in Christ's Army, and you want to please your Commander-in-Chief above all else.

Remember also that Satan's goal is to keep you from your destiny. He will use every means possible to reach his goal. He will especially use those areas in which you are the most vulnerable. So be on guard! 

Yes, good character costs a lot, but the rewards are so worth it.  When you are tempted not to pay the price--and you will be tempted--remember this: How much did it cost for Jesus to save you?  

When we think of the price He paid so that we could have eternal life, any price we pay for good character is minuscule in comparison.

YOUR TURN: What do you do to develop Godly character? Please share your insights in the comment box below. Thanks!
_______________________________________________________
Copyright 2016 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Guy, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:

Website: www.maryanndiorio.com
BookBub.com: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maryann-diorio
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/DrMaryAnnDiorio
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/drmaryanndiorio

 
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