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"IF we receive these whispers from God in simple faith, again and again, we are comforted, but IF we REFUSE to LISTEN to the voice of the Comforter, through His Word or to our conscience, and choose instead to listen to the voice of discouragement or despair, no comfort will enter our souls.
 

If Divine Comfort is to be ours, we must BELIEVE-TRUST and then REST in His abiding Presence. We need to repeat this until it becomes a habitual act and our habitual acts form our new character.
 

Unbelief is at the bottom of all our lack of comfort, and absolutely nothing else! The remedy for this unbelief is simple. We must make up our minds to believe every single solitary word of comfort that God has ever spoken, and we must utterly refuse to listen to any words of discomfort spoken by our own hearts, by our circumstances, or by the devil and his agents. We must set our faces like flint to BELIEVE-TRUST-and REST, because when everything around us goes haywire, it is not always easy to believe God's words of comfort. We must put our wills into this matter of being Divinely Comforted. We must choose to be comforted!
 

Whoever will adopt this life of faith on a continuous basis will come, sooner or later, into a blessed state of Divine Comfort" by Jim Hohnberger - Empowered Living Ministries: I Will Comfort You, http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs064/1101559359570/archive/1108999708701.html

This is something that helps keep my heart in the right place when I have been wounded or attacked. I hope it helps you guys!

 

"Would You Rather Be Right Or Have Relationship? 

(Or Where Would You Be Without Judas?)

Jack and Trisha Frost 

 

Not long ago Trisha and I were asked, "What three people have helped most to mature you and to release you in ministry?" At first thought, it was those people in our lives who have stood beside us and loved us through every trial and storm. But then we thought of several people who had not appeared to be loyal to us, those who sowed evil reports against us, those who tried to make themselves look good by exposing our faults and weaknesses to others. As we thought about those who had helped us most in ministry, we began to realize it is also some of the hurtful, difficult relationships that have had dramatic impact for good in our lives. Without them, we may never have discovered what was in us. They helped us discover how deeply our lives were rooted in pride. We began to see how opinionated we were and how we had a need to be right. They were the blessing of God to us, helping to expose how much we lived with a need to be needed. They, unknowingly, helped to motivate us to the Cross!  

 

It’s funny how, in God’s Word, He often turns what seems right and fair upside down.

That is because it is Satan who demands what is right and fair. He demands payment

for our sins and is constantly pronouncing us "guilty, guilty, guilty." But it is God who

does not want to give us what we deserve. He wants to give us an undeserved,

unmerited gift. Satan traffics in law and in what is right and fair, what we deserve. God

traffics in grace and mercy, what we do not deserve. Grace is a higher place than what

is right and fair and Satan can never operate in grace, only in accusations. 

 

Satan is known as the "accuser of the brethren". His thoughts are always negative,

accusatory, pointing out others’ faults, blaming others, devaluing, and demanding of

rights and justice. Resentment, bitterness, and a heavy heart follow Satan’s thoughts. 

"God is love" and He is the opposite of Satan. His thoughts are always positive, 

comforting, edifying, encouraging, accepting, valuing, and loving. Grace, forgiveness,

and innocence follow after God’s thoughts. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward

you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil…" (Jeremiah 29:11) 

 

Before Trisha and I had this revelation, not knowing these truths brought much harm to

our own lives and ministries. We would receive hurt from people and our response

would be for justice and what was right and fair. We acted more like God’s policemen

and would begin to develop accusatory thoughts or words about those who hurt us.

Then we would become negative, critical, and devaluing towards them in our thought

life. We did not realize it, but we were coming into agreement with Satan’s thoughts

with our own thoughts, and it brought us under judgment and hindered us from

receiving healing and the blessings of God in our lives, families, and ministries. "But I

tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment…"

(Matthew 5:22)  

 

After all, when people mistreat and disappoint us, it is only natural to feel hurt and

wounded. But do we respond with grace, "Father forgive them, for they know not what

they are doing! They are only acting out of their own hidden core pain and rejection!

Help me to cover them and restore relationship!" Or do we demand vindication, trying to

justify and clear ourselves from blame? Do we try to make ourselves look good and

innocent by exposing and talking about others’ faults and thus making them look bad or

in error?  

 

Vindication can be one of the hungriest, most destructive appetites we possess.

VINDICATION IS ROOTED IN DEMANDING OUR RIGHTS AND JUSTICE FOR THE

WRONGS DONE TO US! But God says, "Vengeance is Mine." It is His right and it will cost

us dearly to try helping Him out. When we do, God backs away from the situation and

lets us handle things in our own fleshly, accusatory ways. Unknowingly, we are actually

coming into agreement with Satan and separating ourselves from intimacy with God and

from our inheritance in His blessings. When we decide we had better do something to

help God, God help us! 

 

It helps Trisha and I to look at it this way: it is not a matter of what we want to give to

someone who hurts us. It is a matter of what we want to receive. Do we want to receive

a hardened wounded heart that separates us from an intimate relationship with God and

leads us into resentments, pride, and anxieties? Or do we want to enter into God’s rest

and walk in the joy of a lifestyle of forgiveness that produces a meek and gentle spirit?

When we choose our response to wounding situations, we also choose our future

rewards. "Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken

together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure it

will be measured to you in return." (Luke 6:38) The context of this verse is not about

money but about how we respond to those who hurt and disappoint us.  

 

We make the decision whether to receive mistreatment at the hands of others as a

blessing or as a curse. God has promised a blessing if we respond with forgiveness and

grace. But when we respond with accusation, vindication, fault-finding, or blame

shifting, we then give Satan a key to our front door and he can come and go as he

pleases in our house. (Ephesians 4:26, 27) 

 

"Blessed are you when men cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of

evil against you falsely, on account of Me. Rejoice, and be glad for your reward in

heaven is great… But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute 

you in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His

sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the

unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you…"  

(Matthew 5:11, 12, 44-4)

 

These verses imply that there is no blessing or reward when we do good to good 

people. Blessing comes when we do good to the people who hurt us. The blessing is

Sonship! We end up with the feeling of full acceptance and unconditional love with the

Father. We begin walking in a deeper intimacy with God and we start taking on His spirit

of grace. That releases intimacy in most of our relationships. We then start becoming

comfortable with love and forgiveness. This is the place where healing and the blessings

of God begin to overtake you.  

 

A study by Mark Virkler reveals that eighty percent of most Christian’s thoughts are

negative. "They didn’t value me! They didn’t speak to me! They were not concerned

with my need! They! They! They!" You can take most of your thoughts or conversations

about a difficult person in your life, and in one way or another line them up under one

of two categories:  

 

THOUGHTS OF RESTORATION AND RELATIONSHIP

or

THOUGHTS OF VINDICATION AND EXPOSURE

One way leads to blessing and the other way releases a self-imposed curse. Satan wants 

us to inherit a curse. If the majority of our thoughts and conversations are in agreement

with him, he has a right to release the curse. "He also loved cursing, so it came to him;

and he did not delight in blessing, so it was far from him. But he clothed himself with

cursing as with his garment, and it entered into his body like water, and like oil into his

bones." (Psalm 109:17, 18)  

 

God wants us to inherit a blessing. All we have to do is give the person a gift that they

do not deserve, a gift of forgiveness and grace. "To sum up, let all be harmonious,

sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or

insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose

that you might inherit a blessing." (1 Peter 3:8, 9) 

It really comes down to this, WOULD WE RATHER BE RIGHT OR HAVE RELATIONSHIP?

 

How often our thoughts come into agreement with Satan when we strive to be right in

our relationships, especially at home. The biggest problem is we usually are right about

others’ faults! But you can be right and have the wrong attitude and you are dead

wrong. Jesus didn’t "grasp" for position or authority (Philippians 2:5-8). Satan did. Jesus

sought to humble Himself. Satan sought to exalt himself. Satan lost his position in God’s

presence. Christ was exalted to the right hand of the Father. When you choose the

behavior, you choose the consequences! (See Law & Grace chart) 

 

Jesus revealed the path to blessing and intimacy in Luke 6:27, 28, 35: "But I say to you

who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse

you, pray for those who mistreat you… and your reward will be great, and you will be

sons of the Most High…" 

 

"Love your enemies" and you take on the spirit of Christ!

"Do good to those who hate you" and you may make them your friend!

"Bless those who curse you" and you inherit a blessing!

"Pray for those who mistreat you" and you see them through the loving eyes of the 

Father!

 

Jesus walked out these principles with the one who hurt Him most, Judas. He knew 

what was in Judas’ heart from the beginning, yet Jesus continued to serve and minister

to him for three years. He allowed Judas to minister beside Him. He washed Judas’ feet

right before the betrayal. He broke bread with him and lived faithful to the covenant of

loyalty with Judas in spite of Judas' actions towards Him. He never stopped receiving

and valuing Judas. Have you received the difficult person whom God has placed in your

life as an instrument of blessing? If you do not value and respect them, then you may 

be treating them like a curse, thus inheriting a curse! When we receive them as a

blessing to help us find out what is in us, then God can take every negative relationship

and use it to bring us into spiritual maturity. This releases us to be an instrument of His

love to our family and to the nations! 

 

"And as for you, you (Joseph’s brothers) meant evil against me, but God meant it for

good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive."

(Genesis 50:20)  

 

Do you have a pattern of struggling with strife or conflict in relationships? Are your

thoughts or words often accusatory towards those who hurt or disappoint you? Are you

part of a team that lacks unity? Do churches in your city seem to be competitive and

just do not flow well together as the Body of Christ? We have material available that will

help you to mature in this area of life and ministry.  

 

In the Father’s love,

Jack & Trisha Frost 

 

Reprint Permission 

Permission is granted to reproduce articles from this website provided:

1) articles are reprinted in their entirety, and

2) acknowledgement of both Shiloh Place Ministries and the article's author(s) are

printed with each copy as follows:

(author's name)

Shiloh Place Ministries, PO Box 5, Conway, SC 29528

(843) 365-8990

info@shilohplace.org 

www.shilohplace.org"  

"Millions of Christians have accepted His substi-
tutionary role but are resisting allowing Him to be
Lord of their entire life, particularly in the now.
Until they do, they are not "in Christ." You see
"in" denotes you are presently in, right now it is
happening, you are cooperating with Him in the
present, in all your known choices. No resistance,
no rebellion, just a conscious, "Yes, Lord." Jim Hohnberger

 

 

...........................
 
"...all that devour him shall offend (Me); evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD." Jeremiah 2:3b
We don't have to get offended when we are mistreated. God will get offended for us and defend our case. Rest in Him!
"The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he KNOWS them that TRUST in Him."
Nahum 1:7

"Commit the keeping of your soul to Christ, make a pact with Him to remind you

whenever you begin to veer. Then rest in Him. He is able to keep that which you

have committed to Him...." " 'the Replacement Principle' replacing the wrong with

the right... yielding. Replace sadness with happiness ... replace anger with trust in

God (not in the person per say) ... replace resentment with God is in charge ... replace

revenge with God is my revenger ... God is good I can trust in Him."

Jim & Sally Hohnberger.

This is becoming a bit of a habit, us meeting like this. But if you are reading this you really want to try out Wix. Go on then.

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