deception

NEGATIVE TRANSFERENCE

(February 26, 2023) Dr Robert McQuillan encourages a troubled carer…

Dr Robert
You mentioned some troubling heavies in your article Troubled-hearts-minds-and-characters. To avoid such things hanging on us. I like your quote from the Complete Jewish Bible: ‘Don’t let yourselves be disturbed’ (John 14:1CJB).

Well, I am disturbed, Robert, and while I hear what you’re saying here, I’m still feeling heavy, downhearted, uneasy and I’m wondering if having to counselling people (even Christians),having to always be listening to their troubles, their problems, could somehow be at the bottom of how I’m feeling. Pastor ‘Jones’.

Hi Pastor ‘Jones’

I could have said much more in that article… but as I have to limit other contributors, I have to cull back my own articles too! Now then, I’m wondering if the following is the cause of what you’re feeling… (if so, it’s a piece of advice, a warning, that I’ve written about before, given to pastors, even to  psychiatrists, physiatrists and counsellors, Christian or not! (Especially carers with the right heart like yourself).

In a nutshell… don’t be tricked into carrying the deadweight of those who trouble you with their heavy problems! Be wise… there’s a subtilty here. The one being helped may not even be aware of it but what can happen – has happened – is that after a while they’re feeling great but you’re feeling uncomfortable.

Transference
Don’t be concerned about technical names here… think of it as ‘transference.’ Now professionals mentioned above know about different kinds of transference… but sometimes even ‘experts’ need to be reminded to back down! Especially when negative transference is the name of the game!

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DECEITFUL WORDS, NURTURING WORDS

(February 23, 2023) Mama Lava shares draws our attention to…

Hi again! How are you all?

Last month I shared on the importance of everyone exercising kindness.

I highlighted what we all know so well – that the world needs Jesus! And that Paul wrote strongly about God’s kindness leading to salvation that comes through accepting Jesus as our Saviour:  ‘… do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and restraint and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?’(Romans 2:4).

Kindness is defined by Merriam-Webster.com as the quality or state of being kind, treating people with kindness and respect.

In focussing on the need for kindness to be activated by Christians to the world, I draw our attention to linking words, one which hinders while the other enhances… deceit and nurture.

Deceitfulness
Lies, dishonesty, falsehood, fibs, misinformation… there are many ways to label an untruth. Did you know there is a marked difference between deceptive words and deceitful words? They are similar, but the difference is in the intent. Deceptive words are likely misleading, but deceitful words are deliberately so (wikidiff.com). This is what Merriam-Webster.com has to say:

  • Deceitful (adj): marked by, based on, or done by dishonest methods to acquire something of value…
  • Words related to deceitful: fraudulent, misleading, shady, sneaky, sly, tricky…
  • Nearest opposite words of deceitful: candid, open, trustworthy, legitimate, valid…

My deceitful words are motivated by a desire to gain something of value. What might fall into this category? How about…

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FIVE ‘Ts’ OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

(October 18, 2022) Richard Winter shares comfort and a challenge…

Do you know who this is?

I’m sure you have seen him on an old TV show… it’s Mr T.

Mr T is known for his distinctive hairstyle inspired by Mandinka warriors in West Africa, his gold jewelry, and his tough-guy image. He is also known for his catchphrase, ‘I pity the fool!’

Today Mr T is a Christian who stopped wearing the gold jewelry and acting tough because it’s a contradiction to what he believes.

As we grow in Christ we begin to realise that our Christian maturity has many facets, just like  beautiful diamond and I want to make mention of five of them today that all start with T so that we can become a Mr T in Christ!

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YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFUL

(March 08, 2022) Richard Winter challenges…

Martin Luther King wrote a speech that has stood the test of time: I will quote just a few selected lines…

‘I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”… I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!’

We know that words like these are powerful. They change lives and they change nations!

In WW2, Winston Churchill became prime minister of England and delivered a series of rousing speeches by radio which rallied the spirits of the people. His words have become legendary:

‘We shall defend our island whatever the cost may be… We shall never surrender. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.”’

For all of us, words are powerful. Our words are powerful and when we speak each day we have the opportunity to change and shape destinies.

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ABIDING, RESTING AND TRUSTING IN JESUS

(September 9, 2021) Geri B encourages remaining in Jesus the vine…

Continuing along my earlier article on the theme of the grape vine (Abiding in the Vine)…

Jesus makes it clear that the Father wants his children to be fruitful and tells us that… ‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful… Remain in me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing‘ (John 15:1-5).

Remaining… to bear much fruit

  • If we remain (abide) in him, we will do just that – bear fruit.
  • And if we bear fruit, the Father will prune us so that we will be even more fruitful.
  • But the warning comes to us twice in this short passage… remain in him, otherwise you cannot bear fruit, you can do nothing!

Not only is it the Father’s desire that we bear much fruit by abiding in him, but there is that oft-missed warning that unless we remain in him, we cannot bear fruit, nor can we do anything of true value!

With all the gifts we have been endowed with there can often be a tendency to take ownership and believe that we can use them whenever and however we so choose… but the truth of it is, we are simply stewards of the manifold gifts of God and to really see lasting fruit from what has been entrusted to us, we must take our direction from the Lord – we must abide in him.

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WARNING: ‘A TEXT OUT OF CONTEXT IS A PRETEXT!’

(June 16, 2021) Robert McQuillan reflects on the above…

Personally, I will never forget these words of wisdom above, made decades ago by an outstanding pioneer of Pentecostal truths. There’s always something that sticks in one’s mind when a great preacher declares something profound, and this certainly did… has, and always will!

Now, it’s a warning that has been highlighted in different ways by others over the years, but at the time it linked perfectly with scriptures the Holy Spirit had burned into my heart three years previous when out-of-the-blue he had spoken to my spirit.

I well recall that wintery night when he stunned me by saying clearly that he would use me to teach God’s word simply but in-depth, challenging Christians and leaders to understand what scripture is really saying, not what they think or suppose, or declaring as being ‘the latest thing in God.’

Dangerous spiritual junk food
The Holy Spirit strongly impressed on me to deeply study the Timothy epistles, to wholeheartedly devour Paul’s warnings about end time lack of hunger for truth in some Christians.

Influencing me about a coming lack of desire for God’s word, a careless Christianity,he burned 1 Timothy 4.7Message into my heart: ‘Stay clear of silly stories that get dressed up as religion.’

Then, especially 2 Timothy 4:3-4, ‘You’re going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching but will fill up on spiritual junk food – catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They’ll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages.’

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DETERMINED DECEPTION

(January 20), 2021) Robert and Maureen McQuillan share…

Lately we watched reports inferring that aftereffects/possible side effects of certain proposed medicines aren’t always fully explained. That it’s yet another case of ‘Following the Money’ as so many more millions are spent of advertising medicines than on the actual research! Ie: An inferred sort of deception due to insufficient information.

Something similar happened yesterday when we tried paying a utility account by phone. Despite several calls to different supposedly ‘helpful consultants’ none would accept payment, each insisting we use an automated service. This auto-service we tried repeatedly but it (no ‘real person’) kept refusing our data. On complaining by email finally an authority figure explained that as all operators are working from home due to covid-19 and couldn’t be accept phone payments. Not one ‘consultant had explained this!

  • Disinformation was a Nazi WW2 deception weapon – today it’s Satan’s big trick! Let’s talk about spiritual disinformation…

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A BRAVE NEW WORLD AWAITS?

(October 26, 2019) Dr Jim McClure, straight shooting theologian, challenges brave Christians…

In 1931 the author Aldous Huxley wrote a novel called Brave New World (a phrase he borrowed from William Shakespeare). In his novel Huxley presented an alarming vision of the future.

But not even Huxley imagined a world intent on self-destruction by pursuing goals and embracing tainted ideals that ultimately result in dehumanisation.

Age of deception
We are living in an age when a spirit of deception is sweeping the world and millions of people are being caught up in it.

Atheistic Marxist philosophy, which is committed to social transformation, has penetrated and perverted a wide range of social values and scientific theory with the inevitable consequence of social instability and hostility.

How effective the media has been in disseminating this false gospel of social manipulation –

  • Movies and television series frequently (and inevitably) include sub-agendas that drip-feed incorrect information and corrupt values with the purpose of radically changing good and Godly principles that have served individuals and nations well for many centuries.
  • Television, radio and newspaper reports are increasingly interpretations of facts designed to shape the opinions of those who want to know what is really happening in the world. A duplicitous use of adjectives and adverbs in those news reports often corrupts the information from the dissemination of ‘facts’ to ‘propaganda.’

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GOD WANTS YOU TO BE RICH – REALLY?

(May 8, 2018) Dr Jim McClure, straight shooting theologian, openly shares from his heart…

Recently I received a blog from an Indian friend who is pastoring in India: a young man whom I taught for a short time in a Bible college in Tamil Nadu. He was very committed in his Christian faith and very passionate in sharing the gospel.

However, his most recent blog troubled me. It was titled, ‘God wants you to be rich!‘

The following is part of what he wrote:
Yes, God wants us to be rich. We all know and believe that Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, died on the cross to buy our salvation, healing, blessings and deliverance; but I want you to know on the same cross Jesus also died to make us rich.

‘You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich’ (2 Corinthians 8:9 NKJV). (more…)

DECEPTION – A DIFFERENT VIEW ON ‘THE CHRISTMAS STORY’

(December 8, 2017) Robert and Maureen McQuillan share …

Great! It’s almost Christmas! And what a joyous time it can be!

This Sunday several churches with present their Carols by Candlelight evening, believing for a grand turnout of joyous Christians to celebrate the birth of the Saviour of this fallen world – and to worship our gracious God from full hearts.

Of course many Christians are aware that ‘Christmas’ as such isn’t mentioned in scripture, that no one really knows the exact date, let alone month, when  Jesus was born – but that’s okay for those who really know what this season is truly  all about and celebrate from the heart, not the head!

We’re really celebrating God’s incredible love for every sinner in willingly giving us his Son, born incarnate of the virgin Mary and destined to become our redeemer by dying on Calvary’s cross as our substitute for sin’s penalty (John 3:16).

Traditionally Christmas is a 5F matter… food, family, fun, fellowship and freebie gifts. But the genuine Christian aspect is all about our celebrating that God so loved the world that he freely gave us the greatest gift of all – Jesus – and that forgiveness and full salvation is available on repentance of sin to everyone who accepts Jesus as Saviour.

What an amazing event that so-named ‘first Christmas’ was!
No wonder the angelic host heralding that first good news declaration proclaimed to the bewildered shepherds: ‘Don’t be afraid. I’m here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Saviour has just been born in David’s town… Glory to God… Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.’ (more…)