Harvest Life Gracefully - Article by Michael Tummillo, for anyone that feels unworthy of God's love

Fig Leaves For The Catholic Faithful


By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Michael_Tummillo]Michael Tummillo

I can recall sitting in Catholic Church as a boy. I had always wondered why it was that, at Communion time, some people remained seated or kneeling in a very prayerful, pious position while others shuffled forward to receive the bread and wine. As time went on, and the length of time between my confessions grew too long (in my own opinion) and the types of sins I was capable of committing grew "worse" (again, in my own opinion), I found that, I, too, would refrain from taking communion because, in my own opinion, I was simply unworthy.

Unworthy? As time went by, the Lord has allowed me my share of ministry opportunities to Catholics. Here are a few examples:

CASE #1: I met a pretty Catholic woman in her 40s who told me she hadn't taken communion in 10 years. Why? Because she had been divorced and felt unworthy.

CASE #2: Another Catholic woman, a single mom, confessed to me that she was not only not skipping communion, but was feeling unworthy of even entering the doors of the church. Why? She, too, had been divorced.

CASE #3: At a Coffee Shop Bible Study, a young Baptist college student introduced me to a friend, a lovely Catholic girl he'd met at school. She was very vocal during the Bible Study, anxious to read the verses and had much to add to the discussion. Afterward, she asked me to pray for her. She wanted to become a nun, she said, but she had this strong desire to raise children, too.

CASE #4: A Catholic woman had become pregnant as a teen girl and gave the baby up for adoption. She later married another man and was unable to bear children. She wondered if she wasn't being punished for her past sin.

CASE #5: A devout Catholic man had an affair many years ago. In repentance, he poured himself into his religious practices becoming downright professional; a dedicated model of the perfect Catholic man. By outward appearances a pillar of faith; inwardly, like Samson, he was in bondage to those pillars.

WHO SAID YOU WERE NAKED?

Across denominational lines, the Church has declared to all people that they are separated from God, that they are guilty and that He's angry at them. We go so far as to preach that, unless they attend church on our prescribed day, at the prescribed time in our particular denomination, that they remain separated from Him. Heaven forbid that anyone in attendance should sin - at least sin in such a way that others might notice (pregnancy out of wedlock, divorce, you know...one of the "biggies). Those types will be brow-beaten and "scarlet lettered" from now till Doomsday, as they say.

Do you recall what God said to Adam after he and the wife ate off the tree? God saw that they had covered themselves with fig leaves and, when Adam said they covered themselves because they were naked, God responded, "Who told you that you were naked?"

We must answer that same basic question: "Who told you that you sinned?"

Our answers might include:

"My pastor."

"The Church."

"My parents."

How about "The devil"? You see there is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ (Rom 8:1). There are two voices in Heaven, we read; Jesus who makes intercession for the Saints (that's you and me actually, not dead Christians - LIVE ones), and Satan, who accuses "the brethren" (and sisteren) incessantly.

Just as Noah's sons walked in backward and covered his nude body when he collapsed from drunkenness, after having attention called to him by the other son, Jesus, too, covers our nakedness.

Do you recall reading where He told the sinful prostitute, "You tramp! you're going to Hell!" No, because He never did that. How about where He told that obese man that there was obviously sin in his life or he would be thinner and subsequently happier and have a higher paying job and date more often? No, not hardly. His usual response was along the lines of "go and sin no more." If anything, He repeatedly told those to whom He ministered, "Don't tell anyone," and they ran off and told EVERYONE.

To the woman "caught" in adultery (wasn't the MAN caught, too?), Jesus said, "Woman, where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No man, Lord." And Jesus said unto her, "Neither do I condemn you: go, and sin no more." (John 8:10-12)

To the paralytic in Mark 2:5, He said simply, "Son, your sins are forgiven."

When some guys lowered their friend through a hole they made in the roof so that Jesus might see fit to heal him, Jesus was impressed. Luke 5:20 tells us, "When Jesus saw their faith, He said, "Friend, your sins are forgiven."

While dining at Simon's with a group of Pharisees, Luke 7:36-49 reveals how a "sinful" woman came in with a jar of perfume. She stood behind Jesus at his feet weeping, and began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. Verse 44 says, "Then He turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven-for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."

Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

Hebrew 10:18-19 reminds us, "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more. "And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin." Did you notice: no hoops to jump through; no performances necessary; no obligations. Just faith.

Unworthy? Not on your life! Don't believe the lie of the enemy that anything you ever did has re-qualified you as unworthy. I am convinced that NOTHING is able to separate us from the love of God (Rom 8:38-39). Friends, there are NO V.I.P. Sinners! To wallow in guilt and cling to thoughts and feelings of unworthiness is to tearfully declare, "Thanks for the crucifixion, Jesus, but it JUST WASN'T GOOD ENOUGH for me!"

THE RESULTS?

Regarding those five cases mentioned above, in every instance, I shared what you have just read.

In Case #1, the woman rejoiced, smiled tearfully and assured me that she understood. I believe with all my heart that she resumed the practices of her faith.

In Case #2, I had actually driven 4 hours to teach a Bible Study that never happened once I arrived. This woman had asked me to come to her office so that we could speak. After sharing with her something similar to what you've just read, she exclaimed, "I know you drove a long way to get here, but if the only thing you accomplished was telling me what you just said, IT WAS WORTH IT!" She has since become engaged, I've been told, to a Baptist boyfriend from her youth.

In Case #3, after the young lady told me she wanted to be a nun but also loved children, I assured her that, if that was indeed her calling, a nun can love children, too. As a Catholic boy, several nuns had quite an impact on my life; they loved children and it showed. I remember them fondly. She's married now.

In Case #4, that woman now understands that God doesn't punish His family. He loves her and has a plan for her life. She is serving the Lord with gladness and has been re-acquainted with her child.

In Case #5, we can only believe that God will minister the truth to this individual and that he will receive God's grace (Eph 2:8,9), step out of his performance mode and experience the liberty that has been bought for him by the blood of the cross. Does that sound like YOU, or anyone you know?

Though you may not be a Catholic, trust me, the devil has no problem condemning non-Catholics of their past mistakes and current bondages as well.

How many sins had you committed 2,000 years ago, after the crucifixion? None.

So, if your sins were forgiven, for how long did that "offer" stand? For 150 years? For 1,233 years? How about 3,000 years? You see, everything you've ever done - or will ever do - was either forgiven 100% by the shed Blood of the Lamb of God, who TOOK AWAY the sins of the world...or it wasn't. That doesn't give us a license to be evil. We will reap as we sow, after all. But we can rest in the hope that God's mercy REALLY is new every morning.

We REALLY have been justified.

God REALLY does see Jesus when He looks at us for we are the righteousness of God in Christ.

Our debt REALLY has been paid.

Now, is there anyone YOU need to forgive?

Every blessing,
Michael Tummillo
A servant of God
rel=nofollow http://www.yourtown4jesus.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
His mission is to bring Discipleship and Encouragement to the Body of Christ. Since '99, he has broadcast nearly 700 inspirational articles to his online subscribers and a dozen booklets on subjects sure to interest the thinking Christian and accelerate the process of spiritual development.

He is the founder of t.e.a.m. ministries. An Author, Pastoral Counselor and Teacher, his eMail broadcasts, known as "Your Town for Jesus" are read around the globe. Subscribe at [mailto:team1min@our-town.com]team1min@our-town.com



Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Fig-Leaves-For-The-Catholic-Faithful&id=524644] Fig Leaves For The Catholic Faithful

Harvest Life Gracefully- Examination of my life- part 3 - elementry school age

Down the road, a mile away from where I lived, up on the hill, stood a white catholic church, one house where the pastor of the church lived and another house where the nuns lived. The nuns job was to teach the students that went to school at the small brick schoolhouse, which was located on the same property near the houses. The nuns, were a site to see, they wore a long black gown called a habit, It went all the way to their ankles and all the way to their wrist, with a big rounded stiff, starchy collar. A white rope was tied around the waist with a rosary attached. A long black veil with a white stiff cap that cover the head, ears and side of head, no hair was allowed to be seen and the only skin allowed was the skin on their hands and face. I often held imaginary images in my mind of how they would actually look like, such as their hair and body without their habit on and with normal clothing on. Vanity was a big issue for the nuns in the Catholic faith at that time.

The school housed 8 grades, first though eighth. There were four classrooms, two grades per room and one nun teacher per room. Including myself there was 10 kids in my class, three boys and seven girls. The school 's main focus was teaching music and religion. It was mandatory for everyone to attend mass at church, every day upon arrival to school and just before any classes took place. Then on every Friday we were march off to the church to confess our sins to the priest. Once a week the priest would come to your class room and delivered a message about God and love that was long, and drawn out, which left me confuse with no understanding of the message. Religion class was of utmost importance, we were graded on memorizing all of the prayers and the catechism word from word.. Teaching what the prayers and the catechism meant was not in the teacher's teaching plans. We were taught how to read music, recognize musical instruments and their sounds, to know the names of the composers of classical music, like Mozart and Bach, and how to sing. The students of the school were the choir for the church. I went to so many funerals, that my family doesn't have enough toes and fingers to count how many. These funerals made me feel curious about life and death but also very fearful. Perhaps it's because of how confusing mortal sin was to me, and not understanding God's love and if I was worth his love. . For a preteen youngster, seeing a funeral procession with a casket and crying people was a overwhelming experience. A memory that stay etched in a mind, forever.

During recess, the girls was not allowed to play with the boys. Each class had their own designated area on the school grounds to play. There were no intermixing with other grades or with boys. A playground of swings, slides and merry-go-round was available for the really little kids. Softball was the game of choice for the older kids. Sliding on the snow was the preferred activity during the winter months. Cardboard boxes was a popular item to use to slide down the hill. It was not unusual to form a chain with your classmates by locking elbows' before pushing off. The trick was to see if you can get to the bottom of the hill without breaking the chain.

A checkered red/green jumper with a white blouse was the uniform worn to school by the girls. The boys wore dress shirts and brown or black dress pants. On a regular basis the nuns would check to see if the jumper worn by the girl was not too short, by checking if the skirt hem of the jumper touched the floor when the girl knelt on the floor. If it did then it was long enough and if it didn't then a note was sent home to have the hem lowered. The mini style was in at this time so most of the girls in my class decided to get clever, by practicing in the privacy of their own bedroom, learning how to slouch while kneeling to make the skirt hem touch the floor, without the nuns noticing the slouching. Some girls got pretty good at it because the skirt hem of the jumper was above the knee and she was able to convince the nun that the hem actually did touched the floor while kneeling.

One day when I was probably in the 6th grade, one of my classmates decided to draw a picture of a naked women. One of the nuns found the drawing and demanded to know who drew it. No body would tell, therefore the nun decided to give us a long lecture about impure thoughts. We were told how to take a bath so not to provoke impure thoughts. A quick wash and a quick dry without taking a look at your body. Keeping your eyes close maybe? There were to be no looking in the mirror at yourself either. From that day forward, whenever I took a bath, I would hear those words spoken by this nun, and wonder if I was going to go to hell for the way I was washing myself and if I was provoking impure thoughts.

I thought that the ideal of a religious school was to teach you how to have a personal relationship with God. To know God's love and forgiveness. To learn how to have faith, hope and love. The eight years I spent going to this school, taught me how to be afraid of mortal sin and intimidated by God. I was taught in a black and white viewpoint. Instead of learning how to listen for God's voice in my heart. I was taught how to listen to the you should not do this or that and you should do this in my head. I was afraid that I would go to hell if I did not follow God's rules exactly and perfectly. I did not hear anything about being saved though faith. I did not understand what faith meant until, way into my adult years and then only, after seeking counsel with a catholic priest because of the effect of what I learned though the teachings of my teachers about sin and hell

Harvest Life Gracefully- Child Abuse Awareness Video

Harvest Life Gracefully- Examination of my Life - preschool age- part 2

Before I continue with my story, I want to remind you, when we are trying to harvest life gracefully and find purpose in life, the first step in the process is to examine our life for what it is in a factual way. Remember not to place judgment of right or wrong or bad or good. What it is, is what it is, in this way we can get to the point to learn acceptance and forgiveness.

There were sure tell tale signs of my emotional abuse by the way I had acted. When I arrived home from the hospital with a big cast on my leg, that covered the entire leg, and then there was a brand new baby in the home. All of these changes caused me to feel insecure and I reacted to them.

Soon after, returning home from the hospital, I learn how to walk with that big, ugly cast on my leg, this is when I began to act out my insecurities, I decided to run away from home. I can still hear my mother telling me, in a joking, laughing manner, of how far down the road I had gotten before she notice that I was gone. She sent my oldest brother to fetch me, but the closer he got to me I would try to run faster, not wanting him to catch me. My parents laugh it off, my parents had no ideal that I was emotional unstable and I needed emotional support. I did not know how to cope, why I was left at the hospital alone? My thoughts were, what was wrong with me that I was left there? Then, after returning home from the hospital and finding a new baby in the home, I thought that this baby was there to replace me. It is obvious that a mind of a 16 month old child does not have the capabilities to understand all that had taken place and the reasons why. Without the emotional support, it only reaffirmed the belief, that had already began to form in my mind, though overhearing family arguments about my physical deformity of my hip, that I was unloved and not wanted.

Another tell tale sign was how at bed time, I would stand upon the top of the stairs to my bedroom, yelling and crying down at my parents begging them, if they loved me. This was an every night occurrence. My parents would get frustrated with me, and yell back “Go to bed!” I then would go to bed feeling more unloved and unwanted because I heard the anger in my parents voice directed at me instead of any love or affection they had for me. The next night would repeat itself over again. I am not sure how long this behavior lasted, but am quite sure it lasted long enough, until, I realized what I needed from this type of behavior, I wasn't going to get.

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I woke up feeling scared. I then, walk to my parents bedroom, I asked, “Can I sleep with you?” Either my mom or dad would say, “You can crawl in bed with us, but you need to sleep at the foot of the bed by our feet.” This lasted for maybe about 10 times before my parents told me, “to stay in my own bed .”

Another good example is when I would wrap my arms around my mother's legs while she was standing at the kitchen sink. Saying over and over “I love you” wanting her to reply back with the same. She pushed me away and said, “Leave me alone.”

My mom was never very good in showing her affection to her children once they got into the toddler stage. I do not remember hugs, being held, receiving loving touches from my mother's hand or even words of “I love you.” given freely by her.

After years gone by and into my adulthood is when I discovered that my parents did truly love me. The problem was the lack of awareness, and my mom's feelings of being overwhelmed and depressed about her life, and my father being so busy trying to be the provider. My dad has since pass, he left this world with my love and respect and he had love and respect for me. My mom lives close by and I see her often, words of “I love you” with a hug is exchange whenever we meet.

The purpose to examine your life as it is, in order to harvest life gracefully and find purpose in your life, is just what it is. You are looking upon your life without judgment and not looking at it as good or bad. It is what it is, just plain fact.

What do we say? "HARVEST LIFE GRACEFULLY!"



Harvest Life recommends this book
Healing the Shame that Binds You (Recovery Classics)

Harvest Life Gracefully-- Heighten your Awareness watch -YouTube- Monsters (Child Abuse Commercial

When I was searching the internet tonight I ran accross this video about childhood sexual abuse awareness.
I thought it was powerful. I think you may too.