The Sweet Lie of Aspartame & Praying with Confidence - Purity 1555

Good morning, welcome to the MT for Christ 24/7 podcast. I am M.t. Clark and this is today's photo. To see today's photo, go to mtforchrist.com or follow me, M.t. Clark, on Facebook or Twitter, or watch us on YouTube. Today's photo of a rustic barn-like garage and a huge snow-covered tree comes to us from yours truly as I stopped to capture this winter scene in my backyard on January 4th, 2021. At the time, that huge tree was a sight to behold, but little did I know that what looked to be strong and mighty was actually sick inside, which was revealed for all to see when the storm winds came to split it in two and, uh, completely collapse in 2024. Anyway, uh, well, it's Tuesday, and as we prepare ourselves for another work day today, I am thankful that the Lord has healed me of my former darkness and compelled me to get rid of any other lies I have lived— I have been living by, uh, the ones that are unseen but cause us to be sick inside. Yesterday I purchased Dr. Livingood's Living Good Daily book, and one of the things that it showed me that I knew but didn't know about aspartame, uh, the thing that makes all my zero sugar sodas and energy drinks sweet is that it is an excitotoxin, which causes neurons in the brain to excite themselves to death. Evidence suggests they promote cancer growth and its propensity to spread. So, I am done with zero sugar sodas and energy drinks. While they would be Well, while they would give me a sweet, refreshing taste and an energy boost, they could cause me to be sick inside. Besides cancer, aspartame is also related to hypoglycemic brain damage, dementia, migraine headaches, viral infections, seizures, episodic, episodic violence, learning disorders, and degenerative brain disorders. So I learned something new, that my favorite sweet drinks that didn't interfere with weight loss are poison. So in my quest to give up lies in 2025 and pursue good physical health, a little truth has come shining in that will not only save me money but could prolong my life. I know giving up things can be difficult, but I also know that God is— that it is God's will for us to be good stewards of our bodies and will answer our prayers for help. Um, so God is with us and we can pray with confidence when we ask him to overcome the things that are bad for us. Speaking of praying with confidence, the In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley devotion for today is on the, on that topic. Uh, so I'm sharing it on the blog today to encourage us all to pray with confidence. Uh, Dr. Charles Stanley writes Learning to pray with confidence. When we seek to give— live according to God's will, we can trust that he hears and is going to answer our prayers. Prayer is the Christian's most powerful means of effecting change. Yet we're often unsure or hesitant about appeals to the Lord. But we should have confidence in prayer, first of all because we belong to God's family. When we place our trust in Jesus, God becomes our Heavenly Father. Because of this, we can be sure he will hear our prayers. A second reason for assurance is that we're praying according to God's will. This idea often seems perplexing, so let's take a closer look. Certain things are never in God's plan, such as lying, cheating, or actions prompted by pride, anger, or jealousy. Insignificant matters, such as which colors we wear, are left to our discretion. But what about desires that fall in neither category? In those situations, for us to know God's will, our spirit must be submitted to him. We must study the scriptures where God's general will is revealed through commands and principles, and we must depend on the Holy Spirit to help us pray in agreement with the Lord's purposes. Align your prayers with God's will and remember, he wants to say yes to his children. That was from Charles Stanley, and I say amen. As Stanley states, prayer is the Christian's most powerful means to effect change. When we seek to do God's will, he will be faithful to help us. The starkest example of this in my life is all the answered prayers that led me out of the darkness of addiction. I prayed for strength and the wisdom to overcome daily, and the Lord was faithful to help me. My quote-unquote recovery started almost 10 years ago, and since then I have not only remained relapse-free from alcohol and drugs, but I have also gone on to pray with confidence to receive the Lord's help in the areas of sexual addiction and food addiction. The Lord blessed me in those areas too. I've been sexually pure since 2018 with a couple bumps in the road, and I am still fighting— I'm still fighting food addiction, but I am confident when I say I'm living the best life in terms of my physical health that I've ever known at the age of 52. Why were my prayers effective? They were effective because God doesn't want us to be in bondage to anything, so he gives us the strength and self-control that we never had on our own to help us to overcome. Why were my— yes, and prayers, prayers for repentance will get answered, but we have to pray them and choose to live a new life to see God's power in our life. As for prayers for healing, or for those made for others, or for desired outcomes, I've seen many go the way I wanted, but I have also seen them go ways I didn't. But I know God is good, and even when the outcomes of life aren't what I wanted, I can trust that even if I don't understand it, God's will is being done, and I trust that he will lead all things together for good. So follow Stanley's advice and pray according to God's will, and pray with confidence. Today's Bible verses come from this, uh, Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Cruis. This morning's meditation verses come from the section on humility and pride. Today we're going through the Parable of the Talents, where it's going to be Matthew 25:14-30. Uh, so bear with me as I read this awesome parable from the Lord. For it will be like a man going on a journey who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave 5 talents, to another 2, to another 1, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received 5 talents went at once and traded with them, and he made 5 talents more. So also he who had the 2 talents made 2 talents more. But he who had received the 1 talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time, the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the 5 talents came forward, bringing 5 talents more and saying, Master, you delivered to me 5 talents. Here I have made 5 talents more. His master said to him, well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much, enter into the joy of your master.' And he also, also who had the 2 talents, came forward saying, 'Master, you delivered to me 2 talents. Here I have made 2 talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.' He also who had received the 1 talent came forward saying, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed. So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours. But his master answered him, you wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I— uh, yeah, it's a question here too. You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gathered where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to the— to him who has the 10 talents. For to everyone who has— for to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not even what he has will be taken away, and cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness, in that place where there, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Today's verses fall under the 10th point of our Counseling Reference Guide's resource section on humility. And that 10th point is: All knowledge, wisdom, talents, and skills are God's gracious gifts entrusted to us. We must use them to serve and glorify him with deep humility. Today's Bible verses tell us to not hide our talents in fear, but to use them to bear fruit. Honestly, I sympathize with the worthless servant because I can relate to being afraid of taking risks and losing what little I had. But the Lord shows us where fear gets us— the outer darkness. Yikes! Scripture supports the idea that we are to be bold and courageous and to do what the Lord is calling us to do. And to leave the results up to him. But God can't work to bless your good, your good works if you never do them. So don't hide your talents, use them to give God glory. And don't be afraid, because when we take risk and are bold in our faith, the Lord will be there to bless us or to help us pick up the pieces if they don't work out. And we should be humble because whatever talents we have have come from the Lord. Anyway, we say, as always, we encourage everyone to go to mtforchrist.com where we always share insights from prominent Christian theologians to assist our brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from Day by Day Along the Way by J.E. Adams. It's a 365-day devotional, and we're on day 54 where Adams shares a portion of Proverbs 15:24, which says, the path of life leads upward for the prudent, that he may turn from Sheol below. N.J.E. Adams writes, prudent people don't die because of their prudence. Prudence guards them from paths that lead to, to disaster. Sheol is the place of departed spirits. In such context, it refers to the grave. Prudence is the, is the careful application of truth to whatever one is doing. It is the opposite of careless action. It implies thought and conscious decision-making and is the very antithesis of dangerously drifting or rushing, rushing headlong into untoward circumstances. A lack of prudence can kill you. Would you describe yourself as prudent? If not, think about the matter and begin to take action that will lead you into a life characterized by prudence. For help in beginning, see Proverbs 1:3. There will— there you will discover the bit that biblical proverbs are designed to help you become prudent. Studying them will help you make a good start and become— at becoming prudent. How frequently do you memorize Proverbs to carry with you as you meet life circumstances? They were designed to be simple, memorable, and of use in daily living. Would a chapter a day be too much to read? Then how about memorizing one verse from each chapter each day? Start today. And yeah, uh, you know, we have to be prudent. We have to be wise and discerning about what we do, and we have to act according to the wisdom we know. And if we don't have wisdom, we have to get, you know, we have to get knowledge and wisdom. And here, um, Adam suggests that we read Proverbs and start living according to it, and we'll be wise. And, you know, that's the word of God. Um, the, the power of the word of God is it's good for instruction, as they say in Hebrews, and reproof and all that. So We encourage you to get engaged with the word because the word will change you. It'll give you wisdom, and you, you start to live according to it. The word of God is what brought me, you know, set me into recovery in 2015, and my life's been forever changed because of, because of God and his word and, and my decision to follow it. And that's why we always ask the question, have you fully surrendered to God? It's one thing to put your faith in Jesus, saying I believe that the gospel is true. It's another thing to decide to pick up your cross and follow him, um, you know, to lay down the, you know, to get rid of the lies in your life and to start living according to God's truth. Um, you know, I made those decisions. It's greatly blessed me, and it not only led me out of recovery, it also gave me a purpose for my life. Um, and part of that purpose is leading the Celebrate Freedom support group at Starpoint Church on Wednesday evenings. That's tomorrow night. Anybody in Upstate New York who can get to Clifton Park on a Wednesday, we invite you to join us for our Christian Recovery and Discipleship support group, where you can learn some truth, get some support, and overcome your hurts, habits, and hang-ups with the Lord's help. But if you can't get to Clifton Park, there's good news. We're currently recording a series called Celebrate Christian Recovery Celebrate Freedom, um, on YouTube. And last night we recorded the, the session on, uh, Celebrate Recovery's Powerless Lessons. So there's 3 episodes out there, uh, if you'd like to join, join, uh, us in that. I'll be your recovery coach, um, as I try to speak to you as if, as if I'm speaking to a friend as I present, present the material and share from my own journey of recovery too. So we hope that encourages you. And, um, and, uh, if, if, if that's not your cup of tea, we have other, uh, podcast teachings, uh, on our YouTube channel for Victor of the Darkness, The Bondage Breaker, Freedom in Christ, and our very own Celebrate Freedom discipleship course. Um, we believe if you tune into these things, you can find or increase your freedom in Christ. And, uh, so we hope— and we know people are watching them. Um, so we're greatly encouraged by those numbers when we see that these, these recordings that I made in 2021 at my, uh, local church— they're audio recordings— are still being listened to today and encouraging people. And I get comments and, uh, you know, emails in regard to it. So if you'd like to email, it's, it's mtforchrist24, uh, 24/7@gmail.com, or M.t. Clark mtforchrist.com. Um, beyond that, we appreciate— I appreciate your support and donations, uh, for the M.t. Clark Community Freedom Ministry. That's what I do. Uh, it's my, my, uh, pro bono work that I do for my local church and Freedom in Christ Ministries and, uh, the podcast, um, and blog. You know, basically I do all this to encourage Christian recovery, Christian faith, and a life of discipleship, surrendered living, And, uh, if you, if you're in agreement with me, I encourage you, and you have the means, I encourage you to give. Uh, you can go to mtforchrist.com to our donations page, or you can make a donation on our group events coaching page where our Celebrate Freedom online series is described. Um, and, uh, if you support Christian Recovery, we'd encourage you, um, we'd certainly appreciate your help. Beyond that, we always end by asking, are you empty for Christ too? If so, keep on walking and talking with God. Uh, if not, we encourage you to pray. Uh, like we said, uh, prayer— we can have confidence in our prayers, but we got to make sure we're in the kingdom to be able to be confident. So we— but you can start the journey by praying to the Lord to reveal himself to you and just ask him to show you the truth. Um, and we believe that if you seek the Lord, you'll find him, because that's what the word says. And we know prayer works, and that's why we pray every day, like right now. Lord God, Heavenly Father, we thank you for another day in your kingdom. We thank you for all you've led us through in this journey of faith that started in 2010. Uh, Lord, we know you're a good, good Father and that you answer our prayers. And so we're, we're asking for you to go before us today, open our eyes to the things you want us to see, and lead us in the way we should go. We also pray for anyone who's reading, listening, or watching this message, that you come alongside them and their prayer requests, Lord, and their walk of faith. And, uh, Lord, we, uh, we all want to, want to do your will on earth, Lord, but we need your help with that. We're asking today, Lord, we thank you, we praise you, we love you. We pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.