HEALING GOD’S WAY

Addressing the mind-body-spirit connection.
Kiri Christina Hyatt, editor

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1. MINISTRY ARTICLE: GOD IS THE SAME…
   By Kiri Christina Hyatt (c)

Most of us when we first read the entire Bible get a different impression of who God is in the Old Covenant (Old Testament) compared to the New Covenant. God seems angry, vengeful, filled with wrath, unforgiving, and down right scary in the Old Covenant. He is described as a pillar of fire and the Israelites were terrified to even approach Him. We read of a God who when His wrath is kindled sends plagues to destroy His own people (Numbers 11:31), and opens the earth so it can swallow sinners up (Numbers 16).

In the New Covenant our picture of God comes from Jesus, who is called "the Lamb of God" (John 1:29). He healed the sick and disabled. He comforted the brokenhearted. He not only forgave sinners, He dined with them (Matthew 9:9ff). He cried (John 11:35). He even partied (John 2). While the God of the Old Covenant seemed unapproachable, Jesus was very approachable.

Because of this it is easy to view Jesus as different from the Old Covenant God. Some Churches call themselves New Testament Churches and totally ignore the rest of the Bible. I know many Christians who refuse to read the Old Covenant, saying all they need is Jesus. What they forget is Jesus is in the Old Covenant too.

When God revealed Himself to Moses in the burning bush, Jesus was there. How do I know? When Moses asked God what His name was, He said, "I AM WHO I AM" Tell them "I AM has sent me to you." (Exodus 3:14).

Fifteen Hundred years later Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." (John 8:58)

Jesus also said:

He who has seen Me has seen the Father; (John 14:9)

I am the resurrection and the life. (John 11:25)

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End," says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." (Revelation 1:8)

Revelation 1:8 was spoken by Jesus, not the Father or the Holy Spirit. Jesus is God. He does not change.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrew 13:8)

Since the Father is God, we can also say:

The Father is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Since the Holy Spirit is God, we can also say:

The Holy Spirit is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The books of the Bible were written over thousands of years. Job is considered to be the oldest book in the Bible. Job’s understanding of God was very different then our understanding of Him. The same can be said for the Hebrew children. In fact, the generation of Hebrew children who left Egypt had a very limited understanding of whom God was. There were no scriptures to teach them. That is one reason Moses spent so much time with God. God had to teach Moses who He was so Moses could start teaching the people. Much of what the Hebrew children believed about God had been corrupted by Egyptian religious thought. So God spent a lot of time trying to reeducate them.

By the time King David was born the first five books of the Bible, the Torah, existed, but not much else. At least only the Torah was considered scriptures. But the religion practiced by much of the people was not based on the Torah, but the Canaanite religions. That is the main reason God called so many prophets to speak to the people. They were not worshiping Him but false gods.

The entire Bible, from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21 is God revealing Himself to us, His people. As time progressed He revealed more and more of Himself, ending with the revelation of Jesus. When we ignore or dismiss part of that revelation, we are creating an imperfect image of Him in our mind. We are basically creating a false god to worship.

When Aaron took the Hebrew children’s gold, and molded a calf for them to worship, God was grieved and angered. They had just promised to worship Him and only Him and already they were molding a calf in an image they wanted. We may not create a calf to worship, but when we pick and choose the aspects of God that appeal to us and reject His aspects we do not like, we are basically doing the same thing as the Hebrew children. We are molding a false god to worship.

So even though God in the Old Covenant may seem very different then God as He is portrayed in the New Covenant, He is really the same God. We need to pay attention to descriptions of Him.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I confess my understanding of You is incomplete and biased. Please forgive me. Please reveal to me any beliefs I have about you that are just plain wrong. Help me to know you more fully. Please reveal yourself to me during the coming months. In the name of Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit, I ask You to help me to get to know the real You.. Amen.

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2. MESSAGE FROM A FRIEND

Some Assembly Required

Working as a cargo handler for a major package delivery company, I
came across an express envelope with shipping instructions that
puzzled me, particularly the line describing the contents.

I finally realized the parcel contained some kind of manual and was
addressed to a church. But at first I thought I was processing one
of our company's most momentous pieces of freight.

The description read, "Instructions for the Assembly of God."

This post is brought your way by Sermon Fodder and Joke A Day
Ministries. To subscribe go to http://www.sermonfodder.com or drop
an email note to Sermon_Fodder-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Please
leave this attached if you forward this to friends.
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Jesus Be Our Guest

A little girl of five was saying grace at the dinner table, she
prayed like she had heard others pray, '' come lord Jesus, be our
guest,''

Turning suddenly to her mother, she said, ''but mother, i don't want
Jesus to be our guest!''

'' why not, dear? Asked her horrified mother.

To which the little one replied, ''well, a guest only comes to visit sometimes.

I want Jesus here all the time!''

From: "Jim/Carolyn Wheeler" <56chevrolet@msn.com> By way of SCREAM
OF THE CROP JOKES & QUOTES?

To subscribe, send a blank
mailto:<scream_of_the_crop-subscribe@egroups.com>scream_of_the_crop-subscribe@egroups.com

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3. SITE OF THE WEEK

Official US Time

Get the official time and see where the sun is shinning and where it is night.://www.time.gov/timezone.cgi?Eastern/d/-5/java

DISCLAIMER: The following news stories are provided as a source of scientific information on mind/body medical research, environmental issues, and other topics.   AOCCCI does not necessarily agree with all the viewpoints or suggestions expressed in these articles. Not all viewpoints and/or therapy modalities recommended in these secular news stories are compatible with Christianity. If you have any questions or doubts about a therapy mentioned in a news story below,feel free to contact AOCCCI for advice.   These news stories are provided as a public service only.  

4.1 Study Sheds Light on Brain Function in Dyslexia
    Aug 8, 2002

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A region of the brain that helps new readers to sound out words appears to be impaired in children with dyslexia, new study findings suggest.

People with dyslexia, despite normal intelligence and vision, have difficulty reading, writing and spelling. The exact cause of the learning disorder is uncertain, although a person's genes are thought to play a role.

"Many adults fail to realize how difficult it is to learn how to read," co-author Dr. G. Reid Lyon of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Bethesda, Maryland, told Reuters Health in an interview.

"It involves a very abstract concept--that the words a person hears are composed of smaller sounds," added Reid. The ability to identify sounds and associate them with letters or words is critical for reading, he explained.

In an effort to better understand the process, Lyon and colleagues evaluated brain scans of 70 dyslexic children and 74 non-impaired readers between the ages of 7 and 18. All of the children underwent a type of brain scan called functional MRI while performing various reading and sound comprehension tasks, according to the report published in the July issue of the journal Biological Psychiatry.

While normal readers were shown to have activation in the back of their brain, the dyslexic children had "significantly reduced activation in the backs of their brains," said Lyon.

The brain scans of dyslexic children showed more activity in the front and side regions of the brain.

"These findings provide neurobiological evidence for an underlying disruption in the neural systems for reading in children with dyslexia and indicate that it is evident at a young age," the authors conclude.

SOURCE: Biological Psychiatry 2002;52:101-110.

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4.2 Brain regions link asthma and emotions
    Aug 29, 2005

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Psychological stress has been shown to have an effect on asthma flare-ups, and now the brain regions that appear to be responsible for this interaction have been identified, according to US researchers.

As reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Dr. Richard J. Davidson, from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and colleagues used functional MRI -- that is, MRI scans that show activity as well as anatomical structures -- to determine the brain regions linking emotions with asthma flare-ups.

In the study, six patients with mild asthma were exposed to ragweed or dust-mite extracts. The subjects were shown three different categories of words: asthma-related (e.g., "wheeze"), non-asthma negative ("loneliness") or neutral ("curtains").

Two brain regions, the anterior cingulate cortex and insula, showed increased activity when the asthma-related words were heard compared with the other types. Moreover, this enhanced activity was specifically linked to physiologic signals from the ragweed and dust-mite extracts.

"In individuals with asthma and other stress-related conditions, these brain regions may be hyperresponsive to disease-specific emotional and ... physiologic signals," which may contribute to problems that worsen the asthma, such as inflammation, the researchers conclude.

SOURCE: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 29th online edition, 2005.

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4.3 Australian research shows mobile phones affect brain function
    Agence France Presse
    Apr 27, 2006

Radiation from mobile phone phones affects the way the brain works, Australian researchers have found.

Scientists from Swinburne University of Technology's Brain Sciences Institute in Melbourne found people's response times slowed during a 30-minute mobile phone call but their memory appeared to improve.

The researchers conducted a series of psychological tests on 120 volunteers as they were exposed to mobile phone emissions for half an hour.

Another set of tests was conducted on volunteers who were not exposed to mobile phone radiation but thought they were.

The results, published in April's edition of the journal Neuropsychologia, showed a small but discernable change in brain function among those who were exposed to the electromagnetic fields that mobile phones generate.

"The study showed evidence of slower response times for participants undertaking simple reactions and more complex reactions, such as choosing a response when there is more than one alternative," lead researcher Con Stough said.

"This could equate to driving a car and being distracted by another car pulling out in front of you. The drivers reaction time to chose between braking, turning or sounding the horn, could be affected, albeit slightly.

"The study also found that radiation from mobile phones seems to improve working memory, used for example when remembering a phone number long enough to dial it."

He said further work was needed using magnetic resonance imaging to clarify the way mobile phones alter on the way the brain works.

Stough said further, as-yet-unpublished, research by his team suggested the impact of mobile phone radiation on the brain was cumulative.

"People, for instance, who use the mobile phone a lot seem to have more of an impairment than people who are more naive users," he said.

However, he stressed that the impact on brain function was small and the study did not find that mobile phones caused a health problem.

"We haven't established that there's negative health consequences -- that's a different type of study," he said.

"We're just showing that the radiation is actually active on the brain. But the impairment is small. The convenience and the way that we communicate now these days outweighs that effect."

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4.4 No brain damage from dental fillings, studies show
    Reuters
    Apr 18, 2006

Silver dental fillings widely used to fill cavities do not appear to cause brain damage in children even though the mercury in them is a known neurotoxin, according to studies published on Tuesday.

"Dentists and parents I think can be very assured from the results of this study that they can continue to put silver amalgam in children's mouths to fill cavities," said Sonja McKinlay of New England Research Institutes, Boston, who was involved in one of the studies.

That research involved 534 U.S. children aged 6 to 10 with cavities waiting to be treated, half of whom were given silver fillings and the rest a mercury-free white composite resin material. The children had an average of 15 fillings done over the five years the study lasted.

"We found that on IQ, and other aspects of brain function, as well as kidney function, the group that received the mercury-based amalgam was exactly the same as those that received the composite," McKinlay said.

The study said silver-mercury fillings have been used for 150 years and 70 million are put into mouths in the United States each year. But because they can contain up to 50 percent elemental mercury, vapors released from the metal causes concern about possible nerve and kidney damage.

The New England study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association and coordinated by Children's Hospital in Boston, said no previous research has been published comparing silver fillings with others to determine possible adverse impacts.

"In this study, there were no statistically significant differences in adverse neuropsychological or renal (kidney) effects observed over the five-year period in children whose caries (cavities) were restored using dental amalgam or composite materials," the study concluded.

In a second study in the same journal, researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle reported similar findings.

Their study covered 507 children aged 8 to 10 in Lisbon, Portugal, from 1997 to July 2005, who had either silver or composite fillings.

While children with silver fillings had higher levels of mercury in their urine, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in their scores on tests involving memory, attention or visual motor function.

"These findings ... suggest that amalgam should remain a viable clinical option in dental-restorative treatment," the study concluded.

In an editorial in the same publication commenting on the studies, Herbert Needleman, a physician at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said further research is needed on whether there are more "subtle effects" from the mercury.

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4.5 A 'Silent Pandemic' Of Brain Disorders
    Researchers Say Chemical Exposures May Explain Rise in
        Autism And ADHD
    By Salynn Boyles
    November 7, 2006

(WebMD) Exposure to industrial chemicals may be responsible for a "silent pandemic" of brain development disorders affecting millions of children worldwide, and not enough is being done to identify the risks.

That is the contention of two researchers who have studied the effects of chemical exposures on brain development for many decades.

In an essay published online in the journal The Lancet, the researchers identified 202 potentially harmful industrial chemicals that may be contributing to dramatic increases in autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and other brain disorders among children.

Roughly half of the chemicals are in common use, but very few have been tested to determine their impact on brain development.

"The bottom line is you only get one chance to develop a brain," Philippe Grandjean, M.D., of the Harvard School of Public Health, tells WebMD. "We have to protect children against chemical pollution because damage to a developing brain is irreversible."

Tip of the Iceberg

Grandjean and co-author Philip Landrigan, M.D., of New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine, noted that of the industrial chemicals known to be toxic to the human brain, only five — lead, mercury, arsenic, PCBs, and toluene — have been proven to cause damage to the developing brain.

These chemicals have been identified not because they are necessarily more dangerous than the others, but because they have been studied the most, Grandjean and Landrigan contend.

"The few substances proven to be toxic to human neurodevelopment should be viewed as the tip of a very large iceberg," they wrote.

Grandjean spent decades documenting the toxic effects of mercury exposure on the developing brain, and Landrigan spent decades studying the effects of lead exposure in children.

Lead and mercury are among the few chemicals that are now strictly regulated to protect children. But regulation came long after the dangers were first recognized.

Lead-based paint was first linked to sickness in children more than a century ago, but lead was not removed from paint and gasoline in the U.S. until the late 1970s and early 1980s.

"Despite those early pediatric warnings, the largely unchecked use of lead in petrol, paints, ceramic glazes, and many other products through much of the twentieth century caused continued risk of lead poisoning," the researchers write.

A Generation Exposed

Almost all children born in industrialized countries between 1960 and 1980 were exposed to substantial amounts of lead from gasoline. The researchers write that lead exposure in this population could be responsible for a substantial reduction in average IQ scores.

"A generation of American children was exposed to this very dangerous neurotoxin while we were doing traditional risk assessment," Grandjean tells WebMD. "We can't afford to make the same mistake again."

Annette Kirshner, Ph.D., of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) agrees that more expeditious ways of identifying chemical exposures that put children at risk are needed.

The prevailing thinking among researchers studying autism and ADHD is that both genetic and environmental factors play a role in the childhood brain disorders.

"There is still no good evidence linking any single environmental exposure to autism and ADHD," Kirshner tells WebMD. "It will probably require a global effort to understand the combination of factors that lead to these disorders."

But Grandjean and Landrigan argue that exposure to industrial chemicals appear to have created a "silent pandemic in modern society."

"Although these chemicals might have caused impaired brain development in millions of children worldwide, the profound effects of such a pandemic are not apparent from available health statistics," they wrote.

SOURCES: Grandjean, P. and Landrigan, P.J. The Lancet, Nov. 8, 2006; Vol. 368: online edition. Philippe Grandjean, M.D., department of environmental health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston; Annette Kirshner, Ph.D., health science administrator, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

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