Tag Archives: demons

Marching into Mark, Passage, Meditation, Coloring, Music and Video

Marching into Mark Chapter Five

Marching into Mark Chapter Five

(c)2023 M. Christine Wildman

Marching into Mark Registry,
the collection of these studies
(First 100 days of 2023, day 72, March 13 )

On Facebook, you can join us at Itty Bitty Bible Study Group.

Passage
Mark Chapter Five

It doesn’t matter which version you choose. It can be digital or paper. You can use one of those fancy coloring bibles and do a page or coloring along with the passage.

I will mostly do Holman Christian Standard Bible because of their copyright freedoms.

The Images that I use are from Knowing Jesus and are available as downloads in every format that I can imagine for screen savers and wallpapers.

  • Mark 5 (some cross referencing in Matthew 8 and 9)
    • Mk 5:1-20 Gadarene or Gerasene Demoniac
      • vs 1-2 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the region of the Gerasenes.[a] 2 As soon as He got out of the boat, a man with an unclean spirit came out of the tombs and met Him. 
      • Description:
        • 3 He lived in the tombs. 
        • No one was able to restrain him anymore—even with chains
        • 4 because snapped off the chains and smashed the shackles.
        • No one was strong enough to subdue him.
        • 5 And always, he was crying
        • out among the tombs and in the mountains
        • and cutting himself with stones.
        • recognized Jesus
        • 8 For He had told him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!”
        • 7 “What do You have to do with me,[b] Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg[c] You before God, don’t torment me!”
        • named Legion
      • Negotiation
        • begged to be send into a herd of pigs – about 2000
        • Pigs, demon possessed, committed suicide.
      • Results
        • The pig herders ran off and told the town
        • ex-possessed man now dressed and in his right mind, next to Jesus.
        • eyewitnesses repeated the story
        • townsfolk 17 Then they began to beg Him to leave their region.
      • He did not let him, but He said to him, Go home to your people and report them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you. Mark 5:19
      • The rest of the story
        • the man who had been demon-possessed kept begging Him to be with Him.
        • given a mission – go back and tell
        • 20 So he went out and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and they were all amazed.
        • Mindfully Meditating on Matthew Chapter 8
    • Mk 5:21-24, 35-42 Jairus’s daughter healed
      • Jairus came and begged Jesus to come and heal his daughter
      • 24 So Jesus went with him, and a large crowd was following and pressing against Him.
      • “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher anymore?”
      • 36 But  Jesus  said, , “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.”
      • 42 Immediately the girl got up and began to walk. (She was 12 years old.) At this they were utterly astounded.
    • Mk 5:24-34 Women that touched His garment
      • 24 So Jesus went with him, and a large crowd was following and pressing against Him.
      • Woman suffering for 12 years (issue of blood made her unclean)
        • 26 had endured much under many doctors.
        • She had spent everything she had
        • and was not helped at all.
        • On the contrary, she became worse.
      • 28 For she said, “If I can just touch His robes, I’ll be made well!”
      • Immediately healed
      • 30  Jesus said, “Who touched My robes?”
      • 34 “Daughter,” He said to her, “your faith has made you well.[h] Go in peace and be free[i] from your affliction.”

A place to see the four gospels compared is from Synoptic Gospel Parallels.

Mindful Meditating

  1. choose a verse,
  2.  set a timer for 5 minutes, or whatever works for you.
  3.  example: Mark 5:28
  4. repeat to yourself, and at each word, enunciate the next word in the sentence starting with the first word…

example:

  • 28 For she said, “If I can just touch His robes, I’ll be made well!”
  • IF I can just touch His robes, I’ll be made well!
  • If I CAN just touch His robes, I’ll be made well!
  • If I can JUST touch His robes, I’ll be made well!
  • If I can just TOUCH His robes, I’ll be made well!

and so on.  This will cause you to look at the verse more intently, and may have you memorize it before your five minutes are done.

Songs for Meditation

He Touched Me – Joey + Rory

This is the Kingdom – Elevation Worship

We Declare that the Kingdom of God is Here – Ron Kenoly

Coloring – I use coloring to help me focus on the fullness of a verse.

Mark Coloring page – Ministry to Children – simple enough to finish in an hour or less

Coloring pages for Jairus’s daughter story by Connect Us

Quick Questions – if  you have time, or to think about over the course of the day, and jot down thoughts later.  Some thoughts to dig deeper.

    1. Why do you think the demons did not want to be sent out of that region?
      1. I didn’t find great references to that, but I found GotQuestions starts by addressing why only one of two(spoken of in Matthew) and if you go to the additional resources, you can find more information about this account.
    2. Why did Jesus know power had gone out of Him?
      1. GotQuestions has  some insight into the Women with the Issue of Blood.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links:

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

Older woman with shades of coral in jewelry and sweater, glasses, silver and brown hair.

M. Christine Wildman

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Bible open to Matthew

Mindfully Meditating on Matthew chapter 12 or MMM12

 

(C) 2023 M. Christine Wildman

Mindfully Meditating on Matthew Catalogue , the collection of these studies
(First 100 days of 2023, day 43, Feb 12)

Passage
Matthew Chapter Twelve

It doesn’t matter which version you choose. It can be digital or paper. You can use one of those fancy coloring bibles and do a page or coloring along with the passage.

I will mostly do Holman Christian Standard Bible because of their copyright freedoms.

  • Matthew 12
    • Mt 12:1-8 Lord of the Sabbath
      • 6 But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here! 7 If you had known what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice,[c] you would not have condemned the innocent. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
        • 1 Sam 15:22,Heb 10:6, Ps 40:6
        • Mark 12:33
          • To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
        • Ps 51:16-17
          • You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
                you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
            17 My sacrifice, O God, is[b] a broken spirit;
                a broken and contrite heart
                you, God, will not despise.
    • Mt 12:9-14 Lawful to heal on the Sabbath
          • 12 A man is worth far more than a sheep, so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.”
    • Mt 12:15-21  Fulfilled
      • Here is My Servant whom I have chosen,
        My beloved in whom My soul delights;
        I will put My Spirit on Him,
        and He will proclaim justice to the nations.
        19 He will not argue or shout,
        and no one will hear His voice in the streets.
        20 He will not break a bruised reed,
        and He will not put out a smoldering wick,
        until He has led justice to victory.[f]
        21 The nations will put their hope in His name.[g]
    • Mt 12:22-30House Divided
      • 28 If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.
      • 30 Anyone who is not with Me is against Me, and anyone who does not gather with Me scatters.
      • Luke 11:23
    • Mt 12:31-32 Respect the Holy Spirit
      • 31 Because of this, I tell you, people will be forgiven every sin and blasphemy, but the blasphemy against[i] the Spirit will not be forgiven.[j] 32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the one to come.
    • Mt 12:33-35, tree and it’s fruit
    • Mt 12:36-37 judged by your words
      • 36 I tell you that on the day of judgment people will have to account for every careless word they speak.[m] 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
    • Mt 12:38-42 Sign of Jonah
      • 40 For as Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.
    • Mt 12:43- 45 The return of an unclean sprit
      • 44 Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to my house that I came from.’ And returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order.
    • Mt 12:46-50 Eternal Relationships

      • https://images.knowing-jesus.com/Matthew/12

        48 But He replied to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” 49 And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother.”

Mindful Meditating

  1. choose a verse,
  2.  set a timer for 5 minutes, or whatever works for you.
  3.  example: Matt 12:12
  4. repeat to yourself, and at each word, enunciate the next word in the sentence starting with the first word…

example:

  • 12 A man is worth far more than a sheep, so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.”
  • A MAN is worth far more than a sheep, so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.
  • A man IS worth far more than a sheep, so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.
  • SO it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath..
  • so IT is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath
  • so it IS lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.

…and so on.  This will cause you to look at the verse more intently, and may have you memorize it before your five minutes are done.

A Matthew Coloring Page by Ministry to Children  – though it can be good for adult meditating.

A coloring page of Hope from a collection, scroll down for Matt 12:21

 

Quick Questions – if  you have time, or to think about over the course of the day, and jot down thoughts later.

  1. Who is the servant of the Lord?
    1. Got Answers says it this way  about the Servant of the Lord in general.  Who do you think it is in THIS passage?
  2. What do you think Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is?
    1. Got Questions explains it thus.
    2. Do you agree or disagree?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links:

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

Older woman with shades of coral in jewelry and sweater, glasses, silver and brown hair.

M. Christine Wildman

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Holidays – Why I don’t celebrate Halloween

I’ve been asked over the years by Christians and nonChristians alike. Oddly, the non Christians accept my reasoning much more readily than Christians.  This is MY point of view, based on MY life experiences and MY understanding of the Bible.  I’m sharing MY story.  What you do is between YOU and Your God and conscience!

IT’S SCARY!
No, actually, that’s not the original reason that I stopped celebrating Halloween. I once participated in Halloween dances, haunted houses, and watched horror movies. So, I cannot say that this is the reason I quit.

I have a history with witchcraft, so I am very sensitive to anything that has the slightest hint of it.  I know there are those that participate. I know there are those that do so in order to pass out tracts and to share the gospel.  Others may, I may not. But why?

Once, many years ago, my dear husband refused to watch a scary movie with me. His reason? It gave him nightmares! Over the years, I stopped watching the crime dramas because, they, too, gave me nightmares. Why would I want to put myself through such things? Still, that has little to do with why I stopped celebrating Halloween.

When we decided to make it known to our family that we would not be participating in holidays, we mentioned Christmas, Easter and Halloween. Which one got the reaction? Halloween. The one that has nothing to do with celebrating Christ Jesus. I have one family member that has never spoken to me again since.

One church we participated in many years ago, had a harvest party, and asked that children come as Bible characters. I caved in. What harm could come from this? We had a dress for one that with some wings, she became an Angel. The others all had animal sleepers, and went as animals from the ark. All this did was to muddy the waters, and give others reasons to question our integrity. My desire is to be a light to the world, shining Christ’s light. I do not want to be accused of sounding an uncertain sound, or having a filtered light, or casting a shadow.

I am going to share my thoughts on this holiday.
This is how I came up with my decision to not participate at all, in any way.

What is a Christian supposed to focus upon?
Phillipians 4:8-9

8 Finally, brothers and sisters,

  • whatever is true,
  • whatever is noble,
  • whatever is right,
  • whatever is pure,
  • whatever is lovely,
  • whatever is admirable—
  • if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice.
And the God of peace will be with you.

In my experience, there is nothing in Halloween that fits these categories. And, yes, I have heard all of the excuses to participate…I’ll share my thoughts on those later.

So, if Halloween is NOT these things, upon what does it focus?

Witches – worshippers of the devil

Death –

Darkness –

  • We’ve been called OUT of darkness –
    1 Peter 2:9

    But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

    John 8:12

    Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

  • We are called into the Light –
    1 John 1:5-7

    5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
    6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.
    7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

  • We are called to BE light –Matthew 5:14-16

    14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
    15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
    16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

  • and darkness is the realm of the devil:
    Acts 26:18

    to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.

Horror

  • this is a simple statement – look at the Halloween movie offerings!
  • My issue with this is that it feeds fear.2 Timothy 1:7

    7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind

  • Jesus said that He came to give us peace…
    John 14:27

    Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

  • All through scripture, God tells us not to be afraid…he doesn’t say there aren’t things to be afraid of. If it is best for me to not be afraid, why would I put myself in the position to be fearful to get an adrenaline rush?

Monsters, demons, vampires and the undead.
Again – none of these glorifies God or confirms the gospel of Christ.

Here is the one scripture verse that really turned my head:
2 Corinthians 6:14-16

14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
15 What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?
16 What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

So – is it serious enough just to base this upon what the current practice does? Well, I look around at the continual decay of the celebration. More and more decorations are based around scaring, with death, and witchcraft and demonic activities. In my area, there are even sheets hanging from the trees covered in “blood”.
None of this brings Philippians 4:8-9 to mind!
None of this brings the light of Christ into our midst… were delivered From darkness into HIS LIGHT. Why would I want to go back there?

To do a very simple research upon the roots of Halloween, I have turned to Wikipedia. This is NOT known for it’s religious bent! Even so, this research option includes some of the pagan background of Halloween.

Just reading the generic write up of Halloween in Wikipedia sets my nerves on edge. There are too many similarities to the various occult practices. As for using it to celebrate those that have gone on before, such as all hallows eve? We are not told to celebrate the dead…and even when the rich man asks Lazarus, who was in Abraham’s bosom, awaiting the day of the resurrection, Abraham says that there is a chasm between the living and the dead, and that no one could go through it.(Luke 16:19-31) Those who have died are either in the place of suffering, or are in the place Jesus called paradise when he spoke to the thief upon the cross.

May I present some interesting articles, that of course, support my position, some more than others.

So, why do Christians participate in Halloween?
Why do Christians participate in any worldly activity?
It is much easier to just follow along rather than stand up for one’s beliefs.
In many cases, it is even excused by those in leadership.

You, dear reader, can google why a Christian SHOULD celebrate Halloween on your own. There are many, many articles out there to support this position.

I said I would comment on some of the reasons Christians use to excuse participating in Halloween.
Some just do not see the harm in participating in this high holy day of the devil.
Some use it to pass out Christian Tracts – little pamphlets that present the gospel.
my issues with this:

  • Who really believes that a child that is looking for candy is going to be happy about a little booklet?
  • Who really believes that a child looking for candy is going to READ said booklet?
  • Could this be considered a bait and switch tactic? Oh, yes, the church has gotten very good at bait and switch in order to ‘preach’ the gospel, or to ‘catch’ converts.
  • It’s very dangerous to bring the worldly ways, the pagan ways, into the gospel. There are passages that speak about this, and stories that illustrate this in the Bible. Strange fire and uncertain sound come to mind.

Christianity is not immune to the occult practices, and has it’s share of worship of the dead, as well as giving demons and the devil way too much credit for some things, and not enough credit for others. In fact, even angels and those that have passed on before us are sometimes given special powers and honor that is not biblical! That does not make any of this right. It is the Bible that is my source for my decision.

Again, for me, I must turn to scripture:

2 Corinthians 6:17

Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

More than any other thing, I want to hear the Lord say, “Enter into the Joy of the Lord”.
My heart’s desire is to be received by my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Do I think that celebrating Halloween would keep someone out of the Kingdom of God? I honestly don’t know. I know salvation is based upon the relationship with Jesus Christ.  I know that for me to participate is for me to go against all that I have learned about Jesus Christ, God the Father, and against all that the Holy Spirit confirms in my spirit. For me, it opens doors to my past in witchcraft, which, was practiced with the blessing of my church. For me, this is not something I want to risk damaging my relationship with my Creator God. For me, this is playing with fire. I know that I will get burned. This is my experience any time I go against what I believe the Bible leads me to do. I want to enter in at the straight gate….

Matthew 7:14

14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Contemplating this very post has had an effect upon my recent watching of murder mysteries. Not the scary, gory ones…these are the ones on Hallmark channel! I believe that a sign of a living relationship with Jesus Christ is that we grow, and change, and learn to look more and more like Him. For my own peace of mind, I will be giving these shows up as well.

I want my life to stand for all that Jesus has given me.
I do not want to complicate it.
I do not want to contaminate it.
Seriously, giving up a scary holiday is the least that I can do to tell my Father God that HE is my one and only God.
Giving up gory or non-gory, scary shows is such a tiny offering, considering all that my Lord has given me.

Deuteronomy 30:15-19

15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them,
18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
19 This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live

Here is my declaration:

Joshua 24:14-15

14 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.
15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.