Welcome to The Agape Women's Circle

Welcome Ladies! This is your page. Your spot away from it all. On this site we hope to offer encouragement to each other in our walk with the Lord, support each other in our trials, to join together in celebration of the victories God brings us, to Praise the Lord, lift each other up and to share this beautiful gift called life!

Remember, this is YOUR site! I will share thoughts from time to time, but you are encouraged to share as you feel led. Maybe you have a poem or a short story to share. The Lord may reveal something awesome about Himself to you during your prayer time and you'd like to share it with us. Perhaps you've got a great recipe to pass on. This is a place where sisters in the Lord will meet to share and stay in touch. We even have our own message board! (See bottom of page for link).

This is a "private" site in that we are not listing it on any search engines. It's our own place, so come on in and relax and let the burdens of the day slip away! Invite your friends and family to join us. If you would like to submit an item for the site, please send it to me in Word format to the email address at the bottom of the page. You may also submit it to me in person, either typed or handwritten.

Let's be encouraged in the Lord together!

In HIS Love,

Pastor Cathy

God will not give you more than you can bear. How many times have you heard that statement, or something similar to it? Have you ever checked to see if this sentiment is even in the Bible? There is a Bible verse that comes very close to this statement, but it is almost always taken out of context. It is misquoted, and it has been said in a manner different than what I believe God intended in the Bible.

For example, most of the time we hear people make this statement in reference to sickness, disease, misfortune, or tragedy. An example of such talk would go maybe something like this:

Let’s say, for example, that a woman receives a bad report from her doctor. The doctor tells her that she has an incurable disease. It’s not fatal, but she will have to live the rest of her life in pain - maybe it’s something like arthritis. Then this lady, in what she THINKS is great faith and submission to the Lord’s will, says something like this .....”Well, the good Lord promised that He will not give us more than we can bear, so somehow I must bear this”.

This sweet Christian lady is very sincere, but is she really having the attitude God wants her to have? NO SHE IS NOT! Let’s see what the Word of God has to say about this. In 1 Corinthians 10:13 it states:

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, Who will not allow you to be TEMPTED beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

In this verse, the words translated "temptation" and "tempt" are the same word. It is the Greek word "peirasmos", which means "a putting to proof (by experiment [of good], experience [of evil], solicitation, discipline or provocation); by implication adversity: - temptation, try." In this instance it is clear we are reading about being provoked by evil; and we know that God can do no evil!

And did you notice something about this Scripture? It doesn’t say anything about God not allowing us more sickness, disease or sorrow than we can bear, does it? It never talks about God putting a sickness upon us because He feels we are strong enough to bear it. Or deliberately bringing heartache into our lives because He feels we are strong enough to "tough it out". The only thing that this Scripture is talking about is TEMPTATION! It states that God will not allow us to be TEMPTED beyond what we can endure! It promises us that God will always provide us a with a way out of any temptation to sin that the devil might send our way. It says that God will help us to bear the temptation and not sin!

Is God the one doing the tempting? No! The devil is doing the tempting, not God! Think about when Jesus was fasting for 40 days in the desert and underwent temptation. Who tempted Him? Was it God? No. The Bible CLEARLY states it was the devil!

We have a record of what happened in Matthew 4:1

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be TEMPTED BY THE DEVIL!”

The Bible clearly states that the devil is the tempter; not God. When we say God is the tempter, we're calling Him by one of the very words used to describe the devil and his actions.

This is made very clear in James 1:13, where we read: “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.”

Additionally, we have the promise of Jesus that He will help us when we are being tempted. In Hebrews 2:18 we are promised:

“For that He Himself (Jesus)has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.”

Jesus was tempted in every way when He lived on this earth as one of us yet, unlike us, He remained without sin. He did not give in to temptation and is now offering each one of us help in times of temptation because He’s been there. He knows what it’s like to be tempted, and He knows how to overcome temptation, and will help YOU be an overcomer too!

How do we become overcomers? PRAY when you are tempted. The Word promises us in Hebrews 2:18 that Jesus will help you when you are tempted ...and we can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us!

So now we know that the expression that says “God will not give us more than we can bear” is in error. We know now that it is a twisting of
1 Corinthians 10:13 where the Scriptures promise us that God will not allow the devil to tempt us beyond what we can bear. We know that God will always give us a way out; a way to avoid sin. We know now that this Scripture has nothing to do with how much sickness or disease or poverty God will give us to bear.

You may be asking yourself: “HEY, WHAT ABOUT SICKNESS? GOD’S NOT GOING TO GIVE ME MORE SICKNESS THAN I CAN BEAR, IS HE?”

The first thing we’ve got to establish is that God does NOT give us sickness and disease. Satan is the one who tries to give us sickness and disease. We've got the proof of that in James 1:17

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

So the good things, the perfect things that we receive in life are from God, not the bad things, like sickness, disease, sorrow, poverty and loss. God is good all the time and everything He gives us is good. In fact, God is AGAINST illness and disease! Healing people of sickness and disease was a major part of Jesus’ ministry here on earth.

We read this about Jesus in Acts 10:38

“HOW GOD ANOINTED JESUS OF NAZARETH WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND WITH POWER, WHO WENT ABOUT DOING GOOD AND HEALING ALL WHO WERE OPPRESSED BY THE DEVIL, FOR GOD WAS WITH HIM.”

What an information-packed Scripture this is, and how encouraging! We learn that healing was a very important part of Jesus’ earthly ministry. We also learn the source of the illnesses that the people had. The Bible states quite clearly that Jesus healed all that were oppressed of the devil. The DEVIL caused those illnesses, and JESUS healed them

Importantly, we learn that Jesus healed them ALL! He didn’t heal only the most pious of the Jews. He didn’t reserve healing for only those who had no sin. He didn’t even ask these people to make a commitment to Him. Jesus simply healed them all as an visible expression of God's love.

I looked up the word “all” in the Webster's Dictionary, and do you know what I found it means? The word “all” means "The whole extent or quantity; the entire number of; every one of; a totality". In other words, EVERY SINGLE ONE! JESUS HEALED EVERYONE!

The Bible says that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, so if Jesus would heal those people back then, He will certainly heal you today!

In Matthew 8:16-17 it says:

“When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all that were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: ‘He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses’.”

Again, we see that the cause of the sickness is demons and the devil himself. We again see that Jesus healed them ALL. . .EVERYONE! We even see here that Jesus bore our sickness and infirmities in His own body!

This is stated quite clearly in I PETER 2:24 “(JESUS) WHO HIMSELF BORE OUR SINS IN HIS OWN BODY ON THE TREE, THAT WE, HAVING DIED TO SINS, MIGHT LIVE FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS---BY WHOSE STRIPES YOU WERE HEALED.”

Just because Jesus is seated in Heaven now at the right hand of the Father, does not mean that His healing ministry is over. On the contrary! Jesus now has an ARMY engaged in fighting sickness and disease. That army is comprised of every single Christian who will dare to believe Jesus at His Word!

In Mark 16:15-18, Jesus gave instructions to His followers just before He was received up into Heaven. These are also our instructions as Christians today.

Jesus said: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; THEY WILL LAY HANDS ON THE SICK, AND THEY WILL RECOVER.”

Notice Jesus did not say that they MIGHT recover! He said that they WILL recover. It’s a promise! The Word states that God can not lie, so if Jesus said it, it’s an unchangable truth.

In James 5:14 it states… Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has commited sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man (OR WOMAN) avails much!

So we now know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus has provided for our healing. We now know that God will provide us with help, with a way out - an escape plan - every time we are tempted to sin. And, the next time we hear someone with an illness or tragedy in their life say “God will not give me any more than I can bear”, we now know that this is not an accurate statement, and we will be equipped to teach that person how Good our God really is!

We KNOW that God gives us only GOOD things.

We KNOW that Satan gives us evil, hurtful things.

And we know that we can be confident that God will heal us from illness and disease as well as deliver us from temptation! Instead of saying “God will not give me more than I can bear”, WE will instead say, “I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME!”

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Upcoming Events for Women

Thursday, December 11 @ 7:30 PM: Kate McVeigh's Monthly Word Meeting (in Roseville, carpooling is available).
PLEASE NOTE: Beginning in January of 2004, Rev. McVeigh's monthly meeting will change to the first Tuesday of every month!

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 28 @ 7:00 PM: KATE McVEIGH AT AGAPE COVENANT CHURCH!

Agape Covenant Church Christmas Service, followed by Church Christmas Party: Sunday, December 21.
Service at 10:30 AM, Party at 1:00 PM at Pastor's house.

Sunday, January 11, 2004: Bridal Shower for Karen Cupp at 1:00 PM at Pastor Cathy's house.

Saturday, January 31: Women's Luncheon featuring special speaker and guest praise & worship leader.
(Location and details to be announced).

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Table of Contents:
WELCOME PAGE: Welcome Message, Scripture of the Week, Message of the Month, Upcoming Events for Women
INSPIRATION (Pg. 2): Christian Fiction & Poetry, Testimonies
DOMESTICATIONS (Pg. 3): Recipes, Tips for Healthy Living, Helpful Household Hints
PRAYER GARDEN (Pg. 4): Prayer Requests, Encouraging Scripture Verses




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WE HAVE OUR OWN MESSAGE BOARD! CLICK ON THIS LINK TO TALK & SHARE WITH EACH OTHER! Message Board

Turn the Page

Page Two - INSPIRATION
Page Three - DOMESTICATIONS
Page Four - PRAYER GARDEN
Link to AGAPE COVENANT CHURCH

Email: PastorCathy@agapecovenantchurch.com