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The Kingdom of God, Part 5: How God Changed My Life

  • The Kingdom of God, Part 5: How God Changed My Life from Jim Jarrell on Vimeo.

    I would like to welcome everyone to the 5th video in this series for Refreshing Hope Ministries. I especially would like to welcome all those who are battling Anxiety and Depression. I also would like to thank Dion and Sylvia for allowing me to be a guest speaker here.

    Based on the questions asked last week in the chat time, I would like to make a few things clear. Number one is that I am not an educated man. I have been given an awesome gift from God the Father; I have been allowed to enter into this Kingdom that I have been talking about. I truly believe that I have been allowed to do this because I made a conscience decision to turn my will and my life over to Him. When they told me at the treatment center that this third step was important, I took that very seriously. Number two is that I am no theologian. I knew that going into these videos. I do not know all the answers. I can only say what worked for me. I said early on, that I am speaking from my own experiences. I have studied the Bible for many years now and I try very hard to use the scriptures that apply to the ideas I am expressing. Number three is that I am no doctor. I believe that if a doctor has put someone on a medicine, they should continue to take the medicine. If what I am telling everyone works for you, the doctor will take you off of the medicine when you are ready.

    There seems to be very little understanding of receiving the Holy Spirit verses the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. They are two very different experiences, If I am given the time, I will explain them later on. I was given the opportunity to do these videos live, but I made the choice to record them and to read them so they could be posted on the internet and last a long time. I said last week that Sylvia has been so good about posting the videos and the transcripts on their Blog page. I hope everyone takes the time to read these scriptures for themselves and put them into practice. I have probably said this too often, but I can take someone to the finest restaurant in town, and buy you the best meal on the menu. The only way that you will ever get a benefit from that meal is to stick your fork into it and try it. The same idea applies here; the only way anyone can know if it works for them is to try it.

    Last week, I spoke of the Kingdom of God and how Jesus had told Nicodemus that one could not even see the Kingdom unless he had been born again in John 3:1-12. He also told him that no one could enter into the Kingdom unless he had been born of water and Spirit. Then we talked about Acts 2:38 where the Apostle Peter had said that everyone who would repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus would receive the Holy Spirit. There are so many differing opinions about baptism, but my goal was to see the fulfillment of all that Jesus had died on the cross for, happen in my life. I knew that He had promised me a peace in John 14:27 which says; “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. But my heart was troubled and fear and anxiety were a way of life.

    I also said last week that I would show everyone how God released me from anxiety through this Kingdom message. I do not know if it will work for everyone but I do believe that it can. I do not know the cause of anxiety in everyone, but I can promise you that this worked in my life!

    I also talked about the Apostle Paul having said in Romans 14:17; “the Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. So I made it my goal to learn all that I could about the Holy Spirit. After praying, I came across John 14:16 in which Jesus said; “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

    Here Jesus is saying He would not leave us as orphans, He said He would come to us. Jesus had already said in John 14:27 that He would not give to us as the world gives to us. Jesus seemed to be saying, the world could not receive the Holy Spirit because they could not see Him. Jesus said that we as being born again could know the Holy Spirit, because He would live in us. Jesus also said that the Holy Spirit would be here forever, by that He must still be here. I had said in one of my earlier videos, that God wants us to know that the things he has said are true, and I have found that this is also true in my life.

    As I continued to study, I found the verses that made the change in my life. I found John 16:7-11 which says; “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. “And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

    Jesus is saying to his disciples, He had to go away in order that the Father could send the Holy Spirit. Jesus goes on to say that the Holy Spirit would convict the world of sin. Could this possibly be the cause for my anxiety? I had been praying ever since September 1989 that God would show me what He wanted to change, but I somehow just could not understand. For the next few days I put a lot of time into prayer. Then one day out of the blue, I started thinking about my life and how strange it had been. I started feeling guilty as I often did about how maybe if I had not been experimenting with drugs at an early age, my daughter would not have been born with a defective heart.

    Somewhere deep inside of me, I heard; “You have forgiven everyone but yourself.” That came as quite a surprise to me, I do not think I had ever heard a voice inside myself before. Because I had been studying and praying so much, maybe I was just giving God a chance to speak to me. I knew that I had worked through the 12 step program and forgiveness was such a large part of those teachings. But, I guess there was a certain amount of truth in what I had heard. I had learned in those A.A. meetings that the past is like water running over a dam, once the water passes, no one can put it all back. I just started praying again saying; God if this is true, I need your help in putting my past in the past. I noticed that somehow I did very well for a few days. Shortly though, I started to feel those same feelings again, and the same anxiety came bubbling up. This time though, I quickly started to pray and ask for God’s help again, and sure enough, the feelings just kind of left. This must have happened over and over for the next few weeks, or so, but each time, it got a little easier.

    Sometime later, I began to have a problem at work with another employee. It seemed like every time I would try to address the problem the way I saw it, I would feel that conviction again. You know that feeling of anxiety. As I would pray about the situation and ask God for His help, the feeling would seem to go away. As soon as the situation would arise, I would react and the feeling of conviction would come back. As I prayed about this, deep down inside I heard that voice say; “maybe you are looking at this all wrong.” As I started asking questions of the other employees, I found the root of the problem. He was having problems at home and they were spilling over into his work. Once I understood what was causing the problem, I could see him in a different light. Again this feeling inside of me had helped me overcome a perceived obstacle.

    You see, I was finding out that the Holy Spirit was living on the inside of me all this time, I just did not understand. These feelings of anxiety were actually feelings of conviction. What I was beginning to learn was that what the Holy Spirit had done in my life was to wake up my conscience. I had so long time ago grieved the Holy Spirit by not doing as He had been suggesting.

    The Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 4:30; “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” Because I had chosen to not listen when the Holy Spirit was convicting me, I had grieved Him. The Apostle Paul also said in Romans 9:1; I am telling you the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit. By this scripture, we can clearly see that the apostle Paul is saying that he recognized that through his conscience, the Holy Spirit was testifying the truth.

    It seems that this voice inside of me was the Holy Spirit working through my conscience. Twenty eight times in the New Testament the Bible speaks of the conscience and the Holy Spirit working together. As I started listening to this feeling inside of me, and working with God to make these changes He wanted to make, the feeling of anxiety just went away. I am not saying that will happen for everyone, but it sure did for me. I have been at this for a long time now and God still shows me things He wants to see changed. My job is to confess them and work with Him to see them changed in my life as He sees fit.

    You see, God desires to have a Holy people in His Kingdom. Not man’s idea of Holy, His idea of Holy. Remember what the New Covenant says in Hebrews 8:10; “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. God is looking for people who will allow Him to do this His own way because they want Him to. Not just because they have to, but because they desire to have Him allow them into His Kingdom and His BLESSINGS!

    I know that I have not totally reached the Goal. For me the goal is found in John 14:13&14 which says; “Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it. I have not reached the point where I can ask Jesus to do anything yet and see it done. I do believe it is a reachable goal. Questioning myself, did I find PEACE? Not only did I find peace, but it goes well beyond my understanding. I also found that through that peace, came a joy that to this day I cannot explain. Not only did I find peace, but somehow I became acceptable to others, it has been a most blessed journey. It did not happen overnight, But God is so amazing! I hope that I have given everyone something to work on. Like I have said before, I am not anyone special, if God will do this in my life, He will do it in yours. I hope these videos have helped someone. Until next time, my name is Jim Jarrell, and I thank you all very much!


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Sylvia Todd likes this
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Diane Symborski✝
Diane Symborski✝

I just want to say thank you Jim for your time. Thank you for sharing what you went threw to help us with anxiety. So that we will keep praying and asking the Father to let us let go and give it all to the Holy Spirit. 

Thank You, Jim!! :-)

Diane Symborski

April 27, 2017
  • 1
Jim Jarrell
Jim Jarrell

Thank you Dianne, I understand how helpless one feels when anxiety hits. The things that I shared are true and God in His wisdom revealed these things to me and helped me. I truly believe He will help you also, prayer is such a mighty weapon to use, and it is truly the Holy Spirit's job to lead us in all things. You will be in my prayers and God will respond. 

April 28, 2017
  • 1
Lynn Brown
Lynn Brown

Thank you Jim for your messages. I just read the last one since I could not be there live last Wed. night. You have inspired me to know and connect with the Holy Spirit and find the truth. It has been a continuing journey and I look forward to the guidance and wisdom the spirit will give me. I am already obtaining the peace that He gives us as long as I keep my eyes and mind on Him I know I will make it! Blessings to you :)

May 2, 2017