Hidden Treasure Ministries

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

What We Do

As a non-profit, religious organization that operates on donations, Hidden Treasure Ministries provides the following:

Pursuing All The Heart Retreat (P.A.T.H.)-Participants are given the opportunity to grow in their personal intimacy with God through Biblical teaching, creative activities and devotional exercises.

Lay Aside Every Weight Seminar- A seminar committed to sharing the message of forgiveness and reconciliation. Both its message and its design are structured to enable those who participate in it to discover any reality of unforgiveness and bitterness in their lives and to address them in the most efficient and effective way possible.

Listening Prayer Seminar-Those who attend will find out about the most ancient type of prayer, its application to modern life and its importance as part of the Christian's devotional life.

S.H.A.P.E. Seminar-Participants will discover the unique way God created each person and equips him or her to serve Him and the Body of Christ.

The ministry of pastoral care is offered by Hidden Treasure Ministers for the following purposes:

To encourage people to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.
To ease emotional pain and suffering through prayer and Scripture.
To increase growth in Christian maturity.
To increase participation and commitment to the local church.
To encourage solidarity of marriage relationships, as well as, healthy relationships with others.

If you are interested in any of these services, contact us at:htministries@gmail.com

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

So, You're Going to Get Married

Treasured Vignettes

"But He said to them, 'Not all men {can} accept this statement, but {only} those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother's womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are {also} eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept {this,} let him accept {it.'}" Matthew 19:11-12

Truly, marriage is not for the selfish or self-centered because marriage requires a giving of yourself that you will never encounter anywhere else (accept in giving yourself to God). When you marry, you are no longer yours. you belong to another, your thinking and doing must consider another first. Marriage requires a dying to self and a living for another. Only Jesus Christ can require more allegience, more commitment, more love and respect than your spouse. One must give serious thought to marriage before entering it. It is not a cure-all for your emotional needs, but an exposer of them. It is not an answer to your fiscal or physical needs but a challenger and a user of them both. And then you have children and the requirements and responsibilities increase. The drain and strain on yourself magnifies. If you are planning on getting married, you had better plan on dying to self. Think about it.

Categories: marriage

Labels: love, marriage, vignettes

# posted by John & Sherron @ 9:17 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

The Characteristic of Forgiveness

Treasured Vignettes

“. . . But Thou art a God of forgiveness, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness; and Thou didst not forsake them.” Nehemiah 9:17b

The Holy Spirit's work within us is to develop the character of Christ in us. Just as He is constantly at work to produce Christ's characteristics of love and compassion, He labors to develop His characteristic of forgiveness in us. Why do you do devotions each day or memorize Scripture or go to church on Sunday? Is it not that you might honor God and be changed in attitude and conduct to resemble Him? Do you want to love as Christ loves? Then practicing forgiveness, the receiving and giving of it, is paramount in your life-style. Do you want the joy that gives you strength for the hard journey of life? Do you want the peace of heart and mind that is like a fortress in the middle of life's battles? Do you want life that neither the world, the flesh nor the devil can take from you? The way of forgiveness, the way of Christ, that is the way. Forgiveness is as important to your health as a good diet and exercise. Forgiveness is as important to your prosperity as wise decisions about investments. Forgiveness is as essential to a good marriage as good communication and love. Forgiveness is as necessary for a bright future as choosing Christ as Your Savior. Think about it.

Categories: forgiveness, character

Labels: forgiveness, love, marriage, peace, vignettes

# posted by John & Sherron @ 8:52 AM 0 comments

Monday, January 30, 2006

The Way To Healthy Relationships

Treasured Vignettes

"For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." Matthew 12:50

In Matthew 12:50, Jesus told His disciples, "For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." The relationship between a person and God precedes all other relationships, exists prior to all other ties, for the Lord planned for each of us, gave each of us life, and, gave each of us to our families. We each belong with the Lord and to Our God. “If you are faithful to Me,” says the Lord, “all other relationships will be blessed and benefit. If you are disloyal to Me, Who made you, you will be disloyal in all other relationships.” Loving and being obedient to God's will does not break relationships, but puts them in the proper light. If one loves and obeys the Lord, he/she will honor his/her parents. If a husband and wife love and obey the Lord, their marriage relationship will remain undefiled. If a father and mother love and obey the Lord, their children will be blessed and know the Lord. If people love and obey the Lord, the world will hate them, but they will overcome it. Think about it.

Categories: relationships

Labels: love, marriage, vignettes

# posted by John & Sherron @ 8:29 AM 0 comments

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Grace For Marriage

Treasured Vignettes

“Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlwssness, or what fellowship light with darkness?” 2 Corinthians 6:14

Saint Paul exhorts believers to be separate from evil and not enter into close (confidential) relationships with unbelievers. Yet, some of us became believers after we married and our spouses are not believers. Many then ask, “Should I divorce?” And, many, sad to say, use the difference as an excuse to divorce. But, we are to take the whole counsel of God! God does not encourage divorce! (Matthew 19:3-9) God recognizes the faith of one spouse as His provision of grace for the unbelieving spouse and the children of that union (1 Corinthians 7:14). The Holy Spirit encourages sanctity, love and respect between husband and wife, believer to unbeliever, as well as, believer to believer. Hardness of heart leads to divorce, not reverence and obedience to God. Selah (Stop and think about it).

Thursday, September 01, 2005

The Enemy of a Good Marriage

Treasured Vignettes

“Husbands, love your wives, and do not be embittered against them.” Colossians 3:19

Bitterness is the greatest enemy of the marriage relationship. In the letter to the Hebrews, we are admonished to keep “the marriage bed” undefiled. Yet, if there is a root of bitterness, defilement will happen. For each spouse there is pleasure in marriage, but there is also the pain that accompanies the sacrificial love it takes to make a vital, stable union. Both spouses enter a marriage with expectations that are not always realistic. And, most of us are not patient or forgiving of another’s failures. Husbands, elsewhere in Scripture, are commanded to love their wives with the love that Christ bore His Church, loving so as not to cause pain or treat the wife as an enemy. Marriage truly is meant to be the best earthly illustration of God, in Christ, loving His Bride, the Church. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 gives the fullest definition of what true love looks like. Husbands, without comparing or complaining about your wives, take some time to meditate on the passage and ask God to continue His good work in you as you love your wives. Selah.

Friday, August 12, 2005

Ya Gotta Have Hope

Treasured Vignettes

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12

The other day, I had a friend, who has been suffering with anxiety and despair over her troubled marriage relationship, tell me that she had hope. When I asked her what gave her that hope, she said two things: She realized that God cared and that He was the only one who could help her in this situation. And, she released and trusted God with her husband, herself and her trouble. It seems that “the God of all hope” is quick to respond to such faith. Selah.