GOD -  I'M PROUD - One afternoon Goethe and Beethoven chatted and strolled to­gether in the valley. As they walked, passersby saluted, pointed them out, and bowed with ostentations deference. 
   "Isn't it maddening?" exclaimed Goethe. "I simply can't escape this homage." 
   "Don't be too much distressed by it," said Beethoven. "It is just possible that some of it may be for me." 
   If this story is true, Goethe, the great German poet, was suf­fering from a rather advanced case of pride! None dare question the poetic ability of Goethe, this is an established fact. But in the presence of an equally great man -- Beethoven -- to assume that homage was to him alone was a mark of crass human pride. Beethoven did a masterful job of deflating Goethe's ego. 

GOD -  I DON'T WANT TO DIE - How can we get into this one, no one really wants to die, deep inside of their selves. Most will do anything to keep from dying or being kill. Though some call Death a friend as they grow older, they feel its the only peace they may ever have. The choice is to escape either way from frying or from life. 
     Maybe a little story comes to mind that might help. There was a wealthy householder who sent his servant into the market place to buy food for a banquet. When the servant came to the market place, he saw Death. Terrified he fled and returned to his master and said, "Master, I just saw Death in the market place. Please let me borrow your horse and flee way up into the hills where I will hide in a cave." 
     Later the same day the master went to the market place and he too saw Death. he approached Death and said, "Death, why did you frighten my servant so today?" 

GOD  -  I HAVE DOUBTS - Frequently people say, "When I get to heaven, I'm going to ask Paul what he meant when he said ----", or "I want to ask Peter what possessed him to deny the Lord the night of His trial"; or "I want to ask the apostle John what it was like to be close to Jesus." 
     Many desire to have an audience with some great men of the Bible in order to satisfy a personal curiosity. But I've never heard anyone say, "When I get to heaven, I want to talk to Thomas." 
     Why should anyone want to talk with Thomas? We know he is called "Doubting Thomas", and is the one people think of as unbelieving. What could we learn from him? 
     Nevertheless, we shouldn't write off Thomas because we probably have as much (or more) in common with him than any other person in the Bible! He is the man whose faith faltered ----who had honest questions and doubts concerning Jesus Christ. Because his problem is recorded, we can all learn from his experience. 

GOD I'M BITTER  - I've heard it said "---most of our problems are human problems." This simple statement hits the nail squarely on the head. People are the cause of most of our problems! 
    Just think of it ---if we no longer had people, prejudice would be erased; wars would cease; pollution and overpopulation would no longer be problems. 
    Lets face it, our humanness causes most of our problems We are bundles of potential problems looking for a place to happen. 
    One of the deep problems of human life is bitterness. In his letter to the Ephesians believers, Paul addresses himself to this problem. He deals with the "gut" issues of unity, theft, lying, malice, and to "put off the old man and put on the new man." (Ephesians 4:22-24) Then the fourth chapter of Ephesians closes, Paul zeroes in on the thorny problem of bitterness. 
    As we examine the context of these verses concerning bitterness, we see that anger has a place in the life of the Christian. "Be angry, and yet do not sin ---" (Eph. 4:26). God permits the believer to become angry. But don't go over­board; anger is permitted, not commanded. 

GOD I'M DISAPPOINTED - Disappointment is one of the frustrating problems each of us must face. Often I hear people say, "He disappointed me so much." Or have you ever said to someone, "I'M so dis­appointed in you?" Or even more pointed, "God I'm dis­appointed." Maybe you like so many just thought it to your­self without mentionig it to any one for fear of the disap­pointment of not being understood. 
  If we are to face life realistically, we will have to grapple with the problem of disappointment. It can't be ignored. 
  What happens inside when we say we are disappointed? The dictionary says it means "to be made unhappy by the failure of one's hopes or expectations." Disappointment then is the sinking feeling we get when our plans blow up in our faces. 

GOD I'M BORED - Have you, like most, ever wondered how different life would be if you could follow the wind and find yourself on a sandy South Sea island riding the wild surf off Hawaii sitting astride a camel by an Egyptian pyramid? But being in exotic places, doing exciting things, and hob­nobbing with glamorous people is not part of our daily routine. The more we think about the excitement of travel, the more painful is the awareness that we're trapped by life's daily drag. Life isn't exciting ---- its monotnous! The more our world closes in on us, the more frantic we seek to climb out of the rut by indulging in daydreams. But try as we might, we can't dream ourselves out of the rut. 
  Have you ever said, "I'm bored to death with the life I'm living. I never do anything or go anywhere that's exciting?" 
  Most of us have made this confidential confession to a trusted friend; but, have you ever said to God, "God I'm bored with my life?" 

GOD I'M AFRAID - Many people feel they'll get rid of fear as they grow older. but because fear is one of the base emotions of the human heart, we never seem to be completely free of it. 
  The dictionary gives three different shades of meaning to fear: (1) Fear is a feeling of anxiety and agitation caused by the presence or nearness of danger. Practically speaking, its the feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you're called in to see the boss after doing something wrong! (2) Fear is a feeling of uneasiness. For example, when your teen­ager isn't in by curfew you're afraid something has happened to him. (3) Fear is also a feeling of a respectful awe or dread ----as when you encounter a snake. 
  Fear is an emotional response which is consciously recog­nized, stimulated usually by some real threat. Fear is the tense feeling which grips you when you are faced with the tough problems of life. Have you ever felt your emotions were like taut guitar strings? Fear stretches your emotions and leaves you feeling all wound up. 

GOD I'M LONELY - SEVERAL years ago, a popular television series called Gilligan's Island dramatized one of society's gnawing problems. The series centered around the comical and usually frantic efforts of a group of castaways to extricate themselves from their small uncharted island. Between the emotional tides of high hopes and subsequent failures, they dived a relatively normal life. But with each failure, one sensed the group's despair. Life went on as they continually contrived ingenious ways of coping with their situation, and all the while hoping to contact the outside world. They frequently came close to freedom, but their efforts were always thwarted. It seemed they were condemned to live forever as marooned castaways on their lonely island.
  I watched with the kids and laughed at the comical efforts of Gilligan and his gang; but inwardly, each episode struck a responsive and emotional chord. Most of us can identify with their plight because at times we all feel like castaways. Though we carry on our normal activities, we feel isolated from the rest of the world. At times it seems the whole world pass­es by our island of loneliness without seeing our frantic distress signals.

GOD I'M WORRIED - Worry has been defined as anxiety - a state of being un­easy or apprehensive about what may happen. The definition suggests a mental distress of agitation over some problem. Un­easiness of mind results from facing responsibilities or pro­blems we feel incapable of handling. I've heard it said, "Worry is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble."
  In the New Testament, "Worry" (Merimna) means "to divide." which comes from the Greek verb MERIZO. People who worry are "divided" - mentally torn apart.
  Just reading the newspapers exposes us to a multitude of problems capable of producing worry. Sometimes we feel we're sitting on a pile of gunpowder while world leaders play with matches. 
  Inflation is another problem to worry about. While we watch our money buy less and less, we wonder how to feed and clothe our families on a shrinking income.

Nothing But Christ - "Jesus therefore said, 'When you have lifted up the Son of Man then shall you know that I am He'." (John 8:28)
  "For you died, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall be manifested, then shall you also with Him be manifested in glory." (Col 3:3-4)
  "For in Him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church; who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all thing, he might have the preeminence. For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fullness dwell; and through him to reconcile all things unto himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say whether things upon the earth, or things in the heavens." (Col 1:16-20)

LIFE, DEATH AND ABORTION - Have you ever been asked by a new or dear friend a question on abortion.

Perhaps the most crucial question in the long abortion debate is when the fetus is to be considered a human being. I've heard many answer from conception to the moment of birth. 
  I've listened to evidence for the particular positions on this subject taken from science -- such factors as genetic uniqueness (science of heredity - one soul) the development of the cardiovascular system heart) or the presence of brain waves.
  From this we could answer this question as many have before me from my emotions or what others have determined it to be. But I'm not able to do this in a good clear conscious, to come to the same conclusion as so many have.
  We understand without any doubt in my system that we are created by a greater being than any of us in human form. And most come to a conclusion based on completely human understanding or as its call scientific knowledge.
  We tried to accept it as such but I couldn't be at peace with it.