THE CHANGE OF LIFE - MENOPAUSE
SCRIPTURES
Job 31:1 I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?
Prov. 5:15-21 Be content with your wife and do not commit adultery.
Prov. 5:19 Let her breasts satisfy thee at all times.
Jer. 3:3 Thou had a whore's forehead and was not ashamed.
Mal. 2:14-16 He hateth putting away (God hates divorce).
Mark 9:43-48 Hand - foot - eye: cut off or pluck out rather than go to Hell.
Gal. 5:1 CHRIST has made us free (we have a free will).
James 5:13-20 The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another.
Rel. 21:7-8 Whore mongers - shall have their part in the lake which burneth.
PREFACE - This is a lesson that I have never heard taught. Bill Null asked me to teach the men's class at Lake Hamilton Bible Camp shortly before it was to begin. I asked the Lord what to do and he gave me the initial part of this lesson. This is a very sensitive lesson. It causes problems for Christians as they grow older; the change of life may even start at a young age such as in the 30's.
ANN LANDER'S COLUMN - I like to read her newspaper column to find out what is happening in peoples' lives. Since our ministry is to help people who are hurting, we need an understanding of what experiences people have to go through in life. There has been considerable written about the difficulties that married couples face in the change of life of the woman or even of the man.
CONFESS YOUR FAULTS TO OTHERS - We have had many prayer meetings in our home where DELIVERANCE was the main subject. One type of meeting had this format: we would sit around the room in a circle and each person would have time to talk. I would take notes; then each person would pray and get right with God. After the prayers, we would cast out demons. Publicly confessing your sins is very effective.
It bothers me to watch ministers, especially DELIVERANCE ministers, try to forgive people's sins. This is an absolute impossibility! Only God can forgive sins, and only then when a person really repents and humbly asks God for forgiveness. If you cast out a demon that has a right before God to be there, that demon has a right to come back in again!
The most effective way to get rid of demons is to have the person repent of the specific sins committed by that person or committed by that person's ancestors as the first step to DELIVERANCE. You could say that the most important aspect of Christianity, and also of DELIVERANCE, is repentance. Without repentance, you will never become a Christian. Without repentance, you will not get your demons cast out or they will not stay out.
LUSTING AFTER OTHER WOMEN - Does a man have a right to lust after other women? Clearly, the Bible teaches that lust is a sin and is an opening for demons.
What will happen if the man freely lusts after other women? Satan will set a trap in the future with a loose woman. Sin begins with the thought process and leads to actions later on. Consider our divorce rate of about 50% in America, that there are more women than men, the declining morals of our society, the women that are looking for a husband anyway they can get one married or unmarried, and you will see how easy it is for Satan to trap the man.
LUSTING AFTER OTHER MEN - You may not think so but women also lust after men. This was a shock to Earline when she discovered that practice of women. This action is getting worse; the women are becoming more forward and initiating the approach to men. Women are becoming more like men in the area of sin. You can see the effects on women as they begin to sin like men. They become hard of heart, their hair begins to fall out, their face hardens, they get a whore's forehead and they begin to have problems like men.
MENOPAUSE - "That period which marks the permanent cessation of menstrual activity. Usually occurs between the ages of 35 and 58. Natural menopause will occur in 25% of women by age 47, in 50% by age 50, 75% by age 52, and in 95% by age 55. Menopause due to surgical removal of the ovaries occurs in almost 30% of U.S. women past age 50.
The symptoms that may be associated with menopause begin soon following the cessation of ovarian function. This is true whether menopause occurs natural, or is due to surgical removal of the ovaries or failure of the pituitary gland to function. Symptoms that may last from a few months to years vary from being hardly noticeable to severe. Included are symptoms of vasomotor instability, nervousness, hot flashes, chills, excitability, fatigue, apathy, mental depression, crying following circumstances that would not normally cause that reaction, insomnia, palpitation, vertigo, headache, numbness, tingling, myalgia, urinary disturbances such as frequency and incontinence, and various disorders of the gastrointestinal system.
Hot flashes, or hot flushes, may start with an aura followed by a feeling of discomfort in the abdominal area, perhaps a chill quickly followed by a feeling of heat moving toward the head. Next the face becomes red, and sweating is followed by exhaustion. The cause, or causes, of hot flashes is not completely understood and is controversial (my thoughts - could it be demonic?).
Treatment - Hormone replacement as required. However, the use of estrogen or estrogen combined with a progestogen as a cure-all in treating the symptoms of menopause has been seriously questioned due to the possibility of undesired side effects. Hormonal replacement therapy is contraindicated in those with a history of an estrogen-dependent breast tumor, thromboembolic disease, or acute liver disease. The long-term use of estrogens in order to prevent osteoporosis, q.v., is questionable. If menopause is the result of surgical removal of the ovaries, it is possible that estrogen therapy will reduce the risk of coronary disease. Yearly pelvic examination to include Papanicolaou test for cancer of the uterus and cervix.
Artificial - Menopause occurring subsequent to surgical castration, x-ray irradiation, or radium implantation into the uterus.
Premature - Natural or artificial menopause occurring before age 35.
Surgical - A form of artificial menopause that follows surgical removal of the ovaries."
DOUBLE-MINDEDNESS ABOUT TREATMENT - The woman is torn between wanting to sexually satisfy her husband and maintaining her physical health. If she studies about hormone replacement, she will find that there are two sides to that issue. There are two schools of thought in the medical profession: either take estrogen or do not take estrogen.
If the woman takes estrogen, she will remain more sexually active for a longer period of time. However, she risks the serious side effects of contacting cancer or other diseases. Her husband may push her to take estrogen so that he can selfishly satisfy his sexual desires at her expense.
If she doesn't take estrogen, her body will continue the natural process of aging. It will become harder to have intercourse as she becomes older. It becomes more painful because her body becomes more fragile.
What about the use of lotions and creams? These help but they are a poor substitute for estrogen or the former youthfulness of the woman's body.
If she doesn't have intercourse, she may risk losing her husband who is only motivated by sex and not by love for his wife. How often have you read or heard about the man leaving his middle-aged wife for a younger woman? Clearly, this is usually motivated by sexual desires because the woman can still perform the other wifely duties.
MALE CLIMACTERIC - "The period that marks the cessation of a woman's reproductive ability (female climacteric or menopause); a corresponding period of lessening of sexual activity in the male (male climacteric)." Sometimes this has been jokingly called "the seven-year itch" to have another woman to prove that the male has not lost his ability.
What happens to the male when his sexual drive begins to lessen? He may take it as a normal part of the aging process or he may go to extremes to compensate for what he feels is a loss of manhood. He may become overly concerned about his loss of hair, start transplanting hair from his body to his head, and grow a beard to compensate for the loss of hair. He may start dressing in a flashy manner to show his sexiness. He may buy a sports car to show his youth. He may start acting younger in mannerisms and actions. He is no longer an Oldmobile but now a Youngmobile. He may start going to the bars for one-night stands. He may start running around on his wife. He may even get separated or divorced. He may ignore the concerns of his children. He may ignore all wisdom and common sense to show that he is still sexy. Earline had a college roommate that made a very apt statement, "A man is led around by his penis."
WHY DID GOD MAKE US THIS WAY? - The question that I have wrestled with for years is "why did God make the man and woman this way?" It is fairly easy to see that women should have children when they are young. They need the health and about twenty years to raise a child. Also, the older the couple, the more likely the child will be born with physical deformities and mental limitations.
Well, what about sex? What does the woman do as she is still married and her body is wearing out due to age, sickness and disease? What does the man do as he is still married and his body still has the lessened capacity for sex? The man has the capacity for sex many years after the woman enters menopause, possibly until he dies.
God hates divorce and the Bible teaches that we should practice one man - one woman throughout life. Does the man have the right to divorce his older wife and find a younger one mainly for sex? The biblical answer is clearly no!
Does the woman have a right to deny her husband sex when she reaches the menopause stage of life? She will be able to perform well for some years after that stage. What about sex as it becomes more and more painful? What if she chooses not to take estrogen? She has to make the choices of treatment and take the chances with her body. Should the husband force her to take estrogen? Before God, she has the right to decide what to do with her body and the husband should not coerce her in any way.
What should the man do who can not have sex with his wife? Should he masturbate? Should he read and watch pornography? How about watching television with all of its sex in advertisements and shows which just stimulates the sexual drive?
WHAT IS THE ANSWER? - As you can see, this is a problem for all of mankind and womankind. You will face this problem sooner or later in life. What will you do then? Will you give up your Christianity to have sex? Will you compromise your morals or beliefs to justify your actions?
Why did God make us this way and then write the Bible where it is difficult to follow? Could it be that this is a long personal test to see if we will follow His precepts or fall away to sexual sins? Do we follow God or follow our fleshly desires? Do we follow spiritual things or carnal things?
How important is sex to you? What are you willing to sacrifice to have it? What about your soul? Are you toying with the second death, the lake of fire and brimstone? Men, it would be better to cut your penis off than to lose your salvation. Women, it would be better to cut your breasts off than to lose your salvation. If that sounds strong, how about the verses of plucking out your eyes or removing the offending member rather than perish in Hell?
MENSTRUATION PROBLEMS - A DELIVERANCE lesson could be developed dealing with the physical, mental and spiritual problems associated with problems in menstrual cycle. How many of you have been prayed for or prayed for others in this area?
REFERENCES
Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary (Everybody in DELIVERANCE should have this book. It provides a list of demons when praying for someone with diseases.)
PRAYER FOR MEN - Lord, I forgive my wife for problems in my life caused by the changes in her life. I ask that she forgive me for problems in her life caused by the changes in my life. Forgive me for lusting after other women and other sexual sins I have committed. Protect me from the whorish woman. Please restore me from the effects of sexual sin. I forgive Adam and Eve for the original sin and cursing mankind. Forgive me for having wrong feelings for my wife due to difficulty in having intercourse. Please heal my body so that I can have normal intercourse during my lifetime. I forgive my wife for excuses for not having sex. In JESUS Name, I pray. Amen.
PRAYER FOR WOMEN - Lord, I forgive my husband for problems in my life caused by the changes in his life. I ask that he forgive me for problems in his life caused by the changes in my life. Forgive me for lusting after other men and other sexual sins I have committed. Protect me from the whoremongering man. Please restore me from the effects of sexual sin. Forgive me for being double minded. I forgive Adam and Eve for the original sin and cursing woman kind. Forgive me for having wrong feelings for my husband due to difficulty in having intercourse. Please heal my body so that I can have normal intercourse during my lifetime. I forgive my husband for the pain of having sex. In JESUS Name, I pray. Amen.
LIST OF DEMONS - You could use the lists of Sexual Harassment - Abuse - Assault - Violence and Sexual Sin and Diseases in the Mass DELIVERANCE Manual.
The following lists more demons for use in DELIVERANCE: Menopause - failure of pituitary gland, vasomotor instability, nervousness, hot flashes, chills, excitability, fatigue, apathy, mental depression, abnormal crying, insomnia, palpitation, vertigo, headache, numbness, tingling, myalgia, urinary incontinence, gastrointestinal disorders, hot flushes, breast tumors, thromboembolic disease, acute liver disease, osteoporosis, coronary disease, cancer of uterus and cervix, castration, x-ray irradiation, radium implantation of uterus, climacteric, Menstruation - vicarious menstruation; uterine hemorrhage; endocrine disturbances: pituitary gland, thyroid, and ovary; general systemic diseases: hypertension, diabetes melitius, blood dyscrasias, chronic nephritis; malpositions of the uterus: retroversion and retroflexion; new growths of the uterus: particularly fibroids of the uterus with hyperplastic changes of the endometrium; conditions of the cervix uteri: erosions or polypi; inflammations in the pelvis: acute salpingitis, acute metritis, acute endometritis, chronic metritis, and endometritis; painful menstruation or pelvic pain; prolonged menstruation; abnormal menstruation; damage by birth control pills or intrauterine device; epileptic convulsions; menstrual extraction; fertility control; congential abnormalities; physical disorders: disease, obesity, malnutrition; emotional or hormonal disturbances; diseases of ovaries, hypophysis, thyroid, or adrenal glands; menstrual irregularities: absence of flow, scanty flow, painful menstruation, excessive loss of blood, spotting; anovulatory; retrograde; suppressed; vicarious.
Other Related Spirits - hard heartedness, premature baldness, hardness of face, whore's forehead, whoremonger's forehead, stress, hypertension, demonic baldness, indecent clothing, exhibitionism, adultery, fornication, separation, divorce, worship of sex, premature aging, sicknesses, diseases, rough sex, masturbation, pornography, sexual fantasy, sexual carnality, unnatural menstruation, female problems, many sexual partners.