Spiritual Lessons
This is a longer post, but I know I was allowed to write this for a reason and for specific people. I hope it is a blessing.
If
we are followers of God, and walk in love, as Christ has loved us,
redeeming the time, submitting ourselves one to another, and obeying
Jesus in the details of our life, we can be sure of this – the
devil seeks us, to devour us, as a roaring lion. Us personally.
Lately
my family, as well as church family, have been confronted by the
enemy. I am convinced in my heart that right now a spiritual
battle is being fought, desperately against us. Our adversary is
prepared to take on his prey.
He
is a murderer from the beginning. John 8:44. He hates those that
open their mouth for the dumb in the cause of those that are
appointed to destruction. If you are an abolitionist against human
abortion, the devil hates you. You are now a target.
If
you are a innocent, if you have committed to purity of heart: you are
a target.
If you are a parent, and seek to train up your children in
the way they should go: you are a target. If you are a willing
channel, and walk in the Spirit: you are a target. If you influence
souls: you are a target.
This
is reality, not just a spiritual phenomenon. Whether we are prepared
or not, our enemy is skilled and cunning. He seeks to take advantage
over us. (2 Corinthians 2:11.)
And
yet, our enemy is predictable. We are not ignorant of his devices.
And Jesus has given us armor against him. Our part is to be sober
and vigilant and to take on that armor. This is an evil day
(Eph.6:13) and we must stand. Principalities, powers, rulers of
darkness, and spiritual wickedness stand at your gates.
Truth
We
are to be girt with truth. There is no truth in our enemy. When he
speaks he lies, for he is a liar and the father of it. (John
8:44).
He
will lie to us. He will tempt us to lie. He would have us in
bondage to lies and sin and fear.
Jesus
is Truth. He says he is the way, the truth and the life. (John
14:6). And that the truth will set us free. (John 8:32). We have
not received the bondage of fear but the true Spirit of adoption
whereby we cry “Abba Father”. (Romans 8:15). Truth will shield
us.
Breastplate
of Righteousness.
We
are born sinners. In a wretched state. But Christ in his mercy
stole our earthly heritage and made us his joint heirs by His
righteous blood. He is not only truth, but He is righteousness (1
John 2:29) and any righteousness through us, is Him. Our righteous
stand before God gives us peace (Rom 5:1-5). We can stand in quiet
confidence because before God we are righteous. Righteous
instruments that He can now use. (Rom 6:13). With His breastplate
of righteousness, sin no more has dominion over us.
“He
that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth
the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of
bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth
his eyes from seeing evil; He shall dwell on high: his place of
defense shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him;
his waters shall be sure.” Isaiah 33:15-16
Preparation
of the Gospel
The
Bible says that the gospel of Christ is the power of God unto
salvation. (Rom. 1:16). Paul was unashamed of the gospel and was
ready to preach the gospel, knowing that righteousness is revealed
through it. All of mankind is seeking peace; they hold truth in their
unrighteous hands and don't know what to do with it. “For the
wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrightesouness.”
And we should be prepared to give every man an answer to that which
lieth in us. (1 Peter 3:15). And that answer is the gospel of peace.
(Eph. 6:15).
Shield
of Faith
Shield
1.
To cover, as with a shield; to cover from danger; to defend; to
protect; to secure form assault or injury.
2.
To ward off; to defend against; as clothes shield one
from the cold.
The
Bible says we can resist and remain stedfast against the devil in
faith. Why? Because faith believes that “the God of all grace,
who hath called us...after we have suffered a while, make you
perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
(2 Peter 5:9-10)
Faith
can cast all it's care upon Him and trust Him and know that He cares. (2 Peter 5:7). Faith dares to ask anything of her Father.
Matthew
21:22
“And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer,
believing, ye shall receive.”
Faith can move mountains. Faith
believes and knows the love God has toward us. Faith boldly dwells
in love and Love dwells in her. Faith does not fear, but enables the
heart to love. And perfect love casts out fear. (1 John 4:16-18.) Faith is a shield of confidence. (1 John 5:14-15). Faith secures us
against assault. The fiery darts of the wicked.
“...faith
is not a once-done act, but a continuous gaze of the heart at the
Triune God. ...While we are looking at God we do not see ourselves--
blessed riddance. The man who has struggled to purify himself and
has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief
when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the perfect
One. While he looks at Christ, the very things he has so long been
trying to do will be getting done within him. It will be God working
in him to will and to do. ...Faith looks out instead of in and the
whole life falls into line.” A.W. Tozer (Pursuit of God, 83)
The
Helmet of salvation.
All
would be null and void without the saving blood of Jesus Christ on
our account. By grace and faith are we saved, (Eph 2:8-9) in Jesus
Christ alone. There is no other salvation in anyone else, “for
there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we
must be saved.” (Acts 4:12).
The
Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
I
was standing, alone, out in a field, trying to pray. And they
surrounded me on every side. Demons. I was terrified, too scared to
run back home – what if they just followed me? Only a few weeks
ago my brother was confronted by them as well. So I started praying
aloud. I still felt desperate. So I started quoting Scripture, and
the strain melted away. They were gone.
I
don't know how common spiritual attack is in different families, but
my family has definitely had our fair share. Whether in sudden
fear, battles with depression, evil imaginations, or direct attack,
we've experienced it. Through it all, we have learned that those who
rule the darkness hate scripture.
Hebrews
4:12 says that the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two edged sword. It pierces and divides asunder the soul and spirit
and discerns thoughts and intents of the heart.
God
asks – “Is not my word like a fire...and like a hammer that
breaketh the rock in pieces? (Jer.23:29)
We
can only be thoroughly furnished by knowing His word. (2 Tim.
3:16-17).
Prayer
“Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching
thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints...”
Eph. 6:18
I
am convinced that we, and others, suffer because we forget to ask.
We
hope God will work in our behalf. Sometimes desperately hope. Or we
feel like we just need to “take it on the chin” and bear it all
cheerfully. Or trials weigh us down, the enemy beats down,we are
surrounded so we whimper. And our Father, with baited breath, waits
for us to call on Him. He wants to prove himself. And then when we
finally resort to prayer, we ask him for a sip -- when He's ready to
pour out the ocean.
I've
asked many people if they know whether they will go to heaven or not
when they die. And many answer. “I hope so.” We know that that person's eternity is at stake. How about us who “hope” God will
work in us and for us?
When
is the last time we sincerely persevered in prayer for something or
someone? Have we recently asked God for something and knew He would
answer? If we ask anything according to His will, he hears us. And
if He hears us we can know for certain that we have whatever petition
that we desire. God says so. (1 John 5:14-15).
I
recently have been praying very specific things for certain people.
And these people have told me (without any clue that I've been
praying for them) how God has taught them this, or done this thing
for them, or helped them in this area. God loves to work specifics.
He loves to work outside the box. He enjoys proving Himself and
getting glory. But He chooses to use channels. We've got to be
available and willing.
When
is the last time we came together, as siblings in Christ, and prayed
for something? God says that that we can ask anything and it will be
done for us. Where two or three are gathered together in His name He
is in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:19-20.)
Over
and over He asks (and commands) us to come to Him and ask. I wonder
how many times we have grieved Him because He waited to give us a
blessing, and we never came to receive it? How many times has He
desired to bless someone else through us as a channel but we weren't
there...we never asked, we didn't come.
“If
ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will,
and it shall be done unto you.” John 15:7
Mark
11:24 Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye
pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
“And
I say unto you, Ask , and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall
find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Luke 11:9
James
5:16 “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another,
that ye may be healed. The effectual prayer of a righteous man
availeth much.
“Call
unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty
thing, which thou knowest not.” Jeremiah 33:3
Psalms
34:17 “The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delievereth
them out of all their troubles."
Trained to War
This morning Jesus showed me that He has conquered demons through me. And it isn't me at all -- HE has girded me with strength to battle, He spread them abroad. He avenged me. He lifted me up on high above them that rose against me. He has delivered me from the violent. (2 Samuel 22)
My burden hasn't gone away. I am still on a battle front. The devil still seeks me out. These won't change. But! He has given me supernatural acceptance and compassion. He has given me a spiritual mission. One that involves pain. But He has supplied me with all I need to face them. He conquers demons through helpless, vulnerable, weak channels. He loves working through incompetent channels; He enjoys using the weak. I am amazed at how simple it is. Painful, but simple.
I wonder how much we limit Him and His angles because we choose to be blase' and silly on the battle field. There is a cost to following Him. There is a cost to allowing Him to love through us. There is a battle. A war. And
no matter our distracted state, our adversary is full-time employed. The devil's only stumbling block – the warrior Christian. Those who are
sober and vigilant. Who pray – believing behind their shield of
faith. Those who use the word of God. The demons are only conquered
by believing, willing, helpless Christians. Jesus is teaching my
hands to war. Praise Him! He has given me peace. He has answered
specific prayers. He loves answering specific prayers. The Spirit
world is so real; so important. I am amazed at how joined the spirit
world is with the physical. My work, my home, they are both
battlefields. Like a friend so recently said, there is no such
thing as a non-combatant in this war. We are all players, whether we
want to be or not. When we fall asleep, we are not normally the
devil's priority, but he has no qualms of slaying us then. But jump
into the fray and we are lighted targets. We shine in a dark place
and he will try to take us out.
Our
Weaknesses
I've
wondered why evil seems to know our weaknesses so well. I remember a
pastor telling me that he wouldn't mention his weaknesses aloud for
fear the enemy would hear. They already know. How – I have no
idea. But they know the secret unmentioned weaknesses. Yet, it
doesn't matter. Because it's our weaknesses God can so greatly use.
The very thing that haunts us about ourselves is the most powerful
link to His power. Because there is absolutely nothing
we
can do with it. Weakness is difficult to rely on. Which is perfect
for Him, because we can't get in the way. God knows our weakness
better than we do. If He molded our strengths, it is not too long of a stretch to believe that He has given us our weaknesses. Where we are weak we can be sure
that
there
is
the place He intends to use us the most.
The
greater our weakness, the greater His glory. The more abnormal our
weakness, the more supernatural He will prove. Guilt is something to
shun. Our weakness in not an accident. We are not broken. There is
nothing to fix. Our weakness in not a crutch but a sword!
Loneliness may be a companion, if so we must learn to embrace it. God works
miracles in lonely places. The enemy has bows of steel. We have
our weaknesses. Satan's archers have had thousands of years of
experience, but we have the Creator God who is Forever, that moves
and lives through us.
You
are godly with God in you. You are righteous with Christ's blood
atonement. We are joint-heirs, children of God, pure and holy –
nothing less. Christ doesn't see us as less because we aren't
less.
He has trusted us with our weakness. The greater our weakness the
more proof of His trust and great expectations. We are exactly what
He intended. Accept it, and we will find an incredible journey
before us. It doesn’t matter if we choose to go through it with
open alertness and armor, or asleep and hateful – either way is
painful. But with one we are not to be used, misery will depress us
– or, we can be channels in which He receives glory, and demons are
conquered, and our scars will be for Him.
Last Spring, 2015, I remember praying one day. My family had just sold our house and were preparing to move to a new location and build. There was already a special place between the Lord and I where I'd always go to pray at night. I'd shed a lot of tears there. Shared my heart with God. And it was almost sad to think of leaving it behind, although I know God is not limited by a "prayer closet". So I remember asking the Lord if I could have a new special place to pray in our next home. Outside would be nice. I thought, especially in the summer time. But also some place that felt safe and somewhat secluded. And so I left my request with Him. I knew He'd have the perfect place in mind if that is what He desired. And then I kind of forgot about it.
A bench might seem like a small thing. But it meant a lot to me...and reassures me of both my Father's love for me and that He cares so much about what I ask Him for. He is such a good Heavenly Father. Sometimes I wonder that He could love everyone so much as I know He loves me. I feel like I must somehow take up all His time. I'm so needy. And He is always there. Always working on my behalf. And yet, God is so amazing as to care and seek all men in this same way.
"After “Musa” told his sister about Jesus, his father threatened to kill him and kicked him out of their home. Musa, who grew up Muslim, came to faith in Christ several years ago without his family’s knowledge. Since then, he has often talked to his sister about Christ’s love, and his parents recently found out. “If you do not leave this home, I will slaughter you,” his father told him. “And if you do not take all your things, I will burn them.” Musa hopes to continue his evangelistic efforts in his home area. A VOM partner has found an apartment where he can live, and VOM is helping cover the cost. Our partner asks for prayers for his safety. “This man faced a lot of attacks from Satan recently, and he is still steady in his faith,” the partner said."
Behnam Irani is a 41 year-old pastor from Karaj, Iran and was convicted of crimes against national security and sentenced to one year in prison. After voluntarily surrendering to authorities he began his sentence only to learn he would be forced to serve another five years. 
