Category: Be Aware of Spiritual Warfare

¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. ~ Matthew 5:16

In the movie The Little Mermaid, Prince Eric drives his ship into Ursula and kills her. After they defeated Ursula, King Triton was released from his imprisonment, but he wasn’t the only one. All who had been deceived and held captive by Ursula were freed. This is a beautiful and touching scene to watch. They didn’t intend to free all those people, but they did. Imagine, their efforts to save themselves for Ursula led to the freedom of all captives.

This is the same in our lives. When we strive to overcome, defeat, and remove a stronghold, burden, etc. from our lives, it will positively affect those around us; how? One of my favorite quotes is,

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

When you change, it affects everyone around you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and See Change.

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¹ Wisdom has built her house; she has carved out her seven pillars. ² She has prepared her meat; she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table. ³ She has sent out her female servants; she calls out from the highest points of the city: ⁴ “Whoever is inexperienced, enter here!” To the one who lacks sense, she says, ⁵ “Come, eat my bread, and drink the wine I have mixed. ⁶ Leave inexperience behind, and you will live; pursue the way of understanding. ~ Proverbs 9:1-6^CSB

I remember when the Avengers movie first came out. It featured a song by Sound Garden entitled Live To Rise. The song opens with these lyrics:

What if all you understand,
Could fit into the center of our hand,
Then you found it wasn’t you,
Who held the sum of everything you knew?

I want you to think about that for a second. Imagine if everything you knew could only fit into the center of your hand. In other words, the entire universe is filled with knowledge, but the only bit you know fits in your palm. That’s such a tiny bit of knowledge that you think you know a lot until you start paying attention to the world around you and realize the things you know are insignificant to the knowledge out there. Then, to top it all off, as if the small amount of knowledge you have isn’t enough, now it’s not even you who has the power over the amount of knowledge you have and over the actual knowledge itself.

This is the world we live in today. We have mainstream media that will report a complete lie but present it as the truth. Then, to make it seem like you are choosing the knowledge, there will be two different sides. One saying they’re for this, the other saying they’re for that. When in reality, if you zoom out far enough, you’ll see that, sure, they’re two different sides, but it’s the same coin.

Sadly, the majority of us (the Church and the world) are so easily influenced by what the mainstream media says that we can’t see that we’re being controlled. We’re being taught and told how to think. We’re being programmed by what we watch and listen to. The worst part is that very few ever realize it.

When you’ve been fed lies from such a young age, it’s difficult to see the truth. This is the importance of Christ in your life. The world pushes everything except Christ. Islam is okay. Atheism is okay. Buddhism is okay. Hinduism is okay. Even Judaism is okay. And even a watered down, Jesus loves everyone, there’s a no need for change Gospel that is accepted. Why? Because that’s not Jesus. None of those things are. As long as we change who Jesus is but keep the name, they’re okay. Why? Because the name is useless unless you know who Jesus actually is.

The Seven Sons of Sceva knew of Jesus. They knew His name. They knew there was power in His name, but they didn’t know Him. So what happened? When they faced a man with a spirit too strong for them, they were beaten to the point where they ran away naked (Acts 19:13-16).

The enemy holds the knowledge of the majority because he has successfully divided and conquered. He’s divided us by race, convincing us Christianity is a white man’s religion. He’s divided us by politics so that we never actually pay attention to the policies; we just vote based on party. He divides us by denominations so that we don’t actually search the Word of God for Truth; we just cling to whatever the doctrine of our denomination says.

We no longer know nor understand the things that the first Church did. We read their writings, and we’re dumbfounded. We can’t grasp their ideas or teachings. I don’t believe it’s because we’re dumber. I believe it’s because we’ve become more and more ignorant over the years. We no longer have the knowledge we should because someone else is holding it, and we don’t even realize that there’s more than just what we’ve been taught.

God’s desire is that we have understanding and knowledge so that we aren’t easily deceived and overcome. He promised to give knowledge to anyone who is willing to ask and seek it out. There’s so much out there; don’t let the world keep you from knowing and understanding it. Always remember that knowledge is power.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and See Outside Their Palm.

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¹³ Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. ¹⁴ How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it. ~ Matthew 7:13-14^CSB

One of my favorite childhood shows was Avatar. In Avatar, there is a character named Zuko. For the majority of the show, Zuko is the antagonist, trying to take away the hope of the world because he believes his father will restore his honor. Then, one day, he comes to a crossroads, and his uncle convinces him it’s time to let go of this mission before it destroys him, so he does. When he does, he falls into a bad illness. An illness that his uncle describes as not being of this world but an illness within himself because of his decision.

See, Zuko’s decision was good. He gave up his father’s mission to take away the hope of the world. But that’s when the spiritual attack, if you will, happened. This is the same for us today. When we begin doing good and fighting the evil within us, we begin to see a spiritual attack against us. Whether it’s a physical illness, anxiety, depression, something else within us, or it’s on the outside with people all of a sudden betraying you, turning on you, or causing problems in your life. This is the time the Devil comes, right before harvest. Right before the breakthrough so that you will never truly reap your harvest. You’ll never truly see your blessing or the good things God has in store for you.

This is the importance of hanging on. This is the importance of never giving up. We have to make it through the night or order to see the sun rise and experience the day. Therefore, choose the right path, even if it’s hard. Even if it’s narrow and you feel like you can’t make it. Even if it takes away those you love, when you follow God, nothing can compare to the reward He has in store for those who love Him and run the race set before them.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Fight The Illness.

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¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. ~ John 10:10

The thief comes only to steal, to kill, and to destroy, and that includes relationships, especially the one with the LORD Jesus. How does the enemy do this? By throwing up spiritual obstacles in your path. Trapping you in strongholds that keep you from moving forward. The enemy will use many different spiritual blockers so that he can limit, stunt, or even kill the spiritual growth of your relationship with the LORD.

This is the importance of building a strong relationship with Christ and crucifying the flesh every single day. We have to nurture, nourish, and grow our relationship with Jesus because it’s our relationship with Him that brings power. Power to overcome the enemy. Power to change our lives. Power to go from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18).

When we begin to understand that the only way to fight for our soul is to surrender ourselves completely to the LORD, then we will finally be able to overcome. We’ll be given life and life more abundantly. We’ll be given a hope and a future. We’ll be able to stand, even when under attack. Why? Because no longer will we be going in our strength, but in the strength of Christ.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Go In His Strength.

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⁹ I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. ¹⁰ The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. ¹¹ For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. ¹² So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. ~ Romans 7:9-12

I was watching the movie Tron Legacy the other day, and something stuck out to me. The villain in Tron, Clu, wasn’t created as a villain but as a good man with a good purpose. He was created to make the grid perfect, but through seeking that perfection he became corrupt. The man who created the grid and Clu said this about him.

Clu can’t create programs. He can only destroy or repurpose them.

The Devil is the same way. After God created all things, He looked at His creation and saw that it was good. The Devil was there, and God saw that he, the Devil (Satan), was good. He was created for a purpose but corrupted himself, just as Clu did. And just as Clu could not create but can only destroy or repurpose. Satan doesn’t create; he takes what is already there, what is already good, what is already filled with purpose, and corrupts it for his own gain.

The Scriptures are good. They are life. They are living and breathing, yet Satan will take one verse out of context and manipulate it to his own desire. What is Satan’s ultimate desire? To separate mankind from God forever, just as he will be separated from God forever.

Here’s the problem, because the Devil manipulates Scripture and deceives some with his lies, many want to throw out the baby with the bathwater. This is the importance of searching through Scripture and studying it for yourself. Paul tells us to study Scripture to show ourselves approved (2 Timothy 2:15). It doesn’t say to study someone else’s beliefs, truths, and opinions. No. Paul tells Timothy to study the Word of God so that he can rightly handle the Word of Truth and, therefore, show himself approved.

The Scripture is good. It is perfect. It is God-breathed and good for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16), but that doesn’t mean Satan cannot manipulate and twist it for his own desires. Therefore, know the Scriptures for yourself. Seek the Truth of the LORD and not the truth of others. Study the Scriptures and strive to live your life in accordance with them, not with the world. So that when the Devil comes with deception and lies, you may be able to see through his lies and hold tightly to the Truth.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and See Through The Corruption.

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¹⁰ I mourned and fasted, but it brought me insults. ¹¹ I wore sackcloth as my clothing, and I was a joke to them. ¹² Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me. ¹³ But as for me, Lord, my prayer to you is for a time of favor. In your abundant, faithful love, God, answer me with your sure salvation. ~ Psalms 69:10-13^CSB

When we pray, we expect immediate results. We expect to see the answers to our prayers within hours or days (if we’re more patient), but the majority of prayers aren’t answered this way. The majority of prayers take true fighting to attain the answers we seek.

David described fasting and earnestly seeking but not seeing it, making him a laughing stock to his enemies and those around him. David could have easily thrown in the towel and gave up. He could have easily gotten revenge on his mockers, but instead, David sought the LORD even more earnestly. His motto truly was
I will become even more undignified than this.

David was a man after God’s own heart, not because he was perfect, but because He sought the heart of God above all else. He didn’t care how he looked to the world as long as God saw him and heard him. As long as God was for him, it didn’t matter who was against him. He kept seeking the LORD until he received his answer.

Now, I don’t want you to be confused when I say he didn’t care what others thought of him; I don’t mean it didn’t bother him. It did. We know it did because he brought it to God in prayer. In desperate, earnest prayer. So, it’s not that it didn’t bother him, but that He refused to allow it to stop him. He took that pain and rejection he felt inside and laid it at the feet of the LORD. Then he continued seeking, regardless of whether or not the ridicule, rejection, and mockery stopped. David didn’t let anything keep him from God, and neither should you.

Live as David lived, seeking the LORD and His righteousness regardless of what others may think or say, regardless of whether or not we see an answer immediately. Keep fighting. Fight through the pain, hurt, and attacks of the enemy. Fight for your prayers to be answered.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek Regardless.

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¹⁴ Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him. ¹⁵ And Saul’s servants said to him, “Behold now, a harmful spirit from God is tormenting you. ¹⁶ Let our lord now command your servants who are before you to seek out a man who is skillful in playing the lyre, and when the harmful spirit from God is upon you, he will play it, and you will be well.” ~ 1 Samuel 16:14-16

Notice that the Spirit of the LORD had to depart from Saul before the harmful spirit could torment him. That means the Spirit of the LORD no longer protected him. Saul was now left spiritually vulnerable. Now notice, It had to be his choice to do something about it. Saul had to command his servants to seek a man who was skillful at playing the lyre. They could not just assume to have the authority, they had to be commanded to seek the worshiper on Saul’s behalf.

Understand that they were not just looking for any old lyre-player; they were looking for a worshiper of Yahweh, the LORD God. Because demons and tormenting spirits must flee when we worship the LORD. It is our choice, it is our decision, no one can make it for us, we have to decide, and when we do, the LORD will show up. The servants of Saul understood these things.

They went out and found a worshipper, the shepherd boy David. He was skilled at playing and writing music and hymns that we now call the Psalms. They brought him to King Saul, and whenever the tormenting spirit came upon Saul, David played and sang, and the spirit had to depart.

I would encourage you today to put on some worship music and begin to worship the LORD God and see how much better you feel. Not just listen but actively participate in the worship. Raise your hands, turn your face to heaven, and worship. Remember, God will never leave us nor forsake us, but He is enthroned on the praises of His people. So, when God is lifted up in our hearts, He will come, and He will make His home with us, and nothing or no one can pluck us out of His hands. We are His.

Father, deliver us from evil. Rebuke the devourer on our behalf, and cause us to worship the One True God, You, O LORD God Almighty. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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⁴⁴ And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. ~ Luke 22:44

Prayer gives you the power to go toe to toe with the enemy. There is no doubt that prayer is a lot of work. It is hard and laborious, but it is worth it, and it’s the only way you, if you want to operate in the supernatural.

So, do not be fooled, you cannot operate in the supernatural by throwing up arrow-prayers every now and then. It’s imperative that you find a time and a place of daily prayer and summit yourself fully to it.

Jesus was found praying daily. Even while it was still dark, He was up and praying. His disciples followed suit and found themselves a time and a place of prayer.
Therefore, we need to make sure we are doing the same thing as well. We have to follow in their footsteps if we want to see and do all that they did. We have to work hard in prayer.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Wrestle In Prayer.

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