24 And the LORD’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. ~ 2 Timothy 2:24-26ESV
I was recently speaking to someone who said to me, “Yo, sometimes I need a break from you cause you’re intense.” What made me intense? I correct him when he misquotes, misuses, or conflates Scriptures. I don’t let it slide. I correct it. He’ll send four to six voice messages at one time, each lasting between 30 seconds to 1 ½ minutes. Some can last up to 2 ½ minutes. In each message, he takes a random Scripture either out of context, misquoted, or poorly translated. So, I’ll go through each claim he’s made and correct it. The message I sent is one message that is about 4 minutes long (3 minutes and 55 seconds). This is what he claims is intense. But what is he really saying?
It’s too much Truth right now, and I can’t defend my belief, so I can’t handle much more. He once told me he could never leave his wife alone with me for a long period of time, lest I convert her to Christianity. His words were derogatory. You’re too intense to be around all the time, man. But his meaning was, you know too much Bible and can correct me, expose the flaws of the beliefs I refuse to let go of, so I need a break lest you convert me to Christianity and I am forced to change. He meant it as derogatory and a way to get me to back down a bit, but I took it as a victory. A sign that my words have been digging into him. That they’ve been working on him. That his conscience has been thinking about all that we’ve been discussing. Most importantly, he’s feeling conviction that he isn’t living his life the way God has called him to live.
The enemy will try to use the tongue of others in order to deflate you, make you feel some type of way, downcast, self-conscious, but that is a last resort for him. That means he’s losing his grip on that person. He’s losing his hold on them, and the blinders he’s placed on them are beginning to fall off. So, what’s left? What now? We pray. We go to spiritual war on their behalf. We bring them before the LORD night and day until that stronghold is broken. Until that light can break through and they can see the Truth.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Stay Regardless Of Words.