Tag: Spiritual

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” ~ Acts 9:1-4^NIV

We all know the story of Saul’s encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. We know how a light flashed around him, a voice called to him, and he went blind. We know the story of Saul, but do we know why he was going to Damascus in the first place? Saul was a Pharisee. A man against the Church. A man seeking to destroy the teachings of Jesus and all who followed them.

Saul was on his way to Damascus to try to imprison and take back to Jerusalem all the followers of Christ that he could. His heart was bent on evil when Christ brought him to a halt on the road to Damascus. See, God’s desire isn’t that any should perish, but all come to acceptance. God doesn’t pleasure in the destruction of the wicked. No. God says that He sent His Son into the world to save the world. Not some of the r world, not half of the world, but all of the world. That was God’s desire.

So when He saw an opportunity to save a soul that thought he was doing the will of God by persecuting and silencing the Church, God took the opportunity. Today, God is still looking for the opportunity to save souls, regardless of their past. God’s desire is to redeem us. That’s why we who are saved must pray earnestly for those who persecute us. We must pray earnestly for those who curse us. We must pray earnestly for our unsaved loved ones as well. Who is to say if Steven crying out to forgive those men stoning him wasn’t heard by God and answered when He called to Saul that day?

Communism was rampant in Russia. The Christians were locked in prison and mercilessly tortured for their faith. Their children were killed in front of them. Their wives were beaten and raped. But even then, they prayed earnestly for those same men who tortured them. And when communism turned on those men, and they were locked up in prison, those same men they had persecuted treated them with love and kindness. They gave them their bread to eat as a tithe to the LORD. Communism no longer plagues Russia. Who is to say that Russia’s freedom today isn’t the fruit of the labor of those praying Christians?

Dear LORD, please forgive me for all of the hatred, anger, and unforgiveness I’ve stored up in my heart over the years. Help me to not hold grudges even when I have a good reason to, according to earthly standards. Please help me to forgive people and love people the way You forgive and love. Please forgive those who persecute me, curse me, and say all manner of evil against me. Please save their soul and have mercy on them. Please redeem them from darkness into Your everlasting Light. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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¹⁶ From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah ¹⁷ who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, ¹⁸ and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with me. ¹⁹ Then I said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. ²⁰ Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us!” ²¹ So we continued the work with half the men holding spears, from the first light of dawn till the stars came out. ²² At that time I also said to the people, “Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at night, so they can serve us as guards by night and as workers by day.” ²³ Neither I nor my brothers nor my men nor the guards with me took off our clothes; each had his weapon, even when he went for water. ~ Nehemiah 4:16-23^NIV

Nehemiah was in charge of the rebuilding of the Temple, and the enemy was against them. I want you to notice that they didn’t stop building the Temple. They didn’t get distracted by the threats of the enemy. They kept working. They stayed focused on their work. This is the wild part, though; they kept their swords on them. They even worked with one hand because they had a weapon in their other hand. Let that sink in for a moment.

They didn’t let the threat of the enemy take away from their focus on rebuilding the Temple, but they didn’t take the threat of the enemy lightly and kept their weapon in their hand as they worked. Then, on top of all of that, if the enemy attacked, the trumpet would be sounded, and all people who heard the sound of the trumpet were to run to that area. They didn’t believe in taking the enemy on on their own. No. They were to come to each other’s aid. They were to be there for their fellow worker. This is how the Church should be.

Each of us should be strapped with our Sword of the Spirit and Shield of Faith at all times, prepared to defend ourselves against the enemy but never taking our focus off the call God has on our lives. And when one of us is under attack, we should sound the alarm and come to that person’s aid. The underground Church is currently sounding the alarm. Begging the free Church to pray for them, and we pretend like we don’t even hear the alarm. Our fellow brothers and sisters are under physical and spiritual attack like we can’t even imagine, and we can’t even spare 10 minutes to pray for them. Even in our own freedom, we don’t take up our sword to defend ourselves. We don’t pray for our nations, leaders, those in power. We say there is no hope, and we just give up. It’s time for the Church to stand up for the faith and fight the spiritual battle before us on our knees before it’s too late.

Dear LORD, please help me to strap on the Sword of the Spirit at all times. Help me to put on the full armor that You have given to me. Help me not to ignore the sound of the alarm but to get down on my hands and knees and pray and seek You on behalf of Your Church. Help me to come to my brother and sister’s aid when they call out for help. Help me not to lay down my weapons but to stand strong and prepared for whatever may come. Show me how to focus on the will You have for my life. Teach me to be the kind of Christian that will hear You say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant, with whom I am well pleased,” when I stand before Your throne. In Jesus’ name, pray, amen.

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¹ After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. ² Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand. ³ So His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. ⁴ For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” ⁵ For not even His brothers believed in Him. ⁶ Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. ⁷ The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. ⁸ You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” ⁹ After saying this, He remained in Galilee. ~ John 7:1-9

Jesus never did anything in order to impress others. He never gave in to peer pressure, even when it came from His own brothers. They didn’t even believe in Him, yet they were trying to give Him advice on His call. This is still true today. There are many people who don’t even believe in your call from God or even in God Himself, but they want to try to tell you how to fulfill that call from God. They sound very sincere when they do it, too, but rarely does the enemy send attacks that look like attacks.

When Eve was tempted in the Garden, the Serpent didn’t come at her with anger and aggression. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, Satan didn’t come at Him with anger and aggression. They were both asked questions. It probably didn’t even sound malicious when it was said. It probably sounded like enlightenment. If the enemy wants you to drink poison, he’s not going to label the bottle with a skull and cross bones. No. Instead, he’s going to label it healthy and say how it’ll help you and free you.

The enemy will use anyone he can in order to hinder the saints of God because we are the hands and feet of Jesus while on this earth. It’s us that goes out and makes disciples of all nations. We’re to spread the good news. We’re to keep charge over the earth. We’re to protect it and keep it. We’re supposed to keep evil from taking over the entire earth. So, the Devil uses whoever and whatever he can in order to overcome us.

Dear LORD, please help me to follow You regardless of what others do. Help me to always seek Your approval above all else. Help me to follow Your ways and fulfill the call that You have for my life, regardless of how hard or difficult it may be. Please strengthen me so that I may not fall prey to the attacks of the enemy; in Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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²⁹ And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. ³⁰ For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins. ³¹ It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. ~ Leviticus 16:29-31

Today is one of the most holy days in Judaism, for today is the Day of Atonement. When instituting this day, God told the people to afflict themselves because atonement was to be made for them in order to cleanse them. Now, many people will say this is the Law of Moses, and we’re no longer under the Law, so this doesn’t apply to us. I want to point out to all of you that the Law was a shadow of the good things to come. What does that mean?

No. We are not under the Law of Moses anymore; we are now under the Law of Christ. This is true. But the Day of Atonement has yet to have been fulfilled, and therefore, as Paul afflicted himself regularly so that he might never be overcome by his flesh, how much more should we in a day and age closer to the return of Christ than has ever been before, afflict ourselves? We’re living in the last days. They’re getting things ready for the Temple of God to be rebuilt. They’re trying their best to remove freedom of religion from every corner of the earth. We’re living in the perilous times that Paul warned Timothy of. No. Refusing to afflict your body today isn’t going to remove your name from the Lamb’s Book of Life, but choosing to afflict your body today will strengthen your spirit man. It will help put your flesh into subjection. And it will add to your treasures in heaven.

We’re called, by Paul, to present ourselves as a spiritual sacrifice holy and pleasing to God. How can we do that if our flesh rules our bodies and our spirit man has no room to grow? Therefore, give up something, even if it’s just for a few hours, at least until sundown, that you might have an offering to give to God as we await that day when we are changed in a twinkling of an eye, and our sins are completely removed from us never to cling to us again.

Dear LORD, help me to afflict myself by putting my flesh into submission. Help me to not give into the sins of this world, but instead, help me to overcome through You. You overcame the whole world. You were tempted in every way, just as I am, but You remained without sin. So, dear LORD, please help me to overcome through You. Help me to fast so that I might build up my spirit man within me and crucify my flesh. Help me to be a light in this dark world so that others might see You in me. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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²² In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the Lord—this same King Ahaz. ²³ For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. ²⁴ And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and he made himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. ²⁵ In every city of Judah he made high places to make offerings to other gods, provoking to anger the Lord, the God of his fathers. ~ 2 Chronicles 28:22-25

In his deepest time of distress, King Ahaz didn’t seek help from the LORD his God; he sought out the gods of the nations that defeated him. He forgot the LORD who brought his fathers out of the land of Egypt, the house of slavery. When you’re in trouble, who do you go to? Is it the LORD or another avenue?

Who or what we go to in our time of trouble determines who our god is. It determines who we serve. King Ahaz chose the wrong god, and he died in his sin. Never did it say that he repented. Never did it say he was restored. Never did it say he was saved. Instead, it was the ruin of him and all of Israel. Our actions affect more than just us. It affects those around us, just as King Ahaz’s decision affected all of Israel.

Dear LORD, help me to always turn to You in times of trouble and distress. Help me to always seek Your righteous right hand to uphold me. Teach me to never lean on anyone but You. Teach me to have faith in You and trust You with all that’s within me. Help me to be a light in this dark world by letting my light shine before all who I come into contact with. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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²⁴ So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” ²⁷ The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. ²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” ²⁹ Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. ³⁰ So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” ³¹ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. ³² Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon. ~ Genesis 32:24-30^NIV

Christians want the blessing but don’t wanna wrestle with God for them. Jacob wrestled all night with God and refused to let Him go until God blessed him. Christians today, myself included, are spiritually lazy. We struggle to read our Bibles once a week, let alone once a day. We can’t even pray for an hour without being distracted or falling asleep. Our spirit man is so weak he can’t fight the flesh. See, if our spirit man is too weak to wrestle with God for our blessing, then we’ll not only fall into temptation, but we’ll bring a curse upon ourselves and miss our blessing.

God doesn’t just give us everything He has in store for us. He expects us to fight for it. We have to prove ourselves worthy servants of Christ, unshakeable and unwilling to give up on the promise and/or blessing. The Promised Land was promised to the people of Israel, but those who refused to fight and instilled fear into the others, they didn’t see it. Only those who had faith. Only those who refused to give up. Only those who have held tightly on to the LORD and refused to let go.

Many of us are there. It’s closing in on midnight. The LORD is telling you to let go. Your eyes are seeing the Nephilim. There’s so much going against you, even your certain things seem to fail, but this is the time you hang on even stronger. This is the time you refuse to let go. You have to force your spirit man to fight. You have to feed him daily. You have to exercise him. You have to refuse to give up.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Refuse To Let Go.

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