Breaking Down Strongholds Archives

December 30, 2021December 20, 2021

Don’t Stop Them

“Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in Your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.” ~ Mark 9:38-41^NIV

Sometimes we see people doing things that we believe are only for us or that we believe are only for a certain person, so we try to stop them. We try to box them in. We try to keep them from accessing power that we don’t believe they deserve. It’s not even necessarily because we think that what they’re doing is wrong, but because we don’t think it’s right for them to do it.

We see this a lot in the Church today. We see Christians tearing down other Christians because of the gifts and calls that God has given them. But as Jesus Himself said, no one working in the power of God can, in the next moment or next breath, speak against Him. Therefore, even if they aren’t your denomination or you differ on minute issues, if they aren’t against your Jesus and what He stands for, then they are with you. Don’t let the Spirit of Religion get in the way of what God is trying to do.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Stop Them.

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Expect With Asking

²You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ~ James 4:2

So many of us expect to receive blessings, help, answered prayers, healing, etc., without asking first. Why do we expect without asking? Is it doubt? Pride? Or is it a false sense of humility? Sometimes we put ourselves in a situation where we don’t want to ask, but instead, we want someone to offer what we’re desiring.

I believe a lot of us are plagued by a spirit of religion telling us that it’s wrong to ask on behalf of ourselves. That’s it wrong to pray for healing, blessings, help for ourselves. But God promised in Matthew 7:7-8 that if we ask, we will receive. Why? Because our Heavenly Father is a good, good Father. He enjoys blessing and giving to His children. This isn’t pride. This isn’t selfishness or evil; this is asking our Father in Heaven for a little of our inheritance.

Healing is the Children’s Bread.
The Peace of God is given to His children.
A Spirit of Power, Love, and a Sound Mind is bestowed upon His followers.

We have not because we ask not. Don’t allow the lies of the enemy to hold you back from receiving a healing, a blessing, an answered prayer. You are worth more than silver or gold to the Creator of the entire Universe. He knows every hair on your head and every burden you carry. He’s waiting for you to take His yoke upon your back, for you will find rest.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Expect With Asking.

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Leave the Past in the Past

³Then Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob, and worthless fellows collected around Jephthah and went out with him. ~ Judges 11:3

The Scripture says that Jephthah was a mighty warrior. He could really make something of himself. He could be a general. He could even be head of the army, but…

You know there is always that, but… It has a way of coming around without you seeing it and nips you in the butt. The enemy will try to use your past or even your parents’ and grandparents’ past to dictate your future. To keep you from your call.

You will never amount to much, they said. You will always be just like your momma, a prostitute. You’re dirt, Jephthah. You’re nothing, and they drove him out. Chased him out of town.

But Jephthah didn’t let that hold him back. He didn’t let that stop him. Jephthah avoided the bullies. Then he pursued what he was good at. He didn’t let them take his self-worth away from him. Instead, he made a name for himself.

The same ones that ran Jephthah out of town were the same ones who brought him back into town and made him their head. Keep on doing what you do best, and do not let anyone tell you that you can’t or that you are stupid, or that you will never amount to much.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave the Past in the Past.

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A Heart of Stone

²⁷Then Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron and said to them, “This time I have sinned; the Lord is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. ²⁸Plead with the Lord, for there has been enough of God’s thunder and hail. I will let you go, and you shall stay no longer.” ³⁴But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet again and hardened his heart, he and his servants. ~ Exodus 9:27-28, 34

Whenever the plague became too unmanageable for Pharaoh, he relented and agreed to God’s request. But as soon as the LORD relented and removed the plague from him and his kingdom, Pharaoh fell into his old ways again. God did wonder after wonder in the land of Egypt, yet as soon as every wonder was complete, Pharaoh forgot the power he had just witnessed. His heart was stubborn. He had a heart of stone instead of a heart of flesh. Everything he said he would do he went back on as soon as the pain eased. As soon as the suffering ended.

This is the same with us today. We forget the power of God so quickly. We forget the goodness and grace of God so fast. During times of trial and tribulation, we seek God. When things go wrong, we are in church every Sunday, but as soon as we are rescued from our tribulation, we stop going to church. We stop praying. We stop seeking. Our hearts are stubborn as stone. We forget too quickly who God is and all that He has done for us.

LORD God, please replace our heart of stone with a heart of flesh. Please envelope us in Your everlasting love that we might not forget who You are and all that You have done for us. Help us not to just come to You in the bad but help us to seek You in every season of our lives. Teach us to pray and seek You daily that our hearts may never be hardened against You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Spirit of Division

²⁴If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. ~ Mark 3:24-25

A Spirit of Division has engulfed the Church. We are divided on almost everything from politics to race. And now, we are becoming divided on core Christian beliefs that never used to be questioned, but have now been deemed offensive, intolerant, hateful, and harmful. Why do we think that is? Our enemy knows that if he can bind the Church, then he can freely plunder the nation.

So, if he can get the Church distracted from being one in Christ Jesus and praying for our nation, then he can easily bind us up. When we are divided, we are giving the enemy okay to come into our nation and bind us up. We have to see past the divisive tactics of the enemy so that we can pray for the soul of our country. Because if we aren’t careful, when we are tied up, we could fall spiritually asleep and never finish the race set before us. So much is at stake, we have to overcome this Spirit of Division and come together in one accord as they were in the Upper Room on Pentecost, because that’s the only way we will see mountains begin to move and the soul of the country begin to be restored.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Rebuke the Spirit of Division.

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Strongholds of our Past

⁶ Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. ~ Proverbs 22:6

We often take this verse as just what we need to do for our children, but this verse is for all of us. Why? Because how we spend our free time as young people or as young Christians in our faith will be how we spend our free time as grown-ups, never maturing into meat-eating Christians as the author of the book of Hebrews condemns.

We have to make sure that we are continuously putting our bodies into subjection. We can’t allow our flesh to dictate our lives because if we do, we miss all that the LORD has in store for us. These are the days of preparation. Today is the day of Salvation. What is done in the dark will be brought to light. What we do in our youth will be what we do as we age because the habits and strongholds become stronger and stronger.

LORD God, help us to break the strongholds of our past that have kept us enslaved to our flesh. That has stopped us from growing in our relationship with You. Soften our hearts that we may love You more than I love my own flesh. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Take Correction With Love

¹³As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. ¹⁴If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. ¹⁵Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother. ~ 2 Thessalonians 3:13-15

Paul tells us to not grow weary of doing good multiple times. He not only tells us to do good, but he also tells us we need to help others remain in the love of Christ. Many of us take this as Paul telling us we need to correct others, which we need to, but Paul is also telling us we need to learn to take correction when we are in the wrong. We’re quick to correct others, but we don’t always accept correct from others. Why? Why don’t we like to take correction from others?

When we take offense from others correcting us, what does that mean for us? Are we filled with pride? Selfishness? Man-pleasing? If we are, what does that mean for us? None of those things get you closer to God. It doesn’t build up the Church. It doesn’t strengthen the spirit, so what does it do?

It brings division… and what does division bring…? well, Mark 3:25 says, “If a house is divided against itself, that house Cannot stand.” If the house cannot stand, then the house will fall; when that house falls, then we are without protection, without defense. As the Church, the body of Christ, we have to learn to give correction with love, but we also have to learn to take correction with love. Without correction, we can’t learn or grow. And if we stay where we are, never moving forward, we will become like stagnant water dirty and stink. We have to continuously grow so that we can grow closer to God. So that we can become more like Him.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Take Correction With Love.

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Protect The Generations To Come

¹⁶He said, “They have raised their fist against the Lord’s throne, so now the Lord will be at war with Amalek generation after generation.” ~ Exodus 17:16^NLT

We don’t always realize the decisions that we make not only affect the people around us but also our decisions affect the generations to come. Because David was a man after God’s own heart, his generations were blessed. Because Abraham was a man of faith, his generations were blessed. What we do today affects our children, even if we don’t have any yet.

Because of God’s relationship with David, God didn’t remove the throne from King Solomon. God remembers what we do and what we say. He remembers the relationship that we either tried to build with Him or the relationship that we threw away.

Even though God remembers the past, He also looks at our present. We don’t have to suffer in the chains that our ancestors formed for us; we can break those chains through Christ Jesus.

¹³You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. ¹⁴He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.
Colossians 2:13-15

When we give our past to Jesus, He takes it from us. Why? Because He already paid our debt. He paid the debt of our ancestors. We don’t have to carry the past. We don’t have to carry the sins of our ancestors; we can start new. Let Jesus’ blood wash you clean.

Every action you make will affect the future. It will your future and the future of the ones you love and will one day love.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Protect The Generations To Come.

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Turn The Other Cheek

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” ~ Proverbs 15:1

Pride is a stronghold that can only be broken by humility. Humility can only come through the Holy Spirit, and it doesn’t happen overnight. Pride causes you to feel small, weak, stupid, taken advantage of, etc. But is all of that true? Pride causes unnecessary arguments and strife, which in turn causes stress. Stress can take years off of your life, for what reason? Feeling the need to defend yourself? What good is defending yourself if it makes you sick?

Pride isn’t a problem, just because Jesus wanted us to be weak. He knew the heavy burden that comes with pride. Turning the other cheek isn’t easy, but it will help you physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Don’t allow pride to control your life. Take the first step towards a pride free life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Turn The Other Cheek.

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