Tag: Breaking Down Strongholds

²⁰ You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result — the survival of many people. ~ Genesis 50:20^CSB

Joseph’s brothers had sold him into slavery and then deceived his father and their father into believing that he was torn to bits and killed by some wild animal. They had no pity on him, even though he begged and pleaded with them for his life.

Can you imagine a more horrendous situation to be in? Not only did the ones who are supposed to love you and protect you betray you, but they sold you into slavery. That’s like, in our day, to sell your sister into the sex trade industry. The words that she would feel are indescribable. A wrong that is hard to make right. A sin that is hard to forgive. Yet Joseph said, you did it with evil intents, but God did it for God.

Imagine being that close to God that you can see the good in everything that happens, no matter how awful it really is. Even if it is the worst thing that could happen to you, understand that God never meant it for evil but for good for the majority. And then, depending on your reaction to the situation, will determine which seeds you will sow, whether good seed or bad seed, because the fruit depends on the seed. Bad seed, bad fruit. Good seed, good fruit.

The key is to determine beforehand how you will react to the situation that you are thrown into. Always know that it is never God’s intention to harm you or to make you suffer loss. We live in a broken world filled with evil men and women who have no regard for life or for the things of God, but know this: God is always looking out for your good.

Father, help me to look for the good in every situation. Help me to not hold wrongs against those who have done me wrong. Help me to sow good seed that I might reap good fruit. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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²¹ Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits. ~ Proverbs 18:21

The tongue has the power to speak life or to speak death. That’s a very frightening thought, if you think about it, that our tongues hold that much power. I want you to stop and think about what I just said for just a moment. Our words are life, and they are death, and people throw words around as if they count for very little or for nothing.

People will let words like:

• I will never succeed
• I can’t do anything right
• I will never make friends
• I am a born loser
• I will never get over this sickness
• This is killing me

Just roll off their tongue as if it was water on a duck’s back, so to speak, without us even thinking about it. Listen, you don’t have to know it in order to speak it into being.

Words are alive because they are breath, which is spirit. Therefore, words will never die. That’s why the words of our prayers can come up before God as a memorial years after they have been spoken.

That’s also why the prayers of:

• The saints long dead
• Grandmothers
• Grandfathers
• Parents
• Holy men and women of God

Will come to pass eventually because they are words that were spoken.

On the flip side, that is the same reason why curses, also known as generational curses, can plague generation after generation after generation because words have the power of life or death, and if they are life or death, that means they do not die, but they can be canceled.

Dear LORD, please forgive me for every careless word I’ve spoken about myself or other people. Please cancel each and every curse I’ve spoken, whether out of anger or idle talk, in the mighty name of Jesus. Please let life be the words I speak out of my mouth instead of death. Let my words be holy and pleasing to You, LORD God. Bridle my tongue. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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⁶ But He gives greater grace. Therefore He says: God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. ~ James 4:6^CSB

Shame enters us when we dwell in sin and are conscious of it. To combat this shame ourselves, we become prideful. We try to justify our own sin and force others to accept and affirm it as well. If anyone protests or disagrees, that shame (fueled by pride) comes to the surface and gives birth to anger.

Pride is not the opposite of shame, but its source. True humility is the only antidote to shame.

Uncle Iroh

Only when we humble ourselves before the LORD will our sins be washed clean and the power of shame broken within us. Pride gives shame its power, but humility uproots shame and destroys it. Shame cannot stand when we dwell in the perfect love of God that can only be accessed through humbling ourselves before our God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Combat With Humility.

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³ When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made everything he did successful, ⁴ Joseph found favor with his master and became his personal attendant. Potiphar also put him in charge of his household and placed all that he owned under his authority. ~ Genesis 39:3-4^CSB

Joseph was sold as a slave by his own brothers to Ishmaelite traders. They went on to sell him to Potiphar, an Egyptian. Joseph could have easily been bitter and refused to work. We would have understood. His own flesh and blood, his big brothers who were supposed to protect him and love him, sold him into slavery. He could’ve mumbled and grumbled at God for allowing this to happen to him when all he did was share the dreams God had given him with his brothers. Joseph didn’t do that, though.

There’s no account of Joseph lashing out at his brothers for selling him or to God for allowing it to happen. There’s no account of Joseph being bitter and allowing it to stop him from achieving whatever he set out to do. Because of this, the LORD blessed all that Joseph did. God’s hand on Joseph was so noticeable that Potiphar promoted Joseph from lowly slave to his personal assistant, putting him in charge of everything he owned, including his home.

The Devil will try to use people closest to us to try to break us down. He’ll have older siblings that you look up to and just want approval from to discourage you and break you down with their words. He’ll use a parent’s busy schedule or misunderstanding of a situation to break you down. All of this with the hope that a root of bitterness will rise up in you and keep you from fulfilling your destiny.

But here’s the thing, only you can stop your destiny from coming to fruition. No one else. So, take a page out of Joseph’s book and keep your trust in the God who sees you. The God who is with you always. If you continue on and refuse to let bitterness build up in you, then the LORD will bless you regardless of what land you’re currently in.

Dear LORD, please teach me not to grow the root of bitterness within me. Help me to uproot and destroy any tree of bitterness that has already made its way into my heart. Help me to forgive those that I feel have wronged me. Help me to let go of past hurts and pains. Teach me to move forward and cling to Your promises and good plans for me above all else. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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³⁴ Then Jacob gave bread and lentil stew to Esau; he ate, drank, got up, and went away. So Esau despised his birthright. ~ Genesis 25:34^CSB

Esau came in from these fields, and he was famished. Jacob was cooking down a nice-smelling lentil stew. Feeling his belly growl, Esau went over to ask for a bowl, but Jacob said not until you sell me your birthright. Esau replied, “What good is a birthright to when I’m about to die from starvation.” Jacob said swear to me, and Esau did.

Now look at what the text says, “He ate, drank, got up, and went away.” He got up and went away. Never giving another thought to his birthright nor to the consequences of his decision. Because he sold his birthright so cheaply, without a thought or regret, because he held so little value for his birthright, so he was considered to have despised what was rightfully his. Then, when it came to the blessing, he sought it with tears, but to no avail.

The same is true of our birthright, the new birth, the one Jesus purchased with His own blood. When we despise salvation by our words, our actions, or even in our thoughts, we despise our birthright.

One day soon, Jesus is coming back to get us, and if we are found to have despised our birthright, although we seek it with tears, it will be too late. The time is now, the opportunity is here for us to be like Jacob, who saw the value of the birthright and sought it with all his heart, and he received both the birthright and the blessing.

Dear Heavenly Father, I humble myself before You to receive all that You have for me. Help me never to despise my birthright, nor snub my blessings, nor downplay Your importance in my life. Please forgive me for all the times that I did, consciously and subconsciously. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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