When Loyalty is Tested

Several people recently have expressed a deep disappointment over the sense of betrayal and disloyalty in close relationships. I thought, boy there seems to be a lot of that going around right now. Then it hit me: when a shift in direction approaches, God always allows circumstances to reveal the people in our lives that truly want our success and those whose loyalty is compromised. Knowing the difference is what allows us to let go of certain relationships without feeling guilty. Not everyone can go with us into the next season.

Loyalty is tested both when people experience failure and when they experience success. Sometimes when people fail everyone they once thought was a friend or supporter walks away. Disappointment or embarrassment at being associated with someone going through failure can be perceived by those close to them as sharing in that person’s guilt, shame, or collapse and so they opt towards self-preservation in order to protect their own reputation. While this proves to be disappointing to those going through a difficult time in their life, ultimately it proves the depth of loyalty and friendship, and those that are insincere. Will Smith has a great quote that goes something like this: "If you're absent during my struggle, don't expect to be present during my success." Sometimes the difficulties we face help weed out those that have selfish agendas.

Loyalty and relationships are also tested when people begin to enter a new level of success, promotion, favor and blessing. Some people are only loyal to a point; but the success or blessing of one person can often trigger competitive feelings in those close to them. Jealousy, envy and competition are relationship killers. There must always be a sense of a winner and a loser, because jealousy and envy are fueled by lust. Lust for power, recognition, promotion or simply the desire to win accolades of others can foster the green-eyed monster of jealousy and envy. The reality is, that weakness was there all along. The circumstances were just not developed enough in order to trigger certain responses that gave away what was really hiding underneath the composed exterior and friendly appearance.

Remember that at one point or another everyone in life experiences a Judas situation. Your Judas does not arise from your enemies or those you already perceive as a competitor; the betrayer arises from those closest to you and has the potential to do the most harm. Betrayal can run quite deep. Sometimes it is a best friend, a mentor or trusted advisor, a superior on the work scene, business partner or even a spouse. The danger comes when the mask slips off and you recognize the potential threat, but choose to continue to make yourself vulnerable to those that have an open door for the enemy to work through. Those that can't be truly happy for your success will show it in one way or another. All you have to do is watch for the signs and then ASK GOD FOR THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE. 

James 3:16 warns us, "For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." Envy, jealousy and competition always lead to discord and divisiveness because those emotions are ruled by pride. Whether a person recognizes it or not, they are the very things that disqualify people for promotion. Factions arise in order to determine who has the godly characteristics of honesty, integrity, humility and trust in the Lord. These things determine who is approved and those that are not. (see 1 Cor. 11:19). These are the things God looks for when reviewing people to see if they are ready for promotion. The Lord is so very gracious to His people that He allows those He wants to promote to see and recognize the dishonorable qualities in others. In this way, they recognize what they do not want to become so that they will choose the path of humility and trust in HIM. He will promote, advance and increase those that choose to trust Him rather than try to gain their desire by their own strength. Consider what God says in Ps. 44:3. “For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.”

Many people feel the only way they can advance towards success is by incorporating cutthroat tactics in order to win at all costs. These things include stepping on others, ruining other people's reputations, creating a false reputation aimed to please people, acting deceptively in order to create followers, and crushing those seen as opponents. It can be very, very difficult indeed if people we thought were on our side actually turn and take the side of an adversary. The enemy will introduce all manner of deceptive ploys in order to tempt us to sabotage our own future through emotional responses. If the enemy is enticing you to react to an emotionally charged situation, you need to remember that it never works out well for the bait. Be careful. 

His word reminds us in Deut. 9:4 that we do not advance by our own strength, nor do we warrant great pats on the back for our own righteousness. "Do not say in your heart when the LORD your God has driven them out before you, 'Because of my righteousness the LORD has brought me in to possess this land,' but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is dispossessing them before you.” It’s really not about how wonderful we think we are! We are given the opportunity to advance because of the dishonorable characteristics of those “giants” already in the land. Sometimes the things that must be confronted are in others, other times they are within us. The giants are the things that stand in our way of possessing our promises:  fear, intimidation, the need for approval and validation outside of God, anger, or other fleshly responses are what the enemy hopes to pull out of us. Tests arise on the brink of a breakthrough in order to tempt us to react out of our flesh and thus disqualify ourselves for promotion. Be aware of these things as difficulties arise, or the sudden indication of a Judas in your midst. Those temptations to respond out of emotion are like bait on a hook. The enemy is trying to reel you in and get you to do something you might regret later. The little quote, “Stay calm and carry on” are words of wisdom at such a time. Don’t let the enemy rock your boat! Above all, remember that tests do not come when we are prepared for them. Tests come when we are tired, weak, vulnerable and off guard. PRAY NOW to recognize them when the tests show up, and to have the right response that will help you pass them.

Father,

I thank You for showing me those people in my life that are loyal and those that not. Thank you for showing me the telltale signs that indicate whether or not the people closest to me are supportive of my success or disloyal. Help me to know the correct response so that I do not say something I might regret later. Holy Spirit, I yield to you so that You may silence me before I say or do something the enemy might try to use against me. Let me see the intent of the enemy so that I can avoid the snares. I put my trust in You, Lord, for advancement and promotion at the time You see fit, and by Your hand. Let Your favor do for me what I cannot. In Jesus name, Amen.

Learning to Forgive Yourself

We’ve all experienced some sort of disappointment, hurt or wounding from others. That’s just a part of life, but have you ever noticed that you bring those same issues into new relationships? Do you find yourself reacting to silent emotional triggers that send you into the same responses, even though the person you are dealing with may not be anything like the person or people that previously wounded you? What about deep rooted issues within your own heart and mind…Do you find yourself struggling with negative thoughts about yourself? Do you find yourself angry, short tempered and constantly struggling to overcome a negative self-image or thoughts that leave you feeling defeated and depressed?

An example from my own life: every time I went to the gym, I found myself immediately angry and faced with defeating thoughts. I instantly found myself depressed and discouraged. I had enough insight to know that there were some deep rooted issues regarding former lovers, self-image and low self-esteem, and I found it easier to deflect blame on them for how their selfish desires made me feel. I blamed them for my hatred of anything that was connected to exercise because emotionally I connected it to having to please some one else's selfishness in order to gain their acceptance and (false) love. I had a lot of silent triggers that sent me backwards in time every time I thought of exercise, but I had developed a lot of inner rebellion towards self improvement in that area of my life. There was still a stronghold in place that needed to be torn down, because the enemy was certainly flying his flag of victory in that part of my mind. Inwardly there were many thoughts connected to the resentment I felt towards my weight and negative self-image, and a whole lot more. While it’s true that I was mistreated many years ago, I found myself at a crossroads. I had transferred that anger and negativity towards others onto myself, and twenty five years later I was still carrying around the weights of the past! Truth be told, it was myself I was angry with. I was angry and disappointed in myself for allowing my weight to get out of control and the lack of love I felt towards myself. I was still blaming men from the past for what I perceived in myself as someone unattractive and undesirable. The reality is that I really needed to forgive them AND myself. I had never even realized I needed to forgive myself because I was still comfortable shifting blame onto other people and avoiding taking responsibility for my own failure to love myself and take good care of myself. But that truth was a whole different can of worms to open, and there was a lot there I needed to face about myself. I had to decide whether I wanted to be free, or hold on to the same negative thoughts and keep struggling with myself.

Sometimes we still blame others and continue to make false judgments about ourselves as well as others in our life because we are still reactive to old emotional triggers. When we carry unforgiveness towards ourselves or others, we will struggle with the things mentioned above.

The truth will only make you free if you submit to it and accept it. One thing about truth is that God’s grace actually helps us surrender to the truth so that we can let go of the false judgments we’ve made about ourselves and others. Sometimes the very thing that we need in order to heal is to forgive ourselves. You may have heard that before, but have you put it into practice?

You need to hear yourself say it; to you…as the child you once were. What was your nickname perhaps, or your birth name? Tell that person, I forgive you for all the mistakes you made. You were a child. It is over. Your heavenly Father forgives you, too. YOU ARE FORGIVEN. You need to speak to that little child as though YOU are the Lord and tell that child (using the name you were at that time), “YOU are forgiven.”

You need to hear yourself say it; to the youth that made many mistakes growing up. Speak them out loud. Pull those things out from the cover of darkness and don’t let them hide anymore, because what is cloaked in invisibility has the potential to whisper dark things in your soul.

I don’t know where you are at in life, but you need to hear yourself say the things you have condemned yourself for, and speak to the person you are now, “I FORGIVE YOU.” I know why you did the things you did, and I forgive you for the mistakes you made. I forgive you for putting yourself though things that brought you shame, embarrassment and made you begin to reject the person God made you to be.

What ever you are still carrying around inside...some secret sin or a miserable failure of some sort...you need to tell yourself as if you are talking to a friend: "I FORGIVE YOU FOR THAT." Maybe it's a relationship failure and you're still carrying around the name of someone that is no longer in your life. Perhaps it's regret from something else. Tell THAT person…I FORGIVE YOU. I know why you did the things you did; why you didn’t love yourself enough to take care of yourself or make better decisions. I forgive the poor choices you made. I forgive the things you did to yourself that left you holding the burdens of shame, regret, and all the things that you did that left you having to pay the price of those consequences of wrong choices. I FORGIVE YOU, and your heavenly Father forgives you, too. Carry those burdens no more!

To the person you are today, by whatever name you have today, tell that person, I FORGIVE YOU. You need to hear yourself say the words, “I FORGIVE YOU, and I will no longer punish you with self-hatred, rejection, and unloving thoughts. YOU ARE FORGIVEN, and you are now free to love yourself. You are free to like the person you are today. You are free to unload those heavy burdens and slip that yoke of self-inflicted oppression off your weary shoulders. Until you confess your sins (and refusing to forgive yourself is a sin!), you cannot be forgiven. When you don't feel forgiven, your mind and heart will feel the weight of judgment. A heart that is under the heavy load of feeling judged is angry, defensive and judgmental towards others, too. But 1 John 1:9 says that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

Jesus said, in Matthew 11:28-29, "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.…”

You will never learn to be gentle towards others if you cannot be gentle and kind to yourself. You will never learn to understand others and truly forgive them, if you cannot forgive yourself. You cannot let go of your past, until you let go of the unforgiveness, regret, shame, insecurity and false judgments you’ve made towards yourself. How can you expect to genuinely love others if you have not truly learned how to love yourself? Loving yourself means telling that child, that young person or person you were at every stage of your life the powerful most loving thought you can say to someone: I FORGIVE YOU. YOU ARE FORGIVEN, AND I CHOOSE TO LOVE AND ACCEPT YOU FOR WHO YOU ARE.” Once you can do that, loving yourself and accepting yourself will come easier. It all starts with you.

Father God,

I thank You for giving me the grace to help me forgive myself. I thank You Holy Spirit for helping me surrender the negative thoughts, self-image, and all the excuses. I choose to no longer blame others for my disappointments and wounding. I forgive everyone that has hurt, offended or disappointed me. I will not continue to blame myself, either. I take responsibility for my part. I own the truth. I reject all false judgments I have made about myself and others. I ask Your forgiveness for rejecting the truth of what Your word tells me about the person you created me to be. I choose to no longer reject myself, but to accept the person I am today and to know that You have a plan and a purpose for my life that is greater than what I can see at this moment. I am loved and accepted in Christ according to Ephesians 1:6. I release all false burdens and ungodly yokes. I will not wear them anymore! I choose freedom and I choose to accept myself. In Jesus name, amen.

Use Your Voice

Dear woman of God...man of God...young person...I encourage you to tell your story. Use the voice God gave you to share your pain, your healing, triumphs and testimonies. Our lives are wrapped up in one another. You have lived someone else's story, and your story will give others hope. YOU are a miracle waiting to be poured out onto someone else to help them rise from the ashes of hopelessness, despair, pain and shame. Some of you have been waiting on God to do a miracle for you, not realizing YOU ARE THE MIRACLE He has been waiting to send to someone else.

Putting a voice to your experiences is what releases your healing. How often the enemy would try to shame us into silence, thereby stripping us of the power of an overcomer. Child of God, the keys of authority have always been in your hand. You just forgot to use them. Your testimony is the key to the next open door.

Perhaps your testimony is not for everyone; but there are those that need it. It's their lifeline of hope. God didn't take you through the things you've gone through only to bury your experiences and hide them in the closet of shame. Though the enemy tried to steal your innocence, God will use what you've gone through to bring others out of their own shackles. You hold the keys to their chains. You can unlock them from the irons that have been unjustly placed upon their heart and life. Like the King that went before you, you have gone through hell but come out victorious. You now stand at the gates of your enemy in a determined confrontation, hand outstretched, demanding the surrender of those keys. Sharing your testimony indeed snatches the keys of Death and Hades out of the enemy's hand. The authority he thought he had is stripped from him forever!

Use your keys, dear one, and unlock others from their chains. USE YOUR VOICE. Compel others to come to the anointed healer that healed you. Declare your victory loud and clear. Declare the victory of others over their situation and help them take their keys of authority away from the powers of darkness that have held them in captivity.

The Bible tells us that we are all living epistles read of all men. Each of our lives is a witness and a testimony to others. Ordinary people do not get the opportunity to write their stories and censor all the press releases. Our sorrows and sadness over the times we forfeit a victory are played out for all to see just as much as our moments of triumph as we beat the game and enjoy that beautiful moment of a celebratory win. Our accomplishments and achievements as well as all of our failures and frustrations are laid bare for all to see. The important thing to remember is that our moments of defeat, no matter how many there are, will always pale in the light of the sweeping win God has written into our story. As we follow Christ, He carries the day so that we come out on top. There is no misfortune or injury that can outshine the glory of God. We are containers for His grace and glory, a lighthouse that sends out beacons of hope guiding others to their safe haven so that they can find peace in the midst of the storms of life. You are a miracle, waiting to be poured out into someone’s life. You are blessed with all that God has, so that you can give it away as a blessing to others. The key to living a life without regret is to love generously. Forgive quickly. Live graciously, and bless abundantly. It is the unselfish act of loving others unconditionally that fulfills the human heart. Where there is love, there will always be great miracles.

Overcoming Offense

I love this picture. Do you ever feel like that? Like...why did I have to go through all that just to stop being so stubborn and do the right thing? Been there, done that. But, we're not alone. God wants to teach us so that we remember the lesson, so he makes his lessons..um, memorable. Jonah had one of those 'memorable' teaching lessons, too. When God sent his prophet Jonah to a city ripe for judgment, Jonah had a hard time accepting his assignment. We've all heard the story of how he tried to avoid even getting to Nineveh. He ended up with a motivational lesson and several days to reconsider his assignment as God gave him an uncomfortable period of time in the belly of a fish. I think of how many people that are in that place right now, in a place of being quite stuck in their circumstances; yet they have set up camp in the belly of their 'fish' and try to make their trial comfortable rather than turn back to God. 

When God wants to get a person's attention, He removes their comforts. It didn't take long for Jonah to figure out that the way of release was through repentance. God in His mercy, gave Jonah a second chance to get it right. In Jonah 3:1, God gave him a reminder that in spite of his objections, the assignment had not changed. Have you ever noticed that arguing with God doesn't get you very far? The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time. "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you." This time, Jonah was obedient and got great results. The people heard the message urging them to repent and turn back to God, and they responded in faith. They repented.

You'd think that Jonah would be thrilled that he had fulfilled the assignment of the Lord and gotten exactly the results God wanted, but no...Jonah was too busy entertaining offense. He sat himself under a little vine and pouted. He was offended at God's grace. In his estimation, the people did not deserve to be released from God's judgment. Jonah did not want them to get off easy. He wanted them punished. Jonah wanted to feel justified about his offense, and judgment was his way of feeling validated. He insisted they did not warrant God's grace. Perhaps Jonah felt as though their repentance did not satisfy his personal criteria, but he had set himself in the place of God over their lives. He had assumed a position that was not rightfully his. In doing so, Jonah was once again in rebellion. Listen to what Jonah said: "Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a great and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents in doing harm. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live!" (Jon. 4:2,3). God responded by asking Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry?" Jonah wanted to feel validated that his offense was justified, while God wanted to absolve the people from penalty of their sins. Their perspectives were worlds apart!

Friends, the world is full of people carrying offense. The sad thing is, the body of Christ is full of people carrying offense, too. They are people that have not stopped to consider what they have been forgiven. They have entered into that slippery slope of comparison between themselves and others, and forgotten that in God's eyes pride 'stinketh.' Their debt was cancelled, yet they continue to persecute others and insist that they pay the full penalty for their sins. This is not God's heart! Jesus did not come to condemn the world but to save people from their sins. (Read John 3:16,17). No matter what we may feel about someone else, do we really understand what we ask for, if we ask for people to receive judgment from God? We are asking for them to suffer, and that does not reflect God's heart. If we pray amiss, we can find ourselves forfeiting the blessings of God in our own life, simply because we are not willing to bless and forgive others. Certainly this is not what any of us want for ourselves. 

Let us not be like the servant that forgot how great a debt he had been forgiven and began to persecute someone else that offended him, (read Matthew 18:21-35). When we forget, we elevate offense and judgment over forgiveness. Mercy triumphs over judgment. When others receive a blessing or breakthrough, does it set off a twinge of bitterness in your own heart? Do you want others to succeed? How a person responds to situations like those noted above is their 'tell.' It's the little hidden nuances in body language, verbal clues or unconscious, habitual actions that disclose what a person really thinks. The secrets of hearts laid bare. 

This is the conflict between the real gospel of Jesus Christ and what our hearts truly believe. It's the difference between trusting God and trusting ourselves - the god of self. As a man thinketh, so is he. (Prov. 23:7). Our hearts are deceitfully wicked. Who can know it? I'll tell you. The Holy Spirit knows. He wants to help us dig out the falsehoods and the fears, the malice, envy and offense, the lies that serve our pride. The things we so carefully cover with deceit and pretend are not there. He wants to pull out the thorns in our flesh, but He waits for us to give Him permission. Yes, beloved. You must give God permission to pull out the thorns of your yesterdays! This is another sort of litmus test. I discussed that yesterday in the previous article. A litmus test, according to the online free dictionary, is "a crucial test using a single issue or factor as the basis for judgment." It's a critical indication that will prompt all your future decisions. It's the defining moment when you must confront what you're really made of and what you believe. What do you believe about God's nature, His character and His grace? Is His grace for everyone, or only those that do not set off emotional triggers in you? Litmus tests are often a wake up call to dig deep for further truth but we can only do so by looking in the mirror of God's word. The word reflects the state of our heart back to us. The Lord wants to give us an exchange. Truth for deception. Humility for pride. Mercy for judgment. Grace for offense. Wholeness for brokenness. Beauty for ashes. 

Friends, Jonah's confession is such a wonderful revelation of hope for all of us. Jonah was actually complaining about how good God was, how merciful, how generously He pardons our sin! Jonah was not stopping to consider that he had just been forgiven for his own disobedience. How quickly he forgot those days in the belly of the fish! We all face suffering in life, but let them not make us bitter. God is just; He is fair. He is longsuffering and kind, but He is still a God of justice. In our human condition, we often fail to realize just how much we have been forgiven, and our forgetting can turn us into complainers. Forgetting that we too are no more worthy of God's grace than the next person can turn us into people that reek of self righteousness and are akin to modern day Pharisees. I think we would all cringe if we understood that that is how others might see us, because no one wants to be seen in that light. SO! With that said, I hope that this article has done it's job and cautioned those reading it to simply not judge, and try hard to unload those offenses. The test for all that proclaim to follow God is to obey His commandments, love the Lord and love others. It's His love in us that yanks us back to reality and whispers to our spirit..."Don't carry that offense. It's unbecoming. If you love Me, please show love and mercy." 

Dear Heavenly Father,

I thank You for Your Holy Spirit that nudges me to do the right thing. I choose to yield to You. I surrender all offense and I resist the enemy's attempt to keep me meditating on the wrong things. I choose to meditate on Your goodness, and how much I have been forgiven. I choose to dwell upon good thoughts of how much You love me and are for me, so I forgive all offense and I bless those the enemy wants me to feel offended with. (Speak a sweet blessing over them now!). In Jesus name, Amen.

Yesterday's Leaders: A look at King Saul

David and Saul are examples of two kinds of leaders. One became the leader of his day and had the strength of God; the other was yesterday’s leader, having lost the strength of God due to disobedience.

Long before David would take the throne, he was chosen by God to succeed the throne. In this we see the plan of God to prepare his servant long before he would actually arise to a place of leading God’s people.

David’s preparation began in the field, watching over his father’s flock, fighting the bear and a lion to prove his due diligence in protecting the family livelihood and inheritance.  One day David went to take lunch to his older brothers as they stood with the rest of the army against the Philistines. He was ridiculed and despised by his brothers and accused of having wrong motivation for even being out on the battlefield, yet David innocently asked, “What have I done? Is there not a cause?” There was a cause: jealousy. Even they mocked him, yet it did not daunt him when it came to assessing the nature of the problem at hand.

Imagine the scene, if you will. The Philistines are atop one mountain, the Israelites on a mountain peak across from them, and all they’re doing is yelling back and forth trading insults. That’s right. Insults. These are a bunch of supposed tough guys but they are so intimidated by the size and the threat of the Philistine army that they are reduced to fighting like a bunch of girls. Actually, I have known some girls that would fight better than them! In their assessment of the problem they faced, somehow they completely lost sight of the fact that GOD WAS WITH THEM. Even Saul, the reigning king, was down in the valley with his knees shaking, too afraid to lead his people into battle. That is where Saul really blew it.

Saul was controlled by fear and insecurity. He was an indecisive and weak leader that was ruled by a need for self-preservation. His need to think of himself first put everyone else at risk. He couldn’t rule effectively because he first stopped to think of how everything would affect him. Self-preservation caused him to be disobedient towards God and prove himself to be an ineffective leader. He had a careless attitude towards obedience which caused him to lose sight of the fact that he was put in authority to model faith and trust in God before the people. Saul had every opportunity to go up against Goliath just as David did. Even more so, as the people naturally looked to the reigning king to lead them into battle against their enemies. Saul was afraid and his delay in taking action was actually probably more to do with wondering how he could lead his people into action and not get hurt. The Philistine was threatening to make all of Israel their servants if the man they sent in to battle went up against Goliath and lost. Saul did not feel capable of winning the battle and so he hesitated, and kept hesitating, until someone with courage and faith stood up to do what he was not willing to do.

What Saul did not count on was the fact that his act of cowardice was breaking faith with God and in God’s estimation, an act of disloyalty. He showed no confidence that God would help them win the battle, but that was a key factor to him being disqualified Saul from leadership. Saul did a lot to prove himself unfit to rule on numerous occasions.

We all know the story of how David defeated Goliath. Even in the face of sneers and word curses from the impressive looking enemy, David understood three important things. 1) David had previous experiences where God had shown himself strong and helped him defeat other enemies. 2) God was not on the side of the enemy, because His covenant was with the Israelites. David knew that no matter how intimidating the giant appeared, the battle was already won. 3) The giant cursed David and defied the living God, and the Bible is clear that whoever curses a child of God gets repaid by God according to Genesis 12:3.

David saw things quite differently than Saul because David wasn’t thinking about himself. He was thinking about standing up for God’s honor and keeping his brethren from becoming servants of the enemy. His priorities were in the right order. David once again proved himself fit for leadership.

What happened to Saul? Scripture says the very next day a distressing spirit – a demonic, tormenting spirit – came upon Saul. The Spirit of God departed from his disobedient servant even though Saul was still the ruler that everyone looked to for leadership. The Spirit of God came to rest upon David and equip David for further conquests. Saul became even more jealous and insecure, and he tried to hold on to his kingdom, power, and influence – not by faith in God to preserve him – but by his own efforts. Saul contrived plot after plot to try and trip David up. He thought to himself, “God is with this man, I had better not touch him, but I will put him in precarious situations so that others will do what I should not.” (Read 1 Sa. 18:17).

I cannot say exactly what Saul said or implied to others, but he was a shifty guy. He started out by throwing spears and javelins at David, trying to pin him to the wall. That was in private. 1 Sam. 18:11. David showed wisdom and that made Saul even more determined to get rid of the man that was destined to become his successor. Saul’s evil mind calculated a wicked scheme that involved others to carry out his plot to get rid of David. Saul knew if he touched David, who had obviously gained God’s approval, he could get struck down by God himself. Ironically, in the end it was Saul who was killed by his own sword. Sword refers to the word or doctrine one lives by.

Instead of harming David with his own hands, Saul put him on the front lines hoping the enemy would take him out. When that didn’t work, Saul got his own army to hunt him down and kill him. This is where Saul made another foolish mistake. In his arrogance and smug determination to destroy David, he forgot that the army wasn’t his army. Saul was the king of Israel and as such was supposed to represent God to the people. That army didn’t belong to him to carry out a personal agenda for vengeance. The army belonged to God to serve God’s purposes for the advancement of the kingdom. It doesn’t serve a person's best interests to forget who appointed them to leadership or why. Saul mistakenly thought he could use what belonged to God to carry out vengeance towards another man. Yet, David was not even an enemy; David was another brother in the Lord. Huge mistake on Saul’s part. Even Saul’s own son, Jonathan, asked his father why he continued to try to take David’s life and sin against innocent blood. 1 Sam. 19:5. “Why then will you sin against innocent blood, to kill David without a cause?”

Jealousy is a devious spirit, and is fueled by lust. Lust is never satisfied. Saul found himself unable to control his jealous rages and continued to conspire against David because it was the only way he felt he could rid himself of competition for the throne. His disobedience, cowardice and jealousy now added attempted murder to his list of sins. Saul stood guilty before God and had the opportunity to repent; instead, when confronted by the prophet Samuel he made excuses and shifted all the blame onto the people to be his scapegoats. Apparently Saul thought he could avoid accountability and blame others for his own disobedience. God wouldn’t have any of it. Saul’s days as king were numbered. Saul became yesterday’s man even though he was held the position of the reigning king. People still had their eyes on him because he was in the public eye. Perhaps that is how Saul got his army to go along with a scheme to carry out premeditated murder of an innocent man. They probably thought they were defending the king’s honor. He was, in fact, their king. Their leader. A trusted leader would not take advantage of their innocence to further his twisted agenda, would he? Their king would not intentionally mislead them, would he? It was unthinkable. Yet that is exactly what Saul did. He was appointed by God to rule the people. He was appointed by God to protect the people. Instead he led them into sin and used them to accomplish his personal vendetta.

The sad life of Saul is reviewed as a man who started out with every advantage in life, and had every opportunity to advance God’s kingdom, yet ended badly because of his disobedience. He lost his family, his inheritance and his future, and it started out with a need for self-preservation. Friend, do you see how devious the enemy is? How calculating? We need to trust God with every situation, and leave the results to Him. He can win any battle except for the one we insist on winning in our own strength and by our own hand.

The temptations of the enemy are very subtle and appealing. They will always appeal to our flesh nature, for that is the only way the enemy can get a hook in people to cooperate with him. I want you to stop and think about that for a moment. Consider some of the bait the enemy puts on his hook:

·         Fear. Fear of man, fear of losing our reputation, a position, friendships, all those fears and insecurities can make a person more concerned about what others think rather than being concerned about what God thinks about us. Never ever let anything move the fear of man into a higher priority than the fear of the Lord! It is a sure way to bondage. Sometimes people think they are submitting to authority when in fact fear of man has put them in a position of rebelling against God. Guard yourself from disloyalty towards the Lord.

·         Offense. The enemy uses offense as a tool to gather people to themselves, building their own personal army against another individual or people group. Never pick up another person’s offense and make it your own. Offense also works to create division. Strife, anger, and a spirit of division will bring spiritual weakness and disunity, robbing people of personal and corporate strength. It is also a key weapon against married couples and families.

·         Misinformation. People can end up supporting something they thought was a good or noble idea and later find out they really didn’t support what was being promoted. It’s like reading the fine print on petitions people want you to sign, or bills that are submitted to become laws. Get all the facts. The enemy will try to gain your support without disclosing all the information up front.

·         It’s not your fight. Getting involved in taking up a cause or fighting a battle that God has not told you to fight.

·         Bribery. Enticement or a suggested benefit in some form offers an incentive to get people to turn traitor against others. They can often be lured into becoming a tool the enemy uses to destroy the object of someone else’s wrath.

·         Seduced to be a pawn. The enemy is quite skilled in seducing others to become his pawns. He appeals to a person by first softening them up; working on their emotions, playing on both what they fear as well as what they hold dear. Sometimes when attacking a strong person directly is too much of a threat, the enemy will attack someone or something his intended victim holds dear. That way he forces his real victim to put himself in a precarious position and then he can shift to a direct attack when the time is right. A seducing spirit tailors the bait to each person’s personal weaknesses and psychological makeup.

·         Rushing into a fight. The enemy bets on the fact that he can cause people to rush into an emotional decision and end up siding with wrong alliances based on incomplete information. Always know which side of an issue God is on before you get involved. Don’t go to war with the people that don’t have God on their side! David was smart; he knew God was on Israel’s side and not with the Philistines, which gave him confidence to stand against the giant, no matter how intimidating Goliath seemed to be.

·         Fear of losing acceptance. Pressure from others to prove your personal loyalty or allegiance towards them.

·         Lies and deception. The enemy creates an illusion of a problem or makes it seem as though something exists when in fact it does not. It also works in reverse; the use of lies and deception to make people think nothing wrong exists, when the reality is quite the opposite. Propaganda is the intentional misuse of information in order to deceive and mislead others. Brainwashing is a continual repetition of wrong information to convince people that the information they have been fed is certain and true.

·         The scapegoat. Pin everything on a scapegoat and deflect attention from the source of the wrongdoing. The scapegoat offers a hope that by sacrificing one, the rest will avoid suffering the consequences. This is never true in God’s kingdom. Blame shifting is never a legitimate excuse. Every person is accountable to God for their actions.

·         Entertaining and supporting a spirit of self-pity. Self-pity is a spirit that makes one person a victim and blames others as perceived sources of their pain.

·         The trap of assumption. The enemy uses very strategic words, information, conversation and expressions to convey an implied thought or feeling, and leaves it deliberately vague and open-ended, knowing that others will fill in the blanks with their own version of truth and reality. It’s like when a person suggests a leading thought with few words and then just leaves the sentence hanging in mid-air, never finished. He knows that people will connect the dots in their minds and draw a certain conclusion based on what information has been fed.

·         Believing a false appearance. The enemy knows appearance is everything and what is unseen doesn’t count. He will find ways to become a magnet for attention in order to continuously influence others to accept what is seen publicly, while the truth of a situation may be something completely opposite. What is unseen may be far less evident because it is not open for public scrutinization.

Beloved of God, Saul may have been a king for a long time, but he lost the approval of God early on.  God’s people needed time under oppressive leadership to teach them not to desire a counterfeit replacement for God himself. God prepares a people just as much as He prepares a leader, for they must be able to receive the leader God has chosen for them. For many years the people were not yet ready, and Saul remained on the throne. The people needed to grow tired of the wrong sort of leadership and yearn for a leader that truly represented God and His kingdom. Saul made sport of them. God wanted to be their King, but the people so insisted on having a king just like all the other nations that they offended God in the process. So He decided they needed to learn an important lesson before they would be truly ready for His leadership. Perhaps some people thought David was plan B, but not in the heart of God. It was David, not Saul, who was God’s choice all along, because David was known as a man after God’s heart. David was far from perfect and he had his weaknesses, but he was quick to repent and he knew how to please God with his heart. There was a huge difference between the two men who ruled Israel.

I hope that you’ve found this article helpful. Study the strategies of the enemy. Don’t take the bait. Guard your heart, and guard your ways. Pray that the Fear of the Lord would keep you in righteousness all the days of your life.

If you find yourself dodging spears from your leader, like David, remember to behave wisely. Pray for strategies to outwit the enemy. Don't expose he weaknesses of your leader. Forgive quickly and do your very best to keep your heart innocent of wrong motives towards them. Someone honorable lives in you (Jesus). Let His Spirit guide you. Jesus never changed his responses as to how others treated him. He remained true to Himself. God sees all. He notes your responses just as much as He does to someone else. The Sauls of today that oppress and treat others with injustice are yesterday's leaders and their days are numbered. As difficult as it may be to deal with injustice, you must pass the test of learning to bless them and walk in integrity. God's desire is to promote you, but before He does he will test you by allowing you to be trained in the house of an enemy. That way, when you come into position you will not want to become the type of person that mistreated you. You will desire integrity, honor and righteousness to be the motivators of your heart because you know it pleases the Lord. Weak and insecure leaders always have a day of their undoing. You can count on it. Your job is to love God and love others. Micah 6:8 says it like this: "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy  and to walk humbly with your God."

Prayer for Healing from Emotional Pain and Trauma

Friends, 

So much of what we carry with us on a daily basis is retained in painful memories and the trauma of past events. Those wounds become open doors to the enemy which grant him access. These things take up residence in the very cells of our bodies, creating room for illness, disease, infirmity and a whole host of other physical, emotional and spiritual problems. God wants to heal us so deep it touches the very core of our being and regenerates healing from a cellular level. Do you believe it? 

Psalm 91 gives us a blessing and a promise to those that seek their refuge in the Lord Jesus Christ. In verse 10, the word 'plague' is from the Hebrew word 'nega.' It is translated as: 1) a stroke or a blow, figuratively or inflicted {inflicted by man on man}; 2) also a second meaning, {stroke, metaphor, especially of a disease, regarded as sent by a divine chastisement}; 3) plague or a mark {regarded as the heavy touch or stroke of a disease}. The NASB translates it like this: affliction, assault, infection, mark {regarded as the heavy touch or stroke of a disease, such as leprosy}, plague, plagues, stripes, stroke, strokes, wounds. 

What an amazing promise! Isn't God good?! Regardless of where the wound originated, God has made a provision to be free and healed from it! What ever you are struggling with, place it into one of the stripes Jesus took for you. Matthew 8:17 tells us that "He himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses." Therefore, we can declare "By His stripes we are healed." Agreeing with God's word is key; we must believe that God can, He wants to, and has already made the provision for our healing. Faith is active participation with God so that we can receive what we are believing to receive!

God made a promise to the Israelites that is good for us today, too. If they would worship only Him and serve Him, He would put none of the diseases upon them that were upon their enemies. This is because God is the one that heals us. In Exodus 15: 26 He said, "If you listen carefully to the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you."

One thing I discovered the hard way is to search deep within and examine yourself to see if you could have any open doors to spirits such as anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, or unloving spirits.Sometimes we encounter problems due to no fault of our own, but at other times, we struggle in our health because we really have left a door open somewhere, we just don't realize we have. When we repent and come back into submission to God, we can then resist the enemy and command him to leave. And take every sickness, symptom, assault and affliction that he has put on us and send them all back to hell! 

One thing you can do is to pray and ask Holy Spirit to show you what happened in your life right before you got sick or started noticing symptoms of health or emotional issues. Ask Him to dislodge stuck memories. Pay close attention to the next thought that comes to mind. and ask Holy Spirit to help you fully embrace what your conscious mind has either forgotten or blocked out. Ask the Lord to highlight any traumatic memories AND to give you the understanding of what was going on in yourself and others at the time those events occurred. Ask Holy Spirit to give you grace and compassion for anyone that wounded you. Stand on God's promise until the healing manifests. Sometimes you may have to walk through it until you get to the other side; other times the healing is immediate, but don't waiver at God's promises. He is faithful to watch over His word and bring it to pass!

Here is a prayer specifically written to be healed so deeply and completely it renews us from the inside out. Be blessed in knowing that God hears your prayers and knows exactly what each one of us need! Each prayer is a step closer to your breakthrough, healing and restoration! This prayer can also be used to pray over others.


Dear Heavenly Father,

I lift up myself to You right now. I pray that You would help me embrace whatever traumatic or negative memories that I have either blocked out or forgotten, if recalling those memories can be used to release healing. I ask You, Holy Spirit, to show me what happened in my life right before I started feeling ill, or experienced fear, anxiety, or other symptoms manifested. I give You permission to dislodge memories that are stuck. I pray that You highlight any specific memories or situations that are related to my symptoms, illness or other physical and emotional issues. Help me pay attention to what You show me. Please give me understanding of what was going on in myself and others connected to those events, and grant me grace and compassion to be able to forgive myself and others. Help me to see from Your perspective. 

I pray that You would supernaturally remove the hurtful memories and the trauma of past events out of my minds, emotions, memories and out of my physical bodies. I ask that You would lift all remnants of painful events and the trauma that was created as a result of that pain. Lift it all out of the very cells of my body. Let me remember only the good about those the enemy used to cause pain. I pray that my heart and mind would agree that I am in an entirely new day and I am able to graciously forgive those that treated me wrong. I forgive anyone that caused injury to my soul, spirit and even physically. 

Let my ears not remember hurtful words spoken to me, about me, by me, or by others. Let my heart release all unforgiveness, anger, fear, rejection, pain and shame. I speak now and declare complete healing and freedom from every painful event in my life. I declare that painful memories and hurtful words will not circulate in my mind and emotions any longer in the name and authority of Jesus Christ. I pray that no cell in my body would retain unforgiveness, bitterness, anger, hatred, fear, condemnation, regret, rejection or self hatred. I pray that my physical body would no longer be in agreement with any negative emotions in Jesus name. 

I release myself and others from the pain of their past, and the poor decisions they made as a result of their brokenness. I release them from guilt, shame, regret and bitterness now, in Jesus name. I forgive and release those who willfully and spitefully inflicted pain and suffering on me. I forgive and release those who had wicked intentions and gave themselves over to evil, in order to afflict, torment, and delight themselves in causing me pain. I give them over to You, Father, to do with as You choose; knowing that You are a just God and vengeance belongs to You. I choose to trust You in matters concerning justice and judgement towards others, knowing that as a matter of my will, I choose to forgive and am therefore free in Christ. 

I ask Your forgiveness for any doors that I have accidentally opened to the enemy through trying to comfort myself with artificial means. I renounce and break every unintentional agreement that I may have made with spirits of fear, lust, anger, greed, gluttony, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, unloving spirits, idolatry or a perverse spirit that also inflicts wounds on others. I submit to You, Holy Spirit, and command all ungodly spirits to leave me now, in the name and authority of Jesus Christ. I command all unclean spirits to go back to where you came from and appropriate the blood of Christ over every part of my life, and others for whom I pray. 

I speak now to my physical body and command all illness, disease, infirmity and weakness to be uprooted and removed now in Jesus name. I command complete release in every cell of my body of any and all residual effects of trauma. By the name and authority of Jesus Christ, I lift the remnant of trauma out of my body and ask that Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of Life, release healing into every cell of my body. I speak to the hormones, organs and systems of my body and command them to come into balance and normal function. I command my body to be healed at the cellular level. Everything that has been retained that does not exist in the kingdom of heaven, be released out of my cells now in Jesus name. Let every weight be released. Let every hindrance be released. Let all that does not originate from the kingdom of heaven be released out of my mind, body, emotions and memories. Every weakness be filled now with wholeness and perfect soundness in the name and authority of Jesus Christ. Holy Spirit, fill me now with Your fullness, strength and power in Jesus name. Fill me with joy, peace, and a release of supernatural healing that radiates from the inside out. I declare that by Your stripes I have been healed, according to Is. 53:5. Thank you for the blood You shed, Lord Jesus, that makes healing a reality. I thank You for revival, restoration, healing and complete regeneration in Jesus name. Amen.

Self-Pity Is NOT Your Friend!

Dear Friends,

I know that many people face incredible trials, disappointments, and injustice on a daily basis. Life throws us curve balls all the time. People are faced with illnesses, loss of employment, vehicles that break down, unexpected expenses that derail their finances and much more. Every day can be a challenge to continue on in our walk of faith, trusting God for the small things as well as the big things. And in all these daily challenges, what we dare not forget is that we have an evil adversary always lurking, always looking for a way to cause disillusionment and a loss of faith and trust in God. For if he is successful in this, Satan will begin to turn a person’s heart away from God. Perhaps without them even being conscious of the fact that through their painful trials and disappointment, he introduces thoughts and feelings that are of a spirit of self-pity rather than faith.

How often we chalk up bad fruit to something we consider human or harmless, when in fact the root is defiled and can only produce more corruption.  An evil root will never produce good fruit.

Misery loves company, and bitterness relives and repeats the woes of life. The chorus of complaints is led by a spirit of self-pity. The danger of self-pity is that it is the same as idol worship. Self-pity demands worship. It elicits worship from others in the form of seeking attention, sympathy, and affirmation (a form of praise). “Self” (or the person controlled by the spirit of self-pity) becomes god and those that feed this spirit become the person’s co-dependent supporters and worshippers. Self-pity cannot survive without feeding its need for worship, but the very essence of this root is bitter. It will only ever produce bad fruit.

Narcissism also comes from these spirits, and narcissism is so deeply rooted that a person no longer feels a need to repent or take responsibility for their actions. The danger of one who allows self-pity and bitterness to remain is that it presumes a wrong view of eternal security. The person is deceived into believing that they are in right relationship with God, or that grace will always be available to them, though they walk in stubbornness of heart. It is the presumption of grace that causes a person to harden their heart towards genuine repentance, choosing a lifestyle of sin and compromise over obedience to God. The Spirit desires to do the right thing and forgive. Our mind, will and emotions can be resistant, but it takes consistent, determined effort to resist the Holy Spirit and His desire to see us healed. That is why this is a sobering topic, for the penalty for retaining bitterness and unforgiveness is severe. It can literally cost a person everything, including their salvation. The ultimate fruit of bitterness is apostasy.

DIAGNOSING SELF-PITY

• Shifts blame onto others.
• Is easily angered and offended; pouts.
• Sees themselves as a victim. Makes excuses and refuses the redemption of Christ.
• Takes advantage of the compassion of others and manipulates their emotions so that others sympathize with them.
• Would rather complain about their problems than be healed.
• Elevates self-will rather than submission to God.
• Refuses to take responsibility for their own areas of guilt and sin. Unrepentant.
• Prefers spiritual weakness rather than strength from obedience.
• Wears people out with incessant complaining and a need for attention for their issues.
• When confronted with truth, quickly changes topic of conversation. Has a knack of intimidating others and accusing them of not caring.
• Rejects true spiritual authority and embraces counterfeit authority or those that will not challenge them with truth.
• Focuses on self rather than Jesus; denies the power of the cross of Christ.

Bitterness and self-pity will throw a party and invite all their friends. It’s dangerous company. Those that have these spirits often seek others that will be a partner in a co-dependent relationship, because these spirits demand attention. They cannot survive without being fed! Do you see how they also partnership with rebellion towards God? These spirits are not your friends; they are treacherous enemies that create a deadly highway of corruption straight to the soul.

If it were not for the torment in our soul, would we stop to consider the cause? Would we not grow so tired of ourselves and our misery that we would then be willing to change? The enemy uses bitterness to defile a person’s heart and defile others. His goal is to slowly but deliberately draw a person into deception so that they act presumptively to grace and make allowances for disobedience. This kind of behavior causes a person’s heart ever so slowly becomes insensitive towards conviction and the Holy Spirit trying to draw them back towards the Father. Some people are so good at rejecting truth that they honestly don’t feel convicted to change. They are convinced they aren’t guilty of wrongdoing. That is a terrible place to be because once a person has so hardened their heart in rebellion, God may not be able to reach them at all. Don’t ignore your conscience! Your conscience is there to protect you and keep you in the ways of righteousness. No one likes to feel guilt, but the truth is we need it. It is the only proper response to sin. Guilt is what eventually leads us to confess our sin so that God can cleanse us from that unrighteousness. It unlocks the door to forgiveness. In most people, truth that they know but don’t necessarily want to accept will continue to rise to the surface, especially if God is trying to communicate something to them. It’s a funny thing about truth. A person may try to run from it but truth will always follow them home. It demands a decision. We can make excuses to try and avoid dealing with it, but at the end of the day truth is still quietly staring us in the face. They gradually become so desensitized to their need to repent that at some point it becomes impossible for them to feel the desire to repent; and so, they become lost forever, eternally separated from God. Though it pains us to think that God would willingly afflict us with torment, every purpose of God is redemptive. The affliction does not come from God, it comes from the enemy. God allows affliction to torment our thoughts (sometimes our physical body, too) to drive us into Him so that we can be healed. He is the Great Physician. How great His love is; how great is His mercy! He wants us to come to Him and inquire what is wrong so that we may be healed and set free from all toxic roots and deadly sins, but we are not set free from the consequences of our sin until we repent. True repentance is a willingness to forsake that which has us entangled with sin. As long as sin festers, we are in chains, but in the day that we draw near to Him, His immediate response is, “Do not fear!”

There are times when people become willfully blind because they attempt to avoid truth. Truth doesn’t cease to exist because people don’t want to be accountable to it. Truth does have the capacity to make us uncomfortable at times. Truth is important. There are definite consequences for ignoring it, yet people will still avoid, dodge, deny or wiggle away from truth when it comes to matters that hit close to home. Do we really think we will be any better off for trying to avoid the conviction of something we need to face? Avoiding truth keeps a person stuck in a state of emotional and spiritual immaturity. Embracing truth propels us into growth.

Learning to love ourselves requires being able to embrace the truth about us and then be willing to change.

When a person desires truth it is an indicator that they have admitted to themselves that they are ready to face their illusions being shattered. Uncomfortable as it may be to face the truth, the person no longer desires willful blindness. They are ready to receive the truth because they know it has the ability to set them free and release healing.

Sin hurts. It doesn’t just hurt us, it hurts others, too. It causes all manner of mental torment, sickness, disease, loss, broken relationships, and painful events to take place in our lives, and those things affect the lives of those close to us. These things come as a result of the enemy doing what he does best: he comes only to kill, steal and destroy. Satan inflicts pain and suffering and there are times when God allows it. Discipline cleanses the heart. Father’s desired end for all people is repentance that restores us to right relationship with Him and others and also releases healing.

Ezekiel 36:22-35 contains a beautiful promise of restoration. God’s promise is that when we are cleansed from the things that make us unclean, He will restore our losses. His promise is to give us a new heart after cleansing, reverse the famine that has robbed from our lives and bring multiplication of blessing. Now that is motivation for the pursuit of holiness! The truth that frees us is the truth we must admit to ourselves and God, and perhaps another individual. It’s the confession of wrongdoing so that we may be healed. It removes the guilt from our conscience and restores a right alignment with our heavenly Father. “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16, NIV). Notice that is says to confess our sins to one another. This sort of confession requires honesty and humility. Without honesty or humility, we cannot have fellowship with Him. God cannot fellowship with those that desire their own sin, self-deception and darkness of heart more than they desire Him. “Behold you desire truth in the inward parts and in the hidden part you will make me know wisdom.” (Ps. 51:6). He is the light shining in the darkness, but the darkness cannot comprehend Him. When Jesus shows up, He is fully aware of all the things that have prevented us from seeing Him for who He really is. He simply asks, “Do you want to be healed?” Self-pity doesn’t want you to be healed. It wants you to ignore truth and allow it to stay. So I will ask again, “Do you want to be healed?”

The truth that we need to be free is what has been with us all along. Everyone has their down days and needs comfort and friendship; someone that will understand us and lend a listening ear. But, if it becomes habitual complaining about the many difficulties of life; if you have evidence of hell unleashed to destroy, devour and plunder the things concerning your life, I urge you to consider whether or not you may have allowed a spirit of self-pity a place in your life. It is a dangerous enemy that must be confronted and resisted at any and all costs. Self-pity always has an end goal of slowly dragging its victim into rebellion and apostasy. That is death of one’s salvation. Friends, it is not worth it! Today can be a fresh start to renounce this wicked enemy of your soul and take back the authority that is yours in Christ.

Prayer:

Today I come to you to acknowledge that I have sinned against myself by believing lies instead of what Your word says about me. I renounce unbelief! I am not a victim; I am victorious in Christ. All things are possible to those who believe. Today I break any and all agreements with myself and Satan that have allowed spirits of rejection, self-hatred, a spirit of abandonment, fear, insecurity, inferiority, shame, bitterness, witchcraft, rebellion, jealousy, evil speaking, self-pity and unforgiveness to manifest. I renounce all seeds that have come from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and every evil seed planted by the enemy. I command those evil seeds to wither and die immediately.  I renounce all ungodly spirits and I command them to leave me at once. Help me to shut my ears to the enemy's unloving thoughts. They are not my own thoughts but his. Father, I repent for allowing these things a place in my life. I thank You for forgiveness for my sins and cleansing me of unrighteousness.   

I thank You that Your blood and Your word cleanse my conscience from unprofitable thoughts and renew my mind. Holy Spirit, forgive me for grieving You and not allowing Your Spirit to influence my thought life and actions. Heal my disappointments, my hope and my faith. I come into agreement with God. I declare that I AM fearfully and wonderfully made. I am loved, accepted, and I am blessed by the Lord. I am surrounded with favor and grace. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Blessings are chasing me down to put themselves into my hands. I am a confident person because you have made me whole and complete. I lack nothing because the Lord is my shepherd and I do not lack. Therefore, I am in want of nothing. If there is a step of faith and obedience I need to take in order to activate blessing in my life, please tell me what to do. Everything that is available to Christ is available to me, because I am a child of God. I have nothing to fear! Fear no longer has permission to bring torment. I embrace the grace You have provided through Your sacrifice, Lord Jesus, and Your love and acceptance for me. Holy Spirit, I thank You for giving me the fruit of self-control in my thought life and I ask You to empower me to live for God. Fill me with Your fullness. I ask You for supernatural assistance to overcome negative self-talk, and I give YOU authority over my mouth and my actions. Help me overcome the areas of struggle in my life. You know what they are. I thank You for victory. In Jesus name, amen.

#Selfpityisnotyourfriend