Do Not Let The Devil Win

Have you ever felt like everyone and everything has abandoned you; that you were totally alone and that no one cared what happened to you?

I think everyone of us at some time in our life has felt this way or will feel all alone in this way.

Life can throw us some weird things so and make us feel things we didn’t know we could. I have been in those places and I’m not proud of the bad choices I’ve made because of them. If your not careful it will lead you down some very dark paths.

Despite the people who are trying to help you out of these situations. Sometimes the only one that can help during these battles is God, because what we are fighting isn’t physical it’s spiritual- it’s a battle in our spirit. The devil love to come during those times to get us to think God has forsaken us and will not help, but the devil is wrong.

We can rely on God’s promises in Hebrews 13:5-6 it says “Be free from the love of money, content with such things as you have for he has said, “I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you.” “So that with good courage we say, The Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me?”

Jesus felt this way also, He felt like God had forsaken Him even while He was doing what the Father wanted Him to do. Mark 15:34 states that “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” Which is interpreted, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Our greatest spiritual battles are when the devil tries to get us to give up on ourselves and God, Jesus in the flesh cried out what He felt, but in His Spirit He fought the battle knowing thatGod was with Him no matter what it seemed like on the outside. He won the battle because He cried out to God “into your hands I surrender my Spirit.”

So many times in my life I have had to ask God to help me, so many times I have cried myself to sleep, asking God to fix it- fix me. He has always come through on His promises.

We cannot stop the battles of life from coming, just as we can’t stop a bird from flying over us, but when the battles comes and are fought in our minds we can still fight the good fight by standing on the knowledge of God’s Word and our relationship with Him.

When it comes to our battles in our own minds, we can either allow them to dwell and manifest evil or do what the Word of God tells us to do and that is yo cast down vain imagination and everything that exalts itself against the Word of God. Nothing is obtained freely but we have to fight to obtain victory. Don’t allow the devil to win in your life but allow God to help you fight the good fight of faith.

See Yourself As God Sees You

How do you see yourself? Pause for a moment and think about it. What thoughts have you had about yourself.

I used to see myself the way my mother seen me, a trash, unworthy of anything good. So many of us find ourselves basing our self-worth on how others see us and our accomplishments, feeling shame from our past, defining our value based on our looks, or setting unrealistic standards for ourselves.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. If on,y we could see ourselves as God sees us.

I want to show you the three thought patterns that can act as roadblocks to our thinking and living the way God desires. These destructive thought patterns were actually identified by Albert Ellis in 1973.

We will contrast ideas with what 1 Peter 1 tells us about how we can prepare our minds for action. Adjusting our thinking to Scripture is the foundation of being holy in all we do. (1 Peter 1:15). Without something solid to base our lives on there is no hope of anything.

1. I must be loved or approved by virtually every other person in my life.

If we are living to make sure that others love us, we give them the permission to evaluate us based on what we do – we give people the power to determine our self-worth.

When we leave home, many of us have “internalized parents.” who are voices in our head that tells us what we should do, what is important, and how we see ourselves. Have you ever been in a situation where you have to make a decision and you can hear one of your parents says, That’s not responsible…” or “I told you what would happen?”

Many of us are so concerned about being loved that we give the opposite sex permission to elevate us. Growing up we might sacrifice our own identity to get attention and acceptance, even to the extent of pretending not to be bright or kind because we think others won’t be impressed. Or we might deny ourselves food to use weight to try to fit in with the body images portrayed in on Television or social media. Even as adults, we buy into the beauty myth, thinking that our appearance is the only thing that matters. And that will it will bring us acceptance and approval from a partner.

I have a friend who has taken care of herself all her life. She will even wear hats outside so the sun will not damage her face. Now that she is getting older, she is getting dark spots on her face. She almost had a nervous breakdown over a light brown spot on her face.

If we are living to make sure that others love us for how we look we give people the power to determine our self-worth.

Many even feel pressure from a church community to measure themselves according to certain stereotypes. I know a lady that was told she was not allowed to be a member of the church, because she drank coffee. Some people believe that women are supposed to be nurturing, quiet and well-behaved. I tell you if I didn’t have a breakdown every now and again I wouldn’t be normal. If people expect me to be perfect I can do without those people in my life.

Men are supposed to be competent leaders, rough the gruff, and have a sensitive side too. If we lived to please the church, we may find ourselves negating the interests or gifts that God has given us.

There are plenty of churches out there that don’t expect you to be prefect, prim and proper all the time. They see you as God sees you.

2. My past history is an all-important determiner of the present behavior; because some thing once strongly affected my life, it should definitely continue to do so.

You may feel controlled by a secret. You may have had something happen to you that you have revealed to no-one,nor perhaps to only a few people. Perhaps you feel shame about certain aspects of the family you grew up in, or maybe you have sinful habits you feel embarrassed about, such as gossip of some things you’ve done in the past. Or maybe you feel ashamed of something that has been done to you,

I will tell you, if you don’t deal with these issues they will continue to destroy you. They will have control of you. And healing will never come. You can deal with past sin, family histories, as well as past violations to your body and minds.

It is important to identify whether your feelings in these situations are destructive shame or healthy convictions. Healthy conviction always separates our identity from our behavior. Shame links the two together, so wrong behavior taints our image of ourselves. Healthy conviction alerts us to the fact that we have done something that goes against our internalized values.

I hid my past experiences and events inside for over 40 years. Not telling a single soul. I destroyed my health both physical and emotional because of it. I wasn’t able to even start healing until I broke loose and started sharing my story with others. The grip the hate and Unforgiveness I had for myself and everyone around me began to loosen.

I wasted 40 years of my life because I was afraid to tell a soul with the feeling that they would judge me. When all I really needed to do was to see myself the way God sees me.

Biblical conviction is a God-given emotion that “red flags” a behavior and tells hx it is an act of rebellion against God. It spurs us to confess our sins and experience the love and forgiveness that God has provided for us through Jesus with His death on the cross. 1 John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Any feelings of guilt that come after we’ve confessed our sin are not from God, but maybe from ourselves or Satan. We will still have to live with the consequences of our sins. God disciplines us to get us back on track so we can continue to experience God’s law be and plan for our lives. Our struggles can bring us closer to God and heighten our faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may be proven genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Christ is revealed (1 Peter1:6-7).

3. I should be thoroughly competent, adequate, and successful in all possible respects in order to consider myself worthwhile.

Ten percent of people will struggle with some form of clinical depression in their lifetime. Depression can be biological or situational, and often can be the result of both. However, one of the leading causes of depression is setting a standard that is unattainable, but you wear yourself out by trying anyway. One of the messages that plays over and over in our minds is that we have to “be perfect.”

We often fall into the trap of feeling responsible not just for ourselves, but for the lives of others. I have to stay when I stopped feeling responsible for how my husband behaved or how he felt. It took a huge weight of my shoulders. We don’t have to take on the weight of everyone’s world. We need to only be responsible for ourselves and our young children if you have them.

It is often difficult for us to separate our identity from our behavior. We feel if we don’t measure up. It reflects on who we are as individuals.

Remember God’s grace is a gift. God heals us and brings us freedom to live a new life. Sometimes grace does not come easily to us. We have to work at changing our thinking. We need to humble ourselves when we don’t measure up, knowing that God already sees us as the perfect reflections of Christ (1 John 3:1-3).

Once we extend grace to ourselves, we are able to extend grace to those around us. We need to cease trying to live up to the distorted beliefs we and others have and learn to line our thinking up with the way God views us.

Instead of being so focused on our failures, we will be able to lend a helping hand to those around us and be a vessel of grace to those we come in contact with wherever we go.

Never Underestimate Your Weakness

So many of us have through epic battles in our lives, and have suffered crushed hopes, physical damage and loss, or financial devastation. We’ve survived the battle, but now go through our days like Jacob, walking with a limp.

For some of us , it’s an emotional limp – someone disappointed us, betrayed us or something tragic has happened. The wound just hasn’t been able to heal with time, and are carrying a limp. For some, it is a physical limp, a disease or infirmity in your body that has slowed you down,

Many have a cultural limo, something has stigmatized you in the eyes of others, and you drag it around wherever you go. Other people have a spiritual limp, something happened in a church or religious setting that has caused them to now avoid God and His people.

Still others have a relational limp: your spouse cheated and left you, or was abusive to you. You’re estranged from a parent or a child. Or maybe even you have a character limp. You know there is an issue in your life that needs transformation and restoration; you want to do the right thing, but no matter how hard you try, you just keep doing what you really don’t want to do.

In fact, most of us by the time we reach adulthood, find ourselves walking with a hobble and limping our way into the presence of Almighty God.

You may think that a limp makes you weak and vulnerable, but God’s word tells a different story.

In Genesis 32:24-25, “Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking day. Now when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the socket of his hip, and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as he wrestled with him.”

Jacob’s life can be summarized in one word – struggle. In fact, the name Jacob means deceiver, supplanter, or manipulated.

He struggled with his brother Esau in the womb, and as they grew older, he struggled for his father’s blessing to the firstborn. He struggled even for his father’s affection.

Jacob’s father, Isaac, loved Esau, because Esau was a real man’s man, Esau loved outdoor life, he hunted, he was hairy and rough. Jacob one the other hand, was a momma’s boy. He preferred to stay at home, around the tent and home fires. And Scripture states that Isaac loved Esau, and Rachel loved Jacob more (Genesis 25:28). Jacob struggled for his father’s approval.

And as he got older, Jacob struggled with his two wives, his in-laws, his twelve sons… even with himself.

But in reality, all of that struggle in his life can be summed up in one statement: Jacob struggled against God.

In fact, most of the struggles that we face in life are actually rooted in our own struggles with God. We struggle because we doubt God’s wisdom, or we want to be in control. We struggle with pride and fail to submit to God’s ways. Maybe we struggle to truly accept God’s love and forgiveness. And that struggle has caused a lot of other struggles in life that could have been avoided

An Epic Struggle Of Wills

Jacob’s life is in many ways like our lives. Our desires and God’s desire and destiny for our lives often clash in a epic struggle of wills.

By doing things his own way, Jacob had gotten some “blessings” along the way, and seemed to pay off. He tricked his father into getting the Blessing of the Firstborn from him, even though he had to flee and hide from his family afterward. He ended up with two wives, even though he didn’t love one of then. He got some land, cattle and servants, even though it caused some manor conflict with his in-laws.

In other words. Jacob did accumulate some “blessings” along the way by doing it his way and defying God’s way. But there was a price to pay; trouble followed him wherever he went,

Scripture says, “thete is a wat that seems right to a man but the end thereof is destruction” (Proverbs 14:13). And it also says, “ the blessing of the Lord makes rich and adds no sorrow” (Proverbs 10:22), Clearly, the blessing that God brings is preferable.

Jacob struggled his whole life against God, until eventually, the conflict in his life got so intense that he just couldn’t scheme his way out of it. He had conflict with his father-in-law and brothers -in-law, because they felt like Jacob had taken property that rightly belonged to them. Jacob must have surveyed the situation and thought. I’ve got to get out of here.

“Now Jacob heard the words of Laban’s son, saying Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s and from what was our father’s he has acquired all his wealth. And Jacob saw the countenance of Laban, and indeed it was not favorable toward him as before” (Genesis 31:1-2.

The problem was, Jacob had nowhere to go. He couldn’t go back home and he couldn’t stay where he was. He was caught between a rock and a hard place, and he was alone. Until God showed up.

“Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day” (Genesis 32:24).

Jacob wrestled or struggled with God till the break of day. He needed to submit to a character change, and true repentance from a humble heart. Just ask Esau for forgiveness, admit that you were wrong! Just own it, humble yourself and let Me do the rest. But Jacob stubbornly kept struggling.

At the break of dawn, Jacob was out of time. Esau was closing in on one side, and his in-laws on the other side. Then God intervened.

God is God and He could have pinned Jacob in a minute. God has voluntarily limited Himself to the submission of our will. He wants for us to voluntarily submit our will to His will. Sometimes, God’s got to do some things to grab our attention not to hurt us, but to help us. Or said another way, some times God’s got to bruise us, in order to break us, so that He can bless us.

It might be a limp, a whale or a pigpen. The experience is not meant to permanently damage or destroy us (that’s the devil’s M.O.), but ultimately to bless us. As it says in Psalm 119:67, “Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I keep your word.” It’s amazing how many painful moments become defining moments in our lives.

“Just as he crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip” (Genesis 32:31).

Jacob was changed by his experience. He was not who he used to be: He’d been given new name, Israel, and had put him life in God’s hands as he headed out to meet Esau and his 400 men. But he also looked weaker than ever, because now he had a noticeable limp.

As Jacob was limping toward Esau, and the enemy was throwing thoughts of fear into Jacob’s ind, here is what I believe Jacob learned from his limp, and what his experience teaches us today:

I am no longer afraid. Because of this struggle, because of this limp. I’ve spent a lot of time in prayer. And I will keep going to God, crying out to my Heavenly Father in this sit, too.

I an beseeching the Lord, going to Him for story, grabbing hold of the horns of the alter, and knocking on Heaven’s doors.

Because of this limp, I spend more time with my Heavenly Father than ever before . I have learned hoe to cast my are upon the Lord and I now know He cares for me. I stand on the promises that cannot fail.

I am lo longer worried. I spend time in the presence of my Father who fills me with peace. I pray always withal, prayer and supplication in the Spirit; I let my requests be made know to God.

Because of this limp, I do fight like I used to fight. I don’t fight with deception, manipulation or cheating. I fight on my knees and call on the God of angel armies. I invite God’s supernatural intervention in my life, and I now more than ever an overcomer.

Never underestimate my limp, because it’s made me dangerous to the enemy.

We should never underestimate the values of these life experiences with God that sometimes create a “limp” that we carry with us. Them limp becomes a daily reminder of our personal struggles to place our trust in God alone, and that we risk suffering from choices made after our own understanding. It’s a reminder to place our trust in Him alone, the One who directs our paths for the most benefit and blessing.

A New Anointing

What does it mean to carry a new anointing?

It means you’ve been tested, tried and baptized in the fires of life, and come out shining like pure gold. It means God has used the pain of your experiences to remove the impurities in the heart and mind. Others used to look at our lives and see just a person like Jacob, with imperfections, insecurities, and character flaws. Greater anointing means the world will see less of us and more of Jesus Christ in everything we do and say.

In the natural, a limp may appear to have made a person weaker, but in the Kingdom of God, it’s made them stronger. Because when we are weak, He is strong! And when we decrease. He is increased.

Life and circumstances may have caused the fire to burn you, but God promises to turn it around and cause it to set you ablaze (Romans 8:28). You went into the furnace trying to keep in together on your own, but you came out triumphant in God. Your ‘limp” is a reminder that you have overcome through Christ and now carry a new Spiritual anointing,

Why God Hides His Will For You

There’s a old proverb that that says:

Give a man a fish and he’ll feed himself for just a day, but give him the means to catch his own fish and he’ll be able to feed himself and his family for a lifetime.

The principle is clear and, on the surface at least, compelling. It is often used as the difference between helping someone or teaching them to fend for themselves. One gives what is needed in the mom; the other seeks to provide the means for being self-sustained.

The Will Of God For You

The book of Hebrews reminds us that in the Old Testament era God spoke many times in many ways (Hebrews 1:1). We think not just of prophets being given direct words from God, but also of angels appearing with divine guidance, of visions, dreams, and even personal messages appearing on a wall to declare what to take place (Daniel 5:5).

If you look back on such times, you can easily feel a little envious. Which of us wouldn’t want our own private angel to tell us how to best navigate life? Or a vision to let us know what God’s will is? Without such direct revelations, it can be hard to discern what God would have us do.

But when we think that way, we may actually be asking for less, rather than more.

The New Testament is not short on teaching about God’s will. It is there. It is also clear. But it is often not as specific as we would like. On one occasion Paul writes, “This is the Will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thessalonians 4:3). That’s all well and good, but what job should I take? Should I move next year? Should I be pursuing marriage? And would about all the smaller decisions we face each day?

How We Find God’s Will

God hasn’t given us a magic 8 ball. That might seem frustrating. But He has given something much better:

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Roman 12:2

This is our relationship to God’s will; not that He emails a daily briefing of what were to do each day, but that He gradually renews our minds, changing the way we work, giving us the capacity to discern His will without moment-by-moment direct updates. But the trick is if we want God’s will for our life, we have to allow Him into our hearts so that He can do that changing work that needs to be done.

This is hugely dignifying. God is not telling us what to think at every moment, but how to think. He’s rarely telling us what decision to make, but teaching us how to make decisions.

What God Is After

There are a couple of examples of this in the New R. We’ve already seen what Paul said to the Thessalonians. God’s will is that we are sanctified; that by increasing measure we become more and more like He is; holy (1 Peter 1:15). A significant component of that is therefore resisting all sexual immortality. Any move toward sexual sin (mental or physical ) is a direct contradiction of God’s will As we take God’s word, we gain a better understanding of what He’s like, and what He likes.

Romans 8;29 says “Those He foreknew He also predestined to be confirmed to the image of His Son, so that he might be the firstborn of many brothers.” (or sisters )What’s God’s will for you? That you become more like Jesus, and that many others become more like Him too. Anything that leafs us toward that end is God’s will.

Many people today are moving away from churches. They don’t want to make the sacrifice to go church every week. Some people feel like they are being judged by others, Some just think they’re too busy, or need a few more hours of sleep before returning to their busy work week.

I will be the first one to admit some times I don’t feel like going to church. But then I think “This isn’t about what I want, it’s about what God wants.” I don’t get up and go to church for the people that are there. I go to seek God, it’s my soul purpose. I also think tithing comes from the heart. No one should make you feel guilty about tithing. That is between you and God. I think of it as I’m sowing into my inheritance in heaven.

Having a relationship with God isn’t about what others think, or say. It’s about doing God’s will. The Bible doesn’t say I have to sit at my desk a 7:00 AM with a open Bible. But it does say I’m to become more like Christ. And this won’t happen without spending time with Him in His word and praying.

Transformed, Not Just Informed

So, God doesn’t give us a spiritual GPS – “turn left there, then right.” He gives as an atlas- “this is your destination; get here, by all good means available.”

This may not be as easy as simply being told what to do or where to go, but surely it far more rewarding. God wants to train us not to need angels delivering instructions. He wants to give us far more; the increasing capability, by His Spirit who lives in us, to think like He does- to have our minds rebooted with His operating system. God is not merely handing us a fish when we need to eat, but He’s teaching us how to feed ourselves.

During the process of learning how to “feed ourselves,” however, God’s will often seems frustratingly vague and non-specific. The difficulty is part of the design. In those moments, we must look again at the destination we are headed, pray much, and think carefully about how to get there. God wants so much more that to prescribe our every step. He wants to help change. He does not simply want to inform us, but to transform us.

Why Are We So Hard On Ourselves?

We all have a inner critic that affects all of us in some way, with some people having a more harsh voice than others. Some are not even aware of it. Where does it come from, and how much it really affects us.

Being self-critical can activate the fight/flight/ freeze/fawn response in our brains because it interprets our sold-criticism as an emotional attack on ourselves.

But who do we raise awareness around our experience with it? What does self-criticism look like. Here are some common traits of self- criticism:

  • We judge ourselves harshly
  • We fear rejection and family
  • We experience low self-worth
  • Our self-talk often included words like “I should, I could, I shouldn’t have done, I will never”
  • We are very task and achievement oriented
  • We often set unrealistic expectations of ourselves
  • We feel underserving of basic respect and understanding from ourselves or others
  • We have a very low (or non-existent) tolerance for making mistakes
  • We may experience perfectionistic or people pleasing tendencies
  • We have a hard time developing close relationships and opening up to people

Can you relate to any of the traits?

You may be wondering where all this self-criticism comes from. It is not always necessary to understand this, but it can be helpful to understand the root cause,

Reasons Behind Self-Criticism

  • Early Trauma or Peer Relationships:

If at an early trauma happened and they were very critical of you or themselves, there’s a chance that self-critical traits and resulting behaviors were projected onto you. This may be a person being highly critical of you or others, whether they were hard to please, controlling, or comparing you to others, or lacking affection. It could have been verbally or emotionally “You sister is smarter than you” or “you will never make it in life why do you even try” or non- verbally with disapproving g looks, the silent treatment, or eye rolls.

There is a way that teasing can be healthy, such as playful teasing between loved ones. However, when peers or family members becomes unhealthy and may turn into bullying, this can lead to a harsh inner voice. Children are very impressionable and are much more likely to internalize negative comments from others begin to form our own beliefs about ourselves , or identities, and our self-esteem. At a young age, it is hard for us to differentiate between comments we should or shouldn’t take to heart, especially when these comments are coming from people who are close to us.

Self-criticism can be viewed as a learned behavior. If someone who cares for you is dealing with their own self-criticism and you may have picked upon that and began to treat yourself in the same way.

  • Cultural Beliefs

Within some cultures, it is believed that self-criticism is an effective motivator. This includes your families culture.

People who were raised with this type of parenting may have parented you in the same way. They were most likely well-meaning and not entirely wrong. Self-criticism does motivate in the short term. But, there are a few problems with this type of motivation. self-criticism motivates from the basis of fear and judgement, which leads to many problems that far outweigh the benefits of using this type of motivation.

  • Abuse

Any kind of abuse – physical, verbal, emotional, sexual, or psychological can contribute to self-criticism. Whether is was recurring or happened one time, it can still have an impact on how you view and treat yourself.

When we begin to see the root cause of our self-criticism, then and only then can we begin healing and working on our self-critical views and work on using self-compassion to quiet our inner critic.