We are in a battle. Sometimes we need to take a step back and survey the land. Sometimes we need to take inventory of the damage. Sometimes we need take a moment to enjoy each victory. Sometimes we must relax and recover. Sometimes we simply must gain a fresh perspective on our lives so we don't keep fighting battles that have been won. Have you been there -- fighting battles that have already been decided?
“But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. ”
Satan (the devil) would love to keep each and every one of us in perpetual battle mode. We call this mode, "anxiety". Anxiety is fear expressing itself. Fear has a voice, did you know? It wants to carry on a continuous conversation with you for all perpetuity. Fear is a talkative demon. It is a motor mouth. You may have gotten so used to talking to this spirit that it has become a familiar spirit within one generation. (Generational spirits are called, "iniquity" in the Bible.) But you must stop talking to it, stop having conversations with it, and stop allowing it to run your life.
Listen to the demon, listen to the negativity it speaks, and learn its voice (Unless you regularly hear one, that is. You must have it cast out ASAP.*). Stop taking to heart what it's saying. Start rejecting those lies out of the pit of Hell and rebuke that thing in Jesus' name. You will hear it speak death, condemnation, and discouragement. God is always speaking life, righteousness, and encouragement. If you have a thought occur to you that does not cause you to think well about yourself, others, and your situation, then it has a demonic source. Even the words we speak bring life or death, righteousness or condemnation, or encouragement or discouragement.
Start listening to the words you speak over yourself and others. Really listen to what you tell yourself and others. (The words you speak are spirit!) This will probably open up a whole new perspective for you. This is great! We need to remember to never fight battles that have been won. When you hear what is being said, you get to know your enemy better so you can attack it more accurately and powerfully. You can't hit targets you don't see. There are far too many times in our lives when we who have been depressed would take things out on our loved ones. That must stop. They love us and deserve better. You deserve better. Again, Satan would love to keep us in perpetual battle mode. If we shoot "friendly fire," we harm our support group and the devil laughs his head off when we do his job for him. The last thing we need to do is to help him destroy us! When you hear something that does not line up with the Word of God, then you also know this is of the devil. That means you must read your Bible daily to know the Word. The more of the genuine article you know, the less you will be deceived by counterfeits.
God is willing that we go through these trials and tribulations for the refining of our souls and to learn the Truth so we will help others once we have the victory (to be free indeed). If we share in Jesus' victory, we will also share in His troubles. Do you remember, in John 16:33, when Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart I have overcome the world" and "If the world hated me, it will also hate you"? If God were to *poof* simply wash us clean with no commitment from us, we would be more likely to return to the pig sty after getting a bath. (Romans 5:1-5 and James 1:2-6) When the King has adopted a son or daughter, why would He want that child to live outside the palace?
Learning about the spirit realm is going to serve you very well. The more you know, the more you can kick the enemy's rear end. Read the book of Mark and you will see how Jesus dealt with demons. A book you should highly consider buying is "Prayers that Rout Demons and Break Curses," written by John Eckhardt. YouTube is a great resource on deliverance ministry, as well. You might watch videos from Val Wolff, Rabbi Kurt Schneider, Reinhard Bonnke, Invicta Ministries, and Derek Prince.
Prayer
Dear Father in Heaven. I thank You for all You have done for me and I look forward to daily victories in Jesus. Hallelujah! I come before You to learn about the spirit realm. I ask You to open my eyes and let me see what I need to see. Open my spirit eyes so I can observe what is really happening in the universe. I pray for supernatural protection over myself and my friends and family. I also ask that You would do the same for people all over the world. We need to stop fighting battles You have won and stop helping the devil attack us. Help me receive Your peace today. help me receive joy today. Let me know You better, my Lord and my God. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.
* Demons of affliction, oppression, or possession must always be cast out. Jesus cast out demons and this was always a great proof of the power of His divinity. He commands us (His followers, aka Christians) to also cast out demons. If you need help with deliverance ministry, please contact me and I can help you gain freedom or direct you to somebody who is near you.
+ Photo by Henry Hustava from Unsplash.com