When the truth hurts

It hurts, I'm broken, I feel rejected, I think I'm depressed, I feel lost, I feel scared, I'm nervous, I'm uncertain...

At some point or another, from my confession to now, I have had some feeling or emotion that can be described with the phrases above. It would have been much easier for me if I were to sit here writing and say that since my confession, our relationship has blossomed and that we are giving the young tree all the water and nutrients it needs to become a huge, strong tree that delivers many amazing fruit. Unfortunately I can't, the seed I had planted in 2018 was called "divorce" and that it fell on very fertile soil. I also sowed that seed three times I was told and now those trees are in the way of reconciliation with my beloved wife!

What I know now is that I was trying to get her to notice that our relationship was in trouble and I was too. Let's call it "negative motivation" if you will. I thought that my negative words had no effect, based on her initial reaction, that however changed towards the end of that horrible year. I can't deny the fact that I most certainly contemplated the idea many times, that's why I could utter the words so recklessly. I also had no idea what "divorce" actually means practically as well as emotionally for everyone involved, this includes children and not withstanding the fact that it's against God's Word to divorce (accept if you or your children are in danger). Refer to Mark 10:2-9

The tongue is one of the smallest members, yet it causes the most destruction if not controlled. I wish that I never said those hurtful things, I wish that I was a man of integrity and courage back then. It's quite clear that none of us can change the past, but remember that you can surely change the future, so:

STOP!

What you are thinking about doing!

You are not the man you think you are, you're wife is not the person you think she is. If only you could see yourself through the eyes of our Creator and change the way you look at other people too. You both have a divine purpose and if you choose to seek your life's purpose by approaching God's throne first, He will guide you on the path you were meant to walk. 

The parable of the sower

Mark 4:1-9

You can be the seed or the soil, all depending on the situation or the season in your life. When you are the soil, it's very clear that different soil types will yield different results and here you would want to be the soil where the weeds were removed, ploughed and fertilized. This means that you want all the sin removed from your life, so you can yield a good crop. 

When you are the seed, you can be good or bad seed, you can build people up, or tear them down. What seed would you rather be?

There is no doubt that sometimes when you are the seed, you may feel that you are buried with no light and you don't know if you will have enough water or nutrients to survive. FYI-Plants initially have enough nutrients inside the seed to start growing, before relying on the nutrients from the ground. When you are in a dark place and you don't know if there is any light, call on God, because the Holy Spirit within you will give you the nutrients you need to start changing, transforming and before long, you will grow roots and break through to see the light. With faith and continuing to seek God first, you will grow into a person that will fulfill the needs of people around you, yielding a good crop.

I know that I am in good soil, as I have found my refuge in God and although it is dark right now, I know that by the strength of the Holy Spirit, I have started to change - I have started to grow and in time, I will break through the surface, exposing me to the light. I will grow and yield a good crop for God's Kingdom.

Prayer

Our Father in Heaven, thank you for being the perfect farmer, for knowing what the soil needs to make the seeds grow and what seeds to sow when. Your timing is perfect and today I thank you for my current circumstances. Thank you that this is only a season and that you have a plan for me and that at the right time, You will harvest. Please give me the nutrients I need to grow and yield an amazing crop. I ask that You will encourage growth in my wife, so that she too may yield a crop for Your Kingdom. I pray this in the precious Name, above all other names, Jesus Christ. Amen!

The courts of Heaven

I'm by no means going to pretend like I fully understand the Courts of Heaven, because I don't. What I do know however is that the devil is referenced a number of times in the Bible as being "the accuser" or "adversary"and many times the setting of, or the surroundings in parables, warnings about the devil and prophecies, are in a court setting.

Zechariah 3:1 [AMP] "Then the guiding angel showed me Joshua the high priest [representing disobedient, sinful Israel] standing before the Angel of the Lord, and satan standing at Joshua's right hand to be his adversary and to accuse him." 

So my understanding of this was by listening to Robert Henderson* on this very subject and the bottom line is that we should many times pray like we are an accused by the devil, defending our case in court before God as the judge, with Jesus Christ as our counsel.

Why would satan have a case against us?

Whenever you have unconfessed sin, satan has a case against you and will lay claim. We know that sin has it's own consequences and this is because satan will lay charges against you in the courts of heaven and if you do not repent, God will allow, not cause, the "sentence" to the charges against you. Confess and repent of your sins is the answer here if you wondered... 

Now the Good News!

Do you know why people watch reruns of their sports teams playing a final or some may watch a thriller over and over?

Quite simply put, it's because they know how it ends, they know that their team wins or that the person in that movie lives etc. The good news for you, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, you know how all of this ends one day: God wins and the devil loses

Revelation 12:10 [AMP] "Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, "Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom (dominion, reign) of our God, and the authority of His Christ have come; for the accuser of our [believing] brothers and sisters has been thrown down [at last], he who accuses them and keeps bringing charges [of sinful behavior] against them before our God day and night." 

Prayer

Dear God, our Abba Father, Friend and Judge hallowed be Your Name. We humbly approach You dear Lord to hear us as we plead our case before you.

We bring before you our sins, where we have made any offerings with wrong motives, we ask that the sound of these offerings be annulled. Sanctify all of our motives.

 Any transgression against the Will of God and the law of Moses, we repent of. Let the “Blood” talk and represent on our behalf and plead our case before You. Satan has no power over us and has no unsettled claims against us, because we were made free by the precious blood of Jesus our Christ.

 Father we bring our iniquities to You, that any covenant made with the demonic realm be broken, that any altar where a sacrifice has been made, will be torn down now, in Jesus’ name. Reveal the sins of the father’s before, our families and family members of our bloodlines, our lineage and heritage that may cause the demonic realm to have a case against us. We bring these to you as Jehovah-El-Elyon and request the “Blood” to annul these accusations and claims.

 Let the Liberty of You oh God now come, let the Holy Spirit consume any unrighteousness by testing our hearts with fire, cleanse our heart from any wickedness. Capture any impure thoughts and bind any negative thoughts in the name of Jesus so that it will not grow or bear any fruit.

 We are the chosen by our dear God, Abba Father. We speak life into our marriages, relationships, health and finances. We pray for your blessings and favour upon our lives and that You will give us strength to persist and the power to resist the evil one. We submit to You Elohim.

 We pray that Your perfect Will be done on earth, as it is in heaven and acknowledge that You are the God most high, our Father and our friend who delights in us. We humbly pray this in Your perfect Grace through the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen!

*A video from Robert Henderson explaining "The Courts of Heaven"

A Thorn in the flesh

The term "a thorn in the flesh" comes from the apostle Paul who wrote in 2 Corinthians 12:7 [AMP] "Because of the surpassing greatness and extraordinary nature of the revelations [which I received from God], for this reason, to keep me from thinking of myself as important, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan, to torment and harass me - to keep me from exalting myself!" We are not told what this thorn is however, the best possible explanation I have read so far is that Paul could have been plagued by guilt from his past life as a persecutor of the early Christians and that the "guilt" is brought on by "the accuser" which is satan (read here) 

So what is this thorn anyway?

I believe that a thorn in the flesh can be a weakness or anything that can cause you to sin or which can negatively affect your body and soul (a good way to understand the "human design" is in the image below from an article called: Spirit, Soul and Body

A thorn could then be described (in my own opinion) as things like: guilt, shame, doubt, fear and of course what is known as the seven deadly sins: lust, envy, pride, gluttony, greed, sloth and wrath. Now with sin it is important to understand that the devil does tempt you and that you could quite possibly have a spirit/demon tormenting you (please read more about spirits here) The emotions mentioned are things we possibly manifest in our mind which later becomes a heavy burden we carry around in our hearts, a thorn in the flesh. 

A personal thorn as an example and what led me to write about it...

I was walking in a shopping center after the strict Covid-19 restrictions the other day and as I was navigating my way to the desired store, I found myself looking at a woman I would consider good looking, for longer than what I am meant to (the definition could be that I was staring) Then it dawned on me, or probably most suitable that the Holy Spirit convicted me, that I had a quite obvious "thorn" and if left unchecked, could lead to sin. I thank God for this revelation, because I know that I have a weakness and can guarantee you that satan knows it too. Fortunately by identifying this weakness I can do something about it and the best place to start is to pray about it and to give it to God. Do this continuously!

Should you wish to pray a prayer that works, please visit www.wildatheart.org and visit there prayers page or alternatively click HERE! Pray everyone but most of all, pray the one about sexual healing!

Have you identified any thorn/s in your flesh?

There are two scriptures I would like to bring to your attention here and the one is regarding Temptation:

Mark 14:38 [AMP] "Keep [actively] watching and praying so that you do not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the body is weak."

Be on the lookout and be aware of temptation, because it is all around us, everywhere you go, there temptation will be. Capture every thought and discern its origin and only then, once you are certain that it is not from satan, let it "bear fruit".

The second scripture is Paul telling us that he indeed did ask God to take away the thorn and what God's response was (with a caveat):

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 [AMP] "Concerning this I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might leave me; 9 but He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you [My lovingkindness and My mercy are more than enough-always available-regardless of the situation]; for [My] power is being perfected [and is completed and shows itself most effectively] in [your] weakness." Therefore, I will all the more gladly boast in my weakness, so that the power of Christ [may completely enfold me and] and may dwell in me."

Note: When you have accepted Jesus into your life, you are meant to be free from all these negative emotions, albeit it takes effort and diligence, God can't help you if you keep holding on to the hurt and the guilt. You must surrender all to God.

Ever wondered what Mercy is or how to explain it?

Say you are a parent and your child was murdered; Justice would be if the person is caught and follows the Judiciary System; Grace would be if you forgive the murderer; Mercy would be if you got up in court and pleaded to the Jury and the Judge that the person should be set free. I can't recall where I heard it, but it sure made a lot of sense to me and I hope it can help you too.

PRAYER

Father God, hear my voice as I praise Your Holy Name. 

You are Jehovah-Uzzi, The Lord my Strength!

Lord Jesus, You know of my weaknesses and the temptation I face,

as You too were subject to temptation and weakness yet you did not sin.

I ask, as David wrote in Psalms 119:133 "Establish my footsteps in Your Word; 

Do not let any human weakness have power over me."

I submit to You dear Lord and ask for the strength and power to resist the devil.

I pray this in Jesus' Name. Amen