Scripture Doodle: Proverbs 5:22

The Spiritual Warfare Value of God’s Law

When you think of Spiritual Warfare, probably the last thing you think of is the Law of God. Christians are largely aware that Spiritual Warfare is vitally important to finding and keeping true freedom in Christ. The devil is like a “roaring lion”, especially working to “devour” Christians, who are most threatening to him and his kingdom (1 Peter 5:8-9). Thus, choosing to walk with God automatically means that we must resist the devil (in God’s Power, of course). As it says in James 4:7:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” 

The process of daily submitting to God and resisting the devil is called Spiritual Warfare. Yet while most Christians understand the importance of effective Spiritual Warfare as a necessity to genuine Christian living, most do not realize that, without the Law of God, effective Spiritual Warfare is impossible!

Countless Christians unwittingly place themselves in spiritual harm’s way by acting in ignorance to the principles of God's Law. The Law of God is intended to protect us from the onslaught of the enemy. But when we are spiritually ignorant, the Bible warns us that the devil gets the advantage over us (2 Corinthians 2:11)!

Throughout our years in ministry, we have interceded for Christians who have unknowingly stepped outside of the protective guidelines of God's Law, only to reap the fruits of hell as a result.

One man was unable to find peace in his home. Instead of a sanctuary, a little taste of Heaven on earth, his home had become a place of demonic torment and spiritual oppression. He explained to us that he felt better when he left his house. He asked us to come and do a prayer and anointing over his home. He hoped that God would then cleanse his home, removing this demonic darkness and spiritual pestilence. 

When we arrived at his home and began the requested prayer and anointing, we saw that he had a

large Buddha sitting on a stand in his house. We inquired about it, realizing that the devil could have gained the right to infect his home just from the presence of this idol alone! It turned out that the man, although a Christian, had simply picked up the Buddha as a souvenir during his travels. It meant nothing to him, other than as a memento of the trip. But, had he been aware of God's safeguards, which forbid all idolatry in the lives and homes of God’s people, he would have been spared a great deal of pain and suffering! Demons don’t get the right to infect a Christian’s home without a cause!

“As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come” Proverbs 26:2

On another occasion, we were  asked to drive to a couple’s home, located several hours from us. The wife tearfully explained that they were afraid to live in their own home. Lights and water faucets would supernaturally  turn on and off. Menacing presences would threaten the household. The couple couldn’t even sleep through the night without some form of hair-raising manifestation.

“Why is Satan doing this to us? We’re CHRISTIANS!” the woman cried.

Gently, we shared with the exhausted couple that there was likely a cursed object in their home, giving the demons the right to possess the house. We knew this because of a warning given in the Torah:

“Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing.” Deuteronomy 7:26
 
Because the Law is viewed as “done away with at the Cross”, Christians no longer study it or concern themselves with its principles. As a result, this poor couple had no idea that cursed items could bring such terror to their home!

As it turned out, there was one cursed item in the couple’s home. It was a gorgeous tapestry, hanging on the living room wall. The artist had been a mystical, New Age, “white witch”. When the wall-hanging was removed and burned, the home prayed over and anointed, the spiritual manifestations stopped and the demonic shadow was fully lifted. We were all thankful to God for this powerful deliverance, but we were also saddened to realize that the precious couple could have been spared the whole ordeal had they only known and kept the principles of the Law of God!

But of all the unnecessary sorrows brought on unsuspecting Christians by nailing the Law to the Cross, perhaps the most devastating blow to effective Spiritual Warfare is the devil’s resulting “revolving door policy”. This “revolving door” to the human soul is a spiritual condition in which demons are kicked out of the soul, through Warfare Prayer, only to return, for reasons soon to be explained. As will be shown, it is only when we remain within the protection of the Torah principles that we can find lasting freedom in Christ.

When we disregard God's Law, we have committed sin (1 John 3:4). And it is through sin that the devil gets the rights to afflict and enslave us in the first place! All demonic bondage, even full demonic possession, began with sin—either sins which we have committed personally, or it is bondage brought on us by the sins of our ancestors (Exodus 20:5). The connection between disobeying the principles of the Law (which is sin) and demonic bondage is plainly stated in Proverbs. To be “holden” with the “cords” of our own “sins” literally means to be unable to get free from the devil’s bondage.


“His own iniquities (sins—Law breaking) shall take (ensnare, imprison) the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.”  Proverbs 5:22

Scripture Doodle: Proverbs 27:21

Proverbs 27:21

The next Scripture Doodle I will share from my Bible is Proverbs 27:21. It says, "As the fining pot for silver and the furnace for gold, so is a man to his praise."

It's an interesting concept - praise - and what it does in the human heart. A fining pot is where silver is melted down, as is the furnace for gold.

My father spent some time working as an inorganic chemist. During this time, he was often asked to test specimens of gold to
determine the level of purity. To do this, he placed the small samples of gold in a bone ash crucible (as shown in the picture on the right. Then he placed the crucible in a special furnace to melt it completely.

When the chemist removes the crucible from the oven, the gold will be in a completely liquid state. Now, the truth about the gold will be made known. If the gold is 100% pure, it will do something amazing. The gold blicks. A blick is when the gold "turns on" literally lighting up like a light-bulb being switched on. It is an incredible sight. But, if the gold is not completely pure, it will not blick. It takes the intense fires of the furnace to reveal the truth about the gold. This is why Scripture uses this as an analogy for praise. Praise is the furnace which reveals what we're really made of.

One older evangelist, whom I'll call Elder Roy, was an excellent example of this concept. Over the years he had traveled to more than 30 countries. He had prayed with countless people. He had preached innumerable sermons. And he had helped many who were in demonic bondage find freedom through spiritual warfare prayers. His had been a busy life of ministry. And truly many, many people had been blessed by God's Work through Elder Roy's life, prayers and messages.

But the sad part was that in the later part of his life, Elder Roy had begun to lose sight of Who should get the credit for "his" many accomplishments. It was evident that he was losing sight of Who was really doing all the work through him, because when people praised him - which they did very frequently - he began to take the praise as a personal compliment, rather than deflecting the praise Heavenwards, as he formerly had done.

In his earlier years, Elder Roy would always deflect the praise by saying, "I praise God that you were blessed by that sermon!" or "It is God Who has made you whole."  But, in his later years, this habit of deflection had changed. When people said things like, "Elder Roy, you have transformed my life! I am so grateful to you for all that you have done for me," Elder Roy would say, "Of course!" or "You may make the check out to..." In other words, Elder Roy no longer received praise with humble deflection. He had become a very prideful man, who was wrongly taking credit for the wonderful works God had done. As a result, Elder Roy gradually lost his ministry. It was a sad ending for a man who had been such a mighty warrior in God's army.

If only Elder Roy had been aware of his changing response to people's praise. Had he noticed the shift, which was visible to others, he might have fallen to his knees and gotten back on track with God - rather than losing his ability to minister entirely. If only Elder Roy had recognized that praise reveals so much, he might have had time to do something about it before it was too late.

Praise is the melting pot which reveals the true essence of the heart. For Herod, when his subjects praised his speech by shouting, "It is the voice of a god and not a man!" the praise revealed his pride.The Scripture tells the story in Acts 12:21-23:

On the appointed day, Herod donned his royal robes, sat on his throne, and addressed the people. 22And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man! 23Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.…

So the next time you receive praise, think about it before you respond. What does your response to praise reveal about your own heart?  As a good spiritual warrior, you will find that praise is a very useful test. It is the furnace which will reveal whether self is on the throne of your heart, or whether you are fully submitted to God's Sovereignty. It's all revealed in the praise test! 

Proverbs 24:10

Scripture Doodle: Proverbs 24:10

One of the things I enjoy doing in my spare time is illustrating Scriptures on the side panel of my Bible. Doing this helps me memorize Scripture and is a fun way to find Spiritual encouragement. This week, just for fun, I will share some of my Scripture doodles from my Bible. I hope you enjoy them.

The first one I will share is Proverbs 24:10. This Scripture is a powerful Spiritual Warfare principle. It means that you have to develop spiritual strength day-by-day. Only then, will you have the strength you need to face a major test. 

If you prepare ahead of time, developing your relationship with God and deepening your understanding of His Word - DAILY, you will be strong (in Him) and better equipped to face the bigger trials and tests along life's way.

This Scripture encourages us to develop spiritual strength in much the same way a warrior develops physical fighting skills. Because the warrior has practiced and prepared - training for battle ahead of time - the warrior will be ready when a real battle comes. 

However, if someone decided to run into battle without any training or preparation, he might be in danger of "fainting" in the day of adversity.

Spiritual warfare principle from this first Scripture Doodle: A good Spiritual Warrior will develop Spiritual Strength through taking time with God daily. 

Bible Verses on Spiritual Warfare

"Submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." James 4:7

"You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world." 1 John 4:4

"For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." 2 Cor. 10:3-5
 
"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith." 1 Pet. 5:8-9

"No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication is from Me," declares the Lord." Is. 54:17

The Spirit of Delilah

The ruling spirits which are working to destroy the Body of Christ from within are Jezebel and Delilah. Recognizing them is vital to your spiritual safety - and to mounting an effective and appropriate spiritual response. I already shared a blog article on Jezebel, so what about the spirit of Delilah?

The name Delilah is spelled in Hebrew as “DELIYLAH” which means “pining with desire”. The meaning of her name is self-explanatory. She pins you down with desire! Her whole being, presence, speech, look and action exude “seduction”. She makes her victims suffer mentally and physically with desire for her. She is the epitome of a Seductress.

This spirit of Delilah is assigned to destroy all men and women of prominence, people with a purpose in life, any pastor or leader who is in ministry.

The devil sends women to churches that have this spirit to terminate the church and cause the church leader to commit emotional and physical adultery, thereby losing the blessing and anointing of Yahweh. Her role is through the door of relationships or marriages. She uses relationships to discover her victim’s strengths, so that she can destroy them, draining out their spiritual power and ultimately removing them from Yahweh’s Work. Sadly this spirit can be in someone and this person won’t realize that they are being used by a spirit of Delilah to destroy others. Please remember that even though we refer to Delilah as “her”, this spirit is genderless.

Just as there are 18 identifying characteristics of the Jezebel spirit, here are also 18 Identifying Characteristics of the Delilah spirit:

1. Delilah is highly skilled in taming people through seduction (which may be accomplished with flattery, praise, friendship or sexual advances). Even the strongest of Christians can be beguiled by her, if they do not stay alert in the Spirit. Delilah especially is after people of prominence and uniqueness; people in the spot light, anointed ministers of God, gifted men and women, and those who are in effective relationships or marriages. Her assignment is to drain the power and blessing of God from your life. When this is accomplished, just as she did with Sampson long ago, the formerly anointed person is made spiritually weak and ordinary.

2. Like Jezebel, she will fool those around her by being at the worship every Sabbath, at every Bible study and every all night prayer. She will be punctual and completely involved in many if not all spiritual activities, as this is her way to get close to the spiritual leaders. She wants his head on her lap.

3. Delilah’s love money. She is the modern day gold-digger but only far wiser and refined than the average money seeker. With one need or another, she will financially drain her victim.

4. She is immoral. She is filled with ungodly and perverse sensual desires and arts. She preys upon anyone who can best be used to weaken the Body of Christ, whether they are married or not.

5. Day after day, she will keep relentlessly pursuing and pressuring her victim to leave his/her marriage partner. She may seduce the Christian to become sexually involved with her. Or she may work to induce the spiritual target to run away with her or commit any other sin with her. This she will persuade softly – even over a period of many months or years - until the target listens to her voice. Enduring such long-term pressure should be totally unnecessary, as Christians should discern this spirit quickly and respond to it appropriately, rather than enduring its pressure over a long period of time.

6. Delilah is like a Jack of all trades. She knows the tricks, navigations, avenues, points and steps in getting a person’s attention. She is a chameleon who purposely takes on the likes and dislikes of her target. She will appear to ardently love hiking and backpacking, if her target is an avid outdoorsman. Most deceptively, she will also appear to love God and to be deeply concerned with the salvation of souls, if her target is truly evangelistic in heart. Whatever it takes to convince her intended victim that she is his/her soul-mate or soul-sister (as the case was with us), that is what she will appear to be.

7. Delilah will try to get close to people in your life in order to demolish you. She will do this by gaining your friends’ and family members’ confidences through politeness and kindness. Then as time goes by, your loved ones might begin to open up about you and your relationship to her. She can play miss “shoulder to cry on” and miss “good listener”. Little by little a bond will develop and before you know it people in your life will join her in helping her pursuit of you – as her target. Great anointed men like Samson fell because of her guile.

8. Delilah works to wreck homes, marriages and relationships.

9. She is a seductress. This spirit is skilled in luring and taming men and women. You will find yourself being drawn to this sort of person without any particular reason and wonder why you are so excited to see him/her. It’s important to always put on the full Armor of God that you may stand!

10. Delilah is hellishly empowered to find out where you are strong and how to turn this strength into a vulnerability and weakness. Her assignment is to take your power, terminate your strengths and imprison you through your weaknesses. This hellish purpose is carried out (unless defeated by the power of Yahweh) so that you will be spiritually idle and ordinary like the rest of the world.

11. She has vast likeable qualities, which leave you confused on what you really like about her. Like a chameleon, she fits everywhere as a perfect, good Christian. In fact, if you were to begin to suspect her and suggest that she was at work in a person, others already under this spirit’s influence would jump to Delilah’s defense, insisting that the Delilah person is the most sincere and committed of Christians one could ever hope to meet! However those whom she has stung in the past know about her ugly side, but this track record is one she carefully covers from view. Often this is accomplished by uprooting and moving to a new area, leaving behind family and friends.

12. She is very knowledgeable about what men or women want and need emotionally and physically. Delilah knows how to treat her intended victim like a king. She’ll be willing to do everything that your spouse won’t - and she’ll do it exceptionally well.

13. She knows the vulnerable areas of her victim - and how to minister to them like a mother holds and comforts her son when he has fallen down. She is polite, gentle and quiet. She will not criticize, because she realizes that this causes her target to be defensive. Rather she is qualified in the language of praise. Praise is her native tongue. You may discern this spirit in a person who praises you more than your spouse, even in petty things that do not need praise - you will find the person with this spirit praising anyway. It is because this spirit is after your relationship. She especially takes advantage of a situation wherein your partner is meeting your emotional needs.

14. She is able to make her victim feel more secure within a short space of time through her pretended gentleness. She is trained and gifted in this. Delilah builds relationships with her prey founded on safety, praise, peace and warmth. But her true motives for presenting herself in this warm and caring manner are to destroy, which is quite the opposite of how she presents herself. Remember, Delilah is after the favor of God upon you, your family, your business, your ministry and your marriage. She will do all she can through seduction to make sure this favor departs from you and that you are completely neutralized and left bound in shame.

15. She will make you believe that you have some kind of deep connection together and that you were meant to be best friends or soul mates. Even though this is completely inappropriate and you are already with someone, the person with this spirit will indirectly pressure you daily until you believe it.

16. This spirit is persistent. The person with this spirit will pester you daily with sweet words. Do not think a “No” will stop them from pursuing you. The only way to win is to completely cut off all lines of communication with this hellishly empowered person.

17. Make-up, beautiful hair, appealing clothes and shoes are Delilah’s physical armor, if her target is a man. Likewise a man with this spirit will be very well groomed in a sexually attractive way and usually indirectly splashing out his money or financial assets, wining and dining his intended victim.

18. If the Delilah spirit is working in a woman, to seduce a Christian man, she will often design a secluded environment in order to trap a man into compromise with her. Only a man who flees from her will escape sin and her demonic bondage and destruction.

If your Christian fellowship group or spiritual family hasn’t already been infiltrated by a Jezebel or Delilah, you should be aware that such an infiltration is likely. And it may come in the form of one human face, masking both spirits – as happened to us. This is so likely because, the spirits of Jezebel and Delilah, as we have already shown, are the two leading principalities of darkness spearheading the attack against the Body of Messiah in the Last Days.

Sadly, because of our ignorance, these spirits have been having great success at destroying. But, it is not God's Will for hell to prevail over His House! Warriors of Christ - be armed and vigilant! The spirits of Jezebel and Delilah must not be permitted to weaken or destroy any part of the Kingdom of God! And prayerfully recognizing them immediately is critical to victory against them.

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith…” 1 Peter 5:8-11

The Value of Prayer

Pray often, for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan.

– John Bunyan –

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.

– Samuel Chadwick – 

Spirit of Jezebel

The ruling spirits which are working to destroy the Body of Christ from within are Jezebel and Delilah. Recognizing them is vital to your spiritual safety - and to mounting an effective and appropriate spiritual response.

There are 18 identifying characteristics of the Jezebel spirit:

1. The Jezebel spirit attacks church members with fear - causing members of Christ's Body to become immobilized and unable to function as they should. The Jezebel spirit also attacks ministers and spiritual leaders with fear.

2. The person with the Jezebel spirit will often attack leaders discrediting them and disrespecting the anointing of God upon their lives. This can ruin the leader's influence and ability to serve God effectively. First the Jezebel spirit kills the anointing of God upon the person - and then it destroys the person.

3. Those operating under the Jezebel spirit are self-willed. Only their will is done - not God's. It is always about achieving THEIR agenda.

4. The person with the Jezebel spirit is a master chameleon. He or she is very good at giving the appearance of repentance and righteousness - even using convincing tears!

5. Jezebels need to be praised, elevated and noticed. They seek to be the center of attention.

6. Jezebels exert a possessive “love” that is destructive and controlling, cutting out all other relationships in their victim’s life -and isolating their prey (who is often a spiritual leader).

7. They are loyal - until you disagree with them. Then they are vengeful and NEVER forgive.

8. They do all you ask of them, so long as it goes along with their own plans.

9. Jezebels plant seeds of discord in others that lead to conflict in the homes, friendships, and fellowships of God’s people.

10. They select easily manipulated “Ahab-like” people to be their “minions” - carrying out their plans.

11. They use, manipulate, and control others to accomplish their purposes; but they ultimately work alone.

12. Jezebels do not listen to anyone else. They do not respect anyone in leadership. This may not be visible at the beginning – as they work to secure their own position prior to letting this rebellion show.

13. Jezebels are very religious. They will often attend every prayer meeting, sing every song, and will appear as the most committed and sincere Christian. This puts people off of their guard. Christians can often sense that something is “off” about the Jezebel infiltrator, but they will disregard their spiritual antennae signals, because the “Christian” act put on by the Jezebel is so convincing.

14. Jezebels seek position in order to better control, discredit, and destroy the Body of Christ into which they have infiltrated.

15. Jezebels are not committed to anyone.

16. Jezebels seek affirmation and significance.

17. Jezebels illegitimately claim authority (“I'm anointed - show me your authority and anointing!”)

18. Correction brings full-blown rebellion from the Jezebel.

If We Are Struggling in Prayer

If we are struggling in prayer it is because the wiles of the enemy are getting the upper hand, and we must look for the cause in our lack of discipline. There are some things we have not been strenuously practicing. We used to pray in the morning, do we now? We used to commune with God over the Bible, do we now? We used to be in contact with God wherever we went, are we now? Put on the whole armor of God and continuously practice, then the wiles of the devil cannot get you unaware.

– Oswald Chambers –
from If You Will Ask, 30

Sniper vs. Shotgun

Why You Should Pray in a Sniper-Style

A lot of times its tempting to pray in a shot-gun style manner.  Shotgun prayers just blast in the general direction of where prayers are needed. There is no precision - just a hope that maybe we've got everything covered.

But there is tremendous power in targeted prayers. Sniper-style praying is concentrated, focused, specific and targeted. 

Scripture tells us that "we have not because we ask not" (James 4:2 b). This means that we must be specific to get the full benefit of what God would bestow upon us, if only we would pray more in a sniper-style.

Sniper-style prayers are not only targeted upon a specific topic, seeking a specific outcome, they are also concentrated. Concentrated prayer means that we are "all-in" and completely fervent about the prayer. Its not a verbal shot gun kind of "we'll-shoot-off-in-the-general-area-and-hope-everything-turns-out-right" sort of prayer.

In conversation, we sometimes use a shotgun approach also.  We say things without any depth of meaning. For example, when someone greets you saying, "How are you?"

You are expected to say, "Good." You say this as an automatic response, whether or not

you're feeling good.

Sometimes we tend to do a shotgun approach with God also. We pray, "Father please bless my family and keep us safe." We do want these blessing, but we pray them without any depth of emotion, awareness of what is needed in the family to receive this blessing, or real fervency in prayer. 

As you can see from this target, which was hit with a shotgun blast, shotguns can hit all around an area while never actually hitting the target. The same is true in prayer.

For a hell-shattering prayer, we need the concentrated fervency of sniper-style prayers.
"...The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." James 5:16

Sniper prayer takes time. It takes patience. It also takes awareness of what God's Will is in the situation. For a good sniper is always operating under orders. 

So when you next kneel to pray for your family, spouse, career, future, friends, or anything else that really matters - don't just aim a general prayer in the direction of need and hope for the best. Try praying in a sniper-style. You'll see results for God has promised.




 

Having Trouble With People?

Remember Who is the REAL Enemy!

It's easy to slip into an unenlightened way of thinking about people. Maybe there's that guy at work who seems to have it in for you and is always trying to make you look bad. Maybe there's that nosy neighbor who is always getting up in your business. Maybe there's that lady at church who's always gossiping about you...  They're difficult people! We've all got them in our lives. But if we start thinking that such and such a person is our enemy - they are the real problem - we've lost sight of the real enemy, losing our ability to respond effectively as a result. 

Scripture tells us that we're never up against people. When people demonstrate unlovely attitudes and behaviors towards us, they are not operating under the power of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit. The Fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) are always present in a life where God is on the heart-throne. This is why the Bible tells us that "by their fruits we will know them" (Matthew 7:20). It doesn't mean that we'll be able to identify "bad" people by their lack of the Fruits of the Spirit. Rather, we'll be able to identify evil spirits at work in the lives of the people. 

Being able to discern the spirits at work in someone's life is vitally important - not so we can judge that person and become embittered against them - but so we can effectively pray for them. 

But our ability to pray for someone who is hampered - and maybe even lost entirely - when we react against the person who has done something offensive against us. As soon as we start "hating on" another or thinking in a bitter way about them, we have lost our spiritual potency. The devil already had his hand on this offending person, which is obvious from the un-Christ-like way they're treating us. But if you react in an un-Christ-like manner against the offensive person, the devil gets two for one. He has effectively used them to get you! 

So how can you keep this from happening? The first key is remembering who your enemy really is. You can kind of feel sorry for the person who is acting so horribly when you realize that somehow the spirits of darkness have gotten the driver's seat in his or her life. And when you see this reality, you'll be ready to do what you need to do for them - you'll be ready to pray. As you do this, the enemy will not be able to use the person to get ground in your soul - and the enemy will start to lose his ground in the offender's life as well. Now that's a great two-for-one deal - on the side of God!

God's Overlooked Weapons - Video Clip

God's Overlooked Weapons - Short Video

Some of Heaven's most powerful spiritual warfare weapons are largely unknown - overlooked... Discover them so that you can amp up your spiritual effectiveness.

Promises to Claim for Your Children - Part 4

Warfare for Parents - Prayers for your Teenager 

- Isaiah 66:22

Do you often notice your teenager(s) making decisions which reveal self-centered (instead of Christ-centered) values? Do your teens lack spiritual interest? Are they failing to spend time with God to develop a real relationship with Him? Maybe your teen is far more interested in finding a boy or girl friend than getting to know God. Maybe your teen wants to get his/her personal "list" accomplished and is more focused on that than on developing a real relationship with God... If so, you may worry that maybe your teen doesn't have a personal interest in Eternal Life.

If these concerns have crossed your mind, you can stand in the gap for your teenager today. Remember:

"So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My Mouth: it shall not return unto Me void (empty, or having failed), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."  Isaiah 55:11   

God Promises to preserve your name and the lives of your descendants, so that your children will be with Him in the New Earth.

"For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain." Isaiah 66:22

Prayer to pray today:

Dear Heavenly Father,

You have promised to make a new heaven and a new earth. All who dwell in this new, sinless place will have inherited Eternal Life. You said that You would establish my name and my seed to remain in Your Presence forever. I claim this promise now on behalf of _________________ (name your children). Please, Father, do all that Heaven can do to save my children, to give them a heart for You, and to preserve them - not only in this world - but for all Eternity. In Jesus' Name I ask it, Amen.

Promises to Claim for your Children - Part 3

Warfare for Parents - Prayers for your Teenager 

- Psalm 112:1-2

Have you felt that your teens just aren't living up to their calling in Christ? Are they spiritually weak instead of mighty in Spirit? This is the quintessential power promise to pray for your children. Remember, God promises to fulfill His Promises!

"So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My Mouth: it shall not return unto Me void (empty, or having failed), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."  Isaiah 55:11   

God Promises to bless your children and to make them mighty! This promise is made to the parent who fears God and delights in His Commandments.

"Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in His Commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed." Psalm 112:1-2

Prayer to pray today:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Today, and every day of my life, I choose to fear You and reverence Your Holy Name.  In my Saviour's Name I ask it, Amen. I repent for the times that I have failed to delight in Your Commandments, or to follow Your Will. Please cleanse me from this unrighteousness just now and impute to me Christ's perfect Record.  I also choose to delight in Your Commandments from this day forward, by Your Grace. Having addressed the conditions of this Promise, i now claim it on behalf of my children __________________ (name them). Please Father, deliver ____________________(children's names) from spiritual and moral weakness. Bless them and raise them up to be mighty in Spirit - to the glory of Your Holy Name. I ask this today, for You are faithful Who has promised. Amen.

Promises to Claim for Your Children - Part 2

Warfare for Parents - Prayers for your Teenager 

- Isaiah 65:23-24

Each day this week, I promised to share with you a powerful Bible promise to claim for your children. I invite you to join me in praying. As you do, you will be able to rest in God. He will be at work in the lives of your children - in answer to your prayers.  How do I know? Because God's Promises cannot fail. In fact, He has PROMISED that His PROMISES will always accomplish whatever it is He has Promised to do:

"So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My Mouth: it shall not return unto Me void (empty, or having failed), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."  Isaiah 55:11   

Do your teens have problems with rebellion? Are they acting in such a way as to bring trouble into your life and home even though you have raised them to know better? Today's promise is just what you need...

God Promises that you will not labor in vain, training your children up right, only to lose them to the typical teenage troubles:

"They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.  And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear." Isaiah 65:23-24

Prayer to pray today:

Dear Heavenly Father,

You have promised that I will not labor to train my children up right, and have that labor be for nothing. I recognize that I am far from perfect, as a parent. I acknowledge my many sins and mistakes. But, I ask You to cleanse me of these things and to count me - today - among those who are the "blessed of You". You have promised that my seed will not be brought forth for trouble, but that the blessing You have graciously extended over my life will also be given to my children. Please grant me this promise today, on behalf of ______________ (name your children). In my Saviour's Name I ask it, Amen.

Promises to Claim for Your Children - Part 1

Warfare for Parents - Prayers for your Teenager 

- Proverbs 11:21

As a mother of a daughter in high-school and a son who's in college, I have to say that the necessity of praying for my children has only increased as they grow.

My children are good people. They do well in work and school. They are loving and talented. But the temptations and struggles they face are pretty serious at times. And the choices they make have increased the grey in my husband's and my hair, on more than one occasion. At their more mature ages, my husband and I must watch them make their own choices - some successfully, and some with serious repercussions. There's only one way to have peace of mind regarding my kids - I need to stay on my knees in prayer for them. 

How is it for you? Do you also have older children who need prayer? If you have concerns for

the choices your teens make, for the relationships your teens choose, for the temptations your teens face, or for the salvation of your teens - this next blog theme is for you.

Each day this week, I will share with you a powerful Bible promise to claim for your children. I invite you to join me in praying. As you do, you will be able to rest in God. He will be at work in the lives of your children - in answer to your prayers.  How do I know? Because God's Promises cannot fail. In fact, He has PROMISED that His PROMISES will always accomplish whatever it is He has Promised to do:

"So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My Mouth: it shall not return unto Me void (empty, or having failed), but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."  Isaiah 55:11   

Hell's plans for your children really can be thwarted! Join me this week in hitting your knees in targeted, Promise-empowered, Hell-shattering prayers for your children! Here's the first Promise to claim - the first blessing to pray for:

God Promises to Deliver your children - even from the best-laid plans of Hell itself:

"Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered." Proverbs 11:21.

Prayer to pray today:

Dear Heavenly Father,

I can see many ways in which the forces of evil have laid terrible plans to destroy _______________ (name your children). The evil entertainment, ungodly relationships, and destructive temptations have a soul-destroying effect on my children. In fact, I believe, unless they are protected and delivered that they will be destroyed. Right now, Father, as Job prayed for his children, claiming the Blood of the Lamb over them, I claim the Blood of Jesus Christ over myself and my children. I ask You to clothe me in Christ's Righteousness, just now. And I claim Your Promise that even though hand is joined in hand, the wicked will not be unpunished. But You will deliver my seed, for I am claiming Your Promise in Proverbs 11:21 - and Your Word cannot return unto You void. You have Promised to do this. I praise You for this Promise and I claim it right now on behalf of __________________ (name your children). In my Saviour's Name I ask it, Amen.

  

Heaven's Arsenal - Part 10

Heaven's Arsenal: "Growing The Power of Love - By Overcoming Bitterness" (continued)

As was discussed in Part 9 of this series, unless we can overcome bitterness, by God's Grace, we will never be effective spiritual warriors. Bitterness undercuts all that God is working to accomplish in us. 

 

So how can we keep the root of bitterness from developing in our souls? The best way is - prevention. It is better to prayerfully prevent ourselves from becoming bitter in the first place, than to fight to overcome it once its there.

 

Preventing bitterness from developing requires us to suffer with Grace. When that church member says that gossipy thing about us that undercuts our reputations, we need to suffer through that with Grace. When that difficult neighbor oversteps their bounds, we need to respond to the trial with Grace, rather than bitterness. And so on...

So the big question is: How can we suffer with Grace, instead of becoming bitter?

To suffer with grace rather than becoming embittered, we need to respond to trials by using the acronym G.R.E.A.T. The letters for the acronym G.R.E.A.T. stand for steps that we may take which are Grace-filled responses to situations of suffering. Using G.R.E.A.T. keeps us from becoming bitter. So, here are the steps to a G.R.E.A.T. response:

G — Give Thanks

• The Bible tells us plainly that whether we’re in a happy or difficult situation, we are to still thank God for the GOOD He is accomplishing in this trial.

• 1 Thessalonians 5:18— In every thing give thanks for this is the will of God… concerning you.

•  Thanking God for the trial doesn’t mean we are thanking God for evil. It means that we have full faith in God’s promise to never allow anything to come our way unless He is using it for good. We are enabled to thank God for the benefits He is using this trial to produce.
  

R—Rejoice

• While giving thanks to God at the first onset of a trial is an act of will, true rejoicing is a spiritual response.

• In order to truly rejoice for the good which God is accomplishing in a trial, we must prayerfully identify its benefits. When we can identify the benefits God is bestowing in our suffering, we can really rejoice, rendering heartfelt praise to our Heavenly King.

• One of the biggest blessings hidden within each instance of suffering is God’s work to polish and perfect our characters (Jeremiah 29:11).

• Romans 8:18— ―For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

E—Engraft Scripture

• When our Saviour faced trials, like the temptations in the wilderness, He responded by quoting appropriate Scripture. Claiming Scripture is a powerful way to build faith, enabling us to continue to suffer with grace, fully submitted to God.

• Romans 10:17— ...Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.

A—Appeal to God 

• When we accept the trial, thank God, rejoice for the benefits He is accomplishing through it, and claim Scripture; we have the right attitude to appeal to God. It is appropriate to cry out to God to remove a trial. But, we should ask Him to remove it WHEN He has finished accomplishing the good He intended.

• Remain submitted to God, as you pray:

  Heavenly Father, I am grateful to You that You have chosen me in this furnace of affliction. I do not wish to reject Your choosing process. Therefore, I ask You to strengthen me to endure this trial in a way that brings glory to Your Name. And I give You my permission to keep me in this trial, just as long as You have something good to accomplish by it. But, as soon as Your good work is finished, I ask You to remove this affliction and deliver me from this suffering, for Your Name’s sake. In Jesus’s Name I ask this, Amen.

• Psalm 107:13— Then they cried unto God in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses.

T—Triumph in Bringing Glory to God

• God wants us to respond to trials in a way that even benefits the lives of those who have oppressed us. This response is opposite to our natural hearts.

• Matthew 5:44 ―Love your enemies (with our heart and spirit), bless them that curse you (with our mouth) , do good to them that hate you (with our actions), and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”

• Not only does it glorify God when we are kind and loving toward our “offenders,” but also God has promised to give a special reward to those who return good for evil.

• 1 Peter 3:8-9 ―Finally… be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. 

 (More keys to vanquishing a spirit of bitterness coming in the next blog...)

• •