On his own merit, our enemy is not particularly powerful. He can accuse and provoke, but until he finds something within us to grab hold of, he is limited. Unfortunately, identifying such a handle isn’t necessarily difficult. It can be provided by unresolved hurts, lies we’ve believed, a distorted sense of who we are, a twisted sense of who God is (or isn’t), unforgiveness… An important part of defending ourselves against such attacks is to recognize what those handles are for us. This comes through an honest examination of what consistently steals our sense of peace, or security, or joy, or hope; and those triggers which cause us to abandon Christ’s character/ways in favor of something more visceral. One of the adversary’s most effective tools in these situations is blame. If we can find someone else to blame for the condition of our hearts, we will remain focused on “them”, and never seek the healing we so desperately need. That is a win-win for our enemy, as we remain both miserable, and powerless to do anything about it.
Archive for the ‘Thought for the Day / Quotes’ Category
Thought for the Day – Getting a Grip
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged accuse, blame, provoke, triggers, unresolved hurts, visceral on October 13, 2021| Leave a Comment »
Thought for the Day – Prerequisites
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged 2 Chron. 7:14, Isaiah 40:31, seek my face, wicked ways, wings as eagles on October 4, 2021| Leave a Comment »
We humans have an uncanny ability to see only what we choose to see, and to ignore the aspects we don’t want to acknowledge. Two popular scriptures exemplify this phenomena. The first is the oft quoted 2 Chron. 7:14, which says “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land”. This verse clearly addresses the posture of one’s heart, if they hope for their prayers to be effective, and yet we generally skip right past those requirements, and jump to the desired outcome. Thus, the common takeaway becomes “Pray for our nation”, which presumes that these other issues have already been addressed. Similarly, Isaiah 40:31, “they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint”, is a popular catchphrase for Christian t-shirts, posters and bumper stickers. But if a picture is included, you can be sure it will be of eagles soaring, and not people waiting. In both cases these assurances are predicated on us taking the first step. There is little doubt that we’d all like to soar like eagles, and to see our land healed, but the burning question is, are we willing to endure the process of apprehending those precious promises.
Thought for the Day – Unprecedented
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged calling, character, mission, unprecedented on September 28, 2021| Leave a Comment »
The enemy would have us believe that we are living in “unprecedented” times & that everything has changed (Eccl 1:9). But God’s character (Heb 13:8), His calling (Matt 22:37), and our mission (Matt 28:19) remain untouched within this present tense.
Thought for the Day – Glory
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged glory on September 20, 2021| Leave a Comment »
In the days of old mankind was shielded from the Lord’s glory (Exodus 33), but because of Christ we now know where that glory resides (Col. 1:27). If the world can’t see it, we need to ask ourselves why?
Thought for the Day – Opening the Door
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged adversary on August 12, 2021| Leave a Comment »
That which offends you is a powerful tool in the hands of your adversary
Thought for the Day – Warnings
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged Elijah, godliness, revelation, study scripture, warnings on July 28, 2021| Leave a Comment »
Scripture warns of a people who honor God with their lips, but whose hearts are far from Him (Isa 29:13, Matt 15:8, Mark 7:6). Who possess a form of godliness, but who live in denial of His true power (2Tim 3:5). A people who diligently study scripture, yet refuse to come to Him (John 5:38-40). Who call Him Lord, and do things in His name, but who don’t truly know Him (Matt 7:21-23). These warnings are not aimed at an unbelieving world, they are for those who profess to be “Believers”, who consider themselves “Christians”, who refer to Jesus as Lord, and who are likely to be found in a church building. These warnings culminate in the book of Revelation, which contains strong admonitions for the various churches.
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With so many claiming that we are approaching the end of times, we need to hear the voice of the prophet Elijah echoing out of history, “How long shall you waiver between two opinions?” (1 Kings 18:21). As John the Revelator said, “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 2 & 3).
Thought for the Day – Nerves
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes on July 8, 2021| Leave a Comment »
If everybody and everything is on your nerves, it may be worth considering that neither everybody, nor everything is the actual problem.
Thought for the Day – In His Name
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged in Him, in His name on June 29, 2021| Leave a Comment »
The difference between “in Him” (John 15:4-5) and “in His name” (Matt. 7:22-23) is everything.
Thought for the Day – Attitude Adjustment
Posted in Thought for the Day / Quotes, tagged attitude, casting out a demon, demon on June 14, 2021| Leave a Comment »
One shouldn’t expect to successfully cast out a demon with the same attitude they used to invite it in (even if they use Jesus’ name).
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