Terry Casales - October 21st, 2021
(Photo: fanpop.com)
Beloved, sometimes when you are so close to what you are contending for that you can taste it, that is when the enemy of your soul will try to flood you with fear and anxiety as his last attempt to discourage you and to get you to quit. Sometimes in a race, the most difficult part is that last hill you are running up, only to find that there are still a few miles left to complete.
This is the moment where all of your months and years of training are put to the test. When everything in your body is hurting and you are so tempted to quit, that is where My still, small voice will be telling you to keep going, to push through beyond what you ever thought possible. You did your part, and now it is My turn to do My part.
Do not allow your default emotional response to an obstacle placed on your path to get you into panic mode - to react out of fear before you even have all of the facts. If you allow yourself to get out of this habit of jumping every time you see or hear something that may be alarming, you will live a life with a lot less stress and a lot more peace and love. Whenever you automatically agree with the spirit of fear out of your emotions without taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, you have stepped outside of the faith of God. This is where your mind, will and emotions go into the “what if” worst case scenarios.
Those “what if” questions are attempts from the spirit of fear to get into your mind and establish a stronghold because that is where the battlefield is. This is the place where you must be on guard at all times - not passively receiving every thought that comes in — but where your spiritual discernment kicks in. Instead of watching the reel in your mind the enemy introduces of the “what ifs,” instead worship and dive into the Word of God. Sit with Him in the secret place and ask Him what He has to say about the subject. When you are with Him, you are allowing your soul to rest and your spirit to arise and receive God’s wisdom, understanding and peace. You will begin to see and understand the situation from His perspective. Beloved, every habit takes 21 days to be established, so, instead of continuing in the old habit (which never works) of automatically thinking and expecting the worst case scenario, based on what you see with your natural mind, instead, allow the Word of God to renew your mind and align it with the mind of Christ. You don’t have to try to keep applying the old mindset of trying to figure everything out in your head. Get out of your carnal mind, beloved, because it is limited, and allow your heart to engage with the heart of your heavenly Father.
After taking the oath of office, Roosevelt delivered the first of one of his many memorable speeches as president. Within the opening minutes of his 1,883 word-long, 20-minute address, he uttered a line that, for many Americans, would encapsulate FDR’s twelve years in the oval office: “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
While conceding that “only a foolish optimist [could] deny the dark realities of the moment,” Roosevelt nevertheless laid blame not with average Americans who were wanting for food, shelter, and work, but with powerful forces in government and finance that failed to uphold their end of the bargain in the American experiment. FDR pledged to instate a “program of action” aimed at the restoration of American prosperity, and implored Americans to move forward with “the warm courage of…national unity.”
Four years later, in his 1941 State of the Union address, Roosevelt harkened back to his first inaugural address, stating that a goal of Allied victory in the war would be “freedom from fear…everywhere in the world.” Citizens around the globe today would do well to heed FDR’s advice by approaching current issues with bravery and courage, and with fear for nothing but fear itself.
I feel like President Roosevelt understood that fear is an “entity” - a demonic principality sent from the pit of hell. The devil has always understood the way to a man’s heart is through his soul (his mind, will and emotions). I believe he understood that we are all caught in the middle of a spiritual war between the Kingdom of God versus the kingdom of darkness. The enemy would like nothing more than for you to keep believing that we are all helpless victims — mindless sheeple unable to do anything about it.
When you discover who you are in Christ, you receive the revelation that, as a new creation, you are just as Jesus was on earth. You receive the revelation that you have access to the Kingdom of heaven and that you carry the power and the authority of God because you are the righteousness of God in Christ. This is why the mind of man is a battlefield. This is why we are each commissioned by God to take dominion over the earth and all that is in it for His glory. This is why we must first take dominion of our minds and our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit — through the power of the love of God — the most powerful force in the universe. This is why we, as watchmen on the wall, need to allow the Holy Spirit to give us the battle strategies and the discernment, to see and to watch what is of God and what is from the evil one, through the filter of His Word. The enemy of your soul has tried to occupy the territory of your mind long enough. It is time for you to put on the armor of God, stand on God’s Word and kick the enemy and his minions out in the name of Jesus. The truth is that you are advancing and you are taking ground in Jesus' name. See yourself as God sees you, as who you really are, as a victor and not a victim!
Beloved, you will never be able to walk in the spirit if you are always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Stop acting like “chicken little,” living with and agreeing with the other chickens, stop agreeing with the spirit of dread and start living the life of the eagle that God created you to be! It is never too late to start. Decide today to declare with your mouth and agree with the Word of God that good things are going to happen to you because God is good, you belong to Him and He loves you. Get in the habit of speaking life in all circumstances. Declare the goodness of God over your life and over the lives of those you love in Jesus’ name!
Nothing is more appealing than speaking beautiful, life-giving words. For they release sweetness to our souls and inner healing to our spirits. - Proverbs 16:24 - TPT
I’m not telling you this because I’m in need, for I have learned to be satisfied in any circumstance. - Philippians 4:11 - TPT
So why would I fear the future? Only goodness and tender love pursue me all the days of my life. Then afterward, when my life is through, I’ll return to your glorious presence to be forever with you! - Psalm 23:6 - TPT
Then I will say to my soul, “Don’t be discouraged; don’t be disturbed, for I fully expect my Savior-God to break through for me. Then I’ll have plenty of reasons to praise him all over again.” Yes, he is my saving grace! - Psalm 43:5 - TPT
Choose today to be faithful (full of faith) instead of fearful (full of fear). Refuse to allow the enemy of your soul to fill you with fear and dread and, instead, allow the Holy Spirit and God’s Word to fill you with His perfect faith. Beloved, you were created to walk, to live and to have your being as Jesus did on earth, in the love and in the glory of God the Father. Your future is bright, beloved. The sky is not falling. The Kingdom of God is about to invade the earth. The glory of God is coming! The best is yet to come!
For God will never give you the spirit of fear, but the Holy Spirit who gives you mighty power, love, and self-control. - 2 Timothy 1:7 - TPT
Take the carefree birds as your example. Do you ever see them worry? They neither grow their own food nor put it in a storehouse for later. Yet God takes care of every one of them, feeding each of them out of the abundance of his love and goodness. Isn’t your life more precious to God than a bird? Be carefree in the care of God! - Luke 12:24 - TPT
Here’s what I’ve learned through it all: Don’t give up; don’t be impatient; be entwined as one with the Lord. Be brave and courageous, and never lose hope. Yes, keep on waiting—for he will never disappoint you! - Psalm 27:14 - TPT
So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together for good, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfill his designed purpose. - Romans 8:28 - TPT
He is given to us like an engagement ring, as the first installment of what’s coming! He is our hope-promise of a future inheritance which seals us until we have all of redemption’s promises and experience complete freedom—all for the supreme glory and honor of God! - Ephesians 1:14 - TPT
For all of God’s promises find their “yes” of fulfillment in him. And as his “yes” and our “amen” ascend to God, we bring him glory! - 2 Corinthians 1:20 - TPT
So let’s keep on giving our thanks to God, for he is so good! His constant, tender love lasts forever! - Psalm 118:29 - TPT
——————
Kommentare