Adversary

P3455 Help! I’ve misplaced my hope!

/ DVH

It was here a minute ago, now where did I put it? … I seem to have lost my hope. Has that ever happened to you? You are walking along, minding your own business, enjoying the day so far, and suddenly your thoughts plummet to the ground and you can’t see anything good, anywhere. Guess what? You didn’t do anything, that’s a big sign the enemy just threw a destructive distraction bomb at you. he doesn’t need a person to do it, he scrolls his ill-informed rubbish across the screen of our minds.

If the devil cannot get us to stop talking about Jesus with other people then his back-up plan seems to be … ‘let’s mess with their minds.’ That’s when you start remembering perfectly, every mean thing someone else has ever done to you. It is like you have a bucket of cold water thrown in your face. The day started out OK, but now you can’t see one good thing about it. We need to be wise when we deal with our enemy — he hates us. If he can’t throw us off our game, then he will put someone else who can be provocative, across our path to irritate us.

Perhaps you have to meet with Sister ‘boy-do-I-get-up-people’s-noses,’ that day. She’s a dear old duck but she drones on forever about her grandkids, and how Jesus healed her from this and that, and she never ever asks how you are doing! You were looking forward to meeting her, a minute ago, because she is a sweet old saint — then grumpy thoughts hit you from behind. If you like reading detective stories, that is a clue as to what is really going on. 

One of the best things I’ve ever learnt is that not every thought in my dear little head belongs to me. satan loves to throw random thoughts into our minds…  he can even make them sound sympathetic. he says junk like: “I thought this was going to be a good day. But I just conveniently remembered the time this Sister was mean about blah blah blah.” satan loves to use personal pronouns. That is, he speaks as if those thoughts are yours. And we are off down the wrong road before we’ve even seen her, and we don’t need that nasty little demon of comparison whispering to us anymore because it seems we can fill in the blanks all by ourselves. We’ve lost our hope and he’s turned our head.

First things first. Resist the devil. Why? Because he will keep on at you, that’s why. If he can’t get you going round in circles about that particular Sister, then he will remind you of someone who looked at you funny, or someone who walked away as you were speaking to them. And rejection, suspicion, and insult just entered the contended area – the contended area is our brain OK?  It’s called the battlefield of the mind.

Our response appears in 2 Corinthians 2:11, we always need to know what God says: “To keep satan from getting the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his wiles and intentions.” Don’t be ignorant, nothing happens to us by accident. We are in a war, LOVE MUST BE OUR AIM or we are sunk.

After the enemy goes after our hope of sweet fellowship, then he tries to steal our peace. and we start having imaginary conversations in our head. With us playing both parties involved. “She’ll say this, and I’ll say that, and that will fix them!” That’s not good, because it borders on witchcraft. We can’t know how the other person will respond or react to us. We don’t even know half the time what will come out of our own mouth, until we are in the middle of it! 

Sometimes, when my dear hubby and I have the occasional argument – shock horror! I have found my previous negative experiences with other people can influence my current situation with him. It is like we have these key words and someone shouts “bingo!” He sounds like someone else I knew, that was not loving, patient or kind to me. (Meanwhile, it’s worth noting how many times the word I came up in those thoughts.) So now I am no longer disagreeing with my husband, I am still trying to win that battle I lost years ago.

Secondly, find your sense of humour. Be prepared to see the funny side of all this posturing. I try to remind myself that this is a person I love, and yet I’m currently working very hard to hurt them! Half the time, I lose track of what we are saying to each other in the middle of ‘the discussion’ – which is funny all by itself.

The third one is to apologise. Yes, even if they are wrong! I have quoted this scripture so many times to myself they ought to write it on my tombstone — “a soft answer turns away wrath.” (Proverbs 15:1.) It works! Tell the other person you love them more than you need to make your point. Here’s my translation of that. Be sweet to the other person who is currently shouting back at you, think of something good about them and say it out loud instead! Jesus gave us His hope, and He can help us find it again.

Here’s the last one: “Agree with your adversary quickly …”  (Matthew 5:25.) Nothing shoots an argument down more quickly than when we start saying things like: “You are right. I was wrong, I am so sorry for causing all this angst.” Here is the reason why … we are looking to win our brother, NOT the war. If we win the argument we will lose something – our hope for a different outcome. Hardening our hearts against others is hardening our hearts against Him!

We are not at war with our brother or sister, instead we are both fighting a common enemy. We need to humble ourselves, and take the lower seat. Jesus is well acquainted with humility. He didn’t do what others accused Him of doing. Plus, He said not a word. Man, I gotta get me some of that!! When we misplace our hope, we need to stop and go looking for the Lord. He is our anchor. He will teach us how to overflow with hope, instead of foundering in the depths of despair and angst. Bye for today. 👋.

P 3413 Let’s not paint on windows of our mind.

/ DVH

Fear, and sin love to paint their tormenting little scenarios in our minds. I like to be positive on this blog, but the bible clearly says we need to ‘know our adversary.’  And one of his best tricks is to make me think that my adversary is … ME, MYSELF AND I!! I am sure you know what I mean – we often forget what the Lord has already done to set us free.

When something bad happens, we can instantly find reasons to blame ourselves. But what really happens is the other guy stands by whispering into our minds, reminding us of our mistakes and faults. Our poor motivation starts with a thought. Then he tempts us with something we think is good that distracts us from the real battle. God doesn’t tempt us. James 1:13: “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God” [for temptation does not originate from God, but from our own flaws]; for God cannot be tempted by [what is] evil, and He Himself tempts no one.” Find the ‘fatal flaw’ and deal with it.

The enemy uses doubt like a spray can of paint while he is trying to twist or cover up the truth. Plus he tries to disrupt our thoughts with temptations, threats or intimidation. It happened to Jesus and it will happen to us, we are not exempt. But, because we chose Jesus we have a way to escape, thank you Lord! Knowing the Word of God is our way to fight! Let’s be alert and aware of the devil’s schemes, and remember how easily we can be outwitted. 2 Corinthians 2:11. “…in order that satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”

Our enemy will always challenge God’s word. (Genesis 3.) he has no tender-heartedness, or pity in him, so he delights in preying on our ignorance or innocence. And another way he sucks us into his vortex of lies, is to challenge our identity in Christ. (Luke 4:1-13; Mark 1:34.) He tells us those promises in God’s Word are for someone much nicer and more spiritual than we are. Many saints suffer from his whispers that their salvation is not firm.

Our salvation, our turning to Jesus to save us, may not look like Brother-I-got-baptised-in-the-river-Jordan’s grand event. Instead, we simply went up the front and didn’t feel a thing … but we knew we had to make that choice and we did. Our enemy picks at the parts of our faith that are weakened by our own sin, doubt, and sometimes other people’s rejection of us etc. Daily, he prods at us to focus on those things. 

Let’s focus on Jesus, what He did FOR us, and what He is doing IN us, right now. He is our true north! My prayers may not be answered and sometimes yours aren’t either … but that’s not the point. The point is what is your focus today? If we are not clinging to Jesus like a limpet on a rock, we could be making ourselves a target. The devil creates emotional tornadoes everywhere, and we can be easily overwhelmed by those thoughts that hit us upside the head … unless we choose to make the main thing the main thing. JESUS IS ALWAYS THE MAIN THING. “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7. We cannot afford to face our adversary unprotected – we have armour! Let’s stand still ready to battle the accuser when he flings lies at us. We do things the way Jesus tells us to do them. He’s the One Who beat satan.

Under extreme circumstances, which we all face, it is good to SING! — “Be filled with the Spirit singing to yourselves, with Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melodies in your heart to the Lord.” Ephesians 5:18,19. Preferably not out loud in a public place, because people will look at you funny and perhaps send for the men in those white coats. I sing in my head, and I recommend that. I find my best fighting scriptures there too. It can be distracting if you happen to be talking to someone else, but it works – stay in listening-to-Jesus-mode, don’t switch off.

The bible tells us to “put on the whole armour of God,” because we need it. Ephesians 6:10-18. The first thing we do after making sure we have our armour on —is to make a stand. Plant your feet. You are a tree planted by God Himself by the riverside, don’t be moved. We have been saved by Grace, now we belong to Jesus. Ask for scriptures to fight the circumstances and feelings … we can’t afford to let ourselves entertain any kind of lie. Don’t worry if the person in front of you is piling up lies like some people pile up the trash – don’t you lie. Your truth is God’s truth, and that’s the bat we use to bash away the lies that come at us. We don’t care about what Sister-I-always-know-the-Answer says. What is Jesus saying, right here, right now – in His book?

Let’s press the refresh button, and remind ourselves that God loves me! Then quickly get rid of any sin that might trip us up, so we can stay in love with everyone around us. Peace is our portion. We live within His peace, and we spread that heart peace around us everywhere we go. As we acknowledge Jesus’ Lordship in our lives, we will get better and better at raising up the shield of faith.

Lastly, let the Holy Spirit frame your prayers. Yield to His will His way, daily. And please don’t let satan paint lies on the windows of your mind. They will block out the marvellous things the Lord has given us to see and do.  Bye.🔥.

P 3175 Piece of cake!

/ DVH

“Christ is our message! We preach to awaken hearts and bring every person into the full understanding of truth. It has become my inspiration and passion in ministry to labor with a tireless intensity, with His power flowing through me, to present to every believer the revelation of being His perfect one in Jesus Christ.” Colossians 1:28-29 TPT. 

“Christ’s resurrection is your resurrection too. This is why we are to yearn for all that is above, for that’s where Christ sits enthroned at the place of all power, honor, and authority! Yes, feast on all the treasures of the heavenly realm and fill your thoughts with heavenly realities, and not with the distractions of the natural realm.” Colossians 3:1-2 TPT.

We can waste a lot of our God-given time reflecting on where we’ve missed it, and end up living in the land of regret. It is good to be aware of where you’ve fallen short of the mark, but not to the point where you can’t even see the mark anymore! That mark is this – Jesus’ sacrifice and His wonderful love for mankind. We have all been given a priceless gift …total reconciliation with God. Yes, He knows what we are like;  yes He knows we fail;  but our wonderful Father, God, is far greater than we can ever imagine. Right here. Right now. He sees us complete in Christ. That’s because of Who He is, His nature – not our spirituality.   

The best news ever, is this… Jesus did not fail. He was tempted in every aspect of this life, just like we are, He got tired, just like we do, He had responsibilities, just like we do. Listen to this particular responsibility!  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” Luke 4:18&19. Howzat for hard? 

Yet Jesus quite naturally walked and lived with SomeOne that we need to learn to walk with, minute by minute, day by day — the precious Holy Spirit.The good news is this – I don’t have to be all that – Jesus already did it for me. Our hearts need to be awakened all the time, to the reality of His truth – by reading and acting on the stuff that is written down in His book.

For instance, the bible says: ‘agree with your adversary quickly.’  Matthew 5:25. We’ve been lied to by our enemy who told us: ‘There is no way you can ever be like Jesus. After all, you did this and that. And something much worse, yesterday!!’ So I agree with the enemy when he accuses me, but then I refer him to the bible, because that is what Jesus did when He was tempted.  I point to the cross because I know I have nothing else but His Grace to commend me.

Sometimes I think we’d rather hide in the wine press, like Gideon did, than be seen! The bible says the people recorded in the Old Testament are there ‘…as an example to us.’ 1 Corinthians 10:11. Let’s not hide like that young man did. Instead let’s remember God has a plan and we are already in it! Our problem is we need to maintain our faith in His goodness, His promises … not just focus on our sins. We have weak wobbly faith in a tiger-pouncing world! It’s time to get up off the mat and get back into doing what we’ve been destined to do …telling and showing everyone around us how much Jesus loves them! 

A lady came here yesterday and in the course of our conversation she mentioned that she didn’t go to church but she did talk to God. She said this like she thought it was a bad thing. Like somehow she was sneaking into a rock concert without a ticket! We assured her she didn’t need a ticket, because God heard every word she said. Then we went on to reassure her that Christianity is not a club you join, it’s a Person you meet, so we don’t have to shout out our number as we go through the door! She laughed, and said: “You should tell people that more often!”  We need to remember …’it is the kindness of God that leads people into repentance.’  Romans 2:4. The-people-who-haven’t-met-Him-yet are often more happy to hear the truth than we are to give it to them!

However, we all know that sometimes witnesses can be quite reluctant. Cop shows on TV taught me that!! There is no such thing as getting it right, there is only obeying Him, or not. He’s a Redeemer! He can take the mess we’ve made of our lives, and turn it into something more wonderful than we can imagine. At the same time the Holy Spirit knows our frame. He also knows our weaknesses …but when we give them to Him, He will give us His strength in exchange. We don’t have to give someone else a 20 course dinner about what the bible says, in our testimony – we just give them the fresh bread He gave us this morning when we read the bible! 

There is the saddest parable told by Jesus Himself, about a rich man and a beggar. Luke 16:19-31. As the beggar talks to the rich man he says: “And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.” Let’s choose to take the time to tell others that–SomeOne, God Himself!–came here and made Himself that bridge between what people think they know about Him and Who He really is. Tell them Jesus is everyone’s bridge back to God.  Our testimonies are powerful, because the Holy Spirit handpicks the people He sends us to.

Revelation 12:11 –“And they overcame him (satan) by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”  You and I don’t have to be the whole band – but … you can be the banjo Jesus plays on… OK!… Let’s not be picky … you can be the flute instead! Piece of cake. Bye.👋

P 2895 God’s Love is inexhaustible.

/ DVH

We all need to leave behind the lies we have inadvertently swallowed regarding God’s Love. Our enemy goes out of his way to tell us we can’t have the Lord’s love and grace anymore because we did so and so, and God cannot forgive so and so – it says it in the book. That is a horrible lie sent to torment us. The bible is a balanced book, one thing leads into another – leading us back to HIM.

Today, I am hoping to pass on some reassurance to those of you who have become bogged down in legalism – because I know from experience that our adversary never misses an opportunity to nag at someone – day and night. Many Christians have walked away from what they believe, because what they believed became untenable in the face of their desperate pain-driven reactions to this life. Say this with me: …”there is NOTHING our God cannot do!’

We need to focus on His faithfulness. Here are a few swords for you. 2 Thessalonians 3:3:“But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.“ Lamentations 3:22–23: “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Exodus 34:6-7a.“The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD,a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin …” Fortunately we are this side of the cross, and Jesus took any curses we might pass on to other people with Him to that cross. Read the book.

Confession is often the best solution to accusation. Think of sin as mould, it needs treatment, light and air. Darkness and lack of air will make it grow. We can always have a new beginning. Here’s a verse we all know: “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9. What Jesus did was complete and comprehensive. Deliverance from the enemy’s lies starts with us making a quality decision to stop believing those lies, and instead we deliberately choose to put a verses of scripture in its place. The Holy Spirit will help us find them.

Accusatory thoughts can overwhelm and dismiss the power of God’s Love, together with the grace Christ released by what He did. Many times we do not have a sin problem per se, we have simply allowed God to become too small in our eyes, and Jesus stops being the Saviour Who saved everyone. When He said “…it is finished.”It was a universal statement for all time. However, if you are currently doing something or other and you clearly know in your heart that it is sin, and it is slowly dragging you away from everything you believe then you need to repent!  

Almighty God provides us with a tool to access His inexhaustible love. It’s called repentance. That is the quickest route to restoration. Almighty God is incredibly kind. He will lead us out of temptation, AND He will also deliver us from fast approaching evil. Because we need to withstand further and future attacks from our enemy, our faithful God will sometimes allow him to ‘gnat’ at us, so we have opportunities to develop spiritual strength. We fight back with “God says: …”  This is not about how we feel, it is about what HE has already said. Our job is to believe He is a merciful Father Who has done everything necessary to bring about our redemption.

Jesus made reaching God’s standard impossible without His help.I dunno about you – I’ve wished people dead, told thumping great lies, and worse things – and I’ve fallen down the hole of desperate despair. I think it is necessary to point out that God judges hearts, and none of us fully know what’s in there! Sometimes we can be too lenient, and at other times w-a-y too permissive. We need the Holy Spirit’s ever-present, always current, on-the-spot wisdom.

God lets us learn! That’s not an excuse it is a blessing. Think of repentance like this, as regaining our strength after we have allowed it to lapse. Every action we deliberately take against sin, strengthens us spiritually. It strengthens our faith when we step away from something purely because God says: “Don’t do it.” The Lord advises us in this manner because He knows what comes next. It isn’t always about sin – many many times it is about the kindness of God. He leads us into repentance because He doesn’t want us to end up in the land of WORSE – fighting shadows from the past.

We can also choose the road of humility and tell someone else so they can pray for us. Other people can lift us up when we feel lower than the ground we are standing on. Always remember, God’s Love is inexhaustible. Bye.👋

P 2678 Love has the last word.

/ DVH

“This love means living in obedience to whatever God commands us. For to walk in love toward one another is the unifying commandment we’ve heard from the beginning.”2 John 1:6 TPT. Did you get that phrase ‘walk … toward’? Love always comes towards us – from Him, and in my interpersonal relationships. That’s because it never turns back or gives up! You know, I have found it helpful to read 1 Corinthians 13 looking for things that I am expecting, or anticipating development about, in my own life — instead of seeing them as things that I don’t have! 

When I see these qualities as things I don’t have, I will give up the fight to be transformed far too easily. That’s when I stop repenting and start justifying myself. Big mistake. Huge! Think about it like this – when I work hard to justify myself, then I can be proven wrong, corrected, shamed, by someone else who is more motivated than I am!  For some people this life is a competition, they cannot bear to be wrong, it is as if they think they will shatter if they are wrong. That’s just dumb. 

We are ALL wrong!”…as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” Romans 3:10-12. I hope that this is clear that if we are ALL wrong, then there is no room for competitiveness. Suddenly I am standing on an even playing field. The only person who can stop me from moving forward into His love, and even more love, is me. I need to exercise my faith … what you do is none of my business. Paul himself says this: “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.” 1 Corinthians 4:4.

Love is always waiting for us, because it is in the Lord’s NATURE to love. Now all the impediments are gone.  All I do is this, I ask the Holy Spirit to help me to repent and grow past my current attitudes and actions. At this point I don’t do nothing ← there’s a double negative for ya!! … I exercise my faith and step out and do the opposite of what I was doing before  … and I do it, on purpose. And I keep doing that believing that He will help and empower me. Remember the Holy Spirit wants me to win.

When I let Jesus justify me – I can live this life assured. I have proof of what He said, and Who He is in writing in the book. My enemy might have a million reasons why I’ve failed, but I don’t have to allow myself to be cemented into any of them. If satan points out my sins, then I agree with him and repent immediately. Repentance takes the ground out from underneath our enemy. Here’s another scripture: “Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.”Matthew 5:25NKJV. 

The prison mentioned here is the one we end up in, when we are tormented unnecessarily from something we’ve done or said … that we know we should not have done … or said! Real repentance is the key that opens THAT jail door. We never plan to sin, but if we do, we repent, to the person and the Lord. Admitting we are wrong, humbling ourselves, puts us in a position to receive from Him. It is only shameful when we decide to hide our sin away – that shows we don’t understand what we have been given. Why would you stay locked in a jail when you have the key in your own pocket? The Holy Spirit is the ‘angel’ Who will swing open the door of our own personal jail – just like He did for Peter, in the book of Acts.

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”1 John 4:18. This verse is not an accusation, it is a diagnosis. The response from us to this verse needs to be – “Lord, I need to know and understand Your love more deeply, because I know I’m still afraid I’ve blown it! Amen.”  “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” 1 John 2:1, 2. God has even taken care of the possibility of sin in our lives. The reason we don’t want to sin, isn’t FEAR. We don’t sin because we know His Love, and we value that above anything else that might come up in our lives. HE becomes more important than any sin.

I can’t look at the sun and the moon at the same time. One will blind me to the other. I will have to shift my focus off me and my difficulties onto the Son, the One Who is the Answer to all of them. When I go there, I am overcome by the light of His love for me, simply because I’ve shifted my focus. The way I help myself to do that is to regularly read His love letter to me – I read the bible looking for His love. There are times when I will also find instructions, but if I need love because I’m drowning in difficulties and sin … then I read it looking for love. 💕 Love has the last word. 👋