Spiritual Warfare; The Next Generation

Ezekiel 33:1-9 NIV

1The word of the Lord came to me: 2“Son of man, speak to your people and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword against a land, and the people of the land choose one of their men and make him their watchman, 3and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, 4then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning and the sword comes and takes their life, their blood will be on their own head. 5Since they heard the sound of the trumpet but did not heed the warning, their blood will be on their own head. If they had heeded the warning, they would have saved themselves. 6But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes someone’s life, that person’s life will be taken because of their sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for their blood.’

7“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. 8When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. 9But if you do warn the wicked person to turn from their ways and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved.

 Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock!

I hear the sound of a clock and it is getting louder and louder every day reminding me that the time is short. I just recently read an article talking about how Lesbian premier orders Ontario’s sex-ed update to teach kids about giving sexual ‘consent’ from ‘the very earliest stages’. My heart just sunk. How can God be pleased with us? Surly our time here on earth as we know it must be running out.

I have read Ezekiel 33:1-9 before and felt an underlying nudge on my heart but it was only a dull probing. Today, as I read this familiar passage, that nudge was pretty intense and I felt if I ignored this probing I would be disobeying Father's leading. Where is He leading me? I am not too sure. I am pretty certain I am not a watchman but I am also certain that as a Christian, I have a duty to share what I know with those who Father brings into my path.

This year I am helping out with our churches after school program and youth/young adults. Many of these kids do not know much about God and I am thrilled that I have a moment in their week to share Jesus with them. What I am noticing is the more I share the more the spiritual warfare increases. Last week while helping serve lunch to these kids the warfare was so intense that after the kids left I felt very drained and just needed to be along with Daddy. What I learned was I was lacking proper prayer cover. I went in, in the flesh and not in the Spirit. There is a war for the next generation and the devil is pushing the limits. The only way to overcome is to humble myself to Holy Spirit and allow Him to lead and direct me. This week I went in to help after having spent a lot of time in prayer for those kids, the workers and drawing a blood line around the church asking Father to hold back the attack of the evil one. What a difference!!! The rebellion was gone and those kids were receptive to the word being shared.

I see God cannot be pleased with us at all. How can He when we have regulations, like the one I shared in the above article, being pressured into our school system. How can He when we have walked away from His rules to follow those which please the flesh? We, as Christians, need to blow the trumpet and spread the Word so we don't have the blood of none believers on our heads. (Here I made a mistake and mixed up two thoughts. See comment from Brenda and my response.) Once we have shared the Word then we have done what we are supposed to do and it is up to those listening to make a choice.

Prayer. 

Intense prayer every step of the way is needed if we want to see these strongholds come down. 

Blessings,
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Will You Make It?

I have some pretty amazing on line friends that inspire and encourage me. :) This post was inspired by Lisa at My Heart's Home. She wrote an amazing raw post on Friends talking about forgiveness and that got me to do some pretty serious thinking.

Luke 21:34-36 NIV
“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

According to the above Scripture we see that in the lat days one can be weighed down by multiple things one being the anxieties of life. From listening to and taking part of conversations I am realizing that more and more people, as time moves on, are being weighed down by the anxieties of life. Could this be caused by making merry with lots of strong drink? Maybe, or it maybe the fact that as we grow closer to the time of Jesus' return, Satan is throwing the concerns of life at us.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 NIV

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

That is a very hard word to take to heart. Friends, I am seeing this. Me, who lives a lot in solitude am seeing this in the few people that I associate with. I am seeing a bitterness and a hardening of heart weave into the church, into people who I knew to be kind, loving and very forgiving. I see the affect of a selfish world penetrate into God's people. We truly need to be diligent in seeking after the heart of God, turning the other cheek to those who lash out at us. We need to keep our focus on God and His love seeking after a forgiving heart even when others hurt us.

A really good example for me comes in the form of driving. ;P I use to be a transport truck driver and I drove all over Canada and the United States. I consider myself a very good, professional driver who obeys the rules of the road and the unspoken common courtesy, like not driving in the left hand lane except to pass. Here, Satan can really get under my skin and my temper can rise when I see arrogant, foolish people doing 10 K or more under the speed limit sitting in the passing lane. This is a form of selfishness and it is on the increase here in Canada. Where the rule of thumb, even in Toronto on the 401, use to be always keep the left hand lane clear, is now being filled up with those who do not follow these rules. I know this is minor and really not a huge issue but it is one that shows the underlying heart of a person.

Brothers and sisters, we need to walk the talk. How can we be sure that we will go to heaven if we do not do what we are told to do?

QUESTION: If Jesus raptured His church today are you sure you would go? 

This is something I am really thinking on and examining my heart over. Am I living in sin? The sin of anger and unforgiving of that person in the left lane clogging up the traffic.

No, we are not perfect and we will continue to sin, but are we holding on to that sin and wallowing in it like a pig wallows in a mud hole?

Galatians 5:13-26 NIV

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

The more times I read this above passage the more I am understanding that walking in the Spirit goes against our 'feelings'. We may feel anger and hatred but we are not to act in anger and hatred but we are to act in love and forgiveness and the more we act in love and forgiveness the feelings of anger and hatred will dissolve. The more we love and forgive the easier it will be to spread this and hopefully show others the Spirit of God and allow them another chance to see who God is and hopefully they will consider Him and give their lives to Christ. After all that is the biggest concern for the Christian, to win others to Christ through our actions. :)

Blessings in Christ Jesus,
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Where is your Treasure? Think Before you Speak Part 2

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Matthew 6:19-21 NIV "Do not store up for yourself treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.


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I have a vivid imagination and it zings from one idea to another at incredible speeds. Pictures forming and morphing into something else before I even grasp what I saw. I am very sensitive to the Spirit world. Things that are of God my heart bursts with excitement and things that are of Satan I will feel all the pulls of anger, hate, envy and so on. I have a very active thought life which is good and bad at the same time, for it is very easy for me to get lost in God's Spirit, praising, worshiping, dancing and to give all over to Him, but it is also very easy for Satan to get at me and he loves to do this through insecurity, self consciousness and such as these.

                     How do we control our thoughts and deflect temptation?

God, Satan and self feed our thoughts and we have the choice who to listen to, for God made us with free will. John 8:44 NIV "...the devil...He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies." The devil cannot possess or have authority over a Spirit filled Christian but he can control your thoughts if you allow him access. God does not judge our thoughts, which is temptation, but He does judge you on your motive and actions or if you ponder on a bad thought. Satan tempts your thinking and emotions and skulks his way into your decisions and actions. Ephesians 4:26-27 NIV “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.

Ephesians 6:11 NIV Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. God has given us Spiritual armour to wear in defense of the attacks of Satan. The Greek word for devil in this passage is diablos (dee-ab'-ol-os) this comes from "dia" and "bolos". "Bolos" means to throw at or to hurl accusation at. The word ball comes from this. To throw bad words and negative thoughts at. "Dia" means to put a hole through or penetrate. When these two words are put together we get: to penetrate and to throw at; Satan's nature is to throw accusations at you until he penetrates your mind. Once he penetrates the bomb is released! Satan has no other way to defeat a believer but through our thoughts and our amazing God has given us armour to wear that deflects the fiery darts of Satan.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. We cannot change our life by trying to change our behavior, we need to go deeper into the root cause of our behavior; we need to change how we think. Proverbs 23:7 NKJV For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. We need to line up our thinking with God's then Satan is blocked out. How? Put on the armour of God and walk in the Spirit.

So many things influence our thinking and media is huge! The motto in our house is if it is not good for a child to watch, read or participate in then neither should we. Matthew 18:2-4 NIV He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And He said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." When you have a precious baby around you want to protect them from all harm. Such care is taken to make sure they eat well, dress well and we are also so careful with what they watch or read and who they play with. My mom use to say, "Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil". I have carried that on into my family and as our children have grown I have kept that rule. (Not that it is always followed but I do try!)

                                                 Where should our thoughts linger?

Since we are citizens of heaven we need to think on heaven and not things of this world. Philippians 3:19-21 NIV Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

You might be saying to yourself right about this point, "But how do we do this? How, when we live in such a materialistic world, do we think on things that are not of here?" This is a choice that you need to make, you are what you think on.You need to decide for yourself if you want a mind like Christ. You have the control and you enforce it by what you put into your mind. Just like when a new baby comes into the home you prepare your home for safety, same thing here. Your mind is the home of God and you want to fill that home with good things. Do you want your prayers answered? I know I do!! Wrong thoughts will keep God from answering our prayers. Psalm 66:18 NIV If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. Romans 8:5-8 NASB For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. This is pretty serious stuff!!! If we are in the flesh we cannot please God! I don't know about you but these verses alone would convince me to change my thinking pattern to one that pleases God.

James 1:14-15 NIV but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. Impure thoughts are not sin; they become sin when we entertain them. Satan tempts and leads us into sin but we are in control of weather we sin or not. Satan wants to make us doubt the goodness of God, this was his tactic for Adam and Eve and this is his weapon that is used on us today.

If your treasure is in heaven then you will be focusing and thinking on these things and filling your mind with such to add into your treasure box because they are important to you. Where your treasure is there you will find your heart and what lies in your heart you will think and ponder on and that will come out in your speech.

The times we are living in are rough and as the years go by it is difficult to pull away from the things of this world but we have Jesus and He knows what we are going through for He suffered temptation too! He is our ultimate intercessor and if we go to Him and ask for help He will provide it.                                                                                                                    Google Image

Think Before You Speak Part 1

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I received a comment from 'Anymonous' requesting I do a post on "our thought life". I asked God what He wanted and I had a very strong impression laid on me the He puts people in my path for a reason, so I concluded that was a yes!! :)

Isaiah 55:8-9NIV "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." 

What is thought?

According to Dictionary.com definition #10; thought is...a judgement, opinion or belief and according to Wikipedia our 5 senses; sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch all contribute to our thought process, this is also known as the flesh.

Ok we have an idea of what thought is so what does God say about human thought? Genesis 6:5 NIV The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. Pretty harsh. :s What else? 1 Chronicles 28:9 NIV...for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. 

                                                  WOW, pretty powerful stuff!! 

What controls our thoughts? Mark 7:20-23NIV Jesus tells us..."What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come--sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person." Galatians 5:16-17NIV "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh...."

Before the fall Adam and Eve walked in the garden with God, they had fellowship with Him. Then Satan came in and tricked Eve and Adam into disobeying God and that caused separation or the fall. You see up until this time Adam and Eve listened and obeyed God's voice, they chose to follow Him and then along came Satan the snake and convinced Eve to disobey God and obey self, or the flesh. They heard the voice of God, self and Satan; three voices then and we still hear three voices today. I don't want to venture into hearing the voice of God but I will directed you to a couple of good blogs, one that is focused on just that; God Speaks Today, Sandy Cooper is an amazing writer and she has written many wonderful posts on hearing the voice of God and my daughter, Squeaks at The Minstrel Warrior who has put up a good post on the Voice of God as well. I urge you all to check these two sites out as they are really good.

God wants to have fellowship with us and He had already devised a plan even before the fall because He knew that Satan was going to trick weak minded Adam and Eve. Jesus, God's plan, restored our fellowship and we have this to hold on to. Ephesians 2:1-10NIV As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.

So our thoughts are directed by : God, self and Satan. We are told in Philippians 4:8NIV...whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. If we think on 'The Whatever Verse' then what comes out of our mouth will be God honouring and glorifying to Him. We need to choose to divert our thoughts of 'self' or 'the flesh' and consciously choose to think on God and His word then when we speak our words will mimic His voice and we can walk in faith that He will answer our prayers and heal people we pray for.

Although we are dead to self, we still sin so we need to regularly confess our sins to God. The word 'confess' is in the present tense and that means it is a continuous act in our lives. 1 John 1:9NIV If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Where do our thoughts come from? From within. Matthew 6:20-21NIV But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.....For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. This really sums everything up for where our treasure is that is where you will find our heart and where our heart lies is what we will be thinking about and what we are thinking about is what will come out of our mouths. Hebrews 3:1 NIV Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus...

We hear three voices but really there are only two choices when it comes to focusing our thoughts on, it is either right or wrong; God or Satan. And when you really get down to the basics there is only one voice that we should be listening to and obeying and that is God's voice and we can know His voice by studying His word. When we study His word and have Him as our treasure then our thoughts will be directed towards His thoughts and when we speak, if we guard our tongue, we will glorify Him. Really that is what we are here for, to worship and have fellowship with the Creator of the universe.


Hebrews 4:12NIV For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
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