After writing the blog yesterday boy did the flood come to my house it seemed and we are still recovering after the water has died down!. Yes we are still standing, but boy it is a great reminder of the grace that the Father gives and where sin abounds grace abounds all the more! And such a learning time for me in loving without judgement for the same measure we give, we will receive. And I realise with great thankfulness to the Lord that actually I have grown and moved from the place that I have been in the past and into a new place and am finding it much easier to love and forgive and not hold judgement over someone, a whole lot less conditional in my love - oh yeah - thank you Jesus!
Now I have loads of things going around my head and I am reminded again that without grace and forgiveness I could not stand. And in that reminder am able to give it to others where they sin and fall short of the glory of the Lord and stumble in their own walk. And I realise afresh that I cannot do it in my own strength hold onto the word of God or what he calls us to without his enabling to do it.
But in this there are a few things I would like to share that helps me overcome in areas of weakness that I normally wouldn't be able to stand in.
Firstly, I need my husband and we need each other in the body of Christ.
The word says in Mark 3:23 How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand...."
Now I know we can get all theological about this and I possibly may be using this out of context but for me last night it was very much the word that kept coming to me and I took hold of this and where two or three agree in my name it shall be done. If you are not alone and you have someone standing with you especially in prayer, it is much harder for the enemy to get a stronghold in your household. One can send a thousand to flight but two can send ten thousand. Thank you Jesus!
Something else that came was about our different weaknesses. One is strong in one area, another is strong in a different area, same goes for our weakness's. We don't all have the same weaknesses. And I know sin is crouching at the door but I have to choose not to open that door or to look at that thing that is wanting me to look at. James 1:14 "says each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death."
Each of us have areas in our lives where we can be enticed away in and for each person it is different. And I am so getting the scripture where it talks about "if something causes your eye to sin it is better to pluck it out then go down a path that leads to death". Sometimes I totally get how if my eye was plucked out then I would not be enticed to look at some things which leave an imprint on my mind or something that wants to take my attention away from God and onto it. And I know I would be better off because of it. Its like an alcoholic going to a bar and being enticed by people drinking whereas if they didn't see the drink, it wouldn't be such a problem. We all have areas, whether its alcohol, pornography, smoking, eating, anger, swearing, slothfulness, dvd's etc etc.
We need each other and the word says to confess your sins to one another and you will be made clean. When we don't confess our sins to each other we open a door to the enemy getting a stronghold in our life, whereas if things are out in the open it leaves no room for judgement and sin to come in because those things are exposed to the light, no longer able to give the enemy the hold it has in deception and lying and we can come into freedom, health, healing and overcoming.
Where sin has got a hold we need to come to the Father who forgives us all our sin and cleanses us from all wrongdoing. We need to humble ourselves to those around us and ask for help. This morning as Jim and I prayed and the Holy Spirit was asked to come into those areas, that thing that was trying to get a hold in me could no longer get the hold it wanted, the enemy was defeated. And my eyes were turned back on Jesus and away from the desire wanting my attention and in looking at Jesus those desires started to fall away again in his enabling, in his grace coming in, in his cleansing of sin, and it felt like the river that washed away all the rubbish off me.
Each day we are growing more and more. Those things that were once issues in my life are no longer issues, yet at the time it felt like I could never be free from them. But the Lord is gracious and compassionate, full of mercy and love and his love leads us into repentance and over time we realise those things that were strongholds have fallen off and we have stepped into a whole new place. And now I have different things that the Lord shows me that needs his grace in which I am so thankful for as I realise how much those things continue to be able to keep me in a grace towards others recognising my own weaknesses. In the word it talks about when you get into the promised land, don't forget where you have come from. And I realise that in my dreams that I shared yesterday, this was the third part of the dream, when you think you have it all together, be careful lest you fall.
It is so funny how God teaches us things, warns us of things and helps us to overcome when we come to him.
