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Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: Discerning False Teachers

‘There were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.’ -2 Peter 2:1

“For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” -Matthew 24:24

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ -Matthew 7:21-23

Good things that are not necessarily proof of a godly mentor, teacher, preacher, apostle, or prophet.

1. They know the Word of God

It is possible for someone to know the word of God, and even teach the word of God, and not themselves be doers of the word. Knowing the word of God is an important characteristic of a minister of the gospel, but is not in and of itself proof that a person is approved of the Lord.

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. -Matthew 23:27-28

2. They have a lot of followers

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. AND MANY WILL FOLLOW THEIR SENSUALITY, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly.. -2 Peter 2:21-22

3. They are followed by leaders that you trust and respect

In this digital age, not everyone that “follows’ or ‘likes’ someones profile, or ministry page, necessarily knows the minister personally. Even those teachers that we know and trust often have large networks of ministers that are connected to them very loosely through memberships, or that have taken their training courses. This is not to discredit those trusted leaders that are doing their best to equip younger and lesser known ministries through training and networking, but it is to say that your favorite teacher or prophet following another minister is not necessarily an indication that they are safe.
I do not know what each leaders process is, but it would take a lot of time to research diligently enough to discern whether all of their members are called, anointed, and commissioned by God and in His timing for release in ministry.

High levels of prayerful discernment and paying attention to their patterns will help uncover the spirit in which they share what they share, and if it is mixed with exaggeration and deception.

Just recently I reached out to a known and trusted friend that is a well-respected prophetess to ask if she would vouch for the ministry of another person that calls themselves a prophet. I was praying for discernment about this particular person as someone I care about had sent me one of their messages and recommended them to me highly. My friend, that I know is a legitimized prophetic voice, was following this new ‘prophet’ on Facebook. Her response was, ‘Absolutely not.’ She went on to say she did not know her, had only seen one video of hers, and was herself disturbed in her spirit by it.

Let’s face it, many of us just don’t know a lot of the people on our social media, so beware of immediately assuming a teacher is safe just because they are followed or liked by someone you know and trust.

4. They are loved by a close family member or friend

This one is tricky. But the word says to be careful about following blind guides. We all have a responsibility to consider the counsel of other trusted believers, but also in the end we must discern for ourselves.

Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. -Matthew 15:14

5. They have a lot of money

This is just a common sense one. Money, in and of itself is neither evil or good, it is whether a person loves money, and how they handle their money, that determines the type of person they are.

6. The talk about love, peace, and Jesus

The world is full of false religions that are all about teaching their version of love and peace. Even Jesus says in Matthew 10:33:34, ‘But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven. Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.’

When it comes to peace, we are to live at peace, ‘as far as it depends on us,’ but not at the expense of standing on the truth of the word of God.

Matthew 24:24 warns about false Messiahs, not everyone that speaks the name of Jesus, is referring to the one true Christ as revealed to us in the Bible. Many false religions name the name of Jesus, but when you dig into their beliefs and doctrines, it becomes clear, they are not speaking about the One the true believers know and love.

7. Comes across as loving and caring

Discernment is important for understanding why people are motivated to do what they do.

If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames. -1 Corinthians 3:12-15

Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. 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. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
-Hebrew 4:11-14

Warning Signs of a False Mentor, Teacher, Preacher, Apostle, or Prophet

1. They make statements often that are generalized towards the whole audience, addressing everyone as if they are certain everyone is already mature and wise believers, often teaching against ‘those other people that are not like us. (aka good as us, anointed as us, chosen as us, smart as us, holy as us, discerning as us). This plays to people’s pride. They are full of pride themselves and often, if not usually, controlled by a Laviathan Spirit masquerading as Holy Spirit; this appeals to their followers pride and also work to form a tie to them.

A wise and prudent teacher recognizes that there will be followers at various levels of spiritual maturity, and their teaching is geared to train everyone up into full maturity. They do not talk down to people, but neither do they teach harder teaching as if its for ‘those other people’ that one might know that has a problem.

Wolves in sheep clothing will name drop the names of people they don’t know personally to legitimize their ministry. They love titles, and give themselves titles even before elders have recognized them as such. They love to take the places of honor.

I have heard false teachers say incomplete thoughts or sentences without explaining, leading people to believe that the meaning was something that made them look important, powerful, and sought after. They may flat out lie, but often exaggerate, or deceive about the true nature of the experience they are sharing.

Example could include saying that the Lord had something very important for them to do last week, and then in the next sentence say they were at the White House, implying they were there on an official visit to meet with dignitaries, but never explaining why they were at the White House, and if that had anything to do with the important work they had mentioned so as not to be caught in an outright lie by someone that tries to fact check their statements.

Also beware of teachers that set themselves up like the only righteous one, the supreme leader, or the only one that can handle God’s word correctly. There are hundreds and thousands of godly teachers throughout the world handling God’s word correctly.

2. They will often target believers that have been wounded by false believers, such as those that have been wounded by those with a religious or critical spirit. These believers are an easy target because they often have left the flock because of the hurt they experienced in a specific church or church body, whether real or perceived. People are drawn to others, including teachers, with similar unhealed wounds or prejudices. If you have been hurt by someone with a critical or religious spirit, it’s important to ask the Lord to heal you and seek out relationship with other growing believers. We grow in community and fellowship with one another.

Those teachers that are operating out of this type of wound, and a spirit of pride, will refuse any correction that could actually be used to heal and deliver them. They will accuse people of being critical and unloving when they are rebuked.

Jesus refers to His people as a flock of sheep. Sheep always travel in flocks, the sheep that wonders away from the flock is said to have wondered away from the Shepard.

Luke 15:2-7 And the Pharisees and scribes were complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!” So He told them this parable “What man among you, who has 100 sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the 99 in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it?  When he has found it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep! I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don’t need repentance.

Be careful if you have stopped gathering together with other believers that you don’t fall prey to the wolves in sheep clothing, trying to gather the wounded sheep into their fake flock!!!

3. They will mix the word of God with occult teachings, or they will add to the word when teaching instead of expounding. Or they will expound on a wrong interpretation of a word, phrase, or verse. This is very dangerous! It is important to have a solid understanding of correct Biblical doctrine in order to discern where people are going off the path of truth and into myths and fables, which is forbidden in the teaching of God’s word.

There is a difference between a parable to make a Biblical point, and telling a fable, that is not grounded in Biblical content.

Websters Definition of Expounding: present and explain (a theory or idea) systematically and in detail.
“he was expounding a powerful argument”
synonyms:
present, put forward, set forth, propose, propound; More
explain, give an explanation of, detail, spell out, describe
“he expounded his theories”
elaborate on, expand on, expatiate on, discuss at length
“he expounded on the virtues of books”
◦ explain the meaning of (a literary or doctrinal work).”the abbess expounded the scriptures to her nuns”
◦ synonyms:
◦ explain, interpret, explicate, elucidate; Morecomment on, give a commentary on 
”a treatise expounding Chomsky’s theories”
Or they will take away from God’s word by only preaching out of parts, or an incomplete message. Such as taking the doctrine of grace and leaving out the need to repent and live another way.

And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. -Rev 22:19

DISCERNMENT IS CRUCIAL HERE AND A SOLID FOUNDATION OF THE BIBLE AND TEACHINGS IN SOUND DOCTRINE.

4. Another camp of false teachers falls under a bit different distortion of the scriptures. These teachers teach what peoples ‘itching ears want to hear.’ The Bible warns about them in 2 Timothy 4:1-5

‘Timothy, in the presence[a] of our great God and our Lord Jesus Christ, the One who is destined to judge both the living and the dead by the revelation of his kingdom—I solemnly instruct you to proclaim the Word of God and stand upon it no matter what! Rise to the occasion and preach when it is convenient and when it is not. Preach in the full expression of the Holy Spirit[b]—with wisdom and patience as you instruct and teach the people.
For the time is coming when they will no longer listen and respond to the healing words of truth because they will become selfish and proud. They will seek out teachers with soothing words that line up with their desires, saying just what they want to hear. They will close their ears to the truth and believe nothing but fables and myths. So be alert to all these things and overcome every form of evil. Carry in your heart the passion of your calling as a church planter[d] and evangelist, and fulfill your ministry calling.’

And from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.
-Acts 20:30

And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.
-Matthew 24:11

Prophetic words are meant to encourage, edify, and uplift but false prophets will prophesy prosperity constantly, without also giving any meaty teachings or words about pure motives and obedience. You won’t hear much about having to go through any trial or tests, its just a ‘give me,’ message that appeals to peoples greed and desire to live a pain free, problem free life.

5. False teachers will often be a one trick pony. Although each teacher may have a different style or an area in which they focus their teaching, a teacher that only always teaches about the grace of God, or the spiritual gifts, or demons, or out of revelation, or worse, is stuck on some specific ‘issue’ in the world whether real or perceived, should be examined closely.

The cults, and people that get stuck in a locked down position with no Christian growth or fruit, are often people that get obsessive about ‘this one thing.’

An extreme example being conspiracy theories such as when someone that is obsessed with proving that there are specific scriptures in the Bible they believe have been changed over the years.

A less obvious example might be a ‘prophet’ that has a rotation of prophetic words that appeal to the fleshly appetites, void of any real teaching on the responsibility of righteous living, or themselves not living a righteous life.

5. Personal Integrity and Righteousness

In a time where there is an ultra grace message being preached, leaving out the importance of living a righteous life, in holiness and reverence, people have drifted away from the truth and the teachings of Jesus in regards to what the cost of following Him are. False teachers refuse accountability, and set themselves up as above others in the body. If you look closely, they do not actually have a servants heart. They may serve, but they serve with wrong motives, to do their good works before men.

I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
-Romans 16:17-20

Some final warnings:

When in doubt, check it out! Know the difference between an example, a parable, and a new age or occult teaching by studying the New Testament scriptures. If you hear a new idea or teaching that seems odd to you but you are not certain if it falls under an occult teaching or false doctrine do your research! Don’t just automatically accept as true what you are taught if you do not know it is backed up by a sound interpretation of the word of God.

God is raising up a mature body of believers in this new era, and anointing them with razor sharp discernment to combat the great deceptions of the enemy sent to pollute people’s minds against the unadulterated truth of the Word of God. God is releasing more and more of the revelation of His Kingdom here in the earth, and generously pouring out His Spirit, and His power over the beloved body of Christ; with this new measure of ‘God capacity’ He is bestowing, greater measures of discipline, and spiritual sensitivity will be required to walk by the light of the truth. God is raising the spiritual bar, and the enemy has a well organized counter-attack.

I hear the word of the Lord to sound the warning, ‘Not all that glitters is gold.’

God is looking for a people that He can trust with this outpouring of signs and wonders, but if you seek signs and wonders for the sake of signs and wonders, you open yourself to be deceived.

God is looking for a people that He can trust with influence, but if you seek influence, for the sake of influence, you open yourself to be deceived.

God is looking for a people that He can trust with His favor, but if you seek His favor, for the sake of favor, you open yourself to be deceived.

God is looking for a people that He can trust with worldly wealth, but if you seek worldly wealth, for the sake of worldly wealth, you open yourself to be deceived.

God is looking for a people that He can ravish with mind blowing experiences in His Spirit, but if you seek mind blowing experiences in His Spirit, for the sake of mind blowing experiences, you open yourself up to be deceived.

Pray diligently in this hour for great spiritual discernment. You will need it to stand against the rapidly increasing deception that is rampant in this world as we enter this great new era of Kingdom authority on the earth.

Seek God with all your heart. Seek His face. Seek His wisdom. Seek His truth. Seek peace. Seek good. Seek spiritual gifts, especially that you might prophesy so that you can bring edification to the body of Christ. Seek your heavenly home. Seek to enter the Kingdom through the narrow gate. Seek glory, honor, and immortality by doing good. Seek His Kingdom, and seek His righteousness.

These things are what we are instructed to seek in the Holy Bible. Seek these things, and you will find them, and with them, all things will be added to you as well.

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The Octopus Spirit

An Octopus spirit is a ruling spirit that is operating in conjunction with various tentacles, which are demonic spirits and sins of the flesh. The head is typically a spirit of idolatry or witchcraft (control). When I started to seek the Lord for insight into the nature of the Octopus spirit, my husband brought it to my attention that one of the worlds’ favorite demons, as seen in popular culture, is an octopus like demon called Cthulhu. Much can be gleaned about a spirit from the way it choses to gain glory for itself through the arts and media.

H.P. Lovecraft wrote, ‘The Call of Cthulhu’ in 1928 and this demon has grown in popularity ever since. Cthulha has been featured in movies, video games, stories, and music. A quick google search will pull up hundreds of artist’s rendering of this sprit. Ursala, the sea-witch in little Mermaid is another example of how popular stories can tap into the nature of the real life evil they represent.


How an Octopus Spirit Has the Traits of an Octopus?

The octopus directs the arms for the purpose of grabbing, holding, and constraining the prey from moving forward. The arms also have a bit of autonomy to operate apart from the head, and can grow back if they are cut off. In the same way, people that are being tormented and controlled by the octopus spirit may get deliverance from one fleshly demon only to find the same or similar snare sneaking back up on them during a more ‘opportune time.’

Octopuses are super smart and adept at finding their way into tiny places both to hide from predators and to go after their prey. They can change the shape of their bodies and fit into the tiniest of places.

Give these demons a crack and they will find a way to enter in and devour!

A person may be unaware that they are still dealing with these demons once they have already tasted deliverance because they will lie low when they are about to be discovered. Octopuses are experts at camafloucging themselves to avoid predators. They can blend into their surroundings by changing both their shape and color. This spirit manifest itself in the life of a believer by convincing them to enter into ungodly sexual relationships, represented as a godly union. Another way they attack is by deceiving a person into believing their situation is different in a way that means specific scriptures don’t apply to them.

I have known people under the influence of an Octopus spirit announce shamelessly that God had told them someone else’s husband was to be their spouse, another say that God had ordained their sexual union with their lover outside of marriage by marrying them in the heavenliness, and still another believe that Jesus was helping them to have holy masturbation so that they would avoid falling into sexual relationships with another human being. All of these people were slaves to lustful desires and under the control of an octopus spirit.

An octopus spirit wants you to take natural desires and fulfill them in ways that are out of balance or outside the bounds that the Lord has ordained for them to be fulfilled.

The arms of the octopus are used to bring its’ prey to its mouth where it will then be broken down with a sharp beak before being digested. There is a breaking down of a person that happens when they give into a sin of the flesh. With each compromise the flesh becomes more of a powerful force over the spirit man and the spirit man is weakened to resist the demonic entities seeking dominion. The Octopus spirit’s main goal is to use whatever fleshly appetite a particular person is prone to give into in a wrong or imbalanced way as a means to bring them into addictive, destructive, or obsessive patterns that they then become powerless to break free from without deliverance.

What are the Sins of the Flesh and How Do You Overcome Them?

‘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.’

Galatians 5:13-25

For people that have already been delivered out of a fleshly addiction such as pornography, gluttony, fits of rage, or jealousy and selfish ambition, this demon team will wait for a time the person is weakened through life pressures, or when they are regularly neglecting the spiritual disciplines of prayer, study, and fasting and squeeze back into any crack they can find.

For example, a married person that was once addicted to pornography, if not mindful to love, pursue, and appreciate their spouse may find that they are regularly noticing and thinking about a coworker or having emotional or sexual reactions to other women. It is not enough to stop doing the wrong thing, one must also be led by the Spirit to do what is right.

In order to get and stay free, we are to submit ourselves to God and be led by the Spirit.

The Spirit of God won’t just guide you away from pornography, but will guide you away from pornography into deeper intimacy with Himself, and your spouse if you are married.

This holds true for any addiction, which is just a modern term for idolatry. If one doesn’t diligently guard their thoughts and take every thought captive, the place which was once occupied by one spirit may end up being occupied by EIGHT spirits, seven more wicked than the first. I do not believe that it is a coincidence that the octopus have 8 arms. When a person continuously gives into an appetite of the flesh, it opens the door for demons. If there is no deliverance, before long the person will be given over to all kinds of fleshly bondages.

“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.” ~Luke 7:26-27

The Importance of Being Well-Balanced, Sober Minded, Self-Disciplined, and Temperate

The Word of God says in 1 Peter 5:8, ‘Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour.’

Webster’s dictionary describes temperate as:

marked by moderation: such as
a : keeping or held within limits : not extreme or excessive : mild
b : moderate in indulgence of appetite or desire
c : moderate in the use of alcoholic beverages
d : marked by an absence or avoidance of extravagance, violence, or extreme partisanship

There are some desires that are not sin in and of themselves. Temperance must be practiced in all things to avoid being sucked into the traps of the enemy. Is having a piece of cake going to open the door for a demonic octopus arm to grab hold of you? No. Is having a piece of cake every day going to cause a crack? Maybe not. Maybe. Each person must be led by the Spirit in moderation.

Whatever is not of faith is sin.

When one piece leads to a second and a third, and one day with two pieces leads to the next needing three, or when a person finds they can’t go a day without the sugar they are now craving, sometimes to relieve stress, sometimes to mask their anger, etc. clearly, idolatry has a hold. The enemy will have the crack that is needed to build a stronghold in the believer’s life.

Whether it is an obvious sin like lust, or a less obvious sin such as envy or excessive and compulsive eating of sugar or drinking of coffee, the sins of the flesh, if allowed free reign, will grow in their power over a person and give the arms of the octopus spirit room to wiggle in and grab hold of a person’s life, break them down, and render them powerless to get free.

If you or someone you know is being taken down by addictive or compulsive behaviors that correlate with the sins of the flesh listed in Galatians 5 and you believe that the Octopus spirit has a hold, one of the best ways to break free from this grouping of spirits is through prayer and fasting.

There is no shame with recognizing and admitting that demonic spirits have a stronghold or that you have open doors in your life because of habitual sins of the flesh.

You may have been free for seasons and find yourself falling back into the same addictive patterns and wonder how you ever fell back into the same mess, or ended up even worse off than you were before.

The Octopus spirit is a grouping of spirits with witchcraft, sometimes in the form of a controlling or Jezebel spirit, or idolatry, as its head and spirits named by their corresponding fleshly sins such as lust, rage, selfish-ambition, or gluttony as their arms. In order to get and stay free, one must stop just chopping off the arms and go for the head.

Relinquishing complete and total control of your life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ is the only way to get and stay free from a witchcraft, or controlling, spirit and serving God only and putting Him first in all things is the only way to get and stay free from idolatry.

Attack the head and the arms will die. Cut off the arms and leave the head intact and the arms will grow back, the demon will go get others more evil than itself, and eventually the condition of the person will be worse than it was to begin with.

There is HOPE!

If you have battled addictions and compulsive fleshly habits and warred against the demons they invite in to no avail in the past, it’s time to step up your battle plan with a Biblical fast or a series of fasts.

I am offering a two part ECourse on Biblical fasting to anyone that is needing guidance and support on their fasting journey into greater levels in the glory and greater freedom than they have known before.

I believe that this is an extremely important equipping for those that desire to go deeper in Christ. Whether you have experience with fasting and just need a refresher course and encouragement to go for it again, or you have never fasted before and have no idea where to even start, this course is for you.

I believe that when you step out to fast, or fast again, the grace and power of God is going to show up and empower you to move into greater levels of glory and freedom than you have experienced before. You can enroll in this course through our online school at:

https://www.kingdomlivingacademy.org/fasting

Other scriptures on the sins of the flesh:

Galatians 5:19-21
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

1 Corinthians 3:3
for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?

Romans 7:5
For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death.

Ephesians 2:3
Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

James 3:15
This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.

1 John 2:16
For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.

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How to Get Your Joy Back

Did you know that unrepented, unconfessed sin can literally make you sick? There is no way to experience the abundant life God has promised without walking in the light of truth. Examine yourself before the Lord, when He brings conviction and correction confess your sins and turn from them.

Often times we wrongly believe it is someone else’s sinful attitude and behaviors that are causing the emotional turmoil going on inside us, when in fact, it is our own unrepented and unconfessed sins.

God offers freedom for sins through the cross of Jesus Christ. The blood of Jesus was shed for the sins of the whole world. Does the whole world experience the glorious freedom that is offered? No. And neither will we if we continue on in our sin without repentance.

The Bible says that people perish for lack of knowledge. It’s important to know and meditate on all parts of the scriptures, not just those that are easy to swallow. God wants to give us a wonderful, blessed, and joyous life, but if we are still bound by our sins, wallowing in addictions year after year, not growing up in our faith, the enemy will continue to bring destruction and keep us locked in prisons of our own making.

Christ died to set us free!!!!

We will not reach perfection while still in this body, but we must press on and fight to apply the victory of the cross to our lives. I am not suggesting that we have a morbid preoccupation with finding every fault we can find in ourselves and walking in condemnation. I am writing to encourage you to walk daily in the light of His Presence. If God is dealing with you about something, its because He wants to set you free from it. He won’t tell you everything that’s wrong with you all at once, but if you are intimately connected to Him and surrendered to His work in your life, you will get dealt with. REJOICE!

Agree with God. Repent and confess known and unknown sins. Receive forgiveness and cleansing. Receive back the JOY of your salvation that is forfeited by deliberately continuing on in a sinful behavior.

‘If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?’

~Hebrews 10:26-29

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The Spirit of Offense

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The spirit of offense is rampant in the world, but we are called to be in the world and not of it. It’s important that we are not intentionally offensive or easily offended. It can ruin our witness.

‘Love is not rude or touchy,’ Corinthians 13:5 says.

Often when someone is easily offended, they assume that others are rude, even when they are not. Offense springs from a spirit of pride and rebellion. It causes one to think, “Don’t tell me what to do or how to do it,’ or ‘I deserve for you to do this or that for me the way I think it is best.’ Offense happens when we are thinking more highly of ourselves then we ought to. (Romans 12:3)

Because God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble, it is well worth our time to examine our lives for any offense. I don’t know about you, but I definitely do not want to find myself being opposed by God!

We should be the easiest people in the world to get along with, as far as it depends on us. Not doormats or codependents, but people that can follow instructions, even if we would do things differently. We are called to be people that believe the best of others, and seek to see things from other people’s perspective, instead of always insisting that others line their thinking up with ours.

The doctrine of entitlement and favor was never meant to encompass the attitude that believes other people owe us. We are to be looking to God to meet our needs, according to His riches and glory in Christ, and allow Him elbow room to do so as He sees fit.

Pride, rebellion, insecurity and offense are not helpful and will absolutely keep people from entering the promised land of abundant life here in the earth.

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Laughter is a Gift of God

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Even though we know we are children of the Most High God, set apart and made Holy by the blood of the lamb, we sometimes don’t act and feel like the powerful, perfect in His sight, superhero new creatures God created us to be. Just like our life circumstances, we are a work in progress.

Although sin is never a joking matter, our bumbling efforts forward in grace don’t always have to be a source of self-loathing and a measuring stick of how far we have to go. We need to give ourselves and others grace, particularly in areas where there is no rebellion but perhaps just a splash of the realities of growing up in the Lord that aren’t perfecto.

When my son lived at home he figured out a clever way to pick apart my idiosyncracies and uncover to me any hint of detected hypocrisy without getting in trouble. He used humor. Even though he straddled the boarder of disrespect with this at times, he revealed truth in such a way I couldn’t help but choke on my food while laughing it was so spot on and funny.

It’s okay to look at yourself in the mirror and admit your not perfect and love yourself anyway!

Being able to accept and love yourself where you are while working to be more Christ-like is important. Lighten up in life in general but be careful to remain sober minded. We serve a Holy God.

Laughter is a gift from God and is medicine to the soul. Laugh and laugh often.

I laughed so hard while flipping through pregnancy memes night before last I had mascara streaming down my face. My husband came in and smiled while I read them to him. I imagine they weren’t quite so funny to him. This week as my uncomfort level has grown with my pregnancy body and its aches and pains I have not always handled myself with stoic grace. I have made sure to share with him regularly my process, when not with words, with grunts and groans as I waddled about the house and struggled to do things that use to be a cinch, directing my husband with an onslaught of new chores as I get the house ready for the baby.

I’m ‘Nesting.’

Yesterday I worked all day in my pj’s and didn’t even brush my hair! I didn’t really realize this until my husband got home from work. 😊 I proceeded to crack jokes about my pregnant reality. He cooked dinner for the third night in a row.

Last night he had a dream. Swans were ‘nesting’ in these trees, squawking, making a bit of a racket. He was thinking they weren’t as beautiful or as big as regular swans. He thought they seemed out of place not floating gracefully in the pond below them.

Hahaha. He would never dream of pointing out my imperfections, even with humor, as my son once did, but my ability to interpret dreams (especially one this obvious!) did it for him.

I’m not exactly the picture of grace and perfection this week as my body fills with extra blood, my weight soars, my circulation struggles and my trips to the fridge and bathroom increase and keep me up at night all while I give a blow by blow account to my husband. I know I haven’t been as charming floating on the water of the Spirit 😂 lately but thank God he still loves me and Jesus loves me too!

I am still beautiful and perfect in the sight of God and so are you, regardless of how you may be feeling or even acting.

I laugh at myself and the reality of my week and I also pray for greater grace to rise above my bodily limitations that I know will tempt me to complain over the next 6-7 weeks.

I pray for each of you too. Live. Laugh. Love.