The War Within

The War Within

Let us take a look at the war between our spirit and our soul. The war within ourselves.

First of all let me give you a quick tour on how we are put together. We have a spirit (this is Not Holy Spirit), a soul and a body.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

BODY – Our body is that which we can see in a mirror.

SOUL – Is our mind, will and emotions. This is the place that needs deliverance. This is where the strongholds of the enemy are built. The war rages in our minds.

Romans 12:2 – And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

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Therefore, our body and soul are areas that we are in touch with. This is called our flesh.

SPIRIT – We can’t see our spirit.

John 3:6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

Our spirit cannot be accessed in any natural way. God communicates with our spirit. The spirit is the place where all of the life and power of God flows through. The only way to discern spiritual truth is through the Word of God. The Word of God is the mirror to show you what your spirit is like. You cannot go by your body or soul (will, mind and emotions) to know what your spirit is like.

We constantly have this battle going on between our spirit and soul (the flesh). Holy Spirit ministers to, or guides our spirit in truth and life. Therefore our spirit wants to do that which is from God, but our soul (which carries the lies of the enemy) wars against our spirit and tries to take the wheel.

Galations 5:16-17 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another…

Here we can see the problem. Our spirit (which is influenced by Holy Spirit) and flesh (body and soul) are constantly at war with one another.

The soul responds to outward things (that which we literally see and experience) like people’s words, their behaviour towards us, violence, pain, trauma etc. We tend to get caught up in all the negativity that surrounds us and we become, hopeless, fearful, angry, sad and the list goes on and on.

2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

We take captive every thought (soul) that is in contradiction with the word of God. The times when our thoughts are packed with negativity and evil desires, this is when we need to resist and choose to live by the spirit (which carries Holy Spirit’s influence).

Our spirit (this is not Holy Spirit, it is your spirit), carries that which is of God, that which the word of God speaks of. That which looks completely different than what the world looks like through our souls eyes.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, 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.

Our spirit hooks into that which is lifegiving, as this scripture above reads.

The problem is that our spirit is often overridden by our soul. Our soul overrides our spirit and we end up in a lot of misery and dissappointment because we live by what is seen through the souls eyes and not by what is unseen, which is looking through the spirit’s eyes. Our soul responds to the bad and ugly. We have to get to a place where we live by the spirit and not by the soul. It is going to require us to make a decision and to engage our will to follow it through in everything we do: to behave and respond to things in the way that word of God directs us to: To live our lives according to the word of the Lord and not according to our selfish, rebellious nature. For example, it is easy to get angry and respond in an unneccessary manner (this is when we operate through our soul dictating to us), but it is much more difficult to choose to be a peacemaker as the word of God directs (which is our spirit). We chose to follow Jesus and we love Him, therefore we want to do things His way. We cannot live double lives where we do a bit of evil and a bit of good. We don’t love Jesus half-half, we love Him completely!

This is how we war against ourselves, to force into submission that which our soul is dictating to us (that which is in contradiction to God’s word) by reverting to the word of God. Don’t agree with the negative report of the devil, immediately respond in positivity and that which God’s word says. If you don’t know what the word says about a situation you face, find all scriptures you can on that topic and start proclaiming it over your situation. Our souls receive many negative messages from the enemy and we often come into agreement with the devil. This is when we have to violently come against death that wants to creep in by proclaiming God’s word and feeding ourselves with life, so that our spirit can rise up and take charge over our soul.

Therefore we have to start getting fit in the spirit by getting to know God’s word better so that life can flow through us.

Let’s summarize:

Our spirit that carries the very essence of God, is supposed to override that which the soul dictates to us; that which is negative and evil. We have to allow our spirit to immediately override our soul when negativity comes. Instead of being bitter, we choose to forgive and we choose to love. That is how God’s word directs us. The soul is packed with lies of the devil and the soul needs deliverance, by the washing of the word. A brainwashing or reprogramming with that which is life, the word (Bible) of the Lord. The way to get to that place is to will the soul into submission to the spirit. I always say, ‘I have to push against myself”. This is exactly what is needed. It is not a once off thing. It is daily choosing to bend our soul into submission to that which is life and not death. That which is Holy and acceptable to God. That which is true!

This is how we die to self! Die to wanting to swear when we are angry, die to running to alcohol when there is too much pain, die to shouting at your children when you are under pressure, die to stubborness, rebellion and wanting to do things my way etc.

Beloved, choose today to die to self! Die to what your soul’s selfish desires are whispering to you. Let’s allow only life to flow from and through us.

Let’s pray – Father, my soul is too much in the way, I have allowed the enemy to use my soul to dictate to me. I ask forgiveness for not spending time in Your word and pondering on that which is lifegiving. Forgive me for entertaining that which is negative and miserable and agreeing with it. I want to be lifegiving to others and I want life to dwell within me. Forgive me for allowing death to dwell within me because I ponder on that which brings death. Please wash me with Your blood and cleanse me from death. I welcome You Holy Spirit, come in and breathe new life into my being and please help me to catch myself when I come in agreement with the enemy of my soul. I choose to feed my spirit with that which is Christ. Help me to make my spirit so strong in the word of God so that when trouble comes I will be able to resist and stand against the enemy. In Jesus name I pray. Amen and amen.

I Am Who You Say I Am

I Am Who You Say I Am

Mmmmm, something to ponder on! I am who God says I am. Does that ring true to you?

Today, I would like for us to really ponder on this. Who does God say I am? Who do I think or believe I am? Is it in contradiction with God’s word or is it in line with what God’s word says? If it is in contradiction with His word then it means I am believing a lie, isn’t it?

I want to share with you what God showed me many years ago. He spoke to me about Gideon. Judges 6:11 – Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, and his son Gideon was beating wheat in the wine press [instead of the threshing floor] to [hide it and] save it from the Midianites. 12 And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, mighty man of valour”.

Why would God say to Gideon he is a mighty man of valour? I mean, valour means to have great courage in the face of danger. Seriously, Gideon is hiding away, very scared, the Medianites are coming!

Here is what was really going on there. The Lord spoke to Gideon and called him, “mighty man of valour.” Why? Well, this is what God saw when He looked at Gideon – inside (his spirit) and not his outside condition. This is what God had deposited in Gideon’s spirit while He was knitting him together in His mother’s womb – to be strong and courageous; to be a man who has great courage in the face of danger! Gideon’s name actually means “he who cuts down”. Gideon just didn’t know it yet; he was not aware of what God had placed inside of him. He didn’t know that God created him to be the one to bring deliverance to the nation and wipe out idolatry.

God had to give him a bit of a nudge by using this title to address him, “might man of valour”. His spirit had to hear it and be reminded of it. Then, Gideon’s soul – his mind – got in the way. He was looking at the circumstances and at how scary the enemy looked and he was overcome by fear. Fear dictated to him that he would not be victorious and that which the Angel was telling him was a lie. Fear made a lot of noise. That is why he first asked for a sign; he was not sure that it was God speaking to him. Fear was still whispering in the back of his mind (keep in mind, in those days Holy Spirit wasn’t indwelling, Jesus hadn’t died yet).

22 When Gideon realized [without any doubt] that He was the Angel of the Lord, he declared, “Oh no, Lord God! For now I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face [and I am doomed]!” 23 The Lord said to him, “Peace to you, do not be afraid; you shall not die.” 24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and named it The Lord is Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah, of the Abiezrites.

It was after Gideon had “come to his senses”; realising that God is in his midst; and he has seen the God of peace, face to face; that he went and did what he was instructed to do. Gideon had an encounter with God. All of a sudden that which God had deposited in him kicked in, and he took up the call that God had placed over his life. Later in the chapter, in verse 34, it says, “that the spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon” and he blew the trumpet and the Abiezrites were called together to follow him. In another translation it says that “Holy Spirit wrapped himself around Gideon” and took charge over him. In the commentaries you will read that Holy Spirit clothed Gideon (like a glove over a hand) with zeal, strength and might. Exactly that which Gideon needed to accomplish his task – Holy Spirit power, not his own power.

If you have ever been scared of doing what God told you to do, remember Gideon and pray that Holy Spirit will wrap himself around you and take charge over you. Do we need to be scared when God has a specific task for us? Do we run away because we think He can’t use us? Maybe because we just don’t believe we’re wired for it. Gideon didn’t take up his calling because he didn’t think he was able; he did not look to the one who enables us.

So who does God say you are? First of all, we are called sons and daughters if we have given our hearts to Him. Do we believe it? Because if we don’t, we need a brainwashing, a reprogramming. It means that we have been bombarded with lies from the enemy and we believed them. Lies where the enemy used people (or ourselves) against us to make us feel unqualified, inadequate, weak, ugly, fat etc. We can not afford to entertain the deception and lies that the enemy throws our way through people or even our own thoughts. What does God say? People do not define us; you do not define yourself. God defines you. You are His workmanship, His Spirit enables you to execute His missions. You just need to be His hands and feet and be available for Him to use.

God has placed his scrolls in our spirits that carry His words and purposes for our lives. A blueprint from heaven with all the information we need to know who we are created to be and what we are supposed to do for His kingdom. Our war is always between our spirit and soul. The soul hooks into that which is seen; all the trouble; all the chaos and pain in the world; all the violence etc. We allow the soul to dictate that we are doomed and then fear takes over. Our spirit on the other hand carries the heart of heaven, our spirit knows where LIGHT is and it wants to follow, but the soul overrides our spirit because we allow it. We need to get the soul in submission to our spirit. This is done by packing ourselves with the word of God and conforming to it and not to the world’s view of things. We do not live by sight but by faith, which is of the kingdom of heaven.

Beloved, are you ready to pick up that which God has called you to be and to recieve from Him who He says you are? Are you willing to reject what fear is dictating to you and walk in Abba Father’s will for you?

Today I want to say to you son and daughter of the Most High God. ARISE SPIRIT OF VALOUR!!! Get up, Your king is waiting for you to take your place and to not be overcome by the enemy. The spirit of the overcomer (Holy Spirit) rests upon you and you have everything you need to be truimphant.

I want to bless your spirit with the word of the Lord for you –

Psalm 139:13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

John1:12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God

1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Let us pray: Abba Father I bring to You all that I am and all that I am created to be. I repent for running away and laying down the calling and purpose for my life. I have allowed fear to dictate to me who I am. I ask forgiveness and I ask that you will cleanse me with Your blood. I choose today to pick up that which is mine, I pick up my call, I pick up my purpose and I pick up my birthright. I ask that you will cleanse it all with Your blood and pour fresh oil upon it. Holy Spirit please help me when fear wants to override my spirit. Help me to stand and not run away. I ask that You would wrap yourself around me and take charge over me so that I can overcome in Jesus name. Come Lord Jesus come, lead me in Your paths. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen and amen.

Why Patiently Wait?

Why Patiently Wait?

I don’t think there is anyone that hasn’t wrestled with this before. Why do we need to wait sometimes before our prayers are answered? Can’t it just happen immediately?

Psalm 27:14 AMP Wait for and confidently expect the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

Years ago when I was a primary school teacher, God taught me something about prayers that don’t always get answered immediately. In that time, I had a lot of personal pain and issues that needed healing. My selfworth and confidence were nonexistent and I struggled to stay positive.

God gave us a mission as a class where we had to go and minister to a nearby school. We had to go into each primary school classroom and pray for the teachers and the students. This was something that I wasn’t confident in doing because of my insecurities. I did do it because I always wanted to obey God, even when all of me was against it.

During that time I had to push myself out of my comfort zone by obeying what I felt God told me to do. The Lord taught me not to go on what I feel because my negative emotions towards myself or others would betray me. I had to push against my feelings of being inadequate and believe what God’s word said about me.

God allowed me to teach His word to the children in my class every morning for devotions and by doing this, He started healing my pain and trauma from the past. He knows exactly when to put us in a place where He can heal us. He especially puts us in places where we do not feel adequate at all, where we feel more worthless than ever. Ever wondered why He allows that? It is to help you see that you have pain that needs Him to heal.

The one morning I was speaking to Jesus about revival and about Him wanting me to pray for our school and schools in our country for revival. I was very excited to see the fruit on my prayer for revival when it happened. God spoke to me and said that He won’t always show me the fruit on my labor. I was taken aback by this, but I chose to believe that God knew best and that He loves me. I told my collegue what God had said and without me knowing, she started praying that God would have mercy on me and show me at least a glimpse.

In my last month at this school, I called my class together for some prayer. The Lord showed me there was oppression in our midst and we had to sort it out. Everyone had a chance to speak and Holy Spirit fell on us and repentance and forgiveness started flowing from our lips. All of a sudden, the children made groups and started praying for one another, one girl stood on my chair, she took the Bible and started reading the word, the boys were praying, one Porteguese girl started walking up and down the classroom, speaking in tongues; some were crying, some were laughing. It was amazing. My collegue and I were standing amazed by what we saw, Holy Spirit had invaded the space and God was busy encountering each student in that classroom. My heart was overcome with joy because I had thought that God wouldn’t show me any fruit. My collegue then told me that she asked God to show me a glimpse of the fruit. I never saw the fruit of our prayer for the other school and I didn’t expect to see it, I trusted that God knew best and I surrendered to that.

Many years after this incident, I had still not seen fruit on my prayers and the effort I have put into peoples lives. After much healing, deliverance and dealing with my selfworth, I asked the Lord about the fruit thing. His answer was, “That time of your life you were struggling with legitimacy issues, I love you so much that I couldn’t give you what you wanted because if I did, you would’ve fallen into a trap by taking the glory for yourself. Pride would’ve swallowed you and the enemy would’ve wiped you out. I couldn’t allow that.” WOW, LORD!

One can easily think, “God doesn’t love me”, “I did something wrong and that is why God doesn’t answer me or give me my hearts desire.” Is this really true? We need to start thinking differently. God is LOVE and God is Good, always. Isn’t LOVE busy protecting you by not answering yet? When we pray, “Your kingdom come and Your will be done”, doesn’t it mean that we are asking God to intervene and do it the way He thinks best? What we desire or want is not always good for us – it can destroy us. That is why we ask that God’s will be done, so that He can save us from ourselves.

2 Thessalonians 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.

When God revealed to me why He didn’t show me the fruit of my labor I was so blessed. God’s ways are not our ways. I would’ve never thought God was busy protecting me by not giving me what I desired. I actually said to God that I don’t mind if He doesn’t show me the fruit; if this is a vulnerability in me, He can keep it away. All I want to do is please Him, do His will and walk in His ways. To be His hands and feet and to love and serve the broken.

Beloved, believe that He knows best, believe that He has got your back and believe that He will open the way. Expect Him to do it in His time and in His way. We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him. Hang in there, He is always busy doing something behind the scenes while we are patiently waiting for an answer.

Let’s pray – Abba Father, what an amazing dad You are. Your ways are truly not my ways. I ask forgiveness for many times blaming You for leaving me and for not carrying my interests at heart, I repent. Please forgive me for getting mad and throwing tantrums when things don’t work out the way I think it should. I surrender to you Lord, I choose to give up my way so that Your kingdom can come and Your will be done in my life in Jesus name. Please have Your way in my life and thank you for protecting me because You love me. In Jesus name. Amen.

Psalm130:5 I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait,
And in His word do I hope.

Psalm 40:1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me and heard my cry.

Micah 7:7 But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the Lord;
I will wait for the God of my salvation.
My God will hear me.