Christianity

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12 Steps To Overcome Opposition (Part 1)

Opposition and Spiritual Warfare

We cannot talk about Spiritual warfare without talking about opposition. When ever you are doing a work for the Lord, or when God is bringing healing in your life you will experience opposition. People will question your motives of why you are doing what you are doing. You may experience opposition from people you least expect it from. Opposition may come through financial difficulties or health issues, family members, or co-workers. The question is: “What is your reaction when someone opposes you?”

Opposition will come. It may come from those you would expect, or it may come from the least likely person or source.

The enemy will try to intimidate you in hopes to prevent you from moving forward or succeeding.

I want to take a look at a book in the Bible that will shows us opposition will come, but it will also shows us how to keep on keeping on!

Nehemiah

 Nehemiah was a contemporary of Ezra and a cupbearer to the king. He led the Jewish captives back to Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile. His faith in God and his love for his people are impressive – and this, in spite of hardship and opposition. Opposition from the outside and discouragement from the inside, yet the task of rebuilding was complete in only fifty-two days. As in the story of Nehemiah and rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he experienced opposition all along the way from his enemies. From the time he was given permission from the king and scouted out the land, to the very end of completing the walls, Nehemiah was attacked. I want to look at this story and see the steps to combat opposition and break intimidation your enemy will try to throw at you.

Living in the Rubble

Nehemiah 1:3

“And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.”

It is worth getting rid of the rubble in our lives. Sometimes the removal of rubble is costly. We may have to give up things. God might require change. Sometimes it is painful, but all the time it is worth cleaning up. Are you living in the rubble of broken dreams, or broken relationships? Do you look at the mess and think it is hopeless to try and rebuild? You need a different perspective on it. From God’s point of view He sees potential. He sees the finished product. Too many times we settle for the rubble and give up. We forget what was there. When God helps us rebuild He brings total healing to our foundation and starts to build up. He knows what needs to be integrated into the structure to fortify it. He knows the process we need to take to become whole again.

God is a god of completion. Just look at His creation and see His beautiful fruit, vegetation, trees, and people. A mango is complete from seed to growing into an adult ripe fruit. God will bring completion to your life too. It is easy to get frustrated when you don’t see the progress you want to see, but don’t get discouraged or give up. God has a plan and will rebuild you in His time.

Nehemiah 1:4 – 11 – Nehemiah’s prayer and cry to the Lord! he wept, and mourned, he fasted and prayed for many days.

Nehemiah 2:1-10 [READ] – Nehemiah sent to Jerusalem – Nehemiah didn’t tell anyone what was in his heart as he went out by night to see the destruction of the walls.

Nehemiah 2:11 – 17 [READ] – Nehemiah views the wall of Jerusalem

12 Steps to Overcome Opposition

1. Be wise to the words of the enemy.

Nehemiah 2:19 (HCSB)

“When Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard about this, they mocked and despised us, and said, “What is this you’re doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” 

We have to be wise to the words the enemy uses to try and bring discouragement and fear in our lives. In the case of Nehemiah, he stayed strong at each attack.

Nehemiah 4:1 – 3

“But when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and in a great rage, and he ridiculed the Jews. And he said before his brethren and the army of Samaria, What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore things [at will and by themselves]? Will they [try to bribe their God] with sacrifices? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish seeing they are burned? Now Tobiah the Ammonite was near him, and he said, What they build – if a fox, climbs upon it, he will break down their stone wall.”

Isn’t it amazing how the very insults had to do with Nehemiah’s faith and his actions? This is how the enemy works. Satan tries to hit us with his best shot and targets the very core of who we are.

In this case, Sanballat ridicules Nehemiah and calls him, and the rest of the Jews, “feeble” and questions their actions of rebuilding the walls. Sanballat also mocks the worship practices of the Jews by saying, “Will they [try to bribe their God] with sacrifices?” He knew how the Jews worshipped, and attacked with words that could have brought discouragement and fear. Yet Nehemiah didn’t flinch.

The last phrase of Sandballat’s attack, “Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish seeing they are burned?” is actually prophetic as that is exactly what the Jews accomplished.

Tobiah attacked their actions by stating, “What they build – if a fox, climbs upon it, he will break down their stone wall” insinuating all the work the Jews were doing was weak and will be destroyed easily.

This gives us a good look at how the devil works in our life. He will scheme and mock our faith and actions hoping we will start believing his lies and become fearful.

We have to recognize his lies from the beginning. If we start believing them we will fail. You see we are in a spiritual battle everyday. You enlisted in this battle when you received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and believed in God. You are a soldier. You have to be militant!

2. Be a strong and courageous soldier. 

2 Timothy 2:3-4 (HCSB)

“Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. To please the recruiter, no one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of everyday life.”

Don’t get entangled with the concerns of everyday life. If you do, you will not see the enemy coming. We can trust God with our everyday concerns as we are delighting our self in Him and following His Word. We have to be strong and courageous as we work for the Lord or receive His healing touch of rebuilding.

God told Joshua to be strong and courageous many times. I believe this was because we as humans need that encouragement and reminder.

Joshua 1:6 – 9 (HCSB)

“Be strong and courageous, for you will distribute the land I swore to their fathers to give them as an inheritance. Above all, be strong and very courageous to carefully observe the whole instruction My servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go. This book of instruction must not depart from your mouth; you are to recite it day and night, so that you may carefully observe everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in whatever you do. Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” 

Joshua was just that, “strong and courageous.” He fought the inhabitants of the land and won. The Israelites did receive their promise land. He didn’t allow fear to creep in to his thinking.

Fear can paralyze us if we let it. Fear has the potential to tear us apart and possibly divide us. We have to believe in faith that God will be there for us. He promises this in His word.

Joshua 10:8 (CEV)

“Joshua,” the LORD said, “don’t be afraid of the Amorites. They will run away when you attack, and I will help you defeat them.” 

3. Know your authority in Christ.

Our job is to get in the battle position that God has commanded us and let God to the rest. This has always been my motto when ever I do ministry of any kind, be it preaching, leading worship, or even one on one with someone. I know God will do His part as I am faithful and do what God has called me to do.

God has called us. We must be strong and bold and unashamed. We walk in the authority that has been given to us through Christ.

Luke 10:19 (HCSB)

“Look, I have given you the authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy; nothing will ever harm you.”

Knowing this, we can be assured that God is with us and we should never be afraid of the enemy. The enemy wants us to believe we have no authority over him. Once we have this knowledge, he can’t do anything to us. He lies to us to believe he has power, but he doesn’t. Our fear can give him temporary power in that it stifles us and paralyzes us. That is why we need to not fear and to walk in the boldness God has given us.

3. know Your Authority In Christ

Authority over the enemy:

Isa 54:17 (HCSB)

“No weapon formed against you will succeed, and you will refute any accusation raised against you in court. This is the heritage of the LORD’s servants, and their righteousness is from Me.” This is the LORD’s declaration.” 

Mat 16:19 (KJV)

“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” 

Mar 6:7 (HCSB)

“He summoned the Twelve and began to send them out in pairs and gave them authority over unclean spirits.” 

Mar 16:15-18 (ESV)

“And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” 

Eph 6:10-18 (HCSB) 

“Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil. For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. This is why you must take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand. Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest, and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace. In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word. With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and stay alert in this, with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.” 

Be looking for 12 Steps to Overcome Opposition Part 2 next week.

Blessings,

Pastor Kris Belfils

http://www.krisbelfils.com

http://www.hopefellowshipspokane.com

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Peace Robbers (Part 2 of Pursue Peace)

It is hard to find peace in this chaotic world. So many things are pressing for our attention, time, and sanity. Once we have peace, we have to guard our peace at all cost. There are “Peace Robbers” out there that will steal our peace away from us if we let them.

This is a two part message. In part One; “Pursue Peace,” we found out how to get peace and now in part Two, we will see what robs our peace and how to protect it.

Peace Robbers

1.  Being Busy

Being busy is the biggest tool the enemy uses to rob us of our peace. Business makes you think you are doing good. Often being busy is where you wrap your identity in. Have you ever answered someone’s question; “How are you doing?” with “Keeping busy!” It is easy to fall into the trap of business. After all, we are usually productive and have good motives. Yet, being busy keeps us distracted from the true purpose for our life. God cannot bring you to your destiny if you are too busy with insignificant things, which you have chosen, to take up your time.

Not all the business is wrong or bad. We have to decipher between the pressing and the important. There is a difference. Most of the time the “pressing” wins out. We add so many extra things on our plate that we can’t even finish eating what was there before. Have you heard the expression: “Your eyes are bigger then your stomach?” This is a statement to show you want more then you can handle. Our stomach is only so big, but our eyes see more “good things” and grab it and place it on our plates thinking we can eat it all.

“Simple active work and spiritual activity are not the same thing. Active work can actually be the counterfeit of spiritual activity.”

Oswald Chambers

Utmost For His Highest

Being busy makes one look like they are accomplishing a lot, but in reality their spiritual life suffers. Even if what you are doing is for God, it is still “simple active work” compared to where your relationship is with God and cultivating that relationship. Spending time with Jesus, the Prince of Peace, allows us to be more like Him and His peace fills our hearts. It is imperative to grow in Christ. If we are too busy doing vague, thoughtless and foolish things, our relationship with God suffers.

Ephesians 5:14 – 17 (Amplified Bible)

“Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise [sensible, intelligent people]. Making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil. Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is.”

Do you find yourself tired all the time and never seem to get enough sleep. If you have ruled out anything physically wrong with you, chances are it is because of being busy.  Seriously, if you can’t “Be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10),” something is very wrong in your life.

You might be afraid to be still. Maybe there are issues in your heart you are afraid to look at or address. Maybe God is pricking your heart about something and if you slow down, you will have to look at them. Ask yourself; “Am I peaceful?” In other words, if these things are robbing you of your peace, then by all means address them and deal with them and stop ignoring the Elephant in your living room! You are waisting time by running into business to escape dealing with these tuff issues. You will be free and find your peace the moment you decide to stop running and start dealing. The enemy uses this weapon agains people every second of the day. The sad thing is people think they are “okay” or “have a handle on it” when in reality they are drowning in their business that will eventually kill them. Let go of being busy and grab ahold of God’s joyful peace.

If you are afraid of all your business being taken away, and it brings pain in your heart, this is a sign your identity is wrapped up in what you do, instead of who you are in Christ.   I know first hand how this feels. I always wanted to be busy in ministry. I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving a church without another position lined up for me to walk in. The busier I was, the more important I was feeling. I didn’t realize I was placing what I did before my relationship with God. It became my idol. Yes, ministry became my idol. You see even the good can become bad if it is placed wrong on our priority list.

Remember that everything is the Lord’s. The earth, and all that is in it is the Lord’s (1 Corinthians 10:26). The heavens, and the earth were made by the Lord (Psalm 115:15). Who are we to get wrapped up in the things of this earth to the point it takes our peace away? It all belongs to the Lord. We are just passing through. We are renters and eventually we will be moving out and moving into our mansion in heaven when God calls us home. Hold on loosely to the things of this world.

Proverbs 11:28 (Message)

“A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.” 

Being busy is a peace robber. Recognize it and make some changes in your life to let go of the things that really don’t matter, and to hold on to the truly important. Your family, friends, and even yourself, will be happy you did. Don’t settle for the “good” when you can have the best! It’s okay to say; “no” to protect your peace.

Proverbs 16:3 (Message)

“Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; GOD probes for what is good.”

2.  Walking in the flesh

a.  Emotions – Our emotions can rob us of our peace. We can get ourselves all worked up over something or someone to the point we have no peace. Constantly thinking about, or even obsessing about something is not healthy. Having healthy emotions should be our goal. Allowing God to help us manage our emotions and applying His wisdom to them, will help bring peace back in our life.

Proverbs 15:15 (Message)

“A miserable heart means a miserable life; a cheerful heart fills the day with song.”

Proverbs 14:30 (NLT)

“A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body; jealousy is like cancer in the bones.”

Jealousy is like a cancer. Thinking, dwelling, and wanting what someone else has is a sin. It will corrupt your life and rob you of any peace. Jealousy is the opposite and an antonym of contentment. Contentment brings peace. Jealousy brings stress and strife. When someone is jealous, soon their actions will show it and others will see it. How you talk, and interact with others will be affected too. This is letting our emotions runaway with how we feel. It is walking in the flesh. I like how the Message Bible states that verse.

Proverbs 14:30 (Message)

“A sound mind makes for a robust body, but runaway emotions corrode the bones.”

Emotions are fickle. They come and go and often we can’t rely on them. Emotions are not good or bad, they just are. That is why we need a proper perspective on them. God gave us our emotions to enjoy and experience life. Jesus showed and experienced human emotions by weeping when Lazarus died, or by getting angry when in the temple and people were using it for exchanging money and buying and selling things. So to say emotions are wrong or bad, is not truth. But to rely on and express negative emotions to the point of hurting or affecting others is a battle of self-control. It is what we do with our emotions that affect our peace.

Proverbs 14:29 (Message)

“Slowness to anger makes for deep understanding; a quick-tempered person stockpiles stupidity.”

There are many emotions that rob us of our peace. The crime of uncontrolled anger vented towards someone or something is an instant peace robber. Believe it or not Self-pity is an emotion too and can rob us of our peace. Feeling sorry for yourself is trying to move forward by digging a whole underneath you. You will never go anywhere and end up in a big pit.

b.  Constantly being negative, critical or judgmental – Being critical often is an outward manifestation of an inward lack. We are feeling bad about ourselves or have low self-esteem and hate seeing others succeeding. Being judgmental is a sin. Pride is involved with judging others. Thinking you are better or could do better then they are doing.

It might just be that you don’t like a person and are critical of them and what they do or say. This peace robber happens all the time. The more you talk about another person, the more you condemn yourself. In reality we don’t see it that way, but we live in unrest and constant turmoil and don’t know why. When we judge others it will come back on us.

Matthew 7:1 – 5 (NLT)

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.”

Being a critical, negative, judgmental person will isolate you from others because they won’t want to be with you. They are afraid they will be the next topic of your gossip. Keep a guard on your tongue, this will keep a guard on your peace. Stop seeing the negative in life and in others. Negative people never reach their full potential. Critical people never enjoy life. Judgmental people will be judged with the same measure of judgment they give out. All of these people are robbed of their peace.

3.  Expectations 

a.  Expectations we put on people – Putting high expectations on others is a bondage builder. It puts people in bondage. They will never measure up to your standards and will fail in your eyes often. Yes, it is good to want the best for others, but not at the expense of someone always trying to please you. The only expectation we should have is in God and what He will do.

Psalm 62:5 (NKJV)

“My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him.

Notice this verse states; “For my expectation is from Him.” We long for God to move. We have expectancy and it actually comes from God to us. He wants us to put our expectations in Him alone.

Psalm 145:15 (Message)

“All eyes are on you, expectant; you give them their meals on time.”

Are your expectations on God or man? When high expectations are placed on people and they are not met, stress comes to all parties, including ourselves. We can expect our friends, or our spouse, or our family to meet our needs. When they don’t, we get frustrated with them. It is not their job to meet our needs. Let people be themselves. God is the one who is more then enough for what we need.

Let go of high expectations you place on others so they can have peace and you can too.

b.  Expectations we put on ourselves – This is not easy to stop doing. We all expect more out of ourselves then we do others, especially if we are perfectionists. A perfectionist always feels they are never good enough, or that they never measure up. Their self-esteem is very low and they always feel there is something wrong with them. How do I know this? Because I have walked in those shoes a good portion of my life.

A perfectionist seldom has peace. Why would they after placing too high of expectations on themselves. They make goals and once they obtain them, they either feel it wasn’t done right, or they could have done a better job. Often times they reach a goal and never enjoy the reward because they placed higher expectations on themselves. Higher and higher the measuring rod goes for them to reach and they never really reach it because they push it higher. Give yourself a break. No one can live like that. Not only is there no peace in their lives, but no peace in their family, work, and anything they are connected with.

Let go of to high expectations on yourself. Allow God’s peace to flood your heart that you are acceptable just the way you are. It is okay to be yourself and being yourself brings peace and freedom.

4.  Unhealthy Relationships

If you fight low self-esteem, being a perfectionist, or feelings of inadequacy, chances are you pick unhealthy relationships with people that are not good for you. If it is not wrong people, then your relationships are extremely tense because of putting too high of expectations or expecting others to fulfill your needs. Co-dependency or emotional dependency comes when you are looking to others to meet your needs in stead of God. We can even be co-dependent on our friends or spouse. If you are placing people higher then God and your relationship with Him, chances are you are emotionally or co-dependent on them. This subject could stand alone in a book, but we don’t have time here. Mainly, I wanted to get your attention that unhealthy relationships can rob us of our peace, our time, our relationship with Christ, and so much more.

Hanging around the wrong crowd automatically puts you in unhealthy relationships. Their morals and standards might not be Biblical. They might not have any morals at all. We become who we hang around, so choose your friends wisely. Don’t allow your peace to be stolen by making a bad choice in a relationship. Ask God if you are questioning if you have unhealthy relationships, He will show you.

5.  Fear

a.  Fear of the unknown – Always worrying about tomorrow, or what is going to happen will put you in bondage and take away your peace. Remember the Prince of Peace holds your tomorrows. He knows what tomorrow will bring so it makes sense to rely on God every day. The good thing is that if you are a believer, we can rejoice that God is by our side. He is the One who fights our battles when we lean on Him. Remember that God loves you unconditionally. His love is perfect.

Perfect love cast out all fear, and this is the love God has for you.

1 John 4:18 (GW)

“No fear exists where his love is. Rather, perfect love gets rid of fear, because fear involves punishment. The person who lives in fear doesn’t have perfect love.”

If you live your life in fear of the unknown you will never have peace in your life.

b.  Fear of man – Always fearing what people think or what they are going to do is bondage. It prevents you from being free to live your life. You will never please everybody. I have come to this harsh reality. For years I tried to make people happy. I was a Worship Pastor for many years and tried to do the songs or hymns everybody wanted, but I still heard complaints. I finally got to the point I would pick songs that the Holy Spirit told me to bring into the congregation. Then, when someone had an issue with a song, I just told them to take it up with the Holy Spirit. Soon, people stopped gripping about what kind of worship I would lead.

I also was afraid of what people thought of me. I could never be “myself” thinking people wouldn’t like me. But trying to be someone I wasn’t put me in turmoil. Christ died for our freedom, this includes being free to be ourselves. There will always be people who will disagree with you and think bad thoughts about you. Like me, you need to get over yourself and over this issue. It will rob you of your peace and put you in a trap your entire life. Then you will look back on your life and wished you lived differently. Now is the time to recognize you have the fear of man and what they think, and to release it to God and allow Him to heal you of any insecurities and events in your past, so you can truly live your life to the fullest being free to be yourself.

c.  Fear of failure – Always being afraid of making a mistake is torment. No one is perfect, even a perfectionist. Failure is only failure if you stop and give up. How many Inventors, Scientists, Entertainers, Public Figures, and more, who kept going even after failing time after time, till one day they found the answer? There are many. Don’t give up, you could be one step from your breakthrough. Don’t be afraid to fail. Just get back up and dust yourself off, and try again.

There is a story about a man who was walking across the street and tripped and fell down. The next day one of his friends walked by and saw him. They asked, “Are you okay?”  He said, “I tripped and fell down yesterday.” His friend asked, “Are you hurt?” “Do you have any broken bones or internal injuries that prevents you from getting up?” The man said, “No.” “You don’t understand, I fell down and I can’t get up.”

This would never happen in real life. If you tripped and fell on the ground, you would quickly get back up and look back to see what made you trip and fall. Far too often people fail and think they can’t go on. Even before they attempt to do something new, they give up because they don’t want to fail. They are afraid they will look bad in front of people. This will rob you of your daily peace. “If only’s,” and “should of’s” will haunt you for the rest of your life. Let’s be a people who are not afraid to try something new. The worse thing that can happen is it didn’t work for that attempt. Tomorrow is a new day, and with God on your side, all things are possible.

Matthew 19:26 (ESV)

“But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Philippians 4:13 (NKJV)

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

6.  Self acceptance

a.  How do you see yourself? – I have notice often that most people really don’t like themselves. If we don’t get along with ourselves, we won’t get along with other people. When we reject ourselves, it may seem to us that others reject us as well. Relationships are a large part of our lives. How we feel about ourselves is a determining factor in our success in life and in relationships.

Our self-image is the inner picture we carry of ourselves. If what we see is not healthy and does not line up with Scripture, we will suffer from fear, insecurity and various types of misconceptions about ourselves.

People who are insecure about themselves suffer in their mind and emotions, as well as in their social and spiritual lives. I know as I have talked to many and have seen what their insecurities have done in their life. Also, I know as I myself have suffered in this area. Studying the Word of God and receiving His unconditional love and acceptance will bring healing to our life.

b.  God approves of you – God never intended for us to feel bad about ourselves. He wants us to know ourselves well and have self-acceptance. God approves of you, shouldn’t you approve of yourself?

Jeremiah 1:5 (Amplified)

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew and approved of you [as My chosen instrument]…”

Proverbs 23:7

“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…”

What do you think about yourself? Where ever you go, there you are. You can leave the presence of friends, family, co-workers, but you can never leave yourself. When you go to bed, there you are with yourself. When you wake up in the morning, guess who is right there? You are! Do you like yourself? Start today accepting yourself. You cannot get away from who you are. If you struggle in liking yourself, ask God for help, after all He created you.

Genesis 1:31

“And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good (suitable, pleasant) and He approved it completely. And there was evening and there was morning, and a sixth day.”

Rejecting ourselves does not change us, it actually multiplies our problems. Acceptance causes us to face reality and then begin to deal with it. We cannot deal with anything as long as we are refusing to accept it or denying its reality.

Webster’s II New College Dictionary defines accept in part as: 1. To receive (something offered), esp. willingly. 2.  To admit to a group or place. 3.  a. To consider as usual, proper, or right. b. To consider as true.

Notice from this definition that acceptance involves the will. If we apply this definition to self-acceptance, we see that we can choose or not choose to accept our self. God is offering us the opportunity to accept our self as we are, but we have a free will and can refuse to do so if we so choose. We also see from this definition that when something is accepted, it is viewed as usual, proper or right.

People who reject themselves do so because they cannot see themselves as proper or right. They only see their flaws and weaknesses, not their beauty and strength. This is an unbalanced attitude, one that was probably instilled by authority figures in the past who majored on what was weak and wrong rather than on what was strong and right.

The word acceptance from the same dictionary is defined in part as “approval” and “agreement.” If we are having problems accepting ourselves as we are, we need to get into agreement with God that what He created is good – and that includes us.

Amos 3:3

“Do two walk together except they make an appointment and have agreed?

To walk with God, we must agree with God. He says He loves us and accepts us; therefore, if we agree with Him, we can no longer hate and reject ourselves. Self-Acceptance will bring peace, self-rejection will rob your peace from you.

7.  Not giving God Control

Many people struggle with this issue. They fight over having control of their life. Trying to make things happen or not happen in their own strength, and then get frustrated when things don’t go the way they want them too.

Not giving God control is a peace robber. If you have asked Jesus in your heart as Lord and Savior, that means you have made Him Lord of your life. Being Lord, means He has full reign in all areas.

Written from my journal July 12th, 2012: “There is a place in my love walk with God, a deep desire to please Him in every area of my life. I have to be pro-active and guard it. This love I have for God compels me to give you control. You see everything and know all. There is nothing I can hide from you, nor do I even want to. Having an open relationship for you to show me areas I need to lay down or change is what this Christian walk is all about. Why would I ever want to hide or prevent you to have total freedom in my life? This relationship is not like any other earthly one. My relationship with You is so precious and tender and stable. The fact that you would never leave me no matter what I do is truth that this relationship transcends all other relationships. I never want to allow my flesh or self-will to hurt my relationship with you, my loving God. I want to get to the point it grieves my spirit if ever I demand my way by not giving control.”

Giving God control doesn’t mean He will change you into something you don’t want to be, or do something you don’t want to do. Giving God control is saying, “Not my will, but yours be done.” Self-will is a peace robber when it comes to giving God control. It is not worth the struggle. To be truthful, the moment you give God control, you will find peace. You will say to yourself, “Why didn’t I do that a long time ago?”

Guarding your peace at all cost is vital to your Christian walk, and a healthy lifestyle. Don’t allow these []“Peace Robbers” to take away your peace. Be vigilant. Be alert! Be pro-active in who you are. Yielding to God’s correction and love is the only way for a peaceful life.

From one Peace Keeper to another,

Pastor Kris Belfils

www.krisbelfils.com

www.hopefellowshipspokane.com

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You Were Created For More (A Mother’s Day Message)

Have you every felt you were created for more then what you are doing and experiencing now in your life? Do you feel empty? Are you watching others experiencing more and desire the same things? I am here to tell you there is more for you. God wants to pour the “new” into you. He wants you to walk in it.

Women today have come a long way to experience freedom to be who they are in Christ. God created you for a purpose. More then what you think you are. More then how others see you.

God Created You For A Purpose

1. You have a more Abundant Life waiting for you.

John 10:10 (NKJV)

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

“…more abundantly.” This is the main reason why Jesus came to the world, so we could have everlasting life with Him eternally. He came for us to have a more abundant life on earth and walk in this “more” every day.

This “more” is gender friendly and race friendly. It is not just for the rich, it is for everyone.

Galatians 3:28 (NKJV)

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abrahams seed, and heirs according to the promise.” 

It is for “they” or “those” who will grab it and walk in an abundant life and make it their own.

Knowing we are to live an abundant life, and to walk in it are two different things.

Women have been abused, treated less then, and overlooked for generation after generation. It is time for women to realize who they are in Christ. It is time for women to rise up and fulfill the calling or destiny they were created for.

It doesn’t matter what your past mistakes have been. Everybody makes bad choices in their life.

2. You are more then your past mistakes.

What Christ did on the cross for you is complete. We don’t have to add to it. The cross applies to all of us.

You can never sin too much to take that away. God’s grace is not grease to slip and slide in it. We walk away from what God doesn’t like. But, once we have walked away, and ask forgiveness, we are washed from all the wrong we have done. Your mistakes do not define you. Your mistakes do not dictate your future. You are a new creation and have been remade!

Tenth Avenue North has a song that really sums up that you are more then your past mistakes, or the choices that you make. Click the link to listen:  “You Are More”  (Donehey, Mike/Ingram, Jason)

We have to get past what we think of ourselves. We have to ignore what people think of us.

3. You are a new creation! 

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 (Message)

“Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons!”

Burgeons:  “to send forth new growth (as buds or branches), sprout, bloom, to grow and expand rapidly, flourish, blossom.”  

We are brand new, valuable, and blossoming into beautiful things. This is our life! God doesn’t create junk, no, He creates wonderful people to do extravagant things for His glory, and to impact their world for Him!

4. You are royalty.

We are God’s princesses. We are a royal priesthood. We are royalty.

We need to know our place! Our place is a daughter of the Most High God! Take a listen to the song:  “Royalty” by Kimberly and Roberto Rivera

It is hard to see ourselves as royalty or priceless. I remember a time in my life where I was broken. I didn’t see any value in myself. I made some bad choices and had to endure and walk through the consequences. A lot of my healing came through Women’s retreats and seeing who I was in Christ through other women. At one retreat, the entire theme was about being God’s princess. I couldn’t wrap my brain around that concept because of what I had done. My book: “The Garbage Man Always Comes On Fridays” was written during that time (click on link and scroll down page to “The Garbage Man Always Comes On Fridays”). One of the leaders of this retreat had a Tiara and was using it as an example that all of us were given this sparkly crown by God. There were several speakers and many sessions to glean from. When we went to lunch, One of the leaders gave me the Tiara she was using in her talks. I was shocked. I was just there to lead worship with the band. When she gave me the Tiara, she told me “I was God’s favorite, and that He sees me whole and shinning for His glory.” I cried! I didn’t see myself that way, on the contrary, I saw myself as a mess and that I blew any chance of being used by God ever again.

We are royalty. It is easy to believe this for other people, but when it comes to our own life, we seem to be blind. What causes this blindness? I believe it is the culmination of circumstances and experiences we have walked through, also the thought that we have no value, and maybe we have junk in our spiritual/emotional life that needs to be dealt with.  It could be listening to the negative, critical words we are feeding ourselves or that the enemy is feeding us. It doesn’t matter at this point, what matters is to change our viewpoint and to have our spirit healed.

5. Your Spirit can be restored.

Proverbs 15:13 (KJV)

“A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.”

Proverbs 18:14 (KJV)

“The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?”

These verses express that our spirit can make or break us. The word “spirit” is translated: “roo’ – akh, to blow that is, breathe.” (Strongs Hebrew and Greek Definitions)

The spirit of a man is the very essence of himself. That is why when we experience sorrow of heart our spirit is broken. When our spirit is broken, we have no strength to be all God created us to be. We have to have our spirit restored so we can move on into our purpose and fulfill our potential.

Steps In Restoring Your Spirit

(Taken from my book:  “Revive, Rebuild, and Restore” pages 147 – 149)

a. Be truthful to God about how you feel. 

God already knows, but telling Him yourself helps. It frees your spirit up to relax. You will soon feel safe in God’s arms as you rest in Him. He might change the circumstances, or He might change you. Either way you are being changed and that is a good thing.

Many times I have to run to God and cry out to Him about the circumstances. That brings release in my spirit.

b. Be sensitive to God speaking to you.

God is always speaking to us, we just need to dial in our spiritual frequency to hear Him. We need to quiet ourselves to hear His still small voice. Open your heart and mind to His voice. Remember His sheep know His voice. Spend time with Him in prayer and soaking. Learn to listen to Him and be obedient to what He tells you to do.

c. Be quick to admit your sin and repent.

If your spirit is in need of restoration because of something you did wrong, be quick to ask forgiveness, and repent. That means totally turn from what you are doing (the sin) and get far away from it. Don’t stay in your sin. Don’t think there is no hope of ever getting out of it. There is always hope. The truth is how bad do you want to be set free compared to the bondage you are experiencing in the middle of the sin. We have to come to a place we want to please God more then our fleshly desires.

d. Be Forgiving.

Forgive others and forgive yourself. Un-forgiveness will kill your spirit. It will cause you to become old and bitter. Forgiving yourself is just as important as forgiving others. Your spirit will not be restored if you hold onto un-forgiveness.

e. Be willing to accept your circumstances.

Don’t live in denial. Your life is what it is. I have a saying I say to myself, and to others often; “It is what it is!” This statement really says a lot. You can’t change what happened, you accept what happened, and you are not going to stay in what happened. Live your life determined to move on and be healthy. Don’t harbor anything in your heart. This will only lead to a broken spirit.

f. Be willing to change your circumstances.

Don’t settle for anything less than what God has planned for your life. The only person who can change your circumstance is you. If you feel worthless, go look for a job. If you are not getting any jobs, go back to school. Pursue every avenue to better yourself. Don’t be lazy and expect life to come to you. Go out and grab it. If you are lonely go out and find friends. Get involved at a church. Be friendly. Be willingly to help out at a charity. Find something or someone worse off then you and pour yourself into it. You will feel better for it, and you will be a contributing member to society.

g. Be thankful for your restoration.

When you start seeing your spirit/life being restored, be thankful. Better yet, be thankful before you start seeing anything. Cultivating a thankful heart is so crucial to restoration.

Don’t complain, but pray. Don’t criticize, but encourage. Make sure your words uplift instead of tear down, not only to others, but speak encouraging words to yourself as well. Thank God continually for what He is doing in your life. Remember where you were to where you are now. Take a deep breath and enjoy the moment. Give all glory to God for your restoration.

Walk Boldly In Who You Are In Christ

Once we see who we are in Christ, it empowers us to walk more boldly everyday. It is not our ability, but God’s power, that enables us to be more then what we see ourselves to be.

There will always be nay sayers. Surround yourself with people who see your potential! Protect your heart and destiny by connecting with people who will build you up and not bring you down.

Build up the Kingdom of God. Give value to others. When we serve in leadership, people will trust you. True leaders don’t dominate, they lift up other people.

Women complete each other, not compete with each other. Yet, far too often women criticize other women. Most criticism comes from fear. We criticize what we don’t understand or don’t know. We criticize if we feel threatened. But being critical of others only brings bondage and destruction. It never builds the Kingdom of God. Why do we shoot each other in the body of Christ. We are of the same body, yet we shoot criticism when someone makes wrong choices. We shoot our wounded.

“We frequently stop or minimize one another. Instead of supporting and encouraging one another for the cause of Christ, we perpetuate an oppression that renders us ineffective to be all we’re supposed to be as women and as Christians.”

Lisa Bevere

Lionness Arising 

You would never see an army soldier, who is shot in battle by “friendly fire” be shot at again. No, you will see them being rushed to the medics. But this is what we do to other Christians when we don’t have compassion, or mercy and grace. Our criticism is like shooting them again and again thinking they will change. Reality is they are wounded more and more to the point they want nothing to do with Christians.

Let us be people who encourage one another. Try to see the good in others. After all, isn’t that what you would like them to do to you?

People may label you. Remember what people say about you, or what they think about you does not dictate who you are. God’s opinion is the only opinion that matters. We might even be judged as arrogant by walking in God’s power and agreeing with what His word says we are. I have two words for you;  “Who cares!” Who cares what people think or say! Who cares what man, or this world may say! We, as God’s creation, have a mighty work to do. Each one of us were created for a specific purpose. Each one of us, male or female, have great potential.

Don’t let the naysayers stop you from being all you can be in Jesus! Their opinion doesn’t last throughout eternity, only God’s does. This is who we should please!

You Were Created For More

All of this said, I pray your eyes have been opened to see the potential that lies dormant inside of you. What are your dreams and desires? Do they line up with God’s Word? I have found my true desires, those things that I am passionate about, are really given by God.

Psalms 37:4 – 6 (NKJV)

“Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.”

As you are walking faithfully with God in life? God will bring those desires to pass. This is a promise! This promise is for you! Commit your life, plans, and desires totally to God. We can trust Him with our “precious” things. Those things we keep secret in our hearts. Those things we ponder and hope for.

Remember what Christ did for you on the cross was not just for your redemption, but also for your future. What He did is complete. He has made all things new.

Be the one who grabs ahold of this message today and change your world for Christ! Be the new creation Christ gave His life for and walk fully in the new He has for you.

From one new creation to another;

Pastor Kris Belfils

www.krisbelfils.com