spirit

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A Cry For Revival Series: “Revival of Our Spirit!”

The spirit of a person is interesting to look at. It deals with the inner make up of the person. How they think and function on the inside comes out as action, speech, reaction, etc., on the outside.

What we feed our spirit will eventually come out. We need to take inventory of what is inside of us. Are you fighting with feelings of insecurity or inferiority? Do you feed your spirit with good things or bad? What are you telling yourself on a regular basis? We have to learn to feed our spirit with good things and to spend time with God. Whom ever or whatever  you spend the most time with, that is whom or what you will become.

“Take inventory of who you hang around and what you involve yourself with. This is what you will become.”

Pastor Kris Belfils

Now to apply this thought to revival, we have to remember that dwelling with Christ brings intimacy and power. It brings satisfaction and contentment. Intimacy with Christ brings boldness and life to us.

Romans 8:11 (NKJV) “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” 

The same spirit that raised Jesus from the grave dwells in, lives in, and inhabits us. When you think about that, wow, it brings a whole new look at intimacy with God. I will do everything possible to have and keep a close relationship with God. My relationship with Him is a precious thing, it is my life! Our thinking can produce life or death. I was writing in my journal the other day and here is what I wrote:

“I sense a revival in my spirit, a turning from thinking dead thoughts to thoughts that produce life. Breathe new life into every area of me, Lord. Create and resurrect new thinking in my spirit. I throw away all the old thinking that only brought death. I decree new life! I decree hope and your promises! You are my Resurrection power. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in me!”

Keeping and maintaining a close relationship with God will change our way of thinking. We can bring death in our life by thinking thoughts that produce death. Our actions can bring death, not only to us, but to our friends and family, church body, co-workers, and more. Let me give you an example:

Gossip and Misunderstandings

We can “perceive” something was said by someone, or something was done by someone, and believe it to be truth. Once we believe the lie as truth, we act upon it and might even gossip to other people about what we thought was said. Then, the person we gossiped to tells someone one else, and in turn they tell someone else. It can go around a church like wild fire and hurt someone’s reputation in just a short amount of time. This blocks the Holy Spirit from moving in hearts. This also blocks any leader from ministering to people within the church if the church is believing a lie about them as a leader.

We need God to revive our spirits so we don’t look through the tainted glasses of gossip and misunderstanding. Always go to the source and find out if the information that was said is true. Better yet, don’t even believe for a minute the gossip in the first place. Gossip will prevent revival from coming in your life and in the body of Christ. God hates sin, and gossip is sin!

Remember that sin separates us from God. We need to be a people who are quick to repent and to make things right with those we hurt. We can’t go around causing hurts and cutsin other people’s lives and not expect any consequences to happen in our own life. Remember how we judge will be measured back to us.

Matthew 7:1 – 2 (NKJV) “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

I like how the Amplified Bible states these verses:

Matthew 7:1 – 2 (Amplified Bible) “DO NOT judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves. For just as you judge and criticize and condemn others, you will be judged and criticized and condemned, and in accordance with the measure you [use to] deal out to others, it will be dealt out again to you.”

Think about what you have been talking to others about lately. Has it been edifying to your spirit and to those that are listening? What have you been watching on the television or movies? What have you been listening to on the radio? Personally, I am very protective of what I watch and listen to as I know it can affect me in a positive or negative way. If you are longing to be revived but keep feeding your spirit with things that don’t edify you, it will eventually dry up your spirit and you will become indifferent to the things of God. You won’t become revived, quit the opposite, your spirit will start to die. Allow God to revive your spirit and your love for Him will grow more and more.

Revival of our spirit will affect all areas of our life!

It is easy to get caught in the mundane of life. We lose our first love of God and start going through the motions instead of living life abundantly (John 10:10), especially if you have been a Christian for many years. Remember this can be a trap of the enemy to prevent you from becoming all God created you to be. Don’t settle for less than what God’s word promises. Get a promise book out and read the topics that concern you. Allow God’s word to penetrate your spirit and sink in until you start believing it.

When you see a person who is dying and people are trying to resuscitate them, their body is lifeless. But when that person is resuscitated they start to move. They start to talk, they start to possibly get up and walk. This is what happens with our spirit. God is trying to resuscitate us. He knows what we need to come alive again.  Don’t settle for the “should of” and “Could of.” I should of written that book I was thinking about! I could of made something of my life but I became discouraged, or just was lazy. I should of married that person I fell in love with. I could of shown more love to my family and children. I should have applied for that job I’ve always wanted. I could of started my own business but I was too afraid.

Become alive and live your life! You are the only person who can enjoy your life. No one else can enjoy it, only you. Stop blaming circumstances or people for what you lack. Allow your spirit to be revived and watch how your entire life will change. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are. God created you! Therefore you have a purpose on this earth. Plan to fulfill that purpose!

Job 32:8 (NKJV) “But there is a spirit in man, And the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding.”

The word spirit in this verse means: “Wind, breath, life, anger, air, blast, courage, mind, to blow, breathe, to smell, touch, make of quick understanding (the primative root).” Often our spirit has a lack of courage and is fearful to deal with things that are troubling to us. We might not even see areas in us that need change. It is like the “elephant in the living room” syndrome. Everyone else can see it but we can’t. Either we are choosing to ignore it or we are in denial.

The Elephant In Your Living Room

Elements To Courage

I took my daughters to school and both of them didn’t want to go. It was Monday, and Monday is the hardest day of the week after having two days off for the weekend. My daughters have always wanted to be with my husband and I instead of going. I can understand as I was the same way when I was younger. I would rather do anything instead of go to school. As I was saying, “Good bye” to them, I spoke out, “Be brave, and be strong and courageous!” I started to think about those words and what I was going through in my own life. Recently I have been facing my fears and walking through things I have avoided for years. God has been telling me to be “strong and courageous” (Joshua 1:6) as I face my giants and obstacles that come my way to get to the Promised Land. Fear of the unknown, fear of my past, fear of man, fear of failure, and even the fear that I missed the Promised Land altogether.

Being courageous is not an easy thing to do, especially when it has been marks of your character to run and bolt under pressure. The word courageous means: possessing or displaying courage; able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching.

The word courage means: “The quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc, without fear, and with self-possession, confidence, resolution; bravery.”

There are times when I do feel courageous and I face my fears, other times I shrink back and find a place of refuge. I believe God knows and sees this. He knows when I am weak or vulnerable. I also believe God will bring about encouragement somehow. It might be a passage of scripture you read that blesses you and gives you strength to continue. It might be a friend or loved one saying or doing something for you. It might be the Holy Spirit speaking to your heart in such a way that you realize you can keep going under fire.

There are several elements to courage that are always there. Courage is part of our spirit. When we follow through with what we need to do, even though we don’t want to do it, we will see all these elements come to pass.

ELEMENTS TO COURAGE

1. Courage takes boldness – Face your fearsFear, in it self, can rule us and paralyze us if we let it. Fear of the unknown is overwhelming if we allow the thoughts to take over our minds. One thing I have found to combat fear in my life is to remind myself of God’s faithfulness. I remember situations in my past that God has brought me through and I tell myself that He will bring me through this too.

We must remember that retreating from our fears only brings weakness. It also multiplies the fear in our minds and it becomes even bigger than reality. I know as I have done it in my life. Then, instead of facing something small and manageable, we face a puffed up illusion of the fear. This can only bring torment and pain. This is the enemies work. We have to recognize it for what it is. God is not a God of fear. He is a God of courage. So, if you face any fears in your life, realize God wants you to have courage. Pray and ask God what you should do. Should you confront the fear? Should you wait? Should you just let the fear go and trust God for the outcome?

This week I have had to look at some “scary” fears in my life. As I looked at them, I let them overwhelm me and I began to retreat and want to give up. Courage was not in me at all. This is rather hard to tell you as I have a fear of people thinking I am not a strong woman of God, or weak in the face of fear. But as I started to retreat, I turned around and looked at the fear. It became even bigger to me. I stopped and walked right up to it and saw it finally for what it was; fiction. Fear is fiction, at least the fear I was facing. It was not reality. I had allowed the fear of man, and fear of my past, to paralyze and prevent me from moving on with my life, and with ministry.

One of my fears is not measuring up to other people. I have always felt “less than” others. This fear has blown up so big in my life. I was shocked at the size I had allowed it to get. My insecurities and weaknesses were so huge in my mind that they seemed insurmountable. But the only way I will overcome them is to face them and push myself towards them. I am determined to not be in bondage to my fears. We all have them; it is how we deal with them that really determine what we will do in life. So I have made a determination in my heart to walk towards my fears instead of retreating or finding a place to hide.

A close friend pointed out some of my fears to me. It was like the big “elephant in the living room” syndrome. Everyone sees you have a big elephant in your living room, as matter of fact it is taking up all the extra space for anyone to sit down and fellowship with you. Yet, you have no clue that the elephant is there. I can imagine a comedy skit of a big elephant in the living room and people are sitting down on the couches or chairs trying to drink a cup of coffee and fellowship with you, but the elephant is so big that it is sitting in everyone’s lap. Still you don’t even acknowledge it being there and you try to strike up a conversation with people. Everyone else sees the elephant and knows what needs to be done, but you are totally ignoring the obvious.

It takes courage to face our elephants. 

2. Courage knows God is always there – Realize you are not aloneOften times we think we have to face our fears alone. That makes our fears even worse. We think we are the only one there to figure out what to do. We have to realize we are never alone, we always have God there. He is constantly speaking to our heart words of help, direction, encouragement, and peace. We just have to tune our spiritual ears into His frequency.

1 Samuel 12:22  “For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.” Hebrews 13:5- 6 “Your life should be free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for He Himself has said, I will never leave you or forsake you. Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

God’s love can envelop us to overcome our fears. He is not expecting you to be strong and courageous without him. Our loving Lord will shower us with the confidence of His love to walk and face what we need to face. In His love we are transformed and changed. We see things from a different perspective. The perspective is from His loving arms looking out to the situation. Everything seems smaller and easily attainable and manageable from His arms. Let us remember that perfect love drives out fear.

1 John 4:18 states “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

God’s love for us is perfect. His love drives our fear away if we receive it. We know fear is not of God strictly because fear torments us. God is a God of love, not torment.

1 John 4:18 (Message) “There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life–fear of death, fear of judgment–is one not yet fully formed in love.” 

God is calling his people to be strong under fire. So many times we want the easy road out. We would rather find a more comfortable path to take in life then to walk through a rough trial. But if we walk through what is in front of us we will be stronger for it. We will receive a wonderful reward for endurance.

Joshua 1:6a “Be strong and courageous…” 

 3. Courage takes risks – Step out beyond what you know

Usually when you have to confront something, it takes an element of risk into the unknown. Joshua visited the Promised Land earlier under Moses leadership, and knew what was in the land he had to confront. Did he know how they were going to overcome the giants? No! But he did know God was with him and He was willing to face what was ahead in the security of knowing God was for him, and not against him.

The element of risk is challenging. What is your character? Do you cringe at the thought of risking something? If there is risk involved, it does mean you will have to let go of something to reach for something new.

The definition of the word, “risk” is, “the exposure to the chance of injury or loss,” so there will be a loss of some sort. The loss here is the loss of fear! It is worth the risk of stepping out in courage to confront fear. The more and more we step out and confront the fear, the easier and less threatening it becomes in our lives. The risk to the exposure of injury is always a threat. That is why we retreat when we see fear. We don’t want to get hurt. Our flesh will scream at us and yell, STOP AND TURN AROUND,” while our head and our heart is saying, “KEEP PRESSING FORWARD!” We really don’t have a choice when it comes to living life and enduring from day to day. If we stop, we will digress or self-destruct. There is nothing healthy about that. No, the only choice we have is to keep going and to press in to any fear and meet it head on to over come it.

4. Courage takes resilience – Enduring when you want to  give up

Resilience is “the power or ability to return to the original form or position after being bent, compressed, or stretched; elasticity. It is the ability to recover from illness, depression, adversity, or the like; buoyancy.”Courage takes resilience. It is a knowing that as you are walking in the face of your fears, you will be ok. It is continuing to move forward even though you see potential hazards around you. Remember that God is always with us,

Isaiah 42:3 “He will not break a bruised reed, and He will not put out a smoldering wick; He will faithfully bring justice.”

God will not allow you to be bent to the place of breaking. He is with you and has His eye on you constantly. That’s His character. He knows what you can endure, which is more than what you think you can endure. Resilience is good as it brings healthy growth.

I heard about an environment scientists were trying to create in the desert. They created a dome structure that would grow all sorts of plants and trees. They would plant all types of wildlife. But as the trees would grow, they started to bend back towards the ground. The scientists were baffled over this. They gave the trees proper care, nourishment, and sunlight, but they still would grow straight for awhile, and then bend towards the ground. Finally one of the scientists realized there was no wind. The trees needed wind to face resistance to make them grow strong under pressure.

This is exactly what happens with us. We need the winds of adversity to make us grow under pressure. If we never faced anything that was challenging, we would never know what it was like to overcome.

James 1:12   “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”

I want to be one who bounces back under pressure. I want to find myself strong after facing my fears.

5. Courage takes action – Step out; make a move!

Faith takes action. It is one thing to believe God will bring you to your promised land, and it is another to never step one foot towards that promise. We cannot expect to advance and take the land if we stay in one place. God is waiting for you to step out. The fear of stepping in the wrong direction is bondage. If you never step, you will never obtain. I believe if you step in the wrong direction, God will lovingly correct you if your heart is to do His will and to please Him. Stand in the confidence of Who’s you are. Step out in faith believing God will move after you move. Just like the Priests who had to step into the water with the Ark of the Covenant, once they took a step, the waters began to part. Before they took the step, the waters never moved (Joshua 3).

Hebrews 10:35 – 39 (HCSB) “So don’t throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you need endurance, so that after you have done God’s will, you may receive what was promised. For in yet a very little while, the coming One will come and not delay. But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not those who draw back and are destroyed, but those who have faith and obtain life.” 

Take a step towards your fears

Retreating is the opposite of taking a step forward towards your fears. Let’s take a step forward in getting rid of the elephant in our living room and riviving our spirit! What does a step forward look like? 

  1. It can come in the form of casting down imaginations that try and exalt themselves above the knowledge of God in your heart (2 Cor. 10:5).
  2. It is bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
  3. Another form of stepping towards your fears can be doing the exact opposite of what your flesh tells you.

If you are afraid of man and what they think of you, then you need to function and walk where you think people are having a problem with you, and love them unconditionally. How about facing the very person that hurt you in your past and give them forgiveness? I have done this in my past and it has freed me from tons of bondage fear brought.

One of the biggest things we can do is confront the enemy and cast him down. We have let him have a stronghold for too long and it’s time for us to take our authority and command him to leave us.

Courage is a wonderful character trait if we let it be complete in us. Courage is nothing if we don’t act upon it. It takes boldness to face our fears. We can never overcome anything in our life if we don’t confront it and look at it for what it is.

Why allow the elephant to live in your living room any longer? It doesn’t belong there in the first place. Fiction will puff itself up and that is exactly what fear does. Remember you are not alone. God always sees and is constantly watching over you. You can walk through this with confidence.

Don’t get discouraged at what you see, but be encouraged as you step into the unknown.

If we want to experience more of God we have to step where we haven’t been before. Be resilient! Endure even when you want to stop, or retreat. I am sure you can think of some action you need to take to move towards your fears with courage. Ask God to show you what you need to do. Be brave! Don’t be afraid. Allow your spirit to be revived as you step out in courage to conquer what you finally need to conquer in your life.

Take your promise land. Will the land come to you? No, land doesn’t walk! You have to take the steps to obtain it. As courage is being developed in your spirit it brings revival. Your spirit is renewed and you can finally conquer what has been tormenting you for all these years. Take care of your spirit. It is who you are.

Your courageous sister in Christ,

Pastor Kris Belfils

www.krisbelfils.com

www.hopefellowshipspokane.com

www.krisbelfils.wordpress.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