No time for pity parties… says God. I’ve given you everything you need to encourage yourself.
Ephesians: 5 …be filled with the Holy Spirit, 19singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. 20And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Fill yourself up with the Holy Spirit
Sing psalms, hymns, spiritual songs
Make music IN YOUR HEARTS.
Give thanks for everything.
There are times when you’re going to need to encourage yourself in the Lord. You can’t expect anyone else to do it for you. You can’t afford to let life stop you and put you in the ‘emotional pit’ because you’re alone. In the times you feel that way, put on your armor of praise. Make a new song… and make yourself happy. Begin to speak in tongues. Your flesh wouldn’t want to at first. But who cares what your natural self wants? Your spirit needs to be ignited, encouraged!
Maybe in the past, people have been there for you. People have cuddled you and said “there, there”. But what if those people aren’t there anymore? What if you find out that you’re absolutely alone and you’re stuck in a rut? That’s when you’ve got to ‘wiggle your own big toe’. And if it doesn’t want to wiggle, you tell it that it has to. (I saw this in Kill Bill…I fell in love with the metaphorical meaning).
We should always remember that other people have lives of their own too. They also have struggles of their own, that they are facing.
Paul said “when I was a child, I spoke as a child, I did childish things. When I became a man, I put away childish things”. God is calling us to rise up and be generals in Kingdom. We’re no longer babies. In fact, there are babies that we need to be nurturing in the body of Christ. So let’s not be fooled by the enemy telling us that we need a ‘quick fill’ of encouragement from someone. Let’s not put ourselves through feeling miserable until Sunday comes. Only to feel miserable once Monday comes again. We have the spirit of God in us, and therefore we have joy unspeakable. So let’s MAKE ourselves happy.
I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.
I love what Paul denotes in this scripture. He lets us know that no matter what, as Christians we are suppose to be content. It doesn’t matter what comes our way, we should have a countenance that is joyful.
I used to think this was quite hypocritical before. I mean, it would be like something out of the Stepford wives if as Christians we were all ‘jolly go merry’, won’t it? But as I began to meditate this morning, I thought differently.
Let’s examine Paul for instance. This dude didn’t have it easy. Do you realize that this man, the most prolific speaker and eloquent writer of the bible wrote most of his letters behind bars. He was beaten, cussed out, made a mockery, got bitten by a snake. He went from scholar to zero, and for most of the time he was preaching, he was broke! …And yet, you would never know that he went through all of that. He says “I have learned to be content”. What nonsense is that? How could someone confess that they are “okay” when going through all that?
That’s when I began to consider his disposition.
See, to be content means to be full. In fact, the word “content” means to be self sufficient. It is mostly officiated with God because He is the only one that is truly self sufficient. Being content is more than being happy. It’s understanding that you have need of nothing. It is not being covetous because of what your neighbour has and it means knowing with certainty that whatever you want, is made available to you. So how on earth was Paul content?
I believe Paul got the revelation that He was in God. In God. Being content doesn’t mean that you wouldn’t have trouble or difficulties. It doesn’t even mean everything around you will make you happy. “Contentment is that sweet, quiet gracious frame of spirit which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition” (I have that written in my notes, not sure where I got it from).
That’s why Paul goes on to say “I’ve learned how to abase and abound”. That is, if I have the perfect life, or if I have the not so perfect life, if things go my way, or if they don’t go my way, I’M OKAY! Why? Because my spirit bears witness with the Holy Spirit that God is in control. And really, what is it that He can’t fix? Or make right? Is there anything too hard for Him? (Jer 32:27).
When you look at it that way, what could really make you grouchy, miserable and unhappy? Nothing. :)
It is stupid, absolutely stupid to think that giving thanks to God works, especially when everything around you seems to suggest otherwise. But Praise is one of the deadliest weapons that you could ever have. Why? Because it confuses the enemy. Can you imagine being on a battle field with someone, and instead of pulling out a sword or a gun, you pull out a boom box and start to dance and sing as if crazy? Your opponent will wonder what’s wrong with you!
In the spirit realm, it’s the same. The enemy knows that you cannot physically see your breakthrough and he will take advantage of this little fact to make you think that what you are praying for is not going to manifest. In fact, you all would agree that you normally only give thanks when you have received something tangible. Therefore, when you give thanks despite not seeing your breakthrough, the enemy is totally dumbfounded.
Now it’s important to know that every weapon in war, must be used strategically, or they can sometimes have no effect. I can give you a whole lot of scriptures to back this up, but from my own experience, I can testify that praise is the best weapon when
1. you are about to go into depression
2. when someone opposes what God has promised you
3. when you are about to get frustrated
4. when you find yourself comparing yourself to someone who has something you don’t have, but want/need
5. when you are financially distressed.
6. when you are hearing voices that you are not going to make it, or that you lose.
There are others. The key is to discern when you need to use this weapon. At your very worst, if you cannot think of what weapon to use, put praise into effect.
How to praise: (Sorry but I got to go there for a bit)
I know you think praising is easy, but it’s important to remember that Donnie McClurkin, Hezekiah Walker, Marvin Sapp, are not YOUR WEAPONS OF PRAISE. They can help you but YOUR PRAISE is YOUR WEAPON. You must use your own mouth to praise. The devil is not attacking those singers, he is attacking you. So even if your voice is not as great as these wonderful singers, it is imperative that you use your own praise to confound the enemy.
If you read Psalm 150, it says this
Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heaven! 2 Praise him for his mighty works;
praise his unequaled greatness! 3 Praise him with a blast of the ram’s horn;
praise him with the lyre and harp! 4 Praise him with the tambourine and dancing;
praise him with strings and flutes! 5 Praise him with a clash of cymbals;
praise him with loud clanging cymbals. 6 Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD!
Praise involves
1. Your MOUTH- you have to open up your mouth. Declare that God is good, tell Him thanks over and over again.
2. Your hands- you can clap, raise (as in war), wave, shake (with cymbals)- but everytime you clap your hands, you literally shake the realm of Guck. And whatever is stuck there gets shifted into your realm. (ummm. ps: in case you’re wondering where I am getting all of these from, I am a worship leader as well. It is my job to know how praise works)
3. Shout- Your mouth again. (the hebrew is Shabach). Shouting out “thank you!” resonates not only to God, but to the host of heaven. You call God’s army to defend you. And you continuously confuse the enemy’s camp.
4. Play an instrument. You do not need to know how to play any instrument. You are an instrument. You are an organ, you are a trumpet, you have vocal ‘strings’, you have feet, you can whistle as a flute. Every part of you is capable of making rhythm before God. Play your instruments in the bathroom, in your car, where ever!
5. Dance- I don’t care if it’s ballet, ballroom, hip hop, battle. When you dance FOR God, the enemy trembles. (Remember that Lucifer was the chief instructor of music. When he fell, he lost the privilege to praise and worship God. And as a slap in his face, God gave that privilege to you)
When you put these together you get what is called the “Tep’hillah” praise, which is a combo of tactics that the enemy cannot possibly understanding.
God said that He will use the foolish things of the world to confound those that think they are wise. I know doing any of these when you feel like things have lost, doesn’t make sense. But put it to the test and you will see what happens.
9 But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) 10 And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life[d] because you have been made right with God. 11 The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
You are not weak. If only you knew how strong you are and how potentially deadly you are to the enemy.
From where you stand right now, it seems as if you’re being beaten, left, right and centre. And even when you fall to the ground, it seems as if there are still kicks and punches that are being thrown at you. But do not be deceived, because you are not weak.
I know that we’re continuing in the book of Romans. But as I got to Chapter 8, it became necessary to slow down and take these verses in bite sizes. Last night, I got to thinking about a lot of things. Things perhaps that don’t concern me, but really they do. Like the death of Whitney Houston, and Don Cornelius. The former, we still don’t know how she died, but her life spiraled downhill with the pressures of the world. And the other, well I was told he shot himself in the head.
They are not alone, as I feel there are so many people that are going through life feeling that they can’t make it and they resort to measures that will inevitably end their lives. Many are faced with depression, sickness, uncontrollable desires and generally they all think that there is nothing that they can do. But you know what? The devil is a liar.
Reread the scripture above. I would like to draw your attention to the fact and the truth that Christ lives in you. Now hold up. Because for you to actually accept the rest of what I have to say, you’ve got to believe that God IS and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. See when you understand that Christ lives in you, you come to understand that there is NOTHING you cannot face in this world. Yes, the enemy tells you daily that you’re going to fail, that you’re worthless. His number one tactic is to destroy your self worth. And believe me when I say I know exactly how that works. But as long as you have received Christ, CHRIST LIVES IN YOU. And there is nothing that you cannot achieve with that bit of information.
More than that, the Word of God says that “same spirit that raised Christ from the dead, DWELLS IN YOU”. Now understand, how much power was required for Christ to be resurrected. It is recorded that the 600 ton stone that was blocking his tomb was rolled away ( and there were no bulldozers in that day). More than that, the earth shook. ALL THAT… dwells in you. When you understand the power of the Cross, and what God did for you, there is nothing that can tear you down. You are fully loaded. God in you, gives you life.
Are you weary? Are you heavy laden, remember who lives on the inside of you. Do you think that you have to continue living in sin? That you have to continue hurting yourself? Remember the God that lives in you.
I like to think of Rambo. That man had enough ammunition to take out the world. So do you. You are fully loaded. All of the weapons needed to regain your strength, are with you. You have the mind of Christ, you have your sword (the word of God), you have piercing arrows (your mouth), you have helmet (salvation), your breastplate (righteousness)….and above all that you have Christ. Do not let the enemy take you out.
Prayer point: Father in the name of Jesus, I decree and declare, that no weapon formed against me shall prosper. I have the mind of Christ. I will not fall and if I have fallen, I refuse to stay down. Spirit of the Living God, ignite me. In Jesus Name.
