Don’t Coast!

We know absolutely that anyone born of God does not deliberately and knowingly practice committing sin, but the One Who was begotten of God carefully watches over and protects him; Christ's divine presence within him preserves him against the evil, and the wicked one does not lay hold (get a grip) on him or touch him (1 John 5:18 - Amplified). Draw near to God and He will draw near to you (James 4:8a). And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force (Matthew 11:12)

This is not a time to coast spiritually. There is too much at stake. Satan has launched an all out assault on man and on the kingdom of God. Persecution is becoming more intense. The potential pull on the flesh from the world and the enemy is stronger than ever. There are many “potholes” in the road of life right now that could trip you up and make you stumble.

This is a time to draw closer to the Father than ever before. Spend more time in the word. Spend more time in prayer. Spend more time in church meetings, not less! Keep your spirit fine tuned so that the Father can use you to minister to those around you in bondage. Those believers who are sidelined by the flesh and the world need someone to lift them up. That someone is me and you.

Keep your mind saturated with the Word of God. Confess the Word about who you are in Christ every day. Constantly affirm what God says about you, particularly when it doesn’t seem real, and thoughts and feeling defy the reality of the Word. Make yourself say what God says about you.

Don’t give in to fear and doubt. They are the twins born of Satan to put you out of commission spiritually. Yield your tongue to the Word! Meditate it, speak it, chew on it. When the pressure to yield and quit is strong, that’s when you need to speak the Word the loudest!

When temptations to yield to strife come, choose instead to yield to love. Go love’s way instead of the flesh way. Demon forces are looking for a way into your life to trip you up. Strife will let them in. See strife as a tool of the enemy to sideline you spiritually and cause your faith to fail. Mediate on the attributes of love in 1 Corinthians 13. Keep your mind fine tuned to the Word.

Don’t allow the selfish spirit of the age to box you in and rule you. Ideas like the most important thing is for me to be happy are of the enemy and the world. Thoughts that tell you that you don’t have to put up with this or that from your spouse are born in hell (I’m not talking about adultery or abuse here, but just the small aggravations). Thoughts that tell you that you deserve a better spouse are lies from hell. God wants you to have stable family life so your children will grow up emotionally and mentally level and whole. The kingdom of God is strengthened or weakened by family matter in believer’s lives! Refuse to yield to the compromising pressure of the age!

This is the time that the Father wants us to rise up and shine and display His light in the darkness. Resolve to give God your best today!