Shameful

April 07

Forgive Them, for They Do Not Know What They Are Doing

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WHEN THEY CAME TO THE PLACE CALLED THE SKULL, THERE THEY CRUCIFIED HIM, ALONG WITH THE CRIMINALS—ONE ON HIS RIGHT, THE OTHER ON HIS LEFT. JESUS SAID, ‘FATHER, FORGIVE THEM, FOR THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING.’  AND THEY DIVIDED UP HIS CLOTHES BY CASTING LOTS
(Luke 23:33-34).

Has someone offended you, recently, or long ago? Is this offense still lingering in your heart, stabbing you with each heartbeat?

Understand that your offenders do not know the extent of the hurt they caused you when they lashed out at you in anger.  At the time, they were only focused on their own pain and reacting to their own heartache.  He did not get the full scope of the result of his offense.  She did not know what she was doing to your heart.

FATHER, FORGIVE THEM, FOR THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING

Know that it is not what your offender said or did to you that is causing all the pain, but what you came to conclude about yourself, over the years.  The father-of-lies is responsible for these negative, destructive beliefs of rejection, abandonment, condemnation, and shame…not your offender.

Understand that when someone offends you, the father-of-lies uses this as an open door to hurl all the past rejection, abandonment, condemnation, and shame at your heart that you perceived through your previous offenders.  You do not just perceive the pain of the present offense, from your present offender, but the pain of a lifetime.  The father-of-lies is responsible for this…not your offender.

Sometimes we make mistakes…and others do, too. To make a mistake means to make a wrong judgment. This happens to all of us, even you and me. Please forgive those who made a mistake, because they did not know what they were doing, at the time. They made a wrong judgment. Maybe you did, too. Forgive yourself.

Is there resentment in your heart because of what a perpetrator said or did to you?

I encourage you to investigate the conclusions that got stuck in your heart “because of what your perpetrator said or did.” Surrender them to the Lord Jesus and ask Him for Truth. When you receive Truth, you will recognize the real perpetrator. Then, you will be able to forgive as Jesus did.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, help me to realize that it is not what my offender said or did to me that caused all the pain in my heart, but what I came to believe about myself in response to what he said or did. May I forgive like You do, Lord Jesus, for my perpetrators did not know what they were doing, but the father-of-lies did.

Maintain an Awareness

The father-of-lies opposes God’s Counsel by telling us the exact opposite of what God says. His deception provides the pink slippery world in our minds that do not make sense.

The Two Counsels
April 06

The OLD ME and the NEW ME

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IF INDEED YOU HAVE HEARD HIM AND HAVE BEEN TAUGHT BY HIM, AS THE TRUTH IS IN JESUS:  THAT YOU PUT OFF, CONCERNING YOUR FORMER CONDUCT, THE OLD MAN WHICH GROWS CORRUPT ACCORDING TO THE DECEITFUL LUSTS, AND BE RENEWED IN THE SPIRIT OF YOUR MIND, AND THAT YOU PUT ON THE NEW MAN WHICH WAS CREATED ACCORDING TO GOD, IN TRUE RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HOLINESS
(Ephesians 4:21-24).

One of the revelations that opened my eyes was the discovery that I had an OLD ME living inside of me, since childhood: a corrupted person, formed by deception…a needy being, shaped by the lies of the father-of-lies…a flawed personality, influenced by negative, destructive beliefs of abandonment, condemnation, shame, and rejection.

The father-of-lies did not necessarily need BIG TRAUMATIC childhood experiences to install his negative, destructive beliefs into our minds. Although he DID use the traumatic incidences in our lives to make sure we believe that “God is disappointed in you” and “You are fatally flawed,” he only needed a little word like “NO!” when we were three years old to tell us that “You are not loved.” This negative, destructive belief, instilled in us during an insignificant event, would have the same adverse effect on our hearts than the one instilled in our minds during a traumatic event.

KNOWING THIS, THAT OUR OLD MAN IS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM, THAT THE BODY OF SIN MIGHT BE DESTROYED, THAT HENCEFORTH WE SHOULD NOT SERVE SIN
(Romans 6:6).

But then I learned that the Lord Jesus nailed the OLD ME to the cross with Himself.  Then, on the third day, He rose again to become the NEW ME in each of us—Someone who is created without the lies of the father-of-lies, in true righteousness and holiness.

FOR IF, WHEN WE WERE GOD’S ENEMIES, WE WERE RECONCILED TO HIM THROUGH THE DEATH OF HIS SON, HOW MUCH MORE, HAVING BEEN RECONCILED, SHALL WE BE SAVED THROUGH HIS LIFE!
(Romans 5:10).

Are you aware of any childhood incidences during which the father-of-lies formed an OLD ME in you—a needy being, filled with negative, destructive beliefs of “I am not OK”?

Would you be willing to allow your OLD ME to be crucified with Jesus, and then invite Him into your heart to become the NEW ME from whom you may live? This is the only way you can get rid of your flawed personality, forever.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank you that I am not doomed to be a needy person, shaped by the father-of-lies, but that there is a NEW ME available to me through You.

Maintain an Awareness

Capture that the human mind loves to reason WITHOUT the Holy Spirit.

The Two Counsels
April 04

Walk in the Light of the Truth

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THIS IS THE MESSAGE WE HAVE HEARD FROM HIM AND DECLARE TO YOU: GOD IS LIGHT; IN HIM THERE IS NO DARKNESS AT ALL. IF WE CLAIM TO HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM YET WALK IN THE DARKNESS, WE LIE AND DO NOT LIVE BY THE TRUTH. BUT IF WE WALK IN THE LIGHT, AS HE IS IN THE LIGHT, WE HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH ONE ANOTHER, AND THE BLOOD OF JESUS, HIS SON, PURIFIES US FROM ALL SIN
(1 John 1:5-7).

 Precious One, you need to know that to walk in the Light means to live by My Truth. Truth turns darkness into Light. Therefore, you cannot be in agreement with the negative, destructive beliefs of the OLD MAN and in agreement with the Truth, at the same time. You cannot heed the counsel of the father-of-lies and My Counsel, simultaneously. You cannot be a friend of the Light and be a friend of darkness, at the same time. Darkness and Light do not mix. They are incompatible. You are either in the dark, or in the Light. As soon as you turn on the Light, the darkness flees, and as soon as you turn off the Light, it is dark. The Light is turned on by the Truth, because whoever lives by the Truth comes into the Light. Be careful, Child. If you are walking in darkness, you are not living by the Truth. If you are living by the Truth, you will not walk in darkness.

BUT WHOEVER LIVES BY THE TRUTH COMES INTO THE LIGHT
(John 3:21).

Expose the darkness in your mind to the Light.  Lay open the beliefs that cause you to despair.  Bring to light the interpretations you have made about yourself…the assumptions you have made about your enemies…the conclusions you have formed about your friends.  Live by the Truth, so you can walk in the Light.

FOR THE FRUIT OF THE LIGHT CONSISTS IN ALL GOODNESS, RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TRUTH
(Ephesians 5:9).

 May you walk in the Light of the Truth.

“I am a mistake. I am abandoned. I am fatally flawed. I have disappointed God. I am a failure. I have no purpose. I am invisible. I am not special. I am a disgrace.” Which of these dark interpretations live in your mind?

Embrace these dark conclusions, then expose them to the Light, and they will be exchanged for the Truth, for the fruit of the Light…is Truth.

PRAYER: God of Light, help me to understand that to walk in Your Light means to live by Your Truth.  Your Light is the Truth.  Your Truth turns darkness into Light.

I embrace these painful interpretations that live in my mind, Lord God. I expose them to Your Light. Exchange them for Your Truth, so I may walk in Your Light.

Maintain an Awareness

The father-of-lies opposes God’s Counsel by telling us the exact opposite of what God says. His deception provides the pink slippery world in our minds that do not make sense.

The Two Counsels
April 03

Your Mind

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THE MIND OF SINFUL MAN IS DEATH
(Romans 8:6).

Did you know that God does not deem your mind trustworthy?  Why not?  Your mind is not dependable, because the father-of-lies has had access to your mind since the day you were born.  You are not the only one sharing your mind.  During the disconcerting childhood circumstances of your life, the father-of-lies lured you into deception: false conclusions…wrong interpretations…inaccurate assumptions.  Therefore, when you pull answers from your mind, you are also drawing false answers from the father-of-lies.

SO I TELL YOU THIS, AND INSIST ON IT IN THE LORD, THAT YOU MUST NO LONGER LIVE AS THE GENTILES DO, IN THE FUTILITY OF THEIR THINKING.  THEY ARE DARKENED IN THEIR UNDERSTANDING AND SEPARATED FROM THE LIFE OF GOD
(Ephesians 4:17-18).

Even after you have become a Christian, you must not live in the futility of your thinking, because your understanding is darkened by the father-of-lies.  In fact, he uses your own thoughts to separate you from God’s Presence and His Answers.

THE WEAPONS WE FIGHT WITH ARE NOT THE WEAPONS OF THE WORLD. ON THE CONTRARY, THEY HAVE DIVINE POWER TO DEMOLISH STRONGHOLDS. WE DEMOLISH ARGUMENTS AND EVERY PRETENSION THAT SETS ITSELF UP AGAINST THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, AND WE TAKE CAPTIVE EVERY THOUGHT TO MAKE IT OBEDIENT TO CHRIST
(2 Corinthians 10:4-5).

What is your opinion about YOUR mind: that it is good…that it is trustworthy…that it knows the truth? Do you always rely on your mind to find a solution to your problem, your unworthiness, and your brokenness?  Do you run to your mind when things go wrong…when someone insults you…when someone fails you? 

I urge you to treat your mind as a deathtrap that is used by the father-of-lies, at any given moment in time.  Take every thought captive that enters your mind.  Question every belief that lives in your mind. Demolish every argument in your mind that has set itself up against the knowledge of God. Soon, you will notice the difference in your life.

PRAYER: God of Truth, keep me from running to my own mind-set when things go wrong…when someone insults me…when someone fails me.  Keep me from living in the futility of my thinking. Instead, let me look to You for answers to my problems, solutions to my unworthiness, and explanations to my brokenness, for only You know the Truth.

Maintain an Awareness

We have all eaten from the fruit of deception—believing and accepting negative, destructive beliefs about ourselves, God, and others that are not true.

The Two Counsels
April 01

Love One Another Deeply, from the Heart

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NOW THAT YOU HAVE PURIFIED YOURSELVES BY OBEYING THE TRUTH SO THAT YOU HAVE SINCERE LOVE FOR YOUR BROTHERS, LOVE ONE ANOTHER DEEPLY, FROM THE HEART
(1 Peter 1:22).

Realize that in order to love one another deeply, you need a purified heart: a heart cleansed from shame, released from abandonment, freed from condemnation, and set free from rejection. As long as shame stains your heart, you will have a tough time facing those who have hurt you. As long as abandonment contaminates your heart, you will have a hard time ministering to those who have many weaknesses. As long as condemnation besmears your heart, you will have a difficult time loving those who make mistakes. As long as rejection sullies your heart, you will have a horrible time accepting those who are not perfect.

SANCTIFY THEM BY THE TRUTH; YOUR WORD IS TRUTH
(John 17:17).

Precious One, permit Me, your Redeemer, to set you free from the power of past abandonment: when that important person in your life left…when no-one was around to comfort you…when you had to take care of yourself, because there was nobody else. Understand that it is not the circumstances that are causing the abandonment, but the childhood conclusions you formed in your mind about these happenings. Today, I want to guide you into all Truth.

Beloved Child, allow Me to set you free from the power of past shame: when you were considered a disgrace…when you had to carry all the blame…when you were pushed aside as not being enough.  Let My Truth exchange your childhood conclusions for My Perspective.

Beautiful One, authorize Me to free you from the power of past criticism, disapproval, and rejection: when you could never please your dad…when you were never good enough for your mother…when you were never accepted for being you.  Only I, the Most High, can bring healing to your heart by replacing your childhood conclusions with My Truth.

BUT WHEN HE, THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH, COMES, HE WILL GUIDE YOU INTO ALL TRUTH. HE WILL NOT SPEAK ON HIS OWN; HE WILL SPEAK ONLY WHAT HE HEARS
(John 16:13).

Are you able to love deeply, from your heart? Do you love your blaming spouse, your disrespectful friend, and your hate-filled enemy?

If your answer is “NO,” I urge you to invite God’s Perspective into the spots of abandonment, condemnation, shame, and rejection that still live in your own heart. Once you know His Truth, you WILL be able to love everybody from your heart, even your enemies…that is, if you want to.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I bring my childhood conclusions to You. I want to know the Truth, so I may be set free from condemnation, rejection, abandonment, and shame…and be able to love.

Maintain an Awareness

Discipline, the training to enter God’s Holiness, cannot be exercised AFTER we have already entered a route of escape to resort to a sinful solution.

The Two Counsels
March 31

Why Do You Run Away?

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I am a runner—I run away from pain.  The other day, my Everlasting Father asked me, “Why do you always run away from pain?  Why don’t you stay?”  It was then that I pondered the question: Why don’t I stay?  Why don’t I stay and face my pain of feeling that I am invisible…of feeling that I don’t count…of feeling that I am a mistake?

I run from pain, because I believe that it is not safe to stay.  I believe that the pain will destroy me if I stayed and faced it.

I run from pain, because I believe that it is a sin to experience feelings of shame, condemnation, abandonment, and rejection; therefore, I need to escape these as soon as possible.

I run from pain, because I believe that if I run away from it, the pain will go away all by itself…and I will be safe. But then I asked God for HIS Perspective, and He answered:

NO TEMPTATION HAS SEIZED YOU EXCEPT WHAT IS COMMON TO MAN. AND GOD IS FAITHFUL; HE WILL NOT LET YOU BE TEMPTED BEYOND WHAT YOU CAN BEAR. BUT WHEN YOU ARE TEMPTED, HE WILL ALSO PROVIDE A WAY OUT SO THAT YOU CAN STAND UP UNDER IT
(1 Corinthians 10:13).

Precious Child, if you stay and face your pain, you will not be destroyed by it, since I will not allow the father-of-lies to tempt you beyond what you can bear.  Instead, I Myself will provide a way out of your pain, so that you may stand up under it.

Know that your pain is not the sin. Your pain is only the symptom of an oppressing belief from the father-of-lies that serves to convince you to run from Me, in order to prevent you from finding My Answers to his beliefs of shame, condemnation, abandonment, and rejection.   

Understand, Child, that if you run away from your pain, instead of facing it, your pain will only get worse over time and lead you farther and farther away from Me…into sin.  But, if you stay and face it, I, your Everlasting Father, will have a chance to heal your heart with My Love, Hope, and Truth.

I AM THE VINE; YOU ARE THE BRANCHES. IF A MAN REMAINS IN ME AND I IN HIM, HE WILL BEAR MUCH FRUIT; APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING
(John 15:5).

What are the reasons YOU run away from the pain in YOUR heart?

I encourage you to bring your reasons to the Lord God, and ask Him for His Perspective. You might be surprised at His answers…or even the fact that He DOES answer.

PRAYER: Lord God, thank you that You are faithful. Thank you that You have Answers. Thank you that You have a way out of all my temptations. Help me to stay and find out what Your Answers are

Maintain an Awareness

Our relationship with God is not just one-sided—us praying to God. When we pray, God also needs to talk to us…and He WANTS to.

The Two Counsels
March 27

Discipline Means Training to Correct

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OUR FATHERS DISCIPLINED US FOR A LITTLE WHILE AS THEY THOUGHT BEST; GOD DISCIPLINES US FOR OUR GOOD, THAT WE MAY SHARE IN HIS HOLINESS
(Hebrew 12:10).

I have many negative, destructive beliefs in my mind that have been planted there by the father-of-lies.  Usually, the first thing I do when one of these lies is triggered is to flee from it.  I would actually get up and walk away when I feel shamed in someone’s presence.  At that moment, all that matters to me is to withdraw and hide.  However, the Everlasting Father has asked me to do something different—HE HAS ASKED ME TO STAY:

ENDURE HARDSHIP AS DISCIPLINE; GOD IS TREATING YOU AS SONS. FOR WHAT SON IS NOT DISCIPLINED BY HIS FATHER?
(Hebrew 12:7).

Child, instead of running away, I want you to stay when your shame is triggered…so I may turn it into Holiness.  I will use the same shame the father-of-lies uses to HURT you, to HEAL you, if you would only stay and let Me.

MY SON, DO NOT MAKE LIGHT OF THE LORD’S DISCIPLINE, AND DO NOT LOSE HEART WHEN HE REBUKES YOU, BECAUSE THE LORD DISCIPLINES THOSE HE LOVES
(Hebrew 12:5-6).

Discipline means training to correct.  If you would stay, face your shame, and surrender it to God, He would turn your shame into holiness, but if you run, your shame will come back to haunt you again…and again…and again.

NO DISCIPLINE SEEMS PLEASANT AT THE TIME, BUT PAINFUL. LATER ON, HOWEVER, IT PRODUCES A HARVEST OF RIGHTEOUSNESS AND PEACE FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN TRAINED BY IT”
(Hebrew 12:11).

How do you react when something or someone evokes shame in you? Do you run to a hiding place? Do you become defensive? Do you pretend that nothing is wrong? What would it take for you to stay and allow God to produce a harvest of Righteousness and Peace in you?

I encourage you to become trained, corrected, and healed by God’s discipline. Stop hiding, running away, and blaming others when your pain is evoked by the negative, destructive beliefs of the father-of-lies. Stay! Let God have His way with you, so He may treat you as a son.

PRAYER: Everlasting Father, lift my eyes above the shame, so I would see Your Holiness…and stay. May I endure hardship as a training to correct, so You could turn my abandonment into Belonging, my shame into Confidence, and my condemnation into Acceptance.

Maintain an Awareness

When you pray and lay your problem before God, give Him the freedom to answer you in any way He wants to, according to His great Mercy and Grace. Push your own preconceived answers aside. Then, HIS Answer will enter your mind and heart.

The Two Counsels

Beliefs/Emotions associated with this blessing.
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Shameful

March 26

It Is Finished!

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One day, my husband and I visited the Hot Sulphur Springs in Colorado and were looking forward to a wonderful, relaxing time together.  Well, the father-of-lies had plans of his own.

After we entered one of the small pools, I became thirsty, reached out for our water bottle, and took a sip.  Suddenly another person in the pool commented, “Is that your water bottle…or mine?”  Then I realized I was drinking from the wrong water bottle!

This might seem funny to you, but I felt horrified…condemned…filled with shame.  You see, the father-of-lies had been telling me all my life that I was not allowed to make mistakes.  In fact, it gets worse than that.  I was not even allowed to feel emotionally down.  I was also not allowed to say something stupid.  If I did any of the above, I WAS DEEMED BAD: corrupted…deformed…fatally flawed!  Now, if he had accused me of doing something bad, I could have fixed that.  However, he accused me of being bad.  I experienced this as extreme shame.

WHEN HE HAD RECEIVED THE DRINK, JESUS SAID, ‘IT IS FINISHED.’ WITH THAT, HE BOWED HIS HEAD AND GAVE UP HIS SPIRIT
(John 19:30).

A long time ago, Jesus Christ received a drink, too…for me and for you.  And after He had received this drink, He said, “IT IS FINISHED.”  My and your shame was finished…terminated…brought to an end with His drink. You and I have been spoken clean from shame by the words, “It is finished!”

NO, IN ALL THESE THINGS WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US
(Romans 8:37).

What has the father-of-lies told you would happen to you if you made a mistake? Know that his negative, destructive beliefs live in your conclusions. With which conclusions has he kept your shame alive in you?

Only the Lord Jesus can speak you clean from shame. Your own words will not remove your shame. Therefore, in faith, surrender your conclusions of shame to Jesus and allow Him to speak you clean with His words, “It is finished.”  Allow Him to take that drink for you. Simply apply the same faith that you used to accept Jesus as the Forgiver of your sins to the termination of your shame.  May you do this each time you make a mistake and the father-of-lies tries to cripple you with his best weapon—SHAME.

PRAYER: I surrender my shame to Your finished work on the cross, Lord Jesus, and to Your redeeming words: IT IS FINISHED! Remove all condemnation, so I may be allowed to make mistakes without being deemed bad. Remove all shame, so I may be allowed to be sad without being deemed guilty.  In all these things we are more than conquerors through You.

Maintain an Awareness

And after we have sucked others empty and they have nothing more to give, we turn to distraction and destruction to ease the excruciating pain that oozes from our hearts…because we still believe we do not matter.

The Two Counsels

Beliefs/Emotions associated with this blessing.
Click on any box below to access more blessings that pertain to the topic in the box.

Accused Shameful

March 25

Steps I Use to Surrender

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Describe the SITUATION that evoked your feelings of sadness, badness, or madness.

Example: Today, while we were driving, I felt very sad when my husband spoke to me in a gruff manner, after I asked him to slow down his driving for me around a dangerous curve.

Focusing on the FEELINGS evoked by this incident, find your PERTURBING PERCEPTION of the situation and the people involved, especially yourself.

Example: I felt intense sadness in my heart during this incident. My perturbing perception was that I did not count, and that I did not matter to anyone, not even my husband.

Still focusing on the feelings, find the PLACE during your life where you felt like this FOR THE FIRST TIME, whether that be this day, last year, or fifty years ago.

Example: Focusing on the sadness, I discovered a memory that matched it: I was about eight years old. I had just cleaned the whole kitchen floor while my parents were out shopping and could not wait for them to come back and be proud of me. But after they returned from shopping, my dad walked over my clean floor with his dirty shoes. When I tried to tell him not to dirty my newly washed floor, he was gruff with me, the same way my husband was with me when we were driving.

INVITE GOD’S PRESENCE AND PARTICIPATION into your feelings, perceptions, and place where you experienced these for the first time. Allow Him to exchange your perception for His Perspective—THE TRUTH.

Example: Lord Jesus, I invite You into this place of sadness in my heart. Although my mind is telling me that I am unimportant and do not count because my dad walked over my clean floor (and my husband does not want to slow his driving down just for me), I surrender my own perception to You and ask for Your Truth.

Allow God to SPEAK into your feelings of sadness and your perturbing perception that nobody cares about you. LISTEN for His voice. LOOK inside the memory and see, hear, and feel if there is anything different there. God speaks in many different ways. Be open, and be patient.

Example: While focusing on the memory where I felt unimportant for the first time, I saw, with the eyes of my heart, a little girl standing in front of her daddy. She was wearing a royal robe and a crown. Then I heard with the ears of my heart: “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). I knew that I counted. I mattered. I was important, because I was important to God and I counted to Him. My feeling of sadness disappeared. Today, I know that I count, even when my husband is gruff.

Has there been a situation this week that evoked feelings of sadness, madness, or badness in you? Do not focus on what someone said or did to you. Instead, turn your heart to you own interpretation of the situation, because our interpretations were sold under sin to the father-of-lies. Find out where this interpretation entered your mind for the first time, and surrender it to God to receive His Truth…and a new heart.

Maintain an Awareness

Blaming others and blaming yourself will not get rid of the accusatory pain in your heart.

The Two Counsels
March 23

Be Mindful When the Enemy Knocks

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THE THIEF COMES ONLY TO STEAL AND KILL AND DESTROY
(John 10:10).

I bless you to be mindful when the father-of-lies knocks on the door of your heart.  Know that your heart is vulnerable…susceptible to attack…easily hurt.

HE WAS A MURDERER FROM THE BEGINNING, NOT HOLDING TO THE TRUTH, FOR THERE IS NO TRUTH IN HIM
 (John 8:44).

Therefore, keep the door to your heart shut…locked…bolted and barred, when the murderer knocks.  Know that the accuser only needs a sliver of an opening to push the door wide open and rush in.  When he detects an opening, he loses no time.  He will bombard you with everything he is able to drag in: condemnation, abandonment, shame, and rejection.

BE SELF-CONTROLLED AND ALERT. YOUR ENEMY THE DEVIL PROWLS AROUND LIKE A ROARING LION LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO DEVOUR
(1 Peter 5:8).

Understand that once the door is open, it is extremely hard to close it again, once you have welcomed the enemy with all his lies and deceit.  It is far better to keep the door to your heart shut and sealed from the start, than to try and close it, once you have given the father-of-lies right of entry.  He will not be eager to leave.

SUBMIT YOURSELVES, THEN, TO GOD. RESIST THE DEVIL, AND HE WILL FLEE FROM YOU
(James 4:7).

May you understand that it is through your thoughts that the roaring lion finds an open door.  Therefore, submit each thought to God for approval, before you start accepting, believing, and obeying it.  Reject each thought that is not from God, keeping the door to your vulnerable heart shut and padlocked.

What do you do with your daily thoughts: do you accept and believe each one, or do you screen them, as they come in?

I urge you to use discernment with your daily thoughts. Distinguish between the thoughts that cause your heart to hurt, and the thoughts that bring your heart joy. Make sure you take the thoughts that hurt your heart to the Lord Jesus, as soon as you get a chance, so that you may shut the door to the roaring lion, as soon as possible.

PRAYER: Most High, make me mindful of my thoughts, so I may know which thoughts to accept and which thoughts to reject. Help me to not hold onto hurtful thoughts, but submit them to You, for Truth, as soon as they enter my heart.

Maintain an Awareness

Since the beginning of our lives, the OLD MAN beliefs of abandonment, shame, condemnation, and rejection have been firmly planted in our minds and hearts by the father-of-lies.

The Two Counsels