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What am I supposed to do, What am I meant to do, What is my calling, How do I know my calling, God, Jesus, God's Calling Article below. Or downloadable PDF link . PDF God's Calling God the Father has a calling and He has put it upon Himself God has His very own calling and we see this in Ephesians 1:18 “…what is the hope of His calling” What is the “hope of His calling?” Let’s look at the word “calling” in Strong’s - Greek #2821: Klésis -“invitation; always of a divine call. (from 2564 /kaléō, "to call, summon") – used of God inviting all people to receive His gift of salvation – with all His blessings that go with it (Ro 11:29; Eph 4:4; 2 Pet 1:10). The divine invitation to embrace salvation in the kingdom of God” God’s Own Personal Calling is for All Men to Embrace Salvation! That’s far bigger than what we have thought before! When you put Ephesians 1:18 with 1 Timothy 2:4-6; 2 Tim 1:9-10; and 2 Peter 3:9 it makes a fuller picture: “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you… who wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth . For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, Who gave Himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time…He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time , but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, Who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel …The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance .” That’s powerful! God’s own calling on Himself is for all men to be saved and know what He has done for us through Christ Jesus! His grace with this calling was done before time began (2 Tim. 1). That means before Genesis 1:4-5 when God created “time.” (*See articles on Crucifixion and Second Death.) This was when God wrote our names in the Lamb’s Book of Life - it was before the foundation of the world - Ephesians 1:3-6 and Revelation 13:8 NIV. THIS is God’s calling - to save mankind! And when He says something, it’s a promise, and all of God’s promises are “yes” and “so be it.” God will be sure His promise made to HIMSELF will come to pass. You don’t have to worry about it. You can count on it.

What does it mean God is love? My identity, My identity in Christ, My identity in Christ Jesus, How do I get the love of God God is Love & So Are You Article below. Or downloadable PDF link. PDF God is Love & So Are You Love is our substance of who we are in Christ Jesus Now Abides Faith, Hope, & Love...But the Greatest is Love 1 Corinthians 13:13 Love is our substance of who we are in Christ Jesus Because we are made in the image of God and we are one Spirit with Him. Genesis 1:26-27 & 1 Corinthians 6:17. Hebrews 11:1, 3 says “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” …continue on to verse 3 - “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” The worlds were made by faith, which is THE substance. They were made by God’s substance because He spoke. His Words came from within His heart, within His Spirit, God’s Word, Who is Jesus, came from within the very heart and Spirit of God. It is “Who” He is. Add to this, the Spirit of God was hovering upon the water waiting for God’s Word to be spoken so He could activate the Word of God and bring it to pass - Genesis 1:2. Consider how the Holy Spirit also did that in the book of Acts with signs, miracles, and wonders when Paul, Peter and others preached - some scripture references: Acts 4:16, 5:12; 6:8, 8:6,14:3, 15:12; Romans 15:18-19; Hebrews 2:4. The Word comes from within God Almighty, the Creator Himself. Just as you speak and the words you speak come from within in you. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks - what we say is who we are. As a man thinks in his heart so is he - Luke 6:45 & Proverbs 23:7. Same for God. What He speaks is Who He is and there’s a substance to it…and that substance is Him, and it is faith. And Faith comes from the Word. They are not separate…but whole. You may need to read that again. Here's another way to say it: Faith is the same word as "belief". So, what God speaks is Who He is. He believes that. He knows that. It is His substance...that substance is Him, And believe comes from what He says. They are linked. Part 1: God is Love Put Hebrews 11:1 in context with 1 John 4:8: “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen…” & “God is Love.” You will notice the words highlighted in bold: (faith) is the substance and (God) is (love). We will compare the two bold words and their definitions from Merriam- Webster Dictionary: Substance : 1. Essence; Essential Nature; b. A fundamental; or Characteristic part or quality; 2. The ultimate reality that underlies all outward manifestation and change. Is - Present tense of the verb “(to) be.” (A state of being.) “Substance ”- is essential nature, essence. “Is ” is a state of being. A constant. “Is and Substance” are constant. Never change. They ARE = I AM. God’s essence, His being is love. His elemental nature is love, His essence, and faith, or belief, is a part of His elemental nature . So is hope, like 1 Corinthians 13:13 states. These elements are a constant within the very nature of God. They are your nature too. Let’s put this another way: faith and love are the same. God is love…love is His substance and as 1 Corinthians 13:13 says, faith, hope, and love abide but the greatest is love, means they abide together. Abide : the Greek word for “abide” is #3306 menó. Means to “remain, to stay.” All three abide, they remain, they stay. These three are in God. He is in us and we are in Him, and we know we dwell in Him because He has given us of His Spirit - 1 John 4:13. When we don’t “feel” this way, it doesn’t matter. This is The Truth. Just because someone wakes up and “feels” like they’re a cat doesn’t make them a cat. When you don’t “feel” like you operate from faith, hope, and love, go to these scriptures in your Bible and declare them over yourself. Speak them out loud in your house. It will change you and your atmosphere. Faith, hope, and love - They remain. They don’t change. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. They are the substance of God. It’s not only love but all three. Love, with Faith and Hope - this is His eternal nature and the root of everything in Him and in all of existence. You can’t separate them from God’s essential nature. As love is the root of everything in existence, it operates with faith and hope. They are not separate. Love speaks. Those love words are faith filled and creates a vision (which is hope) of what is “seen” in the God-given imagination, and will come to pass. “Hope” is created by words. Because of “words” we then “see” in our imagination what was spoken. We see this in Proverbs 4:20-21. All three are together but God separates them for study in His Word. Can people operate without love, of course. These three can work the exact opposite of what God intended. That’s what happened when Lucifer fell. All of what is the nature of God was twisted, perverted, and turned in the exact opposite direction within the heavenly creatures (angels) when their rebellion occurred. If it’s not love, it’s hate - or some lighter version of it like: disgust, vileness, deception, doubt, worry, trepidation, stress, fear, and all the others. All are forms of fear and fear is a compadre of hate. They are hooked up together. Just like love and faith. To be specific: faith, hope & love in the exact opposite are fear, doubt, hate. And it all comes from satan’s major temptation he uses with people: doubt. Let me phrase it another way: "to consider". In the Garden all the serpent had to do was tempt Eve to doubt or consider something other than what God said. But his initial reason as to “why” he did it - his own hate. Hate toward this new creature God had made: mankind. Take a look at Psalm 8:4-8 “What is man, that You are mindful of him? And the Son of man, that You are mindful of him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and have crowned him with glory and honor. You have him to have dominion over the works of your hands; You have put all things under his feet: all sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passes through the paths of the seas.” satan was disgusted that God had made a new creature and this creature was in the image of God and given dominion over the works of His hands. *** Faith and doubt are opposites. When we doubt we cannot operate in faith which is part of our essence. This goes against our essence and goes against God’s essence. Conclusively, when we get caught up in fear, doubt and hate we are caught in sin - “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin” - Romans 14:23. Faith is what pleases God - Hebrews 11:6 - we must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. His essence, His state of love, faith, hope essence or state of being will never change. It is our essence. He will never change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, the Great I AM. It’s who He is. And faith is the “substance” of His essence - all three Godly elements exist together: faith, hope, & love. But the greatest one of them is love. It is how everything operates. It is how God operates, including in His judgment and wrath. Some Christians think that because God is love that He does not have justice. But you cannot have true justice without love. Cause and effect. When people or created beings (angels) violate God’s law, there is an outcome. People innately want justice when something wrong has occurred to them. God is no different. We are made in His image. Doing things right, because it’s right, then doing them right is part of God’s nature. His essential constant characteristic is in everything He created. He is in everything: His Faith, His hope, and His love are in everything. Love is the generator of everything. It is God’s substance, the substance of faith, and it is your substance - John 14:20. It’s like saying someone has brown hair, it’s a constant. Like us being born of mankind. It is the type of living creature we are, it’s our essence. We were not born as an animal or a bird, or a fish. We are born of the creature called: mankind, and our substance is of God, it is love…faith, hope, and love. These are the essence of who we are. Even those who are not born again have a sense of justice, morality, faith, hope and love. They can’t help it. It’s because we are made in the image of God’s. Part 2: Christ’s Love Compels us Now that we know love is the base of our elemental nature we can see how it works within us. 2 Corinthians 5:14 NIV “Christ’s love compels us….” KJV - “Christ’s love constrains us…” "Constrains " is Strong’s Greek #315 anagkazó, to compel, doing so with urgency, as a pressing necessity. TPT - “Christ’s love fuels our passion and motivates us…” TMT - “Christ’s love has moved me to such extremes…” God’s essential nature within us behaves in this manner. It’s His Spirit doing this within us. It - He - compels us. He does so with urgency regarding situations. He fuels our passion and motivates us. He moves us to such extremes to carry out His will. And He will only do this in combination with your own “will.” God will never overpower your will. If He could have then He would have done that with Lucifer. We have to yield to His leadings, compelling, motivations. When we do not yield to Him we then grieve the Holy Spirit. And at the start you can sense it. When someone continually ignores the promptings of the Holy Spirit, He will eventually stop moving within you and let you have your way. Ephesians 4:30. You are sealed with the Holy Spirit no matter what. You can’t change it by your actions. But He won’t be pleased, which means we are not operating by faith, but doubt, fear, and sin. It’s important to realize above all the virtues of God keep love in the forefront of your thoughts. It binds everything together because it is God, who is the essence of everything and all of His virtues or goodness is love. They come out of each other - Colossians 3:14. God let His goodness pass before Moses. His goodness is in you! *** Part 3: More Parts to His Love Love is God’s essence, His being, His breath of life, and His essence is ours. We are new creatures in Christ Jesus - 2 Cor. 5:17. Exodus 33:18-23 - Then Moses said, “Now show me Your glory.” And the Lord said, “ I will cause all My goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim My Name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But, He said, “you cannot see My face, for no one may see Me and live.” Then the Lord said, “There is a place near Me where you may stand on a rock. When My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove My hand and you will see My back parts: but My face must not be seen.” In this passage God says His glory is equated to: His goodness , His Name being proclaimed-spoken-in Moses’ presence, and His back parts. (It is my hunch there is so much more to God’s glory then we have learned.) And God couldn’t let Moses see His face because it would have killed Moses, as Habakuk 1:13 says, His eyes are to pure to look on sin fallen man. Sin burns up in God’s presence. Habakuk 1:13 - “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil, you cannot tolerate wrongdoing;” God didn’t want Moses to be burned up with His goodness, His presence, His love, His Name, His essence. That’s why God had to cover Moses’ face and why Moses had to cover his own face with a veil when he went before the people. This is what the physical form of God had to do in the Spiritual realm so that He could save His created man. When sin fallen man is in the presence of God, He burns it up. This may be why God had to kick out satan and the disobedient angels. God didn’t want to destroy His creation even though they rebelled. It probably has something to do with a legal standpoint. God is the ultimate judge and He abides within His own law. Not saying this is the only reason. But it may be a part of it. Job 34:14-15 - “If it were His intention and He withdrew His Spirit and breath, all humanity would perish together and mankind would return to the dust.” If God were to withhold His breath all creation dies. His love is what keeps things in existence everywhere. His love, His power, and His faith are one unit. You can’t separate these things from God and still have God. Yes, this is so big it’s difficult to wrap our earthly heads around it. But bless God we can, by faith. And it’s His faith within us! He will reveal it. *** Let’s take a look at the Greek word for God’s love: agape. Using Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: “Love can be known only from the actions it prompts - Like God’s love in sending the gift of His Son to save mankind. It was an exercise of the Divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself. Love has its perfect expression among men (mankind) in the Lord Jesus Christ. Christian love is the fruit of His Spirit in the Christian. Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren, or toward men generally, is not an impulse from the feelings, it does not always run with the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only upon those for whom some affinity is discovered. Christian love has God for its primary object,. and expresses itself first of all in implicit obedience to His commandments (which is to love the Lord your God and love your brother as you do yourself - 1 John 4:20-21). It expresses the deep and constant love and interest of a perfect Being towards entirely unworthy objects, a practical love towards those who are partakers of the same, and a desire to help others to seek the Giver.” This is love God’s glory, His goodness, and His love exude from within Him! They exude from within you. The more you follow His leadings, promptings, compelling, and motivation by spending time in His Word with prayer, talking with Him about the things that are on your heart and questions you have, and listening for His leadings, promptings, compelling and motivation the more of His goodness will exude out of you. 2 Corinthians 2:14 “Now thanks be unto God, who always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place.” The NIV says, “…uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of Him everywhere. There’s a “smell” to us as we yield to Him. *** Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” We have a pure heart only by the Holy Spirit. Nothing to do within ourselves. As Romans 5:5 says, “…the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who is given to us.” None of this can be done on our own . Our purity of heart is only by the Holy Spirit. A new heart! WE have God’s hear t . Praise God, it’s all Him. He’s saved us, purified us, and has adopted us as His own, and saved us for the day of redemption, and the Holy Spirit is the downpayment of the epitome of our redemption which is our new immortal bodies and an eternity with Him (1 Corinthians 15). We are His and He is ours. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise - 2 Corinthians 1:21-22. This seal is a seal of ownership on us as NIV says, and His Spirit is put in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. And it is God Who makes us stand firm. We don’t rely on our strength but on God’s within us! What a relief that is. “‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord.” - Zechariah 4:6. *** Part 4: The Holy Spirit is in Our Hearts “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My Name will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” John 14:26. "Like wise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words" - Romans 8:26. Being in flesh in this world is a weakness but the Holy Spirit will help us pray. Sometimes in English, sometimes in tongues. Both are important. As Jude 1:20 says, “Building up yourself on your most holy faith praying in the Holy Spirit.” Praying in tongues is the way to build up your faith on what you are standing on from the Word until it manifests. This is necessary when we feel weak. Isaiah 28:11-12 “For with stammering lips and another tongue will He speak to this people, to whom He said, ‘This is the rest wherewith You may cause the weary to rest and this is the refreshing…’” When we feel weary from standing in faith for believing a promise of God, get into praying in tongues and into praise. Both build you up and cause a breakthrough. Look at Psalm 149, praise is our greatest weapon of war! In TPT - verse 6, “God’s high and holy praises fill their mouths, for their shouted praises are their weapon of war!” Go back to verse 5, “His Godly lovers triumph in the Glory of God, and their joyful praises will rise even while others sleep.” Doing these things will change your mental outlook, will change the atmosphere, and bring about your answer to prayer. As we simply trust Him and rest in Him and His nature within us we are easily led by His Holy Spirit Who teaches us and reminds us of what He has said to us. What He has revealed to us. We don’t have to struggle to “make it happen.” We simply trust Him. And then do whatever He leads us to do. Our flesh may have a hissy-fit. But we let the Holy Spirit through our own spirit have priority and lead us. *** We have faith, hope, and love because of Jesus. And faith in Jesus can only happen because of the Father, “No man can come to Me, except the Father which has sent Me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:44. It is God the Father Who brings us to Himself. He brings all those who are His, His seed , to Himself. This entire world we live in is about the seed war - seed of the serpent; seed of the woman - Genesis 3:15. God the Father will draw all who are His to Himself. He will not loose one . No way. His will is for all flesh to be saved . 2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wanting any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” And God is not a man that He should lie; all of His promises He has made to Himself…yes, they are ours as well…but He made them to Himself - Numbers 23:19 and Hebrews 6:13-20. His Word comes from within Him. It is “Who” He is, His promises are first to Himself and He will bring them to pass. * A sister in Christ told me something the Lord said to her in prayer. She had asked Him: “What is Your truth? I want to know Your truth?” God told her: “I love you and I want to be with you.” This is the Father’s heart toward us! If you’ve been sensing out of sorts, not close to God although He is in you and will never leave you or forsake you, we can approach His throne in prayer because of Jesus’ Blood of which we always have, and ask the Lord to forgive us. To help us keep on His track and reconcile us back to Him - Hebrews 4:16 & 2 Corinthians 5:18. This is the Love of God in action. This is God’s love toward us. He wants to be with us. He wants to be included in all we do. We are already reconciled to Him. We don’t ever loose that. He has reconciled us to Him through His Son Jesus. As 2 Corinthians 5:19 says God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ… He has already done this to all! All we have to do is receive His great gift. We love Him enough to come to Him and ask Him for help. But maybe we haven’t been sensing Him; or haven’t been in the Word and prayer like we usually are, these things affect our hearing from Him. Doesn’t mean He’s not there. Our spiritual ears weren’t hearing. God is always talking to us, always leading us. When there are times it may “feel” as if God is distant, there are one of three reasons why: 1.) it is during the time of a test/trial; 2.) or there is disobedience (sin) - can be a simple as not doing what He told you to do, or spending the time in His Word; 3) or getting to busy with life and not spending time with the Lord in the His Word and in prayer. If it’s a test/trial - 1.) it is like being in school and being given a test. The teacher sits at their desk quietly until the test is over. Although they are quiet the entire time, they never left. Same with God. He never leaves us! But He is quiet during times of testing. These are times of learning for us. Standing in faith because we know His promises, and all of His promises are “yes” and “amen.” If there’s disobedience - 2.) all we have to do is ask for forgiveness and receive it - 1 John 1:9. Depending on the situation, we can also ask for the Lord to guide us in how to handle it and if there is anything to do about it, then do it. 1 Timothy 2:4 TPT - “He longs for everyone to embrace His life and return to the full knowledge of the truth.” God longs, yearns for us to embrace Him. His life. His love. His truth. And return to the knowledge of the Truth when we mess up. And include Him in all we do. *** This is who you are! His love, faith, hope and His power work in unison at all times. You can’t have one without the other. His love, His power, His life. When something dies, the essence of it comes back to Him because its essence is love. When He exhibits His love He exhibits His power. You don’t have one without the other. All of His creation is the essence of His love. His power. His life. He used His love through Jesus (the Word) and the Holy Spirit to ignite all of creation. We are made in the image of God. “As He is, so are we in this world.” - 1 John 4:17 Receive this in all it’s vastness. Once you can receive it you can reflect it to others. GOD IS LOVE & SO ARE YOU

Spirit, What is my spirit, Soul, What is my soul, Are Soul and Spirit the same, are spirit and soul different, body, God, Jesus, Bible, Scripture Spirit, Soul, & Body How to Discern the Difference Article below or click link for downloadable PDF PDF Spirit, Soul, & Body HOW TO DISCERN THE DIFFERENCE The difference in “who” is talking to you and how all of this operates. We are a Spirit, we have a Soul, and we live in a Body. * You will at different times hear from your Spirit, Soul, and Body, and from the devil. Learn how to hear each. Learn how to take authority over your soul. Learn how to be disciplined. In this, you will learn how to walk with the Lord and re-train yourself. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 - All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine , for reproof , for correction , for instruction in righteousness : that the man of God may be mature thoroughly furnished until all good works. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - and the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God, your whole spirit, and soul and body be preserved, blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. * TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE: LET’S BEGIN WITH THE BASICS CHAPTER TW0: LEARNING TO WALK WITH GOD CHAPTER THREE: FURTHER DETAILS ON THE BODY CHAPTER FOUR: FURTHER DETAILS ON THE SOUL CHAPTER FIVE: MORE ON THE SPIRIT CHAPTER SIX : CONCLUSION SCRIPTURE REFERENCES CHAPTER ONE - LET’S BEGIN WITH THE BASICS SPIRIT, SOUL, & BODY - we will do this in reverse: Body, Soul, & Spirit because that is how we think of it in the world: The Body : It is our “outer layer” and speaks according to the 5 senses - what you can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch. It is the part of us that touches the world around us. Helps us interact with the physical world. To know if it’s hot or cold, to know when to cross the street, or when we are thirsty or hungry, and so on. Some people are controlled by their Body. How their Body feels with its sensations at any moment takes precedence over Spirit or Soul. The Soul: It speaks according to our intellect (mind), free will, emotions (feelings), and personality. This is the next layer inward within our bodies - in our heads and emotions (or heart). In the Bible when it says “heart” most often it is referring to our Soul. Like Psalm 64:6 NIV - “They plot injustices and say, ‘We have devised a perfect plan!’ Surely the human mind and heart are cunning.” You can tell by the context of that verse which one, Soul or Spirit, is being referred to, it is the Soul. We can see this is why our heart needs to be circumcised - Romans 2:29. The Spirit and Soul are connected according to Hebrews 4:12 - For the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing between soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intent of the heart. Soul and Spirit. What can be divided means it is connected. But until we receive Jesus into our heart we are unable to understand what is happening with us. We can’t distinguish the difference. Our heart can only be circumcised by Him, cutting away the “old man” from our Spirit. The Soul has to be renewed - it is the “renewing of our mind” Romans 12:2. And in our daily life interacting with this world the Soul typically has priority over our Spirit man with the Body as the second in command. Both the Soul and Body have not been renewed yet until we choose to do it. This is why they cause such trouble when we haven’t learned how to take authority over those parts of us in the Name of Jesus. The Spirit: this is the part that has been renewed by accepting Jesus into our hearts and is in contact with God. He speaks to us through our Spirit and only the word of God and things pertaining to the word of God come through our Spirit. Jesus is the word made flesh. God and His word are the same thing and this is how He speaks, things that go in line with His word. Our Spirit is what is called the “inward man” - or the “inner part of the belly” - Proverbs 20:2; Ephesians 3:16; & Psalm 51:6. It’s deep down within us. If you place your hand on your upper belly, the soft area at the opening of the rib cage, deep within that region. This is where you get those “gut feelings.” That’s where your Spirit is. When you “get” an unction, a revelation, from the Holy Spirit through your Spirit there is a quality to it…it’s “good.” You think: “Man, that’s good!” There is a sweetness to it. And there’s peace to it. Your belly is just so, so, good and likes what it “heard.” Totally satisfied, like you ate a really good meal. * Be aware of “naming” things of your Soul with the same terms used for the Spirit. You are deceiving yourself. You are buying into a con game either from your own thinking or from the devil to hoodwink you into thinking or “reasoning” is coming from your Spirit, when it is not. A person will always be deceived when this happens - James 1:22. You can’t be hood winked for long. You can always tell by the fruit of your life, what do you have. If you don’t like what you see, talk with the Lord. Ask for His correction. Repent when He shows you. And make the changes He tells you to make. ** We can see that our bodies will be rebellious and need to keep them into subjection to the Word. They are not re-created yet. So they will be disobedient. You can count on it. This is the reason why it is important to fast. To keep our bodies under and not rebellious. To take charge, on purpose, what you allow your body to eat and when. This is telling your body “who” is in control. Because the enemy is in this realm. This helps our spiritual ears to hear the Lord more clearly when our bodies aren’t fussing. Now you don’t need to do long fasts. They may be for one meal. Go as the Lord leads. And with that time that you would eat, instead pray and stay in the word. Always follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in ALL things. We discipline our Bodies by not allowing it to rule us. Instead we give God the priority and allow Him to rule us through our Spirit. We have to give one part priority. This is the way our system works. And until we learn how to do this from God’s word, we are either ruled by our Bodies or ruled by our Souls. We then follow whichever one we are giving credence to and speaking along those lines and doing actions along those lines we are bringing the things to pass by “speaking” and “doing” what is ruling us. You can always tell what is ruling you by listening to what comes out of your mouth. Then you will know what is in your heart and what is ruling you. But we can’t change this until we know what God says to do about it. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks - Matthew 12:34. It is sobering to observe what comes out of our mouths. Whatever is in our heart. If it’s contrary to the word of God it is coming from our Soul or from the devil and we need to change it. Yes, the devil throws thoughts at our heads and if we take that thought and start speaking it, we will bring that word to pass. Because the things we speak are what we have. Genesis 1 - God spoke and it was so. We are made in His image. Instead let’s choose to have God rule from our Spirit. We are one Spirit with Him. 1 Corinthians 6:17 - Whoever is united with the Lord is one with Him in spirit. Hebrews 4:12 - For the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing between soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intent of the heart. We see from what the Lord has said in these scriptures that we are ONE with HIM in our inner man, our Spirit! It may not “feel” like it but we are. We also see that If you can divide Spirit and Soul, then that means they are together. Which shows us we can’t tell “what” or should I say “who” is speaking unless we use the word. The Word is the only way to discern who is “talking” and what you are being motivated by: Spirit or Soul, or Body, or the devil. They each have a “voice” and a particular way of speaking to us. And we can discern what part is “talking” to us with thoughts when we dive into the word and believe what He says about us! When you ask the Holy Spirit for insight He will let you know whether that “thought” was from your intellect, emotions, five senses, the devil, or from Him. As we do this the Holy Spirit “shows” us things…I call them “a-ha” moments. These are times when we get the “a-ha” about a particular situation we are wondering about. Our eyes “see” what is happening. That’s called: revelation knowledge (Ephesians 1:17-18), which we get from the Holy Spirit. He IS revelation knowledge. The more you “hang out” with Him the more revelation knowledge you get. Yes He is always with you, He will never leave you nor forsake you. What I mean is that you “choose” to spend time with Him and listening for His leading. The more you do this, the more revelation you’ll have…if you are willing to receive it. We always have to be willing to receive. Sometimes that can be challenging. But bless God, we can do it because we “choose” to. As we spend time with Him we begin to notice when we are being “just us,” being weird, “fleshly” - in our carnality; or if we are “seeing” through the lens of the Holy Spirit. This only happens as we talk with the Lord about it and stay in the word about the situation and do what He reveals and tells us to do. A friend said to me once, “Discernment is not knowing right from wrong but knowing right from almost right.” Huge insight to her statement! (That’s the Holy Spirit operating through someone else to give the word that is needed! I thank God for that.) We need to press into the Holy Spirit to “see” what is right from almost right with everything and in this case from “what” or “who” is speaking to us: Spirit, Soul, Body, or the devil. Each speaks differently. You know if you have a friend who is from another country - they have a certain way of speaking, catch phrases, subject matter they like to discuss, metaphors, and so on. It’s the same here. Spirit, Soul, Body, and the devil, all speak differently and come at you from places: Spirit - God deep inside your being speaking in line with the word of God; Soul - occurs in your thinking or emotions, or personality; Body - things of the 5 senses which are needed for this physical world, bear in mind your Body is the temple of the Holy Spirit so how we treat our Bodies is important; devil - from outside of your body to your head as thoughts coming from the outside pretending at being “you” (most often) talking to yourself. Sometimes pretending to be God - Isaiah 14:13-14. Always saying bad things about you, to you, so that you think it is “yourself” - he has been running con jobs, always a liar and skilled liar of which he is the father of lies, hides the lies within truth, he even knows scripture and will quote it to you just like he did with Jesus in the temptation in the wilderness, always speaks about bad things you’ve done in the past of which God already forgave you of and has no memory of it - He has removed it as far as the east is from the west - Psalm 103:12, and the devil always comes from the five sense realm or emotions because the senses and emotions can “drive” someone. Whenever you are being “driven” - “pushed” to do something and you can’t control it the devil is always behind it. Until we learn how to operate with the Spirit, through our Soul, and to our Body it’s a free for all. One of them has priority and is in control. Because of this material world it will either be Body or Soul… and yes, someone can be controlled by the devil, especially unbelievers but that is enacted through the Body realm. The devil and his hordes are always looking for a body. The Spirit is the enigmatic part of us that most born again brothers and sisters have no idea how to operate from; and people who are not saved have no idea at all. 1 Corinthians 2:9-14 - 9 But as it is written:“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Whatever He tells you to do, do. So if He says you need to eat vegetables for a few days, do it. Or if He tells you to get more rest, do it. We do this no matter what our Bodies want. We give God the priority and do what He says. He always has a good reason, and the reason is for our benefit. But it is up to us to discipline our flesh when it rears its ugly head and wants to do things contrary to the spirit. How do we do that? It is the same whether it is for our flesh/Body or our Soul: 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 - For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4. For the weapons or our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds. 5. Casting down vain imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 6. And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. This is a great scripture for step by step instruction of “how” to deal with the unruly flesh/Body, as well as our Soul, or the devil, when they is causing havoc. What is a “strong hold”? It is a belief system that we have. We identify with it. We think it’s “the truth.” But it is simply a thought we were taught somewhere along our life and have treated it “as truth.” We do this, it defines us. BUT we can tear it down through casting down the thought in Jesus Name. (We will get into this more in later paragraphs.) Verse 5 can be phrased another way for seeing the order of what we are to do: “By casting down vain imaginations, and every high (or lofty) thought that exalts itself over the word, or speaks contrary to the word…and being ready to revenge all disobedience from our Bodies, Souls, or the devil.” Many times the common Christian phrase that is used is: “rebuke that thought” for a thought that comes up contrary to God and His word. But this is only half of what needs to be done. The next part is to replace that thought with the appropriate scripture that contradicts that thought. Or in common writing terms when you are using a word processor, you use the key for “find and replace.” That’s what we want to do with the word. Find the appropriate scripture on a situation and replace your previous “ingrained” thought(s) - or “strong hold” - cancel them out in Jesus Name and replace it with what the word says. For example: a thought comes to your mind that you have no will power to eat healthy. You may even make a statement to someone along those lines. As soon as you realize it (even if it’s hours later), speak out loud to yourself. Say: “I refuse that thought in Jesus Name, and cast it out! I HAVE the will power because I am a new creature in Christ Jesus. Old things are gone away and ALL has become new!! (2 Corinthians 5:17.) I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13.)” This is what you do with thoughts and words that come up from your heart or into your mind and out of your mouth, to take authority over them. When you first do this you will feel like you’re are lying to yourself because you always thought that negative thought, and it was a “strong hold.” But now you are replacing the “you” with God. It’s His thought of who you are and you are making it yours. On purpose. He’s right. Always. This first day you will have to do it a lot. It may seem like every 10 seconds you’re having to cast down thoughts and replace them with the word. But as you stay persistent it will get easier. Even the next day will be easier. By the third day it will be even easier. By the fourth day you’re doing a victory dance because it’s over. There will be times here and there of the flesh rearing its ugly head or the devil tryin to jump in, but it’s laughable when it happens and you treat it the same as you did at the start: cast down that thought in the Name of Jesus and replace it with the Word. We can also ask the Holy Spirit for His help, always. He is our Helper. Psalm 141:3 - Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil so that I take part in wicked deeds along with those who are evildoers; do not let me eat their delicacies. There’s another in Psalm 139:23-24 - Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. As you do this He will highlight to you when something has come out of our mouth, or thought, or action that is contrary to the Word of God. Then take action on what He is telling you to do. And as you start this process the first thing to watch: what comes out of our mouths. There’s one more part to all of this, and that is understanding the “gateways” to our heart. These are the openings to our heart and what goes into them is what gets planted in our heart. We are told to “guard our heart” which means to guard the entrances to the heart. The gateways or entrances are: eye gate; ear gate; mouth gate. What goes into our eyes and our ears can get into our heart. Mouth is a two way gate. We speak out of the abundance in our heart, that’s how we know what is in it; and we can speak the word out loud to change what is planted in our heart. This is our Body and Soul working together. That is how we are made. And the Lord gave us scripture for this: Take a look at Proverbs 4:20-27 - Berean Study Bible: 20 My son, pay attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. 21 Do not lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. 22 For they are life to those who find them, and health to the whole body. 23 Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow springs of life. 24 Put away deception from your mouth; keep your lips from perverse speech. 25 Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. 26 Make a level path for your feet, and all your ways will be sure. 27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your feet away from evil. In verse 20-21 we see that the word(s) that we hear causes “images” to come up. We see what was said. This happens no mater what is spoken. This is why we have to be careful what we “hear”. It causes images in our mind. If we keep thinking on it, it will come out of our mouth. If we are “inclining our ear” to the word of God we will be storing it in our heart and have life and health. Out of our heart springs life. But if we are storing things contrary to the word of God, then we are springing up death from our heart and those words we speak will be “death” types of words. Like when someone constantly has negative things to say. They are hard to be around because they are so negative. That is a heart issue, a heart filled with sickness, death, disease, destruction. And we know who is the instigator of that - John 10:10 the devil has come to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus came to give life and that more abundantly. The remainder of the verses are about staying focused on God’s word and doing it. The steps are simple. The “doing” of it is initially a challenge due to our “feelings” but the Lord also changes our “feelings” when we do this and He is with you every step of the way and will help you. * I’m going to repeat myself, I am choosing to do that in this article because this is important: Watching our words is the first thing to notice and when something comes out, we say something that is contrary to the word, immediately repent of it. Not just ask forgiveness. “Repent” - which means to change our way of thinking about that situation. Then cancel those words out in Jesus Name, because they create. AND then replace them with what the word says about that situation. STOP yourself when you realize you said something contrary to the word - even if its hours later. Then say: “Sweet Heavenly Father, forgive me for saying that. I change my thinking with what Your word says about me. I forbid my body to have control over me in Jesus Name! I keep my focus on You in my Spirit through the Holy Spirit in charge of my physical Body and Soul, and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. It’s not my strength, it’s Yours! And I thank You for giving it to me.” (Philippians 4:13.) *** CHAPTER TW0 - LEARNING TO WALK WITH GOD Now that you know the basics you can begin or renew your relationship with God. And we do all of what was mentioned on the previous pages because we love the Lord and want to clearly hear Him and be directed by Him. It’s about our intimate relationship with Him. He is closer than a brother. He is always on our side and wants to help us. Spending time with the Lord is the most important thing. Any relationship needs time with that person. Our relationship with the Lord is no different. The more you read His word the more you learn how He talks. Where most people miss His voice is when they think they hear themselves rather than Him. For example: At work, discipline yourself to ask for His help. Ask: “Okay, Lord, how do I do this?” An idea or hunch will come from deep within your being to your head as a thought. You check that “thought” this way: a.) Do you have “peace’ about it? b.) Do you have joy about it? If you have peace and joy, it’s Him. Especially joy. (Colossians 3:15; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Psalm 16:11.) Love, joy, peace are all results of hearing from Him, they are Him and He exudes them. When He speaks to you they are always present. Even when He is correcting us! There is peace and love. While it’s sobering there is liberty - freedom in taking His correction, never bondage. If there is “confusion” - that is not God. He is not the author of confusion but of peace - 1 Corinthians 14:33. As an example, you know that friend or associate you have that is so great to be around. You feel great about yourself when you’re with them. You laugh. Have a good time. Enjoy each others’ company. This is what it’s like with the Lord! Even more so because He is the creator of all that exists - and you are a friend of God and His love for you is everlasting. This is what we all aspire to, a high quality of life with an intimate relationship with the Lord. We will unpack this further in the nitty-gritty of things in the following pages. *** CHAPTER THREE - FURTHER DETAILS ON THE BODY Ephesians 6:12 - For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. In this Ephesians scripture we can see the relationship between the devil and the flesh. They are symbiotic. This world is where he roams and attacks come in the material world and will affect our bodies. All ways, and always. Attacks can also come to our minds as “Thoughts.” They come from the outside into our heads. Usually that’s his mess. Sometimes thoughts from other people come. Thoughts come from the outside from whatever we are giving our attention to, like books, movies, music, and conversation. But this is where we need to control what comes into our “gateways.” We have to guard our heart. And in the flesh realm is where we see the devil roams in scripture. Look at Job 1:6-7 and Job 2:1-2. He is roaming the earth. And we see in 1 Peter 5:8-10 he is roaming the earth to seek someone to devour. And devouring was on his mind with Job. God wouldn’t allow him to devour Job but He allowed the devil to do it to Job’s family. I have heard people ask why did God allow that. When you read the first couple of chapters you see that his kids were in sinful behavior, his wife was in sinful behavior (complaining about God, like Israel did in the desert), and we see Job was in fear because of the sacrifices he offered continually for his kids because of their sin. A parent or whomever is led to intercede for someone in sinful behavior is only allowed for so long. God expects the people (person) to make it right. God had to allow it by His very own truth, law. Job was supposedly the first book written, before the law but God’s law is forever. God is forever. His truth is forever. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And being disobedient to Him knowingly or unknowingly, although they had no understanding, allowed the devil to pounce. The only way the devil can do that is if someone allows him by their thoughts, words, and actions. We have Authority over him as Jesus told us in Luke 10:17-19. We are to use that Authority that Jesus gave us in His word as He said and do honor to His blood that was spilt for us. He upholds all things by the Word of His power! (Hebrews 1:3.) And when someone is in sin there is always a result for the sin. Repentance sometimes voids the result or outcome, sometimes it does not. There are times when people in the Bible had to go through the result of their sin even though they got their hearts right with God. I believe Adam and Eve were the first; Abraham - yes, he brought Lot with him who was family and Abraham was called God’s friend and Jesus was able to come to the earth because of Abraham’s faith for God to raise his son from the dead. Abraham’s faith was more important than the sin of taking his nephew Lot with him on his journey. But who knows how that would have happened if Abraham didn’t take Lot. James 4:7 - Submit yourself to God…..resist the devil and he will flee. Consciously submit and yield ourselves to God!! Do this first. Then as we resist the devil by casting down his thoughts and accusations he will flee, but we have to resist. Resist the thoughts he throws into our heads and the drives of our Bodies. Take Authority over our flesh through Jesus and His Word. It keeps our Body under. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:27 - “but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” Romans 13:14 - But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires o the flesh. * I. Matthew 26:41- Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. We are to keep “watch” and pray. “Pray” in straightforward terms means: in conversation with the Lord. We can do this all throughout the day. This is what Paul means by “pray without ceasing” - 1 Thessalonians 5:17. As we keep our hearts in tune with the Holy Spirit, He warns us of what is coming. He then leads us to pray against it to stop it or decrease the severity of it (John 14:26 and Romans 8:26-27). The next part is key: our Spirits are willing. This born again part of us is in union with Christ, as 1 Corinthians 6:17 says, and they are willing. We are one Spirit with Him. But our flesh, which is in two parts: physical body and the flesh nature (or sin nature, or sometimes called “human nature”) is what needs to be crucified: Galatians 5:16-17, 24 - This I say then, Walk in the Spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. In verse 24 for us to “belong to Christ Jesus” is a choice…after we are born again. If we take this scripture and compare it to Romans 7:14, 25 and Chapter 8 and Galatians 5 we see that there is a “struggle” between our flesh and Spirit. And we all know brothers and sisters who “got their life insurance.” Meaning they received Jesus into their heart but they are not submitted to Him. Yielded. We have to yield to Him to “belong” to Him. They are saved. They will go to heaven. But they won’t receive a crown. There are 5 crowns that believers can achieve. Not all who run the race will receive the reward - meaning all who get saved won’t do what it takes to receive a crown. It’s a reward. I know believers who do not submit and do not yield to the Lord. Walking in the Spirit is a constant choice. We must walk in the Spirit in order to have crucified the flesh - Romans 8. It’s an “if”/“then” statement. Even if we walk according to the flesh our inner man, the Holy Spirit though our Spirit will be grieved because we are not doing what He says. He will give that inward feeling of “discomfort” but if we continue to disobey He will stop warning us and let the result of the sin come upon us. And there are many brothers and sisters who do not walk in the Spirit and their flesh isn’t crucified, and going through turmoil. How do you know? Their fruit. You can always tell by what inhabits and surrounds a person’s life. BUT all we have to do is repent. Sometimes we still have to go through the result of that sin, like David with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11-12) but the sin is forgiven. Repenting doesn’t always get rid of the result but it does make your hearing from the Lord, intimacy with Him, get back on track. Ephesians 2:3 - All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. Romans 6:6,16- For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin….Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? We are always obeying somebody . Either the flesh and sin, or God. We have a choice. Choose you this day life or death, blessing or cursing: therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live: That you may love the Lord your God and that you may obey His voice, and that you may cleave unto Him: for He is your life and the length of your days… - Deuteronomy 30:19-20. The Holy Spirit in our inner man has to have priority over our flesh. The two - flesh and spirit are against one another: Galatians 5:17 - For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do what you want. Romans 7:14, 25 (part, in my words) - Thank God because He delivers me through Jesus Christ my Lord! I myself in my mind serve God, but in my sinful nature am a slave to the law of sin. What that means as born again believers is we are constantly presented with a choice. Choosing to abide by the sinful nature or choosing to abide by God’s word. He gives us the choice. He never forces it upon us. * II. The word “death” in Strong’s means: Greek- #2288 separation from the life of God. Before we were born again we were in “death”- in sin. We were separated from God. Genesis 2:17 -“But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” When Adam and Eve ate of the fruit they died immediately in the Spirit-Soul-Body. They were separated from God in all three areas. Notice God didn’t know where they were…He asked, “Where are you?” They had been separated. It was hundreds of years until their bodies learned to die. Yes, their bodies had to learn to die. They were not created to do so. The natural man or flesh, or one who is separated from God cannot spiritually discern because they are spiritually dead - the Spirit is separate from God, the Soul is separate from God, and the Body is separate from God. Our outer man is perishing but the inward one is renewed day by day - 2 Corinthians 4:16. (This is a great confession to do each morning!) This is why 1 Corinthians 15:51-53 is so important. Our bodies need to be recreated in their original, un-fallen state. Immortal. We won’t have blood running through our veins, instead it will be the glory of God. Just imagine what that will be like!! (Luke 24:39; Romans 6:4; 1 Peter 1:21) When we receive Jesus as our Lord and receive His sacrifice for us, that brings us into union with Him. No longer separate in our Spirit from the Spirit of God. But our Soul and Body are not changed. Originally we were intended to be entirely a part of God - Spirit-Soul-Body. Like Adam when he was first created before the fall. But now that we have received Jesus our Spirit is alive unto God, 2 Corinthians 5:17 and 18 Amplified- Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (new species of being), old things are passed away and all things are become new. And all things are of God, Who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. The first Adam and the last Adam - Jesus Christ - 1 Corinthians 15:45 “It is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being,’ the last Adam, a life-giving Spirit.” This is why when we receive Jesus into our hearts we have life the moment we say “yes” to Him. You know something happened. You now have life in your Spirit. Adam at first was entirely one with the Father - Spirit-Soul-Body. Imagine what that must have been like?? We will soon get to experience that for eternity!! When the fall happened he was entirely separated Spirit-Soul-Body. Imagine what that must have been like for Adam and Eve to experience both. Jesus too, when He was on the cross and said, “Father, why have you forsaken Me?” Jesus had always been one with the Father and then at the cross He was entirely separated from the Father, and the Father had to turn His back on His Son because He was laden with all of our sins. (Habakuk 1:13; Exodus 33:18-23.) That was devastating to Jesus to have His loving Father have to turn His back to Him. Scripture says Jesus gave His Spirit up to death. It was not taken. I believe He died of a broken heart and gave up His Spirit. * We are to take authority over our Bodies: 1 Corinthians 9:27- But I keep under my body (make it my slave) and bring it under subjection…. (Look at TPT) and our Souls (thoughts, emotions, personality: 1 Corinthians 10:10-13 TPT - And we must not embrace their ways by complaining-grumbling with discontent, as many of them did, and were killed by the destroyer! All the tests they endured on their way through the wilderness are a symbolic picture, an example that provides us with a warning so that we can learn through what they experienced. For we live in a time when the purpose of all the ages past is now completing its goal within us. So beware if you think it could never happen to you, lest your pride becomes your downfall. We all experience times of testing which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust Him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape, that will bring you out of it victoriously. Praise God, He is with us through all tests and trials and provides a way out. These tests and trials come in this material world, like the parable of the rain that beats upon the house. Much of the time tests and trails come through our own bodies. Sometimes through the soul - thinking and emotions. And we are warned not to grumble and complain spoken words against God. They create. And it killed them. A very sobering warning. One thing of note: when you are in the midst of a test/trial, notice that is when you do not hear the voice of God. Like when you took examinations in school, the teacher was there in class. He or she was at their desk. Never said a word. They waited until the test was finished. This is important to know. You will still have unction/knowing from the Holy Spirit. Stay highly tuned to His direction during the test. Whether you obey or not will either decrease the time of the test, or increase the length of time of the test. And important to realize there is difference between a test/trial and a temptation. The Lord does test - Abraham with Lot for example versus Jesus in the wilderness tempted by the devil (Jesus had to deal with His soul while in prayer and fasting). Temptations do not come from God as James 1:12-16 - we encounter them because of our flesh and Soul: “Blessed is the man that endures temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive that crown of life, with the Lord has promised to them that love Him. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither does He tempt anyone; but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin; and sin, when it is finished brings forth death.” * IT ALL COMES DOWN TO WHAT WE FOCUS ON: Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:14 - But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Paul wrote this to the church in Corinth, to believers. Another scripture that is imperative to read is Romans 8. The entire chapter is about focusing on the Holy Spirit or focusing on the flesh, and the outcome of both. Here’s another aspect to be aware of with the body: CRAVINGS - any “impulse” from the body that is hard to control or you have no control comes from a demon. Many times it is attached because of unforgiveness and/or fear. Sometimes it’s a family curse. If this is the case, as always, ask the Lord how to go about it. It requires repentance either for yourself, or in the case of a family curse repenting for your forefathers and foremothers of all agreements, oaths, contracts, and such like, known and unknown. Tell the Lord you receive forgiveness; and cancel out all family curses. Stamp the spiritual contract with the Blood of Jesus because you are redeemed from the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:13-14) and the Law of the Spirit of Life (Romans 8:2) is in you, on you, and has permeated your life. You are free, in Jesus Name. And cut all cords to the curse or whatever it is, in the Name of Jesus (Proverbs 5:21-23) and burn them up with the Fire of God (Hebrews 12:29 and 1 Kings 18: 38-39 [23-39].) * REVIEW: John 6:63 - It is the Spirit that quickens (or that gives life); the flesh profits nothing; the Words that I speak unto you are Spirit and they are life. Very clear distinction between Spirit and Body in this scripture. We can see the outcome of being focused on one or the other. Our Spirit is new, born again, and one with Jesus. There is light and life with what He speaks. This is where God talks to us and what He says always agrees with His word. His word is life to us! The more you read it the more you have life and light on the situation. It makes you “feel” energized…I know, it’s a feeling and the word affects our feelings in the right way. Did you know God has feelings? But He’s not ruled by them. Our Body, called “flesh” or “carnal” is 2 parts: physical body with the 5 senses - see, hear, smell, taste, and touch; and our sin nature - also called “human nature”, or “beast like nature” - Daniel 5:21; 2 Pet. 2:12; Jude 1:10; Ps. 49:12, 20; James 1:23-26; Romans 8. Don't waste even a moment's thought on your former identity to awaken its selfish desires. Instead fully immerse yourselves into the Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. - Romans 13:14 TPT Paul says 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 - do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. We see that even when moving in the Spirit preaching, because Paul constantly had the flow of the Holy Spirit with miraculous signs following, if he didn’t keep his body “under”- discipline his thoughts and emotions, he would loose the crown!!!! *** CHAPTER FOUR - FURTHER DETAILS ON THE SOUL We discussed much of how to do this already. How we retrain our Flesh/Body is the same as retraining our Soul. There are only a few things to add here. Soul: mind, will, emotions, and personality. I’m going to do this out of order above. Let’s go to the “WILL” . Will power is your “chooser” - the will can only work properly when you have enough word in you. You know the phrase: “I have no will power…I have to eat the entire cake.” They don’t have enough Word to resist that temptation. This is the only way our “will” can properly work: with the Word. 2. Our Soul - mind (thoughts), FEELINGS, personality are not always right, although we believe they are. Every thought we have is not accurate. Every feeling we have is definitely not accurate and can get you in trouble. Feelings can kill and being ruled by “feelings” will make one’s life absolute hell. They are up one minute and down the next. A roller coaster that always leads to confusion, and God is not the author of confusion but of peace. (1 Corinthians 14:33.) Feelings (Emotions)- is huge. At times they can seem overwhelming. This is where we stumble the most. We think we “are” our emotions. But no. We have feelings…they are not who we are. Feelings can kill you! Talk with anyone who has attempted suicide. They will tell you how they “felt.” ‘Hopeless. No way out. People are better off without them.’ The person has their identity in their feelings. And nothing could be further from the truth. Another example: when someone is ill - people because of “feelings” can be detrimental to the person who is sick, because they “feel sorry” for them. “Feeling sorry” is only an emotion. It has no “action” to help the person. Then the person who “feels sorry” for them speaks words of illness and death over them. Not words of life. Words create. The power of life and death is in the tongue, and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. - Proverbs 18:21. Instead of emotion, Jesus moved with COMPASSION. Notice the verb. “Moved”. Compassion “does” something about the situation. So when you hear of someone who is not well, pray for them! Pray how the Lord leads. Each situation is different. Speak words of life to them…which means speak scripture to them. Put it in layman's terms, don’t “christian-ize” the words straight out of King James Version…that can turn many people off. For people who are in the hospital, sleeping, in and out of consciousness, or coma - that’s when to play the word in their room, it changes things!! 3. more on the MIND : 1 Corinthian 8:1 - Knowledge (head knowledge) puffs up but Love builds up. This word gives us a key! Are we puffed up by what we are saying or thinking? Or does it benefit someone else. Results are the key! By the result we know what was the motivator and if actions are needed to be taken like casting down thoughts and replacing with the word. This is why our focus needs to be on the love of God and what He wants. Not what we want. And we can always tell by the end result. God is very specific about the thoughts of our Soul (mind) and what it leads to, like the scripture above, and the ones below: 1 Corinthians 3:18-20 NIV - Do not deceive yourselves, if any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”. And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” (Job 5:13, Psalm 94:11.) Romans 12:2 NIV - Be not conformed to the world’s way of working: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind - THAT we we may prove what is that good, acceptable, and perfect will of God. And I like to use this scripture with this, Philippians 4:8 NASB- Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things. One translation says “if there is anything praiseworthy - meditate on these things.” These are the things to think about on purpose. Not on our automatic thinking from our minds when it is contrary to the word. We renew our minds by reading the word and confessing the word, and guard what we see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and speak with our mouth. It’s a simple equation but it takes work. And by doing this we prove what is the perfect will of God in our lives. Fruit. We will bear good fruit. (Matthew 12:33; John 15:2.) We can tell what is happening in our lives by the fruit we are bearing. In other words, look at what you got. If you don’t like what you see, then things need to change within you. And this is how you do it. Refocus. Put your sights on the Lord - intimacy with Him IS key. Take time every day to be with Him in prayer and the word. Ask Him to help you, to show you where to go in the word. Then get quiet for a few minutes and see where you are led to go in the Bible. You may hear His still, small voice coming up from deep inside of you; or you will get a “knowing” of where to go; sometimes from deep within you will come a picture of the title of the book, like John or Isaiah and a chapter number; or sometimes a thought will come up from within you of the place to go. Whichever way He chooses to tell you, do it. Continue to nurture your “hearing” of Him.You already do whether you know it or not. You are His sheep and you hear His voice (John 10:27), it’s simply strengthening the “learning” how to hear. Continue to follow His promptings and leadings. If you follow one that wasn’t right, then you know it wasn’t Him. It was either your Soul or your Flesh, or the devil. Just because you found it wasn’t the Lord isn’t a bad thing. It is part of teaching you what is what. When the devil chimes in he typically starts with bringing thoughts to your mind that “you are worthless; you can never do anything right; people think your an idiot; you don’t have what it takes” etc. Never fails, he will always talk bad to you, about you, and make you think it is “yourself” that is talking this way. The more you keep doing this he will eventually be his ugly self and tell you he’s going to kill you. Laugh at him. He can’t touch you. Psalm 91:16 with long life will God satisfy you and show you His salvation. The difference is satan will condemn you; while the Holy Spirit will convict you in order to help you to grow in the Lord. There are some Soulish ways of thinking, ways we were raised, what we heard from our parents or family, or friends that is negative - these are “strong holds.” We took on these thoughts as our “identity.” But it’s not who we are. All of these thoughts can be changed just the way God told us in 1 Corinthians 10:3-6 and Proverbs 4:20-23. Casting down those thoughts in Jesus Name and replacing them with what the word says about us; and guarding our hearts by careful watch of what goes into our eyes, ears, and out of our mouth. Be sure to cut the cords to that way of thinking - Proverbs 5:21-23. Strong holds always have cords. It’s what creates the bondage - Isaiah 5:18; Psalm 107:13-14; Psalm 140:5; Psalm 129:4. Plus, with all of this the Lord also gave us His mind. We have that in our inner man, the Spirit, that is one with Jesus. (1 Corinthians 2:16.) This is the part of us that knows deep down what is right and what is wrong. Our moral compass. We call it our “conscience”. Keep on track with the conscience. Don’t violate it by not doing what you are led to do. Following our conscience will keep you on the right track. 1 Timothy 1:19 NIV - Holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith. As we do all of this we know as Philippians 4:7 says, The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Always follow your “peace”. If you don’t have peace about something, don’t do it! Don’t allow yourself to be pushed to make a decision. Colossians 3:15 Classic Amplified says, “Let the peace of God [the umpire of peace, the inner calm of one who walks daily with Him] be the controlling factor in your hearts [deciding and settling with all finality all questions that arise in your mind]. To this peace you were called to live as members of Christ’s one body. And be thankful [to God always].” And if you still don’t have peace about a situation, ask the Lord about it. There’s something He is trying to tell you. Don’t make any decisions about a situation until you have peace about that situation. Stay in the word and prayer until you get the answer from Him and you know how to proceed. * THOUGHTS & EMOTIONS ARE CONNECTED. One causes the other. We don’t ever think of them as separate, because they are not. Thought causes emotions; and emotions cause further thoughts. We are separating them in this study as a matter of study. And if we continue ruminating on a thought it creates a pattern, a “habit”, in our mind to continue thinking on those things which stirs up powerful feelings. Scientifically it has been proven (https://qz.com/1569158/neuroscientists-read-unconscious-brain-activity-to-predict-decisions ) - that if you take a thought for 10-11 seconds a pattern is created in the brain and a decision is made, thus an action and words occur next. This is why it is so crucial to be aware of our thoughts BEFORE a pattern is created in the brain. A habit. A proverbial “groove” if you will, like a groove in a record. When we stop the thought that is contrary to the word of God before 11 seconds, we stop the pattern from ever forming. It’s much easier to deal with thoughts quickly. It takes more time to uproot and change patterns in the brain. No matter which way we have to go, we got the victory through Christ Jesus. And it is the same simple way of casting down the thought in Jesus Name and replacing that thought with the word of God that pertains to the situation. As we take authority over our emotions and thoughts when they are out of line with the Word our mind gets more and more renewed, so does the emotions. We won’t be an emotional rollercoaster but on a steady, even keel that is hard to get flustered or flare out in situations. For example: in an emergency, a crisis situation - people either become paralyzed, or cry, or scream and yell profanity. This is the common reaction and is evidence that those people do not have any word in them. It is the Spirit man that is supposed to take over. But they have nothing in their spirit, no word. Their mind shuts down and they don’t know what to do and their emotions get flustered and flare. Another aspect for renewing our minds and emotions is that it is crucial for healing emotional scars. This is where being “hurt” comes from. Our “hearts hurt” because of an emotional scar because we “see” ourselves as our emotions. But we are not. That’s what the phrase means: “Don’t take it so personally.” Taking the emotional hurt personally - as if it is us. It is simply an emotion we have. This is why we have to renew our minds, how we think of ourselves and “see” ourselves. The way we think about that situation will create a bigger groove of hurt in our emotions and causes us to not forgive. We are new creatures. Old things have passed away and ALL has become new! And we forgive because Jesus told us to. It keeps us in contact with the Lord. If we harbor unforgiveness we separate ourselves from the love of God. He can’t get to us because there is a “barrier” in between us and Him and we were the ones that put it there…and we can “take it down” too, simply by forgiving…on purpose - Mark 11:25-26. We have to retrain our thoughts by be disciplined in forgiving that person instead of harboring resentment, pray for them, bless them in Jesus Name. This will take a few days just like any retraining of our thinking. It is the same process. If we will change our tendency to see ourselves as our emotions we won’t be so flighty; instead more stable, consistent. Plus we are commanded to forgive: Ephesians 4:32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. When we don’t control our emotions we will 100% of the time get “off”. It’s the realm the enemy uses a lot. It’s one of the major fields he attacks. Attacks our minds, attacks our emotions, attacks our personalities, attacks the will power. * Here’s one more part to look at regarding dealing with the soul, and specifically our feelings and thoughts, AND how it relates to the will: Jesus at Gethsemane - He was struggling with His own soul! Matt. 26: 36-46 - Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. TPT - An intense feeling of great sorrow plunged his soul into deep sorrow and agony. And he said to them, My heart is overwhelmed and crushed with grief. It feels as though I’m dying. Stay here and keep watch with me. “ 39. The he walked a short distance away, and overcome with grief, he threw himself facedown on the ground and prayed, “My Father, if there is any way you can deliver me from this suffering, please take it from me. YET WHAT I WANT IS NOT IMPORTANT, for I only desire to fulfill Your plan. Luke 22:39-44 -42 - Father, if you’re are willing, take this cup of agony away from me. But no matter what your will must be mine. 44. He prayed even more passionately, like one being sacrificed, until he was in such intense agony of spirit that His sweat became drops of blood, dripping onto the ground. Agony: (Merriam-Websters) - 1. A. intense pain of mind or body; anguish, torture. B. The struggle that precedes death. A violent struggle or contest. 3. A strong sudden display, outburst. In this instance we see Jesus struggle with His own soul - thoughts and emotions - He surrendered His will to His Father. Not Jesus’ will but God’s will. Will power is the “chooser”. This is crucial in times of crisis. If it wasn’t for the fact that Jesus had so much word in Him (He is the word made flesh - John 1:1-4,14), He wouldn’t have been able to make HIs will submit to God the Father. That is the only way we can do this ourselves. We have to have the word in us, abiding in us - John 15:7. Sometimes the Lord may show you something terrible that you have to face, but that you need to go through it. Just like He did with Paul and Peter. They knew the what was going to happen. The Father always has a very good reason. We may not understand it yet but He will reveal it to us. And He gives you the faith to get through it. For example, there was a man who knew he was going to prison. He had done nothing wrong and had been set up. But the Lord told him that He wanted him to go, there was something for him to do there. The man was sent to prison. And once the man was in jail the Lord told him to minister to other inmates. Eventually he began a prison ministry with the inmates in his jail and many came to know the Lord!!! At the beginning of the situation it looked like that the entire thing was wrong. This man had been set up. It wasn’t right. Same as Jesus. Jesus was set up. It wasn’t right. But there was a purpose!!!! And the man who was sent to jail was the means of the Lord being sent to those in prison and “setting them free”. One statement I heard was from one of the inmates who came to the Lord though this man’s ministry, the guy was in for a life sentence, he said how much he thanked Jesus for loving him enough to come in to where he was, and no matter what it looks likes, he was freer than he could ever be even when he was on the outside. “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free…whom the Son sets free is free indeed!!” (John 8:32, 36.) This man is set free! Even though to the outside world it looks like he is not. No matter the massive battle Jesus had with His soul, His emotions and thoughts, and submitting His will to God’s will, Jesus’s death and resurrection was for saving all of mankind! That’s why He said on the cross before He gave up His Spirit: “It is finished.” * 4. PERSONALITY We don’t have to be chained or imprisoned by our personality either! Glory to God!! That’s why we have to renew our minds with who Jesus Christ says we are. We are not our personalities or what others have said about “who we are”. And we do not have to be a prisoner of either one in our behavior. All parts of our Soul are something we have. It is not who we are. We are to take control of our Soul’s through the word by “who” God says we are. Personality is the most difficult area to change because it is a foundation of how we identify ourselves. When you “see” yourself at “that” thing, you don’t think it can change. But it can!! Once you grasp that so much of our personality is learned behavior, it then makes it easier. Those parts to the personality are not “you” and they can change. Praise God we have been delivered from our personality as well as sin, sickness, destruction, poverty and such things. (Galatians 3:13-14; Romans 8:1-2; Deuteronomy 28.) No matter what has gone on in a believer’s mind and becomes their personality, and the decisions they have made for themselves is not necessarily true. When you use the word of God to change ungodly thinking, those previous “identities” make no difference….but you have to know this. You have to change your automatic thinking on purpose WITH the Word. Cast down those thoughts in the Name of Jesus and replace it with what the word days about that situation. That’s the only thing that can change it! When your personality is telling you will never be good enough, or you can’t excel because your not smart enough, or whatever you have “made” your identity; then the devil jumps in and bombards your thoughts with even more bad news of telling you how bad you are, WITH fear - when he shows up there is ALWAYS fear - tell your thoughts, the fear, and the devil, OUT LOUD, “No! I refuse that thought! That is not who I am!! God so loved me that He gave Jesus to die for me!! He gave me His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21), if you don’t like it take it up with Him! I’m a new creature! OLD THINGS have GONE AWAY!!! ALL has become NEW and all things are of Father God Who is in me!! THE mighty God is in me and He continuously gives me life and that more abundantly! (John 10:10.). And I do NOT have the spirit of fear BUT of power, love, and a sound mind!” (2 Timothy 1:7.) There is one more element when we are dealing with re-training the personality. Those deep ingrained belief systems have spiritual “cords”. Since the thoughts are not “truth” - truth is the word of God (John 17:17), and the word gives faith according to Romans 10:17 - and whatsoever is not of faith is sin (Romans 14:23), that means those programmed identities are “sin”. Sin has cords. Take a look at a few scriptures: Psalm 129:1-4 - “They have greatly oppressed me from my youth”…they have greatly oppressed me from my youth, but they have not gained the victory over me. Plowmen have plowed my back and made their furrows long. But the Lord is righteous; He has cut me free from the cords of the wicked. “They” are the “wicked” which always refers to the devil and his hordes. Remember they exist in the soul and physical realm. They don’t have the victory over you unless you allow it. And they attack from our youth. It’s imperative as a parent to watch your kids and what they say!!!!! You can tell if they are being attacked! Even at 4 or 5 years old. Pay attention to what they say and let the Lord lead you. And the last sentence of that scripture is amazing: The Lord is righteous and He has cut me free from the cords of the wicked. Because when we are attacked by the devil, if he is “allowed” because we play with the thoughts he gives us because we think they are our own, then he ties us up spiritually with cords. Often it is called “bondage” in the word. Look at Isaiah 5:18 - Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit, and wickedness as with cart ropes. When we don’t realize that we are in bondage with cords of sinful thoughts our life becomes more and more miserable. We have the same terrible cycles occurring in our lives and become more and more desperate. That’s because we are believing a lie and the lie attaches to us with cords. Psalm 107:13-14 - They cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke away their chains (cords). When we identify a part to our personality that needs to change, we first find all the scriptures about that subject matter and write them down. This is “who” you really are. This will take more than an hour. Give yourself a few days or so to do this. Then when you’re ready, with your Bible and the scriptures you’ve written out, you are going to pray. You are going to “repent” which means “change your thinking” about the former way of thinking and cut all cords to those thoughts to you and everything that belongs to you. Doesn’t have to be these exact words but something like this: “Father God, in the mighty Name of Jesus, I am so sorry for having ungodly thoughts that I made my identity. I repent of that in Jesus Name. I cut all cords to those thoughts and to all they are attached to and I thank You Jesus for shattering the chains of bondage to those thoughts. I am free!! Now I see in Your word that I am: (read off the scriptures you found). I am what You say I am because You made me this way!!! You have blessed me and I thank You for it. Holy Spirit I ask that you let me know if I do that again. And I thank You for it.” * Our “Conscious ” is a part of the soul. We are instructed not to violate our conscious or anyone else’s. As we grow up in spiritual things our conscience grows as well: 1 Corinthians 8:10-13 TPT - For if a believer with a weak conscience sees you, who have a greater understanding, dining in an idol’s temple, won’t this be a temptation to him to violate his own conscience and eat food offered to idols? So, in effect, by exercising your understanding of freedom, you have ruined this for a believer, a brother for whom Christ has died! And when you offend weaker believers by wounding their consciences in this way, you also sin against Christ. So I conclude that if my eating certain food deeply offends my brother and hinders his advance in Christ, I will never eat it again. I don’t want to be guilty of causing my brother or sister to be wounded and defeated. It’s important to abide by what our conscious is telling us. Otherwise if we violate it, it is the same as sin against the Lord. And we don’t want to cause our fellow brothers and sisters to stumble. We have a responsibility to the Lord for this, as He had said, for each other. The Lord showed me during the writing of this - 3 John 2 - “Beloved, I wish above all things that you would prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.” He said that when our minds are not renewed (soul) we cannot prosper nor can we be in health. If we see ourselves struggle with money and health, we know what the problem is. The Soul, our mind needs to be renewed! The Word will show us when our soul is getting out of line and differentiating between Soul and the Spirit. The Holy Spirit teaches you these things. Ask Him questions, tell Him all the questions that arise in your mind. He will let you know what is what. He will show you what is coming from the Spirit and what is Soulish. Forget about the “thinking” that He already knows it all. Yes, He does. And when we talk with Him about the things we are questioning it clears us up. The Holy Spirit shows you what is going on. It’s so cool when He does this!!! 1 Peter 1:22 - Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently. *** CHAPTER FIVE: MORE ON THE SPIRIT Proverbs 20:27 The spirit is the lamp of the Lord that sheds light on one’s inmost being. When we give God our priority, prioritize Him in our Spirit, He sheds light on our inmost being and every situation we give to Him. This is how we have “light” on the situation - Him. He is light, the light of this world. (1 John 1:5 & John 8:12.) As we press into Him we allow Him to lead us - Proverbs 3:5-6 says Trust in the Lord with all your heart; lean not to your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path. So we make a choice to not lean to our understanding - our thinking - and always acknowledge Him. It makes everything easier. Relying on Him for His direction for every situation rather than our own thoughts and feelings is freeing…absolutely liberating. Yes, it is hard to first start this because of our habits but habits can be changed and once we do it gets easier each time, and we eventually realize how limited we were before relying on the Lord, when we just guessed at everything in life. We don’t have to do it alone and we aren’t in this alone. We were never intended to be. God always wants to help, He is the lover of our Spirit, Soul, and Body - our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Temple. This why we undergo specific judgements for things done to our bodies if we do not repent - 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (The Holy of Holies is within us, where the Holy Spirit dwells. The Holy of Holies was the inner sanctuary where God’s presence dwelled. That’s IN us!! God’s presence is IN us. Have people ever told you “you just light up a room.” That’s God in you! In the temple the high priest could only go into the Holy of Holies once a year. And the holiness of God could only be accessed by the high priest once per year with a veil between him and God, a barrier (representing sin). God’s eyes are too pure to look on evil (sin)- Habakkuk 1:13. The priest with the veil and the elaborate customs (ordination) put in place by God were a reminder that man could not carelessly or irreverently enter God’s awesome presence. Before the priest entered the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement, he had to wash himself, put on special clothing, bring burning incense to let the smoke cover his eyes form a direct view of God and bring sacrificial blood with him to make atonement for sins - Exodus 28 and Hebrews 9:7. He has saved us from all of the torment of this world. God is not the tormentor. He IS love and kindness, just, peacemaker, life, light and so much more. Jeremiah 31:3 - “…I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore I have continued My faithfulness to you.” His absolute holiness is within us. It is the Lord who speaks with us out of our innermost being, deep in your belly. At times the words seem to come up from our belly, the upper part where the rib cage opens, and the words will move from there to deep within our head, not from the outside in. Sometimes we will hear His still, small voice (1 Kings 18:19-20) from within us. When He speaks, He always speaks according the word. He may use modern terminology but there are always scriptures that go with what He is telling you. If you don’t know the scripture off hand when He speaks, ask Him for one. He always gives at least one. John 4:24 - God is a Spirit: and those that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and truth. We know His Word is truth (John 17:17). So we worship Him in the Spirit and in the Word, and as we do this the Holy Spirit reveals things through His Word about what is going on with us- are we wrapped up in our Soul in a mental game of gymnastics, or are we operating in the Spirit, or are we trapped in our flesh (Body). This is the only way to find out. Stay in the Spirit worshiping God being led in the Word. Not led by the Soul or Flesh. You can always tell by the fruit your life is producing. As we worship Him, we shut off our physical senses (Bodies) - that’s why it’s important to close your eyes so you don’t respond to the sense realm; and we tell our Souls (mind and emotions) to “keep quiet.” Stay focused on His majesty. His beauty. There’s nothing like it! THIS is who we are! We are our God-given-recreated Spirit. Our Spirit-man. Made in the image of God in connection with Him. We are who God says we are: we are more than conquerors though Him who loved us; and there’s no condemnation to us who walk after the Spirit and we walk after the Spirit - we follow Him; therefore we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us; it’s Christ in us, He does the work and greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world; the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has made us free from the law of sin and death; if God be for us who can be against us!! (Romans 8:1-2, 31, 37; Colossians 1:27; Zechariah 4:6; Philippians 4:13; 1 John 4:4) Galatians 5:15 - Walk in the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. John 6:63 - It is the Spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I speak unto you are Spirit and they are life. Always keep “feeding” on the word. It gives life. We don’t want to put our Spirit man on a diet or starve him. We want to keep him well-fed, and we do it with the word: Matthew 4:4 - But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” *** CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION The crucial part is to put the examples to work in your life so that God IN your Spirit has dominion over your Body and Soul. We have to “choose“ this on purpose. We ARE a Spirit; we HAVE a Soul; and we LIVE in Body to contact this world. Being made in the image of God, it makes sense. He is in three parts: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And what I love about that scripture in 1 Thessalonians 5 (on first page) is that God, who is the God of peace is the One who preserves us!!!! He preserves us blameless! Unto the Rapture! That’s shouting ground right there. And the following scriptures sum it up nicely: James 1:22-23 - But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own hearts (souls). Matt. 7:24-27 - Therefore whoever has these saying of mine, and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock (from doing what was heard in the Word). But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell: and great was the fall of it. James 2:22-24, 26 - You see that his (Abraham) faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. [Faith not joined with action leaves room for doubt to fill that void. Which makes us double minded.] And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Phil 4:6-8 TPT - Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be SATURATED IN PRAYER THROUGHOUT EACH DAY, OFFERING YOUR FAITH-FILLED REQUESTS BEFORE GOD WITH OVERFLOWING GRATITUDE. Tell Him every detail of your life, then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will make the answers known to you through Jesus Christ. So keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious word of God, praising Him always. *** SCRIPTURE REFERENCES Alphabetical by Subject Beast-like Nature: Daniel 5:21; 2 Peter 2:12; Jude 1:10; Psalm 49:12, 20; James 1:23-26; Romans 8 flesh vs. Spirit. Choices: Deuteronomy 30:19-20; Proverbs 18:21; follow the flesh or the Spirit, outcomes: Deuteronomy 28 and Romans 8; Genesis 2:17. God: Luke 24:39; Romans 6:4; 1 Peter 1:21; 1 Corinthians 6:17; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 John 2:20,27; John 10:27-28; Hebrews 1:3; Proverbs 3:5-6; John 1:1-4, 14; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Hebrews 12:29; 1 Kings 18:38-39; John 4:23-24; 1 Corinthians 14:33; Job 5:13; Psalm 94:11; John 8:32, 36; Habakuk 1:13; Exodus 33:18-23; Exodus 28; Hebrews 9:27; Jeremiah 31:3; 1 Kings 18:19-20; Colossians 1:27; Zechariah 4:6; 1 John 4:4; Mark 11:25-26; see also James 13-15; 1 John 1:5; John 8:12. Scripture/The Word: John 1; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; John 17:17; Hebrews 4:12; Hebrews 1:3; Psalm 1:2; Romans 10:17 and Romans 14:23; John 6:63; Matthew 4:4; James 1:22-23; Matthew 7:24-27; James 2:22-24, 26; John 15:7. Spirit of God (Holy Spirit): 1 Corinthians 2:-9-14; Romans 8; Galatians 5; 1 Corinthians 12-14; John 14:18, 26-27; John 16:7-15, 33; Psalm 141:3; Psalm 139:23-24; 1 Corinthians 3:16; John 6:63; Proverbs 20:27; Ephesians 1:17-18; 1 John 1:5; John 8:12; see also John 7:37-39. Spirit, Soul, Body, Heart: James 1:12-16 ; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 64:6; 2 Corinthians 4:14; Romans 2:29; Matthew 26:41; Ephesians 2:3; Romans 6:6,16; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; Philippians 4:13; Philippians 4:6-8; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18, 21; Matthew 12:34; Proverbs 4:20-27; 1 Corinthians: 15:51-53; Galatians 3:13-14; Romans 13:14; Proverbs 18:21; 1 Corinthians 8:1, 10-13; 1 Corinthians 3:18-20; Romans 12:2; Job 5:13; Psalm 94:11; Matthew 12:33; John 15:2; 1 Timothy 1:19; Colossians 3:15 Amplified; Ephesians 4:32; Matthew 26:36-46; Luke 22:39-44; 3 John 1:2; Proverbs 3:5-6; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; Galatians 5:15; John 6:63; Romans 14:23; James 2:22-24, 26; Romans 13:14; 1 Peter 1:22. Warfare, devil: Genesis 2:17; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Luke 10:17-19; Proverbs 5:21-23; Isaiah 5:18; Psalm 107:13-14; Psalm 140:5; Psalm 129:1-4; John 10:10; 2 Timothy 1:7 (“fear” is a spirit); James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:6-10; Matthew 18:18; Ephesians 6:12; Job 1:6-7; Job 2:1-2; see also Isaiah 14:9-17; Ezekiel 28:11-17; Revelation 12:7-12; Genesis 3; Genesis 6; Psalm 110:1 with Romans 16:20; Psalm 91; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; 2 Timothy 4:18; Isaiah 54:17; Psalm 2:1-4; 1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:4.

Soul ties, attachments to partners, cords, attached, curses, cycles, bad habits, how can I stop thinking about my partner Soul Ties Prayer for Release from Soul Ties Article below or click link for downloadable PDF PDF Soul Ties PRAYER FOR RELEASE FROM SOUL TIES (Also see N.R. Prayer) Soul ties occur from all sexual encounters. It is a very real tie to that person. Especially if it was a relationship that ended and you can't stop thinking about the person. Your life is a wreck because they are gone. THAT is an example of a soul tie. When this occurs outside of marriage or from a violent situation this can be a very dangerous thing. Whatever spirit is attached to the person now has rights to you and whatever spirit that is attached to you now has rights to the other person. It is because of fornication and abuse that emotional trauma comes. Always. Below is the prayer to release yourself and others from the soul ties that occur. PRAYER: Father, I repent for every ungodly soul tie that I have made through sexual union. I apply the blood of Yahshua to the soul tie that I made with ____________. I ask You to sever the cord connecting me to this person with the Sword of the Spirit. I bind any demonic attachments that came to me, and I command them to leave me, in Yahshua’s name. I loose the power of the Kingdom of Yahuah within me and around me to restore what was damaged by this soul tie. I ask You to seal the severed cord with the blood of Yahshua, so it can never be connected again, and I ask You to remove any foreign DNA from my body, in Yahshua’s name. Father, I ask You to deliver every person from any spirits that were transferred to them from me, in Yahshua’s name.

Calling, What am I supposed to be, Who am I supposed to be, How do I know God, How do I know Jesus, Bible What is Your Calling Article below or click link for PDF. PDF What is Your Calling 1 Peter 4:10-11 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very Words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. The bottom line to any calling is recognizing what you’re good at. Really? We often overlook the things that excited us as kid and made us want to be an astronaut, or a doctor, or whatever it was. We think it was some silly “kid thing.” But was it? Typically our calling has something to do with what delighted us as children. That is your calling. It’s something that comes easy for you to do. Naturally. Yet others are amazed at how easy it is for you. That is your calling. What do I do now? As 1 Peter 4:10-11 says (above) we are to use that calling to serve others rather than ourselves. It’s the motivation behind it. Are you doing it to help someone else, or is it being used selfishly? Here are a few principles to help: Dedicate yourself to the calling God gave you over communion and prayer to the Lord. Acknowledge the gifting God gave you, to the Father in Jesus Name. And ask for His help in showing you how best He would like for you to do it. If you have an office, or computer, or whatever means the Lord has you working in for your calling, pray over it. Dedicate the equipment or space to the Lord. Plead the Blood of Jesus upon it and seal it in the Blood of Jesus. Each day as you are doing the calling (job) pray over it. Thank the Lord for showing you how to help people that day. And always give glory to God. Stay sensitive to the Holy Spirit throughout the day of how to do things. If you miss it, don’t worry about it. Repent. Get back into communication with the Lord. Rely on the strength of God to do the calling He gave you. And tell Him you are relying on His strength. Tithe as your led by the Holy Spirit. If you have a church, fine. If you follow an on-line pastor, fine. However the Holy Spirit leads you to do it. He may even lead you to give money in other ways - perhaps an organization that gets Bibles out to people; or one that helps battered women. Whatever it is and however the Lord leads, do what He is giving you to do. Always give glory to the Lord for the gifting He gave you.

Spiritual Warfare, Rules of engagement, is there a right way to do it, is there a wrong way to do it, Jesus is my savior, cross, Authority over all the power of the enemy including fallen angels and nephilim What is Spiritual Warfare What is Spiritual Warfare - (for PDF click link) PDF TABLE OF CONTENTS: 1. What is Spiritual Warfare 2. Authority 3. Recognize the enemy 4. As the Lord leads you 5. Motivation 6. The “How” and Scriptures 7. How you can tell the demonic is involved 8. Deliverance - prayers in this section cover entirety of deliverance including dreams 9. Basics prayers in dealing with attacks 10. Demons listed in Scripture 1. What is Spiritual Warfare Ephesians 6:12 - “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” ALWAYS PRAY ABOUT ALL THESE THINGS before you launch a Spiritual attack in prayer. You need to get the Lord’s battle plan first because the situation may not be how it seems. To get started - first - don’t go out and look for a fight. Spiritually speaking. You can get in serious trouble. Spiritual warfare is not a singled out ministry. Meaning, ministries that solely focus on spiritual warfare are not part of the 5-fold ministry giftings according to scripture, which are: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Ephesians 4:11-13 states, “11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying (building up) of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect (mature) person, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of people, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him Who is the Head—Christ— 16 from Whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the Body for the edifying of itself in love.” No where in that scripture or in 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 does the Word speak of spiritual warfare as a ministry. However, it is a part of every believer’s life. We live in a sin-fallen world, with the devil and his bunch roaming and seeking whom they can devour - 1 Peter 5:8 . And we know the devil’s devices - 2 Corinthians 2:11 . I know some may ask, “What about John Ramirez?”. I’m glad you asked. He is an evangelist and teacher first! And teaches on Spiritual Authority. Thank God!!! The Body of Christ needs it because so little has been taught about it. And when “young” in the faith believers or unsaved have questions about this kind of stuff, most Christians don’t have the answers because it hasn’t been taught. Consequently, they go to the new age “world” to try to get answers. This always leads to more spiritual problems. I speak from personal experience and part of the result I had was a massive stroke in 1995. * In Mark 16:17-18 we are given by our Lord Jesus Christ the great commission: 17“And these signs shall follow them that believe: In My Name they shall cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues. 18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” In order to do these things as the Lord leads - always - it is important to REMEMBER, JESUS did not go out on His own and do this. He spent entire evenings in prayer prior and then did what our God and Father Jehovah told Him to do. And You must know the Authority that Jesus gave you and how to use it in spiritual warfare. Always refresh what you know by looking at the Scriptures in the Gospels with how Jesus handled it. Ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom in all things, and especially in this subject. The Holy Spirit will show you - and we “judge” it by assessing our joy level and peace. No joy or peace - stay out of it. I say this because dealing with spiritual stuff can get weird… fast. You can’t operate in it successfully without following the promptings of the Holy Spirit. * 2. Authority Luke 10:17-20 - “17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your Name!’ 18 And He said to them, ‘I saw satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you Authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over ALL the power of the enemy, and NOTHING shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” The demons are subject to us in His Name - Jesus’ Name!! “Demons” are the offspring of the fallen angels that do not have bodies because of the flood - the nephilim! (First Enoch and Genesis 6-9 .) I don’t care how fierce and big they are, 7 feet, 12 feet, 30 feet, or 200 feet. Who cares. Jesus gave us Authority. This is all evil spirits! Including the devil! Jesus said we have Authority over ALL of them! And we have Authority over ALL the power of the enemy (including their witchcraft and all of their actual weapons) - including the fallen angels no matter how grotesque or beautiful they look. This includes “aliens” (demonic hybrids), monsters (are also hybrids), and all giants (nephilim). Jesus has already beat them all, they are under His feet and we stand in the victory that He has already won! Greater is He that is in us than he who is in the world! (1 John 4. ) In Colossians 2:15 - "Then Jesus made a public spectacle of all the powers and principalities of darkness, stripping away from them every weapon and all their spiritual authority and power to accuse us. And by the power of the cross, Jesus led them around as prisoners in a procession of triumph. He was not their prisoner, they were His!" This is a part of what Jesus died for on the Cross! To give us Authority over the devil. In 1 John 3:8 He came to destroy the works of the devil. And in Genesis 1:26,28 God the Father gave us Authority over every creature that moves upon the earth. God didn’t say only the creatures we can see. And God said to have dominion (Authority) and to subdue! Dominion means: to tread down, subjugate, to crumble off. Subdue means: assault; brought them into subjection; forced into bondage; forcing; trample; tread under foot. When you take Authority over the devil you are “forcing” him into submission to the Word of God by using the Name of Jesus and standing in what Christ Jesus has already done and what He says is yours! Because you are redeemed from the curse of the law! Galatians 3:13-14. But sometimes you have to stand for the victory in a battle. The victory is already won by Christ Jesus! So STAND in what He has given you. 1 John 4:4 & 5:4-5 - “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world;…For whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. Who is he that overcomes the world, but he that believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” Hallelujah!!! God Almighty spoke of Spiritual Authority! Genesis 1:26, 28 is one of the scriptures Jesus Christ stood on to cast out devils and heal the sick! Everything Jesus did was based on scripture!! He had to do it that way, otherwise if He operated according to His personal Authority as the Son of God, then we couldn’t operate that way. Christ Jesus had to operate within the confines that we operate in, He did this so we can operate the same way as Jesus did!! And not put up with the devil’s mess. Christ Jesus showed us how! In fact, even His Name, “Christ Jesus” means the Anointed Jesus. The Anointing removes burdens and destroys yokes! Isaiah 10:27 KJV. Burdens and yokes of bondage, illness, demons, lack, and so on. He operated in the Anointing of God, which is how we operate - Colossians 1:27 “To them (us) God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Praise God! We have that Anointing WHICH IS the Holy Spirit, within us! Jesus was baptized and received the Holy Spirit and spoke about what that Anointing was to do in Luke 4:18-19 - to preach to the poor (in spirit, soul, and body - wherever the poverty has shown itself), to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance, and healing, and to set us free! And as 1 John 2:20,27 says the Holy Spirit is the Anointing and it/He Teaches us. The Holy Spirit is called our Teacher! John 14:26 and 16:13 . We have the very same Anointing Who is the Holy Spirit that Jesus has! The Spirit of God Himself!!! The devil and his mess is under our feet because of what Jesus did, and we are the Body of Christ but it doesn’t mean he won’t try to get out from under our foot. That’s what scoundrels do. The 2 ways the enemy gets involved in someone’s life: either the person opens a “doorway” through sin by things they say, watch, or do; or it is the time for a test like Abraham with the sacrifice of Isaac, Hebrews 11:17-18 - “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He (Abraham) who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham had to “see” in the Spirit that God would raise his son from the dead in order to make the promise that God spoke come to pass. It was this vision that God gave Abraham that was the root, the seed, that caused Jesus to be raised from the dead! This test was vital to God’s plan of Redemption! There is always a reason for the test. Zechariah 13:9 ESV - “And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon My Name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’” John 6:6 NLT - “He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.” In Berean Literal in James 1:3 - “knowing that testing of your faith produces endurance.” You can read more on Authority by reading the article: Taking Authority. * 3. Recognize the enemy As Ephesians 6:12 states there is a spiritual hierarchy. It’s like the military. There are different ranks and files; and there are “gangs” or “special op’s” teams, so to speak. One is in charge - a strongman, who is a “power” as Ephesians 6:12 mentions - while there are others in operation underneath that leader. Many times you may only have to deal with “strongman”. When you take out the strongman, all those in his team are cast out too. Look at Matthew 12:29 ESV - “Or how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.” A strong man is a “power”. Ephesians 6:12 - principality, power… Powers are to be “bound” as we see Christ Jesus stating in Matthew 12:29. When you bind the strong man, all of its cohorts cannot do a thing. There are other times, in fact many times, of dealing with specific spirits. Depending on the situation you may have to deal with the particular spirit only; other times you will also have to deal with the strongman. Follow the Holy Spirit’s leading. * 4. As the Lord leads you Joshua 7-8 (I recommend you read it to build your faith), Joshua went into battle BEFORE he got the strategy from the Lord. This caused 36 of his warriors to die and Joshua’s army of 3,000 lost face in the battle. When he saw what happened, he pulled away and got before the Lord, asked for forgiveness, and asked what the Lord wanted to do. (This is the basic of all prayer. Be humble. Ask for forgiveness. Then ask the Lord what to do.) Consequently, in chapter 8 we see that Joshua and his army, through Almighty God, defeat the army of giants at Ai. WHENEVER you know there is something that has to be dealt with spiritually ALWAYS get God’s battle plan for it, before you jump in. Always ask for forgiveness if you’ve opened any doorways through sin; close the doors in Jesus Name; and cut the cords to the sin in the Name of Jesus and burn them up with the Fire of the Holy Spirit. God is a consuming fire! Hebrews 12:29 . People can get hurt if this isn’t handled correctly in prayer first. Ask the Lord how He wants to deal with the situation. It’s about strategy. Not flying off the handle simply because you know what the Scriptures say. There may be a particular way the Lord wants it fought. The strategy of the Lord is key. Case in point, Acts 16:16-18 ESV - “16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing this for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the Name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.” Paul didn’t cast out the demon immediately. He waited. We don’t know exactly what happened according to Scripture but by the statement, “Paul, having become greatly annoyed…” is likely the Holy Spirit within him had enough. And it was after “many days” of the same behavior. It was very likely Paul had been praying about it before he acted by leading of the Holy Spirit. Notice when he cast it out of the young woman it didn’t leave immediately. It came out that very hour. When you cast a demon out the result may not be evident right away. Don’t let that sway you. Once you’ve cast it out, move on. Don’t keep repeating the prayer. That shows you don’t believe and then the demon will start to argue with you. Don’t play that game. Even if it writhes and throws the person around, move on to something else. It's trying to make you back down. The Word was spoken, it’s done. * 5. Motivation Every person is motivated by one of three persons: God; devil (any in the demonic realm); or themselves. When you are in a situation that doesn’t “set right” within you, pay attention! The Holy Spirit is letting you know something is up. Don’t make a move until you “know”. Ask Him what you need to do. Much of the time it may be binding the demon that is motivating that person while you are around them, so that it cannot be in operation while you are there. Other times it may be you need to completely disassociate from that person; maybe it is to cast it out. Whatever is needed the Lord will show you. Be aware that you don’t want to be casting a demon out of someone unless the Lord tells you to, or you have a direct leading from the Holy Spirit to do so. Sounds weird but sometimes people like what is happening. They are comfortable with it. And if you do cast it out their latter position will be worse than their former as Matthew 12:43-45 says, 43 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.” The person of whom you are casting the demon out of may do things to invite it in again with its 7 other spirits who are worse. Be sure the person receives Jesus Christ in their heart and makes Him Lord. This way the demon can’t get back into their spirit. BUT…NOW PAY ATTENTION TO THIS…THIS COMES FROM EXPERIENCE: when a person is saved they can still have a demon in their flesh or attached to their soul! It cannot be in their spirit because the Holy Spirit is there, BUT it can be in their flesh or attached to their mind, will-power, emotions, and/or personality. Yes, this can happen. I have personally experienced it and underwent my own deliverance. And I used to think there was no way a believer in Jesus could have one, or many. Little did I know that one was one of the spirits I had to get rid of in the Name of Jesus. It’s the spirit of pride. This can happen. It’s called “demonization”. They can attach to your thoughts. Create behavior patterns. Make life miserable. So if the Lord tells you to cast a devil out of yourself, do it. Or if the Lord tells you to cast a devil out of someone else be sure they get saved if they are not. At least it won’t return to their spirit. Their spirit will be in union with God, with the Holy Spirit, Who cleanses it and makes them brand new on the inside, spiritually. Keeping any from returning requires cutting cords to the sin that allowed it in, burning it up with the Fire of God and staying away from the sinful behavior by renewing your mind with the Word of God. (See article: Taking Scripture Personally.) * 6. The “How” and Scriptures Much of the time “binding” is what needs to be done. Matthew 18:18 - “18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” When the Lord leads you to bind a demon that’s influencing someone or a situation, what happens in the realm of the spirit is you are literally arresting it in the Name of Jesus. It is tied up and cannot move. It’s tied up spiritually, It doesn’t usually talk either. Unless it “sees” you waiver. Then you can tell it to “be quiet” in the Name of Jesus. Sometimes they do try to talk initially before you even speak, to get you distracted. Tell them to be quiet in the Name of Jesus and then take care of business. Much of the time if I’m going into a situation meeting with people or family who I know are demonized, before we meet I pray and bind those demons in Jesus Name for as long as I am with those people. It makes things go much more smoothly. I also ask the Holy Spirit to reveal Himself to the people in any way He needs to. Super important to pray over situations, like job interviews, meetings with family members, going on vacations, any type of thing where you want to inhibit the devil’s actions. Now this doesn’t need to be done all the time. ONLY do it if the Lord is leading you!!! I say this from the point of understanding “who” you are in Christ Jesus and what He has done for you. If you’re not aware of Psalm 121 that you are always under God’s protection, when your relationship is right with Him, then you will struggle with this and be praying about these things 24/7. Psalm 121 - “1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? 2 My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip—He who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand;6 the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—He will watch over your life; 8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” If you’re taking Authority over everything everyday that’s exhausting. It means your faith is weak and you don’t know what’s yours. Every place you set your foot you have dominion (Joshua 1; 1John 4:4 ). If this is an area of difficulty for you spend time in Scriptures about how much He loves you. Read the articles on the The Depth of the Crucifixion ; God is Love and So Are You ; Taking Authority , and anything else the Holy Spirit leads you to do. You judge what the Lord is leading you to by whether or not you have joy and peace. That’s how you judge it. There are other ways to pray over situations and speak the Word of God over them to change how they operate, like praying Colossians 4:3-4 - “…that God may open to us a door for the Word, to declare the mystery of Christ…that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.” Always go to God first, and see how He wants it handled. It’s not always casting out demons, binding and/or loosening. Sometimes it is simply speaking the Word of God over situations. Next part of Matthew 18:18 is to “loose” a demon. Take a look at Psalm 10:10 AMP - “he crushes [his prey] and crouches; And the unfortunate fall by his mighty claws.” And another in Psalm 22:20 in AMP and in the Aramaic - “Rescue my life from the sword, My only life from the paw of the dog (the executioner)” AND “And save my soul from the sword, and also My Only One from the hand of dogs!” In Genesis 15:11 where Abraham had to shoe-away the vultures…which have claws. Some demons have claws. With them they pierce into a person. This happens often with illness, where the infirmity is lodged. The spirit of infirmity has its claws in the region of the problem and it needs to be loosed in Jesus Name. Loosing can also be done from cords of a demon - a bondage for the person - they have been wrapped in cords, or we would say ropes. Sometimes it shows physically like being bent over - Luke 13:16 . Any bondage is preventing the person from being free. See Psalm 140:5 . They need to be loosed from the evil spirit and all cords cut. Many times this goes with generational curses/family curses - these are things that repeat in a family line. Repent of the sins of your forefathers and foremothers, cancel out all oaths and contracts, and cancel all family curses in Jesus Name, and sever all cords to the sin and curse; and burn them up with the Fire of God. Taking Authority in the Name of Jesus is not allowing the devil to have his way in situations and in your life. Whether the Lord leads you to bind, or to loosen, or break family curses, or the Lord may have you cast the devil(s) into outer darkness to await their judgment - Jude 1:6 ; He may even have you forbid them to ever return. All is shown in scripture. Whatever God gives you to do, do. * 7. How you can tell the demonic is involved Manipulation Control Intimidation Isolation Soul Ties - occur with friendships and romantic relationships, ties that bind. You “can’t” stop thinking of the person. Fear Confusion Loss of Personal Identity Sickness Prophetic Divination Spell Casting Divination Negative Herbal Practices - (ingredients for spells) Sacrifices and Rituals Singing and Dancing to Generate Energy (think of Astroworld concert; or the movie Matrix in the Zion cave scene.) Curses Satanic Healing Cults and realms of occult Conversion of people into animals Lying and Deception Every geographical region has a Strongman. It is a “power”. 8. Deliverance - prayers in this section cover entirety of deliverance including dreams Conditions Necessary For Deliverance To Take Place. You or the person must be ready to be delivered: To get delivered, you must be ready to send out everything that is not of God out of you; and let go of every unclean thing. Prayer and fasting: Pray and fast to receive breakthroughs and deliverance. Faith: Know that you are getting your deliverance. Abstinence from sin: Stay away from all forms of sin and anything that can re-invite the casted out. Good relationship with God: Maintain a good relationship with God, pray and serve God to continually be in His presence and shelter. Recognize that there is a demonic activity or an open door. Repent of any known sins. Renounce all contact with the devil and the occult, and any contracts made, known or unknown. Remove any demonic objects from your house. Relinquish unforgiveness and bitterness. Release yourself of it in the Name of Jesus & sever all cords. Resist the devil who will seek to gain control again. Replace whatever the Lord has delivered you from with God's Word. Renew your mind in your new identity in Christ. Remain rooted in the local church and/or a small group. You always need the fellowship of other believers who can help keep you on track. *Deliverance prayers can also involve “cages”. These are the same as any yoke of bondage. They hold you as prisoner to the behavior. You can break it with the Name of Jesus and His Blood of which are holy and Anointed AND YOU WEAR THEM, you are a child of the King! The Anointing removes the yoke! You have simply submitted to the wiles of the devil. Stop him from making your life miserable. And as you are praying deliverance prayers it is common to feel sick, like you have to throw up. Do it! It is a part of the demon leaving your body. * 9. Basics prayers in dealing with attacks *You can also use the numbered items above listed in Deliverance for all of the prayers here, below. However, there are particular things listed in the situation below and with it the prayer for each one. Again, see how the Lord leads you with this. Often the demonic realm shows up in dreams. When you know what is happening you can take immediate Authority over it in the Name of Jesus. And close all open doorways, like what you are exposing yourself to, either what you watch or read, what your listening to including music, and what you speak, or items in your house that may have demonic ties that need to be gotten rid of. The Lord will lead you. A basic tactic each night before bedtime is to loose all the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:16) from you, and the entirety your life and household in Jesus Name, and wipe clean all residue of them with the Blood of Jesus. PRAYER : "I loose all the fiery darts and arrows the enemy has thrown at me and my family. Holy Spirit, I ask You to cleanse all the residue from those darts and arrows from our bodies and minds; and seal us in the Blood of Jesus. And I thank You for it. In Jesus Name I loose all the attacks from the enemy not only in our bodies but our souls: our minds, our wills emotions, and personalities; purging all the areas in us that have been affected by these attacks. And I seal our bodies and souls in the Blood of Jesus and by The All Powerful Name of Jesus. He has borne everything for us so we don’t have to. I thank You Lord Jesus for Your great gift! I ask You to send forth Your Holy Spirit Fire to purge all our property and everything that belongs to us and clean us of all residue, and seal it in the Blood of Jesus by the Authority of the Name of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savour. I thank You Lord, that the Angel of The Lord surrounds about us and keeps us from every evil way, no evil shall befall us, no plague or calamity will come near our dwelling. I thank You that we have sweet sleep. In the Name of Jesus I pray.” (Psalm 34:7 ; Psalm 91:10 & Proverbs 3:24 . ) When you have dreams with water - like in the sea, or lake, etc, or filling up in your house, etc: This means the marine kingdom has its hold on you. It’s a part of the demonic realm and is all throughout Scripture like Psalm 74 & 77:16; Ezekiel 27:33-34; and Jeremiah 5:22 ESV- “Do you not fear me? declares the LORD. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it.” And the planet has much water besides oceans, seas, lakes, rivers. It’s in the air we breathe. It’s the largest of the realms. The heavenly realms that surround our planet like our atmosphere are not as large as this one. Interesting note…Revelation 21:1 -on the new earth there is no sea. And when you are having dreams of this nature there is some sort of doorway that was created for this devilish realm to operate in your life. PRAYER : “Father God, please forgive me of opening doorways to the enemy. I close those doors and cut all cords in Jesus Name. Holy Spirit cleanse me with your fire and burn up the cords and I pull out all darts of the wicked. And I receive all of this in Jesus Name. I renounce all contact with the devil and all contracts I made known and unknown (which can come easily by “agreement” with someone.) I cancel them out with the Blood of Jesus. I renew my life and commitment to You, Lord Jesus. I release forgiveness in Jesus Name and refuse to be offended. Holy Spirit help me with this so I never open up another doorway to this realm, in Jesus Mighty Name I pray.” When you have sexual dreams, this means you have a spirit spouse. Pray the prayers above under “Deliverance”. Also need to renounce the marriage and cancel it out in the Name of Jesus. These types of things always occur if you look at porn or are involved in homosexuality; or have been raped or molested. If this was the opening to cause the situation there may be other parts to the deliverance prayer, like casting out the spirit of addiction, spirit of masturbation, spirit of lust, and spirit of harlotry, spirit of Ishtar and others. PRAYER : “Lord Jesus, forgive me for opening the door to a spirit spouse and wash me clean with Your precious Blood. I cast out all spirit spouse(s) and cancel the marriage I ignorantly got into. I cast out the spirits of lust, lasciviousness, homosexuality, addiction, bondage, masturbation, harlotry, Ishtar, and all others, in the Name of Jesus, and I bind the strongman in this region from ever coming against me. I include the spirit of unforgiveness. I release forgiveness now for the perpetrators, in Jesus Name, and refuse to hold on to it. Holy Spirit help me. Show me what else needs to be done. I cut all cords to this in Jesus Name and burn them up with Your mighty Fire, in the Name of Jesus. I break all cages of the demonic realm that attempted to keep me in bondage. I break them with the Name of Jesus and His precious Blood. I thank You for the deliverance that You paid for me. Thank You, Jesus!” Now after this prayer you may feel nausea. You may need to throw up. Do it. It’s a means of getting rid of the spirits that had attached onto your body. Dreams where you are fed food. This has to do with a witchcraft curse. In the dream realm the food is poisoned and will show in this natural realm as odd and undiagnosable illness. PRAYER : According to Ezekiel 17:7-10 , and In the Name of Jesus, I completely and fully destroy all wickedness that is over my life from high places, in the Name of Jesus. I destroy all evil dominion. I bind the strongman. I break poverty and unemployment. I break misery. I break every curse, hex, vex (anything that is demonically plaguing or vexing you), spell, enchantments, and all voodoo over my life through demonic and satanic dedications and agreements, in the Name of Jesus. I let the Blood of Jesus destroy every satanic dedication and agreement that came through practices whether religious or worldly involvements wrapped in satanic influence. I break and destroy the cords that are wrapped around me, in Jesus Name. Loose me now, in Jesus Name! And I cancel all evil dedications in Jesus Name. I give notice to all demons associated with any evil dedications, known and unknown, and agreement that I once entered into or someone else dedicated me: I hereby break every contract and every legal right formerly associated with those dedications and agreements, in the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ. And by the Blood of Jesus that covers me, I cancel my connection to every demon that vexed or cursed me, hexed, vex, charm, enchantment, or voodoo, and such like; that brought frustrations, hindrances, delays, or blockages; that involved me in associations of practices, devotion, or allegiance; that accepted loyalty promised by any family member on my behalf; or that was part of any friendship that invited me or that I accepted, surrendering myself to the dark and demonic forces. They are severed today, the cords are burned up with the Mighty Fire of God in Jesus Name. I curse all evil dedications, agreements, evil ordinations, demonic ceremony dedication, demonic prayers, known and unknown, and all legal rights - whether it was for me, a family member on either side of my bloodline, or any brother of sister in the Body of Christ. I break, destroy, and curse them to the root, and uproot any evil mystical alignments in the Mighty Name of Jesus . Let them burn up and die by the Fire of God, in the Name of Jesus." Dreams with wolves/dogs/birds like vultures or owls: you are under an assigned attack. Wolves/dogs/birds represent demons that have been assigned to attack you. PRAYER : “In the Mighty Name of Jesus, I cancel all demonic assignments on me in Jesus Name. I cut all cords of the demonic realm that have been wrapped upon me and I bind the strongman in Jesus Name. I put you on notice in the Name of Jesus, you cannot touch me in Jesus Name and I’m covered in His Blood.” Flying - note: not all flying dreams are demonic, always pray about it and see how the Lord leads. When it is demonic it means some sort of curse and you are being pulled out of your body and taken somewhere during sleep. PRAYER : “In the Mighty Name of Jesus, I break all curses that are assigned against me. All assignments against me I cancel out, in Jesus Name. Holy Spirit let me know if there is anything in which I created the curse or assignment. Forgive me if I’ve made any evil allegiances or assignments in Jesus Name and wash me clean from all residue and burn all cords with the Blood of Jesus.” Plane crash, can also be flying upside-down and on fire: means a very huge test or attack is coming to you and your family. You can’t always stop it. It’s may be a test but you know how to use your faith and have the Lord lead you through each step. Stay in prayer with the Lord until you know which it is, either a test or an attack. Then pray accordingly as listed above for attacks; or if it’s a test the Lord will tell you what scriptures to stand on for you and your family. * 10. Demons listed in Scripture If you notice one of these spirits is plaguing you, ask for forgiveness of the sin that opened the door, cancel its assignment and cast it off you, in Jesus Name. You may need to loose it. And cut all cords. See how the Lord leads. 1. The Spirit of Fear - 2 Timothy 1:17 The spirit of fear is a demon that overwhelms people with anxieties, such as the fear of failure, death, or isolation. This demon can restrict believers from realizing God’s full plans for them. 2. The Spirit of Death - John 10:10; Exodus 12:23 This spirit manifests through constant thoughts of suicide, murder, self-mutilation, abnormal grief, and convulsions. 3. The Spirit of Harlotry or Lust - Hosea 5:4 Behind acts like adultery, fornication, pornography, homosexuality, and prostitution is often the spirit of lust. Associated with rape and molestation. 4. The Spirit of Bondage or Addiction - Romans 8:15 The spirit of bondage drives addictions. While some habits can be formed naturally, this spirit further entrenches them so that the behavior is forced on you by the spirit. “You can’t help yourself” is the common phrase used. 5. The Spirit of Infirmity - Luke 13:11 While not every sickness is caused by a demon, many sicknesses are caused by one, and thus, they should be addressed both spiritually and physically. 6. The Spirit of Pride - Proverbs 16:18 Pride is not just an emotion; it can be a spirit causing arrogance, revenge, rebellion, a lust for power, cruelty, vainglory, and jealousy. 7. The Spirit of the World - 1 Corinthians 2:12 In Scripture this one is likened to the Holy Spirit. Which means it’s a big one in the kingdom of darkness. 8. Spirit of Error/Deception - 1 John 4:6 This one works with python spirit/spirit of divination. 9. The Spirit of Python or Divination - Acts 16:16 (same as Leviathan - Psalm 18:8; 74:13-14; Isaiah 27:1; Job 3:8, and chapter 41 ) This spirit's main assignment is to deceive. It is also in fortune tellers, false prophets, tarot readers, palm readers, and other “main stream” occult practices - the person is hearing from this spirit. They can also put spirits on assignment to seek out people who they can attach cords to, because the person gives ear to them, or agreement with them. Can operate through cults like Free Masonry, Mormonism, Scientology, New Age, and Jehovah’s Witness. The main thing to be aware of if your in dealing with someone involved in this, or when you know this one is around by being involved with the above: communication is always altered and misconstrued; and deception is the primary motive and all the ways deception comes about like double speak - saying one thing then saying something opposing; creating division in yourself which causes confusion, and creating division in groupings of people, family, workers, friends. A kingdom divided against itself will fall. **The Following is Only a Brief Excerpt from John Eckhardt’s Book: Demon Hit List. The title in all bold font is the strongman. The others listed with it are the demons that work in it’s grouping. You don’t always need to the names of the spirit. But if the Lord is leading you regarding a certain situation, this may be of help: ABANDONMENT: Rejection, forsaken (Isaiah 54:6 - “grieved in spirit), deserted, cast away, neglect, orphan, hurt, deep hurt, widow, orphan, unloved, outcast, unwanted, loneliness, isolation. Operates in widows/widowers, orphans, and adopted children, making them feel abandoned by loved ones. ABORTION: Molech (Leviticus 20:1-5), spirits of Ammon (Amos 1:13), miscarriage, murder, premature termination of fetus. Works with adultery, death, destruction, and hatred of children. ABUSE: Offense, mistreatment, torment, criticism, cursing, exploitation, perversion, hurt; sexual abuse (rape, incest, molestation); mental abuse (mind control, domination); physical abuse (beaten, bruised, cruelty); religious abuse (legalism, control, guilt, shame, cults); emotional abuse (hurt, deep hurt, wounds); doormat (makes others walk all over a person); unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred (of abuser), anger, resentment, fear (of hurt, of being abused), memory recall. Break curses of abuse and cast out related spirits of abuse. ACCIDENT: Spirits causing casualty, disaster, calamity, injury, catastrophe, mishap, misfortune, trauma. Often operates through a curse. ACCUSATION: satan (accuser, slanderer), diabolos, accuser of the brethren (spirits that work through believers to accuse one another), slander, suspicion, schizophrenia, betrayal, jealously, envy. Paranoia, faultfinding, bitterness, hatred, finger-pointing, judging, false accusation. ADDICTION: Compulsion, obsession, alcohol, drugs (illegals and prescription), nicotine, caffeine, sugar, exercise, spendthrift, food, craving. Addiction spirits lodge in the appetite, stomach, mouth, throat, taste buds, and nose. They enter through rejection and inheritance. ADULTERY: Lust, fornication, unfaithfulness, promiscuity, immorality, lying, deception, harlotry, whoredom, extramarital affair, infidelity, deception, carnality, backsliding. Lodges in the eyes (2 Peter 2:14); works with Jezebel (Revelation 2:20). Destruction (Proverbs 6:32), wounds, dishonor, reproach, shame, a marriage-breaking spirit. Operates through curses of lust and adultery. ALCOHOLISM: Bacchus (god of drunkenness), drunkenness, addiction and craving for alcohol; delirium tremens, intemperance, intoxication. Works with pride (Isaiah 28), rejection, poverty (Proverbs 23:21), wounds, hurt, bruises, bruises, sorrow, contention, lust, perversion, insomnia, violence (Proverbs 23:29-35), rage, mockery (Proverbs 20:1), escape. Break all curses of alcohol and addiction. ALLERGIES: Asthma, hay fever, respiratory problems, bronchitis; spirits operating in the sinuses and lungs. Works through curses of infirmity and inheritance. ANGER: Animosity, choler, fury, gall, hatred, rage, resentment, temper, indignation, wrath (gives place to the devil: Ephesians 4:26-27); violence, murder, cruelty (Genesis 49:6), bitterness, unforgiveness, retaliation, spite, revenge, outrage, hostility, enmity, foolishness. Command anger to come out of the bosom (Ecclesiastes 7:9). ANGUISH: Suffering, torment, pain, agony, distress, affliction, heartache, grief, misery, sorrow, torture, grief, anxiety, cruelty, bondage (Exodus 6:9), dire straits. ANIMOSITY: Hostility, enmity, contention, hatred, anger, strife, resentment, revenge, retaliation, spite, gall. ANTI-SEMITISM: Hatred of jews, bigotry, prejudice, Ishmael, Nazi. ANTI-SUBMISSIVE: Stubbornness, rebellion, disobedience, self-will, pride. ANXIETY: Worry, apprehension, dread, fear, nervousness, panic, restlessness, uneasiness, tension, fretfulness. APPETITE: Spirits operation in the appetite include addition, gluttony, lust for food, eating disorders, anorexia nervosa, bulimia, starvation, loss of appetite. ARGUMENTATIVE: Debate, dispute, contention, strife, quarrelsome, discord, disagreement. ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT: Spirits that hinder form growing into adulthood: immaturity, hindrance, blockage, obstruction of the personality, foolishness, infantile, juvenile, adolescent; bound and blocked personality. (Common with family curses; and in special needs children.) ARROGANCE: Rahab (Pslam 89:10), Leviathan (Job 41), pride, insolence, conceit, disdain, ego, haughtiness, high mindedness, loftiness, self-love, self-importance, vanity, presumption, scorn, overbearing pride, pretension, exaggerated opinion of oneself. ARTHRITIS: Enters through unforgiveness and inheritance; pain and torment. ASTHMA: Allergies, respiratory problems. BACKLASH: demons retaliate and attack those who attack and destroy satan’s kingdom. This is called backlash, reaction, repercussion, resentment, resistance, response, and retaliation. BARRENNESS: Fruitless, unproductive, unrewarding, vain, useless, sterility, impotence. Barrenness is the result of a curse. Barren spirits can operate in the womb causing infertility in woman. BETRAYAL: Deception, dishonesty, treachery, Judas Iscariot, treason, sedition, disloyalty, hypocrisy, jealousy, cruelty, rebellion, mutiny. BIBLE: Spirits that block and hinder people from reading and understanding the Bible; debate (makes people argue the Bible); closed Bible (“I won’t let him learn”); logos (“I misquote the Bible”); spiritual blindness; tiredness (while reading the Bible); confusion (while reading the Bible); lawyers (spirits who study Scriptures for the purpose of argument and debate; hatred of the Bible, fear of the Bible, unbelief (“I don’t believe the Bible”); no understanding, no revelation, darkness, veil (2 Corinthians 3:15); boredom (while reading the Word); wrestling and twisting the Word (2 Peter 3:16); dogmatic (teaching and preaching of the Word); tradition (making the Word of no effect; Mark 7:13). BITTERNESS: Unforgiveness, resentment, revenge, retaliation, root of bitterness (Hebrews 12:15), hidden bitterness, gall, wormwood, poisonous root, hard bondage (Exodus 1:14), complaining, murmuring, backbiting, envy, strife (James 3:14), wrath, anger (Ephesians 4:31), cursing (Romans 3:14), jealousy. Opens the door for sickness and infirmity. BLINDNESS: Natural and spiritual, darkness, groping, veiled, lacking vision, hidden, covered, cataracts (natural and spiritual), hardness of heart, spiritual dullness, undiscerning, ignorance, deception, Pharisee. Many religious spirits operate to keep people in the dark concerning the truth and spiritual things. BONDAGE: Slavery, servitude, subjection, yokes, chains, shackles, fetters, captivity. BURDENS: Heaviness, heavy burdens, anxiety, albatross, hindrance, load, sorrow, stress, care, false burdens, guilt, oppression. CARNALITY: fleshly, earthly; lewdness, sensuality, worldliness, lust, lasciviousness, immorality,; strife, envy, division (1 Corinthians 3:3). CONDEMNATION: Guilt, accusation, blame, judgment, legalism, Pharisee, religious control, false doctrine, salvation by works, false holiness. CONFUSION: Disorientation, chaos, mind control, befuddlement, Babel (Genesis 11), idolatry (Isaiah 41:29), sexual perversion (Leviticus 18:23), schizophrenia, insanity, madness, envy, strife (James 3:16), frustration, incoherence, forgetfulness, mix up, tailspin (“I confuse her thoroughly”), puzzle (“I mix him up”). CONTROL: Possessiveness, dominance, witchcraft, Jezebel, Ahab, matriarchal spirits, religious control, control from the pastor, denominational control, mind control, manipulation, intimidation, fear. CURSES: Ancestral and generational curses, the result of the sins of the fathers; curses of death and destruction, sickness and infirmity, lust and perversion, incest, rape, mental illness, schizophrenia, poverty, witchcraft, idolatry, destruction of the family priesthood, Ahab and Jezebel, rejection. Signs of curses include: 1. Mental and or emotional breakdown; 2. Repeated or chronic sicknesses (especially hereditary); 3. Barrenness, a tendency to miscarry, or related female problems; 4. Breakdown of marriage, family alienation; 5. Continuing financial insufficiency; 6. Being accident-prone; 7. A history of suicides and unnatural or untimely deaths (from Blessing or Curse by Derek Prince); 8. Abuse and mistreatment from other people; 9. Vagabondism and a wandering lifestyle. Evil, misfortune, calamity, trouble, plague, affliction, torment, harm, vexation, jinx. CURSING: Blasphemy, coarse jesting, gossip, criticism, backbiting, mockery, belittling, railing, profanity, abuse, swearing, bitterness, hatred, anger, pride. DEATH: Termination, premature death through accidents, heart attacks, strokes, cancer, sickness and disease, murder, abortion. Operates through curses of death and destruction, angel of death, Grim Reaper, black horse, king of terrors, rigor mortis, murder, deathblow, Molech, suicide, fatality, lethal. Works with hell (Revelation 20:13-14). DESTRUCTION: Ruin, devastation, calamity. Works with pride (Proverbs 16:18), poverty (Proverbs 10:15), death (Job 28:22), misery (Romans 3:16). Also operates through generational curses (Lamentations 3:64-66.) DIVORCE: A marriage-breaking spirit; harness of heart (Matthew 19:3-9), separation, bitterness, hurt, rejection, anger, fear of marriage, guilt, shame, condemnation. DRUGS: Legal and illegal; addiction, reaction, dependency, sorcery (Greek word: pharmakeia - meaning drugs or sorcery - Revelation 9:21). Names same as drug (e.g., Heroin, Marijuana, and so on); rebellion, disobedience, hallucination, depressant, stimulants, narcotics, sedatives, anti-depressants, hypnotic. EMOTIONS: Emotional problems, bound and blocked emotions, grief, sadness, crying, anger, hatred, rage, uncontrollable emotions, hurt. Command spirits to come out of the emotions. FEAR: Of: making wrong decisions, rejection, being hurt, judgment, authority, failure, man, darkness, being alone, death, witchcraft, heights, demons, deliverance, losing salvation, disapproval, accusation, being wrong, spiritual gifts, responsibility, marriage, having children, pain, sickness, confrontation, cancer, driving, insanity, heart attack, the future, crowns. Horror, panic, fright, sudden fear, terror, dread, apprehension; causes torment (1 John 4:18). GUILT: Condemnation, unworthiness, embarrassment, self-condemnation, cults, false doctrine. Operates strongly with religious spirits. HABIT: Compulsion, addiction, lust, nicotine, alcohol, drugs, nervous habits. HINDRANCE (Blockage & Obstruction): Spirits that hinder, block, and obstruct: no love, no help, no friends, no success,, no lodging, no pity, no understanding, no wisdom, no relief (torment), no rest, no solution, no power, no ability, no light (darkness), no healing, no deliverance, no happiness, no joy, no victory, no control, no future (hopelessness), no liberty (control), no discernment (blindness), no prosperity, no breakthrough, no direction, no name, no identity, no confidence, no peace. No open doors (closed doors), no money (poverty), no job, no sense, no way, no value, no worth, no presence of God (Ichabod), no anointing, no blessings (curses), no communication, no growth, no order (confusion), no support, no morals, no escape, no commitment, no faithfulness, no self-control, no chance, no opportunity, no family, no transportation, no mobility, no break, no time, no room, no space, no health, no strength, no home, no satisfaction, no vision, no counsel. These spirits are also the result of curses. HOMOSEXUALITY: Perversion, uncleanness, confusion, lust, rebellion. HURT: Wound, brokenhearted, deep hurt, bruised, grief, abuse, cruelty. INCEST: Spirits of Moab and Ammon. Operates through curses of incest, lust, perversion, taboo, illicit. INFIRMITY: Disease, illness, sickness, ailment (by name), affliction, any sickness or disorder. Chronic sicknesses and diseases are the result of curses of infirmity, death, and destruction. (Not all sickness is from a demon, although many are, and it includes unforgiveness and bitterness, and often guilt.) INSANITY: Madness, confusion, lunacy, mania, delirium, deranged. JEALOUSY: Envy, suspicion, covetousness, resentment, spite, bitterness, distrust, paranoia, insecurity, schizophrenia, selfishness, hatred, bedlam. JEZEBEL: Female dominance, rebellion, witchcraft, control, manipulation, whoredom, seduction, false doctrine, idolatry, fornication. Operates through a curse destroying God’s order and the family priesthood; works with Ahab in males; name meaning untouchable, non-cohabiting, without husband, adulterous, base, licentious (2 Kings 9:22). LACK: Poverty, insufficiency. Break curses of poverty and lack. LICENTIOUSNESS: Debauchery, lewdness, nymphomania, concupiscence, lust, promiscuity, lawlessness, incontinence, unrestraint. LIEUTENANT: Assistant, aide, helper, deputy, second in command, right hand, group captain, squadron leader. Satan has many demons that act as lieutenants under his command. LUST: Sexual (see sexual spirits), materialistic, greed, ravenousness, covetousness, avarice, appetite, ambition, grasping, longing, desire, passion, craving, abuse, adultery, burning passions, concupiscence, femininity (in males), frigidity, homosexuality, lesbianism, immorality, sexual impurity, uncleanness, lasciviousness, lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, lust for power, lust for position, lust for money, masturbation, incest, raper, lewdness, prostitution, whoredom, sodomy, incubus, succubus, pornography, voyeurism, wandering eyes, perversion, fantasy. LYING: Hypocrisy, guile, double-dealing, dishonesty, perjury, misleading, falsehood, little white lies, big liar, deceit, exaggeration. MANIPULATION: Control, deception, deceit, lying, rejection. MARITAL: Divorce, separation, strife, division, Ahab or Jezebel (marriage breaking spirits), witchcraft. MASTURBATION: Self-gratification, self-abuse, self-defilement, fantasy, lust, pornography, Onan (Genesis 38:9), self-love. MEMORY: Memory loss, flashback, memory recall, bad memories, hurtful memories, painful memories, blocked memories, trauma, denial, Alzheimer’s disease, past. MIND-BINDING: Confusion, fear of man, fear of failure. MIND CONTROL: Octopus and squid spirits having tentacles; confusion, mental pressure, mental pain, migraine. Ask the Lord to sever the tentacles of mind control. MISCARRIAGE: Premature birth (operates through curses), abortion, failure. MOLESTATION: Abuse, pain, hurt, rape, sodomy, incest, violation, offense, wound, bruise, torment, mistreatment, confusion, guilt, shame, bitterness, fear, anger, hate (of abuser), mind control. NERVOUSNESS: Tension, fear, anxiety, apprehension, restlessness, worry, distress, timidity. OBSESSION: Domination, control, mania, passion inordinate affection, preoccupation (with people, things, thoughts), fixation. OBSTRUCTION: Obstacle, hindrance, blockage, barrier, resistance, difficulty, block (many spirits of blockage and obstruction including choking, closed doors, cut off, cut off at the source, gag, muzzle, shackle, bind, check, halt, bring to a standstill, and so on.). OPPRESSION: Heaviness, iron hand, iron fist, heavy hand, pressure, strain, burdens, heavy load, weights, torment, affliction. PAIN: Tormenting spirits of pain including headaches, migraines, mental pain (caused by octopus spirit of mind control), stomach pain, arthritis, rheumatism, back pain, neck pain. Pain sprits can operate throughout the body, loins (Isaiah 21:3). Perpetual (Jeremiah 15:18), affliction (Psalm 25:18), hurt, painful memories, emotional pain. PARALYSIS: Very powerful spirit controlling the spine; disability, stroke, palsy, atrophy, depression, sadness, suicide, hopelessness, despair, crippling, paraplegic, lameness. PASSION: Rage, blind rage, temper, fit, anger, fury, vehemence, lust. PERFECTIONISM: Pride, vanity, ego, frustration, criticism, judgment, irritability, intolerance, rigidity, exactness, fussiness, overcritical, schizophrenia, anger. PERSECUTION: Unfairness, fear of judgment, condemnation, accusation, rejection, paranoia, sensitiveness. PORNOGRAPHY: Erotica, hard-core, x-rated (books, movies, videos), peep shows, obscenity, fantasy, lust, perversion (homosexuality, lesbianism, orgies, bisexuality), mind control, lewdness, lasciviousness (1 Peter 4:3), uncleanness (Ephesians 5:3), sensuality, carnality, whoredom, prostitution, voyeurism, lust of the eyes, masturbation, nudity, a marriage-breaking spirit, curiosity, shame, guilt, condemnation, sexual impurity, defilement. PREJUDICE: Bigotry, anti-Semitism, anti-Americanism, hatred of black people, hatred of white people, apartheid, white power, black power, racism, intolerance, bitterness, anger, accusation, bias, Jim Crow, narrow-mindedness, ignorance, pride of race, premature judgment, religious prejudice, cultural prejudice, racial prejudice, rejection, self-rejection, fear. PRIDE: Leviathan (Job 41), arrogance, little pride (“Everybody has me”), hidden pride, harness of heart, stubbornness, rebellion, rejection, anger, rage, pride of (knowledge, success, color, race, position, power, culture, religion, family name), vanity, ego, self-righteousness, haughtiness, importance, judging, arrogance, self-importance, self-conceit, self-love, self-exaltation, superiority. PYTHON: Divination (Acts 16:16-18). A large constrictor. (These spirits squeeze the life out of relationships, churches, and so on.) RAPE: Assault, abuse, molestation, ravishment (Lamentations 5:11), defilement, hurt, bitterness, anger, murder, revenge, retaliation, hatred (of men or abuser), fear (of being raped or abused), torment, confusion, guilt, shame, memory recall, trauma, shock, abortion, suicide, insanity, breakdown. Opens the door for spirits of harlotry, prostitution, frigidity, and whoredom to enter. REBELLION: Anti-submissiveness, self-will, selfishness, self-deception, self-delusion, self-seduction, accusation, judgmental, pride, unteachable, suspicion, distrust, persecution, confrontation, control, possessiveness, disobedience, stubbornness, witchcraft (1 Samuel 15:23), sedition, defiance, hatred of authority, anger, hatred, violence, murder, resentment, unforgiveness, retaliation, memory recall, paranoia, bitterness (root of), hurt, rejection (opens the door for rebellion), nonconformity. *REJECTION: (This is a major one that is most active in society today.) From mother, father, siblings; self-rejection; rejection from the womb. Hurt, deep hurt, wounded, bruised, low self-esteem, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, lust (a substitute for true love). Fantasy lust, harlotry, pride (a compensating spirit for rejection), envy, jealously, inferiority, insecurity, inadequacy, sadness, grief, sorrow, self-accusation, self-condemnation, depression, hopelessness, despair, despondency, striving, achievement, performance, competition, withdrawal, loneliness, independence, isolation, selfishness, criticism, covetousness, self-pity, possessiveness, perfectionism, outcast, castaway, black sheep. Rejection can open the door for a multitude of spirits: including rebellion, pride, bitterness, self-pity, escape, guilt, inferiority, insecurity, fear, hopelessness, fear of judgment, defensiveness, distrust, discouragement, disrespect, hardness, perfectionism, false compassion, false responsibility, material lust, sexual lust, perverseness, self-accusation, compulsive confession, self-promotion, attention-getting, control, withdrawn, fear of love, self-deception, suicide, unworthiness, shame, vanity, intolerance, frustration, impatience, unfairness, pouting, unreality, daydreaming, vivid imagination, self-awareness, timidity, shyness, sensitiveness, talkativeness, nervousness, tension, inordinate affection for animals. RELIGIOUS: Doctrinal obsession, denominationalism, legalism, conservatism, intolerance, dogmatic, tradition, religious prejudice, divisions, deception, control, mysticism, religious pride, imbalance, idolatry, sectarianism, heresy, false doctrine, error, confusion, unbelief, resistance to the truth, argumentativeness, cults (Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Science, Mormonism, Theosophy, Scientology, Spiritualism, Eastern religions, Hinduism, Islam, Bahaism, Unity, Freemasonry). Hypocrisy, Pharisee, self-righteousness, holier-than-thou, false holiness, false tongues, false prophets, salvation by works, metaphysics, wolf, hireling, bondage, another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel, angel of light, philosophy, itching ears, seducing spirits, doctrines of devils, orthodox, icons. Praying for saints, false baptism, salvation by baptism, rigid, strict, stern, exact, over-religious, guilt, condemnation, schismatic, apostasy, bigotry, fanaticism, papism, popery, eminence, preeminence, ceremonies, rites, Mariolatry, relics, backsliding, skepticism, materialism, superstition, ceremonial, false priesthood, fear of losing salvation, fear of backsliding, formalism, religiosity, judgment, seduction, intolerance. RESENTMENT: Bitterness, spite, revenge, retaliation, cruelty, anger, hatred, unforgiveness, offense, gall, wormwood, disgust, rage, murder, malice, jealousy, envy, suspicion, animosity, irritation, annoyance, indignation. RETARDATION: Impediment, handicap, hinderance, obstruction. SCHIZOPHRENIA: Double-mindedness, instability, confusion (James 1:8), rooted in rejection. The schizophrenic’s personality (the real personality) has never developed, due to demonic interference. The demonic personalities of Rejection (inward) and Rebellion (outward) have taken over, causing a split personality. Spirits operating under Rejection include lust, fantasy, perverseness, suicide, guilt, pride, vanity, loneliness, fears, attention-seeking, inferiority, withdrawal, sensitivity, frustration, impatience, inordinate affection for animals, self-rejection, envy, despondency, despair, discouragement, hopelessness, unworthiness and shame. Spirits operating under Rebellion include accusation, selfishness, pride, hatred, resentment, violence, disobedience, suspicion, distrust, persecution, self-will, stubbornness, bitterness, anger, un-teachableness, control, witchcraft, possessiveness, unforgiveness, retaliation, self-deception. SORROW: Grief, sadness, hurt, anguish, weeping, crying, lamentation, heartache, brokenhearted, despair, discouragement, loneliness, hopelessness. SOUL TIES: Ungodly soul ties, false friendship, witchcraft, control, manipulation, deception, self-deception, blindness (spiritual blindness), false love (formed through fornication), adultery. Ungodly soul ties need to be broken in Jesus Name and evil spirits need to be cast out. STIFF-NECKED: Stubbornness, obstinacy, rebellion, disobedience, pride, Leviathan. STRIFE: Contention, arguing, fighting, confusion, envy (James 3:16), discord, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, pride, competition, hatred. STRONGMAN: Matthew 12:29 - Strongman of fear; rejection, rebellion, lust, infirmity, witchcraft, and so on. SUICIDE: Self-destruction, depression, gloominess, discouragement, death, kamikaze, Russian roulette, murder, despondency, despair, hopelessness, death wish, insanity, madness, confusion, rejection. TRANSVESTITE: Perversion, deviant, homosexuality, confusion, rebellion, rejection. TRAUMA: Shock, anguish, suffering, turmoil, accidents. (Traumatic experiences open the door for spirits to enter, including fears, hurt, and bitterness.) UNBELIEF: Doubt, harness of heart, rebellion, disobedience, fear, skepticism, distrust, agnosticism, faithless, perverse, suspicion. UNTEACHABLE: Pride, stubbornness, rebellion, schizophrenia. UNWORTHINESS: Inferiority, worthlessness, rejection, guilt, shame, condemnation, schizophrenia. WHOREDOM: Prostitution, lust, Jezebel, perversion, uncleanness, rejection, seduction, rape, molestation, pornography, uncleanness, carnality, nakedness, lasciviousness, homosexuality, lesbianism, sodomy, idolatry, adultery, fornication, Gomer (Hosea 1:2-3). (See Hosea 5:4.) WITHDRAWAL: Escape, isolation, introvert, rejection, fear, discouragement, passivity, sleepiness, alcoholism, drug addiction, hopelessness, despair, day dreaming, fantasy. WORRY: Anxiety, fear, dread, apprehension, timidity.

Why didn't my prayer get answered, prayer, God, Jesus, Bible Why Didn't God Answer My Prayer? Article below or click link for PDF. PDF Why didn't God answer my prayer? Your Perception Can Harden Your Heart What to Watch Out For: One of the THE most important things to know when a prayer did not get answered or answered with the result desired is — DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEART. And when we are in a quandary as to “why” our prayer didn’t get answered we need to take a breath and a step back to see how we handled it. God is in the business (so to speak) of answering prayer. He loves us. And as any good parent does, they always want to do things for their kids and answer their questions and resolve their problems if possible. The Lord said that all God’s promises are “yes and amen” - or the answers from God are “yes and so be it” and it is “to the glory of God through us”. (1 Corinthians 1:20.) So if our prayer didn’t get answered, instead of looking at it like it’s God’s fault and getting bitter and mad at Him, we need to go to the Word and find out the reason “why”. The Holy Spirit will reveal which one is the case in your situation. There will be a “knowing”. You will just know “that’s it” and He will lead you if there is anything to do. Sometimes there is, for the given situation. Sometimes there isn’t. Below are the scriptures for each situation and there are more scriptures regarding each situation if you choose to research it. Ask the Holy Spirit according to the Ephesians 1:17-19 prayer for wisdom and revelation knowledge regarding the situation as you go through the following. Get your Bible out and read these scriptures from your Bible: Proper Care in Handling the Situation: Sometimes we are too quick to jump into a prayer for someone or something. We have to ask the Lord “what is the way” to pray over the situation. It may not be what we think of initially. Go to the scripture the Holy Spirit leads you to and use those scriptures for the prayer. Was the prayer done in faith? Romans 10:17 - faith comes from the Word. What scriptures are you basing your prayer on? Romans 14:23 - whatever is not of faith is sin. Hebrews 11:1, 3, 6 - faith is the substance of your prayer; faith can’t been seen initially; without faith it is impossible to please God. At the end of your prayer did you close it with praise and thanksgiving to God and receive the answer BEFORE you see it manifest, AND don’t speak anything contrary to the prayer - that is being double minded: James 1: 5-8; Philippians 4:6-7. James 4:3 - what was the motivation for the prayer? If it was with wrong motives it will not be answered. Sometimes we think the answer should be what we think is best. It may not be. God may answer your prayer differently than how you think. Praise: ALL prayer should begin and end with praise and thanksgiving. We enter into His courts with thanksgiving (Psalm 100:4) and we end the prayer with thanksgiving for HAVING already received the answer before we see it. That’s faith. Every time you think about the prayer, go into praise!! No complaining. Praise. 2. Healing: Healing is God’s will - Exodus 15:26 and 1 Peter 2:24. But if healing didn’t show up for yourself or someone else of whom you prayed for there are different reasons why this happens. As that scripture in Exodus says you have to be listening to what the Lord tells you to do and do it. If the person has ignored God’s promptings healing can’t happen because of disobedience. Disobedience needs to be honestly repented of and see what the Lord wants you to do. Sickness can be a cause of a sinful lifestyle. Like the previous situation there is disobedience involved. Often it is willful. Living a lifestyle that is against the Word of God, like living with someone who isn’t your spouse. If there are kids involved they are under the sin of the parents as well. Until the living situation is corrected, whether that is for the couple to be married or to move out. Free will. If the person who was prayed for doesn’t want to get better, they won’t. This could be for many reasons like: they think they deserve it; they are too tired to fight both spiritually and physically; they don’t believe God heals. Unforgiveness. This always causes illness. Much of the time cancer is the outcome and there are many illnesses that show up because of unforgiveness. Including unforgiveness for yourself. Guilt and condemnation if left to fester always causes illness. They have to be willing to forgive themselves and others in order for the Lord’s healing power to come into and on them. (Mark 11:25-26; Matthew 18:34 [21-35].) Deliverance. Many times with a life threatening disease there is a demon involved. This is usually related to one of the above like sin or unforgiveness. It can also be from family curses, curse from something the parents had done like they were never married; or if they were in witchcraft, sorcery, satanist’s/free mason’s etc. dedicate the children to demons; mental health issues can be demonic but not always; suicide is always a demon. Ask the Lord for guidance. If there is a demon involved there is always a way the Lord wants the deliverance done. It’s not always the same for each person - look at all the times Jesus cast out demons. Each situation was slightly different. Jesus would ask different questions and do slightly different things. Have the Lord lead you. One thing you can do, if you are led, is to bind the demon and forbid it to speak in Jesus Name. Especially when you are in the situation of an event happening right at the moment. Then ask the Lord how to proceed. At least that demon can’t act out or speak once that is done. Whatever of the Lord tells you to do, do. 3. Finances: It is God’s will for you, His kids, to be prosperous. All parents want their kids to do well. 2 Corinthians 8:9 Jesus became poor so that you might become rich; and Job 36:11 If they obey and serve Him, then they end their days in prosperity and their years in contentment. And there are hundreds more about prosperity. But there are reasons why it doesn’t occur when we pray about it. As Job says, we need to listen to the Lord and do what He says. If we aren’t listening and doing what He says, we won’t prosper. 3 John 1:2 - “Beloved, I would that you may prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers.” If our soul isn’t prospering then we won’t be in health and we won’t be prosperous.” For our soul to prosper we need to renew our minds. See the article entitled: SPIRIT, SOUL, & BODY for detailed study of how to do this. Tithing. Yes, it is something we are to do. Sometimes people think that it is specifically discussed in Old Testament scripture that it is not for today. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The law has been superseded by what Jesus did on the cross and gave us a new and better covenant; but money and our relationship with it can get us in trouble. Do we serve God or mammon? God or money? And when you tithe you are showing that you put God first. When we look in the book of Acts we see the first church took gifts of what people wanted to give. It wasn’t a set amount. It was how they each were led with what they had. (Acts 4:32-37 and 5:1-11.) They shared as the Lord led but when Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit about what they were going to give it cost them their lives. We have to be honest with the Holy Spirit. As 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 says we are to give as we are led to, not a specific amount, and we are to have joy in our hearts about it. Not consternation: “6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9 As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.” 10 Now He Who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 12 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13 Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” Two other important scriptures about giving, and they are in the New Testament: Luke 6:38 - “Give and it shall be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will it be poured into your bosom. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” We see from what Luke has to say that it will be given to us the same as we deal it out. So we have to inspect our hearts. Are we being miserly? 4. Salvation: God wants all to be saved and come unto the knowledge of the truth! 1 Timothy 2:4. When we are standing for family members, spouses, friends we get uptight if it hasn’t happened yet. This is where standing in faith is vital. Don’t let go of your prayer with doubt and unbelief!! We have promises from God that they are saved. God is not a man that He should lie. Take a look at Acts 2:38-39 and Acts 16:31. Your whole household is saved. Now believe it and act like it, especially when it hasn't manifested yet. Treat them like a brother or sister in the Lord. It may not happen in your timing. Trust God. He will do it in His timing. It’s a promise. When you’re dealing with family and friends it’s really important to share what you are getting from the Lord in the Word and share your experiences in prayer. They learn that He is real and not some abstract being that is “out to get ya.” It also allows them to see the truth that He loves you and wants to be with you, and go through experiences with you. Everything the majority of people have learned about God is false. They need to see what He is really like through you. Nothing gives testimony like your own personal experience. 5. Believing for Marriage: When you are single and are believing for a Godly marriage there is one main thing to consider before you get married: Do you spend time with the Lord first and nurture your relationship with God? If this isn’t on your radar to start then you will wind up in situation that most likely was not guided by Him but guided by hormones. And it will cause trouble. Be sure your focus is on God first. Then He will bring the right person to you in the right time. If you are struggling in your marriage: very first thing to do is pray the Ephesians prayers: 1:17-23 and 3:14-21 for your spouse! Every day. Forgive them, as many times a day as it comes up. Be sure you are not holding resentment toward them. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any hurt, animosity, or bitterness - then immediately forgive it on purpose. NOT because you feel like it. Never base spiritual things on feelings. They will lie to you every time. Continue to pray for them. Ask the Holy Spirit for other scriptures to help in the situation and speak them over your spouse. (Psalm 139:23-24 and Psalm 141:3-4.) It won’t happen immediately but there will be changes as soon as you change your heart and focus on what the Lord wants you to focus on. As always check all the marriage scriptures and love scriptures to be sure to give your heart a “check up”. 1 Corinthians 13 1 Corinthians 7 Proverbs 31:10-31 Romans 7:1-3 Ephesians 5:21-33

About Kamp Jesus: My name is Rina van de Kamp. We here at Kamp Jesus believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior and He came and gave His life for you, for all that you've done wrong, so that you don't have to be pay the price. He came for all to have the knowledge of Him. But you have to ask Him into your heart. Receive Him. All you have to do is call upon the Name of the Lord and you shall be saved. Then ask Him to reveal Himself to you, to help you. He is always there for you even when you don't know it. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and with God all things are possible. He is coming back soon! Hallelujah! We at Kamp Jesus made this website for you! It is a teaching site for the things of God. Scroll though the different subjects to find what you're looking for. There are PDF's links available for you to download. And if there is subject matter that you are looking for but don't see it, send us an email and we will get it to you. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May His face shine upon you! He loves you more than you can imagine...so let your imagination expand with our beautiful Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

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Being a parent, How to be a Godly parent, God, Jesus, Bible, How do I do this, Rules of being a parent, Being a Parent PDF Article is below. For downloadable PDF link click button. Being a Parent “The family should be a closely-knit group. The home should be a self-contained shelter of security; a kind of school where life’s basic lessons are taught; and a kind of church where God is honored; a place where wholesome recreation and simple pleasures are enjoyed.” ~ Billy Graham “You want to mess up the minds of your children? Here’s how – guaranteed! Rear them in a legalistic, tight context of external religion, where performance is more important than reality. Fake your faith. Sneak around and pretend your spirituality. Train your children to do the same. Embrace a long list of do’s and don’ts publicly but hypocritically practice them privately… yet never own up to the fact that it’s hypocrisy. Act one way but live another. And you can count on it – emotional and spiritual damage will occur.” ~ Charles (Chuck) Swindoll The biblical role of a parent is to be a steward of God’s children. God is God, no need for you to step into His place in our children’s life. Only God knows what each child was created to be and do. Stewardship Just as a manager or steward doesn’t own what they are put in charge of, we don’t own our children. Our children belong to God and we are entrusted with their care for a period of time. And we will be held accountable for the care we give them. When they are first born dedicate them to God and formally place yourself in the position of their steward before God. Commit to raising them in the fear and admonition of the Lord. If you were not born again at their birth, make this the first thing you do after being saved yourself, no matter how old they are. When you pray for them as a parent you have authority in the spirit realm over them that no on else has. If your children are older when you received the Lord do this anyways, no matter what it looks like. This even applies to step children. Another aspect of parenting is relying on the Holy Spirit to guide you in your prayers over your children. Listen carefully to His leading. He knows the things your children are facing or will face in the future. You are standing in the gap for them. I cannot stress how important this is to the welfare of your children. There were so many times I was praying for my child and the Lord was bringing certain scriptures to my attention to pray over her only to find out later that she faced an attack and was able to overcome it by the scriptures I stood on for her safety and welfare. More than once they saved her life. Wisdom and guidance is the key. Pray for wisdom and guidance as you raise your children. Rely on the Holy Spirit. Ask God to help you to lead them in His ways and in the manner that He wants you to lead them. You are a steward of them, and it's not a responsibility to take lightly and has great accountability on our part. Children learn by example. Children will copy what you do, not what you say. You need to walk it like you talk it. The very first time that I heard the Lord’s voice audibly, Jesus said “Teach her to pray.” I was born again and just got Holy Spirit filled. I was in my bedroom on my knees praying to the Lord. I sensed someone in front of me so I opened my eyes and there was my five year old daughter. I immediately obeyed the Lord and started to teach her to pray. She has always been a blessing to me as well as to others each and every day. If you want your children to know God you must show them by example. The parent-child relationship is the pattern that God uses to demonstrate our relationship with Him. Let your children see that you ask Father God for direction in all matters of life. Let them observe and hear you pray for them. Let them get used to you thanking the Lord and praising Him, especially for answered prayer. Let them be active in your prayer life. Teach them to pray and talk to the Lord. Teach your children to pray so if their little hearts feel heavy they can go to God and not to the world. Proverbs 22:6 KJV “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Always, always, always, tell your children how much you love and treasure them. This lays the foundation for them to accept that God loves them and treasures them. Let them know that they are a blessing from God. Psalm 127:3 NLT “Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him.” Not only should you demonstrate this principle, but you should frequently talk about how much God loves them. When you hug them, tell your child this truth that “God knows them and loves them — in fact, He knows them and loves them even more than you do!” Reminding your child that God loves them is the first step to help your child know Jesus and understand the most important principle of the gospel. God is Love! Ephesians 6:4 “but bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” Buy age appropriate books about Jesus and read with your children. Fellowship with them in Bible stories. As they get older share scriptures with them that the Lord gave you revelation on. Make it a habit to fellowship with them in things regarding the Lord. Make this a way of life. This is especially true if the children are older. Always share what the Lord is doing for you and saying to you. It doesn’t matter if they want to hear it or not. You are making Jesus a reality by your life. Deuteronomy 6:6-7 “These Words I am commanding you today must be kept in mind, 7 and you must teach them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, as you lie down, and as you get up.” Proverbs 29:15-17 “To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child. When the wicked are in authority, sin flourishes, but the Godly will live to see their downfall. Discipline your children, and they will give you peace of mind and will make your heart glad.” The way to demonstrate the gospel as a parent is by having consequences for bad behavior. Each time you patiently remind your child, “that was wrong, and these are the consequences,” you’re demonstrating that there’s a standard by which all behavior can be judged as right or wrong — the standard of God’s Word and His character. Loving Biblical discipline paves the way for the truths that “all have sinned” and “the wages of sin is death”, while true Christian parenting patiently encourages the desire for righteousness within a child. Without the awareness of personal sin and its consequences, a child will never see their need for a Savior. Use the rod sparingly for life lessons to be seared into their brains. Ex: running into traffic, blatant disobedience, etc. It’s fine for them to want to negotiate a decision. However once you have listened to their case and your decision is the same, then negotiation is over and obedience must follow. As they get older, the world will start to call to them. They will be pulled into the world by their peers etc. Remember sin always starts out as a good time. But the wages of sin still pays the same. Death! We may get by with it for a while but judgement will come. You cannot stop it. Sin and its judgement are attached. True repentance is the only way. To change your mind on the sin completely, ask God to forgive you. Receive your forgiveness then move forward with God and a renewed mind. Your attitude towards your child should confirm that fact that no matter if they are being good or being bad you love them unconditionally, just like Father God does. This demonstrates the truth of God’s selfless and unconditional love. Romans 5:8 “ While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” You will make mistakes as a parent, and it’s important to tell your children that. When you mess up, discipline in anger, or are too harsh or not consistent, apologize to your child and tell them that you want to do better, because that’s not how God our Father is with us. Point out that even though you love your child so much and will always try to be the best parent you can for them, God’s love is greater, and His wisdom and discipline is perfect. Remind them that He will always show them unconditional love, no matter what they do. As parents, we can demonstrate how a relationship with God works by talking about how sin affects our relationships. Whenever your child disobeys you or lies to you, and you talk to them about it, explain how it affects your relationship with them. Open up about how, because of the sin, it makes it harder to trust that they are going to do the right thing or tell the truth next time. And while God’s love is unconditional, sin can put a strain on our relationship with Him too. When trust is broken, it’s hard to have a good relationship. In fact, unconfessed sin hardens the sinner’s heart and makes it more likely we will continue in the same, damaging behavior. Hurting us too, not just the relationships we care about. Confessing that the sin was wrong and asking for forgiveness helps your relationship to be better and grow stronger. Confessing sin and asking for forgiveness helps create good relationships with God and other people, demonstrating this principle yourself is even better. When you make a mistake and must ask your child for forgiveness, talk about how your offensive behavior hurt your relationship with them, how asking for forgiveness offers a chance to make it better, and how the confession also makes it less likely you’ll do the same thing again. From there, it becomes very easy to explain that when we sin against God, He doesn’t throw us out of the family, but the sin does hurt our relationship with Him. Confessing our sin and asking for forgiveness activates the truth in: 1John 1:9 “If we confess our sin, God not only forgives us, but He cleanses us from unrighteousness,” Causing the relationship to be restored and for us to sin less. None of us can be perfect, but we’re thankful for the gospel, which shows us how to deal with our sin in a way that’s healthy. Healthy for us, healthy for others, and healthy for our relationship with God. Let your household be one where forgiveness is celebrated! Teaching the gospel in your home, both verbally and, more importantly, with demonstration as a parent is the best way to help your child know Jesus at an early age and understand how a relationship with their Heavenly Father works. When you learn how to raise your children in a Godly way and how to demonstrate the gospel as a parent, you’re teaching your child how to walk in good relationship with God before they ever leave your home. Equipping them in the very best way possible for life ahead. Discipline: This is the part of parenting many don’t like, many disagree on, and many ignore. But we cannot ignore the fact that children need discipline. It may be different for each child, but the fact remains that they need discipline. For example, one child’s form of discipline may be taking privileges away. It doesn’t take much for the child to understand disobedience has consequences and will rarely commit the same offense. Then another child will require more than words to help them understand the consequences of disobedience. A rebellious nature takes a bit more molding and love from parents. You can’t be the push around parent. God didn’t make us to be bossed around by a child who has no idea what God’s Word says about raising them. We must rely on God, His Holy Spirit, and the Word to guide us to discipline our children. God loves us so much that even He disciplines those He loves. We as parents should do the same. Hebrews 12:11 “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Proverbs 12:1 “The one who loves discipline loves knowledge, but the one who hates reproof is stupid.” Everything we do sets an example for our children. The way we confront a situation, the way we speak of others, the way we dress, the way we carry ourselves, how we treat others ( are we respectful, polite, and kind). Do we treat our children in this same manner. Our children are watching every move. They are the ones that see us for who we truly are. Do you want to know one of the fastest ways for a child to reject Christianity? A hypocrite Christian parent. We cannot say we love God and live a life that is unpleasant to Him, our children get to witness our walk with Jesus. Contrary to popular belief; it’s not about what makes us happy, but what makes us holy that truly changes our life. It’s not easy, but it’s a blessing to be refined on our walk with Jesus and have our children witness repentance, sacrifice, forgiveness, and love. Just like Jesus. He set an example for us, He’s our Father and walks the talk. Setting an example is crucial for our children and we cannot fail to lean on Jesus! P.S. Just because you’re Christian, doesn’t mean your children are. Even more so, our example is needed. The last thing I want to touch on is provision. When I say this, of course I mean financially but I also mean providing love, patience, a warm home, and all the above we just read together. Providing is not buying everything a child wants. Providing isn’t choosing work over them to make money, (In some situations, it’s the only choice we have to provide the basics but for the average parent, this isn’t the case.) It’s not making sure they have all the things you didn’t get as a child. Provide: To equip or supply someone with (something useful or necessary). That’s one of the definitions I found of the word provide and that’s what we ought to do. Equip our children with what’s necessary. The way God provides for us. He’s always the One we want to look to as an example of how we should provide or what we should provide for our children. Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy 5:8 “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” 2 Corinthians 12:14 “Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.” (Paul was father like to Corinth) Psalm 103:13 “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him. Galatians 6:10 “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” (This includes our children)

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What is prayer? Foundation of prayer, teaching basics of how to speak with God, How can I tell God is speaking to me, Foundation of Prayer Article below. Or downloadable PDF click link. PDF Foundation of Prayer Prayer and the Word INTRODUCTION The Basics - Praying the Word Part 1 1 Corinthians 6:11 …”But you are sanctified, you are justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus, and by the the Spirit of our God.” THIS is how God sees you! IMPERATIVE: Know “Who you are” in God’s sight because of the Blood of Jesus and the Name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of God: If you don’t know this then you will have trouble coming to God in prayer - because you are basing it on your “worthiness”. None of us are worthy, and will never be - that’s why it took Jesus to take care of it all! You are sanctified, by the Name of Jesus and by the Holy Spirit. You are justified (made righteous, same word) by the Name of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Not by anything you did….It was all Jesus who has made you “right” with God. You are the righteousness of God IN Christ Jesus ( 2 Corinthians 5:21). Now we can come boldly to the Throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace to help in a time of need - Hebrews 4:16. “Sanctified” means: Greek - hagiasmos - consecration, sanctification, the process of making or becoming holy; set apart; holiness. The process of advancing in holiness; use of the believer being progressively transformed by the Lord into His likeness (similarity of nature). God is continually making us, progressively transforming us into His likeness, making us holy, while we are in sin-fallen flesh. The ultimate transformation will be at Jesus’ second coming with our new bodies (1 Corinthians 15:51-54). This is the ultimate transformation at the Rapture/Resurrection and what we are earnestly waiting for. This is why it’s a “rest.” We can’t make it happen. It’s all the Lord. We simply rest in Him, He’s got this. He has made us sanctified! Therefore, we enter prayer knowing it is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who has made us right with God and we can pray to the Father in Jesus’ Name. “Justification” means: Greek - dikaiósis - the act of pronouncing righteous, acquittal, a process of absolution. Divine approval, emphasizing Christ's full payment of the debt for sin which liberates the believer from all divine condemnation. Jesus has justified us! Hallelujah! It doesn’t matter how you “feel”. Feelings lie. Once you ask for the Lord to come into your heart and receive the Lord Jesus into your heart, you received His sacrifice in your stead for your sins: you are saved, sanctified, justified and made brand new in the spirit - all by the Holy Spirit. You are a new creature, old things have gone away and all has become new (2 Corinthians 5:17-18). This is in your spirit by the Holy Spirit. Not in your soul. Not in your body. The carnal nature, or “sin consciousness” is what resides in the soul and body. Our soul can be renewed with the Word of God. This is an active choice to change how we think and what we do. This is also why sometimes you don’t “feel” holy. It’s the carnal nature, flesh, is always battling with your spirit. And your mind has to be renewed (Romans 12:2). BUT the more your keep your eyes on Jesus through the Word and in prayer, it’s not so much of a battle. Where are you “looking.” What are you focused on. That’s vital. What you focus on will overcome you. Either for good or the bad. Keep your focus on Jesus. Focus on the Word. Focus on speaking with Him all day long. That is prayer. Simple open communication with the Lord all day. Part 2 - Knowing Where We Stand John 4:23-24 - But the hour comes, and now is, when the the true worshippers shall worship the Father in Spirit and Truth; for the Father seeks such to worship Him. God is a Spirit; and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. We see from what John has said that we are to worship, spend time with the Father in Spirit and Truth. But “how” do we do that? Let’s see what the Bible says. 1 Corinthians 1:30 - But of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption; This means we are in Christ Jesus, we are one with Him. What is His is ours. He is our wisdom from God, we have the wisdom of God in us He is our righteousness, we have the righteousness of God within us He is our sanctification, we have the holiness of God within us He is our redeemer, we have His redemption within us! That is shouting ground right there!!!! Now let’s add on: 2 Thessalonians 2:13 - But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord because God has from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the Truth. We were chosen by God from the beginning (Ephesians 1:3-4) We were chosen for salvation (sótéria) which means - deliverance, safety, welfare, prosperity, preservation, to save, to rescue, God's rescue which delivers believers out of destruction and into His safety. We were chosen for salvation THROUGH sanctification of/by the Spirit. Again, we had nothing to do with it. God chose us. He delivered us and rescued us out of destruction into His safety, and sanctified us - keeps us holy by His Spirit AND by our belief in the Truth, which is His word. John 17:17 - Sanctify them though Your truth; Your Word is truth. John 15:3 - NOW you are clean by the Word I have spoken to you. John 14:16-17 - And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever; the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. He is in you and never leaves you, He abides with your FOREVER. He is the One who seals you! (John 14:16; Ephesians 1:113-14). John 15:26 - When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, How does He, the Holy Spirit, testify about Jesus? - Through the Word. The Truth. Mark 16:20 says the Lord working with and confirming the Word with signs. The Holy Spirit is who moves on the Word bringing it to pass. Like Genesis 1:2 and the rest of chapter 1. The Holy Spirit moved on God speaking. Put this in context with prayer: The Holy Spirit moves on the Word that we pray!!! Now for the basics of prayer! Foundation of Prayer: The Basics As John 14:13-14 - And whatever you shall ask in My Name that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the son. IF you shall ask anything in My Name, I will do it. And John 16:23-24 - And in that day you shall ask Me nothing. Truly I say unto you, whatever you shall the Father in My Name, He will give it you. Until now you have asked nothing in My Name: ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full. We are to pray to the Father in Jesus’ Name. Whatever we ask in Jesus’ Name it is given to us. We receive that our joy may be full. Jesus answers our prayer to glorify the Father though the Son. We also have to keep in mind James 4:3 - When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. When you read James 4 you can see it’s about the trivial machinations that can get people caught up. Wrong motives. Selfish motives. It is always important to keep a soft heart to the Lord for His promptings of “what” to pray for. A good rule of thumb, when you don’t know exactly what to pray or how to pray are these two things: Remember prayer is about spending time with the Lord. It’s a means of building your relationship with God Almighty, learning to hear His voice, the promptings and leadings of the Holy Spirit, and follow His unction. There is a distinction between their voices and leading: God the Father; Jesus Christ; Holy Spirit. Like learning anyone’s voice…you have to learn how they “talk”. That’s part of why spending time in the Word is so important. Philippians 3:8 - I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. A solid core foundation is to pray the Word! How do you do that? Praying the Word!!!! *There are examples at the end. Much of the Bible are promises for us. They are not only spoken by God to us. They are promises that God has made to HIMSELF for us and about us!! That’s powerful. Meditate on that. Read Hebrews 6 - God made His promise to Abraham to Himself! Which is also a promise for us as Galatians 3:13-29 talks about. He has made these promises to us in the Word to Himself and He is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19). God will never break His promise. Look at it like this…these are guarantees. Any scripture can be prayed. When you pray scripture back to the Father in Jesus Name, it comes from a place of faith. You believe that God will do what the Word says simply because He has said it. And you pray it when you don't see it happening yet (Hebrews 11:1-3). That is how prayers of faith operate. You pray them believing that you will see them come to pass. 2. Don’t be double minded. Once you have prayed a scripture or scriptures for yourself, family members, or friends, don’t speak contrary to the prayer you prayed. Read James 1-2 to settle things in your heart about this. If you find you have spoken words contrary to the prayer of faith you prayed, immediately repent and cancel those words out in the Name of Jesus, and speak again the scripture(s) that you are standing on from your original prayer. 3. Every time the situation comes up in your thought life, go into praise for it already being answered. As Philippians 4:6-7 states - Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will. Guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. By going into praise when a thought that is contrary to the Word of God comes up in your mind, the peace of God will bubble up from within your spirit by the Holy Spirit, and guard your thoughts. But we have to go into praise first, as the scripture in Philippians says. It begins with faith, like all things with God. Faith pleases Him (Hebrews 11:6). Once you see that manifestation to the prayer you have prayed, you have already been praising God for the answer before it “showed up”. When you see it, it is exciting! And it further builds your faith and makes your joy full as Jesus said in John 16. There’s nothing quite like it! How do I exactly pray the Word? One core way of praying the Word is to pray the Epistle prayers. Put yourself in the scripture: where it says "you", instead say "me, or my" for example. These are prayers Paul prayed for his churches. If they were good for believers then, they are good now. Plus, the Lord has made sure they are in the Bible. They are important. Typically there is at least one prayer at the beginning chapter of each Epistle. There are some in the closing chapters and there are a few in between. I will list them below. As I said earlier, these may be prayed for yourself, spouse, family member, friend, colleague. Speak them out loud - not in your mind. It makes a difference. You may even be getting the “hunch” to pray this for your church pastor(s), local city/state/federal government officials (yes, there is scripture for them too - 1 Timothy 2:1-4), military, police, etc. Whatever the Lord is leading you to do, do it. I will put an example at the end. Epistle Prayers: Romans 10:1 *Romans 15:5-6, 13, 30-33 *1 Corinthians 1:4-9 *2 Corinthians 1:3-7 *2 Corinthians 2:14-15 2 Corinthians 9:12-15 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 *2 Corinthians 13:7-9, 11, 14 Galatians 6:18 *Ephesians 1:3-6 *Ephesians 1:15-23 *Ephesians 3:14-21 Ephesians 6:19-20 *Philippians 1:3-6 *Philippians 1:9-11 Philippians 1:19 *Philippians 4:6-9 Philippians 4:23 *Colossians 1:(3-7) 9-14 Colossians 2:2-3, 6-10 Colossians 4:2-6 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 *1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 *1 Thessalonians 5:14-24 *2 Thessalonians 1:3-4, 11-12 *2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5, 16* 1 Timothy 1:12, 17 1 Timothy 2:1-6 2 Timothy 1:3-7, 13-14 2 Timothy 4:22 Philemon 4-6 *Hebrews 13:20-21 (The ones with the stars are the ones I use every day. When I don’t have much prayer time I go to the Ephesians prayers in 1 and 3. Those two sections cover the basis of all.) Here is an example: praying over a family member (spouse or kids): Romans 8:26 - The Holy Spirit “takes hold together” with you on the Word in prayer, or any other time you are standing on the Word over a circumstance. With Romans 8:26 in mind, pay attention to the Holy Spirit’s leading as you are praying. He may bring scriptures to your remembrance. Go to them and use them in addition to these in the example and 1 John 5:6 - This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. I will use 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 and 1 Corinthians 1:4-9 for this prayer. “Father God, in the mighty Name of Jesus, I bring before you _________ and as Your Word says in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 I bless You Father God! The Father of my Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Father of mercies and God of ALL comfort. I thank You that You comfort _________ them in their time of trouble, that they may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with comfort that You have comforted me in my tough times. I thank You Father for being with them in their time of need and bringing hope to the hopeless (Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 15:13.) And as 1 Corinthians 1:4-9 I thank You Father God for Your grace which is given to ___________; that in every thing they are enriched by You, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ is confirmed in _________; so that they come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our lOrd Jesus Christ; who will confirm them to the end, that they may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. For God, You are faithful!!! By Whom you were called unto the fellowship of His son Jesus Christ our Lord. I thank You Father God for the victory in this situation, in Jesus Name!” (1 John 5:4-5.) As you read through the Epistle prayers you will see ones that pertain to your given situation. I like to use the Ephesians prayers plus around 10 more of the others in my daily prayers when I pray for my family, loved ones, and work. I make the scriptures personal, like the above prayer. As you do this it stirs up your faith! Gives your joy a boost! Making a difference in your day.