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| Under Attack But Winning The War! |
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It seems as though my family is under attack here lately. Elaine has been going through unrelenting panic attacks the worse she has had in a couple years and nothing we do seems to help until this morning. Caleb is really struggling in his walk with God and faltering. Sarai nearly broke her foot the other night and it is badly bruised. I woke up this morning early with my chest feeling heavy as though I was trying to have a panic attack (which is extremely out of character for me). And Dan just seems to be drifting further away from us and maybe even God. Well this morning Elaine and I got up and had prayer together. Usually I don't get up until she is leaving for work and so we don't really get to pray together. We woke at 6am and began to claim the truths of God's Word. "I am a child of God! I am a king in Christ! I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus! I am a Victor! I am a Warrior! I am an Overcomer--a Victorious Overcomer in Jesus!" We went on that way for a few minutes and then started claiming victory over the afore mentioned things. All of it started when Elaine met a lady the other day that is moving here to help a friend start a business in the area. The business is a palm reader/fortune teller type business. Well the next day she started with panic attacks. One after another. I can guarantee you we were also claiming victory over those spirits and commanding them to depart the area. I tell everyone this for two reasons: If we, your Pastors, are under attack then you are also under attack be diligent and seek His deliverance and claim the victory! Also, because I covet your prayers for me and my family. God is moving in our Church like never before. Last Sunday I believe we were right on the verge of breakthrough. You know the Devil hates us for that. He's bareing his teeth but the teeth of the Lion of the tribe of Judah are much bigger and I claim victory in the name of Yeshua! Be diligent! Seek Him more and more! For we have already won the victory! |
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| To add a comment to "Under Attack But Winning The War!" |
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| July 25, 2008 |
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I Praise God for your discernment! Hallelujah!
I was just going to ask that question! God is always training us and I am soooo excited you both have gotten to the root of these attacks!
In Jesus Name,
Pastor CeCe |
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| July 26, 2008 |
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Hey Pastor, Your openess is courageous and beautiful. Your family is most loved and certainly will be praying hugely for them. I am reading a book called Lucifer Exposed. I certainly didn't need to buy another book but saw it dealt with occult practices and I have a friend who is deep in it. She is living with family from losing her home and doing her California Psychic stuff from there. I have been worried about her and praying about it for a couple of months. I am praying about how to pray to do battle for her and want to be armed with more knowledge.
Yes, we were on the verge of breakthrough. I think I may have mentioned, I was crying Sunday and it was NOT grief this time, but just the presense of the Lord. I am a bold person and yet normally have to be really broken to go forward but I just wanted to be up there to feel God. I wanted to soak in the Holy Spirit rain.
Something is brewing. I have loved Moyock Assembly before, but if God wasn't showing up it would just be another church with some good folk in it who are sweet, really cool and loving....but I want HIM and more of HIM. We have community centers for just plain get togethers with nice people.
I told Gabrielle on the telephone this week about how I was falling in love with Jesus more than I remember ever feeling. Part of the anxieties send me running to Him, but honestly the love is too. It really is powerful. I find myself giggling in the car, singing to Him, telling Him my ideas as running them past Him and asking the next steps. Purest romance, being in love with the Lord.
I have one child left living and he told me he is in dispair and there is nothing good in life left and his wife is walking around long faced and he politely told me that all my talk of God's goodness is getting on their nerves. He chuckled saying it but that is a real spiritual temperature reading when you don't want to hear it.
The devil has been taunting me by telling me that I will outlive Theo as well and will plummet into the deepest of all the depressions and I can forget it if God cares, it isn't his concern. I know that is a lie but for someone crawling out of depression who has outlived two sons it is hard to hear. I shuddered hearing the devil taunt about the lament of Rachel because her children were all gone.
I have had to put on praise music, shake it off and pray. I will not outlive this son. This is not to sidetrack from your message but to say that satan is busy and we have to be serious even in our jesting and good times. Battle ready.
This is early am, so my thoughts are not real sorted, but ironically, looked at pics of your family online last night showing my husband your Carlos get up, your dad's boat and how pretty Sarai is and looks like Elaine. Caleb grabbed my heart a year ago and prayed often for him when in school. He told me he is putting off returning this year and I began praying for his direction this week. I don't know Dan but don't have to. I know you and Elaine and will believe with you. Love you guys hugely, juanita |
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| July 26, 2008 |
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I just read in something that I had not understood before. (from same book Lucifer Exposed) The Belt of Truth in the Armor o Ephesians chapter 6. I have a piece in quotes below that spoke volumes on this subject of warfare.
"A phase used quite often in the Bible is Gird up your loins. To undestand this, we need to realize that in Bible days, both men and women wore long garments that extended below their knees. In order to do anything active the first thing a person had to do was get those long garments up above the knees for free movement of the legs. In order to accomplish this, the person put a belt on. After that, the person was ready for action. Unless someone did this, he couldn't get into action because the long garment would have impeded him. How does this this apply to us? I believe the long garments that encumber us can be religious language and behaviour. We must be ruthlessly honest with ourselves and, as the Holy Spirit leads, with other people. We cannot encumber ouselves with religious clichees. They are a terrible hindrance if we want to be truly committed Christians. We cannot hide behind religuous talk, we have to be sincere."
I appreciated the honesty of your blog Pastor. Gabrielle was talking with me Thursday and said she took a pink or transparent rose petal from your sermon on being real and not fake. I told her I appreciated her honesty and she said she is often told she is too honest. The trnsparent one spoke to her. I chose white for purity which I seek.
I love the phrase honest as rain. Rain cleanses and refreshes as honesty also does.
I had a conversation with you on church work day about how I often had my husband's friends say a swear word and apologize to "miss juanita" and that I like it as they see Christ in me. I also told you about the agony of so many of these friends coming over to use our boat ramp and then bring their beer and hang out for hours. I was about to and didn't tell you that a couple of months ago, I drank a glass of wine at one of those cookouts at the bidding of a Christian aunt to relax with Jim and his friends and a glass of wine wouldn't hurt. She has been concerned about my marriage and frankly so was I. I do not drink so it knocked me down hard. One of Jim's friends said the ugliest word of all swear words in my presense and said I can say that because Juanita is drunk. I think I know how Peter felt when he denied the Lord. Never will that happen again. Aunt Nada was wrong and so was I for following her bidding. My husband has to take me sober and battle ready. So there is my honest rain. peace/juanita |
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| July 26, 2008 |
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Hey Juanita great posts and thanks for your prayers and transparency. I got saved in a small A/G Church that had a history of legalism and still struggles with it at times. I have been on a legalism crusade since that time and still hate anything that smacks of legalism, but in the last couple of years I've found myself taking harder and harder lines on different issues mostly because I see so many others being so liberal about them and then allowing those things in their lives to not only trip them up but run them over. Drinking is one of those things. It's not so much that I'm worried somebody will miss heaven because they drink but it is because of what I see alcohol doing to so many lives. Your story is a perfect example of why I feel Christians probably should not drink alcoholic beverages. Yet on the flip side isn't nice to know that you can make a mistake (which is what I heard you saying) and make it right and keep right on going without having to worry whether God's gonna hate you now. God is good! When someone says "you know I can drink a wine cooler or a beer once in a while and it isn't gonna hurt me." I say, "yep your probably right but I'm not going there." I want to be the best I can be for God not just good enough. Thanks for sharing, that's a valuable lesson for anyone to learn and a hard one for some to swallow. (npi) Thanks CeCe for you comment as well. Not only did we get to the root of the problem but I think we've done a good job of starting to dig that weed up too! Ya'll have a great day! |
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| July 26, 2008 |
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| Hi Pastor! Crystal, Hunter, Morgan and Sarai left this afternoon. It was so good seeing them - Crystal and I stayed up til 2 am. talking. Just wanted you to know your family is greatly loved by many people and that many prayers are offered up for you all. Your tenaciousness and faithfulness will be greatly rewarded. We all go through times of great testing - and I think you can trust that something great will be birthed through your preserverance. |
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| July 28, 2008 |
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Pastor Scott,
I could nto agree with you more. I want to you to know there is not a day that goes by that i do not pray for youand your fam. You guys have always always been there for me in so many ways. When God sent yal here it truely made a difference in my life. I am honestly earnestly praying for Dan and Caleb. And claiming and I know that God is in control no matter what things seem. They may be going thorugh a hard time right now but I kow that God is going to use them both in a mighty way.
I too believe that our church as a whole is being atacked. And also believe we are on the verge of something very big and amazing. It shows alot of trust and humbleness for a lack of a better word to open up and share what you did about your family. I love you guys and thank you for sharing and being so real with us. We can not give up, we just have to keep on keepin on.
:)Our God is an awesome God!!!!!!! |
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| July 29, 2008 |
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| Thanks Brina. I appreciate you and your Barnabas spirit. You are always an encourager! Won't it be great 100,000 years from now when you and I can sit by a crystal sea and look back on these days and laugh at how pitiful we are when we're struggling and how small the giants really were? Let's make a date to do that 100,000 years from today. You, me, and anyone else that wants to come. I'll bring the watermelon. Who else is in? |
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| July 31, 2008 |
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God gave me this scripture for you two:
1 Samuel 30David Destroys the Amalekites 1 "David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, 2 and had taken captive the women and all who were in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way. 3 When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. 4 So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. 5 David's two wives had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6 David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God. 7 Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, "Bring me the ephod." Abiathar brought it to him."
This scripture I feel describes your current situation. Scott you feel as if the enemy has come in and stolen your wife and your kids and you are left looking at the destruction around you. Just like David, you need to find your strength in the Lord! Go to God in prayer, and you are doing that!
God wants you to know that He is bigger than anything you are facing right now. He wants you to stop looking behind you, stop looking at the fear, the doubts, the regrets, the shame and know that He is bigger than all of it. He wants you to keep looking forward - forward to the end result - GOD IS THE VICTOR!
footnote: David and his army defeats the Amalekites in the end...
love you guys! |
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| July 31, 2008 |
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Watermelon and Crystal Sea 100,000 years. Got it marked in my heart's calendar. Heard a man say once he was going to ask God for popcorn and a movie of all the things he had not understood and will then. He wanted to sit back and enjoy his snack and say uh huh, that makes sense now.
What a wild month this has been. Crystal's verses remind me once again to look forward not behind.
I have been getting victories...repeated victories. Some small and some bigger but I will take them all. I am starting a revival at the workplace now. Have them praising God (4 people) and reading Christian fiction (Left Behind series and Nancy Moser).
Daughter in Law lost her panic, coworker who bothered me has calmed, smiled and been really nice. Today she told me she would like to be cheerful and optimistic but finds it difficult. Another attorney from the office at the beach said he always likes to get me on the phone because of the cheer in my voice. He is in his twenties probably and married with small fry so he isn't hitting on me, thinking it was sincere. I read a verse here and there stuck in my cube and think on it while doing my job.
Anyway, doors are opening that no man can shut. Think that is in Revelations....peace good folks...and Pastor...guessing it will be seedless w'melon. :) |
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| August 01, 2008 |
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God had Crystal share the above with me in person but I asked her to place it on here as well so everyone could share. There is great encouragement in the words, but the best part was seeing the heart that it came from (God's and hers). Thanks Crystal! Seedless? I like the seeds, what else will I shoot across the table by pinching them in my fingers? You can have the seedless pieces Juanita :) but for me I like the seeds. :) :) Sunday night at the VBS fellowship after the service I taught all the kids that sat around me how to shoot watermelon seeds. Later I had to run the vacuum to pick them all up off the floor. It was well worth the work to see them laughing and playing! It is times like that, that I see clearly see my Dad in me. He used to do that kind of stuff with us kids all the time. Thanks Dad! Hey Gary! thanks for the comment. Isn't it amazing how quickly the devil can steal our joy and how quickly God can restore it?! Keep on keeping on Gary! You're a great friend. |
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