Generational Curses
There's nothing worse than trying to stop or change a behavior, habit or mindset that you have developed over the years. We've all read the self help books, gone to seminars or have had years of counseling and there's still no real permanent change. Here's the good news, "There is help." But you'll never find it trying to cure the symptoms; you must go to the root of the problem.
This isn't something people like to talk about in mainstream Christian circles which is exactly the reason that I want to talk about it. It's time that Believers everywhere come out from under the yoke of bondage of things that have been handed down to you through time. I hope this short study will start you on your journey toward receiving true healing and freedom, and to put an end to the generational curses and strongholds in your life. With that said ... read on ...
Have you ever heard, "She is just like her mother," or "That is exactly how her father used to act," and it wasn't exactly a compliment? Sometimes other people see the symptoms of a generational curse long before we do. You may not even notice that the problem area you are trying to fix in your life has been handed down to you by your family. However, unless you break this process, you will hand it down to your children too.
Here's an example: I had a girlfriend I worked with and she was/is a single mom. She became pregnant out of wedlock at age 22. One day in conversation she mentioned to me, "It's such a coincidence that my mom also became pregnant out of wedlock at age 22 and gave birth to me." She then mentioned with a perplexed look on her face, "Now that I think about it, my grandmother gave birth to my mom out of wedlock." Upon hearing that information my heart really went out to her. She wasn't dealing with casual sin - she was dealing with a generational curse.
Ok, here is a personal example: I had been depressed most all of my life. Worse! I was depressed for no reason to speak of. I just walked around in a blue funk that no matter what I did I just could not seem to shake. My mother (God rest her soul) also suffered from depression as also did her Mother. Who knows how far back depression goes for the women of my family but one thing that I can assure you and that was that my daughter was not going to suffer with the same demon of depression. Not as long as I and the Lord could help it!
How do generational curses or strongholds take root, and how do we fix them? A curse or stronghold will begin through the following open doors: fear, sin, believing a lie, or trauma.
1. Let's start with fear: We all have some form of fear in our lives, but a moment of fear and a lifetime of fear are two totally different issues. The first question to ask yourself is where did the fear come from? Or when did the fear begin? Find the origin of the fear and write it down. You may have multiple fears so try to trace it back to the moment each one happened, or the moment it was spoken into you. In my experience of studying the breaking of strongholds, I have noticed a pattern where parents have spoken their personal fears into their children. Making the children aware of the parent's fear, and then teaching them to be as emotionally involved in it as they are is a common occurrence. Fear in this case was given or taught to them; still, this pattern needs to be broken. Once you know where and when the fear started, find scriptures in the Bible on fear and use them as the antidote and continue to wash the fear away with the truth and love of the Lord. Also, you may have to forgive the person who led you into fear.
2. We all are given a choice to decide whether or not to be involved in sin: The Bible even states that God will always give us a way out when being tempted, but then why do we still fall? Many of our current sicknesses, insecurities and issues are carried down from the sins of the generations that were before us. That's right! I'm saying Grandpa's sin may be causing you to be sick, fearful or maybe even stuck in poverty. The Bible says the sins of the father shall carry down to the fourth generation.
The best solution for this is to pray and ask the Lord if there are generational sins in your life and ask Him to reveal them. Then, start asking a lot of questions to family members. Ask your Mom, Grandmother, Grandpa or whomever could give you the information needed. Not only will you receive the answers you've been looking for, but you will have a better respect for the mistakes of those who went before you. It's always easy to judge a mistake, but when you find out why that mistake was made, then compassion will enter. Where there is compassion, there is healing. Keep in mind that you can ask the Lord to forgive the sins of the generations before you. It is up to the living family members to repent and ask the Lord to forgive their family of their past sins. Then the reconciling power of God is released in your family. Until then, you yourself may feel like a slave, or like you're in chains.
3. Another open door is believing a lie: Have you ever been told, "you're ugly," or "stupid," or "you can't do that," or "you can't do anything right?" Now, do you still believe what you were told? If the answer is yes then you have believed a lie. Lies can stop us dead in our tracks and we don't even know it. The worst thing about a lie is that the lie contains a glimmer of truth to it, and that's what makes it so believable. However, if a lie is stopping your full potential, it needs to be addressed and the curse/stronghold needs to be broken.
A lie becomes a curse the moment it is believed. So, how do you reverse the curse? Ask the Lord to show you where the lie came from. Write down each lie and its origin. Then find scriptures that will act as the antidote to the lie. The scripture will tell you the truth about the particular lie you have believed. You will need to choose to believe God's Word instead of the Devil's lies. You may also need to pray and choose to forgive the person who spoke the lies over you. You may also need to forgive yourself for believing the lies.
4. Sometimes curses or strongholds enter during a traumatic time in your life: A divorce in the family, a suicide in the family or a car accident can be an open door for the enemy. If you see a pattern of car accidents, suicides or any traumatic event that is reoccurring generationally in your family, you need to take note of it. Again, ask the Lord to reveal the beginning of the generational trauma and pray over it. Do not come into agreement with the fear, rejection, hurt, or poverty the event may have caused. Ask the Lord to heal all areas of the traumatic events, and ask Jesus to break this cycle. In my study of strongholds and generational curses the single biggest commonality that I have seen is the molestation of children. Bluntly speaking, if you have been molested as a child the odds are favorable that your Mother was as well as your Grandmother and so on back through time. Seldom is the case where the enemy will visit this horror on just this particular generation so again it helps to do your research by asking the Lord to reveal to you the beginning of this generational trauma so that it isn't passed down to your children.
How do we break the generational curses or strongholds that have taken root?
*We go to the cross. Jesus died on the cross to break the power of generational curses. You must understand that whatever problem you are dealing with, it is a spiritual problem. Whether it is alcohol, sex addiction, over-eating, under-eating, insecurity, self hatred, or sickness, all of these problems are spiritual and it will take the Lord to break the process. When He died on the cross for us, He died that we would be reconciled to Him. Jesus died so He could bear our burdens, sins, fears, lies, and trauma that comes from living in a broken world. He died for our insecurities and wrongful thinking, but we have to make a conscious decision to accept that gift from Him and be reconciled to Him. He always accepts us just as we are, sin and all, but we must accept Him and allow Jesus to truly carry our burdens. We need to allow Jesus to do what He died on the cross to do….and that is to save us, literally.
*Forgive the family member you believe you have received the generational curses/strongholds from, and forgive yourself. Renounce the curse or lie you have believed. The power of life and death is in the tongue…choose life. Start quoting scripture over the area in need and start speaking blessings over those who cursed you.
*Change behaviors and mindsets. You must now get into the Word daily and replace old wrongful thinking with new thinking. The Bible says you cannot put new wine into old wine skins. You must change your old ways starting with your mind.
*Believe that you are healed, and ask the Lord to break the curses or strongholds over you and your children. The Lord says your children's children will be blessed. This is His desire for you. He wants you to walk in freedom; in fact, He died for it.
This freedom is for you and your children! Enjoy it!
Generational Demons:
They may not be your fault but they are your problem.
Have you ever seen a family where the father has a problem with uncontrollable anger, his son seems to have been 'handed it', and the grandpa had the same problem? Or have you noticed that not only do you suffer from something such as persistent irrational fears or depression, but your mother and her father also suffered from it as well? There are many people today who are living under bondage that the sins of their forefathers has brought them under.
Exodus 34:7, "Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting (punishing) the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation."
Lamentations 5:7, "Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne (been punished for) their iniquities."
This is beyond learned behavior; many children learn to be messy if their parents are messy. This is a spiritual bondage that is passed down from one generation to another. Some symptoms of a generational curse is a continual negative pattern of something being handed down from generation to generation. Often people who are adopted end up with the same characteristics as their birth parents, not because they were around their birth parents to learn how they behaved, but because they inherited their spiritual bondage.
Some common symptoms of generational curses are family illnesses that seem to just walk from one person down to the next (cancer is a common physical manifestation of a spiritual bondage), continual financial difficulties (they continually hit roadblocks in their finances), mental problems, persistent irrational fears and depression. Anything that seems to be a persistent struggle or problem that was handed down from one generation to another may very well be a generational curse.
The heart of the matter of a generational curse:
Understand This!! The price for generational curses has been paid! The good news is that once you accept Jesus, the transference of bondage stops from your ancestors by means of generational curses. You can no longer receive spiritual bondages in this manner from your parents once you accept Jesus!
Christ was made a curse, so we can be freed from the curses that sin (both our sins and those of our forefathers) has brought us. Galatians 3:13, "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:"
Once you become a child of God, no longer will the sins of your forefathers cause curses to transfer into your life: Jeremiah 31:29-30, "In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge."
So why are there so many believers who seem to be living under a generational curse? This has puzzled me before I understood how it works too. What may need to be dealt with though, is any bondage that was already passed down to you before you came into covenant with God. The legal grounds are certainly paid for on the Cross and therefore broken. The only thing left to do is cast out any spirits that have gained entrance before you accepted Jesus.
Non-believers are still affected:
Even after Jeremiah 31:29-30 makes it clear that believers are redeemed from generational curses, the next chapter in Jeremiah (32:18) clearly says, "Thou shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the Mighty God, the LORD of hosts, is his name." Apparently, generational curses are still in effect,
but for who is the big question.
Ezekiel 18:2-3 tells us, "What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel." (Note the keywords "in Israel"... this is referring to those who are in covenant with God, which are us believers, not the rest of the world.)
Obviously, generational curses are alive and well in the lives of those who are outside the new covenant with God (non-believers).
'Triggering' the effects of a generational curse
It is possible for demons to enter a child before he accepts Jesus, then remain dormant or hidden in that child's life until some time later in his or her life when it manifests (or makes itself known). Sometimes when a person heads for the ministry, it seems like the devil kicks up his ugly heels and causes havoc for that person. Other times, a line of fear runs in the family tree, but isn't manifested in a person's life until they get themselves involved in something fearful, such as watching a demonic movie. All of a sudden, the spirits in that person's life "come alive" so to speak, and make themselves known. They were there all along, but just now they have come out into the open.
The solution is Easy- Cast Them Out.
If you have involved yourself in any sin or opened any doors in your own life while 'awaking' or triggering the spirits, then it's important that you clear up any legal grounds (or strongholds) that you gave the enemy in your own life relating to the bondage.
For example, if you have went to see a demonic movie, and it seemed to have triggered spirits of fear in your life that were handed down to you, then it's important to repent for going to see such a movie before trying to cast out any spirits. It's also possible that you picked up the spirits from such a movie without them even being there in the first place, and/or added to spirits that were already inside you. It's always a good idea to clear up any legal grounds or strongholds in your own life before casting spirits out.
I believe unforgiveness is a great way to 'trigger' generational spirits, so I would be on the lookout for any bitterness or unforgiveness in your heart as well. A common sight is when a spirit of cancer is running down the family tree, and I believe bitterness is a great way to trigger those spirits. Unforgiveness is a serious sin that blocks the forgiveness of your own sins (Matthew 6:15), which creates ample legal grounds for the enemy in your life. Unforgiveness in itself puts us into the enemy's hands (Matthew 18:23-35), to say nothing about awaking any evil spirits in us already!
The curse may be canceled, but the demons may remain:
Just as other demons don't automatically leave at the time of salvation... neither do the demons that you get from your ancestors automatically leave you either.
Let's say that you accept Jesus at age 15. Because you were born a sinner and outside of God's covenant, you were still living under the curses handed down to you and demons can enter you through those curses. Once you've accepted Jesus, those curses are broken automatically, but often the demons that entered in before you accepted Jesus still need to be cast out. In other words, the curse is already broken, and there's no need for you to break any generational curses. But the demons who entered into you through those curses before you accepted Jesus may still need to be cast out. That's why it seems so many believers are living under generational curses, when the Bible makes it clear that we have been freed from any curses handed down from our forefathers!
Understand This!! You are (and were) freed from the effects of generational demons simply by standing on what Jesus had done for you on the Cross!
On the other hand, if demons have entered you through curses handed down to you before you became a Christian, then those demons may need to be cast out. Demons often don't leave on their own accord, and when they don't, the remedy to get rid of them is by casting them out.
There's a neat story in Mark 9:17-27, where Jesus deals with what is almost certainly a generational curse (verse 21). Notice that Jesus didn't have the boy confess the sins or iniquities of his ancestors, He cast out the demons that entered in through the curse. That's how I believe we are to deal with the affects of a generational curse; since the curse has been broken, all there is left to do is just cast the demons out that entered into that person's life back before they became a Christian (before the curse was broken).
Confess what is rightfully yours!
We know that our generational curses have been broken in Jesus' name, but I still like to verbally confess what is going on and what is rightfully ours anyways, because there's power in our verbal confessions, and helps us to realize that we are set free, and also lets the enemy know that he's in trouble! Recall the Bible tells us clearly that there is life or death in the tongue.
Get into the habit of speaking aloud those things that empower you in the Name of Jesus.
I recall that my Grandmother often concluded most every conversations we ever had by saying "Jesus said it; I believe it; that's it" I might have been able to disagree with her on some things but blast if I could disagree with Jesus. LOL
Anywho... Here's some great sample prayers you can use to break bondages:
1. In the name of Jesus, I confess the sins and iniquities of my parents (name specific sins if known), grandparents (name specific sins if known), and all other ancestors. I declare that by the blood of Jesus, these sins have been forgiven and Satan and his demons can no longer use these sins as legal grounds in my life! AMEN!
2. In the name of Jesus, and by the power of His blood, I now declare that all generational curses have been renounced, broken and severed, and that I am no longer under their bondage! AMEN!
3. In the name of Jesus, I declare myself and my future generations loosed from any bondages passed down to me from my ancestors. AMEN!
Ignorance: Another source of bondage!
I also believe that some people can live under what SEEMS like a generational curse, simply because they believe it's still in affect! We need to know that it is NO LONGER in affect, and we have been FREED from any generational curses we used to live under! Jesus makes it very clear that we can be held in bondage to sin through ignorance (John 8:31-36), and I believe the same is true with bondage to generational curses.
In a nutshell:
To wrap it up in cornbread English, I don't believe Christians can live under generational curses... but I do believe they can be affected by spirits that have entered through those curses before they accepted Jesus. Just like many people's past actions before they came to Christ have landed them in demonic bondage and caused them to pick up demons. Those demons are not automatically shed at the time of salvation, they often need to be cast out. The same is true with demons that enter in through generational curses (a doorway to demons).
How you deal with a spirit that has entered through a generational curse is very simple:
Mark 16:17, "And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils..."
Learn of the Spiritual Authority that Jesus has given you over demon spirits, and by faith, you can command those spirits to leave you in Jesus' name! If you can't seem to get them out, try prayer and fasting, as Jesus clearly stated, some demons won't come out unless you have a higher level of faith that only prayer and fasting can bring you into (Matthew 17:19-21). You can also ask a fellow Believer to pray with you. We are always avaiable and if you can't find anyone then know that I am here and available and as a Daughter of Zion it gives me great Joy to join others in prayer that are being held in bondage!
Another type of generational curse:
The type of curses handed down as a result of an ancestors sin is automatically atoned for on the cross, providing we don't hide the sins of our forefathers in our hearts (holding sin in our hearts is never a good idea - whether its ours of the sins of our ancestors). But there's another kind of generational curse that is handed down, and it's a spoken curse that takes a toll on future generations as well.
We can see this kind of curse in action in Genesis 9:24-25, "And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren."
As the Bible goes on to say, this curse ended up affecting an entire nation! I believe these kinds of curses may need to be renounced and broken. If you are unsure of whether a curse should be broken, I recommend breaking it anyways, just so you know it's broken. It doesn't hurt to break a curse that's already been broken.
Here's a sample prayer you can pray that you can use to break yourself free from spoken generational curses:
In the name of Jesus, and by the power of His blood, I now renounce, break and sever all curses that have been handed down to me from my ancestors. In the name of Jesus, I now loose myself and my future generations from any bondages passed down to me from my ancestors! In the Mighty Name of Jesus- the Name above all other names. Amen!
This is but the tip of an iceberg of the various enemies that we wage war with on a daily basis but by the blessed power and blood of our Lord and Saviour we can and will have the Victory.
Go Forth Into Battle! The Victory is Yours!