War Times

Matthew 24:6

New King James Version (NKJV)

"And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet".

Deborah the Judge

"Awake, Deborahs, Awake!

Intimacy with God is the highest purpose for which we were created, but are we REALLY seeking His highest purpose for our lives? If we really understood God's love and heart for us, we'd be making radical choices to be with Him more than any other activity in life! If we had a revelation of His true jealousy to have uninterrupted time with us, we'd turn the world upside down like His disciples did!

But instead, we've been lulled to sleep or are enamored with the trinkets of life while missing the real treasures of God. Many believers are experiencing "Hope deferred makes the heart sick," so they're leaving the Church because they have no passion, no purpose, no power, and no sense of His presence, but they have no secret life in God either! Will it take a crisis to bring us into an intimate relationship with Jesus?


What was it about Deborah that caught His gaze?


Her uncompromising dedication moved the very heart of God and He changed the very heart of Deborah. She spent SO much time in the temple in prayer and worship that she was dripping with oil. Because of that, she could hear the Lord's voice clearly, operate with keen discernment for the times and seasons she faced as well as her daily decisions with the people, and when the call to battle came, she was absolutely ready!

Deborah was being prepared for battle in the secret place! This is where the true victory lies in communing with Him one-on-one. That is our place of safety and truth!

It is time to stop talking about intimacy with God - it's time to REALLY do it!


Who Was Deborah?


Imagine a teenage girl being elected as a type of Pope and single-handedly tearing down all the walls of division between Catholics and Protestants. Hard to even fathom that possibility isn't it? Now imagine a middle-aged, gray-haired, Jewish housewife and mother being raised up over 3,000 years ago to lead Israel in one of the most improbable military victories of history!

Allow me to introduce to you our unlikely candidate and heroine of the faith: Deborah.

I have heard very little being taught about her. I always hear about Gideon, Samuel and some of the other judges, but when I studied Deborah, I fell in love with her. Deborah is very unique and a little controversial because she was a woman who held the highest executive office in the land of Canaan, or Israel, at the time.

An ancient Joan of Arc, Deborah appears in the sacred annals of Israel's history as the nation's fourth judge, the third woman prophetess (after Miriam and Rachel) and a deliverer of God's people. Deborah was in a class of her own; her leadership role was unprecedented and unparalleled! She was a woman who led a nation to victory against all odds. And she did this in a patriarchal era where there was no precedent for women leaders.


Cycles of Israel's Rebellion and Deliverance


The whole book of Judges covered approximately 325 years. After the Israelites entered the Promised Land, Joshua and the elders died and the 12 tribes of Israel were separated in the land of Canaan. The tragic pattern of the Book of Judges is this: the people went into rebellion - they worshiped other gods and intermarried into pagan tribes.

The Lord brought judgment against them. They cried out to God for deliverance. The Lord would raise up a judge, there would be a battle, Israel would be delivered and peace would be on the land for a season. After the judge died, the people went back to rebellion and the Lord once again brought heavy oppression. This cycle happened six different times!

Gwen Shaw accurately pens in her book, "Deborah and Jael":

"Their homes were raided and ransacked, their crops plundered, their maidens raped, their fathers mocked and their sons murdered. People could not walk in the highways anymore. They were locked up in their homes, and some even had to forsake their lands and dwellings because the enemy took possession of them. They lived in caves and dens. Their sheep and goats were stolen from them; their harvests were carried off as soon as they were reaped. They lost their olives, dates, figs, grapes, wheat, barley, and their pomegranates. This left them hungry, destitute, and desperate. They throw God out of their schools, laws, their hearts and lives, claiming they don't need Him. But when they are in trouble, they wonder where He is, and why He didn't save them and prevent tragedy."

The Lord is so jealous for each one of us to love Him and know Him. When we start to move away from Him, He allows evil kings to oppress us. The Word tells us that God is the one who appoints evil kings and magistrates, but He also raises up the godly judges and kings!

Deborah was the fourth judge, and for the first 20 years of her 40-year reign, the nation was oppressed by one of history's most powerful and cruel Canaanite kings: Jabin, and his cunning military commander, Sisera (see Judges 4:1-4).


Deborah Captured the Gaze of God


What is astounding is that the Lord raised up a woman to deliver a nation! What is especially surprising is that it happened in the Middle East thousands of years ago! Deborah was not only a wife, mother, intercessor and prophetess, but also a judge and a national deliverer. This is not a bad resume for a middle-aged woman living in that oppressive Middle Eastern culture.

Against great odds, God used her powerfully. Deborah broke outside of her culture, but she wasn't in rebellion, she was in obedience - to her God. She was used radically and set her people free, and the people loved her. It's a wonderful story of faith in God, and it champions men and women partnering together in a war to save their nation from great oppression.

When we read about this radical prophetess and judge, it expands our theology of women being allowed to lead governmentally. But I really feel that God is raising up a company of end-time Deborahs. There is great global shaking that has only begun, and the Lord is calling not only the men, but also the women of God! The Lord is saying:

"Wake up, Deborah, be a part of the army of the Lord!"

God's eyes are searching to and fro over the earth looking for a heart that is fully His (see 2 Chronicles 16:9).

What caught His gaze when He came to Deborah? Was it the uncompromising fire of holiness, an unwavering faith, or an unrelenting love that set her apart? Was it something about the integrity of her character, the other worldliness of her wisdom, and the richness of her kindness which bred confidence in both men and women?

There are two root words for "consecrate" in Hebrew: naver (separating from) and kadesh (separating unto). Deborah, like the other champions of the faith, was separated from the world and unto God. She did nothing on her own but spoke just what the Father taught her. This is where the true victory lies in listening to Him.


Deborah's Resume'


We tend to think of multi-tasking as a 21st century phenomenon, but Deborah was functioning in five major roles - Intercessor, Judge, Prophetess, Mother of Israel, Deliverer/Military Strategist. Let's review them:


1. Intercessor


Many scholars believe that one of Deborah's roles before becoming judge was being a "lamp lighter" in the temple. In the Bible, oil is often a symbol for the Holy Spirit. Deborah was married to Lapidoth, whose name means to shine, lamp, flame, burning lamp, lightening, torch. Isn't it interesting? He, too, was a lamp that had oil!

Deborah was a keeper of the oil and light, gingerly tending the lamps. This shows us that she was a woman who was passionately spending long hours dwelling in the temple. She was a woman of prayer and of worship. She lived between two villages - Ramah and Bethel - in Ephraim, which means the valley of fruitfulness. Biblical names often have profound prophetic meanings.

The ancient village of Ramah was known to be the seat of high adultery. Bethel was known as the house of the Lord with open Heavens, where Jacob had his ladder experience in Genesis 28. She stood in the gap, interceding between the seat of high idolatry and pagan worship and the house of Bethel with its open Heavens.

Now the imagery becomes a little clearer: Deborah was raised up by God to intercede against idolatry (Ramah). She wanted to turn the hearts of the children of Israel back to the house of God (Bethel) to inherit a double portion of fruit (Ephraim).

Deborah's relationship with the Lord was very precious and intensely intimate. I believe that in those twenty years of captivity, Deborah stood in the gap and interceded to change the course of Israel. God promised Abraham, in Genesis 18, that He would save a nation for the sake of ten righteous men. I believe that the righteous prayers of Deborah availed much!

She worshiped and had a deep intercessory life with God. She would go into the temple and fill the lamps with oil and ask God for revelation for people around her in great darkness. She was prepared in this secret place as she stood in the gap in radical intercession for her people and her nation. She would hear from God and would bring down great wisdom and counsel. She spent long hours in the temple. This dedication moved the very heart of God and changed the very heart of Deborah. He led, she followed. She led, Israel followed.

Oftentimes we have the misunderstanding that worship is merely the thirty-minute time slot before the sermon when we sing songs of devotion to God. This is part of worship. But doing small things with great love unto Him is living a life of worship. Deborah was a worshiper who loved the oil of the lamps - Holy Spirit.

We need to be like Deborah, a people of prayer. Sincere and passionate prayer is the key to unlock our relationship with Almighty God. Many struggle with praying because they feel that their intercession is not much more than empty cries to an invisible God who seems so distant. We think that our prayers bounce off the ceiling and back to us unheard and unanswered. But, Beloved, God loves communing with you! He promises that He will hear you and answer! It takes only a few seconds of a face-to-face encounter with God to change the course of human history for you, your city, or your nation.

In fact, communing with God is the highest purpose for which you were created! "This is eternal life, to know Me" (John 17:3, paraphrased). Our hunger for God is what fuels our prayer life. When His presence is our passion and our hunger is for His heart, we can approach the throne of God boldly with the confidence that our Father loves our prayers; but having this first love is so important.

For Deborah, intercession was a dialogue in which He began to download strategic war plans, blue prints from Heaven, and keys to open doors that no man can shut and shut doors that no man can open (see Isaiah 22:22). How else could she wisely judge so many civil cases with the Israelites?


2. Judge


Ehud was the third judge of Israel. After his death, Israel was without a strong leader and once again fell into idolatry and sexual perversion. They were desperately in need of godly leadership. It was the role of the judge to hear and resolve the disputes of the people, but they also attempted to keep the nation from idolatry (see Exodus 18:20; Judges 2:17), they taught God's Word (see Exodus 18:20; Judges 2:17), and they interceded for their people (see Deuteronomy 9:18-20, 25-29; Deuteronomy 10:10).

The Scripture tells us that judges were raised up by God to that office (see Judges 2:16). All the judges before and after Deborah were men. So Deborah must have walked in quite an unusual and unique grace to be chosen as both the natural and spiritual leader of Israel. The Word says that she was a judge for 40 years. She held her court sitting under the palm tree, which represents righteousness.

In ancient Israeli culture, there was not the separation of church and state that now exists in our governmental infrastructures. To be appointed as the judge over a nation was equivalent to also being established as the spiritual head over the country. Great responsibility came with great authority. She took care of the civil disputes of men, women and children. We aren't just talking about the local judge down at your courthouse. We are talking about the executive leader over the whole nation of Israel. She was leading Israel (see Judges 4:4-5).


3. Prophetess


Deborah operated in a heavenly dimension of a spirit of wisdom and revelation. It was almost as if God had supernaturally implanted a divine compass in her, always guiding her to Him. She walked in such dependence upon every move of the Omnipotent One. The judging that Deborah did so well might have been because of her gift as a prophetess. She would have been able to make wise decisions if she saw well in the Spirit. Although it isn't certain, many theologians feel that Deborah was from the tribe of Issachar, which means that she knew the times and the seasons. Samuel was the only other judge also listed as a prophet.

In "Matthew Henry's Commentary," he writes:

"She was a woman of illuminations, or of splendors, one extraordinarily known and wise, and so came to be eminent and illustrious. She was intimately acquainted with God, she was a prophetess, and one that instructed others in divine knowledge by the inspiration of the Spirit of God, and had gifts of wisdom, to which she attained not in an ordinary way; she heard words of God, and she probably saw visions of the Almighty. She was totally devoted to Israel. After Jehovah, Israel was her first love."

Deborah means "bee" or "wasp" or "queen bee." She was one who would set things in order and bring honey, but also bring the sting of a bee when necessary. A basic principle in spiritual warfare is that our level of attack against the devil must be intimately related to our level of authority and intimacy in our relationship with God.

Deborah was one who received fresh mandates from Heaven, and though she knew how evil the oppression of King Jabin was, she also knew that with God anything was possible! Something in Deborah knew how to pull on the resources of Heaven, stand in the counsels of the Lord (see Jeremiah 23) and open her mouth and let Him fill it (see Psalm 81:10).


4. Mother of Israel


What made this woman a mother of Israel? Deborah loved well. The Lord must have peered over the balcony of Heaven, looked through the lattice of time and watched the way that she so tenderly stopped for the one. Imagine facing the seemingly unending line of people all needing a touch of Heaven. I imagine her tired eyes stretched out on the faces of His creation as she felt the ache in their hearts for God. They had come so far, how could they leave empty-handed? The eleven other dispersed tribes of Israel walked for miles and literally risked their lives on the dangerous highways as they pushed through to hear from God, through Deborah's voice.

"The highways were deserted, and the travelers walked along the byways. Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel, until I, Deborah, arose, arose a mother in Israel. They chose new gods; then there was war in the gates..." Judges 5:6-8

I believe that Deborah could hear the groans of the Israelites who were oppressed for 20 years and feel the pounding pain in God's heart over His peoples sin and oppression. I believe that it was her ability to hear His heartbeat that allowed her to save a nation in a day. Deborah ruled with the sword of a prophet but the staff of a shepherd - she truly loved God's people. She always led well. She led by loving.


5. Deliverer/Military Strategist


Deborah was more than a judge; she was used to deliver Israel from the second longest captivity. As a prophetess and military strategist, she called the nation to war. She was a military strategist who not only wielded the hand of God but also operated with the heart of God. You see, Deborah was a deliverer! She loved the people and they loved her. She delivered them from a great enemy.

The Lord literally dropped a clear prophetic word to summon Barak, the Israeli commander, to rally the rag-tag troops for battle against insurmountable odds. The Hebrews had no weapons - none. They had all been confiscated by the Canaanites.

The famous historian, Josepheus, writes about the enemy force:

"Under the command of his general, Sisera, he had 300,000 footmen, 10,000 horsemen and 900 hundred chariots of iron. These chariots not only controlled the highways and roads of the land, they could be driven through an army of men and with the swords in their wheels, they could cut off the legs of the strongest and bravest of soldiers. They were feared, as tanks are today. The people of Israel had no answer to such deadly weapons of mass destruction, forged in the bowels of hell."

God showed her revelations of how to win the battle. Seeing in the heavens and moving with prophetic proclamations, she released the warrior angels of the Lord to fight ancient demonic principalities. She knew the enemy's schemes and helped to empower the war in the heavens, destroying the enemy. She brought holy reversal to the evil plans. In her moment of crisis, she decreed the Word of the Lord, and creation bowed to her command. Her prayers and military governmental leadership shifted the course of history and saved the nation of Israel. When the city gates were at war, Deborah, a mother of Israel who was willing to lay down her life for her God and country, arose.


God's Word Brings a Shift in Roles


Deborah sent for Barak and told him the Lord commanded him to take 10,000 men of Naphtali and lead them to Mount Tabor. There the Lord would lure Sisera, the commander of Jabin's army, with his chariots and troops, to the Kishon River and would put him into his hands. Barak was a military commander of Israel. He was a man of war, but he lacked courage.

"Barak said to her, 'If you will go with me, I will go! But if you don't go, I won't go!'

"'Very well,' Deborah said, 'I will go with you, but because of the way you are going about this, the honor will not be yours for the Lord will hand Sisera over to a woman'" (paraphrased, see Judges 4:9).

He was dealing with heavy oppression and he did not have the faith to go. He needed Deborah to be his salvation or he would not have gotten into place for his calling. How many of you are willing to be Deborah's to help to put the Barak's in place governmentally?

So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh where he summoned Zebulun and Naphtali. Ten thousand men followed them. You see, she gave a prophetic word and it started to launch, shift and change not only Barak's and Israel's destiny, but also her own destiny. It shifted her out of sitting under the palm tree and lighting the lamps in the tabernacle. Suddenly she was getting on a horse and was thrust onto the front lines of the battle.


Revival and War Are Running Mates


When we are dealing with this great oppression in the land, when we are crying out for revival, we need to understand that revival and war lock hands. Revival and war are running mates. Our intercession and our prayers tip the bowls of justice from Heaven and fire falls down. When you are crying out for freedom and breakthrough, you are tipping the bowls in Heaven that contain justice. So on one hand, we want to see a mighty outpouring of God to set people free, but when you are crying out desperate prayers of revival and visitation, you are also crying out for God's justice to come.

Out of their brokenness, they needed a miracle. With 10,000 soldiers, they were going on a suicide mission. But Deborah stood as a prophetic symbol; a signpost as a woman who was weak, but she had the word of God! She had a history of going in and lighting the lamps. She had a history of hearing the voice of God in the secret place. So suddenly, when the hour came for her to literally go into war like a Joan of Arc, she was ready. She was in the place to say yes because she knew the voice of her God. She knew she had the living word of her Lord, and 10,000 men believed her enough to risk their lives, too.

We are in a season of great warfare, but in the midst of it, will you be like a Deborah where you can hear God's voice and give radical mandates to men, women and children for such an hour as this?

Do you love the Lord so much that when you hear the cries of the suffering and oppressed around you, you will volunteer to be a mother to a suffering world?

Is there a cry in you that says, "I am willing to stand against sexual perversion, sin, adultery, abortion and any other amoral activity? I am willing to stand in the house of prayer with angels ascending and descending. I will be a woman who will stand in the gap and go before God and cry out in intercession."

The journey of Deborah is a testimony of the power of just ONE life fully set apart for God. May her song be an invitation to you that a revolution can begin - with one person.


Let Us Pray


Lord, we need more than a revival. We need a revolution of epic proportion! Lord, we need the Kingdom of God to break in with the resurrection power of life! This is a call of war! This is a call from each of us to say that we want to hear the voice of God from the secret place. Lord, we want to make a fresh holy covenant with You. We want to move as holy revolutionists, but we want to move with purity and humility, love and grace. We want to be ones that will come out of the secret place and wrestle with a holy desperation and go to the place of war. We are the women of God. Use us as is Your Will. It is in Your Name: Jesus we pray. Amen and Amen.

It May Not Always Be Your Fault

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!

Memorial Day

~ Always Memorial Day ~

Memorial Day, an American holiday observed on the last Monday of May, honors men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971. Many Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries or memorials, holding family gatherings and participating in parades.

Early Observances of Memorial Day

The Civil War claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history, requiring the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries. By the late 1860s Americans in various towns and cities had begun holding springtime tributes to these countless fallen soldiers, decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers.

It is unclear where exactly this tradition originated; numerous different communities may have independently initiated the memorial gatherings. Nevertheless, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day. Waterloo— which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866— was chosen because it hosted an annual, community-wide event, during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.



Decoration Day

On May 5, 1862, General John A. Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans, called for a nationwide day of remembrance later that month. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,” he proclaimed. The date of Decoration Day, as he called it, was chosen because it wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle.

On the first Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, and 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried there. Many Northern states held similar commemorative events and reprised the tradition in subsequent years; by 1890 each one had made Decoration Day an official state holiday. Many Southern states, on the other hand, continued to honor their dead on separate days until after World War I.

Evolution of Memorial Day

Memorial Day, as Decoration Day gradually came to be known, originally honored only those lost while fighting in the Civil War. But during World War I the United States found itself embroiled in another major conflict, and the holiday evolved to commemorate American military personnel who died in all wars.

For decades, Memorial Day continued to be observed on May 30, the date Logan had selected for the first Decoration Day. But in 1968 Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees; the change went into effect in 1971. The same law also declared Memorial Day a federal holiday.


Memorial Day Traditions

Cities and towns across the United States host Memorial Day parades each year, often incorporating military personnel and members of veterans’ organizations. Some of the largest parades take place in Chicago, New York and Washington, D.C. Americans also observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries and memorials. On a less somber note, many people throw parties and barbecues on the holiday, perhaps because it unofficially marks the beginning of summer.

Honoring soldiers, patriots, freedom-fighters past, ancient and future; in the United States and other countries.

On this day we honor the memory of those who have died while in the military service of the United Sates of America. It is also fitting that we remember all those who have died for the cause of freedom, whatever country they are from; for we are indeed all one family and we share each other's common destiny on this planet that God created for us all. 

Likewise, we think of those who died believing they were fighting for freedom, though the political leaders in their comm and may have had other intentions in mind. Our thoughts also turn to those who died defending the cause of truth and virtue, whether or not they donned the uniform of their respective countries; and we think not only of those who thus sacrificed in our generation, but in generations past, all the way back to our first parents in the garden of Eden.

There have been many heroes down through the ages, both celebrated as well as unknown, who have given their all for the sake of a better world.  Their combined efforts have given us what we have today, laying the foundation for us so that we now are on the brink of achieving the most ideal society attainable by mankind.

May we go forward, building on the legacy they left behind, drawing from the courage they exhibited, to bring to fruition a society of freedom and peace for which they helped labor.

The enemies of freedom and civility have provided us with obstacles that have made us strong.  Today we honor the many lives that have been lost in the battles that have been fought that peace and freedom might prevail. 

Today, we also recognize that there may yet be many lives lost, for not only are we closer to achieving the ideal society, but the enemies of freedom have also never been closer to achieving their goal of a counterfeit society of peace -- one of compulsion at the point of a sword.  As this war comes to a head, there will yet be many who will lay down their lives in defense of truth and virtue.

May we be faithful to the legacy we have been given, so that truth and freedom may prevail.

~ A Soldier Coming Home ~ 

A Story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam. He called his parents from San Francisco.

"Mom and Dad, I'm coming home, but I've a favor to ask. I have a friend I'd like to bring home with me."

"Sure," they replied, "We'd love to meet him."

"There's something you should know the son continued, he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mine and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us."

"I'm sorry to hear that son. Maybe we can help find him somewhere to live."

"No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us."

"Son," said the father, "you don't know what you're asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can't let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should come home and forget about this guy. He'll find a way to live on his own."

At this point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him. A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn't know, their son had only one arm and leg.

The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don't like people who inconvenience us or make us feel uncomfortable, We would rather stay away from people who aren't as healthy, beautiful, or as smart as we are.

Thankfully, there's someone who won't treat us that way. Someone who loves us with unconditional love that welcomes us into the forever family, regardless of how messed up we are.

Tonight, before you tuck yourself in for the night, say a little prayer that God will give you the strength you need to accept people as they are, and to help us all to be more understanding of those who are different from us!

~Author Unknown~

 

~ Taps ~

Day is done,
gone the sun,
From the hills,
from the lake,
From the skies.
All is well,
safely rest,
God is nigh.

Go to sleep,
peaceful sleep,
May the soldier
or sailor,
God keep.
On the land
or the deep,
Safe in sleep.

Love, good night,
Must thou go,
When the day,
And the night
Need thee so?
All is well.
Speedeth all
To their rest.

Fades the light;
And afar
Goeth day,
And the stars
Shineth bright,
Fare thee well;
Day has gone,
Night is on.

Thanks and praise,
For our days,
'Neath the sun,
Neath the stars,
'Neath the sky,
As we go,
This we know,
God is nigh.