SONS OF BELIAL PART 2

SONS OF BELIAL PART 2

Too many of my friends have been fired, pushed out of their jobs, or are being oppressed right now by evil people in positions of authority. These domineering people are willing to literally sell their souls to Satan for the money and power they receive. Many are bullies and rule by fear. They thrill at the feeling of power they get when they can control and rule over other human beings.

It’s sad but true. And anyone who has been under a person like this knows how horrific it really is. These bullies rip the joy right out of you and leave you so exhausted at the end of the day that you have no energy left. They suck the life out of you. And they care nothing about you, except what you can do for them.

If you’re a giving person and full of life, they will make it so that you have no one to give to. They steal your anointing away from you and make you feel useless, worn out, and flat-lined, and you might not even know why. But I’m going to tell you why. The answers are all in God’s Word.

The Bible calls these powerful people “sons of Belial,” “workers of iniquity,” “lewd fellows of the baser sort,” “enemies of righteousness,” “wicked ones,” “generation of vipers,” as well as “seeds of the serpent.” They propound the words, ideas, and actions of Satan against the Lord Jesus, God, and the people who love the truth of the Bible.

The sons of Belial (I call them SOBs) willfully serve Satan. Mostly they won’t come right out and tell you that. Only recently have some of the boldest musical artists admitted and proclaimed the actual rite of selling their souls to Satan, the blood sacrifice ritual involved and the signed contracts with Satan, that generally last about ten years, as far as we know.

The definition of the Hebrew word “Belial” is “worthless, unprofitable, wicked, evil, destructive, ungodly.” Deuteronomy 13:13 gives us the first usage of the word: “Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known.’”

We can learn a lot from where a word in the Bible is used for the first time. Here we see that these people are called children of Belial. In John 8:43-44, Jesus says to the Pharisees, “Ye cannot hear my word.  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”

In Judges 19:16 we read: “Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, ‘Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him.’” The usage of the word “know” in this verse means to have sex with him.

We see from 1 Samuel 1:16 that women can also be SOBs: “Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.”

1 Samuel 2:12 tells us: “Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord.”

Psalm 52:1-3 speaks of these wicked people: “Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man? The tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness.”

And Psalm 55:3 declares: “Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked: for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me.”

Although we haven’t heard much about them in church, more and more Christians are becoming aware of their presence and learning what to do about them. The devil has manipulated and fed into people’s ego throughout history to manipulate and oppress others. From what I’ve seen, they especially like to rule over Christians. In the workplace, these SOBs (sons of Belial) love to have Christians work for them because generally, Christians are good workers, on time, detail-minded and loyal. The SOBs use this to their advantage.

David prayed to God about them: “Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts. Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their endeavours: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.”

I want to expose just a few more prominent aspects of their character from the Word of God so that you will be more apt to recognize who they are and what they do. And remember, they also like to train others to follow them and be like them, so you may encounter people with these characteristics who are not yet totally sold out to the devil directly.

SOBs are “merchandisers of men” (2 Pet. 2:3). They gather and use good-hearted workers as stock items to carry out their deeds. They don’t care about the individual, only what that person can do for them. They abuse workers in sneaky ways: requiring more tasks than what’s reasonable, extra hours without pay, “mandatory” social events, etc. Since they love to prey on Christians, they will often use the guilt trip as a technique to get what they want.

When SOBs want what you have, they’ll send someone to sidle up to you and try to learn or extract skills from you, only to get rid of you and give the job to one of their SOBs-in-training.

Often they are not the spokesperson, but the one behind the scenes calling the punches. They desire to be applauded and put on a pedestal for all their good charitable works, but behind the scenes, they are out to take down anyone they perceive as being in their way. They talk peace and work wickedness at the same time, speaking out of both sides of their mouths. They are extraordinarily sneaky and try to befriend and snare people with their smooth words. They are never to be trusted.

Proverbs 6:17-18 tells us, they have “a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren.”

These are some of the general characteristics of these sons of Belial. We can now recognize them.

When we become aware of their motives and methods either through experience or studying it in the Word of God, we will be able to recognize them in the future and be able to protect ourselves and others who have been pulled unknowingly into their realm of power and destruction.

In next week’s chapter, we’ll learn from King David a way to escape from, avoid, attack, and bring down the spiritual bullies that unfortunately embody some of the people around us. God gave David an entire arsenal of specific weapons that we’ll read about and talk about next time.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. What is the definition of “Belial”?

2. What are some of the other phrases used in the Bible for these sons of Belial? Look up a couple of these.

2. Who does Jesus say is the father of the evil spirits dominating and ruling these wicked people? Where is that found in the Bible?

3. What are a couple of characteristics of sons of Belial? Document these characteristics with scripture references.

I have booklets for sale on Amazon with chapters on Sons of Belial and other devil spirits.

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THE LORD EXPOSES SONS OF BELIAL AND SHOWS US HOW TO OVERCOME

THE LORD EXPOSES SONS OF BELIAL AND SHOWS US HOW TO OVERCOME

When I was visiting in Kinshasa, our host and his family drove up to where we were. They had just buried one of their sons who died of tetanus poisoning. Our host was a wealthy man and worked directly for the King of the country, but he could get no tetanus vaccine, and his son died. The king of Zaire (now called the Democratic Republic of Congo) had riches beyond belief, but the man who served him could get no help for his son. Why not? The KIng oppressed the people under him, and they suffered. This kind of despotism has not only invaded the political realm, but we see it in education, business, entertainment, religion, and almost every institution of life.

God calls these evil people sons of Belial (see Deut. 13:13 and 2 Sam. 20:1). I call them SOBs for short. God says they are merchandisers of men (2 Pet. 2:3). They abuse, oppress, and make the good people under them feel like they can never do anything right.

These top evil despots worship and serve Satan, and he pays them with what they desire: riches and fame. Luke 4:6 tells us the devil gives them kingdoms because they worship him, and he can use them to further his evil ways on the earth. They love people to admire and applaud them. Just like their boss, Satan, they want their co-workers and underlings to worship every idea and plan they have. (see Jude 1:16)

Sons of Belial, or wicked men, as the Bible names them in other verses, are not just interested in the top levels of the mega-organizations. Anywhere they can get a position of decision-making, they will try to get in. Their oppressive ways trickle down to affect everyone under them if possible.

John 8:44 tells us these evil people are liars. Psalm 28:3 says they are hypocritical and deceptive. They will be nice to you one minute and turn on you the next. You can never trust them.

They will take a small mistake committed by a Christian worker and blow it up and add fresh accusations of things that never existed (see 1 Kings 21:10). Working under or around these people is usually extremely difficult and stressful. The SOBs use a person’s words and deeds, twists them, and turns them back on the person.

There’s no reasoning with these people. They are insane in their thinking, so they don’t respond to logic at all. They make up their own rules—whatever works for them to achieve their desired result.

If an SOB doesn’t like you, it doesn’t matter how great a worker you may be, or how great your ideas, you will continuously be the target of their evil. These sons of Belial are masters of slander. They will take something you actually said or did and turn it around to look like it was the most terrible thing ever. They aim to trap those they don’t like (see Ps. 141:9-10 and Ps. 64:3-6). They motivate by fear and oppression.

Under the rule of one of these SOBs, there is never room for individualism but only place for automatons in their juggernaut of control and tyrannical governorship.

These sons and daughters of Belial need to be stopped, and God shows us how to do it.

The Lord exposes them and shows us through the life of His beloved David, what we can do to bring them down.

GOD TRAINED DAVID EARLY TO BE A FIGHTER OF GIANTS. As a shepherd boy, he fought for the life of his sheep when he killed a bear and a lion (1 Sam. 17:37). As a young man, he killed Goliath to protect the people of Israel. As an adult, he fought the devil spirits working in the sons of Belial. We often think of how awesome it was that he killed Goliath with only a slingshot and a small pebble, but we miss the first weapon he used in the battle—the WORDS he fired against Goliath:

David answered, “You come at me with sword and spear and battle-ax. I come at you in the name of God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel’s troops, whom you curse and mock. This very day God is handing you over to me. I’m about to kill you, cut off your head, and serve up your body and the bodies of your Philistine buddies to the crows and coyotes. The whole earth will know that there’s an extraordinary God in Israel. And everyone gathered here will learn that God doesn’t save by means of sword or spear. The battle belongs to God—he’s handing you to us on a platter!” (1 Sam. 17:45-47 MSG)

These words of David were powerful, and when he spoke them, they came to pass. When David became king, many SOBs came against him. Just like God gave David words to speak against Goliath, He gave David (and He gives us) strong words to speak against the spiritual Goliaths we encounter.

These words are violent, and they are for those who are ready to battle a strong Goliath that must be taken down. The following are just a few of the Psalms David prayed against the sons of Belial:

Psalm 58:6-8: “Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O Lord. Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces.  As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.”

Psalm 7:11-16: “God is angry with the wicked [SOBs] every day.  If he turn not, he will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow, and made it ready. He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors. Behold, he travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood. He made a pit, and digged it, and is fallen into the ditch which he made. His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate.”

Psalm 109: 6-12: “Set thou a wicked man over him [the SOB]: and let Satan stand at his right hand. When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin. Let his days be few; and let another take his office. Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour. Let there be none to extend mercy unto him.”

Second Thessalonians 1:6: “Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you.”

There are many more of these prayers in the Psalms that you’ll now be able to recognize and use. Knowing how to wield these verses will help you in situations of personal attacks and also enable you to go to battle for others.

A while back, I experienced an exceptionally intense attack of these evil SOBs when they came into positions of authority over several friends and their children in different places around the globe. I prayed the above scriptures and other pertinent ones every day out loud. Some of my friends were able to escape. Some healed quickly, and others are still in the process of recovery.

I’ve given you a brief overview of this powerful weapon against an enemy who effects so many and yet is still so well hidden from most Christians. We are in a spiritual war, and the devil is getting bolder and more vicious the closer he gets to the end. He is out to steal, kill, and destroy like he did in literally killing my African friend’s son. We can turn the devil’s tactics back on him and help rescue our fellow Christians from death and destruction.

“This honor have all his saints. Praise ye the Lord” (Ps. 149:9).

I highly recommend Dale Sides’ book, Exposing Sons of Belial: Identifying and Overcoming Children of the Devil for information on this subject.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. What are some of the characteristics of a person the Bible calls a son or daughter of Belial? Look up and cite some of the scriptural references for this.

2. Have you ever experienced or perhaps read about a person who fits this Biblical description of a person who serves Satan? Explain.

3. What was David’s first weapon fired against Goliath? Where is this found in the Bible?

4. What are some of the scriptures David has given us in the Psalms that we can pray against these SOBs who knowingly do evil against God’s people?

GOD SENT RAVENS TO ELIJAH AND A CAREER TO CAROLYN

GOD SENT RAVENS TO ELIJAH, AND A CAREER TO CAROLYN

At the outskirts of Las Vegas there used to be a petting zoo and restaurant by a large duck pond, on a property called Bonnie Springs. It was a throwback to the ’50s, cozy and delightful. For many years they took in injured animals and birds and cared for them. We liked to go out there to see an old raven. The guests from the restaurant often feed him soda crackers through the holes in his large pen. 

We watched. When the raven had all the cracker pieces neatly organized in his beak, he hopped down to the bottom of his enclosure and placed the neat stack to one side. He dug a shallow hole with his whiskered beak, put two pieces in the hole and raked some dirt over it, so there was no sign of cracker at all—only earth. He took the remaining portions in his beak.

Clippity-clop hopping in raven fashion to the other side of his bird coop, he dug another hole and buried the rest of the crackers. I was in awe. Finally, I understood the record in 1 Kings 17 about Elijah being fed by the ravens: The raven had already buried some food; it was just waiting for the time when God wanted it brought out to Elijah.

“And the word of the Lord came unto him [Elijah], saying, Get thee hence, and hide thyself by the brook. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he went and did according unto the word of the Lord, and the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening” (1 Kings 17:3-6).

Elijah’s circumstances were not ideal, and the bread and meat were probably not kosher, but Elijah was thankful. God’s provision for him had been totally unpredictable and definitely unique.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says to: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” We need to trust that the Lord loves us and will provide for us even though our paths may be rocky at times. If we look to the Lord Jesus to guide us through, it will work out better than we could possibly imagine.

When circumstances or decisions are hard, we can remember Isaiah 43:19: “I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”

We learn to expect the unpredictable and unique when it comes to God watching over us. When we keep our eyes on Jesus as it says in Hebrews 12:2, “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,” He will always have things set up for us to get to the other side and to the good results He has for us.

When I got ready to write my first book, I had no idea how to get started. The Lord was way ahead of me.

Wendy, one of my closest friends, was publishing online for her job, so she was able to help me. My other friend, Maarit, was an excellent editor and that was no coincidence, either. God already had my girl ravens set up to bless me, and I blessed them too. When I decided to start an art career I “happened” to go into a place in Kansas City to buy a drawing pencil; I came out with a job to fabricate sculptural molds for the bronze foundry and art gallery!

When I moved from Missouri to Northern California and interviewed for a secretarial job, I ended up telling the woman I would prefer working in the arts. She gave me a client’s number, and the first thing my new boss asked was if I knew how to make a mold for a sculptural piece. That started my ongoing career in the arts. Again, no coincidence, but God was preparing ahead of time just for me, and I never saw it coming.

If we continue in our hearts to want to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, He will never, never let us down. 

The ravens are out there burying your crackers and steak right now.

God’s got a great future for us. Let’s be courageous and not be afraid of the unusual or unique ways God has to bless us.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. Can you cite another passage of scripture (besides the one with Elijah) where God supplied an answer from an unusual source?

2. Recall and briefly describe a situation where God had already set up your “ravens.”

3. Where in the Bible is the story of Elijah found?

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GOD REMOVES THEM - PRICKS AND THORNS

GOD REMOVES THEM - PRICKS AND THORNS

When we face challenges and battles, we must remember what Ephesians 6:12 tells us: “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Every negative thing that happens to us is, in some way, connected to negative spiritual forces. They either live inside of people or hang out around them to influence them to act in adversarial ways towards other human beings. Only God can remove some of the demons that like to plague us.

My friend Janelle became a leader within a weight-loss group. Members started going to her for counsel and encouragement. She grew to a position of respect and notoriety because she had an anointing of the Lord to help these people. Cherise envied Janelle’s popularity and began to mutter remarks under her breath whenever Anne offered up a suggestion. Cherise managed to turn even the smallest conversations into a competition between them.

Janelle was getting badgered by constant verbal stabs, and she was tempted to fight back. But by the grace of God, she realized this battle was not worth fighting by the five senses. The situation needed a touch from the supernatural.

As we grow spiritually, we learn to recognize how particular devil spirits present themselves and operate. Then we find a similar situation in the Word of God and find out what God says to do about it. Each kind of demon exhibits unique characteristics. But God tells us: “There is nothing new under the sun” (Eccles. 1:9). Once we see the operation of a certain kind of demon and we’ve read about it in the Bible, we will recognize it much more quickly.

The Bible calls the ones that attacked Janelle, “thorns,” and “pricks.” Numbers 33:55 says: “Then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.” The Hebrew word for “vex” is “tsarar,” which means to besiege, shut up, afflict and oppress.

Where it says they attack you in the place you dwell, it means that you are in a good place. Biblically, in this verse, the word “dwell” means that a person is settled nicely, at ease, and prospering where God has led them. Satan gets so angry and jealous that he sends prick and thorn demons to wrestle us out of God’s blessing places. The demons poke at us, stab at us, and try to get us distracted or, even better, into a fight.

Joshua 23:13 says the following about this kind of demon: “They shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes until ye perish from off this good land which the Lord your God hath given you.”

Judges 2:3 says: “They shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.”

We find a great example of these spiritual thorns and God’s solution to getting rid of them in Second Chronicles 20. King Jehoshaphat was a good king. He and all his people were prospering and enjoying God’s blessing. They had come up out of Egypt and didn’t bother the kings or people of Ammon, Moab, or Mount Seir. But now that Jehoshaphat was doing so well and had such a good reputation, these three armies were jealous, and they gathered a great multitude to come and destroy Jehoshaphat and his people and take over the wealth.

Jehoshaphat was challenged to a fight, but he didn’t know what to do. He recognized the enemy and, though he won many battles in the past, in this case (as in any situation with spiritual thorns and pricks) God’s solution was not to fight.

If we try to fight these pricks and thorns, we will lose. This kind of spirit can only be taken out by the Lord Himself. God spoke to Jehoshaphat and the people through Jahaziel:

“Thus saith the Lord unto you, ‘Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord’” (2 Chron. 20:14-17).

The people prayed and praised God and the next morning when they came to the watchtower to see what was going on: all they saw were dead bodies. The three armies had attacked and killed each other so that not one enemy was left alive. Not only had God allowed the armies to wipe out each other, but all the stuff they’d brought with them became rich spoil for Jehoshaphat and his people.

In both Joshua 23:13 and Judges 2:3 where spiritual thorns are described, God’s solution was that if the people looked to Him, He would be the one to drive those people out who had been operating under the influence of thorn demons.

In New Testament times, the Apostle Paul also encountered these spirits, and God showed him how to handle them—in the very same way as Jehoshaphat. Second Corinthians 12 has that record.

Paul was on the high road. He was getting surprising spiritual revelations and was able to help so many people, but then came “a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me” (2 Cor. 12:7). The dictionary defines “buffet:” “to hit with the fist, to beat back like waves hitting a boat, to punch, slap, or force its way by struggling or hitting.” A buffing wheel is used for polishing. We have the phrase “polish him off,” meaning to kill him.

The ultimate goal of the thorn and prick spirits is to kill the believer’s anointing, his talent, his notoriety, his joy of dwelling in a good place.  And they often do it by constant stabbing, “thorns in your eyes” (repeatedly being annoyed by what you see), or being continuously pestered by voice, choice of music, physical or emotional constant attacks to your soul.

At the time of Paul’s attack, he was being exalted because of the way God was working in him to minister, just like God works in each of us to bring us into positions of honor in areas where we spiritually excel. Paul prayed three times to get rid of it. Paul was no slacker when it came to praying, but somehow, he wasn’t getting God’s answer. I wonder if he maybe thought he could fight it like we sometimes think.

But the Lord told him, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). “Weakness” in the Greek means a lack of spiritual power, which is what we saw with Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat realized he didn’t have enough energy to go against such a spirit as the one he was facing with those three armies. He needed God Himself to do it. The Lord Jesus was giving Paul the same answer when He said, “My grace is sufficient for thee.” In other words, let Me do this job.

The Lord wants “to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him” (2 Chron. 16:9). And with thorn spirits, all we do is look to Him to take care of the situation. “Set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord” (2 Chron. 20:17).

Jealousy and ambition make people susceptible to carrying these thorn and prick demons. They try to provoke us to fight back. If we give it to the Lord instead and don’t fight back with our five senses, the demons can’t get to us and the Lord gets rid of them instead.

When Janelle was attacked, her flesh wanted to fight, but she soon recognized what kind of spirit it was, and we took the situation to God in prayer. We were inspired to tell the spirit it couldn’t touch her, and it wasn’t going to get a fight from us but from the Lord Himself.

Soon after that, we were invited to go to breakfast with some of the people from the group, including the girl being used by the thorn spirit. The Lord said, go, so we went. When we got there, we could tell that the thorn spirit was gone entirely. The girl was free from any devil spirit and acted normal. God removed the prick and thorn spirit, and it never came back.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. Describe a situation you couldn’t handle at all without supernatural help.

2. Have you ever had someone pester you like a thorn and keep poking at your nerves? Talk about it.

3. What kind of demons have you learned to recognize? What do you use from your arsenal to make them leave?

4. In Numbers 33:55, what does the Hebrew word for “vex” mean?

5. Who in particular do the “thorn” and “prick” spirits go after? HINT: the word “dwell” in Numbers 33:25.

6. What was God’s answer to dealing with the “pricks” working in the armies that came against Jehoshaphat?

7. Where in the New Testament do we see another example of these thorn spirits and the weapon used against them?

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JACK INSTANTLY CHANGED HIS MIND

This past week was extra stressful for me, and I was in a terrible mood. I didn’t even want to come out of it all week long. Sometimes we know what the answer is, but we don’t want to do it. Today I decided I better get myself right. When I asked the Lord to show me what to put up for my preach letter, He directed me to this simple story about Wendy and her son Jack. I listened, and here it is:

“Put him on the phone.” My friend Wendy’s six-year-old son Jack didn’t feel like taking a shower and was giving his grandma Mary a bad time. When Wendy was sure Jack was on the phone, she measured out her words: “You need to get in that shower and be clean by the time I get home.” “Okay,” he answered. Jack instantly changed his mind and obeyed. What about us?

Children can make changes easily and learn the benefits of obeying. They remain flexible and grow. As we mature into adults, there’s no reason that has to change. So, how do we do it?

Just this morning I was feeling burdened, thinking I had too much to do. Then when I went to write this, I heeded my own words: “Change your mind. It’s only a thought away.” So I told myself, “It’s going to be a great day.” My attitude instantly got brighter. Satan tried to get me to balk and argue that it wasn’t going to be that easy. But I answered that thought with, “No. With God, it is that easy!”

A rudder on a ship is small, but it can take that ship and turn it around and make it go in a different direction.

Romans 12:1 says: “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” So, by even one thought, I can change the whole direction of my day and be pleasing to God. That’s awesome!

A better day is just a thought away.

We can only think one thought at a time, and we have the power to choose the next thought. “For as he thinketh [is thinking] in his heart, so is he” (Prov. 23:7). What gets into our heart starts with one thought. A right thought is just one thought away from a wrong one. And right thoughts come from the Word of God. It really is just that simple.

Jack instantly changed his wrong thought to the right one by listening to his mom and obeying. We can do the same with God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are our own best friends when we take a thought from God’s Word rather than one that collides with it. Simplicity is a good thing. Life is not that hard if we keep ourselves flexible and obedient like children, one deliberate thought at a time.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. Have you recently had the opportunity to change your mind from wrong thoughts or emotions to right ones? Did you do it quickly, as Jack did?

2. What does it mean to you to re-new your mind as it says in Romans 12:1?

3. Like a rudder on a ship, what small things have significant effects?

4. Try to think two things at the same time. What happens?

5. What did Jack do when his mom told him the right thing to think and do? Can you think of one area in which you might apply this principle?

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BODYGUARDS FOR LIFE

BODYGUARDS FOR LIFE

Mario told me he drives 23 hours straight through when he takes his family to visit relatives in Mexico. I asked him why. He replied, “There are many banditos in the hills along the way, and I am protecting my family.” It reminded me of Genesis 24, where Abraham sent his servant to find a bride for Isaac. The servant had doubts about the trip, but Abraham told him, “The Lord will send his angel before thee and with thee, and prosper thy way.” What did this mean?

The servant had to travel about 450 miles through rough lands carrying a dowry for the prospective bride. Like with my friend Mario, there were bandits along the way ready to rob the servant of his many precious treasures. Part of the angel’s job was to go ahead of the servant and make sure the bandits were not going to be around to attack and steal the goods. Abraham was wealthy, so he would have had many camels with loads of gold, silver, beautiful clothing, and other wonderful things.

The other part of “prospering thy way” was to make sure the servant acquired the treasure (the wife) he came for. And, indeed, it did happen.

How do these scriptures relate to us? If you consider that our lives are a journey, then these verses from Genesis 24 relate to us in many ways and can be applied in many circumstances. We all have possessions we consider treasures. We’d like them to last and not be lost or stolen along the way.

In Matthew 26:53 we see that Jesus could have asked for the help of angels: “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” Twelve legions equal 72,000! Then Jesus tells us we can do the same: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father” (John 14:12).

Considering all the servant took with him, he most likely had other people with him as well, and the angel protected them too. We can pray as Jesus did, and ask God for protection for our loved ones, as well as for our personal safety and the security of our goods.

Part of the angel’s mission in Genesis 24 was to prosper the servant by making sure he fulfilled the purpose of his trip. In this case, it was the right woman. Whatever things the Lord has given you a desire for, you can pray that He sends an angel to prosper your way too and direct you to be in the right place at the right time to receive that desire fulfilled in the very best way.

It’s also something to note in Genesis 24 that the angel was sent out to prosper the way of a servant. This guy wasn’t a king or a corporate giant; he was a servant. Every single born-again person has access to angels like it says in Hebrews 1:14: “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” Galatians 3:29 says we are those heirs: “And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Today I am praying for you that you will read this record in Genesis 24 in light of your life’s many journeys and think about how you can pray for the assistance of angels to prosper your way too.

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. Where in the Bible is the record of Abraham sending his servant to get a bride for Isaac?

2. How do you think Abraham got the idea that an angel would go before and with his servant? How do we know angels are willing to go before and with us?

3. What do you think some of the things angels would do to help prosper the servant’s journey?

4. List a couple of ways these scriptures in Genesis 24 could relate to you on your present journey.

5. Do you think the angels would be willing to protect the people you take with you on your journey like they did with Abraham’s servant? What can you do to employ these angels for service? Cite a scripture to document this.

6. Hebrews 1:14 says angels minister for heirs of salvation. Cite a scripture that says we are heirs.

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USER-FRIENDLY BIBLE PRINCIPLES FOR EVERYDAY LIVING: real life stories of how GOD works to make ordinary life extraordinary.

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WHIRLING DERVISH OR CHAMPION RACECAR DRIVER?

WHIRLING DERVISH OR CHAMPION RACECAR DRIVER?

Two painters were teamed up on a small six-foot scaffolding. I looked over, and my friend Karen was ducking and trying to move away from the flailing arms of her partner, Jill. Jill was high on meth and jumping erratically all over the scaffold, arms and legs going in all directions. Sometimes we act like Jill. We get ourselves going in so many directions that we aren’t moving forward, but only whirling in circles.

Racecar drivers take charge of their lives and move with determination and diligence.  The dictionary definition of diligence is “a constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent exertion of body or mind.”

But we have to remember that we can’t do this alone. If we want to be a racecar champion, all the human effort we make is only empty religion and rules, if the Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ aren’t involved in the process. 

Jesus told the disciples: “The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send, shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).

How does walking by the Spirit of God work? The Lord leads us to something that resonates in our hearts; we connect with it, acknowledge it, and make up our minds to pursue whatever small thing He’s asking. If He shows us a direction to take and we don’t listen, the Lord will sometimes let us go ahead and do our own thing until we finally wear out and come limping back to Him.

He’ll wait for us to wake up and come back to where we left Him. The Holy Spirit reminds us to go back to the idea He gave us before. Yep, the one we didn’t follow the first time He told us. The Lord is patient. He’ll wait a long time for us to “remember, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26b).

Each person’s journey will be different. John 16:13 tells us the Holy Spirit is present to guide us: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things.” WOW! How awesome for the Spirit of God Himself to take the time to show things to each of us, individually. That’s love.

Isaiah 48:6 says: “Thou hast heard, see all this; and will not ye declare it? I have shown thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.”

How exciting and fulfilling it is if we take the time in our frenzied lives to take notice of what He’s doing for us and give Him some credit for it.

Job 8:7 tells us: “Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.” As we acknowledge the Lord in our daily lives, we grow spiritually, and we see even more. Walking by the spirit starts with small things, then expands.

Hebrews 11:6 says: “He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” How amazingly beautiful can the rewards be when they come from the Creator (Elohim) of all things?!

Love, Carolyn

QUESTIONS AND EASY CHALLENGES

1. What truth have you received from the Lord lately that has resonated in your heart?

2. Describe a time when you were going in way too many directions at once. How did it affect you?

3. If you think you might be going in too many directions now, what is one small change you can make this week to change that?

4. What good thing has happened to you recently? Have you acknowledged the Lord for the blessing?

5. What verse gives us hope that even though a beginning may be small, later it will be much more significant?

6. Where does it say the Lord will show us new things? Do you believe it?

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Life lessons from the Bible. Experience a wide variety of circumstances from the point of view of the Bible. The stories will give you new insight into the spiritual forces behind everyday events, both the forces of the true God and the forces of the adversary.

Learn practical ways to listen more clearly to the Lord and the stories will show you how to walk more intimately with Him. Gain the spiritual keys and weapons to be victorious in every situation, God’s way.

USER-FRIENDLY BIBLE PRINCIPLES FOR EVERYDAY LIVING: true life stories of how GOD works to make an ordinary life extraordinary.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=WINGS%3A+A+JOURNEY+IN+FAITH+