Month: July 2017

I love to feed the birds! This feeder hangs from a branch right outside the window where I do a lot of my writing. I enjoy seeing the variety of birds that come to eat from it throughout the day. It is a reminder that “God’s eye is on the sparrow, and I now He watches me.”

“Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?” Matthew 6:26-27

But this feeder doesn’t only attract birds, it also attracts squirrels. The ultimate enemy of every bird feeder! Though it is a “squirrel proof” feeder they had found a way to get into the top of it. So I began a battle I was determined to win! I fought for several weeks trying all kinds of ways to out smart the squirrels. I know, many have gone before me with all sorts of strategies only to lose. But I believed I could come up with something unique that would win the battle. After perhaps my fifth try, life got busy and I didn’t have time to come up with strategy number six. Though squirrels came and ate from the feeder, the birds were coming too so I just put off strategy number six until another time. Well, one day I noticed there were no birds coming to eat, or squirrels for that matter, though the feeder was filled with seed. At first I just reasoned it away…maybe the birds were nesting and they couldn’t come to the feeder. Maybe there was enough other things to eat this time of year… Well, finally, after about two weeks of nothing coming to the feeder I decided to take a closer look. What I saw upon closer inspection revealed the reason there was nothing eating from the feeder…

It was squirrels! While they were hanging on the feeder they caused the inside of the feeder to slip down so that  the holes became blocked; the “squirrel proof” feature, but it stuck in that position so there was no way to get the seed out of the feeder. I was so glad I finally took a closer look!

As I adjusted the feeder and walked back into the house God began to speak to me…

“Wilma, take a good look at that bird feeder. From a distance that bird feeder looked fine. It was filled with seed. It was hanging straight. But, there were no birds eating from it. A filled bird feeder has only one purpose, to feed birds. It isn’t meant to just hang from a tree looking good.

So with you, Wilma, there are times you think you are looking good. You are filled with seed, you are hanging straight, and life seems to be going great.

But is your life having any affect on those around you?

Are others benefitting from the things you say and do?

Are you fulfilling the purposes I created you for?

You were created to live for Me and to glorify Me. I sent you into this world to preach the Good News, to shine your light, and to bear the fruit of the Spirit so others could taste and see that I am good.

Wilma, you have been writing about the victory you have in Me, and Yes, I have won the ultimate battle, but as long as you are here on earth you will experience the affects of the enemy as he tries to rob your “seed” and means to block your “holes” so My seed won’t flow through you to others. When you get busy and don’t take time to come to Me you don’t get filled with My seed, and you are vulnerable to the enemy’s strategies. This causes you to become ineffective, just like the bird feeder hanging from the tree…looking good from the distance, but unable to be of any use.

That is why you need to come to Me every day and let Me take a closer look.

It is in My presence where you are filled and realigned from the inside out. Your heart and your actions, your mind and your words, need to be aligned with My truth so that the “seed” I fill you with will be available and accessible to others around you. Then, you will be filled with My “seed” and you will have the power and authority to overcome any strategy meant to block your “holes.” You will then fulfill the purpose for which I created you for and many will taste and see that I am good!”

“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. James 4:7-8”

“For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.” 2 Corinthians 9:10

Being filled with God’s “seed” is not only for me, but it is also intended for those around me.

Like birds coming to my bird feeder, people will come to me throughout the day needing some “seed.” They are hungry for a word from God, whether they know it or not. When I am filled daily with fresh “seed” I will have something to share with others. It is amazing how often the verse I read in the morning or the lesson God just showed me from His word, comes out of my mouth as I am talking with someone during my day. It is so satisfying and encouraging to have some “seed” to share that is helpful to someone else. It causes me to be thankful that I took the time to spend with God that morning. Not only are there birds that perch on the feeder and eat the seed, but there are also birds that sit on the ground and eat the seed that has fallen. This makes me think that not only is my “seed” going out to those who I talk to personally, but there are conversations that others overhear just because they are around me. They are eating my “seed” as well.

I love the way God uses the things in our lives to show us and teach us spiritual lessons! I’ll never look at a bird feeder in the same way again.

“Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both.” Ecclesiastes 11:6

Strategy number six was a perfect plan, there was no way they could get to the feeder!

So they chewed the rope!

Squirrels – 6

Wilma – 0

Mark said he would get me some wire this time! Strategy seven is in the planning…

“I heard an old, old story,
How a Savior came from glory,
How He gave His life on Calvary
To save a wretch like me;
I heard about His groaning,
Of His precious blood’s atoning,
Then I repented of my sins
And won the victory.

Chorus
O victory in Jesus,
My Savior, forever.
He sought me and bought me
With His redeeming blood;
He loved me ere I knew Him
And all my love is due Him,
He plunged me to victory,
Beneath the cleansing flood.”

Everyone loves an underdog story…

Like the story of the skinny preacher from rural Pennsylvania, who went to New York City because God broke his heart for the seven gang members he read about in a magazine, who became founder of Teen Challenge and pastor of Times Square Church.

This hymn, Victory in Jesus, is an underdog story. It reminds us that we are all underdogs in that we are hopeless in our sin. We are all born with a sin nature; born into an impossible situation with all odds against us.

But it isn’t God’s will for us to live the defeated life as an underdog. He created us for victory, for destiny!

God had a plan from the beginning of time for the ultimate underdog story. He knew we couldn’t overcome our sin nature on our own, yet He created us for greatness, for victory!

We needed a Savior! A Savior that would win the victory for us.

“Victory in Jesus!”

This song I sang as a girl has great truth, but for some reason I lived so much of my life believing it was a story that celebrated the day of the salvation from my sin, and the promise for the day I would go to heaven when I die. But what about the life lived between these two days? I am learning that the victory I have in Jesus is meant for every day!

I am to live life from the Position of Victory!

The night David Wilkerson asked himself a question and talked to God about it…

“How much time do I spend in front of that screen each night?…What would happen, Lord, if I sold that TV set and spent that time – praying?…What would happen if I spent two hours every single night in prayer?

…changed the direction of his life.

There was a battle going on in his thoughts…

“I was tired at night. I needed relaxation and change of pace. Television was part of our culture; it wasn’t good for a minister to be out of touch with what people were seeing and talking about.”

…the victory he won in his thoughts defined him as a man of prayer who has left an incredible legacy for the Kingdom of God.

What is this position of Victory in Jesus?

“But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:57

Victory – an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in a battle, game, or other competition.

This Position of Victory sets you above all opponents… 

*Those thoughts that battle within your mind when God prompts you to do something that doesn’t make sense.

*When you find yourself wanting to throw yourself a pity party.

*When fear comes knocking from a diagnosis.

*When everywhere you look there just isn’t enough.

This position of Victory enables you to…

*obey God even when it doesn’t make sense. Victory enables you to push through what your flesh wants and to do, to do the hard thing, and to do it afraid.

*pray for those who have caused your pity party. Victory enables you to lay aside your feelings, your rights, your expectations, and to pray for others to be blessed so that they also live in the victory God intends.

* trust God and fear Him alone, with full confidence that He loves you, that He is for you, and that He is your Great Physician who is able to care for you. Victory enables you to trust God for His diagnosis.

* lean on the promises of God and to call out what isn’t as though it were! Victory enables you to look past your lack and to keep your eyes and your hope on the Giver of all good gifts, and on the One who provides all your needs.

Victory in Jesus is a position based on what Jesus did, not on what you have done. This position of victory doesn’t depend on your strength or ability. There is no way to earn it, it is obtained through belief in Jesus alone. 

Victory in Jesus says, “Not my will, but Your’s be done.”

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 

A victorious life doesn’t hold on to sin by making excuses or by hiding it from others. The position of victory realizes sin weakens and disempowers, and so, humbly asks God to reveal all sin so confession and repentance will bring forgiveness, healing, and freedom.

Victory in Jesus is freedom!

“We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him.” Romans 6:6-8

A victorious life lives above the strategies of the enemy, wielding the authority and the protection the Lord has given and claiming the victory that He has already won.

Victory in Jesus protects!

“Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you.” Luke 10:19

A victorious life is a life filled with the fullness of the Holy Spirit. It is evidenced with the fruit of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control, and with good deeds that show God’s glory.

Victory in Jesus shines!

“let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” Matthew 5:16

A victorious life prays scary prayers that shake the house, that go beyond comfort zones, way beyond all borders! It is a life that makes the coward, brave; the weak, strong;  and the poor, rich.

Victory in Jesus is enables and empowers!

” After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:29-31

The night the battle was going on within David Wilkerson’s thoughts, he set a fleece before the Lord which “changed his life.”

“Jesus, I need some help deciding this thing, so here’s what I’m asking of You. I’m going to put an ad for that set in the paper. If You’re behind this idea, let a buyer appear right away. Let him appear within an hour…within half an hour…after the paper gets on the streets.”

“…Twenty-nine minutes passed by the clock… The telephone rang…My life has not been the same since.”

It was during one of those late night prayer times that the Holy spirit prompted David to pick up the magazine which contained the pencil drawings and article of seven boys from New York City. Looking into their faces brought David to tears, his heart filled with sympathy and compassion. He felt the calling of God to go and to help those boys.

David Wilkerson went into New York City afraid. But every step along the way God was there with another promise of victory.

The victory in Jesus that encouraged and empowered David Wilkerson wasn’t for him alone. This victory overflowed into the lives of thousands and continues to impact lives today!

There is a life of Victory in Jesus for you as well!

The battle you are facing; whether it is scarcity in your finances, relationships, or health, or whether there is something God is calling you to do that you are resisting or excusing away, though the enemy means for it to defeat you, God intends for it to be the very thing for Him to encourage you, and to equip you, so you come through victorious!

May you be encouraged by the stories of Gideon and of David Wilkerson to get out of your comfort zone, rise up out of your place of hiding, listen to the call of God on your life, and even if you need to do it afraid trust that God will empower you and equip you to win the victory.

Because on the other side of your greatest fear is the “Victory in Jesus” that will be your greatest area of ministry! 

Quotes from the book, “The Cross and the Switchblade”

Written by, David Wilkerson

Gideon and his three hundred soldiers accomplished an impossible victory! It was a battle fought in the physical realm against flesh and blood, fought with unconventional weapons that supernaturally caused panic and destruction to the enemy army, and brought much glory and praise to the God of the Israelites!

All throughout the Bible we see God is a God of Victory!

When Lucifer, God’s covering angel, rebelled against God a battle took place in heaven. Good and evil can’t co-exist, and ever since, there has been a battle between good and evil.

It is a battle between God and Satan, truth and lies, life and death.

*When Satan entices us to conform to the ways of the world, to forget God and not listen to Him, God is for us and comes to rescue us!

*When Satan robs from us and brings scarcity into our lives, and causes us to fear, God’s perfect love casts out all our fear and brings abundant life!

*When Satan’s lies cause us to forget who we are as God’s people and bring doubt and unbelief, God reminds us who we are and who He is!

*When Satan’s strategies form strongholds that are passed from one generation to another so that we worship our father’s gods, God empowers us to tear them down and to restore our worship of Him alone!

*When Satan overwhelms us with impossible situations, God comes to remind us that He is the God of the impossible!

When Satan says we are defeated…

God calls us Victorious!

But, if you read to the end of the story…

“They forgot the Lord their God, who had rescued them from all their enemies surrounding them.” Judges 8:34

God’s people needed a Greater Victory over the strategies of the enemy…

God had a plan for a Greater Victory!!!

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Praise God for the Greater Victory that His Son, Jesus, won on the cross! Jesus’ death on the cross paid the price for all sin. Jesus’ resurrection form the grave won the victory over sin and death!

“For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:56-57

Jesus is Victorious!!!

Satan is a defeated foe!

So what does this mean for us today?

It means that if you are “in Christ” you are Victorious!

“…no weapon turned against you will succeed.” Isaiah 54:17

No matter what battle you are facing, no matter how impossible it looks to you, there is victory for you.

“Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

The battle of good and evil continues and one way it is seen is in the form of trials and sorrows, but

“…we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12

These evil rulers and authorities, these mighty powers are still battling against God’s people. But, unlike Gideon’s enemies, these are unseen in the physical realm. The evidence that they exist is in the words and actions of people. Often we can forget that our battle is in the spirit realm and we treat those who evidence evil in their words and actions as if they are the enemy.

We fight against the wrong enemy.

We fight in the physical realm.

When we fight the wrong enemy there won’t be a victory.

Victory only comes when you fight the real enemy with the weapons God has provided. 

“We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4-5

So, what impossible battle are you facing?

A financial scarcity?

A relational falling out?

A health issue?

I’m here to tell you, if you are “in Christ,” you have the Victory!

No matter how much striving you do God doesn’t intend for you to provide for yourself. He doesn’t intend for you to trust in your own ideas, or to lean on your own understanding. He tells you to trust in Him with all your heart, and in all your ways to acknowledge Him. He doesn’t intend for you to look to the ways others are succeeding financially. He says to seek Him and His kingdom first, and then all your needs will be met. In the spirit realm trust and seeking God wield great power. They battle against the strategies of the enemy that are meant to rob from you. They bring ideas and strategies to your mind intended for your good. God has victory for your finances when you put your energy into trusting in God alone and by seeking God first.

That person that seems to be your enemy, isn’t. No matter what the issues are between you, choose to look beyond them and see there is an agenda of the enemy behind their words and their actions. The enemy comes to destroy relationships. There is power in unity and those who love God and are in relationship with each other are a powerful force for the kingdom of God.

“I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them.” Matthew 18:19-20

Two or more believers united are a threat to the enemy. That is why he works so hard to divide and conquer marriages, families, ministries. So stop fighting the wrong enemy and turn your energy to praying for the other person. Whatever the issues are between you they are a result of lies of the enemy and the only way to fight against them is through prayer. As you pray for that person you will be amazed how God works both in your heart and in the heart of the other person! God has victory for your relationship if you choose to fight the battle His way!

The physical and the spiritual can’t be separated. We are spirit beings living in a physical body. The Holy Spirit lives within our flesh and blood. Healing is a complex issue, way too complex to write a paragraph about. But, I do believe the enemy forms strategies against us that are meant to rob, kill, and destroy us, both spiritually, and physically. I believe the physical attacks of the enemy meant for our harm are intended by God to get our attention so that we look to Him. God intends that we love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. God loves us too much to leave us with compromise and sins that rob us of His blessings and hinder us from doing His will. The thing about health issues is that when something is wrong we run right to the doctor to take care of us. We don’t consider that perhaps it is a strategy of the enemy meant for our harm. We don’t believe that perhaps there is a sin issue that our Great Physician wants to show us so that we can confess it and be healed.

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” James 5:16

God has victory for us, body, soul, and spirit! While doctors have their place, I encourage you to run first to your Great Physician. You will be amazed when He shows you a sin, you choose to fight in the spirit realm with a prayer of confession, and find you are instantly healed!

Stop fighting in the physical realm, you are fighting the wrong enemy!

Learn to fight in the spiritual realm with the weapons God provides!

Embrace the Victorious Life you have in Christ!

 

 

“He (Gideon) divided the 300 men into three groups and gave each man a ram’s horn and a clay jar with a torch in it. Then he said to them, “Keep your eyes on me. When I come to the edge of the camp, do just as I do. As soon as I and those with me blow the rams’ horns, blow your horns, too, all around the entire camp, and shout, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”It was just after midnight, after the changing of the guard, when Gideon and the 100 men with him reached the edge of the Midianite camp. Suddenly, they blew the rams’ horns and broke their clay jars. Then all three groups blew their horns and broke their jars. They held the blazing torches in their left hands and the horns in their right hands, and they all shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” Each man stood at his position around the camp and watched as all the Midianites rushed around in a panic, shouting as they ran to escape. When the 300 Israelites blew their rams’ horns, the Lord caused the warriors in the camp to fight against each other with their swords.” Judges 7:16-22

God’s promises and God’s weapons hold great power!

The enemy camp was suddenly surrounded by praise; the trumpeting of the rams horns.

The sound of clashing clay jars brought chaos, confusion, and panic.

Blazing torches brought distraction and increased the darkness within their camp.

Shouts of “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” instilled fear; for they knew the power of the Israelite’s God!

Gideon’s soldiers used their unconventional weapons…then stood their ground, while the Lord caused the enemy soldiers to fight against each other with their conventional weapons, to destroy one another.

By using God’s unconventional weapons and standing firm on the words and promises of God, we create an opportunity for God to come and fight the battle for us.

God gave Gideon the promise of victory. God told Gideon the weapons to use and the ways in which to use them.

Today we have a Bible filled with promises of God and commands that when applied become weapons of warfare!

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?” Romans 8:28, 31-32

Jesus has won the battle! He has triumphed over sin and death and has won the victory over the enemy!

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Jesus promised us that though we will have battles to fight, He has already won the victory! All we need to do is take up our weapons, use them as God instructs, stand our position, and see the power of God!

Weapon #1 – Trumpets…Praise

I’ve written much about the power of praise, but I don’t think it can ever be emphasized enough! Not only is it more powerful than anyone can imagine, but it is also the hardest thing to do when facing a battle. I guess that’s why Paul wrote…

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Philippians 4:4

That six letter word there in the middle of the verse…

ALWAYS

Always means; at all times, on all occasions, every time, without exception.

God wants us to rejoice all the time. It seems there is no time we have an excuse not to rejoice. God’s word isn’t filled with good suggestions, they are truths and when we apply them we will reap a harvest of blessing in our lives.

Praise confuses the strategies of the enemy and causes him to flee!

Weapon #2 – Broken Jars…Brokenness

The broken areas in our lives are intended to be the weapons of revenge against the enemy. When we surrender our brokenness to God, He takes it and redeems and restores it so that we become free, healed, and made whole. When we fight our battles from restored brokenness there is a strength and confidence we would never have otherwise. Those areas in our lives where the enemy won before; where he lied and deceived us, where we were broken and destroyed, gain an incredible strength once they have been covered by God’s amazing grace! Once they have been washed by the blood of Jesus! Our brokenness becomes our strength. It becomes our passion to tell others of God’s power and love so they too are set free!

Restored brokenness is God’s vengeance upon the enemy!

Weapon #3 – Torches…Light

Jesus is the Light of the world, and because He lives in every believer, we too are the Light of the world! Gideon’s soldier’s torches were burning brightly inside their jars. They were hidden for a time, but when it was the right time brokenness gave way to brilliant light. We can live hiding the Light of Jesus within us with compromise and shame. We can live powerless and defeated lives. But once we chose to beak out of our fear, come out of our hiding, and live unashamed of our brokenness, the Light of Jesus will shine through us! The Light of the world will radiate from within us to dispel the darkness and cause the enemy to flee!

Brokenness allows the Light to shine bright!

Weapon #4 – Shout…the Word of God

The power of life and death is in our tongues! Shout aloud the name of Jesus! Shout aloud the promises of God!

We have a choice of the words we speak…

Words of worry, negativity, and doubt are aligned with the strategies of the enemy. They keep the enemy’s plans working in us and in our circumstances. They keep his lies and fears alive in our minds and hearts. They keep us paralyzed and ineffective. They send us to people to help us figure out what to do. They keep us awake at night with anxiety. Our prayers are filled with telling God our problems.

Words of life are aligned with the truth of God. They keep God’s plans working in us and in our circumstances. They keep God’s promises alive in our minds and hearts. They make us strong and courageous. They keep us trusting in God no matter what. They bring us peace in the midst of the storms. Our prayers are faith-filled prayers, expecting above and beyond all we ask or think of.

Fight your battles with the weapons of God , stand your ground, and see the salvation of the Lord!