Closing the Doors

2Chronicles 33:10

10And the Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they would not listen.

Manasseh had become king of Judah when he was only twelve years old and he was king for more than fifty years. Manasseh played both sides of the coin. He built alters to pagan gods, practiced soothsaying, witchcraft, sorcery and visited mediums and spiritists. He also built alters in the house of the Lord and carved idol images. Because of this, the Lord, not Satan, brought affliction upon all of them. Manasseh was the leader and he led those under him into ways that were not of the Lord also.

We are the most stubborn children of our Lord. Yes we, meaning you and I. We are very stubborn when it comes to listening to our Heavenly Father. We all love going our own way.  But going our own way doesn't just put us in jeopardy, it puts those under our care in harm's way also. How many people visit palm readers, psychics, tarot card readers, mediums, etc? These practices are what the Lord is talking about. Doors are open to places that should not be open in your life. When the Lord says close the doors He means it. Opening doors such as these while in the house of the Lord actually opens you and those around you to demonic influence, disobedience and harm. It's like a vicious cycle. And sometimes the only way for our loving Father to break the cycle is to send something to knock you off your feet. Practicing any of  these things makes our Father jealous because He created us to worship Him. When anyone starts worshiping these false gods, it means you have put something before Him.

In the end, Manasseh came to himself, repented and asked for God's help. And guess what? He did.  Our Lord can do the same thing with you. Are you dabbling in things and with people who practice them that shouldn't be? Repent and turn and the Lord will forgive you.

It's A Two Way Street

Ephesians 6:4

4And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.

Colossians 3:21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

 

We know that one of the commandments is to honor thy mother and father so that your days may be long. Most people stop there. But the apostle Paul stated twice with this command that children are not to be provoked to anger lest the become discouraged and that parents are to bring them up in the Lord. It's a two way street. Why is this so important?

As an abused child myself, I can tell you that anger, rage and self-destructive behavior ensued after being mistreated. Children are a gift from God which He entrusts to you and can be taken back at any time. In my new book, "Shh Don't Tell", I talk about how this second command is often broken by parents, caregivers or anyone who children are entrusted to. Children cannot survive on their own so when people who are to teach them and care for them violate them, a disconnect takes place.

As the host of Good Life Radio, Teria Powell, said, "Shh Don't Tell" tells you not just about the stories of Ingrid, Randy and Kendall but also what signs to look for if a child has been abused and what not to do should you find a child in this situation." What I appreciated about my interview last Saturday morning with Teria Powell was that not only does she have a discerning spirit, but she is a foster mother so she sees many of these children after the trust has been broken. And she is tasked with building back the trust. Teria sees the anger, rage and self-destructive behavior that can lead to death after these acts have been committed. The stats on abused children are staggering but still skewed because many acts of abuse go unreported. Children are shamed into keeping quiet not only by those who abuse them but often by other loved ones.

Children start out obeying those who are meant to care for them but when they are harmed, what do you think happens? The apostle Paul knew and that is why he spoke about it. Jesus spoke about children in Matthew 18:3 being received in His name. 

Abuse is not just physical but also verbal and emotional and manipulation is a form of abuse as well. Be a help to our future generations not a hindrance.

Go to www.getyourjoyinthemorning.com to order Shh Don't Tell.

Unholy Unification

1Corinthians 6:15

15 Do you know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the member of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!

The apostle Paul addressed the church of Corinth as some members of the church continued to visit prostitutes after they had given their lives to Christ. Paul goes on to say that anyone who has sex with a prostitute becomes one with them in spirit because the word says "and the two shall become one flesh."

God brought something to my attention yesterday. There is no difference between the female or male on the street who prostitutes and the ones who deliberately seek out those with money or any other attribute they hope to gain with sex other than that one is considered "high class".  Can God redeem anything? He certainly can! But if the motive is anything other than love which is to be the foundation, then it is an unholy unification and subject to turmoil. The word says in 1John 4:8 that if you do not know love then you do not know God because God is love. God is to be the foundation of a union. Love is to be the foundation of a union. Love is a motivation and is to be the ultimate motivation. Not money, status, or anything else. Love is to be the reason not lust or greed. We become what we unite with. Be careful of any unholy unification. God cannot ordain what is unholy without repentance, hence our savior Jesus Christ. Repentance requires acknowledgement of the sin. If one does not believe what they are doing is incorrect or just decides that though it is wrong want to continue in it then they will not repent and God cannot redeem. The only blessing required is the one from God. If God is not in it, simply put, it is not blessed.

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