Often, Jesus will ask us for something small to unlock something greater. In John 4, Jesus asked the woman at the well for a drink of water. Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans, and saw them as a mixed-race people. The hostility between the two groups ran deep.

        The woman may have thought Jesus was audacious to ask her for a drink. But He did not hesitate to make His request. He knew He was going to offer her something far greater than what He was asking for.

        In John 6, Jesus asked for a boy’s lunch to feed a multitude. The small lunch the boy gave up fed thousands.

        Jesus told a blind man to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. I’m sure Jesus could have healed him then and there, but the man’s act of obedience gained him his sight.

        In 1 Kings 17, Elijah asked a widow in Zarephath during a famine for a drink of water and a piece of bread. She was gathering sticks to make her last meal before she and her son died.

      But she chose to obey, and through her obedience, Elijah, and the woman and her family, were sustained through the draught.

        Miracles can come our way, even when we’re not searching for them. The Samaritan woman was not searching for God. The Zarephath widow wasn’t expecting a miracle. Their obedience unlocked the door to miracles.

        I recently read about a Christian man who was visiting a woman he hadn’t seen in years. She was celebrating a birthday. He asked the Lord to guide him as to what gift he should bring. The Lord led him to a framed picture of the Confederation Bridge, which connects Prince Edward Island to New Brunswick.

        When the man gave the woman the gift, she began to cry. That morning, she had asked the Lord about her purpose and calling. The longing of her heart was to do His will.

        God spoke to her that day and told her she was a “bridge connector” – someone who links people together for divine purposes. The photograph confirmed the word she had received from God.

        What God asks of us may seem small, or even unreasonable. But if we choose to obey, our act of obedience can be the key that unlocks blessings for others, as well as ourselves.
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        God often uses the release of what we hold in our hand to loose what He holds in His.

           ​I’ll always remember in elementary school when teams were chosen for baseball. After the two captains were declared, everyone stood around, staring at the ground, hopping from foot to foot, praying not to be chosen last. Being chosen last always felt like you were the least valuable player.

         Ephesians 1:4-5 (TLB) contains some amazing verses. “Long ago, even before he made the world, God chose us to be his very own through what Christ would do for us; he decided then to make us holy in his eyes, without a single fault – we who stand before him covered with his love. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by sending Jesus Christ to die for us. And he did this because he wanted to!”

        God chose us, as believers in His Son, Jesus, before the foundation of the world. When we were orphaned from God because of our rebellion against Him, through Jesus, He adopted us back.

         Adoption is the act of legally taking a child to care for as one’s own. Because of the New Covenant sealed with the blood of Jesus, God has legally bound Himself to adopt those of us who accept His Son as our Savior, back into His family and to care for us.
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         “...you have not received a spirit that returns you to slavery, so you have nothing to fear. The Spirit you have received adopts you and welcomes you into God’s own family. That’s why we call out to Him, ‘Abba! Father!’ as we would address a loving daddy” (Romans 8:15 VOICE).

        ‘Abba’ is a term of endearment, and the use of it is based on love rather than performance. Isn’t that freeing?

          The apostle Paul writes about himself in Galatians 1:1: “Paul, an apostle (chosen) not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead.” It wasn’t after he cleaned himself up and stopped persecuting Christians that Paul was chosen. He was chosen before he even knew the Messiah.

         “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted” (1 Peter 2:9 MSG).
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         Jesus extends His invitation to all, but only those who respond and accept the invitation to join His team are considered chosen by God. And when we accept His invitation, we are chosen for eternity.

         In the last book of the Bible (Revelation), we read, “They will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them; for He is Lord of lords and King of kings—and those with Him and on His side are chosen and called [elected] and loyal and faithful followers” (Revelation 17:14 AMPC).

         So, dear one, when satan tries to harangue you and tells you you’re no good and that God is angry with you, remind him that because of your acceptance of Jesus as your Saviour, you were chosen and accepted by God before the world began.

              The first book I wrote is entitled “Seventy Times Seven”. The title comes from Matthew 18: 21-22 NIV: “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

            Peter wanted a mathematical equation on how many times he should forgive someone who sinned against him. So, in essence Jesus says, “You want a mathematical equation, Peter, I’ll give you one – “Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:22 MSG). In other words, Jesus was saying forgiveness is not keeping count on how often we are wronged.

          Today, I would like to look at a parable Jesus told about forgiveness. It’s found in Matthew 18:23-35. Jesus said the kingdom of Heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. A man who owed him 10,000 bags of gold was brought to him. The man was not able to pay and the king ordered that he, his wife, and his children be sold to repay the debt.

          The servant begged the king to be patient with him and give him time to pay off the debt. The master took pity on the servant, canceled the debt, and let the man go.

      But the man went out and found a fellow servant who owed him 100 silver coins. He grabbed the man and demanded that he pay back what he owed. The debtor begged the servant to be patient with him and said in time, he would pay back the money.

        The servant who had been forgiven the huge debt refused and had the man thrown into prison. When the other servants saw what happened, they went and told the king. The king called in the servant who refused to forgive and said the following: “...’You wicked servant...‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.  Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

          “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart” (Matthew 18:32-35 NIV).

            From this parable, we see forgiveness is very important to God. It is part of His heart. That is why He sent Jesus, so we can be forgiven from our sin and when we repent, adopted back into God’s family, a position we lost when Adam and Eve turned from God and invited Satan to be their lord.

            In Exodus 15:22-25 (TLB), we read the following: Then Moses led the people of Israel on from the Red Sea, and they moved out into the wilderness of Shur and were there three days without water. Arriving at Marah, they couldn’t drink the water because it was bitter (that is why the place was called Marah, meaning “bitter”).

             Then the people turned against Moses. “Must we die of thirst?” they demanded.
Moses pleaded with the Lord to help them, and the Lord showed him a tree to throw into the water, and the water became sweet.

           The tree made the bitter water sweet. Take your bitterness, hurt, anger, and the wounds of your soul to the foot of the cross. Apply the blood of Jesus to the sin and the dunamis power of the Holy Spirit to the wound in your soul made by the sin of offense. According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, in addition to referring to strength, power, and ability, dunamis can also refer to “moral power and excellence of soul”. Allow Jesus to turn the bitter water inside you to sweet – to restore you to the place where your soul is not damaged and wounded, but is excellent.

         If we want to see the power of forgiveness, look at Jesus. We know that Satan is the prince of the power of the air. Ephesians 2:2 (TPT) says, “It wasn’t that long ago that you lived in the religion, customs, and values of this world, obeying the dark ruler of the earthly realm who fills the atmosphere with his authority, and works diligently in the hearts of those who are disobedient to the truth of God.”

         On the cross, Jesus cried out, “...Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing” (Luke 23:34 NOG). In John 19:30 (MSG), He said, “...“It’s done . . . complete.” Other translations say, “It is finished.”

         At the cross, Satan lost his position of control. The sun didn’t shine – Matthew 27:45 (TPT) says, “For three hours, beginning at noon, a sudden and unexpected darkness came over the earth.” At the cross, Satan lost control of the earth. After Jesus cried out, took his last breath, and gave up his spirit, the earth shook violently and the rocks were split apart.

       At the cross, Satan lost control of death. After Jesus cried out and took His last breath,  “...graves were opened. Then many of the holy ones who had died were brought back to life and came out of their graves...after Jesus’ resurrection, they were seen by many people walking in Jerusalem” (Matthew 27:52-53 TPT).

            Oh my friend, there is power in forgiveness. When you release forgiveness, it closes the door on Satan.

          Boiled down to its essence, whether we extend forgiveness or not, depends on how much we trust God. Will we allow Him to carry our sorrow, pain, and disappointment or insist on holding onto it ourselves? Will we continue to drink the poison of unforgiveness, hoping it will kill the person who wronged us? Do we have faith God will handle our case justly?

            The response of the disciples to the teaching of Jesus about forgiveness in Luke 17 was to ask Him to increase their faith. In order to live out His challenging call to forgive, they knew their faith needed to be strengthened. To forgive is a powerful act of faith.

            I would like to close this post with a prayer. It is a prayer of repentance and forgiveness. It is a prayer for healing. I encourage you to pray it out loud.

          Lord Jesus, today I purpose and I choose to forgive in my heart every single person who has ever been involved in my trauma, be it a loved one, a husband or wife, a family member, a friend, a boss, a person I work with, a pastor, a leader, someone at my church, a government official, no matter who it was, Lord, right now I forgive them in the specific memory of what they did and I repent for getting bitter. I release them and I cancel their debts to me.

           In the name of Jesus, I cancel all of satan’s authority over me in these memories, because they are forgiven and I command the anger, shame, and guilt in these memories to go.

          I want to be healed. I want to have breakthrough. So, I’m taking an intentional action, like Moses did when the bitter waters became sweet. He took that branch, the cross, and threw it into the water. I take the cross. I take the blood Jesus shed for me and I apply it to my bitter memories.

        I put it into my bitter soul to heal these waters, to make them clean, so rivers of living water can flow into my body, into my mind, into my emotions, into my business, into my marriage, into my family, into my ministry, into my finances, into my health, and I see LIFE, HEALING, and WHOLENESS, God’s Shalom peace, coming into every area I need it.

        I pray this prayer in the precious Name of Jesus, the Name that is above every hurt and trauma I have ever experienced. Amen”
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          Prayer adapted from Katie Souza, Katie Souza Ministries

            I don’t know about where you live, but here in eastern Ontario, we have lots of snow, more than I’ve seen in the over eight years I’ve lived in this small town one-hundred and fifty kilometres east of Toronto. We’ve also had our fair share of storms this winter.

            Recently I read about two people who ventured out on their snowmobiles in whiteout conditions. When their machines got stuck, they were stranded and unable to return home. Searchers found one – frightened but in good condition. He told his rescuers he thought he was going to die, alone and abandoned.

            The other person realized he couldn’t make it back, dug into a snowbank, and sheltered there overnight. He was also found – safe and healthy.

          At one time or another, we all find ourselves in the midst of storms. They can be physical, emotional, or spiritual. What do you do when you find yourself caught in one?

        Rule number one is don’t panic.  Panic drives out rational thought. A clear calm mind is essential for survival. Rule number two is to prepare for a storm before it hits. Whatever tempest we face, we need to have the Word of God stored up on the inside of us. Isaiah 26:3 (AMP) says, “You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You – in both inclination and character], Because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation].”
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        Our spiritual and emotional states are related to our thought life. In the midst of the storm, we have a choice as to what we dwell on in our thinking. The apostle Paul urges us to “use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5 MSG).

          I love how The Passion Translation expresses Hebrews 6:19-20 – “We have this certain hope like a strong, unbreakable anchor holding our souls to God himself. Our anchor of hope is fastened to the mercy seat in the heavenly realm beyond the sacred threshold, and where Jesus, our forerunner, has gone in before us. He is now and forever our royal Priest...”
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           In the midst of the storm, Jesus is interceding for us. “Who is the one who condemns us? Christ Jesus is the One who died [to pay our penalty], and more than that, who was raised [from the dead], and who is at the right hand of God interceding [with the Father] for us” (Romans 8:34 AMP).

         God is our shelter in the time of storm. “Then Yahweh will create over all of Mount Zion and over every gathering a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night. And all this manifestation of dazzling glory will spread over them like a wedding canopy. It will be a tabernacle as a shade from the scorching heat of the day and a safe shelter to protect them from the storm and rain” (Isaiah 4:5-7 TPT).

         When the storms of life come, may we not be afraid, but see God’s glory and protection spread over us like a Jewish wedding chuppah – a canopy or covering. Help us never to forget that God is "...such a safe and powerful place to find refuge!... a proven help in time of trouble – more than enough and always available whenever (we) need you” (Psalm 46:1 TPT).

 
            Growing up, our gang of neighbourhood kids often played “Hide and Seek”.  While one person closed their eyes and counted to a certain number, everyone else would scatter and hide. When the counting was over, the person who was “It” would yell out, “Ready or not, here I come!”

            A similar call is ringing out over the earth today. Jesus is coming back for His bride. “On that day, with a command that thunders into the world, with a voice of a chief heavenly messenger, and with a blast of God’s trumpet, the Lord Himself will descend from heaven; and all those who died in the Anointed One, our Liberating King, will rise from the dead first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16 VOICE). When that happens, time for preparation will be over.

            In Matthew 25 Jesus told the parable of the ten virgins who were given the task of being ready to meet the bridegroom. Five of them brought enough oil for their lamps and five did not. The virgins represent all those waiting for Christ’s return and the lamps, the outward profession of faith. Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit and represents true faith and a living relationship with God through Jesus. The bridegroom is Jesus.

           This parable illustrates the contrast between those who develop an intimate relationship with the Saviour,  spending time daily with Him in His Word, praying, and soaking in the beauty of His Presence (the wise), and those who outwardly profess faith but lack true commitment (the foolish).

         When the bridegroom arrived, the prepared virgins went with him into the marriage feast, and the door was shut. The unprepared virgins were left outside, pleading, “’Lord! Lord! Open the door for us’” ( Matthew 25:11 NLT). “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’” (Matthew 25:12 NLT).  

         Jesus concluded the parable with a sober warning. “Watch therefore [give strict attention and be cautious and active], for you know neither the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come” (Matthew 25:13 AMPC).

         As the above verse states, we don’t know the exact timing of Christ’s return. Therefore, in order to be ready, we need to live ready – in a state of spiritual preparedness. “Let us rejoice and be glad! Let us give him the glory! For the time has come for the wedding of the Lamb, and his Bride has prepared herself” (Revelation 19:7 CJB).

         In closing, I ask myself these questions. Do I love Jesus more than anyone or anything else in this world? Do I spend time with Him daily, basking in His Presence, reading His Word, and communing with Him in prayer? Or do I leave Him on the sidelines, because I'm too busy with the things of this world?
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        Can we say with the apostle John, “Amen! Come, Lord Yeshua!” (Revelation 22:20 CJB). As I examine my heart before God, I ask myself, am I ready for His coming? Are you?

​Proverbs 12:2 (NOG): “A good person obtains favor from Yahweh...”
            We can’t do anything to earn God’s favour. It is His gift to us. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the barrier between God and man was torn down, enabling us to receive the favour of our heavenly Father. Like everything else in the Christian life, favour is activated by faith. If we don’t activate it, we won’t reap its benefits.
            In the following Scripture verses, I want to look at five of the benefits of God’s favour.

1. Favour produces restoration of what the enemy has stolen. “And the Lord gave the Israelis favor with the Egyptians, so that they gave them whatever they wanted. And the Egyptians were practically stripped of everything they owned!” (Exodus 12:36 TLB).
2. Favour can bring about prominence and preferential treatment, even for an orphan girl. “The king fell in love with Esther far more than with any of his other women or any of the other virgins—he was totally smitten by her. He placed a royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti” (Esther 2:17 MSG).

     3.     The favour of God can cause petitions to be granted, even by ungodly civil                authorities.

2 “ When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.
3 Then the king asked, “What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given you.”
4 “If it pleases the king,” replied Esther, “let the king, together with Haman, come today to a banquet I have prepared for him.”
5 “Bring Haman at once,” the king said, “so that we may do what Esther asks” (Esther 5: 2-5 NIV).

4.   Battles are won which you don’t have to fight, because God will fight them for you.
“For our fathers did not possess the land [of Canaan] by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them, But Your right hand and Your arm and the light of Your presence, Because You favored and delighted in them” (Psalm 44:3 AMP).

5.     Divine favour can produce supernatural increase and promotion, even in the midst of lack.
“Now there was famine in the land...Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.” (Genesis 26: 1, 12-13 NIV).

       God wants to give His children favour. Psalm 30:5 tells us His favour is for life. So let’s make 2025 the year we grab onto the Father’s promises and activate them by faith. Even when things don’t look like we want them to, we need to hang on. God's promises are ALL “Yes” and “Amen”.

        Christmas is a reminder of God’s provision for us. Through Adam and Eve’s rebellion against God in the Garden of Eden, humankind fell short of His glory. But before the foundation of the world, He had provided a solution. The Scripture says, “But when the proper time came God sent his son, born of a human mother and born under the jurisdiction of the Law, that he might redeem those who were under the authority of the Law and lead us into becoming, by adoption, true sons of God” (Galatians 4: 4-5 Phillips). Through believing in the work of Christ on the cross and in His resurrection, we are adopted back into His family. 

          God’s provision for us does not depend on the economy. His supply comes from His riches in glory, which are limitless. “My God will richly fill your every need in a glorious way through Christ Yeshua” (Philippians 4:19 NOG).

            Like everything in the Christian life, we appropriate God’s promises by faith. And how do we get faith? “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Messiah” (Romans 10:17 TLV).

           I recently read a wonderful story of God’s provision I would like to share with you. In the 1930’s, during the Great Depression, a pastor and his wife relied daily on God’s provision for their needs. They honoured God, even while experiencing urgency for food. They prayed, professing God’s promise of provision.

        One morning, the wife looked out her window and saw over 20 hens approaching their property. The hens entered their outbuilding and laid more than 20 eggs. Then they marched back to their home.

         The wife returned the eggs to the owner and shared the story. The owner told her, “Those aren’t my eggs. Those hens haven’t laid a single egg since I got them months ago.” Miraculously, God provided for this family.

      So whatever needs you are facing today, look to our supernatural God as your provider. He is our Source and not limited by the constraints of this world. As we speak in agreement with His Word and honour Him with our income, God will open the windows of heaven. If we do our part, He has promised do His.

       I like the rendering of Malachi 3:10 in the New Living Translation: “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the LORD of Heaven's Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won't have enough room to take it in! Try it!”

​                                                   Merry Christmas!

            “The weapons of the war we’re fighting are not of this world but are powered by God and effective at tearing down the strongholds erected against His truth. We are demolishing arguments and ideas, every high-and-mighty philosophy that pits itself against the knowledge of the one true God. We are taking prisoners of every thought, every emotion, and subduing them into obedience to the Anointed One” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 VOICE).

            According to the Apostle Paul, we are in a battle – not a physical battle with tanks and drones, but a spiritual one. It is a battle fought in the realm of thoughts and words. Jesus said, “Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation” (Matthew 12:27 MSG). “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]” (Proverbs 18:21 AMPC).

            Where do words come from? They come from what is in our hearts – what we dwell on. “...A person full of goodness in his heart produces good things; a person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what’s within your heart” (Luke 6:45 VOICE).

            And when we face negative circumstances, what words come out of our mouths? Do we speak the problem or the promises of God? We always have a choice.

          For example, when we are condemned and falsely accused, do we rail against the accuser, or do we focus on God’s Word, which says, “...but no weapon that can hurt you has ever been forged. Any accuser who takes you to court will be dismissed as a liar. This is what God’s servants can expect. I’ll see to it that everything works out for the best. God’s Decree” (Isaiah 54:17 MSG).

         If financial challenges come our way, do we spend sleepless nights trying to balance our cheque book, or do we stand on the knowledge that Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law, remembering that poverty and lack are part of the curse? “Do you remember the Scripture that says, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree?’ That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse” (Galatians 3:13 MSG).

         Often, sickness and disease rear their ugly heads when we least expect them. Again, we have a choice. We can focus our minds on the sickness, or on the Word of God. “...it was our pains he carried – our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him – our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises, we get healed” (Isaiah 53:4-5 MSG, bolding mine). “He gives power to the faint and weary, and to him who has no might He increases strength [causing it to multiply and making it to abound]” (Isaiah 40:29 AMPC).
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         By speaking God’s Word over our situations, we align ourselves with His truth. Jesus said He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He is not A truth, He is THE truth, the embodiment of truth itself. As we speak God’s Word, we reshape our thoughts to be a reflection of His truth. By meditating on His Word, we take our thoughts captive, so we can walk in peace, wholeness, and victory. “Yahweh’s blessing brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it” (Proverbs 10:23 WEB). My prayer is that today, and every day, each one of us walks in the blessing of God.

               Today, I am reposting an article I posted on June 28 2021. I would love to receive your comments.

            There’s an interesting verse in Micah 4:9. It says the following: “Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king among you? Has your counselor perished, that pains have taken you like a woman in labor?” (Amplified Bible, italics mine). I’m sure if the Body of Christ was asked this question today, we would give the right answer. “Yes, there is a King among us, Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords.” So why, then is the church not making more of an impact on the world?

           
​         Perhaps it’s because we’ve lacked a kingdom perspective.  In the Scriptures, Joseph, Daniel, and Esther, to name a few, were chosen, taken out and raised up to represent the Kingdom of God before the kingdoms of this world.
   
         As born-again believers, we too have been brought out, trained up and sent back with the good news and demonstration of God’s kingdom. “… you are a chosen people, set aside to be a royal order of priests, a holy nation, God’s own; so that you may proclaim the wondrous acts of the One who called you out of inky darkness into shimmering light.” (1 Peter 2:9 The Voice). “The reason the Son of God was revealed was to undo and destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8 TPT). We as His church are to be the enforcers of the victory Jesus won over satan and his minions when He rose from the dead.

          “Jesus replied, “While you were ministering, I watched Satan topple until he fell suddenly from heaven like lightning to the ground.  Now you understand that I have imparted to you my authority to trample over his kingdom. You will trample upon every demon before you and overcome every power Satan possesses. Absolutely nothing will harm you as you walk in this authority.” (Luke 10:18-19).

​          “Then Jesus made a public spectacle of all the powers and principalities of darkness, stripping away from them every weapon and all their spiritual authority and power to accuse us. And by the power of the cross, Jesus led them around as prisoners in a procession of triumph. He was not their prisoner; they were his!” (Colossians 2:15 TPT). Sometimes I think we as Christians, myself included, act as if we’re satan’s prisoner rather than him being under our feet.

        “So don’t ever be afraid, dearest friends! Your loving Father joyously gives you his kingdom with all its promises!” (Luke 12:32 TPT). Another translation says that it’s the Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom (MEV).

            “Since we are receiving our rights to an unshakable kingdom we should be extremely thankful and offer God the purest worship that delights his heart…” (Hebrews 12:28 TPT). The kingdoms of the earth are extremely volatile. But the kingdom we belong to – the Kingdom of God, is unshakable. It is God’s desire to see His will be done on the earth as it is in Heaven (Matthew 6:10).

​            “For he has rescued us out of the darkness and gloom of Satan’s kingdom and brought us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who bought our freedom with his blood and forgave us all our sins.” (Colossians 1:13 TLB). After reading over these verses, my heart is singing. As believers, we need to remember who we are in Jesus. We are not victims but victors. Let us rise up as citizens of God’s kingdom and do what He has appointed us to do.

            The Jews were exiled to Babylon in multiple waves. In 538 BC, the King of Persia, Cyrus the Great,  conquered Babylon and gave permission for the Jews to return to their homeland.

            The focus of the first return from exile was building Zerubbabel’s Temple. The second addressed spiritual reformation and relearning the laws of God. Under Nehemiah the Prophet in 444 BC, the third return concentrated on rebuilding the broken walls of Jerusalem.

            Like Jerusalem’s fallen walls, we as born-again believers can have fractured walls in our lives – walls relating to our health, finances, relationships, past mistakes. What can we learn from the Book of Nehemiah in dealing with the crumbled walls in our lives?

1. Nehemiah Prayed and Fasted

                When Nehemiah heard from his brother, who had just returned with others from a trip to Judah, that things were not going well for those who had returned there, and that the walls of Jerusalem had been torn down and the gates set on fire, he wrote in Nehemiah 1:4 (NLT), “When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven.”

            Nehemiah repented for his own sins and for the sins of the people. Before God restores us, He wants us to repent of any unconfessed sin. Joel 2:13-14 (NLT) says, “Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead. Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love...” If we truly repent, God has promised to forgive us (1 John 1:9).

    2. Nehemiah and the people gave themselves fully to the work of God
                To get the work done, the people gave time, money, resources, and energy. Men and women together put their lives on the line. Amazingly, in spite of enemies who didn't want to see the Jews succeed, they reconstructed the walls in just 52 days.

            As born-again believers, we must work together as a community in beseeching God to restore our fire and desire for Him. We need to support each other as we allow God to go behind the closed doors of our hearts and clean out the dirt and garbage.

   3. We need help from the good hand of God
            In Nehemiah 2, when Nehemiah asked the king for letters requesting safe travel to Jerusalem and timber for rebuilding the walls, it says, “and the king granted these requests because the gracious hand of God was on me” (Nehemiah 2:8 NLT).

​         When the enemies of the Jews scoffed at the rebuilding of the walls, Nehemiah answered them, “...The God of heaven will help us succeed” (Nehemiah 2:20 NLT). In everything, we must acknowledge the hand of God at work in our lives – changing us, purifying us, and making us into the image of His Son, Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 ESV).

         The Apostle Paul wrote, “Today I am who I am because of God’s grace, and I have made sure that the grace He offered me has not been wasted...” (1 Corinthians 15:10 VOICE).

        “God is good to one and all; everything he does is soaked through with grace” (Psalm 145:9 MSG). God’s good hand is on each one of us. Will we cooperate with Him and allow Him to rebuild our broken walls and make us into the people He wants us to be? My prayer is that for His glory, we will.