Resist

The last couple of weeks have been amazing. I have been spending time with family, my dogs, and even the chickens. But most of all, we have been taking time each day to worship Jesus together. I have been very happy, because I truly feel that I am walking the path that the Lord wants for me. Recently, the Lord has been calling my family and I to start posting live videos on Facebook. Even in our imperfection, we worship Jesus and we let Him lead. There have been beautiful moments, because there is Victory, and we know that there are people out there that are being touched by the Love of Jesus.

Now, when we decided to stand up and let God move through us, we stepped over into enemy territory. We stepped into No man’s land and went past that straight into enemy camp to claim those lost lives for Christ. What happens when you step into enemy territory? Retaliation.

When you push someone, they will most likely push you back. When you stand up and say, ” God here I am, use me Jesus for your Glory.” the enemy trembles. And when you truly let Jesus lead you and use you to help people, you begin to see and experience the power of God for who He really is. Unexplainable miracles, things that are not normal, supernatural things.

But as you begin to experience these amazing things, you also begin to notice a lot of unnatural messed up things start to happen as well. You’re going from Glory to Glory, feeling the constant presence of the Holy Spirit wherever you go. And everywhere you go the enemy is getting uncomfortable. Irritated, angry, furious, the demons can’t handle that anointing you carry. So now when you go to the store, the clerk who was once a sweetheart treats you like garbage. When you go to work, your boss decides to give you the most work and the worst hours possible. Where you used to have Sundays off to go to church, now you got a double shift on Sundays. Now your kid starts acting up and rebelling against you and a million little issues come up and now you have to fix the car and get a new stove because yours just stops working for no apparent reason.

You start to get confused, asking God, ” What did I do wrong?” You start to feel as if you messed up, you feel discouraged, you feel guilty like you’ve done something wrong. It’s a horrible feeling that starts to build up in the pit of stomach. A feeling of fear and discouragement. But I’m here to tell you, you’ve got it all wrong.

These are all tactics that the enemy uses to distract and destroy you. I say this from experience. When you let God use you and you are full of the Holy Spirit, the enemy cannot touch you, so what does he do? The enemy uses distractions, worry, stress, anxiety, fear, depression, weak family members, worldly store clerks, and a weak boss to try and destroy you so that you will no longer focus on what God is doing through you!

But did God not know that was going to happen? Yes, He did! This is why in the Bible, He tells us to resist! Resist the enemy, resist temptation, resist even yourself.

 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

1 Peter 5:9 NIV

You are not alone in this and no, you’re not going crazy. When we stand up in Faith, you better believe the enemy is going to try to topple you. The enemy likes to use things that will lead you to question God and to question what God is doing through you. You start to question yourself and then your mind just gets messy with a lot of emotions and negative thoughts that often don’t even make sense. And if we are not careful, these thoughts and feelings can get worse, to the point of depression and possibly suicide. I would know, because I have been there. I have been depressed, anxious, fearful and suicidal. Why do you think you hear of Preachers and youth pastors who were once so on fire for God all of the sudden just took their own lives?

But if we stand firm and we resist the enemy will flee! Spiritual warfare is real people! Angels and demons are real. God is real and so is the devil. If you begin to acknowledge that and see the enemy for the liar and deceiver that he really is, then you will not be toppled!

God prepared us for this in His word. He knew what we were going to go through, He knows that when we stand up in His name, that the enemy would try to distract you so that you would lose sight of Jesus.

The Armor of God

  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people

Ephesians 6:10-18

Right there in Ephesians 6: 10-18, the Word of God tells us to put on the full armor of God. We are struggling against the rulers, the authorities, and against the powers of this dark world. We have to be ready for anything the enemy tries to throw at us. We have to be ready for anything life throws at us. We have to be ready for what the world is constantly throwing at us on a daily basis. We have to stay focused and resist.

We are living in times where everything is changing. The earth is shaking, the skies are constantly producing wonders we have never seen before, and the atmosphere is thick with anticipation. We are all questioning in the back of our minds: Will we go to war soon? Is the stock market going to crash? What new law is going to come into effect that will drastically change my life? Will I be safe when I go to Walmart or to the movie theater?

All of these questions constantly running through our minds. Filling up your mind with worries and distractions will make it almost impossible to hear God trying to speak to you. Our minds are very powerful, if we do not take care of them and make sure we empty them, it will get very hard to focus on God. You can put a stop to this, literally when you find yourself thinking too much and freaking out, just pause, breathe, and empty your mind. You can even say,” stop” out loud. I do it all the time. You have to begin acknowledging these things, acknowledge that you are human, but also acknowledge that God has given you self- control and that He did it with good reason.

I implore you to start acknowledging that what God is doing through you is beautiful and often times so powerful it is beyond human comprehension. What God is doing through you and for you is important and is helping to save people from death and literal eternal damnation. We have to say it how it is, if not us, then who? So many people are called, but few are chosen in Spirit and Truth.

Let’s stand up firm in Christ, let’s pray fervently for each other. Don’t forget that if you feel like this, your brothers and sisters in Christ also feel like this too. Pray for them, pray for your pastors, pray for the missionaries who have taken this call and have given their all to go out and preach the Gospel, pray for those people who live in countries where worshiping Jesus is not allowed. Pray for the new believers, people who have just started talking to Jesus for the first time in their lives. Help those people, they often don’t know how to pray or how to read the Bible. Pray for the nonbelievers, for their hearts to open up, for them to see the Truth, for them to be free in Jesus.

My mom actually told me yesterday,” we go through these battles with our minds and with the enemy, but we know how to defeat it because we have Jesus. Imagine what those people who don’t have Christ feel like, how their minds literally eat them up from the inside out. We have to pray for those people, I can’t even imagine what they must be going through.”

We have to pray for those people. We have to resist so that we can stop focusing on our problems and worries and instead focus on the work that needs to be done. On the people that need saving, the people who simply need someone to listen or to just be there for them. It breaks my heart, but we often get so distracted, and we can be so selfish that we don’t notice when people are literally begging for help around us. We go to the store and focus on what we want or need and run home.

My mom recently bought a car, Glory to God, and she told me that as she was leaving the dealership, the guy who was helping her kept hovering. He kept prolonging her time there. She stepped into her new car, and he started to show her the most basic controls. As she was about to pull out, excited about this miracle God had just done for her, she paused and noticed the same guy waiting. He was fidgeting with his hands as if he wanted, no, needed something. As my mom is about to leave, she waved goodbye and he tried to casually throw in, ” See you guys, pray for me okay! Have a great day, pray for me.” My mom began to say what we are all often guilty of saying, ” I will have a great day.” But instead, she chose to listen to the Holy Spirit and got out of her car and said ” come here let’s pray”. The man rushed up to my mom and she prayed for him. My mom told me he was tearing up and that all he said to her was , ” thank you I needed that, I really needed that.”

I’m writing this now and I promise you guys my eyes are watering, and my chest is tightening up, as I recall this moment. I can only imagine, how many times Jesus has told us to stop what we’re doing and reach out to someone at that very moment but were too caught up in the distractions of this world and the worries and fears the enemy implants in us when we’re not paying attention.

I just want to end this by saying, don’t give up, don’t get discouraged, and don’t be afraid to let God use you. And if you are just starting out your walk in Christ, resist, because the enemy doesn’t want what God has in store for you. Like it says in Psalms 139:14, you are fearfully and wonderfully made. God has brought you to where you are for a purpose and yes, the enemy will come at you with all he’s got, but the God who stands before you is more powerful. Things will happen and distractions will come, attacks from the enemy will keep coming, but when you resist, the enemy will flee.

Don’t forget, God has given us the authority to drive out demons, cure diseases, and to proclaim and spread the Kingdom of God to everyone. Through your faith in Jesus Christ all of that is possible. Resist the enemy and remind him of the Authority you have in Christ. Do not back down and cower, instead put on the Full Armor of God and resist.

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

Luke 9:1-2

Empty yourself of you and let God. Empty your mind, take a breath, take a walk and clear your mind. Don’t spend so much time on your phone, on Netflix, social media, etc.. Stop spending time on things that don’t matter, instead invest that time, worship Him even if you can’t sing, He loves when we worship! When you start doing these things, you will notice that you will begin to hear and see God in your life so much more clearly. And before you go, I would love to pray with you, pray this prayer with me:

Dear Jesus,

Thank you for who you are and what you did on that cross for me. Forgive me Jesus if I have let the worries of this world consume me, if I have let the enemy take advantage. Forgive me if I have let my focus slip from you. Guide me on the right path Lord, use me Jesus I am here. And please help me to resist the enemy and to empty myself of me so that I can hear your voice my God. Help me to put on the Full Armor of God. Guide me, lead me, and equip me to help those who desperately need you, Lord. Help me to be strong Jesus.

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

1 Peter 5:7-11

I thank Jesus that He brought you here today. You are not alone, trust in the Lord, He is always with you. And please feel free to contact me if you need prayer. You are not alone.

I invite you to share this message with your family or a friend, you never know who may need it.

God Bless,

Nicole Rivera