How To Stop Spiritual Attack!

If you are struggling spiritually and are under attack please follow the instructions below. Understand that Jesus fought temptation by speaking God's written Word to combat the enemy's lies.
We must do the same!
First know you are under attack. Symptoms include:

1. A lack of desire to read the Word, Pray, Worship and Attend Church
2. You feel weak and you have lost that cutting edge.
3. You feel like retreating and doing nothing for God.
4. You feel like isolating yourself
5. You spend your time upset and worried
6. You get edgy and irritable. You are no longer walking in the Spirit.
7. You start blaming others for what’s going on in your life
8. You start murmuring and complaining to God for what’s happening

Causes of an attack can come from:

1. You are causing too much trouble to the kingdom of darkness or you are a threat to the devil. Listen to me, some of you are taking spiritual attacks way too personal. You are made in the image of God. That's enough to make the devil mad. He hates you because every time he looks at you he's reminded of his defeat. I have found that the people who are under attack the most in their lives are the ones who carry a greater call. For some of them, the moment they were conceived started a battle for their soul. It's like the devil knew which ones would become a threat to him. In the times of Moses, the devil inspired Pharoah to slay all the children under two years old. The devil was after Moses but Yahweh had another plan. In the days of Jesus, the same thing happened when he inspired Herod to kill babies. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. (Matthew 2:16) Which leads me to believe that abortion is the devil's way of killing God's anointed. God forgive us all for allowing this mass genocide to continue for years!

2. You are compromising in your walk with God therefore giving the devil legal access. The devil is opportunistic in nature. The bible tells us to: Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8) Ever watched a nature show? Lions prey on the weak, sick, young, and animals that are separated from the herd. The Bible describes the devil as a thief. A thief comes when you are unsuspecting. He also looks for a way in. We need to know the nature and ways of our enemy so we can war accordingly. The Bible calls him a liar. Check your thought life. That's the most common way in. You may be compromising in your thought life by allowing thoughts of hatred, envy, lust, and self-righteousness to affect your attitudes toward others. You also may be believing lies. Compare what you believe to God's Word or truth.

3. You have been playing instead of praying. You have been entertaining or indulging the flesh too much. I heard a Pastor say this a long time ago and it's true. Your flesh is crazy. If you would let it run your life, you would be eating all day, sleeping all day, watching TV all day and a myriad of other things that indulge it. Don't coddle (treat in an indulgent or overprotective way) your flesh when your under attack. That means you force yourself to press into God even if you don't feel like it. For me, TV is my kryptonite. I get to watching one show and it's not enough. I have to see what's going to happen next. I can become quite addicted to TV quickly. I was raised around it. You need to know your limits or what's going to stumble you back into unfruitful and fleshly behavior. I like what I heard a preacher teach the other day. He was saying that right before we fall into sin there's a little lie that comes into our mind that makes us believe that we can handle the temptation. Which causes us to put our trust in the flesh instead of God's grace to deliver us from sin. Big mistake! We also may believe that we are too weak to say no. Another lie! For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Romans 6:14
Distractions are another way of coming under attack because we are not watching and praying. Maybe you are not indulging your flesh but perhaps you are not feeding your spirit because of distractions. Maybe Facebook is your distraction or some other social media outlet. Remember distraction and fleshly indulgence is the opposite of being sober or vigilant!

4. You are walking with someone who is living in compromise putting yourself in the line of fire. Maybe you aren't the one who is giving the devil access but someone you are in a relationship with or living with is. Believe it or not, they can cause you heartache just by having them around. I will call this the Achan principle. Achan was a man who took some things from the enemy's camp and hid them in his tent when the children of Israel were commanded not to. Joshua did not know why they were so severely defeated by the enemy until God tells him. And the Lord said unto Joshua, Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? 11 Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. 12 Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you.
(Joshua 7:10-12) If you read the whole chapter you'll find out that Achan caused defeat in the lives of those around him because of his idolatry and sin.

Another example is Jonah. Everyone in the boat came under a storm because of Jonah's disobedience to God. They literally had to throw him out of the boat into the ocean to calm the storm. That's when the fish swallowed him. Jonah's confession: And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. (Jonah 1:12)
5. You have disobeyed the last thing God told you and now you have lost your way. I think one of the most shocking stories in the Bible is the one about the young prophet who was sent to prophesy to King Jeroboam regarding the rulership of King Josiah. He was told not to go anywhere except where Yahweh told him. Even though he was determined to obey Yahweh He obeyed the older prophet over the Word of the Lord. The older prophet convinced him to disobey by lying to him and claiming that an angel spoke to him contradicting Yahweh's instructions to him. Paul warns us by saying, But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8) This is another principle. You don't obey man over Yahweh, that puts you in the devil's territory! It may seem unfair but disobedience still has the same consequences whether you were tricked or not. Here's the older prophet rebuking the younger one after he had lied. Now he prophesies truth after he lied!... and he cried out to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord, and have not kept the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you, 22 but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the place of which the Lordsaid to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’” 23 So it was, after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, the prophet whom he had brought back. 24 When he was gone, a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood by it. The lion also stood by the corpse. 25 And there, men passed by and saw the corpse thrown on the road, and the lion standing by the corpse. Then they went and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt. (1 Kings 13:21-26)

This is why Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God!" The young prophet took the bait and was devoured by the lion(devil) Listen to me saint, you don't obey anyone over God's Word or the Holy Spirit! It doesn't matter who they are. You can not obey your spouse, child, friends, parents, or even a minister over Yahweh! 6. Sometimes the devil is going to call you out to see if you really believe what you say. He did this to Job. He did it to David and he'll do it to you. Look at the story of David and Goliath. David took Goliath down because he knew who Yahweh was. David put his confidence in the strength of his commander and chief! Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46 This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
47 And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands. (1 Samuel 17:45-47) Amen! When the devil comes all suit it up and tries to intimidate you remember who is fighting your battles! Again do not take spiritual warfare personally. At times there are uniform attacks against the body so it’s not just you. It’s all believers. Think of all the times the Philistines were attacking Israel. Listen to me, the devil comes to take territory. Sometimes you need to defend your territory! Whether it be your family, marriage, finances, business, ministry, health, salvation or whatever else Yahweh has given you. Do not crumple up in a corner and feel sorry for yourself because the devil will not have pity. He'll kick you when you're down. Understand? He won't stop attacking or take a break just because you feel too weak to fight. Cry out to Yahweh and He'll protect you. Regroup, get strengthened, and get up to fight! You got this.

7. Soul wounds are entryways for attack. I have an expression I like to use. There's blood in the water. Sounds strange but I'm referring to blood in the water that attracts sharks. In the wild predatory animals are attracted to blood. The devil is a predatory entity. What I mean by soul wounds are wounds inflicted on our hearts that affect our identity. Making us believe that we are not who God says we are. That's exactly what the devil did to get Adam and Eve to have them relinquish their authority over to him. He made them question Yahweh's goodness and question their identity.

Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”

2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’” 4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:1-4) First, the devil comes in by questioning God's Word, "Has indeed God said?" Then he questions his goodness by saying, "For God knows that in that day you eat of it your eyes will be opened..." as if to say Yahweh is withholding His goodness from you. Then the devil brought their identity into question when he said, "You will be like God" when they already were in His image. Once he seduces us to sin he brings our soul under shame, guilt, and condemnation which separates us from Yahweh and makes us run from him instead of to Him.
The saying that sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me...is the biggest fallacy ever believed. It's what we believe through people's words inspired by the devil's lies that bring the most destruction into our lives. The bible says, Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. (Proverbs 18:21) Yahweh admonishes us to Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:23) If you want to keep the devil out of this area of your life take the big stick called the cross and beat the devil over the head with it. Declare God's truth and scripture over yourself. Ask the Holy Spirit to heal your heart. Remember the devil is a liar!

8. Number 1 way to live in torment as a Christian is not forgiving someone. I put it last so that hopefully if anything stands out it will be this principle. Jesus tells this story about a man whose debt was forgiven but he then turned around and demanded that his debt be paid. Jesus said, "Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? 34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. 35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
(Matthew 18:25) I want you to understand that the devil has the legal right to torment you if you stay in the sin of unforgiveness. This includes keeping grudges, resentment, slander, and gossip. I can't tell you all the times I've tried ministering to someone and I've felt this invisible block wall that kept any of my prayers from penetrating. I would ask them, "Is there anyone that you need to forgive?" The answer was always yes. The moment they released the other person from their debt or trespass, what they were requesting from God was now released over them. Forgiveness opens the heavens and unforgiveness closes them.


9. Anger is the devil's habitation! If you want the devil to come live with you then allow anger to fester in your heart. Go to sleep without settling the matter and think about the injustice all night until you are boiling over. Then instead of trusting Yahweh to handle it or do justice on your behalf; take matters into your own hands. This is how anger progresses into sin.
Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 Neither give place to the devil. (Ephesians 4:26-27) This word place means habitation in the Greek. Just like Yahweh inhabits our praises the devil inhabits our anger. Your invitation to anger will lead to sin and spiritual attack! Close the door by Agreeing with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. (Matthew 5:25)
How to stop an attack and win the battle

1. Feed your spirit!
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." (Colossians 3:16)

2. Don’t isolate yourself get around those who are on fire for God!
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25)

3. Fasting! Example: Food, Entertainment, Social Media, Friends, and etc. Get alone with God. "However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matthew 17:21)

4. Repent if you have compromised and stop sinning. It closes the doors to the devil! Make full confession of your sins. Look at Galatians 5:19-21 for help. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matthew 3:2) If you want heaven's help repent!

5. Pray! "Pray without ceasing!" (1 Thessalonians 5:17) It doesn't matter if you don't feel like you are qualified. "Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months." (James 5:17) If you do not know what to pray then pray the Psalms.

6. Worship Him! Depression is a spirit called heaviness so put on the garment of praise! It will leave you through worship. To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; (Isaiah 61:3)

7. Get godly counsel and wisdom. Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety. (Proverbs 11:14)

8. Submit to God and humble yourself; resist the devil and he will flee.
(James 4:6-8) Humility or meekness will protect us but pride will cause our destruction. Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18) Our obedience or submission closes all access to the devil! Obey or submit to God's authority even if you don't feel like it.

9. Speak the Word of Yahweh over every circumstance!
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:11)

Prayer:
Father, I humbly come before you, I submit my will to you and ask you to forgive me if I have sinned against you. I repent and take responsibility for all those whom I have hurt. Show me where I need to make restitution. Lord, I forgive those who have hurt me and pray for those who have despitefully used me. I repent of every generational iniquity in my bloodline that has corrupted my family and me such as the sins of adultery (pornography), fornication (sex outside of marriage), sorcery (drugs), pride, self-righteousness, contention (argumentive), contempt (looking down on others), jealousy, unbelief, drunkenness (all forms of intoxication), covetousness, divination, necromancy (talking to the dead), idolatry, uncleanness, hatred, reviling (abusive speech), lust, perversion, satanism, and heresy.

I pray that every assignment from hell would be canceled against my life, ministry, marriage, family, and purpose or your plans for my life. I break off, take the authority over and command all demonic spirits of anger, rage, fear, depression, unbelief, destruction, torment, guilt, bondage, vagabond, rejection, unforgiveness, lust, perversion, jealousy, offense, bitterness, mind-control, double-mindedness, confusion, passivity, stubbornness, sickness, diseases, pain, fetter and all addictions to food, alcohol, drugs, sex, pornography, gambling, or nicotine and any Spirit of Jezebel, Santa Muerte, Vodoo, Masonry, an anti-Christ Spirit or Spirit of this Age to come out in the name of Jesus out of (name the person or yourself).


I break all curses off my family, marriage, children, and relatives. I break every shackle, chain, cord, habit, craving, debt, soul-ties, and any spirit that has tried to rob, kill, or destroy my life. I command my family to be set free to know Jesus! Satan, I command you to loose them now! In Jesus’ name! Come out of your captivity. According to Galatians 3:13, Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law. Therefore, I declare that every curse is broken over my loved ones and myself. I declare that my family sees God’s mighty outpouring in my life and they are moved to respond to God’s conviction. For me and my household shall be saved!

I declare that I'm walking revival of God's presence. Whenever I’m around people are being convicted of righteousness, sin, and judgment. The love of God draws them and moves them to surrender fully to God. Scores of angels surround me and protect my life, home, cars, health, family from any attack of the enemy. There is a ripple effect that my life is causing that will cause others to do the same until this nation returns to God with humility and power. I declare that I'm part of Yahweh's kingdom and that we are walking in unity, love, humility, holiness, hunger, transparency, and power. We will not think twice about laying our lives down for God’s kingdom. Father, I pray that every false teacher, preacher, and prophet would be removed from their pulpits. That deception and delusion would be broken over the church. I pray that the spirit of lawlessness, rebellion, and compromise will be removed from every heart. God cleansed the temple once again and made it a place of consecration and glory. Let every lie of the enemy be exposed that has taken God's people into captivity. May every doctrine of devils be uprooted from every place in the land. Let your remnant arise in the land taking back every territory for God!

We pray that the enemies of America and their strongholds be destroyed by the mighty name of Yeshua. We declare that this nation is returning to the godly precepts that it was founded on and will be called a Christian nation again. We declare that every idol, false religion, and stronghold of unbelief is broken over America. We speak that our troops are supernaturally protected as we come under God’s blessing now and walk in obedience to God’s Word. Father your word declares that the heart of the King is like a river and you determine its course…I pray that every leader or person of position in this nation will be moved to worship the one and only true God; Elohim. Whatever you must do to break the anti-Christ spirit, spirit of this age, and Jezebel's control over our government, this nation, and in your people so that we may be a godly testimony among the nations please do it. I humbly ask you for all of these things in Jesus' name, Amen.

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Jaziz Gutierrez

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Running the Race Like An Olympian

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

In reading this passage this morning one thing comes to mind, “Strict Training!” When I read this word this morning I thought about Olympic training. There is a lot of sacrifice that goes into Olympic training. There is the discipline of the body. Getting up early for training to practice the same moves over and over again until perfection is achieved. Then there is developing a winning mindset that no obstacle is too big to overcome the current pressures to quit in the midst of hardship. Finally, having a heart of a winner involves the integrity to run the race fairly and according to the rules of the game. When our heart, mind and body are in agreement great things can be achieved!

How much greater things can we do for God when it is His Strength, Grace, and Power that helps us in our hardships! There is only one thing that can hold us back from becoming Olympians in the faith; “Lack of discipline.” If we are to compete or run this race we must go into strict training. What does this mean? It means hours in the word becoming skillful in the use of our sword, getting up early to pray being strengthened in the Spirit and spending intimate time with the Father being bathed in His Presence. Most of us know this and are ok with this. However, we have failed to do is to discipline the other parts of us like our body, mind, and heart.

Some of us have a difficult time disciplining our body in the areas of fasting. In other words we can pray but we can’t give up a meal. Can you imagine an Olympian being out of shape from eating too much! How about a runner who smokes? Do you think he could win if he ate pizzas at night and watched TV instead of trained his body? Yet, we allow ourselves to be undisciplined in the way we eat, our lack of exercise and our time in front of the TV. Sometimes we only give God a five minute prayer and watch hours of TV without realizing it. You will never become an Olympian for God if this is your lifestyle. I’m just going to preach to myself here too and keep it real. What good would it do you if you were a great preacher and died of a heart attack because of the way you eat? Jesus would probably ask you why you went home so early when he had so much for you to do. Just because we are not under the Judaic laws of eating doesn’t mean we throw out all wisdom in our eating. When Jesus said, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat,” it didn’t give us a license to eat whatever we wanted without any consequences to our health. Acts 11:7 This particular scripture is actually God’s dealings with Peter on accepting the Gentiles that He would later make clean through the blood of Jesus.

I used to think that God abolished the dietary laws of the bible in this scripture but I have seen the wisdom in those laws in modern science. When God commanded the Jews not to eat shellfish, shrimp and things that crawled on the bottom of the ocean; I thought it was legalism. Now I know that science has found that shrimp causes high cholesterol and that shellfish are filters for the ocean. More people are killed by being poisoned by these sea creatures. He also commands us not to eat bottom feeding fish. Where does all the pollution of our oceans end up? In the bottom of the ocean where those fish eat. We continually read about the unleavened bread. Yet we eat leavened bread all day long. This is yeast. Yeast causes all kinds of sickness in our bodies. Yeast is an organism that spreads in the body and causes fatigue, infections, weight gain, mental confusion and other symptoms that are confused for diseases. A little leaven (yeast) leavens the whole lump. I believe that this is not only a spiritual thing comparing yeast to sin but a principle that was based on the nature of yeast in our bodies. I don’t know why I’m writing about this but some of you may be asking God for a healing. Most of us need to go back to biblical dietary laws to stop recurring sickness. Amen, that’s for me. We can’t run to God every time we eat a gallon of ice cream and cookies so he can heal us of sugar diabetes if we are not going to get rid of our destructive eating behaviors. We are Olympians remember? Once in awhile a treat is ok but not while you are in training.

Finally, Paul says he makes his body a slave. If we don’t start making our bodies slaves in a disciplined fashion we will end up slaves to sickness, weight and lethargy. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m even convicting myself. I hope you all receive this with the love I meant behind it all. Let us search out the scriptures regarding these dietary matters and I’m sure we will find the wisdom of God for our everyday living.

For dietary laws: You can read Leviticus 11

Exodus 12:20 You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’”

Are You An Angry Prophet?

For every natural disaster we have seen, there is always that one person that makes God out to be a homicidal maniac and tells everyone that He meant to judge the nation through disaster. I am sorry but Jesus paid a great price so that ALL could be saved. Why would God send something so horrific that it would take the lives of children? I am not saying that God does not send judgment because it is obvious that He does from reading the story of Noah but...He always sets in place a rescue plan. Even Sodom and Gomorrah had a shot at God's mercy through Abraham's intercession. So, if God always has a rescue plan then where is it some might ask? My friends only look in the mirror and inside a church. The rescuers are sitting comfortably on the pews every Sunday, deafened to the cries of the broken because of their judgmental attitudes. Yes, my friends we are the spiritual rescue team looking for survivors under deep piles of religious doctrine, blind from the dirt of sin, groping around in the darkness and looking for shelter from the storm. What is sad about these attitudes that are seen in some Christians is that they are actually reinforcing the beliefs that many atheists have. I have heard this from many of them they believe that God is some kind of bully and homicidal maniac. Yes, I know they say they don't believe in God but most of them are just offended with the idea that God would kill innocent people. They mostly cite Old Testament scriptures to support this idea. Then to hear Christians confirm to them what they already believe about God is sickening. Some of us run around like angry prophets and to our chagrin it is the very reason the grace movement has gained so much momentum. They got sick of the angry prophets making profits from their pockets; using the commandments of men to manipulate people to do their bidding.

Then we see Jesus. He is confronted with a decision to stone a person caught in the act of sin. There she is awaiting her punishment that she so justly deserves. She was probably trying to cover herself up the best she could and looking away in shame. Then Jesus passed his sentence, "He who has no sin throw the first stone." With no accusers left to condemn her, Jesus just let her go with this exhortation, "Go and sin no more." What a relief she must have felt when she heard those words. She could now be free to love God without fear. Mercy had triumphed over justice.


As I saw the most current natural disaster unfold, the Lord led me to read the book of Jonah. We often dismiss this book as a children's story with little or no relevance to our adult lives. However, we couldn't be more wrong. Jonah hears the call of God to go to the city of Nineveh and warn them. ¹ Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ² “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.” ³ But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD....Jonah 1:1-3

Many of us don't understand why Jonah was avoiding his commission to rescue those living in a depraved city. What people don't understand is that Jonah had a biased view of the people of Nineveh. He refused  preach to them. If you read 2 Kings 19 you will find out that Nineveh was the city of the Assyrians. They were Israel's enemies and were often at war with them. Nineveh was built by Noah's grandson Cush, son of Ham. Genesis 10:8-12 They were long distant relatives who over the course of time had become quite wicked and God was fed up with their sin. Jonah's disobedience of course causes problems for everyone on the ship he is fleeing on and finally they toss him out of the boat he gets swallowed by a fish to be spit out on the shores of...you guessed it Nineveh. God has a very persuasive way about Him doesn't He? Lesson for all of us is this: Our disobedience not only affects us but everyone around us.

Jonah finally relents warns Nineveh and to his surprise his enemies repent! Jonah 3:10 Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.
Now Jonah is angry because really deep down he was secretly wanting to see the destruction of his enemies. How can God have mercy on such a perverse and wicked people? Jonah then explains why he didn't want to go to Nineveh in the first place. "I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness, One who relents from doing harm" Jonah 4:2 Wow! Jonah knew that if preached his message that there was a possibility that Nineveh would repent and be spared. Instead of rejoicing Jonah sulks all day in anger.

So that Jonah could see things from God's perspective he raises a plant that shelters Jonah then dies over night. Jonah of course is sad that the plant died as it no longer was there to provide shelter for him; so God uses it to explain his heart to him. ¹⁰ But the LORD said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. ¹¹ And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?” Jonah 4:10-11

After reading the story of Jonah I realized that many of us have an angry prophet attitude. Some of us are like the disciples that Jesus exhorted long ago when they wanted to call fire down on their enemies. Jesus rebuked them when he said, "You know not what spirit you are of." The truth is many of us secretly wish for our enemies to be destroyed rather than to see them saved and delivered from destruction. Our bias towards certain groups keep us from reaching them. We often think well "they deserve what's coming to them." I think we forget sometimes where we have come from. Some of the people we see in church today were some of the people we look down upon now. In reference to our world now; many of us would rather see the end of the world rather than preaching repentance to our nation so that God would relent from His anger. This Jonah complex keep us from interceding for the lost and preaching the messages that would have them turn from their wickedness. Some of us have no concern for the lost because we are already going to heaven so we feel that our job is done here. Worse, some of us are so convinced that we will not go into the tribulation that we have not prepared ourselves or bothered to prepare the people who will stand before the Judgment seat of God. This is a selfish attitude. This is not God's heart. We need to have Jesus' heart.

Let us pray: Father forgive us for being angry prophets and having bias in our hearts. For disobeying the call to go into the highways and byways. For allowing our anger towards certain groups; to keep us from reaching them for you. We choose to forgive those who have come against our nation, who are being used by the devil and those who are in authority who are pushing the agendas of Satan. We choose to pray for those who are hurting us God. Please reveal our hearts and remove any attitudes that our contrary to the love of Christ. We pray that you would relent in your anger towards our nation for turning away from you. We pray that our nation would return to it's Godly heritage. Give us a plan for reaching those we don't understand and that perhaps we fear. Help us see those around us the way you see them. Holy Spirit shed the love of God in our hearts, in Jesus name. Amen.

Constitutional Right To Be Offensive Is Not Biblical

     1 Corinthians 10:23 Amplified All things are legitimate [permissible--and we are free to do anything we please], but not all things are helpful (expedient, profitable, and wholesome). All things are legitimate, but not all things are constructive [to character] and edifying [to spiritual life].
This morning as I was getting ready to start my day when a Yahoo news caption caught my eye. Kanye West grabs mic from Taylor Swift. Curious I decided to see what all the fuss was about and as I watched the video that was posted online. I was shocked to find out that Kanye West had grabbed the mic away from Taylor Swift while accepting a VMA award. He simply jumped on stage to let everyone know that he thought Beyonce had a better video. Taylor Swift stood there not knowing what to do. The audience booed Kanye the rest of the night. Though Kanye did nothing illegal it was incredibly rude and hateful to Taylor Swift.
There is a trend that I am seeing more and more in our country and it is this: Let's use our freedom to do what we want regardless of who it hurts or offends. The constitutional freedoms that our forefathers worked so hard to afford us and our military has worked so hard to defend have been used as an excuse to be hurtful to others. Unfortunately, many people use the freedom of speech as an excuse to use hateful, prejudicial, sensual and rude.  They use language with no regard to who they are offending. Jesus was clear though in Matthew 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

Reason #1 Not all things are profitable: It makes our spirits weak when we indulge our flesh.

     This is not limited to the secular media but also to the church. For we have used the grace of God and our freedom from sin as an excuse to live a self indulgent lifestyle. A far cry from the disciplined lifestyle that Jesus and his disciples lived. "To be a forerunner in the last days you must live a fasted and prayerful lifestyle. "I once got in a discussion with a "Christian" online on why they should not be befriending women online who were half clothed and who clearly where there to lure men to their porn sites. He claimed that he was ministering to these women and I had no right to judge them. I told him that children were also on myspace and could see all that was on his myspace profile. Matthew 18:6 "But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea." I will agree that there is no law against being on myspace but is your time online and the places you are going are they building your spirit. While it may be permissable to watch TV is it something that is going to edify our spiritual life. Is what you watch a stumbling block to your children? Do you watch rated R movies in front of your children? Is your conversations with others clearly depict you as a child of God? Or do people hear you curse, gossip and tear others down? Do you meditate on violent games and violent movies. You say it doesn't affect you but you carelessly do it front of others that maybe are trying to overcome a gang lifestyle. I know for me that too much TV makes me weak. What's your kryptonite? More importantly, do you know what makes others spiritually weak?

Reason #2 Not all things are permissible: If you violate the conscience of others you violate the higher law of love. 1Corinthians 10:²⁴Let no one then seek his own good and advantage and profit, but [rather] each one of the other [let him seek the welfare of his neighbor].

     An ongoing dilemma in the church is that of drinking. I hear people say that they only drink a glass of wine with dinner. If that's true that may be permissible but...if you are drinking every night and can't go to sleep without it or your prescriptions now it falls under bondage. See whatever we can't go without has already mastered us. If you can't fast TV, media, food or go without something then it has you. More importantly if you are drinking in front of someone who used to have a drinking problem then you have just become a stumbling block to that person. If you are playing the lottery in front of someone who had a serious gambling problem then you need to reconsider your spiritual freedom. (I personally believe that if we invested our money into the kingdom and followed God's spiritual principles on money we would prosper regardless of the economy.) I consider eating a big fat juicy piece of bacon in front of a Jew rude. It's like eating a piece of cake in front of someone who is struggling with their weight and dieting. I have let people know when something offends my conscience and you would be surprised how often the response is one of defensive pride. Bottom line if you are parading your freedom in front of others with no regard as to how it hurts their conscience then you are in sin. Anything that violates the love of God is sin.

Reason #3 Not all things are wholesome: Not everything is good for us.

     Ah, the western culture. We are among the sickest most unhealthiest groups of people on the earth. We have taken the scripture about Peter having the vision of eating what was unclean and ran with it. We have made it to mean that we can eat anything and we will be ok. Just this week we said good bye to a friend who lost to a long time battle with her weight. Her heart and lungs filled with fluid until she couldn't breathe no more. I'm sure that in the beginning she saw no harm with the little dainties and delicacies she was eating until it became too late. Unfortunately many of us will see Jesus sooner than later because we have refused to take care of the body he gave us. Ouch! That hurt me more than it hurt you. We think we can eat a stack of pancakes, pork sausage, hashbrowns all smothered in gravy and stay healthy. Jesus didn't eat pork. If God truly lifted all the food restrictions in the Old Testament then why did Jesus continue to eat fish and bread. I don't know if you noticed this but Jesus did eat a lot of seafood. He did a lot of walking and fasted quite often. Food related diseases like diabetes are at on all time high. If you think you can drink beer with your cake and be around for a long time then you need a check up from the neck up. We can't live a self indulgent lifestyle and live long. Don't let me get started on those fattening Starbucks coffees with donuts. How about all the fast food? Just remember fast food, fast death. Though we have the freedom to eat what we want let's not use that freedom to cut our destiny short here on earth. I don't want to hear Jesus say "Why are you here so soon? I had things for you to do still and I had to find someone else to finish your work." I want to hear, "Well done good and faithful servant." We can't ignore the obvious. Whatever we sow, we reap. This a spiritual principle that even affects our health. See it may be lawful for you to eat everything but not everything is wholesome.

Help I've Been Wandering and Wondering

Refining and Defining for Reassigning a word for this season:
For many of us the last year has been difficult. For most of us the first few months of this year has seem to halt any spiritual progress and deterred us (detoured us) from what we felt God has wanted us to do. Remember you only find detours where there is construction. So you might as well understand that in this season you are under construction.

I can compare this season with being in a sand storm, and not having visibility. All you can see is a long distance outline of where you think you are heading. Here you are crawling forward with no idea how long it’s going to take you to get to your destination. In the process though there is sand irritating you; getting into places that you didn’t think possible. If any of you ever been at the beach on a windy day; you know that sand gets into everything including your food. It sticks to your skin, gets into your eyes and doesn’t come off easy. The good news is; that it comes off with water. The sand represents life’s problems and irritants. Let us therefore wash ourselves with the water of God’s Word and the presence of His Spirit.

But…I heard this from the Spirit of God. Open your mouth and let me fill it during this season. Allow the sand to fill your mouth and just like an oyster I will cause the irritation of the sand and pressure to form a pearl in your mouth. If you will wait on me great wisdom will come to you. James 1:5 You have the mind of Christ.  For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16

Did you know…
A natural pearl (often called an Oriental pearl) forms when an irritant, such as a piece of sand, works its way into a particular species of oyster, mussel, or clam. As a defense mechanism, the mollusk secretes a fluid to coat the irritant. Layer upon layer of this coating is deposited on the irritant until a lustrous pearl is formed. http://www.pearls.com

So you may ask what is the purpose of all of this? “I say to you that I’m defining who you are not; to better define who you are.” This is a season for those who are called but have been out of alignment. My purpose is to cause you to return to your first love. “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” Revelations 3:18 The end product ultimately is to reassign you to your purpose and destiny in God. The sooner we understand this, the sooner we will get through the refiner’s fire. “Again allow me to fill your mouth during this season.” Let your tongue become the sword of the Lord.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. Genesis 1:1-4
God is waiting for you speak over the formless void in your life to bring forth light in your circumstances. The Spirit of God is hovering over the face of your problems waiting to hear the Word of the Lord to be spoken. Speak “Let there be light!” (Light = Revelation) Ask God for revelation in your situation. As you do this, God will start to separate or define what is light and what is dark. What’s God and what’s not. What has been your soul-distraction and what is clearly Him.

For some of you God must first reduce you down to nothing so he can do something. But don’t despair for a Genesis or a new beginning is soon to come upon you. Just like in Genesis He will cause you to be separated from the things that weren’t meant for you. Even though you may feel like you are being reduced down to a stump; understand God’s purpose is to bring forth fruit.

Did you know…
Well, to start with, the task of pruning grape vines is not all or nothing--there is room for error, and the chances of you killing the plant are pretty unlikely.
If you don’t prune your plant you can be assured it will produce less fruit and in a couple years, stop bearing fruit all together. So there are not too many ways you can fail by pruning grape vines each year. The fruit grows on the shoots that are produced by one-year-old canes, so each year the previous season’s growth needs to be cut back. http://www.grapefacts.net


Prayer…
Father, we agree with heaven and we will not allow anything else but God’s Word to go forth out of our mouths. Father, we declare that a new thing is about to break forth and cause us to see what’s of you and what is flesh/soul. Separate us unto yourself. Align us. We choose this day to buy of you gold. We embrace suffering. For we know it brings forth the fruit of righteousness in our lives. Refine us like gold that we may show forth the reflection of your Son. We believe that our tears will be turned in triumph and our mourning into dancing. We pick up our swords and say no weapon formed against us shall prosper and every tongue that rises up against we shall condemn. We have the mind of Christ. Let your character be formed in us. We choose to forgive those who have despitefully used us. Matthew 5:44, Mark 11:25-26 Therefore according to Mark 11:23-24 We speak with confidence to this mountain (obstacle, hindrance) get our way in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Mark 11:23-24 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Mark 11:25-26
“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Overcoming Apathy and A Defeated Mindset

The meaning of Apathy in the Greek apatheia, from apathēs without feeling, from a- + pathos emotion
1 : lack of feeling or emotion : impassiveness 2 : lack of interest or concern : indifference

One of the things that plague the body of Christ more than anything is apathy. What I mean about apathy is our lack of interest in prayer or evangelism. Go ahead, call a prayer meeting at church and see how many people show up. Ask the local church to go out on a weekly basis to win the lost and few faithful members will show up. Tell everyone you are having a potluck and people will show in masses. We live in the fish and loaves generation. As far as diligence goes the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses have us beat.

So what happened between the early church and today's church? What did they have that we don't? They were being threatened, beaten and dragged to jail; yet no one could keep them from sharing their faith. They would spend hours and days praying for the Holy Spirit to pour out. They spent a lot of time in fellowship being of one mind, one heart and shared all things in common. Now or days it's difficult to get churches to agree to participate in an evangelistic event. Just recently I talked to a brother that had gone to a group of pastors to ask for support in his evangelistic event but they just simply told him "it was too soon." In other words, we aren't going to help you. This my friends are apathy at it's best. Don't bother me about the lost souls of this city. I'm having a potluck that same day. I am being cynical but you know what I mean. For those of you who think I'm being critical just think about the last time you had a problem and you told your fellow Christians in your life about it. Did they offer to pray and fast for you? Did they stop what they were doing and minister to you?

The main point I'm trying to make is that it's hard to get Christians to pray. There is an overall apathy when it comes to prayer. I really think that this has to do with the philosophy of Determinism that has infiltrated the church. This is a secular philosophy.
This is how it is described:
Determinism necessarily entails that humanity or individual humans may not change the course of the future and its events (a position known as fatalism); however, some determinists believe that the level to which human beings have influence over their future is itself merely dependent on present and past.
Fatalism generally refers to several of the following ideas:

1. A flawed perception of the consequences of exercised free will, ignorance, and forgetfulness.
2. That free will does not exist, meaning therefore that history has progressed in the only manner possible. ^[1] This belief is very similar to determinism.
3. That actions are free, but nevertheless work toward an inevitable end. ^[2] This belief is very similar to compatibilist predestination.
4. That acceptance is appropriate, rather than resistance against inevitability. This belief is very similar to defeatism.

So when we don't pray it's because deep down we have a fatalistic view of our world and believe that our resistance to the inevitable is a waste of time. If all events have been predetermined then why bother to pray. This is why I believe why there is so much apathy in the church. We don't believe that our prayers will change the outcome of our circumstances or God's dealings in this world. Determinism has only disguised itself as submission to sovereignty and covered up for our unbelief. This is why many of us don't pray for the sick or the people we feel God is judging. Yet, Abraham prayed to stop the judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah. He was able to spare a few people through his intercession. Jeremiah wept and pleaded with Israel to return to God. James 5:15 Elijah was a man with like passions but he ended the drought in the land through prayer. Jesus prayed that Peter's faith would not fail even though he knew Peter would betray him. The Godhead is in constant intercession for us. Why would they do this if the outcome of our life can't be changed? Romans 8:27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

Like many of you I had that same mindset but this scripture broke that over me.
Joel 2:12-14 ¹² “ Now, therefore,” says the LORD,

“ Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
¹³ So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the LORD your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.
¹⁴ Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave a blessing behind Him—

Brothers and sisters it's never too late to turn around the circumstances in your lives. It's not too late to shake things up before his return. Let's get rid of this apathetic, fatalistic, defeated attitude that has kept the church from being the true salt in this world. Let's rise up to the influence and blessing that God has always intended his church to be in this world.

If you find this article helpful or would like to leave a comment or visit our website:
Jaziz Gutierrez
http://www.jazizgutierrez.com
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Focus On The Prize!

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2

These are tough times, and many of us have never experienced this level of conflict within our world. Most of us have never had to watch our spending or fret about what tomorrow would bring. If we wanted something we would just buy it without a second thought. Economic times have changed though and most families are suffering from the fallout of the last few years. Unemployment is rampant and some of us are wondering how we are going to get through this time of uncertainty.

I was in the kitchen the other day and this word came to me, "for the joy set before Him." Jesus endured torture, mocking, and crucifixion because he had something he was focusing on. He was focused on the joy of bringing us to himself through the cross. I realized that this principle will work for everything else too. If we want to be able to get through something hard we need to focus on the prize.
1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

If we want to get through college, a diet, trying times or accomplish a goal; we need to be focused on the end result. If we start focusing on how hard things are, what we are lacking, and looking at our present circumstances we won't be able to reach the prize. If we are going to weather these tough and turbulent times we are going to have to stay focused on the prize of our eternal relationship with God. Let us strive to hear these words, "Well done good and faithful servant enter the joy of your Lord." Matthew 25:23

We need to be careful though that winning the prize doesn't come before becoming more like Him and reconciling this world to Jesus. If we prioritize these correctly like focusing on becoming more like Him, we will win more souls as a result of our witness, and the byproduct of a life well-lived for Jesus is winning the prize of eternal life! We can't live our lives just to get to heaven. If we live like that we will be like the wicked servant who hid his talent in the ground. He did nothing with what God gave him. God never calls us to live in survival mode. We have a purpose for being here. We have God-given assignments to complete.

Winning may also mean we have to lose. Sounds contrary, doesn't it? I'll explain. What I mean by losing is giving up our rights to get even for example or to get our way. That's the world's way of winning. For a Christian, winning the battle is often just keeping quiet when you feel tempted to give someone a piece of your mind. You win because you kept your witness for Christ. We need to be clear on what the prize really is.

The prize is always his presence and blessing as a result of our obedience to Him. We need to endure persecution, resistance from the devil, people's bad attitudes, and temptation. If we are going to run to win the prize we cannot grow tired! "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." Galatians 6:9 I know it can be easy to lose hope when everything seems to be going contrary to your prayers. We must trust God with the outcome!

The great thing about running the race is that Jesus is going to help us get over the finish line! He is the "author and finisher of our faith" He will complete what he started in our lives. As long as we don't give up, He will help us get there. Our job is to focus on the prize. Truthfully, there is no greater prize than Jesus. He is our prize. Everything else that comes along with serving Jesus is just extra. Focus on the prize!

If you find this article helpful or would like to leave a comment or visit our website:
Jaziz Gutierrez
http://www.jazizgutierrez.com
Facebook: School Of Impartation and Living