Tug Of War

 Who has ever played Tug of War when they were growing up? For those of you who are not familiar with Tug of War it is a sport that directly puts two teams against each other in a test of strength: teams pull on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal being to bring the rope a certain distance in one direction against the force of the opposing team's pull.There are moments in life where we can get swept away with the movements around us. It could be you know you need to cut certain people out of your life but your afraid of what will happen once you've let them go, or you are being delivered from alcohol, drugs, porn, masturbation ect, but the sin keeps call you and your straddling the fence on should you satisfy your flesh or deny it. You know God is a forgiving God so you try to use that as an excuse to sin and cover up the guilt and shame you feel. If you have or are going through this you are not alone. I battle with things constantly. I tend to go back and forth whether it be in my mind/thoughts and emotions. I know what God expects from me and what he would like for me to refrain from, However it is easier said then done sometimes. We know we should live for Christ at all times and be obedient but on the other hand we have times where doing it our way seems to be easier and self gratifying. In reality thats a lie. The more we go against the Word of God the further we push ourselves away from Him.The devils goal is for us to stray away from God, to get us to the point where we become self-righteous, self-centered, keyword: SELF! Satan wants us to think that we don't need God we can do it all by ourselves which by the way is a lie straight from hell. This is why the enemy attacks our mind and heart, those two combined is a powerful thing. The devil will have you think "if I do it this once I won't do it again" or  " God doesn't expect me to be perfect so if I repent afterwards it will all well with my soul". The bible says in

James 4:17; Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to Him it is SIN!

There is a TEST!!!

In the beginning when I was explaining how the game of Tug Of War one thing stood out to me, when I wrote "puts two teams against each other in a test of strength" that spoke to me. I envisions an angel on one shoulder  and a devil on the other shoulder. On one side you have the angel speak life and keeping you in the will/ alignment of God, and on the other you have the devil speaking deceit, lies, death, confusion, just a lot of mess in your ear. Of course what the devil is saying is speaking to your soul because he is saying what you want to hear and you try to tune out the right and holy things out because that's causing you to kill your flesh. What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? As believers we know that God is not a liar and everything he speaks ALWAYS comes to pass right? So when we are in the game of Tug Of War we are in a test to see how faithful and honorable we are to God. In the middle of  the chaos are we giving room for the enemy to come in and bring suggestions and confusion? Or are we speaking life and the word of God  into the situation? When we are going through are we to focused on what we see in the natural that we forget that our God can make what looks impossible possible? While we are going through are we murmuring and complaining or are we rebuking every thought that is not of God?The way that we deal with situations shows and proves our faithfulness, loyalty, love, honor and trust that we have in God. Now when we sit and let Satan minister to us instead of God, that is how we walk ourselves right out of the will of God and into disaster. Th devil may be tugging at you trying to deceive you with thoughts like " You serve God and he says he will never leave you nor forsake you but where is he? Why are you in this predicament? Believe it or not the devil knows scripture as well  but he will twist it, this is why it is important to be able to discern and know Gods' voice versus the devils. Don't be afraid to speak back to that lying wonder. Let him know " Yes, My God will NEVER leave me nor FORSAKE me and no matter what I am faced with I know HE will bring me through. I am more than a conqueror, I am His Child and he Loves me! I rebuke you in the name of JESUS and I cast down every spirit of confusion, chaos, deceit, doubt, fear and lie that you try to send my way. You are a liar and there is no truth in you" You have to let that foul devil know you are not the one. 

How to Get Through:

I want to help you guys out with some things that I have done that have helped me overcome certain areas in my life that I needed deliverance from. They say if you do something consistently for 21 days it becomes a habit. So i want to challenge you all to try these tips below for 21 days and see your life transform.

1. Seek God Daily- Find scripture on whatever it is you are struggling with and meditate on it, let it get DEEEEEP DOWN in your spirit.
2. Pray- Prayer changes everything. Prayer is one powerful weapon to cast down and destroy all works of the enemy.
3. Stay away from triggers- If you want to be delivered from:

• Drinking- stay away from bars, clubs, liquor stores, atmospheres that would make you weak and cave in. If need be eliminate people out of your life who won't help you overcome or support/ encourage you stay on the straight and narrow path.
• Porn- Stay off the websites. If you have to stay off the stores,computers, phone any technology that would allow you to view that material. Even fast from technology and when you get the urge to satisfy the flesh Pray. 
• Masturbation- This goes hand in hand with Porn. Stay away from TV Shows, magazines, conversation, music that could trigger feelings.  When you get the urge deny the flesh get on your face and pray cry out to God. 
• Drugs- delete that dealers number out your phone, ignore every call that comes to your phone that you know is going to cause nothing but issues. 
• Gossip- When people come to you with he say/she say or "did you hear" let them know you do not want to hear anything that is not of God. Dismiss it and keep it pushing. Do not get swept in. If you can't leave and you're stuck lets say your in a car and gossip is being told DO NOT ENGAGED! If anything just say we should pray for them.  Use your mouth for good not evil.
• Unforgivness,Pride,Strife........and the list goes on. 

4)  Have someone who can hold you Accountable- When you are having a weak moment it's good to have someone who will listen and not judge but at the same time let you know what thus saith the Lord and do it with LOVE. 5) Stay in the Church. Keep getting fed, stay encouraged,God has given us Shepard to watch over our souls if you need counseling go and speak to your leaders. They will help you. I know some people prefer therapists and counselors whatever your comfortable with just seek help. 

                                    Matthew 26:41 ; Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation; the Spirit is willing,but the flesh is weak. 

I love you all, stay encouraged and be blessed <3 xoxo. ZM