“You’re just doing this because you want attention.”
“You’re just ‘witnessing’ to them because you think you’re holier than thou.”
“You are just smiling at them because you want them to like you.”
“You are just saying something nice to them because you want to take advantage of them.”
“If they knew what you used to deal with a few years ago, they’d hate you.”
“You’re just going on the race because you’re trying to impress God.”
“You are just going to go to Hell anyways because you’re not truly devoted.”
Thoughts that have been hitting me every day, non stop since I got accepted on the race.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard those thoughts that much in my entire life….
At first those thoughts paralyzed me and had me very concerned. But then something crazy happened a few weeks ago…
I say this with no hostility to this person, actually he apologized and we made up, but I had a couple of strange encounters where I work a couple weeks ago.
I work in a court house, and sometimes people go and hang out in there and sit on the benches. There is one particular gentleman that I talk to occasionally. He is nice, and most people avoid him because he “looks” homeless. He definitely is not a rich man, but he isn’t homeless. He is usually very nice, but on this day he was very intoxicated. He was talking about how he needed kerosene for his one room apartment for heat and how upset he was, and then his girlfriend came over. I felt led to talk to her about Jesus, and he started getting very upset. He started yelling at me saying Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit wasn’t real and that they were horrible. I stood stern and said they were real and that they had a plan for his life, and then he started cussing them all out and said since I wasn’t perfect either, I had no right to preach to him. When I realized that this wasn’t going anywhere, I asked his girlfriend if she wanted to go get lunch so she wouldn’t be yelled at and she agreed.
Well…he ended up following us out of the court house. He started calling us lesbians, a lot of other horrible names and saying I was just trying to take her away from me. He started screaming in my face yelling about how I’m breaking up a good friendship and that he was going to tell all of his friends. If another man had not walked over and told him to leave, I am almost certain he was going to end up hitting one of us in our face.
Good news is-his girlfriend ended up asking Jesus in her heart that day and last week the guy apologized! Haha 🙂
And then! A couple days later, I was walking to lunch, and as I was walking past a lady, I looked up at her and she went “What are you looking at?!” And I was like, “Nothing, but I do notice you look sad. Are you okay?” She then said, “My brother just died.” (Which later on I figured that wasn’t the case haha) And then I replied, “Oh wow. Do you need prayer or anything?” And she said she just needed food. So I agreed to take her to lunch. As we were walking down, she began frantically talking to her self and then snapping out of it. When we got in, she ordered her food and then started freaking out. She started talking to her self again, and then ran out of the restaurant. I got her to come back in, but then she started screaming at me “You’re just another Christian that is trying to use me!!!! SCREW YOU!!!” And she started cussing me out, and I was saying how that’s not true and how I just wanted to bless her and that Jesus loves her…and then she started saying “WELL GOD PUT THIS VOICE IN MY MIND!!” And I said, “No. The devil did that, it wasn’t God. He loves you, He has a plan for your life.” After that she started freaking out and cussing me out, and I asked her what her name was, and she screamed “I HAVE NO NAME!!!!” I then said…you do have a name and it matters…and she stopped listening…ran out of the restaurant….and flipped me off.
Both of those experiences were in the SAME week. It was NUTS. But kinda cool at the same time. Persecution=good thing!
A week or two later, I felt like God was talking to me about how that’s what the devil sounds like when you’re doing things that you’re supposed to be doing. He (satan) tries to twist your motives, tries to keep you silent and to make you scared…but really he is just jealous and envious because he can NEVER be a son of God. He is cursed to his fate FOR ETERNITY.
The word “satan” means “the accuser.” So if he can’t keep you in your sin, and if you repent of it…he will try to bring up your failures and weaknesses all the time. He will try to pull you back to your old mess.
DO NOT LET HIM!!!!!! STAY STRONG IN JESUS! BE COURAGEOUS!!!
Ephesians 6:11-17
11 Put on God’s whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil.12 For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.13 Therefore put on God’s complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God,15 And having shod your feet in preparation [to face the enemy with the ]firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace.16 Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.
Don’t wake up with out remembering this daily. Jesus has to be your anchor, your truth. And one other scripture that has kept me going is this:
Revelations 12:10-11
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death”
So next time the devil is a chatter box remind him of this scripture. Shut him down! Ignore him!!! The same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives INSIDE OF YOU!!!! 🙂
Love you guys!
Sincerely,
Meraia
