Delivered

Have you ever thought to yourself that you had moved on from a trait and that you were over something then the next thing you know peek a boo it pops up again? For me as I’ve said on here before I’ve struggled with self-doubt, fear, and worry. I feel like I have struggled with these things because of my perspective, where I was mentally as well as how I was raised in church. In short, I suffered from bad teaching. Sometimes we can be removed from a situation, and it makes us feel delivered and maybe to a degree we are because we see something isn’t right and take steps to fix it. However, given the right situation we can fall right back into that vice. He doesn’t just want us 50% delivered he wants us 100% delivered. 

I see it in two different lights one it’s like God creates a sphere of protection around us or a hedge of protection Psalms 34:7 says the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Say this sphere or that boundary is all his words and his promises to us. Nothing can breach this perimeter unless we let it or unless we choose to step out of that boundary by being deceived by the lies of the enemy. In the beginning the permitter doesn’t take much maintenance from us. We are new in him, and he is protecting us while we grow and showing us it is possible to be free in him. As we grow in God, he will let things breach this perimeter. He does this so we can see where we are still vulnerable. He wants us to believe no matter what the circumstances are. Little by little he puts us in different situations until we are no longer affected, and we learn not to take the bait but to remain in him. 

Things will always try to tempt us to go back into our old way of thinking, but we must know and practice his truth so that when the enemy does come, we can shut him up with the truth regardless of how our flesh might be feeling or how it wants to react. The Bible says to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³ and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness Ephesians 4:22-24. The good thing is he is doing this for us. So that we might be able to stand in the face of adversity. He will always come to our aid if we cry out to him, he won’t leave us in captivity. He’s faithful to his people. He will pull us back to him and he will not allow us to be devoured if we believe in him.

I also saw it like this as well we can have man made fences maybe it’s a man we trust in a pastor, or a husband, or a best friend. Maybe the wall is I fast 3 days a week, I pray every day for one hour. These fences help protect us from these tendencies through their encouragement or their simple presence. What happens if that person disappoints us, and that wall comes down? Or life happens and we can’t pray as much, and we lose that wall and that validation now we are exposed. God wants our walls to be supernatural he wants to be what validates us not a person or an act, or a perfect situation. He wants to be what sustains us and keeps us balanced. He is our savior no one else not even we can save ourselves. Our man-made walls and our self-made walls will always come down, but Christ is everlasting he loves us with an everlasting love no strings attached the Bible says it’s for freedom he set us free. That we can’t earn it, but it was given to us it’s our inheritance. No matter what anyone tells you the price for your salvation was already paid. So don’t be discouraged if something you thought you had gotten past tries to resurface. Just examine why you are feeling that way and ask God to help you in that area. Don’t discount the progress you have made but also don’t stop! As God removes each of these man made walls he will replace them with him. 

Heather