Change My Heart First, Oh God

CHANGE … we have all suddenly realized this word is the word of the hour over our country! How many of us are being shaken to the core over what we are seeing and realizing as our country seems to be spiraling out of control under its new leadership. I, for one, have experienced the overwhelming sense of hopelessness and fear in the midst of these ongoing changes before us.

Several weeks back the Holy Spirit began to speak to me very quietly about the sin of our words against the leader(s) who were elected to lead our country. I knew I needed to repent for my own attitude and spoken word. To be quite frank with you, I really didn’t want to. I felt justified in “calling it like I see it!!" I knew I was found guilty, but I did not want to turn as I almost felt like a traitor to the cause of speaking up against wrong doing!

Well, the time has come now to “confess my sin and turn from my wicked ways” … the Holy Spirit has gently but surely moved upon me to follow through with HIS way of confessing my sin and turning back to what HE has called all Believers to do … to honor and bless our leaders with the words of our mouths!  These leaders are not only those in governmental offices, but those who are over us spiritually ... apostles, pastors, and the leaders in the Church.

Our leaders are the ones our country has been allowed by God to rule over us. Whether we like it or not, we MUST turn our words from cursing to blessing, by praying that the Lord will “turn the heart of the king”. I do believe we, the Church, HOLD THE KEY TO BREAKTHROUGH FOUND IN THE WORD OF GOD and when we begin to do this … we will see the REAL CHANGE come about "first in our own hearts … and then the heart of the king” … as we trust our country into the hands of our Almighty God as HE will be the one to answer the cry of our hearts to bring this country back to HIM!



 

The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.

Proverbs 21:1

Thou shalt not revile the gods, nor curse the ruler of thy people.

Exodus 22:28

Is it fit to say to a king, Thou art wicked? and to princes, Ye are ungodly?

Job 34:18

Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him. Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked: For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out. My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: and meddle not with them that are given to CHANGE: For their calamity shall rise suddenly; and who knoweth the ruin of them both?

Proverbs 24:18-22

Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.

Ecclesiastes 10:20

Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.

Acts 23:5

Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

Romans 13:1

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

1 Peter 2: 9

Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king. Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward. For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

1 Peter 2: 13-120

Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.

Jude 1:8



Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Proverbs 18:21

Hot Air Rising

When I heard the horrifying news report about the child in the hot air balloon in Colorado this week I had an immediate sense in my spirit that the Lord was giving a visual picture of a larger spiritual issue over our country … one in which the media is "blowing out of proportion” situations that have everyone watching in fear and trepidation. Storm chasing nuts are conjuring up stories for purposes of instilling hype, fear, and a lack of GOD WATCHING AND LISTENING TO!! We as a nation are watching and buying off on the news … a lot of “HOT AIR” is being released with the intent to draw our focus away from the more serious issues at hand in our nation.

I can give one example. Last Spring when the Swine flu was making its debut, and many schools were closing as a result, we experienced a lot of “crying wolf” due to the few who did actually come down sick. It was also announced that in the Fall of 2009 we would experience a worldwide flu pandemic. Initially, I could sense the fear that tried to come upon me. Note, I said initially. Then, it struck me that we should NOT be receiving a negative report of this sort and we should be standing against it!! This is part of the enemy’s assignment to get our focus off of WHO OUR GOD IS rather than the enemy who is instilling fear in the hearts of our nation. Many of us have come into agreement with these bad reports.

Yesterday my mother’s doctor told us that he will NOT be taking the swine vaccine (H1N1) himself. He said that symptoms of this strain of flu are mild in comparison with the regular flu and he is not suggesting this vaccine at all for his elderly patients like my Mom, yet, he would himself take the regular flu shot as it is a much more dangerous flu strain than that of the swine flu. He said numbers being magnified through the media today of those dying from this deadly swine flu is nothing in comparison to the 37,000 who died last year from the regular flu. He also commented that he felt there was too little time in the preparation of the vaccine.

We need to stop chasing the many hot air balloon reports that the media and our government are issuing for their own purposes to instill fear and to gain ultimate control over our lives … turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace!!

“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;”   

Ephesians 4:14

“And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, fear him.”   

Luke 12:4-5

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 

2 Timothy 1:7

HARPING DELIVERANCE

This week I read in I Samuel 16 how Samuel anointed David and how the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and a distressing spirit FROM THE LORD troubled Saul.

“Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah. But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him.”

1 Samuel 16:13, 14

It was suggested to Saul, and Saul followed through on the suggestion, that he bring in David, the son of Jesse, a Bethlehemite, and a young harpist, to play so that the spirit that troubled him would leave. Saul loved David and David became his armor bearer. I am skipping over quickly … David approached Saul and offered to kill the Philistine giant, Goliath. He did. David cut the head of Goliath off and took it to Saul. Saul "DID NOT RECOGNIZE HIM"!!! Saul asked who he was and whose son he was.

“So the king said, “Inquire whose son this young man is.” Then, as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” So David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

1 Samuel 17:56-58

That hit me hard!!! WHY would Saul not recognize the one he loved, the one who was his very own armor bearer? May I suggest that his problem in remembering David may have been dementia or Alzheimers. It was the Lord's doing to put that spirit on Saul and perhaps that is the reason some are unable to cast spirits out … because the spirit is there by the hand of God! What I read was that WORSHIP is key to breakthrough on this “distressing spirit”. If this “distressing spirit” could possibly represent dementia or Alzheimers, could WORSHIP be key to breakthrough today with these diseases?? That is what David did … he played the harp and the distressing spirit would depart from Saul!!

Going back perhaps 10 years I can remember the time when a couple from our church, friends of ours, whose adult daughter I had also become friends with, was in a sleep type coma for approximately 3 days. I offered to sit with her at the hospital so her Mom could leave, clean up, and get some things done. I felt the leading to take a CD player with me to play WORSHIP music, turn the loud nonstop TV off, and read scriptures while I sat with her. After an hour or two of worship music and the Word being spoken quietly in her room …. she woke up!!!!!!!! Not only that she wanted to eat and she wanted to walk downstairs, pulling her IV tree alongside!! She had Crohn's disease and later passed away.

Pondering:

* Perhaps we could test this theory by playing continuous worship music, harp music specifically, as Michael has mentioned to me. Just maybe we too would witness the power of worship that very well could bring breakthrough for the dementia or Alzheimer patient!!

* If this theory is correct - take a look at the sins of Saul – are similar sins today behind dementia and Alzheimers.

* I wonder if the distressing spirit could be the same “tormenting spirit” that we are turned over to when we refuse to forgive?