The Enemy is Too Close for Comfort

The Wrong Battle Field

I was prepared for the war
Against those stealing my purpose
My plans and strategies were in place
I knew with God the enemy would be shamed;
Early I arose
To give the enemy his dose
Alas, to my dismay
The battle ground have shifted base;
In truth the battle stage
Had always been the same
But I had developed strategies
Based on perceptions and mirages;
Then I came to see
That the hindrances to all I could be
Was residing within me
For I had given the enemy rights
Over many possessions of mine
Especially the right to be who I am in Christ;
Thank God it was not too late
To know the enemy had long been put to shame
And it was high time I put a stop
To his abode in my whole.

The Inspiration
I have a friend who once said that the reason for his slow progress and lack of job was the people at home. He said they were very fetish and did a lot of juju. His father’s new wife did not want to see the progress of any child who was not hers, so he narrated. He felt all he had to do was get rid of the woman and all his problems will be solved. While this is a case where the concept of choosing your inheritance comes in (message posted on the blog on Monday, 30th July), I will like to discuss what the Holy Spirit inspired me to discuss with regards this situation.

On getting to know my friend better, it was evident that the enemy of his progress was not as far as in the village. The enemy of his progress was too close for comfort. The hindrance to his desired progress was himself. It came as his words, faith, and actions.

Many a times we are hindered from achieving our dreams, fulfilling our God-given purpose or getting our heart’s desires because of ourselves. Let’s start with the stage of conception (because before anything comes into existence, it must be conceived). God gives you a dream or a desire. You use doubt, self-condemnation, past experiences (of yourself and others) and present circumstances to destroy it. This is contrary to what God expected when HE gave you the dream. HE expected you to meditate on it, make it come alive in you, and start planning on how you could see the dream realized.

Let’s move on to the stage where we start working towards achieving the dream (if it was not aborted after conception). The easiest way to realize or kill the dream is by words [Proverbs 18:20-21]. I have a friend who used words to get herself a job. She came for a job interview and told the recruiter that she was going to take his job from him. And it came to pass. Talking about the power of words is a lifetime message to be taught but I can refer you to the message “The Spiritual Force of God’s Word” by Dr. Creflo Dollar. A dream can be killed by simply saying, “I don’t think I can do it.” That is not being modest or truthful. You can do all things through Christ who gives you strength [Philippians 4:13]. Other killers of your dreams are diversions (focusing on others’ dreams, sin, other activities that take up your time, etc), and discouragement (especially when it is shared with the wrong people).

Let me bring in Faith. Now Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see [Hebrews 11:1]. You cannot realize your dream if you cannot see it realized. Have you believed so much in what you want that you see it? A friend of mine talked about her car until everyone around her could see the car. In secret we called her vain, materialistic and insane. Little did we know that she knew what it takes to realize a dream. When finally I was told of her car (6 years later), I said it was not money that got her the car, it was her faith. Jesus also tells us, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours”[Mark 11:22-24].

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for I see someone’s dream coming to pass. It does not end with faith. It is our actions that bring our dreams into physical manifestation. You cannot build a house with mouth. Action has to take place. We are told that Faith without works is dead [James 2:26]. It is high time you start taking bold steps towards achieving your dream. I have a friend who always talked about being a teen church teacher. She talked about if for a year. I asked her what was holding her back. She said, “laziness.” She wanted to hang out with the girls after church rather than sitting down every Sunday for 7 weeks to get her believers classes done (which was a prerequisite to being a member of the church and hence joining a department). I believe her mouth had started paining her because of talking about her dream too much. She took action and is currently attending her believers’ class. She had to let go of distractions. She had to stop delaying, for delaying has a way of making you lose focus and abate the greatness of your dream. She had to stop expecting motivation and encouragement from men especially in the likes of “I’d support you”. We need to base all our expectations from God only [Psalm 62:5] even when we are expecting motivation.

Just as a tiny seed makes a tree, you never know how great a little dream can turn out to be.

In the course of writing this, the Holy Spirit taught me something. HE says that there is always a time lapse between conception of a dream and its realization. God is perfect in HIS timing. When HE has given you a dream, it is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed [Habakkuk 2:3].

Child of God, you can be anything you desire. You can achieve anything you dream of. Are you still blaming the defeated devil for many things in your life? Before you embark on a futile battle, check within if you haven’t used words, thoughts, doubt, distractions and actions to prevent the realization of what you dream. And remember, it is never too late for God.

Let me close by sharing with you an inspiring quote by Marianne Williamson from her book, A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Have a blessed day and welcome to a new month.