We Have Authority

Yesterday, I believed I committed a faux pas so shame and blame flogged me relentlessly. 

I tried to stuff myself with a very rich cream cake but that didn't help. My last thoughts yesternight and my first thoughts this morning, were of this 'great' mistake.

I was so weighed down by it that I almost didn't go for my morning walk. I sluggishly dressed up determined to keep my commitment to myself and then commenced on my walk.

My start was quite slow because I was carrying this burden that made every step so hard for me, but I kept plodding along.

I normally play Gospel songs on my morning walks but this morning I didn't even feel like playing any song, so I began facebooking. 

I had promised myself that I will never go to Facebook on my morning walk, but this morning I did. After about 5 minutes of facebooking, I realized what I was doing and stopped.

5 minutes later, I remembered Andrae Crouch's "Through it all", googled it on my phone and began to play it. Surprisingly, that didn't really make me feel any better. Normally playing gospel songs precedes my time of prayer, praise and worship, but I couldn't even open my mouth this morning. 

I kept replaying the song until I had a 'Eureka' moment. 

I remembered a conversation I had with a friend yesterday about how the most difficult battle we fight with ourselves in our time of pain, is the one we fight within our minds. 

Joyce Meyer's book "The Battlefield of the mind" also came to my mind at this point and I asked myself what I was doing allowing the devil mess with my mind. I immediately rebuked him and told the spirits of shame and blame to be silent and go back to hell where they belonged.

After doing this, I continued to listen to the song and about 5 minutes later, I realized I no longer had the burden and yesterday's faux pas was no longer a sword of Damocles hanging over my head. I was free! 

This really got me thinking of the authority that we have as believers and how often we as Christians, go about in life assaulted and traumatized by the devil because we don't use it.

If we don't use our authority, the devil will continue to run roughshod over our lives and emotions and, we will never live victorious lives. We have to speak to him, commanding him in the name of Jesus and he has no choice but to obey.

As long as we're alive, the battle does not stop, so we have to be alert to recognize his wiles.

We must learn to be deliberate in our walk and determined to emerge victorious from every battle he brings our way.

Remember, the outcome was sealed on Calvary's Cross. Victory is already ours, we just need to lay hold of it by using our authority.