As a Pastoral Team, we are reading the book Nothing to Prove by Jennie Allen. In the beginning of the book she gives us a look into some of the ways in which the enemy tries to derail you from what God has for you, what He’s saying to you, and who He’s calling you to be.
I would like to share the excerpt that got me examining my own life. As you read this, ask God to speak to you. Ask Him to reveal to you which one of these lies you have bought into. Do some Listening Prayer and ask Him what He wants to say about it.
If I Were Your Enemy . . . (An Excerpt from Nothing to Prove)
© 2019 Jennie Allen. All Rights Reserved.
If I were your enemy, this is what I would do:
Make you believe you need permission to lead.
Make you believe you are helpless.
Make you believe you are insignificant.
Make you believe that God wants your decorum and behavior.
And for years these lies have been sufficient to shut down much of the church.
But now many of you are awake. You are in the Word and on your knees. God is moving through you, and you are getting dangerous. You are starting to get free and leading other people to freedom. The old lies are no longer adequate.
So if I were your enemy, I would make you numb and distract you from God’s story
Technology, social media, Netflix, travel, food and wine, comfort. I would not tempt you with notably bad things, or you would get suspicious. I would distract you with everyday comforts that slowly feed you a different story and make you forget God.
Then you would dismiss the Spirit leading you, loving you, and comforting you. Then you would start to love comfort more than surrender and obedience and souls.
If that didn’t work, I would attack your identity. I would make you believe you had to prove yourself.
Then you would focus on yourself instead of God.
Friends would become enemies.
Teammates would become competition.
You would isolate yourself and think you are not enough.
You would get depressed and be ungrateful for your story.
Or,
You would compare and believe you are better than others.
You would judge people who need God.
You would condemn them rather than love and invite them in.
You would gossip and destroy and tear down other works of God.
Either way you would lose your joy, because your eyes would be fixed on yourself and people instead of on Jesus.
And if that didn’t work, I would intoxicate you with the mission of God rather than God Himself.
Then you would worship a cause instead of Jesus.
You would fight each other to have the most important roles.
You would burn out from striving.
You would think that success is measured by the results you see.
You would build platforms for applause rather than to display God.
Then all your time and effort would be spent on becoming important rather than on knowing Jesus and loving people. The goals would be to gather followers, earn fancy job titles, publish books, build big ministries rather than to seek the souls of men and the glory of God.
And if that didn’t work, I would make you suffer.
Then maybe you would think God is evil rather than good.
Your faith would shrink.
You would get bitter and weary and tired rather than flourish and grow and become more like Christ.
You would try to control your life rather than step into the plans He has for you.
The enemy is telling you that freedom is only found in finally proving to yourself and to the world that . . .
you are important.
you are in control.
you are liked.
you are happy.
you are enough.
Prayer:
Father, I pray that you would give us eyes to see what you want us to see and ears to hear what you are saying to us. I pray that as you reveal the lies of the enemy, that you replace them with your truth. As we examine our lives, I pray for your healing power to fall upon us. May your Holy Spirit speak to the depths of our souls and may the Love of the Father consume our hearts to receive what you want for us. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen!