No More Hidden Places!

Saturday, September 24th, 2011

Today's Passage: 1 John chapter 1
Memory Verse> Romans 8:1

One of the most effective tactics used by the kingdom of darkness to paralyze the forward movement of believers is condemnation. Whether by commission or omission, sinful deeds done before or after salvation are at the forefront of the enemy's arsenal. Think about the worst thing you've ever done to break God's heart. If you've never told another soul about it, and spend much of your time trying to make sure no-one ever finds out, you most certainly are being manipulated by satan's spirit of condemnation.

The first level of deception which keeps us defeated in this area is the way in which the enemy convinces us that keeping our sins a secret is the best thing to do. He's counting on several things here; one, that we are unaware of the passage in the Word that tells us to confess our faults one to another that we may be healed. Two, he's counting on the possibility of us never getting close to others for fear that they may spread our business to more people and have everyone talking about us. Three, he doesn't want any of us to take to heart today's passage that invites us to draw near to God, and confess our all to Him so that we can be forgiven.

The second and most effective strategy that keeps us from our freedom is when the father of all lies convinces us that we can pretend we have no issues. This is where he really gets the biggest laugh at our expense. We may think no-one else knows what we've done. But WE know, GOD knows, and of course the accuser of the brethren knows. So who are we really deceiving? Only ourselves. It stops us from walking in an intimate relationship with God, because it communicates to Him that we don't trust His ability to deliver and cover us. When He tells us to confess it, it's not for the purpose of bringing shame and embarrassment. It's so that the enemy has no grounds to keep us from growing in our walk with God, because there's nothing he can hold over our heads.

When I first came to ALM, I kept so many doors and windows in my life locked so that no- one would know what I'd done. As I began to serve in a greater capacity with my husband, I was that person who was afraid to expose the fact that I'd had an abortion. Yes, it's one of the worst things a person could ever do. But trying to hide it was even worse because I spent a long time holding the anointing and gifting hostage inside of me; the enemy had the ammunition to keep me in bondage. But when I received the revelation of exposing my inner self to the Lord, to my pastors and to the people I minister to, I began to walk in a freedom I'd never imagined. It's not easy to let go, because it means becoming transparent and not ashamed of the scars. But if you truly want to be used by God in the powerful way He's planned for you, then you must fall out of agreement with the secrets. And best of all, you take away the authority the enemy wields over you. No more hidden places. Let's be all that God intended.

Prayer: father, I can't take credit for the miracle You performed in my life. All I did was refused the enemy's lie and accepted the truth that You had become the stand-in for my sins through the blood of Jesus. Now I see myself the way You see me-- forgiven. May I no longer allow doors to remain closed between You and me. I declare the same freedom for my brothers and sisters in Jesus' Name. Amen.