Yorba Linda Vineyard

What’s the best way to fight unbelief? With truth. As believers who and where do we find truth? That’s where we have to start when it comes to fighting unbelief in our lives.

Jesus first tells us, [John 14:6] “That he is the way, the truth, and the life.” And also in  [John 8:32] “That we will know the truth, and the truth will set us free!”  That says too me, if I’m after God, following His ways, full of what God says is true, I should be walking in freedom.

Free to walk in the calling he’s placed on my life. Whether as a wife or mother, friend, or leader; if the truth of God resides in me; then I know who I am, not because of what everyone else tells me; but rather what God says about me.

I mean if I feel like the enemy is bombarding me with all kinds of lies, I better be filled up with the truth of God, or I’m going to get killed! I have to read truth, I have to have people speak the truth to me, and remind me of what God says. But more importantly, I must hear God myself about the truth of who He is, and who I am in Him!

To many times we go off to fight, and we head off without being filled and protected with what Gods promised to us. Don’t get me wrong, I'm not looking for battles, I look for Jesus. Too many Christians are looking for fights, wasting their time distracted from making any real progress because they spend their time fighting the same things or always looking for a new fight.

Spend your time looking for and too Jesus, and let him give you what you need to fight those things of unbelief that rise up.

I remember in the 80’s and 90’s when those books started coming out about praying down strongholds over cites, and I could never figure that out really. I mean, how about just taking my own life and my own home for Christ? I think we should start there. Too many people get way ahead of what they can handle.

As believers we aren’t called to pray to the enemy, we pray to Jesus. We focus on Jesus.

When someone tells me, “The enemy just leaves me alone, I don’t get any warfare. My question would be, “What are you doing with your life?”

If you aren’t making any progress, or taking any area of your life back for Christ, or in the lives of others, then you probably aren’t doing anything to make him nervous. So why should he bother with you?” Most likely means he has you where he wants you--- making no advancement of Gods Kingdom in your life, or in the lives of those around you.

If I get a lot of resistance in some way, usually doesn’t mean I’m doing something wrong, usually it means I must be doing something right. The enemy hates it.

The enemy is always the enemy. People are never the enemy, places or things are never the enemy; our enemy is always the devil.  I don’t call out to my enemy yelling at him to get out of the way--- I call out to Jesus—I worship Jesus--The enemy hates that stuff! And there’s no way he can’t stay!

We have to believe all of the Bible, not just the parts we’d like to hear at the time.

One of the most important things in knowing what the Bible says is true, is learning as believers what authority we have. If you don’t know what authority you have; you’ll never use it. And just as the Bible says, that "all authority on earth as it is in heaven is given to us."

That's not a gender verse, or meaning that authority is only for a few, and definitely it’s not a verse for the body to fight over- It says, that as believers, you and I have all authority. Not some, not just a bit, but all! If it’s in the Bible you don’t need to work that out with me, you have to work that out with the Lord.

When we know the authority we carry; and we understand the truth about who we are in Christ; it should cause us to live our lives in a way where we have full confidence in where God places us.

God is the one that places us in areas to serve; and I believe it's His decision. It’s his call how big our scopes of influence our. We don’t get to decide those things; He does. That’s why it’s so ugly when people feel like they have to fight for something that God hasn’t placed on them.

If God gave it to them; why are they so worried they don’t have it?

Usually means because they don’t have it. In fact, if you have to fight so hard to keep the area of leadership; then it’s probably not on you. I remember the Lord told me a few years ago as he began to point some things out to me regarding leadership. He told me, “The truth is Christy, many people believe they are leading, but if they weren’t getting a paycheck, they wouldn’t be spending their time doing what they’re doing right now. And not only that; if they weren’t given the title, no one would be following them.”

I pray I never land in either of those positions. I want to know who I am, and walk freely in the calling God places on me; whatever that may be. But I also want to serve and have passion for what I’m not doing, not because I get paid to do it.

What a huge bummer of a way to live trying to convince everyone what a great leader you are? It burns people out all the time! Sadly enough many churches operate this way. Instead of calling and anointing, the operate off of paycheck or who can fill the position for now? We need to covered so lets just have so & so, and then we don’t have to hire another. Or people volunteer themselves; which never works either. It can work for a short period of time; but the truth of what that person carries, always comes to the surface.

Have you ever been in some meeting or some luncheon with some leader and all they do the whole time is tell you about who they know? Or maybe what they've done, all they talk about is themselves? Or how about watching a leader spending a lot of time trying to control those around them? I think we’ve all experienced that before!

Isn’t it true that usually they are fearful in some way they may not be the leader, so they have to; in fact they must convince people they are the leader? Usually turns out they probably aren’t.

So if God is the deciding factor on who gets to be anointed,  for whatever position, then He is also the one who decides who gets how much authority. Therefore, it doesn’t really matter what you’re leading. Either God’s giving you the authority to do the job or not.

I made a decision a long time ago that I refuse to spend my time trying to convince someone I'm their pastor or leader. If I have to do that; it means I’m not.

I love to encourage people over and over, but I also decided years ago to focus on those that respond. Remember, you don’t get to pick your scope of influence; God says, “I will put favor on whom I choose to put my favor on;" "I raise people up; and i take people down..." [Daniel]

Be encouraged to get Gods truth in you. Read his word, hear His heart for you and go with that. Spend your time in the place where God has called you; doing the very things He has placed on your heart.

And anytime, you or I feel like we need to convince everyone around us how great and gifted we are…May God remind us to step back, and again and hear his voice to tell us the truth of who we are. And have the boldness to live there.

view all events