Being Hammered by the Storms of Life? Read This

When we are at odds with another person or going through other storms of life, we long for an escape from the conflict immediately. Sometimes, no matter what we say or do to remedy a situation, it is met with opposition. It is during these times that we must put into practice and believe with our whole heart the following scriptures:

Psalm 46:10 BE still and Know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
This says we have ceased striving with a situation or person. We were ill at ease and now we are at ease. Be still in your actions, be still in your mind, be still in your spirit. What's left in you is your mighty faith in the God that is all knowing and all powerful.
This is all that remains and yet it is all you need and more than enough.

Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

We like this passage of scripture, but we would rather it come to pass in real time.
Instantaneous, when we are being hammered by the storms of life. But friends, seldom if ever does this happen.

All things work together means even the BAD things that happen to us in our life walk. The bad that we have in our life, God turns for our good. We don't need to look any further than the story of JOSEPH for evidence of this.
Genesis 37:
4 And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.
The story of what they did to him:

24 And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. 25 And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? 27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.
28 Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.
29 And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. 30 And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?

31 And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood; 32 And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's coat or no.

33 And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces.

34 And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.

35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. 36 And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.


The story of Joseph and his struggles:
His brothers were jealous of him. This drove them to fake his death and sell him off as a slave.
Joseph didn't do anything to deserve this. He was born and beloved of his father but that was all it took for his older siblings to detest him and wish him ill.
What his siblings did to him was addressed by Joseph at the end of the story, "But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive". Genesis 50:20

The good that came from this situation was Joseph raised to one of the most powerful and mighty men in all of Egypt. He was raised up from his struggles and woe by his own faith in the mighty power of God. He saved many from famine. But how did he get to that place from being tossed into a pit and sold off as a slave? By knowing that ALL things work for good to those who love God.
No, this passage of scripture wasn't written at that time, but I know it was written upon the mind and spirit of Joseph as well as other saints down through the ages well before it was penned by the Apostle Paul.

Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

If we have within ourselves the ability to wait for someone, this means we have faith that who we're waiting on will come through for us, otherwise it's not worth the time wasted.
Now if you have more faith in yourself than God, you are in trouble. We are but men and women, but he is the one who made us. When I am at my weakest point, it is then that I recognize the power he alone can give me. Through his spirit, I can do all things. And this goes back to the scripture: I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

When the storms of life are tossing us to and fro, we must:
Wait upon the Lord. We're told that our strength will be renewed if we do. We will mount up with wings as eagles.
Listen friends, this sounds like a change for the better in our circumstances, doesn't it to you?
That could mean being catapulted out of the depths of depression and sorrow, grief and despair and launched into health, joy, peace and wellness!

They shall run and not be weary:
This is showing that what would exhaust those who don't wait upon the Lord: running, being busy, etc, keeping up the pace of our frantic lives, will not wear us out! This applies to both the spiritual as well as the mental and physical parts of us.
Walk and Not Faint
I believe this mostly pertains to our walk. Our feet carry us into many circumstances and into many places we sometimes never should have been. Just think about the places we go, the people we meet and must deal with. It is God through his spirit that provides us with strength for our journey of life. Try as we might to get by without him, we will fail at every turn.
It is not in man to order or direct his own steps, we are to follow the direction of his truth, his word, his spirit , if we truly desire peace, wholeness and joy.

Do you care too much about what others think?

I have known people who are consumed with what others think about them.
It saddens us when others view us in a negative light when we have done them no wrong. But if others hold a negative and distorted view of us unjustly, we should not waste time being concerned about their opinions. It really is that simple because people tend to believe what they want to, no matter how we may try to change their opinions of us.

We spend too much time concerned about what others think of us and too little time concerned about what our creator thinks of us.

Settling Disputes and Stubborn Pride
Romans 12:18

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

I've noticed a growing disinterest in "going to the source" and "getting to the root" of disputes and disagreements. People are increasingly avoiding matters that should be brought to the forefront and resolved. Instead they choose to let their anger build until they are unreachable due to pent up resentment. Is there a name for this attribute? Yes, it is stubborn pride and today we see it at every turn.
Avoiding an issue with another is no way to solve it. If another's actions has harmed us, we should go to them with it and not broadcast it to those who have no part in the matter.

A Humble Spirit

The attribute which is the opposite of stubborn pride is humbleness.
Dear friends, it is humbleness - allowing ourselves to be brought down a notch or two on the pride scale and NOT thinking too highly of ourselves (keeping ourselves in subjection to God) that helps us to resolve conflict and turmoil with another. If we have humbleness within us, God is well pleased.

If you have a person in your life that you cannot reason with, examine yourself and determine if you are possessing a humble spirit or stubborn pride. If humbleness isn't there it is no wonder why you cannot get anywhere with people who are hard to deal with.

If you have tried to reason with a person and discuss what their problem is with you but have been met with only cold disregard, you must not be engrossed with them or their ill treatment of you. You must not let their distorted opinions and actions shake you. Let them go and release them. If they attack you verbally to others don't worry about this and never spend time defending yourself. If God is pleased with us, we honestly DO love others, and have not harmed anyone, God is well pleased.

Persecuted by others when you have done no wrong?

If you have done nothing wrong, yet others treat you badly, they are persecuting you because you are God's child. We are told about this in the bible. This is what the pharisees did to Jesus. He did good but nonetheless, they still persecuted him.
Notice what Jesus said about persecution:

Matthew 5:11+12
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

What are we to do about unjust persecution?
Matthew 5:44

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despite fully use you, and persecute you;

People living in a state of anger

Many today live in a constant state of anger. They don't like it if others have peace and joy in their lives because they themselves don't have peace and joy.

Don't be a people pleaser. There will always be someone you cannot please no matter what you do.
Some of these people who are hard to please must have their way at every turn or you will suffer, they will try to see to it. But notice, I said they would try. You do not have to permit them to succeed.
People who are vindictive and mean spirited don't have to be given victory over you. You control how they and their actions effect you.

Let their bad treatment of you roll off your back and out of your mind. Do not dwell on them because who has your back? God does.

The Seared Conscience of the Sociopath : Part 3

The sociopath is cunning and is able to fly under the radar of most people's perception.
They do this by allowing all but a select few to view their fake facade. The facets of their personality they show to those they choose to impress is very different from those facets that truly reside within them.
To others who they care little about, they are indifferent, cool and smug. They don't spend time or effort wooing those who are seen by them to have nothing to offer to them.

The sociopath will choose victims deliberately

Make no mistake, the sociopath deliberately chooses his or her victims. Then they will impress and charm them until they are giddy. This is why when a victim of the sociopath tries to tell their story, they often are not believed. The charm factor with these people is over the top. The sociopath will lie about others and embellish details of a situation with others. Sometimes there is a "pack" mentality with these people. He or she will actually attempt to draft people into their "army" of discontents. Many have been slandered, humiliated, and unjustly accused by sociopaths. Most of the time they do these things for financial gain and self preservation. But I have seen them do these things when there didn't appear to be a reason. You will never get inside their heads. They are another creature altogether. Don't play games with these people and study them for too long. You will never figure them out or truly understand them. You have a conscience, they don't. Just as you cannot understand the feelings of a computer or any other inanimate object, you cannot understand the feelings of the sociopath or what makes them tick. The pain they inflict on their victims is not felt by them. Empathy is unknown to them, they care nothing for anything except what they want.

What creates the sociopath?

Some say that sociopathy is brought about by heredity and some say the cause is environment. I happen to think that sociopath's are a creation of both heredity and environment in most cases. A child who is born into a life of misery by way of dysfunctional parents will have a tough time. But that same child can and often does survive without being transformed into a sociopath - one without conscience.

Understanding the sociopath

We don't understand those without shame, guilt or conscience. This is another reason why we are apt to overlook, underestimate, or miscalculate those who are sociopaths. We would rather think positive about someone and their actions than negative.

To admit that you have a non-feeling monster as a relative, spouse, or friend is not an easy thing to do.

Those of us who have a conscience would rather believe anything other than that.

And it is in this neglecting of the obvious that our weakness takes root in dealing with these people and can cause us great misery. This neglecting of the obvious causes us to end up being deceived and devastated. We want to believe that there are not people out there walking around who only think of themselves and care nothing about others or their feelings. To us, this is a frightening thought, so we dismiss it and tend to overlook what those without conscience do.

I believe there are more ice people (sociopaths) today in our present culture than at any other time in history.

Sociopath in the Family

What did Jesus say would characterize the last days?

Those days right before his return?

Mark 13: 12 Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.

Friends, those who do these things, betraying a brother or other family member to death can be categorized as sociopathic behavior. Only those without a conscience or a seared conscience would do such things.

Before the return of the Lord, we will not see an escalation of peace but a diminishing of it. Yes, even within our own families.

If you have a sociopath in your family, you have my sympathies. It is hard enough dealing with one you meet casually on the street, let alone dealing with one you must interact with continually because he or she happens to be a family member.

But if this is your situation

1. Keep your distance and if possible establish no contact with them. I say this because it would be totally foolish for you to dream about sharing any positive relationship with them.

They harm others at random without any guilt. How can you share any meaningful relationship with a scorpion?

You cannot, for their sting is painful and persistent, and you must keep your distance. The same applies with the sociopath.
Be warned, the best therapists have seldom made progress with the sociopath.

They are set in their ways and care only for themselves. They have no shame and carry no guilt.
The best one word definition I can think of to apply to them? SELFISH.

Don't get entangled in the ropes of revenge

Taking revenge on someone who has hurt us will satisfy our flesh but it is never productive. While the flesh is satisfied with "getting even" with another, our spirits suffer. Have you heard the bible passage, "Answer not a fool in his folly"? Take that truth and apply it with revenge as well. Take not revenge upon a foolish man in response to his evil actions.
Pay back not evil for evil. Why? Because you are not like that one who has harmed or offended you. So if you do take revenge on that one who has harmed you, basically you're doing what he has done - you are acting as he does.

I choose rather to please God and not pay back evil for evil.
Having said that, there are certain circumstances in which you must take action against another - Legally.
But we should know where that line is that other's may cross in which we must take action to protect ourselves from dangerous people. The law was made for the lawless. If you have to deal with a dangerous person, please utilize law enforcement, that is what they are there for.

There are many kinds of people in the world, Those who maliciously slander and harm others do these things because they care not for God nor man and woman that he created.

Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lord, I will repay

It is because I know God and trust him that I don't fret over those who have persecuted me. The schemes and plots of those who hate us are seen by him who sees all and is omniscient .

Why fear and fret over these people since God has your back? Friends, believe me, there is no reason to. Go to the Lord about those who torment and harm you. He knows already what they've done and what their plans are against you, but the main sign of a relationship is communication. This is why you are to tell father God your feelings and thoughts. This is prayer in it's purest form.

Other reasons why revenge is not the way to go:

Revenge will breed strife instead of ending it.

The bible instructs us to live our lives in quietness, not in backbiting, gossiping and in strife sowing.

Many time, those who persecute us are hoping we will react to their evil actions towards us-why give them the satisfaction?

Peace will never be gained by getting even.

The act of revenge sheds light on a "pride" problem, however large or small it may be.

Oneupmanship never births peace and quiet and humbleness, only strife and contention.



Don't get entangled in the ropes of revenge

Choose not to get entangled or caught up in some game of revenge.
I've known people whose lives were so empty that they've dedicated them to revenge and sowing strife at random.

With people like this, your only real choice is to have no contact with them.
Pray for them, but keep your distance.

Why are people like this?

Some of these people may have been members of a dysfunctional family.
They may not yet know how to treat others.
They are angry and resentful and only know how to hurt others.
They don't have God's love abiding with them because they've rejected it for whatever reason.

But here's the bottom line
You are not to behave as they do. You are not to lower yourself to their level and bring yourself to their playing field. You are not to play the games they do - games of revenge.

Demon Possession and Oppression

Demonic oppression and possession is still around today. We don't hear much of it because a good majority of the ones who are being tormented by evil forces are those who are:

1. Narcissistic

2. Diagnosed with various personality disorders and other related disorders

3. Sociopaths

Matthew 7:17:

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

James 3:12

Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.

Evil :
1. Anything which impairs the happiness of a being or deprives a being of any good;

anything which causes suffering of any kind to sentient beings; injury;

mischief; harm; -- opposed to {good}.

Evils which our own misdeeds have wrought. --Milton.

The evil that men do lives after them. --Shak.

2. Moral badness, or the deviation of a moral being from the principles of virtue imposed by conscience, or by the will of the
Supreme Being, or by the principles of a lawful human authority; disposition to do wrong; moral offence; wickedness; depravity.
The heart of the sons of men is full of evil.
--Eccl. ix. 3.

Oppression

3. A feeling of being heavily weighed down in mind or body.

Possession

2. Something owned or possessed.

7. The state of being dominated by or as if by evil spirits or by an obsession.

Oppression and Possession:

The way I see it, those who are oppressed by demonic forces are continually being "harassed" by them but they have not yet been possessed (totally taken over) by them.

As the definition above describes, someone who is oppressed feels heavily weighted down in body and mind.

The perfect definition of depression wouldn't you say? Now I am not saying everyone who is suffering from depression is oppressed by the devil.

All of those who do evil are not demon possessed. But there is a danger in labeling all of those who practice evil as suffering from some mental or character disorder as many psychologists do today.

Are those who continually practice evil spiritually sick?
I believe that they are.

We have all done evil things in our lives.

Are you sorry for the evil you have done?

Or

Are you unconcerned about the harm your evil actions has brought upon others?

If you are sorry for the evil you have done, this shows that you have a conscience and that it has not been seared and this is a good thing. Your sorrow over the evil you have done shows that your conscience is working.

But there are those in this world who do evil continuously and show no regret or remorse for the evil deeds they do to others. To act in this manner is a sure sign of a defective or seared conscience.

To do continuous evil to others and have no regrets is the hallmark of an evil person.

Do you intentionally harm others? Do you not think twice about what your selfish acts might bring upon others? Someone who does these things are practicing evil. In order for someone to practice doing evil to others, they must have evil in their hearts.

Jesus said what is in your heart will come out of your mouth. Our words tend to signify the content of what we carry around within.

Matthew 18:

18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man.

Possession

Before a person can be possessed, that person must YIELD themselves to continually practice evil.

Repeatedly giving ourselves over to evil will assuredly pay us back by way of being overtaken by that evil. Unless one yields him or herself to evil, they cannot be possessed.

1. Narcissism and the demonic:

It is my belief that some of those who are narcissists are possessed by demons. I have known narcissistic people and there is something inherently evil about them. They only think of themselves with no regard for their fellow man. They view human beings as tools to be used or discarded. For a person to do this, make no mistake, he has welcomed evil into his life.

To think that a narcissist could live their entire life without giving thought to what they do to others with their evil acts is mind boggling. But this is what happens. Narcissists believe that they do no wrong. They will not admit to being at fault in any fashion. They are deceived but they don't see it. You can read more about narcissists by clicking here .

2. The personality disordered:

It is my personal belief that some percentage of these people are possessed by demons.

It is no surprise that none of us want to accept this. We would rather categorize these people as "sick" or as suffering from a severe character flaw that holds them in its clutches and in which they are helpless to get free from.

But in truth, the reason these people cannot get free from the clutches that evil has upon them is because they refuse to acknowledge the truth and face what they have allowed into their lives and what they have become.

In truth, a majority of these people are spoiled, selfish brats. Selfishness is a sin. In their particular situation, the sin or selfishness has overtaken them and is now reigning in their lives. The same holds true for narcissists.

The sad fact is that these people are being harassed and in some cases, controlled by demonic spirits that have been given sanctuary within them.

3. Psychopaths

A psychopath is one who has a seared conscience. The evil they do doesn't bother them. They are cold, calculating and aloof. They caring nothing about anyone but themselves.

What about the will of the person?

Notice that I say the person has GIVEN sanctuary to the evil forces. I have always believed that no power in heaven or on earth is able to go all out against the will of a person and overtake them UNLESS that person YIELDS to that force or power.

Entertaining demons:

There are some people who have reported hearing "voices" that they enjoy listening to.

One time I heard of a person going to a church meeting and coming forward to be freed from demonic forces they had allowed into their lives. This person told the pastor that they didn't want to be rid of the voices they heard. Some of these people have reported that the "voices" have told them to kill or to do other evil deeds to people. These are evil spirits that are doing this folks.

But when the person starts LISTENING and giving credence and to these evil forces, this is when the evil forces gain strength in the person's life.

Demonic possession in the bible

Jesus cast out demons often. There was one particular incident in which his disciples could not cast a demon out. Jesus response was, " this kind cometh forth not except by fasting and prayer". So we see that we cannot lump all cases of demonic possession into one neat category.

The longer a person is possessed by a demonic force, the harder they will be to cast out. And the harder it will be for those who are taken over by one to get free.

What brings them out?

The truth always sets people free and demonic possession is no exception.

The person who is oppressed or possessed is the one who must face and accept the truth. The person who is oppressed or possessed needs very much to acknowledge that they have allowed hate, anger, and maliciousness to rule in their lives and as a result of this, they have been oppressed by demonic/ evil forces. People should have the desire to be free from these evil forces. They must want rid of them and desire to live by the power of GODS spirit, the Holy Spirit.

If Jesus was here with us today in the flesh, he would no doubt tell us to cast out devils just as he did 2000 years ago to his disciples.

Jesus cast out the demonic through the Holy Spirit in those times. And when we are called on to intercede for a possessed person today, we will only be able to cast out the demonic by way of the truth and the Holy spirit. Nothing has changed friends.

Questions about Demon Possession:

For one thing, when Jesus cast out demons, he approached the person, knew by the spirit that the person was possessed, didn't ASK the person if they wanted to be free of the demons and cast them out of that person. In order for us to live anywhere near that level of spiritual maturity, we must have discernment.

In our day and age, we feel that we must ASK and find out if the possessed person wants to be delivered, yet Jesus didn't do this. He asked a demon that was inside a person what his name was - the demon replied, "LEGION, for we are many".

During the times I have been present when people were possessed, the person just started acting out. That is, they started screaming and thrashing around. There were no verbal exchanges between the preacher and the possessed person that began and enabled the deliverance to take place.

I have both prayed for and been present in cases where people were possessed. I have been by their side when they were battling the very forces of hell. This is not a light thing.

Calling evil by it's name:

Why can we not bring ourselves to call evil what it is? We dismiss the actions of those who routinely do evil and wreak havoc in the lives of others by turning away or remaining silent and dismissing it altogether. We should call evil what it is.

No healing and wholeness will ever come from lying or covering up the truth.

Some bible scriptures that deal with demon possession:

Matthew 4:24 And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.

Matthew 8:16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:

Acts 8:7 For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.

Mark 9:18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.

Mark 9:28 28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? 29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.