This was the case for a certain man from Gadarenes on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. His problem couldn’t be seen or touched. It was in his mind and it was out of control.
He was held in bondage by demons and declared incurable. Uncontrollable. The Bible repeated the words “no one”. No one could bind him. No one could subdue him. The demons ravaged his life as days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months and eventually to years.
He remained in torment until the day a man named Jesus set foot on the shore.
When those spirits saw Jesus, they knew their time was up. They knew He was about to do what no one had been able to do. He was their eviction notice – they had to leave.
The demons ran up to Jesus and willingly submitted themselves, begging Him not to torment them. How is it that the same demons who tortured one man, were begging this other Man not to torture them?
Dr Luke, in the 11th chapter and the 21st verse tells us “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.”
Jesus was now that Stronger Man who had come in and subdued them. There was no contest. He was Lord and they were in thrall to Him.
So Jesus commands the evil spirits to take leave of the man’s body and sends them into herd of pigs and for the first time in a long time, the man tastes freedom. His mind is restored. He sits beside Jesus and has a peaceful interaction.
My question is, do you need peace?
Is there something going on that has defied all logic and solution? If there is, it does not deter Jesus. It is no match for him. Whether it’s a sickness or an addiction or a behaviour or a negative experience, it ends when Jesus sets foot on the shores of your heart.
He is that Spirit that supersedes all other spirits. The Wind that commands other winds to be still.
Jesus came so that you and I may be free. He went to the cross thousands of years ago so that His name may be glorified. When we mention that name, every lingering problem takes its leave.
The villagers couldn’t help the demoniac. The Bible tells us people actually tried but did not succeed. But Jesus is that rock that no problem can escape. Anything the Rock opposes will be completely pulverized.
It may seem strong but Jesus is infinitely stronger. Take the problem to Jesus. Where others fail, He succeeds.
At some point, it felt like I was swimming against the tide.
Why did everybody else seem to be doing well while I was stuck in a rut? Had my luck run out? Was I trying too hard? Trying too little? Trying the wrong things?
I have the qualifications and experience for my ‘dream job’. Why do these rejection emails keep filling my inbox?
They said,’The biggest risk in life is taking none.’ I have taken several risks, and they have all cost me so dearly – why isn’t it working for me?
They said,’Good things come to those who wait.’ Why does it feel like my good things have gotten missing along their way to me?
I remember praying one prayer – ‘God, organise my life. Please organise my life. I give you free reign – do as you wish, when you wish and how you wish. Wherever you lead, I will follow.’
I stayed on that prayer for some time. I stayed until I felt a release in my spirit. In that time, God reminded me of an instruction He gave me a long time ago that I needed to go back to.
I will tell you that the first thing I felt was peace. This peace didn’t come because my situation changed, because it actually hadn’t. It came because I changed. It felt like the gloom just lifted. I began to see possibilities where I formerly saw difficulty. I no longer felt ‘stuck’, I knew that I was in a season. I started believing that a greater power was constantly looking after me and taking care of me. I stopped leaning on my own strength, and I started committing more things to God, much quicker than I used to. This way, I didn’t tire myself out. I began to notice small acts of God’s providence, several times, every day.
I started narrowing my gaze and adjusted it till it focused solely on God. I gave God my full attention. I gave him first place. I put Him before my comfort, before my pride, and before the acceptance of others. I blocked out all the noise and truly lived for an audience of one. I still do this now and will do so all the days of my life.
Suddenly, the rejection emails didn’t hit so hard anymore. I just knew that the job God had for me, which would glorify Him, would come, and nothing could stop it. I started to use my imagination for good – I imagined good things happening to me! I entered what Yonggi cho called ‘REST’.
I didn’t have to be or do anything that wasn’t true to my personality or my calling (both of which were given to me by God) to nurture or preserve associations. Why would I, when a greater force is navigating my life and organising it for me.
You know, God desires to give us the BEST. God once told me, “Let me do nice things for you.”
Your father owns the cattle on a thousand hills. The Bible says the silver and gold are His, and He is your father, so they are yours too! He says He will show you HIDDEN treasures stored in SECRET places because they are hidden to you and I, but are in PLAIN sight to Him.
The way it worked for someone else isn’t necessarily the way it has to work out for you. Your friend got a job right after school, and it doesn’t invalidate your experience of job hunting. Your story is different. The same way God is writing your story, He’s writing theirs too. God’s glory isn’t in our stories all being the same. It’s in the fact that despite our different stories, He is able to make our lives living testimonies.
In John 9 : 1-12, Jesus and his disciples encounter a boy born blind. They ask Jesus if the boy or his parents were responsible for his sightlessness. Jesus says it has nothing to do with the boy or his parents. He said there’s no need to point fingers, no need to compare, no need for a pity party. It’s happening so that a healing miracle will occur, which will be recorded, and referred to throughout history. His story will bring glory to God.
You have encompassed this mountain long enough. Allow God to organise your life. Spend time fellowshipping. Exercise your faith. Listen to His promptings because He will respond. He wants to help you. He already has the pen, let Him write your story.
When you imagine signs of fear in a person, you may picture someone cowering, shrieking or crying out for help. On the inside, fear presents itself as increased blood pressure, heightened heart rate, and blood flow changes.
Here’s something else to consider: fear shows up in our behaviours too.
-Fear of losing control or influence, so you scheme and manipulate.
-Fear of feeling anxious, so you have fits of rage and angry outbursts.
-Fear of consequence, so you lie.
-Fear of rejection and loneliness, so you posture and people please.
-You fear being outsmarted so you also outsmart and cheat.
-Fear of embarrassment, so you over-compensate.
-Fear of failure, so you self sabotage and give up.
I could go on and on.
You would be be surprised at how many dysfunctional behaviours and habits are actually rooted in crippling, paralyzing, diarrhoea-inducing fear. The dread and terror that come with fear are enough to alter personalities and trigger the most outrageous responses. The things we do are not nearly as intruguing as the reasons why we do them.
Whether the fear is reasonable or not, is another discussion entirely. The response doesn’t invalidate the fact that it is there, and like a wrecking ball, it is wreaks havoc, leaving a trail of bad experiences behind it.
No wonder The Bible lays so much emphasis on dispelling fear. It’s not just about the feeling, it’s about what it makes you do, and who it makes you become.
The old testament is riddled with verses telling us not to be afraid and giving us reasons. The Book of Isaiah alone has so many verses addressing fear. It usually starts off with a command, and a reason. For example:
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” – Isaiah 41:10
“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you”. – Isaiah 41: 13
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” – Psalm 23:4
God isn’t just shoving us out into the world to face the things that terrify us alone. He is telling us not to fear because He is bigger than fear. Because He is WITH us, and because He is IN us. The courage to face fear is not external, it is already in you. When you surrendered to Christ, He gave you a spirit without fear, but with love, power and an excellent mind. The Bible says if God is with you, who (what) can be against you? Jesus said the world will give you reasons to fear, but don’t fall for it- I have stripped it of its ability to hurt you and my victory is final (John 16.33) .
So what do you do to fear when you learn that you have the backing of The One who rendered it empty and powerless?
You face it.
You do not overcome fear by running from it, you face it and tell it what God said.
– Dont fear consequence, all things are working together for your good. Own up to mistakes don’t lie
– Do not fear losing God control. God is the master of your destiny, His plans for you are excellent. Be straightforward and have good intentions, don’t manipulate.
– Do not fear loneliness or rejection. You are precious, valued, loved dearly and tenderly by God. Be confident and content. Don’t posture, or people please.
– Do not fear being outsmarted. You have an excellent mind and you discern matters correctly. Your God is exceedingly rich enough to meet all your needs. Don’t cheat or swindle.
For every negative behaviour that seeks expression, there is a positive alternative that is both befitting and liberating.These are the actions and motives that heaven recognises and celebrates.
While on the surface, it may appear that you are losing or missing out, you are actually building character, strengthening your walk with Christ and demolishing fear and its stronghold over your life.
We have a natural need for inclusion. Being part of something gives us a sense of identity. It’s one of the reasons we group ourselves into races, ethnicities, religious denomimations, and many more.
Two main groups cut across all others; good guys and bad guys.
The good people; we tend to like, and reward with inclusion. The bad people? We don’t want anything to do with. They’re like bad eggs that deserve exclusion and probably harsher punishments too. We ‘other’ them and keep them far away from ourselves.
Not Jesus though.
Jesus hangs with one group of people – the ‘Whosoever Wills’.
Whosoever will come.
Whosoever will believe.
Whosoever will trust.
Whosoever will…attend.
At Matthew’s (A Tax Collector) house , He invites some of society’s most despicable people to have dinner with Him – other tax collectors.
Understand who tax collectors were back in Jesus’ day. They were traitors, hated with considerable levels of passion. Being Jews who worked for the Romans, they played a key role in ensuring the Roman Empire maintained its oppressive grip on their own people. What’s worse? They often collected more than was due, and the Jews had no choice but to pay. They were the bad guys of the times.
Jesus chose to hang out with these people, and other sinners too. He probably shared a joke with the robber, talked intimately with the adulterer, showed interest in the affairs of the swindler. He got so comfortable talking with them that the Scribes and Pharisees, who maintained the margins of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ became extremely uncomfortable.
Here’s the thing, Jesus didn’t see them for who they were, He saw them for who they could be. They may have been outcasts to society, but they were also, the exact sort of people Jesus was looking for. He knew that reaching the lost, required having some contact with them. He knew they were guilty, but chose to personify mercy in place of condemnation. He didn’t come to judge the ‘bad guys’, He came to offer them salvation.
Sitting at that dinner table, Jesus shook the faulty tenets of righteousness, good and evil that were in effect. What is even more beautiful, is that he did it over and over, and over again (John 4:27: Luke 7: Mark 7: Luke 5: Luke 19).
The souls of men are of far greater importance than the frowns of a few and threat of exclusion. Jesus knew that and we should too.
No matter what you’ve done, no matter how long it’s been. Even when the whole world counts you out, Jesus still invites you in.
I began feeling it long before I knew what it was.
It was prize giving day in high school, and I’d made it to top 3 in my class. We had Math prodigees on the stag who had won inter-school and state championships. I’d never done anything like that, and in my silently growing panic, I wondered if they’d miscalculated my scores.
It was the feeling of not being sure I belonged. More specifically, the feeling of wondering if I was awarded by mistake.
Over the years, I’ve found this feeling to be quite common with a lot of people. I mean people worry that their school admitted them by mistake, or they won a scholarship by some stroke of luck or their boss overestimated their abilities, or their church thinks they’re a better Christian than they actually are, and sooner or later someone is going to figure it out. In a lot of cases, this feeling moves from worry to fear and then anxiety, timidity, self-sabotage, and outright quitting.
Other times, it creates a deep uncertainty about being loved or accepted by our friends, family, or even God. It births a need to do more, to be more, constantly measuring ourselves against standards that exist only in our heads.
“It was the feeling of not being sure I belonged. More specifically, the feeling of wondering if I was awarded by mistake.”
As you may be able to tell, impostor syndrome is quite powerful. It’s the reason a lot of people self- sabotage, or quit even before they begin. Sometimes, it looks like our insecurities or our limitations. Shaming us with lies of not being good enough and fear that everything could crumble if anyone were to probe deeply.
For believers, it’s one reason many of us don’t step into our calling because we feel like a fraud. An extra layer for the believer is the weight of guilt from sin, mistakes, and choices from our pasts. Some of us have chapters in our life stories that stand in stark contrast to where we now are and what God is calling us to do. Impostor syndrome plays on these experiences and slowly and silently kills the believer’s call.
“An extra layer for the believer is the weight of guilt from sin, mistakes, and choices from our pasts. Some of us have chapters in our life stories that stand in stark contrast to where we now are and what God is calling us to do”.
If this is you, I’d like to let you know that impostor syndrome is built on lies. That’s the key reason we have to resist it. Its aim is to paint a picture of unworthiness and make us believe that we do not deserve what we have because of something we have or don’t have or who we are or are not. The truth is that Jesus has made us joint heirs with Him, entitled to every good and perfect gift. It was never about us – He did it long before we ever came to know Him and become saved. He loved us in advance and with plenty more to spare!
The idea that “I’ve got to prove myself in order to get myself loved” is in total variance with the gospel of redemption. By grace alone, through faith alone, on the basis of the work of Christ alone, we stand on the glorious rock of the forgiveness of our sins, our acceptance with God, the removal of our guilt, the canceling of our debts — all of it rooted in the love of God, who chose us for himself before the foundation of the world.
“The truth is that Jesus has made us joint heirs with Him, entitled to every good and perfect gift. It was never about us – He did it long before we ever came to know Him and become saved”.
In Luke 5, Jesus reveals himself to a fisherman called Peter who had toiled all night but caught nothing. Suddenly, this man makes an appearance, and his nets are overflowing with fish. Peter, realising who Jesus was and what He’d just done for him gave the a classic impostor Syndrome response – ‘Please leave me, I’m a lowly sinner, not worthy to be in your presence’. Peter felt unworthy and inadequate. He wanted to hide.
Jesus’ response is significant. He does not coddle Peter or skirt around his fears, He shifts Peter’s focus to a higher calling – ‘Don’t be afraid, from now on you’ll be fishing for people’.
Jesus ripped at the self-depriciating nature of Peter’s response. He knew that apart from feeling bad about himself, his feelings would distract him from what God had called him to do.
Impostor syndorme disables you through fear and feelings of inadequacy. It’s like having weights shackled to your ankles, keeping you from running full speed. The devil knows that as long as he can do this – keep your eyes on your inability instead of God’s ability. You’ll live a life of fearful restraint and miniscule goals.
But know that you have been engraced for every call of God over your life. Know that when God called you, He qualified you irrespective of your age, gender, experiences, background, mistakes, and any other variable.
As believers, there’s another layer of guilt and shame that comes from sin, but know that there is no pit so deep that His love is not deeper still. He loves you so much that he makes provisions for your shortcomings. Circling back to Peter who Jesus tells ‘I know you are going to deny me, but I have put something in place to help you out of that. And when you are helped, dont forget your call – help others too!
So what do we do when impostor syndrome begins to rear its ugly head? We do what 2 Corinthians 10:5 says.
“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
We declare that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, and we are entitled to every good and perfect gift. Guilt and shame have no power over us.
And for the times when it wears the deceptive cloak of ‘luck’, remind yourself that there is no such thing as luck — period. There is no such thing as luck. What the world calls luck is God’s providence. So, what you’re dealing with is not several thousand professional instances of luck, in which you lucked out and proved competent and responsible and helpful by accident. That’s not what’s happening; there’s no such thing as an accident or luck. God, not luck, brought about those thousands of moments of competency and responsibility and helpfulness. This is a pattern of divine sustaining, divine support, divine help, divine guidance, which bears all the marks of a calling, a vocation from God.
“And for the times when it wears the deceptive cloak of ‘luck’, remind yourself that there is no such thing as luck — period. There is no such thing as luck. What the world calls luck is God’s providence. “
Therefore, when you wake up in the morning and you feel anxiety that your luck might run out today, one of the answers is to preach to yourself, “There’s no such thing as luck. Stop thinking that way. It doesn’t exist. God has sustained me in all these thousands of moments of competency that I’ve been calling ‘luck.’ God has sustained me even if I am truly incompetent.”
When impostor syndrome takes hold of you, you take hold of it. Speak God’s word and refuse its lies and deception.
You were made worthy when Christ died and shed His blood for you. You DO belong in that church, that job, that programme, and anywhere else on this planet God has called you. So don’t look at the people around you. Don’t look at your limitations. Don’t even look at yourself. Just look at Jesus and move.
The Holy Spirit taught me a lesson from Genesis 1: 11-12, which tells us that everything produces after its own kind. He showed me that spiritual growth and maturity comes as a result of exercising your spirit to the point where it becomes your default mode of operation.
The human response to pressure and discomfort is usually fleshly. We choose the most convenient / accessible option; we choose the thing that makes us feel good (even when it truly does not resolve the issue).
When we operate out of the flesh, we remain spiritual babies, easily swayed, never truly understanding who we are and what we have been placed on earth to accomplish. The flesh is extremely convenient, but it yields no desirable thing.
It’s easy to respond to malice with malice. To receive insults with a quick clapback, to respond to fear with impulsiveness or even anger, and so on. It is under circumstances like this that you find believers exhibiting what I term as ‘contradictory christianity’, where they are Christians until they come under pressure. Sanctified until stressed! Oh dear.
Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. - (Galatians 6:8 NLT)
When we give into the flesh in this manner, we give no room for the growth Christ desires for us (Galatians 6 : 8). Each time we do this, we refuse the Holy Spirit from working in us and through us.
But we won’t give into carnality because the Holy Spirit has a higher calling for you and I. Paul says since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives- (Galatians 5:25). One reason it’s so important to remain tuned into your spirit at all times is because life’s situations are your spirit’s physical gym; it is where you test ability and grow capacity.
It is where you gain mastery of your flesh. When you continually put your spirit to work, you learn that physical things are fleeting, but things of the spirit are permanent. That anger is a response best suited to the unwise and that a gentle answer turns away wrath. That it is more blessed to give than to receive and that truly, increase comes from God. I could go on and on, but you get my drift.
What Christ desires is for us to be so confidently persuaded of His love, that we only speak and act in a manner that pleases Him because we know it is for our growth, and edification- no matter the situation.
This won’t always be easy, but it will be worth it.
How do you do this? Fellowship. Fellowship. Fellowship.
I find that frequent fellowship with the Holy Spirit is the oil the wheel of life requires to remain switched on and tuned in. Our time with the Holy Spirit shouldn’t be reserved for bedtime and wake time only. Talk to Him during the course of your entire day. Never stay too far from your secret place. For you will hear a voice behind you saying “This is the way, walk ye in it”- Isaiah 30:21. Because “there is a way that seemed right unto a Man but the end thereof is destruction”- Proverbs 14:12
I remember telling the Holy Spirit I didn’t have time to talk with Him as much as I used to because I took on some responsibilities that required more of my physical attention. He told me, ‘my altar is in your heart, we can fellowship anywhere, anytime’.
Friends, you can never go wrong when you choose to stay with The Word and in tune with your spirit. For the Spirit will always bring with it goodness and God’s glory.
Mary is wide awake. The pain has been eclipsed by wonder. She looks into the face of the baby. Her son. Her Lord. His Majesty. At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is and what he is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly stable. She can’t take her eyes off of him. Somehow Mary knows she is holding God. She remembers the words of the angel. “His kingdom will never end” (Luke 1:33).
He looks like anything but a king. His face is prunish and red. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. He is absolutely dependent upon Mary for his well-being. Majesty in the midst of the mundane. Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat. Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager, and in the presence of a carpenter.
According to Philippians 2:7, Jesus took “the very nature of a servant.” He became like us so he could serve us. He entered the world not to demand our allegiance but to display his affection.
He knew you’d be sleepy, he knew you’d be grief stricken, and hungry. He knew you’d face pain. If not the pain of the body, the pain of the soul. He knew you’d face thirst. If not a thirst for water, at least a thirst for truth. And the truth we glean from the image of a thirsty Christ on the cross is: Jesus understands.
When we feel lonely, knowing someone understands can make all the difference. You can be surrounded by people but still feel lonely if you don’t feel known. And you can be alone but not feel lonely if you are known. God became flesh, so we would always feel known by him.
Are you, like Esther, facing an impossible challenge? Then imitate the queen. Esther could have remained hidden, she could have done nothing. Or she could have rushed into the presence of King Xerxes, but instead she chose prayer.
And you? This is the time for a no-nonsense, honest, face-on-the-floor talk with the Lord of all. Garments need not be ripped, but veneer must be removed. Fasting is optional, but the prayer of genuine humility is not.
What challenge are you facing? Is your job in jeopardy? Is your loved one in hospice? Is your faith in tatters? Retreat into your prayer closet. The queen could enter the throne room of Xerxes because she had spent time in the throne room of God. The same is true in your story and mine. Once we’ve spoken to the king of heaven, we are ready to face any king on earth.
In the famous lace shops of Brussels, Belgium, certain rooms are dedicated to the spinning of the finest lace, with the most delicate of patterns. These rooms are completely dark, except for a shaft of natural light from a solitary window. Only one spinner sits in the room. The light falls on the pattern while the worker remains in the dark.
Has God permitted a time of darkness in your world? You look but you cannot see him. You see only the fabric of circumstances woven and interlaced. You might question the purpose behind this thread or that.
But be assured, God has a pattern. He has a plan. The Bible in Romans 8:28 says, “In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” He is not finished. But when he is, the lace will be beautiful!
Graceuntold 