When sin loses its grip on me

Psalm 81:13-14
13 "If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways,
14 how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!

Can you tell that I do not have much of an outlet to share what I am learning besides this blog? No but really...The Lord totally recalled this verse today. I was driving down the road thinking and the Holy Spirit spoke to me over a current situation. A lot of times we go through trials that we had nothing to do with other than the Lord using them to refine us. Sometimes we go through a painful season due to our own rebellion in one area or another and we must remember that God never tempts us. I have certainly experienced MAJOR consequences to my rebellion. The Lord truly disciplines those that He loves (Heb 12). Over and over He tells us that our fear of Him will keep us from sin. I know that to be true firsthand. There have been many temptations that have come my way that I have in essence said you know what it is not worth dealing with my God to cave into that one. The consequences of my rebellion would far outweigh the temporary pleasure that this or that would bring. I have learned obedience through my failure and discipline that has come from the Lord the hard way. I can remember a terrible season of rebellion when I was younger. I loved God, truly had a heart for Him, but when the temptation arose I would give in. Then, I would be devastated. I would pray "God, please give me godly sorrow that leads to repentance." Ultimately, through constant failure I finally woke up to the fact that I would have to take the way of escape. I began to do so and I was eventually free. Take heed we stand lest we fall though because any of us can return to areas that God has delivered us from if we are not careful. We have to guard our hearts and minds and saturate ourselves in God's word. I got my journal out this afternoon and began to voice my prayers with a heavy heart. Then as I drove down the road I sensed the Lord speaking these verses:
Psalm 81
13 "If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways,
14 how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!
15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever.

No, we can't take everything and run with it from the Old Testament...but if I could just have His permission to back this up with some 1 Cor 10:6
6Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.

I do believe that the Lord would quickly subdue our enemies and hear me say this "IF WE WOULD LISTEN and OBEY." How often are we in a mess that we just plain got our self into and we are suffering because we will not listen to the Lord...we won't take heed to His warnings?!?! I believe the Lord would say to you and to me "Child listen to me. Even if you have blown it and you think you have gone too far...you have not. Start obeying. Bathe yourself in the word. Get on your face and pray...cry out to me to be free." The enemy wants to see to it that you are burdened to a yoke of slavery to steal your effectiveness for the kingdom. Y'all God is greater than our junk. He is! I think we can get so deep in sin that we forget what freedom is...if we have ever known it. If you have never known what it is like to experience freedom in Christ keep walking with Him until you are free. Surround yourself with other believers and stay StAy STAY in the word...no matter what. Pray for a heart that loves Him. I promise that you will taste and see that the Lord is good. You have heard the saying you made your bed...so you will have to lie in it. NO don't listen to that! You do not have to accept defeat and failure as your inheritance for your duration on this earth. We may experience consequences to our sin and rebellion but hear me with God there is forgiveness therefore HE IS FEARED. If you oh LORD kept a record of sins who could stand!! Get up...pay the enemy back for his seduction. Turn back and strengthen the brethren. You are a child of the King! One thing that the Lord taught me years ago and I have tried to teach this to others. I did not start walking with the Lord until I was about 18 (as far as knowing Him through the word). Listen to me...I was one messed up girl HEADED for destruction. In me no good thing dwells. As I began walking with the Lord His word became my guide and as I learned truth I discerned error. That is the only way to freedom is to get in the word for yourself, rely on the Holy Spirit, and walk in that word. Anyway, I wish I could tell you that on such and such a day God saved me and I was delivered from all of sins grip on my life (from the last 18 years of living in the flesh) but that is not how it has been for me. My walk has been a process. So this is what I say...if God delivers you from something overnight...GLORY...but most of our "getting freed" up will take time. God will guard us and help us as we walk in obedience. However, if we walk in pride we set ourselves up in opposition to Him (1 Peter 5) if we humble ourselves He gives us grace. The greek rendering of opposition (going off of memory here) means to arrange ourselves in battle. Do you get that? When you go against what He is telling you and persist in WILLFUL disobedience you arrange yourself in battle against the KING OF KINGS. Guess who wins? Not you. The way you will win (which gains freedom and when I say win...I mean winning against the foe) is in humility and obedience. So if you didn't get in a pit overnight chances are you aren't going to be totally freed of your junk overnight. Some of my sinful areas I had persisted in for a long time and it took a lot of cooperation on my part to be free. It was a daily thing. One issue I had was co-dependence. I had to have a man in my life because I sought my worth completely in a relationship. When I was single I sensed the Lord calling me to take some time to just focus on the Lord and not have a man in my life. I kept on trying to work things out for myself. I continued in one relationship after another after another. Then finally I gave up (submission). The Lord did not need to know that I could be by myself. I needed to know it. I needed to know that I was okay if I was alone. It was one of the most frightening yet freeing times of my life. Then I married the most independent man on the face of the earth! LOL!! God wanted to continue that good work that He began, right? I really like my independence now. I can go serve the Lord, even eat at restaurants alone and I am okay with that...me and Jesus. I was so insecure until the Lord did that work in me...but it took me cooperating with Him and you know what? It was for my good. My freedom took time...but when it came...it came. I was so ripped apart during that time that I had to fast from lunch every day. I would go home to my townhouse and pray during lunch. I literally set up sanctuary in my room and would pray and read the word at night until He made me free in this area. I needed to know that I could be free...and I am forever marked by that season. I have seen so many family members stay in abusive situations out of fear...because they no more knew who they were apart from that person then the man in the moon. I could go on and on...but there you have it. If I have said anything that is not from the Lord I pray that it will fall to the ground. It is for freedom that Christ set us free. We have freedom from sins grip on us because of the cross. Let's cooperate. Let's not be like the concluding passage of scripture...refusing to have none of salvation and rest. If God is for us who can be against us!

Isaiah 30:14-16
14 It will break in pieces like pottery, shattered so mercilessly that among its pieces not a fragment will be found for taking coals from a hearth or scooping water out of a cistern."
15 This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.
16 You said, 'No, we will flee on horses.' Therefore you will flee! You said, 'We will ride off on swift horses.' Therefore your pursuers will be swift!