Thursday, May 7, 2009

Where are God’s Heroes?

Where have all God’s heroes gone? Lord, where are Your Champions of the Faith? Where are the testimonies of Your great works? Where are the ones who have been delivered? Why are they not speaking out to proclaim what You have done for them?

Why does the enemy’s voice seem louder than those who have been set free? Those who YOU have set free will be FREE indeed! Unless….

Have they been listening to the enemy’s lies? Have they laid down their freedom and picked up a yoke of bondage once again? It was a gift. Have they believed the whispers of doubt that say, “It won’t last!” Does their “reality” set in and convince them that things will remain the same as before? Have they accepted the lies as truth?

Hold on to the Freedom that Jesus has given to you! Remember His Promises. Remember what has been done for YOU. You began walking on the path to LIFE – Don’t reverse to familiar ground. What was familiar CAN be replaced by the things God had planned for you to have all along. They are yours for the claiming.

The enemy is a LIAR and a thief! He loves to steal God’s blessings. He loves to bring despair that convinces us to lay down the very things we have longed for – fought for – even held for awhile, but felt undeserving to keep. God has PAID the way – we don’t have to EARN it to receive them or to possess them. Freedom is available to ALL who come to God in true repentance – seeking HIS Face – opening our hearts to receive the forgiveness HE has for each one of us.

The enemy roars and gloats over his “victories”. He boasts and loves to expose the short comings of a Christian who stumbles or falls. Do NOT join the accuser of the brethren when “a brother” sins. Seek to restore him, NOT to re-enforce his shame. Reveal the Father’s Heart to redeem, not the enemy’s plan to humiliate.

God has brought many out of bondage. HE has healed, delivered and set free. Captives have been released to worship their Creator. Are their songs of Freedom being heard? Are they praising Him before the people and testifying to HIS power and glory?

We NEED to HEAR it. We NEED to HEAR from those who are God’s trophies – God’s overcomers – God’s redeemed! They are the ones who will bring hope to the hopeless. They are the ones who will encourage those in despair, to say, “If God can free them, He can free me as well.” God is the SAME yesterday, TODAY and forever – What He has done in the past – He CAN and will do TODAY for those seeking relief – seeking HIS FREEDOM.

Where are the Heroes and Champions of the Faith? Where are God’s Warriors of TODAY? Are they hiding? Have they been silenced by fear or intimidation? Or even worse – have they been silenced by apathy or self-centeredness? God wants them to proclaim what He has done – to confirm that God is still God TODAY.

Stand up and testify of what God has done in your life. Silence the lies of the enemy that say, “Give up and accept your fate.” “No escape for you – no hope of freedom from your chains of bondage.” “No hope to be changed or redeem – learn to live with it!”

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. Luke 4:18-19

Jesus proclaimed His mission – it hasn’t changed! John the Baptist sent his followers to ask Jesus, “Are you the One?” Jesus replied, “Tell him what you see.” They testified of the fulfillment – so must we. The world says,”This is how it is and it will always be like this. This is your reality, we are born this way. There is no reason to change, accept me as I am. Change the laws to make me acceptable – don’t make me feel shame for my sin. Give me the “freedom” to do as I please. Remove my guilt by removing the laws against it.”

God has a better plan. HE redeems and restores. He forgives and transforms. HE heals the wounded and releases the captives to be who HE created them to be – whole and free.

Have you been healed or transformed by His Love? Testify! Have you been released from a prison that only God could open? Testify! Have you been changed and set free to worship Him as never before? Testify! When God sets you free – you will be FREE indeed. When God heals you – you will be WHOLE – able to walk the path HE has set for you. TESTIFY! Proclaim HIS Faithfulness to a hopeless generation looking for someone to give them direction. Don’t stay in silence.

The enemy’s voices are getting louder – leading many astray – seducing many to believe his lies. The enemy’s “heroes” are not afraid to speak out – they can be seen everywhere. Testify to the greatness of our God. Let HIS works be made known among all people.

Shine HIS light into a dark world. Show the way to the lost and broken-hearted. They are waiting. Don’t let them slip silently away. Call to them. YOUR testimony can bring the hope they need to believe – to reach out one more time – to the God who is waiting to act on their behalf.

Testify! Raise your voice to drown out the enemy’s lies. Rise up Warriors. It’s time to release the Battle Cry and rescue the perishing. Scatter the enemy and gather the lost sheep. Testify! and call the prodigals home. Raise the standard – No Compromise! Testify! that God is alive and well and still on His Throne. Proclaim His Word that endures forever. Stand on His Truth and Testify!

Be God’s Hero in this hour. Stand against the lies that are meant to bring much pain and destruction. TESTIFY! of what God has done in YOUR life.

Selah Y

7 comments:

Jen said...

WOW!!!! You GO Preacher GIRL!!!
That was awesome and well put Cheryl...and the testimonies are not just for the safety of church either....every day, in all that you do...I don't get to go into detail much at work, but just yesterday, I had a desperate girl in a desperate situation and I couldn't get through...nor the councellor that we spoke with. As I walked her back to class, and she tried to convince me I did not understand her reality....I was able to assure her, that I very well DID understand her reality and was living proof that she could overcome her circumstances.

We are His hands, feet and mouth extended...

Nana Cheryl said...

YES We are to SHINE His light wherever we go. Although we may not consider ourselves "heroes" as such, but in Revelation 12, it says that they overcame by the Blood of the Lamb AND the word of their TESTIMONY. We need to hear about what God is doing outside our church services - in our communities - every day.

Anonymous said...

Excellent post. Very inspiring and needed.

Shaun and Holly said...

Preach it sister! :)
H.

Sarah said...

Your such a good writer and inspiring

Kay Swatkowski said...

Cheryl, I've had fun finding blogs being written by Nanas! We have a great responsibility to pass on the truth. The enemy does come to rob and kill and destroy--but the truth sets us free. Thanks for the reminder. Kay
http://www.americangrandma.com

Nana Cheryl said...

Thank you Kay. I LOVE being a Nana!!