If you are not careful, you can hinder your forward movement, impede your progress and negate the plans that God has for your life! The Bible reminds us that we are to be sober and vigilant because our adversary, the devil, is walking around seeking whom he many devour (see 1 Pet. 5:8) This scripture reminds us that the enemy is looking for any door in our lives where he can gain access, come in and wreak havoc.
When we give place to the devil (Eph. 4:27) because of strife and contention, we are oftentimes unknowingly losing ground. If you’ve ever felt that it was taking far too long to accomplish your goals and dreams, it could be because there are unresolved issues, demonic activities or works of the flesh operating in the background to stop you.
The Bible says that God “gives more grace” to the humble (see James 4:6). Humility is required if you are going to achieve success in your endeavors because it will ward off the spirit of pride. When pride is in operation, the doors are open for works of the flesh manifesting such as strife and contention. A sure way to block the grace of God from operating in your life is by allowing the spirit of strife to take precedence. Strife is a sin issue that will hinder your forward movement tremendously.
When the enemy invites you to his game, do not show up to play!
Nehemiah is a perfect example of someone who was on a mission to achieve a goal and did not allow strife and contention to break his focus and hinder him. He was able to achieve his goal in record time because he did not “come down from his wall of purpose” to play the “strife game.” Nehemiah even prayed for His enemies.
The devil wants you to get your eyes off the majors and focus on the minors. You must be able to “discern” exactly what you should be doing in this season of your life without allowing yourself to be distracted. If you become distracted and get into strife and contention, you leave an open door for your adversary to come in and discredit you.
Jesus would often slip away when the people, particularly the religious rulers, wanted to strive with or bring harm to Him. He knew when to “back off,” so to speak. There were times when He would even tell His followers and those He healed to keep the miracles He performed a secret for the purpose of not stirring up the religious rulers because it was not His time to go to the cross. Jesus could not afford for those circumstances to interrupt the schedule of God and hinder Him from completing His ultimate assignment.
Your discernment must be on high alert because your adversary will even employ “spiritual people” to use their words to distract you. In Nehemiah’s situation, even the prophets were being used by the enemy to prophesy lies to distract him from his goal. Haven’t we witnessed enough of this in the body of Christ lately? He that has an ear let him hear …
God wants us to obtain our God-ordained goals and dreams, but we miss it when we sin, wandering from the Word, message, purpose and plan that God has originally given us. Strife and contention have been designed by the enemy to get us off course!
Recently, I entered a business relationship with a Christian entity that made many promises, and over time many of those promises had not been fulfilled. Having been in business for a while, and having invested literally tens of thousands of dollars in my business, it greatly perplexed me when I discovered there are those who don’t deliver on their promises. These same people will even expect you to uphold your end of the bargain while floundering on their side of things.
As a businesswoman, if I allow it to, this can cause my spirit to be vexed and can open the door to being argumentative and combative—contentious even. I have a right to fight for what belongs to me, don’t I? But first and foremost a child of God, I must remember to always keep the unity in the faith as my number one goal, even if I feel I am getting the short end of the stick.
I’m discovering more and more how to live through it, learn from it and keep moving forward.
The enemy would love to keep the church divided and in strife. These “spots and wrinkles” keep us from manifesting as the bride God has called us to be. Whether it’s through policies and politics, differences and doctrines or privileges and preferences, the enemy will use any avenue he can to gain access and keep us from completing the goals and dreams God has assigned for our lives.
You have got to be determined to:
— Stay focused.
— Keep moving forward.
— Drive your purpose.
— Go full speed ahead.
— Don’t look to the left or to the right.
— Don’t let anything or anyone hinder you from getting your message to the masses.
Listen to this episode of my podcast titled Hindering Your Goals & Dreams so that you can be inspired to stop hindering yours. {eoa}
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