Perspective Changes Everything

This week has been an entirely different week than last week.  Last week we were in the trenches.  I was standing in faith while my husband was in one of his most difficult battles.  If you read last week’s blog, you already know the struggle and how defeated he felt.  If not, you can read it here: Standing in Faith When Faced With the Impossible. This week we are in Panama City Beach, Florida.

When I booked the trip, I was trying to squeeze the trip in while Sean had some time off.  Now, I am so grateful for the timing.  This trip has served as a separation from the weeks of studying and has been a good break from thoughts of bar exam results (he won’t receive those until November). 

Each morning, I have come out on our condo balcony to spend time with the Lord before we start our day.  My view is what you see in the picture above.  We are on the 13th floor facing the ocean.  The view is breathtaking. Last week, we were in the weeds.  We were in a mind battle. We were in a faith battle.  This week we are raised high up looking out on everything below us.  Thoughts of the bar exam long gone.

A couple days ago, I strolled along the walkway of the second floor.  It was a completely different view.  All I could really see were the buildings across the street.  No beach.  No horizon.  I could not see far down the coastline like I could on the 13th floor.  On the 13th floor, the perspective is very different. 

Today, the Lord reminded of this verse: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  Isaiah 55:8-9

Colossians 3:2 commands: "Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things." NIV

This is The Passion Translation: "Yes, feast on all the treasures of the heavenly realm and fill your thoughts with heavenly realities, and not with the distractions of the natural realm." Colossians 3:2

Take a look at these 4 different perspectives below.  All of these photos were taken standing in the same place:

Perspective makes a big difference in those photos, doesn't it?  What are you focusing on in your life?  Are you in the weeds focusing on all the little things that seem to be going wrong?  Are you focused on all the wrong things that people are doing around you?  Are you focused on all the wrong things happening in our culture, in the media, or in our government?  Are you focused on COVID or any other potential hazard or risk that poses a threat in the world?  

We certainly should be aware of things going on in the world around us but our posture as believers and followers of Christ is to pray over them, surrender them to the Lord, and keep our focus on heavenly things.  Our God is the God that created this entire universe; surely, He can handle everything that is happening in the world from a big picture government level all the way down to the details of our individual lives. 

One of our biggest issues as believers and followers is trusting in the Lord.  Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions.  With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make.  Become intimate with him in whatever you do, and he will lead you wherever you go."  I see it in nearly every deliverance session.  When we don't trust the Lord, we are putting our trust in the things that the enemy offers which leads us into bondage.  The enemy is able to take us captive when we knowingly or unknowingly fall out of alignment with God's word and put our trust in the things of this world aka trusting what the enemy has to offer (See Matthew 4:1-11).  Jesus showed how the enemy tempts and set the example for how we are to respond.

Deliverance is the process of checking to see where the enemy is holding us captive or prisoner in our life and taking back that area of our life.  If we struggle with fear or anxiety, he is holding us captive.  If we struggle with addictions and disorders, he has a foothold or stronghold in our life.  I could keep naming areas and ways that the enemy is or could be influencing or controlling areas of your life.  Pretty much, if you struggle with an area of life, chances are that is the area where the enemy has a hold on you.  What I see on average with people that come in for deliverance is that the enemy has a hold on 10-25 areas of their life.  These are everyday, "normal" people.  No one is exempt for Satan and his demons.  Even Jesus was approached, but he stayed completely aligned to the word of God which kept Him out of the enemy's grip.  Are you 100% aligned with the word of God?

When we focus on these issues in our life, it is like we are staring at the concrete balcony or the parking lot below.  When we look to Jesus, we shift our eyes from the barrenness, lack, and deficiencies of our issues and begin to find hope.  Even better, we not only find hope, but we also find solutions.  Jesus provides real tangible solutions.  When He was here on this earth, He did not just speak hope; He did real tangible miracles: healings, renewing of the mind through Truth, raising the dead, casting out demons.  He still does those it today through His people, His followers.

My call to action for you this week is to choose your perspective.  Are you going to let the ground beneath you be your focus or are you going to shift your perspective to a heavenly perspective?  The difference in my life came when I started passionately pursuing Jesus and shifting my perspective from earthly things to heavenly things.  We are spiritual beings living in an earthly world.  This shift literally took me from suicidal thoughts, fear, anxiety, depression to starting an international ministry (I Will Stand International), literally delivering God's people from the bondage of the enemy (something I was once in), and coaching believers on how to walk in freedom, identity in Christ, intimacy with the Lord, and actively walking in their calling and purpose.  Jesus and our choices make all the difference.   

Need a Spiritual Check-up? 

When I started to learn about spiritual oppression, I wanted to check immediately and have the enemy's hold on my life immediately removed.  For me, there was no time to waste!  I wanted to be free to be everything God created to me.  Now, I do spiritual check ups to make sure that I have not given any ground back to the enemy.  There is a lot of work to do in this world, and I want to make sure that I am at my best so Jesus has unhindered use of my life.    Click here to schedule your deliverance session today!