take it back!

"Watch out that you do not lose what you 

have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully"

(2 John 8)

Any of us who are believers in the glorious Lord Jesus Christ, have a "was". It is who we were before we met Christ. It's who we were without His redemption.  It does NOT define who we are now, but rather it defines how far we have come since our encounter with a very living God. 

Once we have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, we have a redeemed 'was' and can begin to live in for Him and for His glory. Our 'is' is who we are in Christ now. It's who we are growing to be daily and it is where we seek to become empowered for a mighty 'is to come'. 

Psalms 130:3 tells us that God doesn't keep a record of our sins. He does NOT remember them after we have humbly confessed them and repented of them. In fact, His precious Word tells us that he removes them as far as the east is from the west (Psalms 103:12). God doesn't remember them, but unfortunately, we do. And satan, who is the great accuser, does. He loves nothing better than to taunt us with our past. He loves to bring up our 'was' to us and handicap us into ineffectiveness for God's kingdom work. The enemy will hinder everything that we try to do for the glory of God, if we allow him to use our past to his advantage. We inadvertently allow satan to take ownership of our 'was'. We let him have power over us that doesn't belong to him. 

God has graced us and given us so much fertile ground to sow His seeds in, but we have allowed satan to steal it from us. It is high time that we reclaim our ground. We need to purposefully take it back from the enemy and guard it. 

It may be past sins that we haven't forgiven ourselves for. It may be a sinful behavior that we haven't repented of yet. Or perhaps one that we are hanging on to just a little bit longer.

Perhaps it is an attitude that needs to go. Or a personal relationship. Maybe we haven't forgiven someone for a deep hurt they caused us. Maybe we need to ask for someone else's forgiveness. 

Whatever it is, I would say that most of us have something that needs to be laid at the foot of the Cross and left there. We need to lay some things down and reclaim any ground that we may have given away or lost. If we desire to have a mighty 'is to come' in the LORD, we have to deal with our 'was' first. God desires for us to live victoriously and not in defeat. Do not let satan take what doesn't belong to him and keep us from a life of victory in Christ.

Take back that ground and do it today!

"There is therefore no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit" (Romans 8:1)

Sin may touch us but it can't claim us!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~

Oh, Father God, we come before you today asking that you forgive us for allowing satan to march into our territory and steal our ground. What you have given to us belongs to us! It doesn't belong to the enemy and he can't have it. Today we take back what has been stolen and we ask that you bless it and use it to empower us to turn it into fertile ground that we can sow into for your glory!

We reclaim that which is ours and commit it to you and we promise that we will do our best to hang on to it, guard it, and turn it into a harvest for you.

We love you, sweet Jesus, with all that we are and all that we have. You are God!