IDENTIFYING AND DESTROYING STRONGHOLDS: GIDEON’S STORY – PART 2

SEPTEMBER 16

Judges 6:13 KJV. And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all His miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.

The stronghold of Unbelief : whenever you refuse to accept the truth of the word of God and hold on to a lie, then you are acting in unbelief. Gideon and Israel in the above Scripture had lived to belief that God was no longer with them and that that was why they were in captivity. They had used their present predicament to judge who God was and what He could do. The moment you allow God to diminish in your heart and exalt your situation above the knowledge of God, then this is a stronghold. No wonder they were under this bondage for good seven years until they began to cry to God. Don’t ever allow your situation to define the place of God in your life but rather allow God in you to define your situation. Unbelief will cut one off from the promise of God. According to the Scripture in Hebrews 4, the children of Israel failed to enter into God’s rest even though it was promised to them simply because of their unbelief.

Hebrews 4:6 and 11 (KJV) Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: (11)Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

Friend, we need to believe God for who He is and to believe His word and promises. The Bible says they are yes and amen. God is not a man that He should lie, nor the son of man that He should change His mind, He has the habit of doing what he promised. Whatever promise He has given you will surely come to pass if you hold on to the profession of your faith and keep on believing. Do not subscribe to unbelief, it’s a stronghold and the enemy’s tool to stop you from attaining the promise. The antidote to unbelief is the word of God. Grab it, meditate on it, believe it and confess it daily. Say this aloud to your self now, ‘I am a believer and not a doubter.’

Judges 6:15 KJV.And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.

The stronghold of poor self esteem: This can simply be defined as seeing yourself less than who God sees you to be or says you are. A lot of people, just like Gideon, define themselves based on their background, up-bringing and environment. For you to rise above your present environment, you must start to see yourself based on who the word of God says you are. Your spiritual location should take precedence over your physical location. Jesus Christ came out of Bethlehem to save the whole world. God called Gideon to save Israel but he had all the while seen himself as nobody because he was the last born of a poor family in the last family of the last tribe in Israel. He couldn’t see himself as being qualified for the job. Stop seeing yourself as not qualified for that job, that lady, that man, that position, that breakthrough, that success or that assignment. God has qualified you, He has chosen you in Christ before the foundation of the earth. Change your thinking pattern now, it’s a stronghold that the enemy has used to delay you till now. Start seeing yourself in the light of God’s word and liberate yourself from low and poor self esteem. You are a creature of destiny and you are meant for the top. Say this aloud to yourself, ‘ I am who the word of God says I am!’

For further study:
Judges 6:13-15,

Personal declaration for the day:
I see myself thought lens of scriptures. I am who God says I am.

Questions for you to reflect on
From where/who do you get your identity?