Deuteronomy 28:1-14 THE DESERT

What do you do when you are struggling, when you are hurting, when you are discouraged, hopeless, despressed or anxious? How do you respond when you're faced with lots of challenges? What is your normal reaction when crisis hits you? Let me take you to a journey, which I know is the blueprint of victory and success. The journey begins with you being in the vast stretch of desert, standing in the middle of nowhere and looking at the 600,000 or so square meters wide open spaces. You see no one. An eagle is soaring

At any given point in time, you, your loved ones or your church is probably in the desert in need of cleansing, healing, restoration, answers to prayers, help in your marriage or financial situations.

Jesus brings us to the desert wherein we feel spiritual dryness to help us understand our need for Him. Sometimes. He leads us to emotional dryness to make us reach out, care and love the people around us .

Whatever dryness you are experiencing, whether it involves dryness in your marriage, career, physical or social life, Jesus can take you out of the desert. He can take you out of the dryness if you bathe in His Holy presence and soak in the Holy Spirit.

WHAT DO I MEAN BATHE IN GOD'S PRESENCE & SOAK IN THE HOLY SPIRIT?

When you practice these, you are soaring like an eagle in the presence of God. So, when you soar like an eagle before God, you are always aware of the Lord's presence, feel Him near you and nothing can shake you (Psalms When, however, the Spirit comes, who reveals the truth about God, he will lead you into all the truth, He will not speak in his own authority, but he will speak of what he hears and will tell you of things to come. He will give me glory, because he will take what I say and tell it to you. All that my Father has is mine; that is why I said that the Spirit will take what I give him and tell it to you. (John 16:13-15)

Whatever negative situation you're going through, you will not be moved . . . no fears, no worries, no doubt. Why? Because your are firmly planted in God's word and God's promises.

There's a purpose behind your situation. Whether it be a discipline or building your character, there are lessons to be learned in every dry spell. God is preparing you for the next level of your life, He's building your spiritual muscles so you will become like Him. He's monitoring your reactions to your crisis. So, don't despair when crisis hits you. Walk with God and feel the warmth and love of His embrace to comfort you, to give you strength, courage and equip you. Do not complain when the crisis or battle is going on, just lift special prayers, sing praise to the Lord no matter how bad your circumstances are, then read the bible and take time to hear God's voice. Have a dialogue with God. Do what is right, just soak in God's presence and leave everything to Him and God will show you His ways, lead in the battle and make you triumph over your enemies as what He has promised.

RED ALERT IN THE DESERT

It's vital for everyone to be a Desert Shield Warrior, armoured with praise, worship, Word of God, love, faith, trust, sweet smelling sacrifice, courage, perseverance, forgiveness, admitting of problems. The desert marks the praying ground that combats dryness. If you don't let these weapons arise, if you don't exercise them, you will experience pains and discomforts that is totally unbearable.

When you're in the desert, you must check the landscape for desert storms like deceit, falsehood, false brethrens, false prophets, judging others, pride, anger, jealousy, envy, competition, worries, anxiety, lies, selfishness, complaining, discontentment, weariness, self-pity, greed, stubbornness, idolatry, neglecting God and any negative and damaging emotions, hurting words and terrible actions. It could come in a lot of ways.

When you are in the desert, you must be vigilant because hurt, brokenness, and temptation are common threats. The desert is open and is prone to mind, emotional and physical attack. In these areas you will encounter many obstacles and hardships. The sands of battle are hanging on every side.

It is very hot in the desert during the day and very cold during the night and temptations soar high. An eagle can fly as high as 14,000 feet that you no longer can see it from the ground. Like the eagle you must soar high under the wings of God no matter what your situation is.

When you don't step into the presence of God, you can be lost. There are different ways to walk in the wrong direction. Sometimes a situation drives you to go to an unknown direction so different from the truth. Satan entices the victims with seduction and traps them. Some are tempted to stay and play a little with temptation while others linger after having a taste test resulting in being prisoners of sin.

When you become a prisoner of Satan, you will be deceived, lied to. If you follow his lead, you are headed for destruction and even death. Those who do not survive commit suicide.

Don't let Satan control your mind, your heart and your actions. Instead, submit yourselves to God. Ask forgiveness of your sins, resist the devil and he will flee from you (James 4:7).

After you have undergone a little pain, the God of all grace who has given you a part in His eternal glory through Christ Jesus, will Himself give you strength and support, and make you complete in every good thing (1 Peter 5:10).

How does God train you for battle? When you release the power God has given you, you will strike down Satan and his troops that they cannot rise. They just lie defeated before you. How do you do this? If Satan is attacking you physically, you can say . . . "By the mighty name of Jesus, by His precious blood covering me from my head down to my toes giving me healing, I am releasing the power God has handed over to me and rebuke the sicknesses in my body by the power and precious name of Jesus. And I declare that it is done in the mighty name of Jesus. I thank you Lord for I receive healing. Amen and amen

When you rebuke Satan like this, you crush him so that he becomes like dust which the wind blows away. That is how to trample Satan because he cannot stay in God's presence. When you are covered by the blood of Jesus, Satan will pass over and not touch you. And this is how God gives you victory over your enemies and when you disagree with Satan and site Bible verses, Satan will turn away from you in different ways because as 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed. How glorious and majestic God is as He defeated your enemies. When God rebukes your enemies, they will be stripped of all they have and will sleep the sleep of death, meaning, all their strength and skill is useless that when God threatens them, Satan and his troops will fall dead. That's how mighty God is!

God made you and you belong to God (Psalm 100:3a). You are a child of God. Be covered by the blood of Jesus. Yes, there is power in the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. Mel Gibson's film, "The Passion Of The Christ deeply showed how Jesus shed His blood in many ways... blood came out of His back when He was whipped and it spread to the ground when he was dragged, blood rolled down from His head when He was crowned with thorns, blood came out of His hands and feet when He was nailed on the cross and blood came out from His side when He was pierced. Jesus suffered and died because of His great love for us. Yes, the blood of Jesus brings healing, restoration, amazing changes, freedom, delivers from death, stops curses, binds Satan, protects from accidents, cleanses all sins, redeems, brings blessings and unlocks abundance, miracles and power of God when you say it aloud.

Let the blood of Jesus be a wall that protects and shields you from the poisonous darts of Satan. In God you can look beyond your crisis and see the future ahead. Don't fall short in your heavenly goals. Some are so near their destiny and yet fall short a step away from the breakthrough, a step away from the miracles God has promised. Cross the desert holding God's hand and writing His name in your heart.

Never walk a single step without Jesus. Each step now is in victory because Jesus never deserts you during the desert storm and battle.

God is extending His invitation for you to come to His kingdom. It is really up to you to welcome and accept His open invitation. Your reaction will determine your destiny. God has given you the right to decide. He doesn't force Himself upon you. But He constantly knocks on your heart's door because all He wants to do is to bring all His loved ones to the fullness of life which can only be found in Him and nowhere else. Staying by His side is a great gain. To God be the glory, honor and praise!