The enemy wants you to keep your head down. The enemy wants you silent about the Lord. The enemy wants you to sit down on your calling, anointing and purpose. He does this is by manipulating you to FOCUS ON YOUR FAILURES AND FLAWS. He wants you to feel unworthy to speak up or ‘live out loud’ for Christ. You may have made huge mistakes, FINANCIALLY, IN RELATIONSHIPS, even MORALLY…you know what haunts you.

Please notice that God continued to use David as a psalmist and leader, even after he had a man killed to take his wife, God didn’t tell him that he couldn’t continue to serve as King (2 Samuel 12:1-13).

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In fact, some of David’s most powerful psalms came AFTER his greatest sin.

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God already knew the sin that David would commit even when He initially anointed him. Because of his repentant heart, his sin didn’t disqualify his anointing.

Psalm 51 (NKJV)

Have mercy upon me, O God,

According to Your lovingkindness;
According to the multitude of Your tender mercies,
Blot out my transgressions.
² Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin.

³ For I acknowledge my transgressions,
And my sin is always before me.
⁴ Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight—
That You may be found just when You speak,^[a]
And blameless when You judge.

Our greatest challenge sometimes is walking with spiritual confidence, walking with our heads up, speaking in God’s authority when people KNOW HOW WE HAVE MESSED UP. God is raising us up to walk boldly for Him even in the midst of our humanity.

Paul spoke boldly even though he persecuted the church and consented to the death of Christians, such as Stephen (Acts 7:1-60, 8:-1).

Peter stood strong for Christ even though he openly denied Him during the darkest hour (John 18:13-27).

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So, if people tell you, “You can’t tell me anything based on what you’ve done!” You tell them, “God has given me grace and mercy, and allowed me to still be here to tell you DON’T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES THAT I’VE MADE”.

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So even if you’re working through the consequences of your mistakes, God expects you to KEEP YOUR HEAD UP and SPEAK BOLDLY IN LOVE FOR HIM. Sometimes it takes years to work through the process of restoration and recovery, but that doesn’t mean you are to be silent in the meantime, BE ENCOURAGED!…KEEP YOUR HEAD UP, STAND UP AND SPEAK UP FOR THE LORD!

Your failures don’t have to disqualify your calling!

BE BLESSTIFIED!

• 

Most of us have heard the saying, “Revenge is sweet”. We have all had moments that we have craved for revenge.

That’s why I think the metaphor is appropriate because REVENGE and SUGAR have something in common. Just like sugar slowly deteriorates your teeth, the desire for revenge slowly deteriorates your spirit. It eats away at your spirit, defiles it and consumes your mental energy.

Besides, God never promised us revenge or allows us to take revenge. It belongs only to Him…

Romans 12:19  (NKJV)

¹⁹ Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.

Why?

Because revenge is judgement. It is condemnation. It is us deciding that people deserve to be paid back for how they have hurt us .

However, God does allow us to have and will sometimes grant us vindication. He has even promised vindication in His Word…

Isaiah 54:17 (NIV)

¹⁷     no weapon forged against you will prevail,
    and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
    and this is their vindication from me,”
declares the Lord.

In the bible vindication is getting justice or clearing one’s name.

We all know revenge is getting even and repaying someone for what they’ve done. It is retaliation. And, God does not allow us to do that…

Matthew 5:38-42 Expanded Bible (EXB)

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth [Ex. 21:24; Lev. 24:20; Deut. 19:21].’ ³⁹ But I tell you, don’t ·stand up against [resist; retaliate against] an evil person. If someone ·slaps [strikes] you on the right cheek [^Ceither an insult or an act of violence], turn to him the other cheek also. ⁴⁰ If someone wants to sue you in court and take your ·shirt [tunic], let him have your coat also. ⁴¹ If someone forces you to go with him one mile, go with him two miles [^Calluding to the practice of impressment, whereby a Roman soldier could command a civilian to carry his gear for a mile]. ⁴² If a person asks you for something, give it to him. Don’t ·refuse to give to [^Lturn away from] someone who wants to borrow from you.

Revenge is getting them back.

Vindication is getting yourself back.

So, pray for vindication, but from the perspective that the person or those who injured you can be brought in right relationship with God.

Remember, God doesn’t love your enemies any less than He loves you.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Let me first say that God never gives us a license to lie.

Wisdom and discernment are gifts of God. Discernment is an aspect of Godly wisdom.

We also know that the truth is always the truth, but we must be sensitive to God’s timing of when and how it should be revealed…of what we should say and of what we should not say…of what we should conceal and what we should reveal…but not for the sake of deception.

God protects us through wisdom and discernment…

Proverbs 4:5-6  (NKJV)

⁴ He also taught me, and said to me:
“Let your heart retain my words;
Keep my commands, and live.
⁵ Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

Yes, even the truth has to be handled with wisdom and discernment.

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DOES GOD SOMETIMES PROTECT US THROUGH THE DISCERNMENT OF WHEN TO USE ‘DECEPTION’?

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The spies that Joshua sent to Jericho were protected by Rahab’s deception…

Joshua 2:4-7  (NKJV)

⁴ Then the woman took the two men and hid them. So she said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. ⁵ And it happened as the gate was being shut, when it was dark, that the men went out. Where the men went I do not know; pursue them quickly, for you may overtake them.” ⁶ (But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof.) ⁷ Then the men pursued them by the road to the Jordan, to the fords. And as soon as those who pursued them had gone out, they shut the gate.

As David fled from Saul, he was protected by pretending to be crazy…

1 Samuel 21:10-14 (NKJV)

¹⁰ Then David arose and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. ¹¹ And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying:

‘Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands’?”

¹² Now David took these words ^[a]to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. ¹³ So he changed his behavior before them, pretended ^[b]madness in their hands, ^[c]scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard. ¹⁴ Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me?

Mary could not reveal who her Holy Son really was until the time…

Luke 2:16-19  (NKJV)

¹⁶ And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. ¹⁷ Now when they had seen Him, they made widely^[a] known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. ¹⁸ And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary KEPT ALL THESE THINGS and PONDERED them IN HER HEART.

Sometimes it’s best not to tell someone what was said about them…

Proverbs 17:9  (NKJV)

⁹ He who covers a transgression seeks love,
But he who repeats a matter separates friends.

 Proverbs 11:13  (NKJV)

¹³ A talebearer reveals secrets,
But he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.

Proverbs 25:2  (NKJV)

² It is the glory of God to conceal a matter,
But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.

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God gives us the wisdom and discernment to exercise emotional labor. Which is managing our feelings and emotions in order to effectively do a job – such as when a waiter or waitress can’t let his or her customer know how irritated they are at the customers’ rudeness.

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Sometimes you can’t tell your boss how you really feel about him/her.

Sometimes you can’t tell your spouse how you feel about his or her parents.

Sometimes you can’t let those closest to you how discouraged, depressed, upset, or tired you really are.

Sometimes it’s not the right time to let people know how disappointed you are in them.

Sometimes it’s not best to reveal what’s really on your mind.

In the last days…even God Himself will send ‘deception’ only to be recognized by those who are truly connected to Him and in His in His word.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-12  (NKJV)

⁹ The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, ¹⁰ and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. ¹¹ And for this reason GOD WILL SEND THEM STRONG DELUSION, THAT THEY SHOULD BELIEVE THE LIE, ¹² that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

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God never gives us the license to lie.

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But, our Heavenly Father does use everything for His purpose, even how we manage the truth. We should always handle it with the spirit of discernment, not the spirit of deception.

THE LIES WE DON’T INTEND TO TELL (MOST OF THE TIME)…

BE BLESSTIFIED!