Four Things the Enemy Uses to Delay Your DestinySýnishorn

Persecution

No one enjoys being victimised, offended, or ill-treated due to your stance or belief.The reality is however, that persecution increases when you take a bold stand for Christ. 

Unfortunately, when there is no pressure on us as children of God, we quickly become lukewarm, idle in our pursuit of Christ, and lackadaisical Christians.

The Devil uses persecution to attack Christians with the mandate of getting you to stop being passionate about Jesus, and he wants to silence your voice. Especially on social media platforms, whenever you make a bold stand for the word of God, you may experience an attack in the comments from people. The snarly words from people feels like a personal attack, and we can become disheartened, depressed and afraid of speaking up. 

Do not allow feelings of being disliked or fear of being unpopular to change your stance or boldness for Jesus. 

Whenever we are being persecuted or wrongly accused, it is an opportunity for our faith to grow. Persecution leads to maturity and stirs up a passion for being unashamed of the gospel, for living all out for Christ. 

Either you stand for something, or you will fall for everything. 

Remember however, that God will give you wisdom pertaining to the time and place to voice your belief. At times our intent can be noble and pure, but the audience is not open or willing to receive. This is where God will show you when you are throwing your pearls to the swine. Even Jesus was unable to do miracles in certain places due to the hardened hearts and unbelief of people. We have the ability to be wise as serpents, while gentle as doves. Let love be the determining factor behind your actions, since you will be more effective in winning people to Jesus, instead of just ruffling feathers of those who will never be persuaded. 

In Matthew 5:10, the Word declares that God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

Prayer:

Lord, I recognise that I have been afraid of standing alone for what I believe. I feel so scared of losing my reputation or being labelled an outcast, but this has led to my compromising my fervour towards You. I repent for allowing this enemy-trap to keep me from truly being a voice of truth and hope to everyone who is lost and void of truth. Today I choose to trust you. Thank you that even when I share in persecution, you promise that I will also share in your victory. I am unashamed of the gospel, which saved my soul. I choose to be fiery hot in my conviction. I expect to be used to bring hope and healing to those in my sphere of influence. The Devil will not silence me. I pray for wisdom, to be strategic regarding my speech, and that I will effectively usher people into the Kingdom and not merely be like a noisy cymbal with no lasting effect. 

In Jesus Name, Amen.