RUN FOREST RUN

Forest was being bullied just like Satan bullies us. He throws rocks at our belief in Jesus, and

he chases us shouting ...ALL LIES like: "you are stupid, damaged and you will never be good enough!" "God does not care about you!" "There is no God, all you have is because of your own effort!" Forest took off running in FAITH and his shackles miraculously fell off. His best friend Jenny encouraged him to RUN FOREST RUN...and like Forest, we all need to be encouraged to run the race before us with zeal, not fear... because we know our final destination! Our Father loves to restore all that has been lost. Just like Jonathon's son in 2 Sam 9:7-13, we are destined to eat at the Kings table and get comfy living forever in the Lord's palace. Many feel trapped in the chains of pain, doubt and fear, we have all felt crippled and felt stuck in this life. "For I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, so that you would be slaves no longer.. I have broken your chains so that you can walk with dignity." (Lev 26:13) The great news is that we have all been summoned by God to come...to come as we are, all a mess, weak and broken. Our Father wants to lavish His love, compassion, understanding, mercy, healing and kindness upon us. He delights in giving us more than we could ever imagine.  
“Don’t be afraid of them,” the Lord said to ….(YOU the reader of God’s living Word) “for they are already defeated! I have given them to you to destroy. Not a single one of them will be able to stand up to you.” Joshua 10:8 TLB --- God commands "Fear NOT" --- Trust that He is capable to defeat whatever is attacking your mind, body or relationships! -- “So David went out and fought with them (his enemy, an imposing foe, a Goliath threat) and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So David named the place “Bursting.” 1 Samuel 5:20 TLB --- So David OBEDIENTLY went out with courage ...because David trusted God's word and took action, he walked in determined faith to bring God glory.

This implies that in order for US to defeat our GOLIATH challenges, we must TRUST and OBEY.  We must fight our foe by speaking God's word.  "Remember Me" It is WISE to write down the many blessings from the Lord and keep that list ready to read out loud to remind ourselves that God has never forsaken us.  Next time the dragon is chasing you, stop and yell "I belong to the King of Kings, and ONLY what He says about me is true!" Who do you give credit to for your eyesight, the human ability to feel joy, awe or pain? Your Creator is worthy of praise, every day... for each sunrise, for fresh-living water, each sunset, cool breeze, the ability to choose, think, smile, talk, walk and FEEL emotion; delight, joy, warning fears, remorse, and relief.

Faith, forgiveness, mercy and grace are all gifts from God. We have also been given the power to banish evil by speaking the Word of God. If you FEEL like you have been running from bullies, or your past...PUT ON YOUR BRAKES and boldly stare into a mirror and face that fiery-lie-spewing-dragon in your head. SHOUT a SCRIPTURE in his puny face and watch him melt like the wicked witch of OZ! TRUST in the power of the Holy Spirit within, and put Him to work for you. Jesus Christ gave us the authority to slay demons. He is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, just waiting to be asked to restore, renew and strengthen us when we are weak! Our Father is AWESOME, He equipped us with a sword that wins every time! Defeat the beast by telling your victory story! Hallelujah and AMEN!

Encouragement from our loving Father “O Lord our God, the majesty and glory of your name fills all the earth and overflows the heavens. You have taught the little children to praise you perfectly. May their example shame and silence your enemies! When I look up into the night skies and see the work of your fingers—the moon and the stars you have made— I cannot understand how you can bother with mere puny man, to pay any attention to him! And yet you have made him only a little lower than the angels and placed a crown of glory and honor upon his head. You have put him in charge of everything you made; everything is put under his authority: all sheep and oxen, and wild animals too, the birds and fish, and all the life in the sea. O Jehovah, our Lord, the majesty and glory of your name fills the earth.” Psalm 8 TLB  (Jehovah is the name of God in Hebrew Scriptures, JHVH pronunced)

"I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing the praises of Your name, O Most High. My enemies turn back; they stumble and perish before You….The LORD (Jesus) reigns forever; He has established His throne for judgment. He rules the world in righteousness and judges the peoples with equity. The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know Your name (Jesus) trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You.” Psalm 9 NIV 1985 -- “There is something else deep within me, in my lower nature, that is at war with my mind and wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. In my mind I want to be God’s willing servant, but instead I find myself still enslaved to sin. So you see how it is: my new life tells me to do right, but the old nature that is still inside me loves to sin. Oh, what a terrible predicament I’m in! Who will free me from my slavery to this deadly lower nature? Thank God!  It has been done by Jesus Christ our Lord.

He has set me free.” Romans 7:23-25 LB -- “But thanks be to God! For through what Christ has done, He has triumphed over us so that now wherever we go He uses us to tell others about the Lord and to spread the Gospel like a sweet perfume.” 2 Corinthians 2:14 LB ---“Be gentle and ready to forgive; never hold grudges. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” Colossians 3:13 LB --- "And you must love Him with all your heart and soul and mind and strength.’ “The second is: ‘You must love others as much as yourself.’ No other commandments are greater than these.” Mark 12:30 LB