Written by Cassandra Boyson
Do you ever find yourself pouring out for others - encouraging them, building them up or just being a good friend - only to have them turn on you? They’re often either blaming you for something you haven’t actually done or putting attitudes and opinions on you you’ve never felt. Perhaps they claim you think you’re better than them. Perhaps you haven’t done everything they thought you should. Suddenly, you’ve gone from being a blessing to a false friend. Meanwhile, all you’ve ever done was love them, fight for them and cared possibly too deeply for their problems.
All your life, people have responded poorly to your good will. You know your heart is coming from a pure place, but you keep being misunderstood. You may even find yourself unfairly accused of wrongdoing and are made to endure slander. For some, an entire community has turned against you. For the unluckiest, this has happened over and over again.
When these issues arise, you turn to God. You cling to him. You ask Him why, but he just loves and restores you. He takes you by the hand, smiling upon who you are for him and to him and he leads you beside still waters again. Yet, in those moments when we’re confident we’ve moved on, the enemy steals our joy with memories of past pain. Some may look over their life and see themselves used and thrown away over and over again. This steals your self-worth, leaving you apprehensive to step out again.
Recognize Your Value
The real problem is that, all along, you’ve been unaware of who you are. You don’t fully understand the value of what you bring to the table. You don’t know how very bright you are in a dark world. You may not even realize how much of God’s favor you’ve walked in, the gifts and blessings you possess that others only dream of.
Unfortunately, those who don’t realize they’re manifesting demons will react to your goodness in a variety of ways. Jealousy is a big one, feelings they will never measure up to the perfect, put-together person they imagine you are (and perhaps it’s not completely imagined). They may feel they’ll never reach your level of spiritual understanding and are envious of it. Others find it difficult to believe you could actually be as genuine as you are.
It takes understanding who you are to understand the world's response to you. It requires realizing how powerful and favored you are to comprehend why you’ve been rejected, misunderstood, misused and maligned.
The enemy already scorns the very circumstance of your humanity. But being an intimate friend of God puts you at the top of hell's “most wanted” list. And since most are unable to see into the spirit realm, we have no idea when we’re being used by demons as tools of destruction. The Christian life is a battleground, so we must be cautious of whose weapon we are operating as. When we feel jealous or begin to contemplate unexpected negative notions about someone, as if suddenly seeing them for who they truly are when they haven’t actually done anything, we need to realize who is whispering the accusation into our ear. When we want to lash out at someone in any way, we must first ask ourselves what they may be going through and whether the enemy is attempting to use us as a spear in the side of God’s child in an attempt to keep them from the fullness of their destiny. We must take efforts to be God’s weapon against darkness, accusation and cruelty at all times.
The Enemy Wants to Take You Out
A friend of mine has proven a real general in God’s army. Truly, I know few people who posses her spiritual and biblical insight while being a person of character and maturity. Her whole life is taken up with bringing light and understanding to others. But when on the brink of breakthrough, the enemy always takes strides to stop her. A special event is about to be birthed and suddenly numerous people decide she's wicked or false. These people lash out at the worst of times, making what my friend works to do that much more difficult. Even the demonic warfare a prophetic person may experience from mere words spoken behind closed doors can make stepping out for the Lord a real battle, possibly even taking them out entirely.
For those who can relate to this on any level, allow yourself to recognize what a weapon you are in God’s hand. Doing so isn’t prideful. It makes you that much more prepared to overcome. And taking confidence in the reality of your identity in Christ is a faith-booster, making your prayers and declarations that much more formidable. You will see yourself boldly stepping out in areas for which you’d thought yourself unqualified. And understanding how Satan uses others to harm us - taking a moment to remember his goal and the fact he sees you as a threat - will only cultivate your fortitude to move forward and with that much more potency.
Remember, darkness cannot bear the light and that reflects in how others respond to you. You are not the problem. Darkness is. By enduring these trials, you are growing into higher levels of battle-readiness, authority and greater intimacy with the King. Iron sharpens iron and your sword (voice) is growing sharper, cutting through the confusion between lie and truth, good and evil, darkness and light. Satan wouldn’t bother with you if you weren’t a danger to his plans. But the trials he brings against you are the training ground that leads to destiny.
"Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him." James 1:12
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