Guarding Against the Devil: Shame

One of Satan's greatest tactics is the use of shame. Shame is an extremely powerful emotion that can render us immobilized. Shame generates fear of relationships. Shame causes us to hide. We hide from ourselves, others and especially God. But shame is a lie. Shame tells us we cannot accept ourselves, that we cannot be accepted by others and we especially cannot be accepted by God. Shame says, You did what?! That happened to you?! If Satan can wrap our hearts and lives in shame, we can become his captives. But there is hope. There is an antidote to shame. And I believe the antidote is acceptance. Acceptance of ourselves. Acceptance from others. And most importantly, acceptance from God. Let us examine Scripture and Satan's tactics of shame more fully.

Heart Work for Answered Prayer

God loves to answer the prayers of His people. He enjoys blessing those who call on His name. But sometimes our prayers can be hindered or not answered because of the condition of our heart. Scripture calls us as followers of Jesus to do heart work with the Holy Spirit for our prayers to be answered. Please note: there are many other factors that hinder prayer; these are just a few that pertain to our heart. And remember, God is sovereign and can choose to answer prayer above and beyond our sin and brokenness. Now let us examine some areas where Scripture makes clear the standard God has set for His people in relationship with Him.