Note from Mark Virkler - Every week I send people seeking Prayers that Heal the Heart counseling to Pastor Don. The testimonies I receive back are over the top! If you need ministry check him out.
As a counselor who works closely with Dr. Mark, I have seen many of my clients, as well as a number of close friends, pastors and church leaders, going through some severe spiritual attacks. I personally have also been experiencing some excessive pressure in my life recently. It seems like a universal problem these days.
The difficulties we face can lead us to get discouraged or depressed. I have seen some people wanting to give up. You also may be going through some severe stress yourself, where you feel squeezed beyond what you can bear.
My wife, Myrna, and I were missionaries for a number of years where God worked through us to establish churches in a remote area of South Africa. Though we are no longer missionaries, thank God that these churches are still thriving. Pastors Pat and Bongi of the main church established in the region have literally led thousands of people over the years to Christ in the region, and many hundreds have been healed and delivered from witchcraft and the occult.
But recently, Pat and Bongi saw their house completely burn down along with ALL of their possessions, and they now live in a couple of rooms in the church with their two young daughters.
I am dealing with some other pastors whose children have turned their back on God, gotten on drugs, had children out of wedlock and are willfully estranged from their parents. One of these pastors also dealt with a life-threatening sickness in recent years, had his rental properties trashed and was falsely accused and taken to court.
None of us can fully understand why such trials and even catastrophes happen in faithful people’s lives. But satan knows that his time is short (Revelation 12:12). So, he has really turned on the pressure on many Christ-followers to hinder their fervency and influence for the Lord.
Paul wrote in one of my favorite passages in 2 Corinthians 1:8-10:
“8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction which occurred in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life. 9 Indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead, 10 who rescued us from so great a danger of death, and will rescue us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us.” (NASB).
And as Paul was pushed towards the Lord through his many hardships, the intense spiritual warfare we go through is meant to push us to the Lord and His infinite strength. In fact, satan is actually God’s servant or vessel (Isaiah 14:12-15: Ezekiel 28:11-17).
So, though God is not causing all our problems, He is using the devil to direct us all to Christ and depend on Him. Our destiny, of course, as Christians is to become more like Jesus. And how did Jesus live? It says 11 times from John 5 through John 14 that Jesus did nothing of His own initiative – but He only spoke what He heard the Father speak and only did what He saw the Father do in visions. We are to fix our eyes on Jesus with the eyes of our heart (Hebrews 12:2).
We are also called to “bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). We are to reject or cast out any thoughts from satan and replace them with God’s Word and truth. I have included a tool to help you with that below.
So, to live the victorious Christian life is simple to understand – fix our eyes on Jesus and live only by His words and visions in our heart, which also means we only live by His thoughts. But the hard part is doing it, because satan will do everything to overwhelm us by continually bombarding us with his negative thoughts that can make us feel anxious, stressed, discouraged, hopeless, and guilty.
But with Holy Spirit’s help, we can overcome satan’s onslaughts and learn to live as Jesus did. All over the Bible people got discouraged and wanted to give up. But the key is to get up and move on. “For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again, but the wicked stumble when calamity strikes.” Proverbs 26:14
Regular journaling is a big key. In journaling we receive Jesus’s prophetic words which always edify (build-up), exhort (which includes guidance), and comfort. He never fails in doing this for me when I journal!
And if you do not know how to journal, Dr. Mark has tools on this website to teach you. I will also be glad to teach you as I have many of my clients as well as numerous others. My website link is below.
Another reason we face intense spiritual warfare is because the devil senses that we are about to be greatly blessed. I journaled about this recently,
“Abba, why are things seemingly falling apart for a lot of people because they are under such pressure?”
“Don, I am about to do something great in people’s lives. They will be blessed abundantly – beyond measure. The enemy is fighting to get people distracted – off course. Yes! The blessings will be amazing to further My kingdom and give Me glory!”
We see all over the Bible the intense pressure people like Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, Elijah, Daniel, Paul, and even Jesus faced – where He sweated drops like blood in the Garden of Gethsemane. Because of Joseph’s faithfulness, he went from prison one day to being Pharoah’s right-hand man where he saved the world from severe famine.
And with Jesus’ faithfulness to the Cross, He saved us from damnation. “Therefore, God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names.” (Philippians 2:9).
So, hold on to the Lord when you are going through extreme pressures – you will be blessed, and God will be glorified.
Getting back to Pastors Pat and Bongi in South Africa. I taught them both how to journal, and they have been practicing that fervently. That is what is getting them through the devastation of losing everything. In journaling, God greatly encouraged Pat that He is going to turn things around for the good and that they will be blessed with even more than what they previously had. Also, Pat said he’s very thankful that the kids were saved from the fire, because he knows the devil was trying to take them.
Bongi recently wrote:
“We are just living by faith. We teach our children to live by faith and keep on telling them that this is a season of testing. After this test, the Lord will lift us up and a lot of people are going to be saved.”
God will bless Pat and Bongi for keeping their eyes on Jesus.
Action steps
- If you would like to be God’s instrument to help Pat and Bongi and their two young daughters rebuild their home and restore their possessions, I have included a newsletter - click here, describing their situation and how you can help them. 100% of all donations will go directly to Pat and Bongi.
- If you need counseling for any heart wounds – which we all have – I will be glad to help you. My website is below. I will be happy to help you be healed and set free so that you can move closer to the amazing potential that God has for you! May He bless you in abundance! Don’s website: stayintheflow.net
- To help you cast out negative thoughts from satan and replace them with God’s truth, click here.
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