A teaching by Rev. Barbara Williams, President of the Ministry of the Watchman International
Week of October 26-30, 2020
MONDAY
Also you shall destroy all the peoples whom the Lord your God delivers over to you; your eye shall have no pity on them; nor shall you serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you.
Deuteronomy 7:16
The Lord has called us to possess our souls and to dispossess the enemy of our souls. This scripture foreshadows the process of redemption beginning with the redemption of our souls, and lastly, our bodies. The scripture here tells us of God’s instructions to Israel when He brought them into the land of their inheritance.
Have you received your inheritance from God yet? Of course you have if you are born again. You have received a glorious inheritance in God. You are in the process of moving into the land of the full. So God is bringing you into a realm of righteousness, peace, and joy with Him. But there are enemies of your peace and joy.
For natural Israel it was nations of people who opposed them because they held different beliefs. With the Christian, it is a spiritual battle that rages within our minds and affects our emotions, imagination, and will. God promises us total victory over the most insurmountable obstacles to our progress. We have the power to and will break every stronghold that we face.
If you are in need of healing, there is good news! Proverbs 4:20-22 SAYS:
My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
So there is life and health in God’s word. Since God’s word is medicine, we must take it like we would a prescription. I suggest three times a day, like you would your food. Remember, healing is the children’s bread. Consider this your “dose” for today. Remember, read, and meditate three times a day the following:
Rx: Psalm 103:1-5 ~ Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities; who heals all your diseases; Who redeems your life from destruction; who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies; Who satisfies your mouth with good things; so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
2 Timothy 2:15
If you’ve never studied the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, we invite you to join us as we read through the Bible in a year. Read and meditate on these chapters this week:
October 26: 2 Kings 7, 1 Timothy 4, Daniel 11, Psalms 119:25-48
October 27: 2 Kings 8, 1 Timothy 5, Daniel 12, Psalms 119:49-72
October 28: 2 Kings 9, 1 Timothy 6, Hosea 1, Psalms 119:73-96
October 29: 2 Kings 10, 2 Timothy 1, Hosea 2, Psalms 119:97-120
October 30: 2 Kings 11-12, 2 Timothy 2, Hosea 3-4, Psalms 119:121-144
October 31: 2 Kings 13, 2 Timothy 3, Hosea 5-6, Psalms 119:145-176
November 1: 2 Kings 14, 2 Timothy 4, Hosea 7, Psalms 120-122
TUESDAY
If you should say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I; how can I dispossess them?’— you shall not be afraid of them, but you shall remember well what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt: the great trials which your eyes saw, the signs and the wonders, the mighty hand and the outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God brought you out. So shall the Lord your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid.
Deuteronomy 7:17-19
The strongholds of poverty, lack, social dysfunction, mental illness… each has a mindset that holds it in place. These mindsets form habits of thinking, speaking, and behavior. If you ever want to overcome a bad habit, change your meditation. The mind is the seat of conception. What you choose to dwell on you embrace. God promises to change your meditation. He promises to drive out all enemies of a healthy thought life.
If you have been plagued with fearful thoughts and are unable to trust God for your finances or your marriage or to turn wayward children around, God promises to drive all these enemy thoughts out of your mind. These are the “nations” or groups of thoughts that are against you. If these thoughts are not driven out, they may gain dominance over your thought life. If they overgrow your thoughts, they will drive the word of God out of your mind and then your heart. In order to drive these thoughts out, God gives us a strategy: think on His mighty deeds. Remember the last answer to prayer, where the enemy was driven out. Remember His goodness toward you and drive out all the enemies’ thoughts.
WEDNESDAY
Moreover the Lord your God will send the hornet among them until those who are left, who hide themselves from you, are destroyed. You shall not be terrified of them; for the Lord your God, the great and awesome God, is among you.
Deuteronomy 7:20-21
Will God drive out even the most deep-seated fearful thought? What about the ones you are afraid to face? He will even drive those out. He is more than able and willing to help us. We must have faith that we are called to an inheritance of total victory over all foes. The type of victory we are speaking of comes from driving out even the most bothersome habits.
Perhaps you think this problem is too small to bother with. “If I don’t bother it, it won’t bother me.” It may be emotional pain from a long ago relationship. It may be wounds left by teachers who were too strict and condemning. Sometimes these incidents form attitudes that are the by-product of pain lodged in our memories. If we will allow Him to, God promises to drive out all these “small” foes. It is the little foxes that spoil the vines. God tells us not to be afraid to confront these past experiences with the accompanying negative, fearful, or insecure attitudes. If we will trust Him, God will drive out, (not cover up or hide) all these past hurts, pains, and painful memories. They are foes to a healthy soul. They are our biggest enemies if we are born again.
THURSDAY
And the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you little by little; you will be unable to destroy them at once, lest the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. But the Lord your God will deliver them over to you, and will inflict defeat upon them until they are destroyed.
Deuteronomy 7:22-23
How does God do this? Little by little. The change to our souls is always gradual. God wants to give us a chance to adjust to our new lives. We need to keep our bearings in the emotional and mental realm, so God chooses to do this little by little. What do we do in the meantime?
We need to meditate on God’s word and thank Him and develop the fruit of patience along with the peace that comes with knowing that God is mighty to deliver. Phobias, fears, and anxieties will be melted away gradually as God begins to heal us and drive out the offending spirits. If God were to drive out every negative thought overnight, we would probably suffer a lack of identity, amnesia, or some other mental mishap. We would wake up born again, but not being in touch with who we are.
This gradual but sure process that God has planned to redeem our souls is a work of grace, not of force. He wants us to daily depend upon Him and His goodness. His way is best.
FRIDAY
And He will deliver their kings into your hand, and you will destroy their name from under heaven; no one shall be able to stand against you until you have destroyed them. You shall burn the carved images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it for yourselves, lest you be snared by it; for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing.
Deuteronomy 7:24-26
God will give you the strongman who is trying to hold you back from obeying Him. Some people are so plagued with fear that they give up on obeying God when He tells them He has opened a door for them. He promises to give this enemy over into your power.
In fact, you have the power to break him down from his exalted place in your life. You shall be able to see all fearful thoughts reduced to ashes because God will bring every giant down to size. You will be able to confront these fearful ideas and bring all fears captive to the knowledge of God. Everything that has enslaved you in the past you will despise.
Are you praying for someone who can’t seem to give up drugs, sexual promiscuity, or homosexuality? God will cause them to detest these “high things.” Have patience with that soul. Little by little God will drive all enemies out.