this guy was bleeding! He'd faced a split in his
church, and the people who caused the church
split left saying nasty things about the pastor.
The side of the road isn't the best place for
that kind of deep dive, but in that moment,
God directed me to say, "Well, you know, God
had a split in heaven, and it wasn't due to a lack
of leadership."
God wanted this pastor to get out of his own
head and quit listening to condemnation and
discouragement: What did I do wrong? What
could I have done differently? Should I have
done this or that?
Should that pastor have handled the
situation differently? Perhaps. But at that
point, it was over. The best he could do was
learn from his mistakes and keep moving.
What he shouldn't have done is let the devil
take him out each and every day since.
Later, he told me: "Something had been
on me for weeks, and—BOOM!—when you
said that to me, it was gone!" As soon as
he'd heard the truth, the condemnation and
discouragement lifted.
Right away, he walked over to his wife who
was sitting on their motorcycle and told her
what I'd said. The same anointing hit her. That
condemnation and discouragement left her
just like it had him. Praise God!
I share this with you because if any of
that trash—destructive thoughts, doubts,
condemnation—has been on you, it's time to
shake it off.
Shake. It. Off!
That may sound too simple, too "Pollyanna,"
for some people, but remember, you know a
mighty God who raises the dead…and He is
enough.
A Different Frame of Mind
There are two times when the devil attacks
you: when you're doing everything wrong and
when you're doing everything right. In other
words, he doesn't stop. There's nothing new
about that. A lot of heroes in Scripture faced
the same pressures. For instance, the Apostle
"We don't
have to
follow
the fear,
panic and
uncertainty
that others
experience."
MY WIFE, VIKKI, AND I ONCE JOINED
A GROUP OF 15 COUPLES FOR A
MOTORCYCLE RIDE ON THE BLUE RIDGE
PARKWAY, A STUNNINGLY BEAUTIFUL
DRIVE ALONG THE APPALACHIANS. AT
ONE POINT, WE STOPPED TO TAKE A
GROUP PICTURE. WHEN YOU'RE TRYING
TO ORGANIZE THAT MANY PEOPLE, YOU
MIGHT AS WELL ORDER OUT FOR PIZZA.
YOU'RE GOING TO BE THERE A WHILE!
I went up to a pastor in the group that I
hadn't met before and introduced myself.
"I'm so glad you're here. Tell me about
yourself. Tell me about your church."
As soon as I posed the question, he unloaded.
The flood gates of information opened.
He had faced serious difficulties in his
church. As we stood on the side of the road
with people taking pictures all around us,
2 2 : B V O V
Shake
It Off!
