It's not very personal but I still feel led to do this. I'm reading Sandie Freed's book Crushing the Spirits of Greed and Poverty. I'm learning so much. These are my notes, just highlights I made. All words are Sandie Freed's, not mine. I'm only highlighting, there is that much to absorb. If anything here grabs you I can't say enough about buying the book.
There is so much to this chapter I split it up. In the book she has a prayer of repentance, so at the end I summarized the key points of her prayer.
CHAPTER 2 Babylon and Wealth
PART ONE
Babylon has nothing but evil attachments to it and the Babylonian world system is detestable to God. We are born into this demonic system and it is familiar to us.
Money is neutral but the love of money and power imprisons us. Satan seduces our value and seeks to ensnare us into compromising our trust and faith in God.
If we buy into the system of Babylon, embracing its idolatry, whoredoms and evil, then we are prey to a “destroyer spirit” that seeks to devour us. The destroyer spirit is looking into an open door into our lives. We must plead the blood of the Lamb, Jesus, over the doorposts of our hearts.
The destroyer also desires to annihilate our belief in God’s desire to bless us.
Babylonian thinking is a false belief system concerning provision. One way to exit out of this system is to trust God and His word. According to 1 Corinthians 10:10, the destroyer has an open door to attack us if we murmur and complain. Murmuring and complaining is a big deal to God.
When we murmur against God concerning our provision, we actually are permamently stopping in our advancement in Him and actually living in the camp of the enemy.
Part of our trusting God for our daily bread involves our heart attitude towards giving and tithing.
Witholding from God (hoarding) due to fear of lack opens the door to the destroyer, who desires to destroy our fruit.
When we complain about how others are more blessed than we are we are going into agreement with Mammon and Babylon. If we maintain a poverty spirit and murmur against God we are actually erecting a death structure about us.
Death Structure: Whatever is not releasing life must be recognized as possibly releasing death, so we call these death structures.
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Surrendering the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate
Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe An Early Start
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Friday, November 5, 2010
Highlights from Sandie Freed's Crushing the Spirits of Greed and Poverty: Chapter Two
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Sandie Freed's Crushing the Spirits of Greed and Poverty Notes on Chapter One
Lately I've felt a God tug to study "Mammon" and how to be a prayer warrior in this area. Sandie Freed has a great book out on this very subject and I'm learning so much. I think the whole Mammon issue is behind so much our country is dealing with--apathy, poverty, materialism and more.
This book is important enough to me that I plan to jot down my notes and share them here. Please, please, please get the book. I'll only highlight key points that spoke to me. It's a rich (pun intended) book filled with life changing information.
Here are the notes from the introduction and chapter one.
Sandie Freed Crushing the Spirit of Greed and Poverty
Introduction:
Mammon is simply not the love of money; rather it is a demonic spirit that attempts to set itself up as equal to God. God is God and the opposite of God is mammon. If you are not serving God, you are serving Mammon. It is a choice.
Mammon is the name of an ancient idol, and since demonic spirits are behind every idol and every form of idol worship, we can conclude Mammon can also be an evil spirit.
In writing this book Sandie prayed Psalm 94 over readers.
Chapter One: God and Mammon
Have we allowed anxiety, worry and stress to turn us away from God? Do we trust in riches more than God? If so, the false god Mammon is tightly strapped to us, and we must become disentangled from him in order to follow God and serve in His kingdom.
Deuteronomy 28. This is not about money being the root of all evil. God wants us blessed. He simply doesn’t want money to be a false god in our lives.
Proverbs 12:24. This is also not about the name it and claim it gospel. Prosperity can be taken to extremes. This is about money as our source rather than God. That is evil.
Godly prosperity is not having wealth for the sake of being wealthy, but rather having enough to fulfill our purposes in God. We are to use the prosperity God gives us to promote His kingdom and bless others along the way so they can fulfill their purposes in God.
God’s intent for you is for you to understand the evil, repent for your involvement with it and become properly positioned for your inheritance and blessing.
Mammon is name of Syrian god who presided over wealth. Not just money but time, talents , opportunity and authority are all wealth. Mammon of unrighteousness means the god who the unrighteous worship: wealth.
Satan attempts us to depend on money to meet our needs more than God, who is our Provider. If we don’t believe God is able to meet our daily needs, we are “bowing down” to a false image concerning God.
If we listen to the voice of the enemy concerning money and provision and we honor the lie over the truth concerning the Lord’s ability to provide for us, we are basically bowing down to the enemy. If we imagine God doesn’t care if we are able to pay our bills or that He won’t bless our tithes and offerings, we have a false image of God.
Evidence of Mammon at work.
1. Giving above tithe. This isn’t bad at all…it’s the follow through. People prayed for a promotion or windfall to bless the church. In the middle of the money coming into possession, a spirit of Mammon came in their hearts and corrupted them. The people didn’t follow through and in fact, ended up leaving the church every time. Overnight the most faithful church members left the church defiled and seduced.
2. A Death prayer. Many believers want to give to a church addition/building project and came to leadership saying they had a lot of money coming to them through inheritance. Before long people are praying for death to fulfill the project. That’s Mammon attempting to pray for a quick release which in truth was a sudden death to a family member. A true prayer is something specific for the family and for God’s will to be done in the situation. Most of the time after the family death the person who promised the money suddenly heard from God not to give to the addition and again, they end up leaving the church altogether.
3. Businessmen in the church not guarding their hearts. They stand up and make promises to deliver big bucks when projects come through. They mean it. Prophets warn them that the enemy is setting a trap and they need to guard their hearts. Business leaders ignore the advice, get the money, won’t return calls, never give the money and they also leave the church.
4. The trap of pastors praying breakthrough to have a debt free church. Again this is not evil. In the pursuit of being debt free the pastor developed a lust for money. The church received a million dollars and the pastor spent it on his own use—drugs, prosititues, he literally took the money and ran, leaving the church in worse debt, and devastated.
Mammon attaches itself to all. Leaders, parishioners, all.
Read Psalm 111:5, AMP
Out of fear we neglect the tithe and close our pocketbooks instead of giving joyously.
When money masters us, servanthood is required.
Money itself is neutral.
Worry-distraction, anxiety. Rooted in the word merizo, and that means to divide, differ and disunite. This is how we become double minded.
Bondage is a lack of liberty. Our main problem is we don’t know who we are or whose we are.
Pray about any areas you can identify with spirit of bondage. Ask forgiveness and seek repentance. Proclaim you are the Lord’s and you want to live free indeed!
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Surrendering the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate
Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe BookSneeze Review: "Big Red" Holy Bible for Children featuring 3D Art
| Latest tweet: As I write I'm catching up on dvr watching. #theevent. Not sure what to think on this one but I keep coming back. #smallville was perfection |
Monday, October 25, 2010
Sandie Freed's Crushing the Spirits of Greed and Poverty
Lately I've felt a God tug to study "Mammon" and how to be a prayer warrior in this area. Sandie Freed has a great book out on this very subject and I'm learning so much. I think the whole Mammon issue is behind so much our country is dealing with--apathy, poverty, materialism and more.
This book is important enough to me that I plan to jot down my notes and share them here. Please, please, please get the book. I'll only highlight key points that spoke to me. It's a rich (pun intended) book filled with life changing information.
Here are the notes just from the introduction by Chuck Pierce.
http://www.juliearduini.com
Surrendering the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate
Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe BookSneeze Review: "Big Red" Holy Bible for Children featuring 3D Art
| Latest tweet: As I write I'm catching up on dvr watching. #theevent. Not sure what to think on this one but I keep coming back. #smallville was perfection |
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
The Narrow Gate Still Invites
Knock knock knock...
Hello?
Anyone there?
Anyone?
We can't blame you if you aren't but we're trusting God that someone out there is still around. Although I haven't seen Maria, I know she is busy with family. When I caught up with Kim we were amazed at how identical the themes were in our lives.
Kim still has a heart for the gypsies in Romania and things are busier than ever for her. I'm writing and spent most of this year creating devotionals called Already a ChampION:30 Devotionals Proclaiming You Aren't the Defeated One. Yet both of us realized of all the things God could do with our lives, He is doing this--
taking us through the narrow gate.
Funny thing is, we thought we'd been there and done that. We accepted the call to serve Him no matter what. He let us both know the gates continue. This is a step up and it's more narrow than ever. The baggage called my expectations for other people is strapped on my back and I keep getting caught on the gate. God has lovingly let me know I'm not going through the narrow gate until I let the baggage go.
It. has. been. so. frustrating.
The biggest revelation God gave me was that I bring my "A" game to nearly everything I do, and I expect everyone to do the same. They probably bring their "A" game, but they don't bring mine. Imagine the frustration. Hence, the image I have of me trying to pass through the narrow way to only get caught by the things on my back.
So that's where I've been, and it's a little update on Maria and Kim, too. I'm reading a great book that I'm learning so much from. Stay tuned to learn what it is. I'll be posting notes here from time to time because the information is that good and relevant.
How about you? Can you relate to God calling you to a new, more narrow place? How are you dealing with it?
http://www.juliearduini.com
Surrendering the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate
Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe BookSneeze Review: "Big Red" Holy Bible for Children featuring 3D Art
Get this email app! Latest tweet: As I write I'm catching up on dvr watching. #theevent. Not sure what to think on this one but I keep coming back. #smallville was perfection 
Thursday, June 24, 2010
He Caught the Passion and the Vision
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Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Putting the Chains on the Tires
This season a new driver, Ray, is part of the show. He's from "the Lower 48" where he used to have his own business but lost it with the economy. Driving the ice road and desolate places Alaska is a way for Ray to provide for his family.
These roads are cruel, just like life. It would be wise on the ice road to be prepared.
Ray had an opportunity to put chains on this tires before going through a particularly harsh part of the journey. If trucks don't have enough traction, they have a spin out. There are guardrails that barely protect from a drop that would lead to certain death.
Ray thought about it and came to the conclusion that putting chains on takes too much time. After all, he's behind schedule and needs to make up time.
Guess what?
Ray ended up spinning out. He ended up putting on chains, backing up traffic filled with waiting trucks, trucks prepared for the conditions because they had chains on.
I've been Ray. The short term plan appears too pressing. The long term plan? Can't go there, won't go there, not until there is a spin out.
The chains not only give traction, they protect against the unpredictable storms, steep hills, all the things that are going to happen. They just are so much easier to endure when you're ready for them by thinking long term.
I want more than to think long term, I want to be prepared. The best way to be prepared is to seek wisdom, God's wisdom. As I read the One Year Bible I read all about Solomon. Of all the things he could have asked God for, he asked for wisdom.
I want that.
As much as there is ice and wind chills on the ice roads of Alaska.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Receiving a Gift I Never Asked For
I should've written this sooner. Truth is, I wanted to make sure.
I'm sure.
If you've ready anything of mine the past three years, you know I've struggled with poycystic ovaries and endometreosis severe enough to need a complete hysterectomy when I was 38. This put me in menopause, which I was experiencing symptoms of anyway, and the menopause issues have been interesting.
Before the hysterctomy my doctor put me on a low dose antidepressant to minimize these symptoms. He warned me to stay consistent with it as going cold turkey or not taking them on a regular basis would bring about not so fun times.
Before the medication I'm transparent enough to say there were days and weeks I was at any given time one, more, or all of the following: depressed, anxious, not sleeping, crying for no reason, starving, sweaty hot even after the smallest of movement and unable to focus.
When I started taking the medicine and then with the surgery some symptoms disappeared, most were so minimal it wasn't even an issue...unless I forgot my meds. That's the funny part about menopause, you lose your mind, and you need your mind to take the meds. I use to bask in my organizational skills and I couldn't remember if I took the meds or not. I'd wait a day and if I was a shaky unfocused mess, I knew I didn't. And so the cycle went.
Last week I attended a conference called Miracles, Signs and Wonders. Even if I was a follower of man, I honestly wouldn't know who to talk about from the conference because the process occurred during the entire conference with different speakers. Bottom line---it was a God thing. I went to that conference seeking Him and His strategies for me to pray for the area. That's it.
The first day I remember sitting down and wondering if I took my meds. The speaker that night talked about love and compassion but she also spoke of divine healing. There was no big fanfare, especially with me. I never went to the altar. I never reached my arms toward heaven seeking a change in my body. Honestly, I extended a hand forward and asked a blessing on all those who did. I wanted their pains to cease, their issues to change. I never thought about me.
I remembered, though, the next day to put the meds in my purse, but I didn't have a drink handy. I got busy listening to another speaker recall his healing, something so under the radar it took him awhile to realize God restored his sight to 20/20. I laughed out loud. I mean, really, who could miss such a thing?
The next morning I realized the meds were still there, untouched. I realize I've missed at least one day and as many as three, which for me should spell off the charts confusion, hot flashes, starving, and the whole ball of wax.
I felt nada. Instead, I felt focused. Warm, but not hot. Comfortable. Content.
Same for the next day,and the next, and the next, and well, same thing even as I write. Now I'm not taking the meds by design. The weather is in the 90's and although it's warm and I get hot like anyone else after working out or sitting directly in the sun, it's not even close to what I've been experiencing for years. Back is the wife who knows where the socks are and can remember to sign the permission slips and pay that bill.
Am I condoning ignoring doctor advice? No, I. am. not.
Am I sharing my story, which I'm proclaiming as a belated healing?
You betcha.
I don't know how God works and why He does what He does, or doesn't do what He doesn't do. All I know is I 'm going on at least a week with no meds and I'm calm, cool and collected. I'm extra thankful because I received something I didn't even ask for.
Blessed?
Um...YEAH!
confused Pictures, Images and Photos
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Surrendering the good, the bad, and---maybe one day---the chocolate
Friday, May 28, 2010
Maria Spencer: What I've Learned
Just like her MiMi. 
