Fearfully & Wonderfully

22. Worshipper. Writer. I hope these words encourage you to draw deeper into the Father.

[tailahjanbash]

The Enneagram Exposed

I remember when the enneagram started gaining media attention a few years ago. Being an avid lover of personality tests and psychology, I excitedly took the test. A seven! I thought. How exciting. This is SO true!

I texted one of my best friends, Joel, and told him all about this great new tool and how accurately it helped people understand their personalities.

“I don’t doubt that it is spot on…” he continued, “But when I initially heard about it, I got a weird feeling. One of my friends looked up where this test came from, and it was made by some questionable people.”

Something that most people don’t know about me, is that I am a religion and spirituality nerd. I don’t just have a passion for theology, but I am fascinated with other religions, cultures, practices, and cults. Due to this, I have taken countless theology, bible, and world religion classes as a student.

As you can probably imagine, after I heard about said sketchiness, I was on a mission! I wanted to find out exactly who designed this enneagram and why my uber God-fearing friend thought it was worthy of avoiding all-together.

I’m about to unload a lot on you. Don’t worry, I have cited my sources below and used very credible ones that you can check out yourself. The goal of this is not to scare you, sway you, or get you to think exactly the way I do. I believe as the church, we should always use discernment and steer clear of practices that do not put the kingdom of God on display.

The men who formed and founded the enneagram participated in ungodly, disturbing, and demonic spiritual activity over the entirety of their lives. I read interviews, read their biographies, and read a few books they had written themselves. This is (a summary) of what I found:

There are three men widely credited with composing the enneagram we use today.

1. George Gurdjieff 

An Armenian mystic and spiritual teacher. He practiced Sufi Islam and hypnosis. A popularized theory of his states that all humans have not reached consciousness, and are in a walking state of hypnosis. He traveled around the east studying the occult and spiritism for many years, including astrology, numerology, fortune telling, demonic possessions and many other new age practices. He reached enlightenment through Sufi Islam and later returned to Russia where he developed the foundations for the enneagram we use today.

2. Oscar Ichazo

A disciple of Gurdjieff. At a young age, Oscar claimed to have out of body experiences/astral projection abilities. He grew up in the church, but left and studied shamanism, hypnotism, yoga, and mysticism in general. He came to believe in the same hierarchy of spirits like Gurdjieff did. Along his spiritual journey, he learned the enneagram from his mentor and developed the nine personality types we use for this test.

3. Claudio Naranjo 

A chilean psychologist & disciple of Gurdjieff as well. Met Ichazo in Chile. They mediated together, and many of these recorded meditations are extremely disturbing. They often wrote about their meditation experiences where they practiced leaving their bodies and attaching their soul’s together as one. Naranjo helped Ichazo develop and later spread the enneagram in America. They specifically targeted the American Christian church as the distributors of the test, and it seems as though their mission has succeeded.

Here is the thing: I don’t want any person or test to tell me who I am, and what I can and cannot do. Much less, a tool developed by individuals who were involved in the occult. The Lord designed me, and knows every little detail about the creation he made! He is all I need on the path to self-discovery. Even if the enneagram is being used now in a “godly” way that strays from its roots, you cannot have a standing and functioning house without a foundation. And sadly, the foundation of this tool, no matter how useful, is blatantly wicked.

If I am being honest, all of this hype about the enneagram is no different than Astrology. Heck, it drew from Astrology! It has a new name, but it is the same game. There is nothing “new” about New Age. It is just another name for the occult that doesn’t bear the same negative stigma. Trust me, I know this from personal experience. I used to think crystals, astrology, signs, the enneagram, and meditation would lead me to discovering myself, but those all just left me in chains. It wasn’t until Jesus set me free that I realized this.

The truth of the matter is this: The enemy will use anything he can to grab a foothold in your life. I don’t know about you, but I am at a place in my walk with the Lord, that if something threatens to get in the way of my closeness with Him, it has got to go. I am not going to tolerate even questionable things anymore, because I don’t have time to be dabbling or flirting with darkness. The bible lays it out, plain and simple: New Age, Astrology, Divination, and any spiritual practice that is outside of Jesus’ teachings, is sin. It is not going to help, benefit, or strengthen your relationship with Jesus. It will actually do the opposite. (Deut 18:12, Isa 8:19, Jeremiah 14:4, Isa 47:13)

Please note that this is a summary article. There are many more stories and experiences in the written works of these men that are available for your research online. The sad part is, the demonic practices I mentioned in this article are just the tip of the iceberg. It gets extremely heavy and shockingly evil the more you learn about these men and what they designed the enneagram to do.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below or send me a DM via Instagram @tailahj

I may be standing alone on an island here, but I’m really tired of seeing New Age and the Occult trying to seep into the church. We are the bride of Jesus and he should always be our first love. I hope that this information gave you clarity and new conviction.

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8

sources:

-Gurdjieff, George I. Herald of Coming Good. -Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson, 3 vols. First Series -Keen, Sam. “A Conversation about Ego Destruction with Oscar Ichazo,” -Palmer, Helen. The Enneagram. -Understanding the Enneagram: The Practical Guide to Personality Types -Waldberg, Michael. Gurdjieff: An Approach to His Work

[tailahjanbash]

The Christian, Mental Illness, and The Cure

Mental health has been a topic that has been circulating around culture and around the church a lot in 2019.

As a girl, I struggled with an eating disorder. I had anorexia for about a year. I weighed around 95 pounds, and hardly ate anything. I remember feeling ugly, worthless, and trapped inside a body I hated. The thing was, I had been a Christian my entire life. I knew Jesus loved me, I loved him back, and I knew that he healed people… but I never personally invited him into my mess. As a result, I suffered from mental illness.

I vividly remember being in a worship service, lifting my hands and surrendering every area of my life and pain to Jesus. In that moment, I physically felt weights being lifted off of me, and I knew my eating disorder was gone. I didn’t know it at the time, but The Lord had cast an oppressive spirit out of me.

As Christians, it’s absolutely possible to go to church every week, know all the stories, believe and still. be. oppressed.

So why are there so many Christians tormented by mental illness, if Jesus already conquered every sin, death, and disease?

Some people might argue that it is because we live in a fallen world. There will always be pain and sometimes we just have to suffer. But this completely undermines scripture and the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. When we come into agreement with our mental illness or pain, we are saying “Jesus, you died for me so I could get into heaven, but your sacrifice wasn’t powerful enough to take away the pain of this world.”

Yes, we live in a fallen world. Yes, life is going to be hard. Will we face difficulties? Absolutely. But we are promised that we will overcome, because the true word of God says:

The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. Deuteronomy 28:7

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10

But the question still remains:

Why are there so many Christians tormented by mental illness, if Jesus already conquered sickness and death?

There are three common reasons that I have found:

1. We are not empowered by the Holy Spirit – We talk so much about God the Father and King Jesus, but the third part of the God Head is often overlooked in the contemporary church. The Holy Spirit. He is a person and he is a gift. The Holy Spirit empowers us, strengthens us, and delivers us from sin. We are instructed to undergo two baptisms—water baptism, then baptism of The Holy Spirit (Luke 3:16). That means simply praying and inviting the Holy Spirit to come and fill you.  It is impossible to live the Christian life fully when we are apart from the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

You will know when you have been baptized in the Holy Spirit because you will be filled with new power. You will be able to operate in the spiritual gifts that the bible describes in 2 Corinthians 14, you will have the power to be able to live in freedom, and to command the Enemy to leave. You will begin to develop the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and hear God’s voice.

If your relationship with God feels dry, powerless, or stagnant, that is a good indicator that you are in need of the Holy Spirit. It is also important to note that being baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit is NOT a one-time thing like water baptism can be. There is the initial asking/baptism experience with Him, but we have to continuously be filled with the Holy Spirit. This means asking the Him to fill you daily.

2. We are uneducated about deliverance. Deliverance ministry is a ministry of the church that concentrates on spiritual freedom. When we study scripture, we learn that there are demons, they constantly work to oppress humanity, and that we must be on our guard, ready to fight and conquer the schemes of Satan. (Ephesians 6:12, 1 Cor 16:13-14).

Deliverance ministry often happens when the afflicted person takes a step back from their situation and realizes that they cannot keep living this way. The oppressed Christian realizes they need rescuing from compulsive sins or behaviors they cannot stop committing or have little control over, such as alcoholism or a drug addiction.

In my case in 2017, I was horribly tormented by anxiety. I reached a point where I could not take it anymore. I had panic attacks every single day and tried taking supplements and different forms of “self-care” remedies. They did not work.

I finally went to my spiritual mentor and told her that I had been ridden with deep anxiety for months.We prayed together and a demonic spirit of anxiety left my body. Since that day, I have not had panic attacks and am no longer bound to anxiety. I have total and complete healing from that mental illness.

Many times, especially when someone initially goes through deliverance, it looks like what I did–partnering with a spiritual leader or mentor who is filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit and breaking off demonic strongholds by the power of prayer. Deliverance is a serious step towards freedom, and those seeking it should be fully accepting of the lordship of Jesus in their life and ready to turn away from their sin.

3. We do not take authority over the enemy. A lot of Christians pray, plead, and hope that God will someday take their illness away instead of standing ground and taking authority over the spirits attacking their mind. This of course, comes after deliverance once that bondage has been broken and you have freed yourself from the oppressive spirits.

Imagine your teacher gives you an assignment to complete. She has given you all of the instructions on how to complete the project, but you refuse to read the directions and instead have a melt down and send her countless emails begging her to complete the assignment for you. Is your teacher going to do that? Doubtful.

Why do we do that with God? We refuse to read our bibles—the instructions for how to live a free and whole life—then beg him to take away our torment. Will he do it? If you wish and hope and pray, I mean He’s God… He can. But if you continue to sit back and let the enemy bully you, you will never grow in your faith. When we refuse to learn spiritual warfare, we live a life of spiritual immaturity and compromise—you will survive but never be able to thrive. You will be powerless over every wave the enemy throws at you and be swallowed up in torment.

The good news is, that is not what God has intended for your story.

The bible tells us to take every thought captive (2 Cor 10:15). We are to call out those invasive, compulsive, and negative thoughts and cast them back into the pit of hell where they belong.

Christians must understand that their identity is royal because they are a child of God and are not subject to any kind of torment from the kingdom of darkness.

You have all authority and power over the enemy because the king of kings lives inside of you.  When we don’t know our identity in Christ and who He says we are, we allow darkness to push us around.

    Part 2: Examples from the Bible

Pastor and theologian Neil T. Anderson writes, “Christians who think demons were active when Christ was on earth, but their activity has subsided are not embracing the whole counsel of God in light of what His word says, nor are they facing reality.”

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:10-12

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

If demonic forces are not actively trying to oppress believers, why would Paul instruct us to wear the armor of God and continuously fight against our enemies?

Now that we have established that there are spirits, the bible continues to go into even more details about the kinds of spirits that attempt to torment us.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7

We see from this verse that fear/anxiety is not simply a chemical imbalance, but a spirit. Does your body have a physical reaction to the Spiritual climate? Absolutely. That is why psychologists can only tell you what is happening in your body once that anxiety enters. It cannot explain how or why anxiety got there. A Harvard Medical article stated, “Nerve cell connections, nerve cell growth, and the functioning of nerve circuits have a major impact on depression. Still, their understanding of the neurological underpinnings of mood is incomplete.”

Neurological scans and doctors can only tell you the physiological affects that mental illness, in this case depression, can cause you. Their best guess is either the mental illness was passed down genetically, or that it is the aftermath of trauma.

Can I tell you something, friends? We are not just bodies. You are a complex being, made up of a spirit that God breathed into, a soul that contains your will and emotions, and a physical body. All of these work together and affect one another. They are not separated but work together and make up YOU!

Scripture tell us that generational curses are the cause of illnesses passed down throughout our families, and that they are not only physical but spiritual (Exodus 34:7) . They can be broken by the power of Christ through deliverance, and we can receive total and complete healing. This doesn’t sound like science and faith bumping heads, but actually explaining one another!

When you really think about it, it makes so much sense. They work together because He is the author and creator of our body, spirit, soul and science.

If we write off what the bible says about mental illness because it wasn’t around when modern medicine was, then we are undermining Gods word and authority. We are picking and choosing aspects of the bible to believe and parts to throw away. When we do this, we are saying that the bible is not truth, but just good teaching that we can pick and choose where to apply and where to ignore. In other words, it is being your own god.

The Bible does not shy away from talking about mental illness, so the church shouldn’t either.

Scripture actually tell us not to be afraid 365 times! One for every day of the year. Jesus even tells us not to be anxious about our lives! (Matthew 6:25-34)

If we are instructed not to be anxious, but instead to cast out fear, then this means that we have dominion over it!

The bible even goes beyond depression and anxiety—it discusses insanity, confusion, madness, epilepsy, self-harm, and suicide. These are only a few references that I could find quickly.  The scriptures do not tell us that these people only had medical issues, but spiritual ones, and that these mental illnesses came from unclean spirits, or demons. Ref: Isa 61:3, 2 Tim 1:7, 1 Sam 16:14, Matt 4:24, Mark 5:5

Throughout the gospels of Jesus, multitudes of mentally and physically ill people were brought to Jesus and he rebuked demons out of them. We see this in the cases of epilepsy, Tourette’s, self-harm, even crippled people were physically healed by Jesus simply rebuking a spirit out of them. From this we learn that demons can cause mental and physical illness. Do they cause every single form? No, some people that were brought to Jesus were just sick. But the same resolution was found every time a sick person, mental or physical, was brought to Jesus: he healed them.

And that same healing is available to you through Jesus.

The Young Boy With Epilepsy (Matthew 17:14-20)

And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly.

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

There is SO much to unpack here, we don’t have time to get into all of it. But BELIEVING for the healing is what caused this young man to be healed of his mental illness. The disciples all followed and loved Jesus, but they did not have any faith that he could cure the young man from epilepsy! Jesus then rebukes his followers and calls their generation perverse because they didn’t believe he could cure the disease.

So often, we are the disciples in this story. There was a season of my life where I was overwhelmed with severe depression. During those days, the darkness felt more real than the presence of God. It wasn’t until I cast out that spirit of heaviness that l could see that I was believing the lies it fed me: My sorrow was too great for God to take away. That I was unlovable and meant to be alone. That God hated me, and my depression was punishment for being a bad daughter.

What lies have you adopted?

We must see through the lies of the enemy, even when our emotions and mental state seem so out of control and wounded. People are in bondage to the lies they believe, which is why we must reject every statement about ourselves that does not align with scripture. We do this by reading the word and learning about who he says we are.

This is why Jesus says, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32

I do want to bring up medication briefly, because I know there will be questions and people will probably make inaccurate assumptions.

I am not telling anyone to go to their kitchen and dump out their medicine or neglect what their physicians have told them. Doctors, medicine, and therapists can be wonderful help, but they are not the hope.

In the words of pastor Henry Seeley, “I’m not here to give you medical advice. But I believe that God has more for you than just spending the rest of your life dependent on medication. Medication might take a season, and that’s okay, that could be part of the journey for some of you. But if I went to the doctor, and the doctor told me there was something wrong and I need to take Tylenol every day for the rest of my life, I would question what that kind of advice that is. Because that is acknowledging that something is wrong, but rather than fixing what is wrong, we are just going to cover it up so you can cope for the rest of your life.”

Part 3: Walking In Freedom

What does it look like to practically walk out everything we just discussed?

We must be filled with the Holy Spirit daily

We should seek deliverance and spiritual freedom if we notice there are areas in our lives that are not submitted to and ruled by The Lord Jesus.

We must put on the armor of God daily (Ephesians 6)

We should spend time daily reading the bible, worshipping, and praying in the presence of God.

We must stand firm, speak scripture over ourselves, and pray against the enemy when the attacks come.

All of these steps can be accomplished by having a healthy and vibrant prayer life. The more time you spend talking with God the more truths he will reveal to you about the journey you are on.

One of the pastors at our church said something profound the other day. He said, “The dark places where the church doesn’t go and spread the gospel, will come to infiltrate the church.”

I heard the Holy Spirit say, “That is what has happened to my church with mental illness.”

My heart broke when I heard that. And I began to work on this blog post.

As the church, we must be vigilant followers of Jesus who do not conform to the thinking patterns of our culture and society. We must take the narrative back and view contemporary issues through the lens of the one we are following, who IS truth.

Our world is so starved of the truth right now—we are constantly lied to in news, media, politics, and religion. We cannot follow the world and choose to be our own source of truth. We have seen where this has gotten our world. Mental illnesses, addictions, racism, divorce rates, murders, suicides, and terror attacks have continued to rise. People are lost and in despair because they do not know healing is available to them. What is the church going to do about it?

Are we too busy bickering about if mental health is a spiritual issue? The differences between doctrines? We have the answer, we have the healing, we have wholeness because we have Jesus.

His sacrifice was so powerful, it erased sin, death, sickness, and disease. When Jesus rose from the dead, it was so you didn’t have to cope and live with mental illness. He overcame it so you could have life to the full!

If you are still waiting for the healing, then it is for a reason and that reason will be revealed in His perfect timing. But hear me when I say, the healing will come as long as we seek Him and seek spiritual freedom.

It’s okay to not be okay, but it’s not okay to stay there. We have a hope greater than and outside of medicine, doctors, or a diagnosis. We have Jesus.

[tailahjanbash]

Room to Move

It’s been a while since I’ve written, and I really miss talking and sharing my heart with you guys.

I took an unintentional break from blogging once life started moving a hundred miles per hour.

In April, I landed a dream job at a local record label with some amazing people.

The end of the semester was nearing, finals were around the corner, not to mention friends, graduations, other jobs, family, serving in the church—you get the picture.

Life was so busy. And it continues to be. I found myself longing for the slower seasons of my life.

Last summer, I had so much free time. I would spend hours outside reading the bible, writing, and spending time with God. And sometimes I really do miss those days. But I remembered, on those days, I would dream up my future with The Lord. I would ask Him about a future in music, in writing, in creating. And at that time, those dreams were so far out of reach, all I could do was daydream and pray about them.

Now, I am watching the beginning of His plans for me unfold. Yet I’ve found myself longing for the days when I had all the time in the world to rest.

I like to look at my life in seasons. I’ve gone in depth about spiritual seasons a lot on my blog, you can read about those here.

In the winter, it’s common to feel like you are waiting on God. Life often feels barren and lifeless. Some have a hard time hearing from God.

In spring, you begin to see the plans that He has for you come alive. They are buds, but they are blooming. Life is bursting and breaking forth.

And Spring is exactly where I’ve found myself these days.

The question quickly became, “Lord, how can I spend as much time with you as I did last season?”

I suddenly didn’t have hours to spend with Him anymore.

But I’m learning that He knows that. There are only so many hours in a day, and it is unrealistic to spend three hours worshipping and writing when I have twenty other things to accomplish that day.

In the winter season, God intentionally brings us to the end of ourselves so that we learn to rely and cast our cares upon Him, due to that heavy element of barrenness. He has to prune and refine us, so that we are ready to be launched into the next season. Naturally, this means more time in isolation with Him. But He is not stagnant and idle. He’s thinking about your Spring before you are, and intentionally preparing you for the wonderful plans He has. And once that new season does come, the ways you used to spend time with Him or the ways He spoke to you can change. 

“For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” Isa 43:19

I had a dream the other day, that I was inside of a massive palace. I was in a throne room, and there were riches all around me, piled up. I saw gold, rubies, jewels—so many I could hardly move around. I knew the treasure was not mine, but it was God’s that He had given to me, but they were cluttering the space all around me and keeping me from getting to Him.

I knew I needed to get with Him without all of the clutter, so I began pushing all of the gold and jewels away and clearing the space around me so He could come close. Once I made room, He came near and lifted my head towards Him and smiled.

I wrote all of this down and asked The Holy Spirit what it meant.

He revealed to me that the riches were the blessings, dreams, and desires of my heart that He had given me. But whenever we give too much of our focus and attention on these things, they begin to pile up so high that we can hardly move—our lives can so easily revolve around the blessings and keep us stuck where we are instead of moving forward with God.

So even when life is abundant and full, we are watching our dreams come to fruition, and we are moving faster than we ever thought possible, we have to be intentional about carving time out of our daily schedule to spend time with our Father.

He knows your life is busy. He knows you have a million things on your mind and a mile-long to-do list. But that’s what makes it a little sweeter, don’t you think? Having someone clear time out their busy day to spend time with you? It really shows how much you care!

I pray that you find that time today  🖤

Tailah

[tailahjanbash]

YOU'RE NOT STUCK - WAITING ON GOD

Today I want to encourage you and remind you that the season of life you are in is not permanent, that God is good, and your dreams are within reach. You can...

I wrote this blog post about a year ago, and after many requests have finally made this message into a vlog! I pray that this encourages your spirit and allows you to embrace whatever season of life you are in–no matter how messy or imperfect!! If you know anyone who is wrestling with their calling right now, share this with them or tag them!

[tailahjanbash]

YOU'RE NOT STUCK - WAITING ON GOD

Today I want to encourage you and remind you that the season of life you are in is not permanent, that God is good, and your dreams are within reach. You can...

I wrote this blog post about a year ago, and after many requests have finally made this message into a vlog! I pray that this encourages your spirit and allows you to embrace whatever season of life you are in--no matter how messy or imperfect!! If you know anyone who is wrestling with their calling right now, share this with them or tag them!

[tailahjanbash]

Why You Shouldn’t Be A Christian Blogger

I know, It's bizarre. This title is probably the last thing you would expect from me. But lately more and more "faith" inspired posts have been popping up on my timeline. Most of them are from young girls who have just begun their faith walk and have decided to take it upon themselves to teach the masses how to be a Christian. All it takes is a title that's click-bait and one viral post to make a name for yourself, right?

The problem with some of these articles, is that they have little to no scriptural backing or reference, and many are centered around emotions—what makes me happy and what being a Christian means to me. They often contradict scripture. Other times they make excuses for blatant sin—"The bible was written thousands of years ago so it's okay for me to sleep with my boyfriend" for example.

This is not teaching. "But I'm not trying to be a pastor or a bible teacher" you might say. "I'm just sharing my experiences." Great. Share your experiences! But once you cross that line and begin telling your readers who God is, His nature, character, and what it means to be a Christian, you have taken a teaching mantle upon yourself.

And you never place a mantle upon yourself. What is a mantle? In the Old Testament, they were big cloaks that teachers, worship leaders, prophets and priests wore. Mantles are a physical representation of God's covering because they covered the people who wore them. Mantles represent a call and an anointing that has been placed upon you by God that you wear and carry wherever you go.

Christian bloggers do not get the luxury of scheduling posts or waking up one morning and slapping some random inspiring thought together and present it as gospel like any other blogger would.

I never write posts just to write posts. Or because I have to keep my page relevant or need new and consistent content. Even if I have understanding, I will ONLY write a post once I have had revelation and prompting by the Holy Spirit to create and publish it.

I pray over every single word. I read the message over and over, and reference as many scriptures as I possibly can. I submit to the Holy Spirit and ask that he would be the one writing and speaking through me. I send the finished posts to pastors, mentors, and leaders just to make sure that everything is biblically sound. That is the kind of reverence I have for this mantle that God has placed on me.

You cannot force a call. You cannot force revelation. If God has not told you to teach and write about a topic, you will be 1. Acting outside of his will. 2. Will not have the proper or full understanding, revelation, and preparation to handle the massive responsibility and repercussions of teaching.

I did not want to be a teacher. I did not choose to be Christian Blogger. I did not want to be a life-group leader at my university and be responsible for teaching my peers the word of God, because I understood the seriousness of the call. God had to arrest my heart and even send multiple church members with prophetic words to tell me that it was time to step out, teach, and write. My point is this: God will make it clear as day that he has chosen, appointed, and anointed you.

James 3:1 says "Don't be in any rush to become a teacher, my friends. Teaching is highly responsible work. Teachers are held to the strictest standards." In most translations, this verse says, "Those who teach will be judged more strictly."

The word 'Judgement' used in this passage is the Greek word, 'Krima; κρίμα' defined as; A condemnation of wrong, the decision (whether severe or mild) which one passes on the faults of others.

The Greek word for 'strictly' used above is 'Megas; μέγας'. One of its definitions is: Great mass and weight. Another definition is: Intensity; violent, mighty, strong.

One passes on the faults of others. If you are teaching false interpretations, false doctrine, or setting a bad example by not walking out what you teach, God will punish you and hold you accountable not only for your own sins, but the sins of others. He will pass that punishment from them on to you, because you misrepresented Him and caused them to stumble by teaching them incorrectly. The faults and sins that are passed on to the teacher are not small. They are of great mass and weight as we read in the original Greek. These judgements are not easy to bear.

Jesus says that we will have to answer for every worthless and idle word we have ever spoken at judgement. (Matt 12:36)

And a few chapters later, Jesus goes on to say, "If anyone causes one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for him to have a heavy boulder tied around his neck and be hurled into the deepest sea than to face the punishment he deserves! (Matt 18:6)

This…coming from the mouth of Jesus? Absolutely terrifying.

Obviously, God does not take teaching, theology, knowledge, or understanding lightly. At all. He literally says that being tied to a boulder and drowned to death is better than the punishment God has for this serious crime.

Online articles (including mine, people!) cannot feed your spirit. You need the word of God to gain knowledge and understanding so you will be able to catch false teachings swirling around your Facebook and Instagram feeds.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 says, "For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."

It truly angers me whenever I see viral posts that claim the heart of God but teach the opposite of scripture. I can't imagine how that makes God feel. At the end of the day, its His precious children who are being taught that living in sin is okay, or that that He views his daughters as less valuable than His sons. (Real posts I saw today, guys)

"Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." 1 John 4:1-6

We have to guard our heart, spirit, soul, and mind. This is why John instructed us to test every spirit—because not every teaching is inspired by the Holy Spirit. And if it is not from the Holy Spirit, then by process of elimination, it is from an unclean spirit. And don't forget, Satan knows scripture and has twisted it from the beginning. From Eve, to Jesus, to us even today.

Always examine doctrine next to scripture. Ask God if it is truth. Ask the Holy Spirit for revelation. He'll give it to you. This is a promise Jesus gives us in Luke 11:11-13—"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

At the end of the day, recognizing false teaching comes by being filled with the Holy Spirit and knowing the word of God. As long as you are seeking these, you do not have to worry about falling prey to deceitful interpretations, because the Holy Spirit is our interpreter (1 Cor 2:12).

Below are two prayers. One is for those who have found themselves placing a mantle of teaching upon themselves that God has not ordained or placed upon you. The second is a prayer to stand against and cast out any false teachings or ideologies that you have fallen victim to.

Lord, I repent for placing a false mantle upon myself instead of allowing you to call, anoint, and appoint me. In the name of Jesus, I surrender and release my giftings and desire to teach to you. Shape me, my understanding, and knowledge to your perfect wisdom, revelation, and will. Give me a new hunger and desire for you and your word, Holy Spirit. Remove anything in me that is not like you. I bind every spirit of false doctrine or false teaching that would confuse me and whisper untruths into my ears, heart, and mind. We pray and ask all of these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.

Father God, I repent and ask for forgiveness for any sin I have committed, knowingly or unknowingly. I ask that you fill me with your Holy Spirit right now in the name of Jesus. Holy Spirit, I ask that you would be my interpreter, teacher, and friend. That you would strengthen me to withstand attacks from the enemy and give me a greater measure of your holy and perfect discernment in the name of Jesus. I renounce, bind, and rebuke any and all false teachings that have been spoken to me or over me in the name of Jesus. Jesus, shine your light and perfect knowledge over all of these areas and fill them with your Spirit and truth right now. I forgive any false teacher that has deposited untruths into me and ask that you would have mercy on them and bring them to You. In Jesus name, amen

If you would like access to devotionals, teachings, walk-through prayers, or to ask me any questions click here!

[tailahjanbash]

Jesus = Feminist?

Today I read an article called ‘I’m A Christian Girl And I’m Not A Feminist, Because God Did Not Intend For Women To Be Equals.’

I’m going to be honest with you. It made me angry. In fact, the more I kept reading the more upset I got.

I don’t think the girl who wrote it meant any harm. She was expressing her opinion and her own understanding of God and feminism. Because this post has gone somewhat viral, I have felt burdened to examine these claims next to scripture so we, as Christians, can understand this topic better.  

The author states, “Women and men are not equal in God’s eyes. If we were all equal, we would not need one another and therefore we would not need God. I am so thankful that we were not created equal.”

I believe this quote would support the notion that women depend on men because they are inferior. Women have a few traits and qualities to offer the superior sex, like taking care of children and a home. This somehow supports her claim that if women were equal to men then God would be unnecessary.

A society obviously needs both to function and reproduce. However, on the individual level, things are a little different. Just so this doesn’t get confusing, let me be clear—A woman does not need a man. Period.

A man does not need a woman.

The only person you need is Jesus.

Paul tells us we can actually serve the kingdom better when we are single. (1 Cor 7:8)

This is because we do not have a spouse to answer to or split affections. We can focus totally on Jesus and kingdom work.

If you are unmarried you ultimately answer to Jesus. This is because the two of you are a unit instead of a man and a woman, and we must submit to his lordship. You do not have to submit to any person simply because they are a man. You don’t need the permission of a man to fulfill your destiny and do what the Lord has called you to. You answer to Abba. You are qualified and capable because He has called you.

But if you do decide to go the marriage route, you should NEVER be co-dependent like this article claims women are. You do not enter a marriage because one partner needs the other to function. Marriage should be two whole people coming together to reflect the beauty and unity of God.

Think about that. Men and women both display different attributes and characteristics of God so that when they unite in covenant, we get a clearer picture of who He is.

Now, would you tell me that the Holy Spirit is inferior to Jesus? Or that God is more valuable than Christ? You would never dare to compare their worth. They each function and move in different ways, but they are one. In a similar way, man and woman bring different characteristics to a marriage covenant and become one. Neither is more important than the other.

Let’s take a look at the (ENTIRE) scripture that was misconstrued to support these misogynistic claims.

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— for we are members of his body.” Ephesians 5:21-33

People who have supported the oppression of women often quote the phrase, “Wives submit to your husbands” and leave it there. But before we even get to the wives, we are first instructed to submit to one another as believers. Men must submit to women, and women to men. This is because God wants us to be united, not shouting over one another, claiming that one sex is more important than another. How foolish.

Following Paul’s instruction to wives, men are then called to lay down their lives for their wives. Why? Because that’s what Christ did for us. He gave up everything. He served us. He washed the feet of his disciples. There were times when he cooked for them. He ministered to them constantly. He set the example for how to live righteously. Jesus put our needs above his own when he bore the cross.

This latter instruction Paul gives to men is a higher and harder standard to maintain. It truly is a heavier burden. That is why the man is the head of the household like Jesus is the head of the church. He had to learn, teach, suffer, and constantly sacrifice. Godly men don’t get to put their feet up and demand that their wives clean and cook and serve them all day. They aren’t superior, but they do have a bigger burden and responsibility. They will have to answer to God at judgement for all of the ways they either built up and served their wives/families or tore them down. Men of God do not just rule over their households like tyrants, because they must be submitted to Jesus.

To put it simply the point is this: Everyone must submit at the end of the day. Not just women.  

So married men, don’t ask why your wives won’t submit when you refuse serve them. Marriage is sacrificial on both sides because there are two parties involved. When you are serving one another and concerned with the other’s needs above your own, submitting becomes easier because you realize you are both on the same team.

I do find it interesting that wives specifically get called out. Maybe the women in Ephesus were dishonoring their husbands, belittling, or bossing them around. We don’t know exactly what has happening in the church at Ephesus when this letter was written. But whenever wives (or husbands) lash out in this way, it is often an issue of pride or rebellion.

In the words of my friend Fade, “Married women (or men) can sometimes have a hard time submitting because they are not submitted to The Lord.”

            *Mic drop*

And then… the inevitable happens.

Adam and Eve are brought up.

In case you’re new here:

Following the fall of man (Genesis 3 a.k.a when Eve ate the fruit), God punishes all parties involved and says to the woman: “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

This is the curse of man.

Some say that bible lays it all out there. That this is where inequality of the sexes is established and will remain forever.

However, I recall Romans 5 saying something a little different…

“You know the story of how Adam landed us in the dilemma we’re in—first sin, then death, and no one exempt from either sin or death. That sin disturbed relations with God in everything and everyone, but the extent of the disturbance was not clear until God spelled it out in detail to Moses. So death, this huge abyss separating us from God, dominated the landscape from Adam to Moses.

But Adam, who got us into this, also points ahead to the One who will get us out of it.

If one man’s sin put crowds of people at the dead-end abyss of separation from God, just think what God’s gift poured through one man, Jesus Christ, will do! There’s no comparison between that death-dealing sin and this generous, life-giving gift.

Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right.” Romans 5:12-19 MSG

Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse.”

So you see, if you are in Christ, he became the curse for you on the cross, and defeated it when he rose from the grave. He broke that power struggle between man and woman. We don’t have to live in disharmony! Isn’t that amazing?

Acts 2:17 says, “In the last days, God says, 'I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.”

He laid down his life so he could pour out his Spirit freely on both sons and daughters. So He could move, minister, and work through all of his children, not just an elite few.

All of this building up to my final point: Feminism isn't bad. It isn’t a dirty word. Jesus literally broke social norms to include women in a society that kept them oppressed. The bible actually celebrates powerful women!

The first person Jesus revealed himself to as the son of God was a woman. (John 4)

The first people resurrected Jesus appeared to were women. (John 20:11-18)

When Barack was too chicken to lead the army into battle, Deborah took over without hesitation. (Judges 4:9)

Women were prophets. (Judges 4; Luke 2:36-38; Exod 15:20; 2 Kings 22:15; Neh 6:14)

Women were politicians, judges, and rulers. (Deborah, Esther)

God made BOTH male and female in his image. This is why marriage reflects His image and wholeness. God intends male and female to contribute their unique strengths to benefit one another and the world. We are his children and he doesn't value us based off of something so carnal and physical.

Parents: Do you look at your son as more important and valuable than your daughter? Of course not! Why would we ever teach or assume God views us in that way?

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.” Philippians 2:3

Scripture says we (ALL Christians) should never view ourselves as more valuable than another person.

Yes, we are different. But our value isn’t. We are each and individually so priceless and worthwhile to Jesus that he literally gave himself up. You were worth his life. That is your value.

 And for the record, the Webster dictionary definition of feminism is: To advocate for the social, economic and political equality of the sexes.

If both men and women can come boldly before the throne of the Father (Hebrews 4:16), we should be able to be treated in society with that same equality.

Feminism isn't anti-men. It isn't women over men.

Feminism is wanting to see more representation of women in politics. For us to get equal pay for doing the same job. So we can walk to our cars at night without clutching a can of pepper spray and looking behind us every 10 seconds.

Here is my final point—I’m not trying to convert you to a specific ideology or promote a label as gospel. Quite frankly, God does not care whether you label yourself as a feminist or not. He cares about your heart and how you view and treat his precious children.

Women, you are powerful. God has created you to be fearless leaders.

You are not worth less than a man.

You are not a half.

You are a whole. (Colossians 2:10)

My prayer for you today is that every unbiblical and devaluing lens you see yourself through is shattered. That your spirit is encouraged, and Christ empowers you with the strength to lift your head high and wear the crown He has given you, boldly and unashamed.

Never forget that you are so treasured, worthwhile, and valued by your King and Creator.

You can read more blog posts and content on my website!

http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

Maker Of My Dreams

My name is Tailah. I was practically born in a church pew, and God has played a significant role in my life as far back as my memory will take me. You’d think after 21 years of being in the church I’d either be some kind of minister or insanely bored of hearing the same stories over and over, but neither of those happened.

After serving Jesus for nearly a decade now, I’ve found that doing life with him is nothing short of an adventure.

I think Christians get a bad rep. They supposedly aren’t allowed to have fun, go out, or live life fully—the world paints a picture of people in turtlenecks and pilgrim skirts, trapped in a stuffy chapel while the rest of the human population experiences freedom. Christians are slaves to their impossible standards of righteousness and trapped by their pious morals. The rest of the world is free to act upon their every desire and chase happiness to their heart’s content.

In my opinion, this is one of the biggest lies and delusions Satan hides behind.

People who act upon every compulsive desire or sin actually enslave themselves under the delusion that they are free. They are slaves to their desires, appetites, and emotions. Jesus offers us freedom from guilt, shame, sin, and death. He provides hope when we see no way out, refreshment when we cannot go on, and peace when everything around us is falling apart.

These were some of the things I grew up hearing in church, but it wasn’t until my faith met my actions that I truly experienced this.

Today, I want to talk to you about the latest adventure Jesus and I went on, in hopes to inspire you and remind you that God is the maker of your dreams.

This past summer, I was feeling trapped and unhappy with where I worked. Simultaneously, I was feeling a strong pull in my heart to pursue a job working in the music industry, which has been my dream since I was twelve years old.  After a lot of hard decisions, The Lord basically set up circumstances so I had to leave my job. I was scared of the unknown, but I knew in my heart it was time for me to stop meeting everyone else’s expectations for my life and chase my dreams.

I reached out to my friend Alyssa who had worked for a local record label. She forwarded my resume to a few contacts. I prayed for a month. Nothing happened.

I continued to pray and refused to give up—I babysat, sold paintings, and took some odd jobs in the meantime. The whole summer went on like this, until a few weeks before the start of fall semester.

I spent one Sunday night deep in prayer. I had been worshipping, praying, breaking things over my life. Then I spoke God’s favor, blessings, and open doors over myself and into existence.

Suddenly my phone lit up. Alyssa texted me in that moment and asked if I had found an internship yet. I quickly responded and told her that I hadn’t had any luck. She informed me that she had two more contacts and she would follow through with them both.

Long story short, I sent both companies my resume and immediately got booked for job interviews. I realized the power and importance of prayer. All the while, the Lord was reminding me that He opens and shuts every key and open door in my life.

There was one company that was super glamorous—they worked with high profile celebrities in Pop and Rap music and offered me a position with them on the spot. Everyone told me to take it.

The other company was a Christian artist management company. God made it super clear to me years ago, that my calling and vocation was in Christian ministry and entertainment, not secular.

As if that choice weren’t hard enough, there was one more problem: there were other people interviewing for the Christian company, and they were not able to give me an answer for at least a few more weeks. In other words, I had to choose on the spot, not knowing if I would get the internship I desired in my heart.

I wrestled with faith and doubt. With what I could see with the calling and dreams that God had placed in my heart.

After spending (a LOT of) time in prayer, I decided that I had to step out in faith. I called the company that offered me the job in secular music and politely declined their offer.

I was terrified that I had ruined my career before it even began, but in my spirit, I felt a sense of relief.

I had just sacrificed my Isaac, and I was low-key expecting a call from the Christian company effective immediately. I mean, I had just sacrificed SO much for God. He can’t keep me waiting forever, right?!

But then crickets.

And some more crickets.

I prayed daily and before I knew it, a month had passed.

I accepted the fact that maybe this wasn’t for me, released it, and thanked God anyways because He is always good, even when we don’t get what we want how we want it.

I kid you not the very. next. day. I got the phone call! They offered me the position and when I say God worked out every single detail, I’m not kidding. I had some issues registering for classes and could only sign up for Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes, which were the days I wanted to work. But the company ended up needing me for Tuesdays and Thursdays! Every last detail—down to my daily schedule to the hour—fell together perfectly, because when God does something, He goes all out. He fine tunes every detail and orchestrates every aspect so that He may receive the glory!

That fall I got to work for an amazing company called Redjett. My co-workers were the kindest ever and I learned so much about the industry I love. I got to work for Lauren Daigle, Hollyn, Sadie Robertson, Cody Carnes, and Chris McKlarney! I got to see behind the scenes of touring, worship events, music releases, huge ministries, and so much more. I will never forget the feeling of walking into those offices every morning, looking at the platinum records on the wall, and feeling that bliss excitement and song in my heart screaming, “You are exactly where you need to be.”

And to think… I almost settled because of doubt. I almost missed out on an amazing opportunity that affirmed my calling.

What are you holding back from due to fear of failure? Don’t let that stop you in 2019.

When people see the favor, open doors, and fullness of our lives as Christ followers, they can’t help but ask—what is it about you that makes you so different?

How are you so peaceful in the face of life’s storms?

How are you so full of joy in such painful circumstance?

The truth is we have a hope and a freedom that surpasses anything that this world can offer. The sooner we latch on to that, the easier it is to leave fear behind, trust God, and step into the fullness of your calling.

God not only cares about your dreams, He’s actually the author of them. He planted those dream-seeds in your heart. It is our decision what we do with them. When we do not wait for His perfect timing—His proper seasons, pruning, growth, and rain, we prematurely uproot and abort our dreams. If He allows the dream to grow, because we insisted on growing them ourselves, we fail to use the plant to its proper ability and design, and the harvest is lacking or unfulfilling. But when we allow The Father to give us the proper instructions, we grow beautiful, healthy crops that reap a harvest that exceeds our highest expectation!

Remember how I told you the people who live for their own desires are actually slaves to them? They are unfulfilled because they are trying to fill a God-sized hole in their heart with themselves. Their own dreams or desires. When you worship yourself and your own dreams, they actually never satisfy you.

This is because God created your dreams, calling, and heart. Therefore, He is the only one who understand how to satisfy and fulfill it. So today, trust in the promise that He is the maker and the keeper of your dreams and when you fix our eyes upon Him and not what He can give, He will exceed your wildest imaginations.

I want you to picture yourself standing before God, with your dreams in your hands. Now imagine yourself reaching up, and handing those dreams over to Him. God looks at you, with the warmest smile, then takes the dreams in His hands. He turns around, puts them inside of a beautiful treasure chest, and picks up something else inside that he has been waiting your whole life to give you. What He pulls out, is radiating light, ten times bigger, and tailor made just for you. They are His dreams and plans for you that He hand-crafted all the way back when you were being formed by Him in your mother’s womb!

These are the dreams and plans that will fulfill your purpose and calling on this earth. They incorporate every aspect of who you are and the special, uniquely designed you! And they are better than any dream you could ever imagine. But in order to receive them, you first have to hand over your will and the dreams you have. He won’t throw them away. He will be gentle, and place them in His beautiful treasure chest, and give you something even better!

Why do we have to surrender our dreams to the Lord? Well, sacrifice is God’s love language. God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, to show that the gift was not more treasured in his heart than the Gift Giver. Jesus even sacrificed his own life for you on the cross so you wouldn’t have to experience separation from God the Father.

Even the king and creator of the universe is not exempt from the sacrificial nature of love and relationship. The remarkable thing, is that in every case, God rewards the hearts of those who gave up themselves and their dreams up for His sake, and gave them back more than they could ever fathom possible!

Rest in the goodness of God. Rest in the fact that He is LOVE and will never hurt you, keep your dreams from you, or control you. Don’t let any fear bully you or keep you from the wild, crazy, God-dreams of your heart.

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.” Ephesians 3:20

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

You can access more posts, devotionals, prayers & more on my website:

http://thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

Your post about no more blindfolds is absolutely amazing and exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you for sharing and encouraging! ❤️

Oh love I am SO happy to hear that! Jesus is so good!! 

[tailahjanbash]

What I Learned About Being a Whole When I Was a Half

I fell in love once. It was a time of raging teenage hormones and an unrealistic view of love due to my Taylor Swift obsession. It was the ultimate pining-for-your-bestfriend-80’s film-love that would ensure disaster on my naïve heart.

Looking back now, it was like a John Hughes movie on repeat—but every time you thought the happy ending was coming, I just kept getting my heart broken over, and over, and over... you get the idea.

Eventually the movie ended. After it was all said and done, I remember crying on the bathroom floor, wondering if the pain would ever leave. I remember praying every night that God would just make it easier. That I would wake up the next morning and feel just a tiny bit less than what I felt the night before. Am I resonating with any romantics here?

Well, it’s been a few years since then, and those wounds have healed—but I’ll never forget the priceless lessons I learned throughout the healing process.

Today I want to share with you some of the things I learned about being a whole when I was a half.

1. I believed the lie.

I believed the lie that I would never find love or connect to another person as much as I did when I fell in love. I fueled this fear with what I thought was “logic” and “reasoning”, but in reality, I was just letting fear bully me.

That was the furthest thing from the truth. It doesn’t align with God’s promises or nature.

2. There’s a natural way to deal with heartbreak, and there’s a supernatural way.

The truth is, when you find the person that’s right for you, it will make complete sense why it never worked with anyone else before.

When glass breaks, it’s natural to pick up the larger shards first in order to clean up the mess. The bigger pieces are easier to identify, pick up, and throw away. Breakups kind of happen the same way. Once everything has fallen apart, it’s easy to spot the big issues, like bad communication or dishonesty. But after those big pieces have been cleaned up, we are still left with the small shards; the ones that are not always visible that contribute to the brokenness.

The smaller pieces take longer to clean up. They require precision, careful attention, caution, and accuracy.

Anyone with decent eye sight can spot large pieces of glass. Meaning—it’s common knowledge that cheating is wrong, ghosting is immature, and lack of communication is the kiss of death. Even Cosmo can give you sound advice on this.

Then we get to the shards.

This is where the world gets the healing process totally wrong.

The sin, behaviors, and emotions underneath the surface that aren’t so easy to spot— those contribute to our broken condition.

Let me put this into an example: A lot of people think that getting into a new relationship will help you forget about your old one.

This is using another person to distract you from your pain and emptiness. Not only is this unfair to the person you are dragging along with you, but you can’t heal properly this way. You need to face your demons instead carrying them into your next relationship!

That rejection, fear of vulnerability, anger, loneliness, sorrow, depression, bitterness, resentment, pain, and allll the other negative emotions that accompany heartbreak— are the shards.

A playlist, going out with friends, a new bae, drinking until you forget, and all the other remedies that the world gives you… they don’t work.

The good news is, God is dying to heal you. (Quite literally)

He can’t wait for the night you put down the bottle or turn off of the T.V., whatever the distraction is, and turn to Him for the healing.

God doesn’t leave us alone in our fragmented state and expect perfection. In fact, He promises to get down in the mess and brokenness with us to find the solution and piece us together into a new and beautiful creation.

That’s exactly what He did for me. And I know He can do it for you.

3. You’ve gotta catch the foxes

“You must catch the troubling foxes, those sly little foxes that hinder our relationship. For they raid our budding vineyard of love, to ruin what I’ve planted within you. Will you catch them and remove them for me? We will do it together.” Song of Songs 2:15

When I read this scripture, the Lord made it very clear that my foxes at the time were guys and relationships.

The bible says that satan prowls around like a lion, looking for whomever he may devour. So, it should come as no surprise that he sends distractions and uses people and/or demonic principalities to keep us from effectively serving God.

I noticed that whenever I was minding my own business, crushing my school work, and super close to God… some gorgeous boy would pop out of nowhere and ask me out. I didn’t catch on at first. I was giddy and couldn’t wait to go out.

Okay so, what happens when you start talking to someone? Your brain goes from paying attention in class to planning the next date. Your hangouts take precedence over bible study and your mind and heart become filled with this person.

Eventually I would learn that these guys were great people, but simply not meant for me. And then I would remember the instructions God gave me and immediately want to slap myself in the face. How much time and energy did I invest in something that I could have avoided had I been obedient? I could have put that time into improving my grades or making new friends.

Maybe your foxes are ungodly friendships, being overly invested in a sport or celebrity, or a sin you always find yourself going back to.

A good indicator of your hearts priorities is seeing where you spend most of your time and money. Anything that takes precedence over God is not only a fox, but an idol.

I find it interesting that the word of God uses foxes to illustrate this picture. Foxes are sly and sneaky. They operate in darkness and in shadows, and they rob you of your crop. Spiritual foxes do the same.

They rob you of spiritual growth. The more time you spend binge-watching Netflix, the less time you have to read your bible and pray. Whatever you sow, you will reap. If you are sowing unproductivity—meaning putting your time towards sleeping, laying around, and watching tv, you are going to yield a crop of laziness, procrastination, and slothfulness. The fruit of your life will be marked by these negative characteristics.

I believe there are things God wants to continue to plant and grow in you and the beautiful thing, is that he says he will catch the foxes with us—we’re not on our own in the battle against sin and temptation. The Spirit of God helps us identify our foxes and gives us the strength to catch and kill those bad habits.

4. If you can make it past the first few months, you’re in the clear.

Just like breaking any habit, it’s going to be really difficult at first. Especially if you have never truly been on your own (romantically) like I had.

Relationships are wonderful—you have someone doting over you, laughing at your terrible jokes, and telling you how beautiful you are. But pull the rug out from under the relationship and you’re left with two seriously insecure people.

It’s human psychology—you’re used to receiving love and attention, so now that it is gone, you must fill that void with affirmation.

*downloads tinder*

Just kidding.

I wanted to break that habit because it never worked; I was never truly healed. Seeking male affirmation never satisfied my heart, soul, and spirit. I realized I needed to fill that void with God’s love instead of attention from guys.

And ladies, once I made that decision, I was unstoppable.

First, I had to set barriers for myself. I literally stopped everything related to relationships cold turkey... I was serious about getting the full and complete healing I needed!

I did not allow myself to go on dates, text guys that I liked, and on nights when I was particularly sad, I would turn everything off (tv, phone, laptop) and spend time with God.

Eventually, it got easier. Once the Holy Spirit started filling the holes in my heart, they actually began healing effective immediately. Getting over heartbreak became a million times easier because I wasn’t trying to duct tape DIY my heart back together. I was giving it back to the one who created it. It’s funny…we so easily forget that the master designer of our heart knows exactly how to heal it.

Looking back, I can’t believe how much of my heart was not only divided but broken. At the time, I didn’t think anything of it. God had to stop me in the middle of a rebound relationship, arrest my heart, and give me these step-by-step instructions like you would an unruly toddler.

My encouragement today, is don’t be hard-headed like I was. Don’t let your heart get so tangled up in its own will and desires that it forgets God’s.

And finally, I’m not selling you a foolproof step-by-step guide on how to get over someone. Your story and your heartbreak are different than mine. But I do know heartbroken people, more than anything, want to feel like they aren’t alone. That someone understands them. To that I say, “Have you considered the one who planned this long ago?” Isaiah 22:11

For more blogs and content check out my website!

http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

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Finding The Secret Place

Would you believe me if I gave you a key and said, “This key unlocks a place, hidden from the rest of the world—an oasis where you could sit and converse with the actual God of the universe.” Would you take the key? Would you think I was bananas?

We learn from reading scriptures like Psalm 91, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” that a “secret place” does in fact exist.

The secret place is where we spend time with The Lord. We feel Him, see Him, and hear Him there. It is where the Holy Spirit reveals hidden wisdom, insight, and new revelation. It is where we receive guidance. It is where I write these words to you from.

In the book of Exodus, The Lord called Moses to meet with Him at the top of Mt. Sinai. For six days, Moses dwelled in a dark cloud that took him to meet God on top of the mountain.

The scriptures say that once Moses arrived on the mountain, he spent forty days and forty nights alone with God. And Moses wasn’t just sitting on top of a mountain talking to the sky.

Exodus 24:10 says, “There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seems to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli (sapphires), as clear as the sky itself. And though the nobles gazed upon God, he did not destroy them.” Then in verse 16, “The glory of the Lord settled down on Mount Sinai, and the lord called Moses from inside the cloud. To the Israelites at the foot of the mountain, the glory of the lord appeared at the summit like a consuming fire.”

Can you imagine spending over a month with God, face to face? I can’t imagine the things Moses must have seen.

What’s interesting about this passage, is that the cloud completely surrounded Moses to the point where no one else could see him. As he was enveloped in the cloud and taken up, the rest of the Israelites watched from bottom of the mountain. Moses was untouchable and hidden in the presence of God. And this presence took him exactly where he needed to go—the top of the mountain where he met God face-to-face and received direction for His people.

Likewise, when we enter into the secret place, we are so surrounded by the presence and glory of The Lord, we are hidden from the world. We experience a one-on-one, personal encounter with God like Moses did. There, He reveals His nature to us and gives us new direction the same way He did with the Israelites.

Now that we know there is a secret place, the question then becomes: How do we get there?

The Greek word often used in the bible for “mystery” has a lexical range that also includes the word “secret”. In scripture, this word is not used to explicate some kind of esoteric knowledge only known by insiders, but rather some wondrous, unlooked for truth that God is revealing through His Spirit (Keller, The Meaning of Marriage).

Did you catch that?

The secret place isn’t an exclusive place you need an invitation to get into. It is unlooked for truth. It is revelation onlythrough the Holy Spirit. Which means all we must do, is draw near to The Holy Spirit by inviting Him into our space and into our hearts.

A practical way to do this, is to carve out time to spend with God daily. Personally, I like to do this as soon as I wake up, before anyone or anything else gets my attention. And while it’s highly unlikely you will be taken up in a dark cloud, you can read your bible and throw on some worship tunes and journal. Or take a walk while you pray and talk to God. The point is—you are actively seeking out The Lord, welcoming The Holy Spirit into your heart, and being open to receive whatever He wants to reveal to you.

When you begin to consistently spend time with God, you will begin to recognize His voice. The question I get asked all. the. time. is, “How do you hear God?”

I don’t read my bible for ten hours or pray on my face all night. I am not some chosen guru prophetess that has superior spiritual powers. I just spend time with Jesus on the daily. I go to the secret place often. I talk to Him and He answers, just like any other relationship. And honestly, my day feels off if I don’t have some kind of dialogue or exchange with Holy Spirit.

Just reading this blog, or listening to a sermon, or going to church isn’t going to get you to the mountain top. God can use all of those things to speak to you, but only the Holy Spirit himself can take you into that secret, shrouded place of intimacy.  While it is important to learn about God, it is even more vital to actively spend time with Him. That’s where you’ll learn the most about Him anyways!

Read more on my website!

http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

You Are Chosen

Most mornings, I don’t wake up feeling like I can take on the world. After snoozing my alarm for a good half hour, I eventually trudge to the bathroom, and flip on the lights to see the damage I’m working with. The sticking up hair, the dark circles—yeah, its rough.

I don’t wake up feeling special, beautiful, or chosen. Maybe it’s me, maybe its society, but I wake up and immediately go into damage control mode. I’ve got to look great and have my life together; then I can take on the day as the best version of myself.

No one talks about the late nights, the heartbreaks, or the painful things that shape you into who you are. People don’t boast about the long and tiring processes that teach patience and endurance. In a “fake it till you make it” society, why set your fears, vulnerabilities, and weaknesses on display for all to see?

Today I just want to send you a little love-reminder that you don’t have to have it all together. You can be real, and messy, and honest. I think that version of you is much more beautiful than the perfectly polished glass façade that is waiting to crash and break into a million pieces.

Being real with yourself enables you to remove the barriers and defensive walls you have built, so you can be real with God.

If you choose to go there with Him, the end result is wild. There, in our brokenness—the place where world tells us to run from—God meets us, and He meets us with truth. He quiets down all the noise and the voices that tell you that you have to meet requirements and checklists to be loved. He reminds you that you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14)

That you are chosen, royal, and holy (1 Peter 2:9).

You are anointed (1 John 2:27).

Beloved an chosen (2 Thessalonians 2:13) before the foundations of the earth were laid (Ephesians 1:4).

His masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10).

There is one woman that specifically comes to mind when I think about being chosen.

Back in ancient Persia, there was a Jewish woman named Esther who lived with her cousin Mordecai. Both of Esther’s parents died and out of compassion, Mordecai raised her like a daughter. During this time, the king of Persia was looking for a beautiful new queen. All of the beautiful young virgins in Persia were to be selected, given the best beauty treatments, then presented to the king. The king would then choose whichever woman pleased him most and crown her queen.

Esther was very beautiful and lovely, and so she was chosen by the king’s eunuch to go to the palace and begin her beauty treatments.

It’s important to note that Esther had to endure much preparation before she even met the king. She had to through an entire year of just beauty treatments alone!

I imagine these beauty treatments similar to the ones we do now—face masks to draw out the impurities in our skin, hair treatments to make our hair thicker, shinier, stronger, and healthier. Oil treatments to make the skin healthier and even-toned—the importance of all this? I believe in a similar way, as we are being prepared for our destiny, there are seasons of “beauty treatments” we must first go through.

Our hearts need the impurities drawn out. God wants to make you stronger and healthier in every way. He wants to adorn your heart with elaborate, exquisite, expensive beauty treatments—the best of the best!

We all know the end product is beautiful—but what about that awkward in between?

Like most, I struggled with acne as a teenager. I went to dermatologists and tried all kinds of treatments. A common theme in these treatments was this ugly beginning and in-between phase of using new medicine. The dermatologists said that during the first few weeks—sometimes for half of the treatment process—the impurities hiding beneath the surface get drawn out. And at first, your skin will actually look worse! Once all of the infections and bacteria are drawn out, the medicine begins to kill the exposed infections, and the skin is cleansed from the inside out.

Two things needed to take place first before I had the clear, healthy skin I desired:

I had to go to the dermatologist with my issue.

I had to apply the treatment, and push through the horrible stage of being confronted with the ickiness going on inside of my skin and body.

When we recognize that we have an issue—whether it be anger, lustful thoughts, or depression; we have the option of continuing to let those strongholds fester beneath the surface or to come to Jesus in humility and admit we are struggling.

God doesn’t just forgive us and call it a day—if we allow Him to, He begins the treatment from the inside out, starting with the heart. And just like the acne process, this is where it can get ugly.

It’s not fun being confronted with our own pain and heart-clutter. Sometimes we think we are just rearranging some furniture, then come to find out there’s a whole pile of junk hiding beneath what we thought was a simple mess.

But as long as we are committed to this ugly, painful, in-between process…the healing will come. The beautiful, pieced together, wholeness of Jesus will break through the ruin you believed was your heart.

Back to Esther!

I love how Esther’s story so honestly depicts the processes she had to go through and all the doors God had to open for her. I love how she didn’t try to control the outcome, but instead allowed the hand of God guide her.

And although her process took time, she wasn’t chosen the minute the king picked her out of a line up. God had already chosen her and carefully placed her where she needed to be long before that, for an even greater purpose.

To all of my single ladies—hi how are you, I love you.

A lie that some of us can believe is that we aren’t chosen until the day some dreamy guy picks us out of a crowd. Although I’m sure that’s a great feeling, that’s not why you were created! That’s an awesome thing that you will experience, but that is not the sum of your existence.

Esther was chosen by a man, but it wasn’t so she could become a pretty trophy wife! That’s what the king thought he was getting, but God had a different plan.

You see, one of the king’s evil advisors wanted to completely kill and destroy all of the Jewish people living in the Persian empire. Once Esther found out about his plan, she revealed her Jewish ethnicity to the king, exposed the evil advisor and actually ended up saving an entire race of people!

Esther’s story reminds me that God’s purposes and plans for my life are far greater than mine and reach places far beyond me.

You are chosen. God has strategically placed you in your environment, with your quirks, your skin color, your hair texture, your race, and your voice for a specific purpose and reason. That reason? To love and reveal the love of God to others, in different ways through different callings and vocations.

“He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us.” Ephesians 1:4

You can read more at my website! 

http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

Politics and Jesus?

I’m tired.

I’m tired of the Facebook wars, being forced to pick sides, and biased media.

I’m tired of seeing confederate flags and people talking about minorities like we are an infestation. I’m tired of propaganda and people slapping Jesus or rhetoric on top of their politics in order to justify one side and demonize the other.

I was reading Jeremiah this morning and stumbled across a scripture that I couldn’t quite shake.

“I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice; only if you stop oppressing the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widows and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. But look, you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless.” Jeremiah 7:5-7

I couldn’t help but reflect on the political climate of our nation—especially with the midterms having been so recent.

I’ll be transparent with you—my political views have been clashing with my spiritual beliefs as of late, and it’s been driving me insane.

I concluded that God’s heart was more just than my own. So, I sought The Lord for guidance. The more I did this; the more recognizable faults from both sides became. Instead of resorting to my parents, friends, or celebrities for correct stances, I brought each topic and controversy before the Lord and examined it next to scripture.

I want my beliefs to align with Jesus’—not an imperfect man-made party’s. At the end of the day, don’t politics and social justice boil down to human rights and the way we deal with people?

I do not want to handle human beings through a systematic, polarized structure created by imperfect humans when I have the opportunity to treat people the way Jesus did.

God brought some freshman year biology back to my mind as I began to unpack Jeremiah. I remembered learning about certain sicknesses that would cause the immune system (the system in our body that fights germs and keeps us healthy) to attack itself. This snippet, for the sake of understanding the analogy, is from WomensHealth.gov:

‘Our bodies have an immune system, which is a complex network of special cells and organs that defends the body from germs and other foreign invaders. At the core of the immune system is the ability to tell the difference between self and non-self: what’s you and what’s foreign. A flaw can make the body unable to tell the difference between self and non-self. When this happens, the body makes autoantibodies that attack normal cells by mistake. At the same time, special cells called regulatory T cells fail to do their job of keeping the immune system in line. The result is a misguided attack on your own body. This causes the damage we know as autoimmune disease.’

Our government along with the media, have polarized parties and pitted Democrats and Republicans against each other so much so, that just like those cells, we no longer recognize each other and attack our own body.

The white blood cells believe they are defending the body and protecting it by attacking the other cells, and vice versa. We see this reflected through our divided rhetoric—“Democrats want to take guns away so we can be controlled by the government!” and “Republicans care more about owning guns than the lives of children!”

Injustice is always someone else’s fault.

Both want to fix the issue. Both want to help and protect the people. So where is the disconnect?

Can I voice an unpopular opinion? I travel very often, so just hear me out when I say: I think American culture is extremely prideful in comparison to other nations. I don’t understand extreme patriotism, because my identity and allegiance are not rooted in a piece of land or a flag. I love my home and where I am from, but I know that this is all temporary. Our permanent residence is in heaven and our identity should always be rooted in Jesus.

This issue of pride has blinded us to believe that we couldn’t possibly be the problem. But when the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the analogy of the auto immune disease, I realized that by placing the foundation of my beliefs upon a political party then sprinkling Jesus on top… I was contributing to the problem.

Pride causes us to be blind to our own faults and internal pain. We point the finger so we feel a false sense of righteousness like the Pharisees. However, in reality, the body is internally attacking and weakening itself in the name of “justice”.

Isn’t it funny how we proudly wave the banner of justice within a man-made political party?

Imma say it louder for the people in the back:

The values expressed are completely made by humans! Imperfect, sinful, selfish, people! And you’re telling me your side has it all figured out? And the other side is close-minded? Oh, the irony.

We forget the author of justice.

The only righteous judge.

The only perfect one.

Justice and truth will never be found apart from God. If you sprinkle Jesus on top of your politics like I did, you might have some truth in there, but then man’s selfish ambition will inevitably rear its ugly head.

Kris Vallotton, a pastor at Bethel Redding, shared this recently regarding Political Spirits:

1) The political spirit always needs an enemy! This spirit is more concerned with winning an election than with solving a problem.

2) The political spirit demonizes anyone who doesn’t agree with them. In other words, we don’t just see them as wrong on an issue, we view them as evil.

3) The political spirit imprisons our minds and reduces us to partisan opinions. This spirit separates people into two categories; winners and losers. In this environment, straw polls replace practical wisdom and success is measured in media bits rather than real solutions.

4) True governance is displaced by political polarization in which, people are expected to support a party rather than legitimate answers. This political spirit replaces national patriotism with loyalty to a party. This attitude creates a culture where we don’t have permission to think for ourselves but it’s “decision by affiliation.”

These characteristics can be found throughout scripture in the old and new testament. We see ungodly rulers like Ahab, Jezebel, and Herod operating in this spirit, blatantly defying the will of God and wreaking havoc upon God’s people.

Now that we have removed the blinders, taken a step back, and identified the problem, let’s move on to the solution.

One way can help this weak and sickly immune system recover, is by having conversations. I think the best way to fall into polarized thinking is to stereotype and generalize people.

Talk to someone that doesn’t have the same skin color as you. Ask your Hispanic friends if they feel safe. Talk to some white boys, see where they’re coming from. Your LGBTQ friends, your Muslim friends and family members. Ask your Black peers about oppression in 2018. Do you see a pattern here? Learning, understanding, and empathy on an individual level.

Jesus was and will always be personal and intentional with us. How can we demonstrate His love if we lump people into categories?

You may not have the platform of a celebrity or a politician, but I believe what you have is better.

You have the ability to individually touch lives, just like Jesus.

You have the ability to love the people who are difficult to love; who disagree with and offend you.

By loving these people, not only are you mending a divide, you are showing them who Jesus is. This creates ripples of life and hope, which impacts people 1,000,000 x more than some biased news report or tweet.

Even if you don’t speak one word about politics or God, you have the ability to let the gospel of love shine and reflect so brightly within you that it leads the lost into His loving arms.

This radical love can only be achieved when the Holy Spirit makes His home in our hearts. It is not a love that is found here on earth; it is a supernatural love that only abides in The Father. I pray that it rests in our hearts today, and we begin to see people the way Jesus does.

**You can read more blog posts, devotionals, and resources by visiting my official site: http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

You Loved Me First

Faithfulness is a word that is often thrown around in religiosity. We hear God is faithful all the time.

But we don’t hear that word as often when we describe our relationships.

It’s kind of a rarity, you know? We don’t expect faithfulness until the relationship has reached a specific milestone, like saying “I love you” or maybe at the six month mark.

I don’t know about you, but whenever I began dating someone, I actually expected them to leave me for someone else after the initial butterflies wore off. It happened to most of my friends, and it happened to me multiple times.

Because faithfulness is so hard to come by, I believe we often fail to fully grasp the depth of God’s love for us. We fail to recognize the faithfulness of God, and in return, cannot reciprocate that to others.

In order to be faithful to others, we must first allow God to be faithful to us.

Huh?

Yeah, God actually longs to be faithful to you.

But Isn’t he already faithful?

It’s the same as saying ‘God longs to love you.’

Think about it.

You can love someone from a distance.

There was a time when one of my sisters could not stand me, and would constantly push me away. This did not affect or change my love for her, but I still longed for a better and closer relationship with her. I wanted to show her I loved her. I wanted to go on sister-dates, go shopping, talk about life with her, and encourage her, but she wouldn’t let me.

And God longs to be faithful to you. He wants to show you He is trustworthy. He wants to show you He can guard and protect your heart, ‘cause it’s safe with Him.

But when you think of His faithfulness, don’t think about our culture’s standard.

God doesn’t want you to cough up your phone password or yell at you for liking someone’s post He feels threatened by. That’s not faithfulness. That’s fear.

In the midst of a spiritual desert, faithfulness is choosing to run into the arms of Father despite the enemy telling you that God has forgotten about you and your dreams.

When rejection has seeped into your heart and left it broken and cracked in a million places, faithfulness is bringing that pain to Jesus before anyone else gets a piece.

Faithfulness is learning to depend on God in every circumstance. But He’s not going to beat down your door and demand you put your trust in Him. He’s a gentleman. He will patiently pursue you, and wait for you to hand over the key to your heart. It is in that place of open surrender, where we give Him room to move and prove Himself trustworthy.

Something incredible happens when we run to Him first. Every time I have brought my fears, anxieties, and pain before The Lord, i’ve watched Him heal, restore, and speak clarity into my life. Every. Single. Time.

When we understand that we can trust God, even when it hurts, faithfulness digs its roots deep down into our Spirit. As a result, we find our hearts tethered to God’s.

**You can read more blog posts, devotionals, and resources by visiting my official site: http://www.thechosengirl.info/

[tailahjanbash]

Freedom From Astrology / Constellations

There is no escaping astrology. You see it on every social media feed, and in almost every pop culture magazine. It’s harmless, right? Totally fake and good for laughs!

What if I told you that wasn’t the case?

Astrology is defined as: the study of the movements and relative positions of celestial bodies interpreted as having an influence on human affairs and the natural world. It was birthed thousands of years ago as a Babylonian religion and study.

Horoscopes, birth charts, natal charts, readings, and all things zodiac fall under the astrological umbrella. I’m sure you have all heard people say things like, “Well, I’m a Leo, so I am just naturally bold and outgoing!” or, “Sorry I’m anxious, it’s just a Virgo thing.”

According to astrology, each sign of the zodiac has different issues, areas of weakness, and even predisposed sicknesses based off which sign you are born under-both physical and mental. For example, Aries are prone to head trauma and Virgo’s struggle with anxiety.

This is blatantly demonic and out of order with God’s divine order. God has made you uniquely, and does not have predisposed health conditions or areas of sin and weakness written down in His plans for your life. In fact, He has the opposite etched into your story: healing, freedom, and deliverance. You are not a one-size fits all version of a zodiac sign. You are made in the image of God.

If you have ever dabbled, explored, studied, or even just read about your star-sign, you have opened a spiritual door for the principality (demon) behind that constellation into your life.

How do we know these constellations and heavenly bodies are demonic?

Constellations and stars and all things space are not demonic in and of themselves. God made them! The bible says that he knows each and every star by name! However, when we begin to study these heavenly bodies as if they have power, influence, or control over us, thats when it turns dark and demonic.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12

Here we see that there are good and evil spiritual forces present in the heavenly realms. When the bible speaks of this realm, it is referencing the second heaven as well as outer space. (Isaiah 13:10)

There are three heavenly realms (2 Cor 12:2). The third is the highest and where God dwells. The second is space, and also an area where many theologians believe angels and demons fight spiritual warfare, deliver messages, etc. The remaining one is the earth, where we live and dwell.

And the bible doesn’t just stop there-it directly targets astrology:

“And when you look up into the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the forces of heaven—don’t be seduced into worshiping them. The Lord your God gave them to all the peoples of the earth.” Deut 4:19

“Now use your magical charms! Use the spells you have worked at all these years! Maybe they will do you some good. Maybe they can make someone afraid of you. All the advice you receive has made you tired. Where are all your astrologers, those stargazers who make predictions each month? Let them stand up and save you from what the future holds. But they are like straw burning in a fire; they cannot save themselves from the flame. You will get no help from them at all; their hearth is no place to sit for warmth.” Isaiah 47:12-14

This is what the Lord says:“Do not act like the other nations, who try to read their future in the stars. Do not be afraid of their predictions, even though other nations are terrified by them.Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol.” Jeremiah 10:2-3

Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked,but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known what will be in the latter days.” Daniel 2:27-28

If you have opened a spiritual door to astrology that you would like to close, read on reader!

The prayer below is a prayer of deliverance. Deliverance is simply breaking off any connection, agreement, pact, or contract you (knowingly or unknowingly) made with the kingdom of darkness. We do not possess the power to break these demonic attachments on our own. When Jesus died on the cross, he became a curse for humanity so we would have power over curses and darkness. The blood of Jesus cancels out any agreement or attachment made with satan and his demons. His sacrifice holds this power because Jesus was sinless and blameless. The bible says that the cost of sin is death (Romans 6:23) . Because we as humanity have sinned and fallen into darkness, we deserve death according to this spiritual principle. By Jesus living the sinless life we should have lived, and dying the death we should have died, he not only cancelled our debt and gave us eternal life, but conquered Satan and his kingdom. He now shares that power with us through the Holy Spirit. If you put your hope and your trust in Jesus Christ and accept him as your Lord and Savior, you will be empowered to break off demonic strongholds over your life by speaking His name and commanding them out.

ONLY CONTINUE READING THIS IF YOU WANT FREEDOM

IF YOU DO NOT DESIRE TO TURN AWAY FROM ASTROLOGY OR YOU ARE NOT READY, DO NOT READY ANY FURTHER.

Deliverance is very serious. If you cast a spirit out and return to it, or do not ask the HOLY SPIRIT to come and fill the areas of your life where you have just evicted those demons, the spirits will return and come back seven times stronger, leaving you worse off than you were before. *See Matt 12:45

The deliverance prayer below has been re-posted from the Bride Movement. You can visit their website here: https://www.bridemovement.com/freedom-from-constellations/

For those that are in deep bondage, they will find that their DNA is woven into the constellations. As constellations are composed of a group of heavenly bodies, this prayer employs unique language that is tailored to secure a rapid breakthrough from this type of bondage. Simply find the constellation that you are entangled with from this list of 88 constellations and use it in the prayer.

If you do not know where to start, I recommend starting with the constellation sign you were born under. Most people that renounce the constellation sign that they are born under find a great deal of deliverance manifesting.

**Take note that in point number 2 there are four options. Depending on your current situation, you may find more peace with one option than another. Speak the option that provides you with the most peace. Do not speak all four.

Father in heaven, I come before you in the mighty name of Jesus Christ and I renounce the _________________ constellation and its interface points with my genetics, cells of every type, DNA strands, bone marrow, anchors, and markers. I address all the powers of darkness associated with this constellation, including all related oversouls, and serve them a bill of divorce. I pull up the hidden documents detailing every covenant, contract, agreement, certificate, oath, and vow entangling me and include all related books of wisdom, books of knowledge, books of philosophy, books of time travel, Freemasonic books, and all other evil sacred books and command that they be stamped with the blood of Jesus. I call for them to be nailed to the cross of Jesus Christ and burned with holy consuming fire.

In the name of Jesus, I pray that your heavenly hosts would be put on assignment to discover and apprehend every alter/part belonging to me that is loyal to, affiliated with, or in bondage to the _________________ constellation.

I now identify all territory in me occupied by the __________________ constellation including territory in my genetic code, markers, cells of every type, bone marrow, DNA strands, and blood. I furthermore include all territory in my physical body (respiratory system, digestive system, cardiovascular system, renal system, endocrine system, nervous system, musculoskeletal system, exocrine system, lymphatic system, lymphatic system, immune system, and sexual system), soul, spirit, heart, decisions, worship, business, destiny, stars, offices, and relationships. I deed the territory over to the kingdom of God and I invite you, Lord Jesus, to take the throne and to rule over this territory with your rod of iron.

In the name of Jesus, I now bind all gatekeepers and discover each and every portal access point associated with the _____________________ constellation and its interface points with my mind, genetics, cells of every type, bone marrow, DNA, strongholds, and blood, and all sentient intelligences, along with their agendas, connected realms, timelines, and all associated counterfeit inheritance.

I place the blood of Jesus upon every portal access point in all timelines, every realm, age, and dimension, past, present, and future, to infinity, and from the beginning across eternity, and I seal them with the Holy Spirit. I declare that they are permanently deactivated from this point in time and out of time, in every direction, in the name of Jesus.

I take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, and I cut myself free from the ___________________ constellation. I liberate my mind, cells, DNA and blood. I sever all sentient intelligences, along with their agendas and counterfeit inheritance, in Jesus’ name.

I return every form of counterfeit inheritance, inclusive of promised wealth, position, status, calling, ability, power, roots, pride, genetic code, seed, ungodly grafts, ungodly citizenship and all associated rites of passage, and any other form of counterfeit inheritance, in Jesus’ name. I refuse it and sever myself from it, and from this point on, and I choose to receive my inheritance in Jesus Christ. I receive the wealth, freedom, giftings and abilities held hostage by the _______________ constellation as a recipient of wealth transfer in Jesus’ name. Furthermore, my physical children are an inheritance in Jesus Christ, and I receive them and their redemption in Jesus Christ. I renounce all spirit children related to the ____________________ constellation and undo all entanglements involved in their creation. I command purging of the spaces and realms they occupy in and outside of me into judgment with all-consuming fire.

I renounce all ungodly paternal & maternal claims, sponsorships & affiliations, apprenticeships, royal appointments, offices & council appointments associated with the ______________ constellation. I pray for an annulling and breaking of all associated dedications, ceremonies, and celebrations.  In doing so I now declare reversal upon every ungodly pronouncement and judgement passed against me, my household, offspring, finances, marriage, destiny, mandates, stars, godly scrolls, and every other implicated component of my life.

I now receive a new spirit, blood transfusion, and new breath of life, from Jesus Christ. In the process, I declare that all doors opened through _______________  shall be shut, in Jesus name.

I now take authority over every evil spirit on the inside of me and around me that has been operating due to the ___________________ constellation. I declare that you are discovered, apprehended, bound, pierced through, and thrust out of me for judgment. I bind the strong man, and declare that all cords and legions are cut, that cords in cords are cut, and that all three-fold cords are cut in the name of Jesus. All ungodly components, and components that are not of me, are now bound. I command you OUT IN THE NAME OF JESUS. With the authority of Christ, I now cast you out and send you back into the pit of hell. I pray that every spiritual object, tattoo, device, label, jewel, amulet, necklace, earring, rock, crown, ring, bracelet, charm, garment, scepter, marker, power source, tracking device, system, grid, or branding placed in or around every part of me in order to anchor me to the __________________ constellation would be consumed in the holy fire of Jesus Christ and totally dissolved.

I call for every algorithm or formula created from my DNA and genetic material that is projected throughout the ________________ constellation to be shut down in every age, realm, dimension and timeline past, present and future to infinity. I command the immediate apprehension of every cosmic artificial intelligence and technology behind those projections and call for viruses encoded with heavenly algorithms to be uploaded into them and their computers in order to destroy them in judgment.

I identify every intergalactic data bank that contains within its records data, equations, algorithms and information of any manner extracted from my humanity. I declare that angels are sent forth to liberate every part of me held captive in these data banks. I pray that all records and information in them related to me would be forcefully erased, and permanently deleted. I call for the lightning of God to destroy every ungodly altar (both sacrificial & honorary) as well as effigies contained within the _______________ constellation representing me or bearing my name, image, or likeness. I also call for the annulling and removal of every curse and ungodly insertion placed on the times and seasons of my life in synchronicity with the ________________ constellation.

Lastly, I stand in my authority as a witness to cosmic injustice and as a child of the Most High God. It is written that the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Therefore, I call for the purging and healing of the heavenly bodies associated with the _____________ constellation with the river of living water flowing from the throne of God. I pray that your lighting would now strike and sever any ungodly points of connectivity that remain. I render this entire confession established in every timeline, age, realm, dimension, planet, cosmos, and universe, past, present, and future, to infinity, and from the beginning across eternity. 

Holy Spirit, I ask that you would come and fill me. Come and inhabit the places that are now empty and cleared out for Your glory. Fill every void in my heart, mind, body, soul, and spirit and seal everything you did in my heart today, Lord. In Jesus name, amen.

** BLOG ANNONCEMENT

Starting October 1st, I am officially launching my website!

VISIT @tailahjanbash ON OCT 1ST FOR ACCESS

The website will have ALL my blog posts, with BRAND NEW additions of devotionals, testimonies, deliverance prayers, and an advice column where I will be speaking to all of you and answering any questions (God, theology, life, anything)!

 There will even be an email subscription where I will send you exclusive daily devotionals! 

I will still be active on tumblr, but there are more ministry tools available to you that would not have been able to fit on this tumblr site. 

[tailahjanbash]

BLOG ANNOUNCEMENT

Beautiful followers! 

My website, www.thechosengirl.info, has officially launched! 

All of my blog posts will live there, including BRAND NEW FEATURES! 

In addition to the blog, there will be devotionals, testimonies, walk-through prayers, and an advice column / forum where you can talk to me! (+MORE!)

I am so excited about having a space where I can encourage and uplift all of you, and share the wonderful things God has been showing me!

I will still be active on tumblr, but there are more ministry resources available to you on the website that simply cannot fit within a tumblr theme. 

hope to see you there!

-Tailah