Faith Infiltration

The enemy has infiltrated.  All we have to do is look around us, or turn on the daily news, to see the handiwork of “the thief who comes only to steal, kill and destroy” that Jesus warned about in John 10:10.*  There are riots destroying cities and fires scorching lands.  There are tornados and hurricanes delivering deadly blows.  We’re living in a virus pandemic that has descended on our world, stealing health and freedom and even smiles with mandated masks!

Satan is showing himself in full display – unmasked, no boundaries.  Lies have infiltrated truth. Dark has infiltrated light.  Hate has infiltrated love and respect.  Never in my lifetime have I seen such a level of unbridled hatred being committed by people upon other human beings, both virtually (in on-line tweets, posts and comments) and in person (in verbal and physical attacks).  Stealing, killing and destroying has infiltrated our very atmosphere.

If I didn’t know Jesus, I would think we’re all doomed.  If I didn’t have His Word planted in my heart, which is life-giving and does not return void (Isaiah 55:11), fear could steal my faith.  Hatred could kill my hope.  Depression could destroy my joy.  I thank God every day that He is not “iffy” in any situation, no matter how bad it seems.  He is sovereign, He is steady, He is solid. I can count on Him no matter what’s going on in the world around me.

Whenever I start to feel a weight of heaviness on my shoulders and it all feels like too much to handle, I remember that I have God’s “filtration system” to help me process whatever I am seeing, hearing, feeling and experiencing.  When I am questioning, “What is true and what is not?” I turn to the Bible as my filtration system.  In the shifting sands of the world’s opinions, it helps me to remember that the truth is God’s opinion on any subject.

During a recent faith walk with my friend Tina, we were praying against the enemy’s infiltration of every facet of life.  As the Lord often does for me, He freeze-framed a word in my mind, suddenly revealing new meaning as I spoke it aloud.  I now have a new way to use the word infiltrate (with a few small spelling tweaks) in my prayers!

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in . fill . trait

in·fill        verb:    fill or block up (a space or hole).                                                             

trait          noun:   a distinguishing quality or characteristic

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God has prescribed an antidote to the enemy’s poison!  I share below a prayer that I’m now speaking aloud as a new habit, along with Psalm 91 and “putting on the armor of God” (see reSOURCEs at bottom).  Because faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17 NKJV), infilling our ears with the sound of our own voice speaking what the Bible says is a powerful way to strengthen faith.

Are you ready for faith infiltration?  Start with this prayer!

Father in Heaven,

We call on You in the midst of the enemy’s infiltration. We need YOU to infill US with YOUR traits. Pour out Your fruits of the Spirit upon us, in us and through us, entering every space and corner of this wounded world.  Your Word tells us (in Galations 5: 22-23), the “fruits of the Spirit” are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Infill our hearts and minds and our very atmosphere with these traits. Let Your heavenly healing infill those who are sick.  Let Your abundant provision infill the impoverished.  Let Your feast of harvest infill the hungry.  Let Your light infill the darkness.  Let Your steadfast Truth infill the cracks of our judicial system, ushering in Your righteous justice.  In the name of Jesus, I bind and cast out the traits of the traitor:  hatred. lies. deceit. thievery. corruption. destruction. greed. chaos. poison. perversion of what is good and right and true.  We ask for, and receive, Your heavenly in-fill-tration system!  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.

 reSOURCEs:

*John 10:10 – going deeper:

In context, Jesus is referring in this verse to the self-serving Pharisees who opposed Him with the goal of stealing His sheep.  However, we learn in Ephesians 6:12 who is truly behind the opposition of Jesus, and who is truly out to steal His sheep:  Not flesh and blood, but powers and principalities of this dark world.  The Bible also teaches that the literal Hebrew meaning of satan is ‘adversary,’ and that he is ‘the father of lies’ and the destroyer.  Want to dig deeper?  This article delves further into who satan is and the origin of evil.

Psalm 91 - God is my refuge and my fortress

Putting on “the armor of God” in Ephesians