One night , as the heaviness overwhelmed me , I walked across the campus and found a quiet spot near the river . As I looked toward the stars and the moon , I poured out my heart to God with what was bothering me , ” God , if You ’ re a God who is in control and a God who is love , how can You allow so much suffering , pain and heartbreak in this life ?” I said , “ I need some answers . I don ’ t mean to be belligerent , Lord , but if You ’ re a God of love and in control then logically you must love war , suffering , disease , poverty I know I ’ m wrong , but please give me some answers .” I felt relieved having poured out my heart to God . Over the next two days , God said to me “ If you want to find answers , you need to be so committed to My Word that you will stick with whatever I show you from it – even if it contradicts your previous beliefs or experience . And do not be concerned with what others say about what I show you from My Word .” I made that commitment to God and to His Word that very day .
During the course of the next few years , God began to show me some things from His Word and He led me to various churches , their leaders and some books that began to open my understanding to a few truths . I found Paul ’ s prayer for the Ephesian church and personalized it for myself : Lord , open the eyes of my understanding and give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of You , that I may know the hope of my calling and the glory of Your inheritance and the exceeding greatness of Your power towards me , in Jesus ’ name , amen ( based on Ephesians 1:17-19 ).
I was asking God to show me who I am in Christ ( position ), what I have in Him ( possession ) and what I can do through Him . That began a revolution in my thinking ! I began to realize that the same Lord Jesus , who not only took upon
Himself my sins to make me the righteousness of God in Christ , on the same day , on the same cross , also took upon Himself all of our sicknesses , diseases and pains , that by His stripes or wounds we would be healed ( Isaiah 53:3-5 ; Mathew 8:16 , 17 , 1 Peter 2:24 ).
On that same day and on that same cross , He became a curse for us that the blessings of Abraham can come upon us through faith in Christ ( Galatians 3:13 , 14 ).
On that same day and on that same cross , He also took upon Himself our poverty , becoming poor that we , through His poverty , might be made rich ( 2 Corinthians 8:9 ).
On that same day and on that same cross , He defeated Satan , the author of our suffering and curses , and his evil powers . Jesus said , “ The thief comes to steal and to kill and to destroy , but I came that you may have life and have it more abundantly ” ( John 10:10 ).
Everything that is stealing , killing , and destroying your life , your health , your peace , your joy , your family and your finances , directly or indirectly , is from the devil . But Jesus defeated Satan and his wicked spirits at the cross , and He gave us power and authority over our defeated foe in His name . Then He said , “ All power is given unto Me , therefore go into all the world and preach the gospel , and these signs will follow them that believe ; in My name they shall cast out devils ; in My name they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover ” ( Mark 16:15-20 ).
There is so much more to this than what I am sharing with you . I learned that when God created man , He created him to have dominion over the earth ; but when he sinned against God , it opened the door for sin and death to enter the
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