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darkness, deception, discerning the spirits, dying to self, experience, God's goodness, heart, light, mind, Paul Schuberth, prayer, Satan, sin, spiritual attacks, temptations, the, the cross, thoughts
Have you ever felt an increasing uneasiness as you pondered on the possibility to cave in to somebody’s pleading because you knew in your heart it would be the wrong thing to do? I do not know whether this is only a people pleaser problem, but I assume I am not the only one who is struggling with these thoughts and temptations.
In three cases lately I felt the more or less strong inclination to say, “Yes!” although my heart first whispered, then appealed urgently, and finally shouted an internal “NO!!” The first temptation arose as someone who represented the arm of the law suggested to me that I should do something which might have had bad consequences for him, just in case I would have revealed what he had confided to me. Hmmm…. 
To be completely honest with you, if I had done what he had advised me to do, things might have been easier and turned out better for me than they eventually seemed to. That at least was my idea for a short moment. But as I shared this secret with my husband, he immediately confirmed my heart’s previous NO. So I did not what appeared to have helped me out of my problems. Instead, I struggled before God in prayer, recognizing that HE had prevented me from sinning by doing something that the devil had suggested to me through this man.
But on the very next day things got worse. In my heart, again, I knew how to decide in a situation that was closely related to the talk the day before, a discussion during which a former superficial kindness toward me changed into hostility toward my person without me counterpunching or, for once, speaking for myself at all. Although I knew what was the right thing to decide in this case, I neither had an explanation nor a proof of my point of view. Quite embarrassing for me, to say the least. 
I guess these people thought I was dumber than dirt as I did not speak much, but simply prayed to God, something they could not see nor know, of course. 🙄
Dear reader, I can hardly tell you how difficult it is to remain silent and speak with God instead of fighting back by leaving room for the flesh. Fleshly fighting, we know how that works, don’t we…? Our old habits of knowing better or appearing to be better… they must be crucified and that hurts!! ☹ Actually, if I had felt God’s strength and peace at that time, maybe, it would have been easier. However, the only thing I felt was an attack of strange spirits approaching me more and more intensely, spirits who wanted to submit my spirit to theirs. Yes, after this second talk I felt completely exhausted. Not only because it had been a hard and busy day before this meeting in the evening, no – spiritual attacks always wear me out, too. As I was too weak to really pray afterwards, I sat down in front of the computer and looked for a solution which I – REALLY! – would find within only five minutes. I did not expect THIS! 🙄 As soon as I saw that God had provided a proof text for me (i.e., a court decision that dealt with a case that was quite similar to ours), seeing His Goodness having worked behind the scenes took a big load off my mind. 😊 In fact, God recently pointed me several times to these Bible verses that deal with how and when to follow God’s guidance.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. (Prv 3:5-8 ESV)
Today I may share a seemingly less important everyday occurrence with you. As I wanted to leave a public place this afternoon, I felt another restraint in my heart that told me to hurry home as a very kind woman wanted to talk with me. She is a real sweetheart and I know she highly appreciates our talks, but my heart kept telling me, “Go!” She was so disappointed as I left and told her, “Until next time…” For some time afterwards I felt grieved as I gave it a serious consideration whether my decision to leave was good or not. For me, it is very difficult to ignore my FEELINGS. But I have come to realize that bad feelings often times spring from (if only the thought of) submitting to the wrong spirits that want to lead us a way God does not approve of. Indeed, it is not always about big things or sins. Sometimes it is simply about following His guidance in the small things of life. They count a lot for Him while we tend to set little store by them, don’t we? 🙄
The Temple of the Living God
14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
15 What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?
16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
17 Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you,
18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”
(2 Cor 6:14-18 ESV)
Or raising a question in other scriptural words, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed? ” (Amos 3:3 KJV) Either we follow our Lord and walk with Him and with those who do the same or we go back into the world and submit to Satan’s realm once again. Indeed, the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life! (Mt 7:14 ESV)
All images by Paul and Susanne Schuberth 2018
Entering the Promised Land 
Hello Susanne!
What an excellent post! You are surely not alone.
Anyway – timing timing timing lol – I am too spoiled with microwave cooking. 1 minute and done. It is so hard to wait in trust for God to direct me 😦 so He will keep presenting the test until I am cooked 🙂
His pressure cooker will make us very tender 🙂
I looked all over tonight and finally found this piece from TAS that came to mind as I read your post. Our Lord never moved under compulsion. When I read this awhile ago it really impacted me since I tend to be hasty. I love that you prayed silently and just let the Lord respond. The quick answer He gave you was beautiful.
Love the donkey hahaha – stubborn anyone? such great verses too.
I want to pull out just one:
“Can two walk together, except they be agreed? ” (Amos 3:3 KJV)
NO! and I surely want to agree with our Lord over any other!!
XO Judi
Excerpt from The Risen Lord and the Things Which Cannot be Shaken
by T. Austin-Sparks
Chapter 3 – “In Adam… In Christ”
The Open Heart and the Surrendered Will.
The same is true in the matter of the heart, as to the motive of desire. Christ is motived by that which is utterly selfless. There is no self principle in Christ. He had accepted that basis of life here on the earth, and was tested out on that basis – and was perfected through testing on that basis – as to whether at any point, at any time, under any strain, He would act, move, choose, determine according to Himself; whether as an independent and separate Being He would ever speak, act, move, choose out from Himself, or in any way express Himself. You get to the heart of everything in the case of the Lord Jesus when you recognize that the one question which constituted the testing ground of His life was, Will this Man act alone, speak alone, choose alone, decide alone, move alone? And His answer was always, Not out from Myself! “The Son can do nothing out from Himself.” “The words that I speak unto you I speak not out from myself.” Every kind of appeal was made to Him to persuade Him on the impulse of the moment, or in response to an entreaty that seemed to promise success, or by an argument that appeared to be the truest wisdom, to move, act, speak, do something as out from Himself. Whether it were understood so to be by those who were the occasion of these temptations or not, this clearly was the design of the Devil, the instigator who was using them.
At times the suggestion would be influenced by necessity of circumstances, at times by the promise of effectiveness in His service, or again by representation of the utter un-wisdom of the line that He was taking, as when His own brethren, who did not believe in Him, chided Him for delay, saying, Go up to Jerusalem and show yourself! To them He said, I go not yet up to this feast! And then, so quickly after, when His brethren were gone up He went up also. But He would not go up at the persuasion of popular reason; He would not do this merely because it was the thing which everybody else was doing, or because it was urged upon Him that, since everybody was going to the feast, He ought to go too. That ninety-nine people do a thing is no argument for the hundredth to do it. We are not to be led by the appeals that decide the actions of the many – It is the popular thing! Everybody else is doing it! it is the recognised thing to do! No! Does my Father want me to do this thing? That is the question that must ever rule our steps. In the case of the Lord Jesus there was all the time an underworking to get Him to adopt the contrary course, to act without inquiry of His Father, without direct leading from His Father; to act in His individual capacity as though he were His own Master, as though He had not to make appeal elsewhere. In Him there was none of that which was personal, independent. We are not speaking merely of such things as are sinfully personal, positively personal, but simply of independent action, action taken for the best ends, for a good motive, with quite a proper intention. Yes, all this may be done, but apart from the positive word from the Father. That creates an independent thought, however good may be the motive.
Christ’s heart is governed by the anointing, is motived by the anointing, and He waits always for the movement of the anointing. That is Christ! Mind, heart, will, reined and harnessed to the thought, desire, the will of the Father.
http://www.austin-sparks.net/english/books/002218.html
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Thanks a bunch for liking my post, dear Judi! 🤗
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Judi, I tend to be hasty, too, particularly with speaking my own words, not His. Therefore this lesson of silence before others who did not know me yet was a hard thing for me.
The donkey is not known as the most intelligent animal here in Germany although I would partly disagree as an animal-loving woman. 💗🐈🐎🦋🐸🐣🐋🐞🐦😇 Soooo….. the donkey should have displayed how I felt then as I had to suppress my intellect and reason.
This excerpt from TAS is really good! 🏆🏆🏆 I read it several times before, but it was an important reminder of how we should act AFTER having waited on God. For my old nature this is an impossible thing to do since I do not want to wait at all. 😛 However, with God all things should be possible, right? In theory I believe this already, yet I am a work in process. 😉
Thanks for your edifying comment, my sister. 👍🏻
Love to you, 💖💖💖
Susanne XO
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Susanne, this was another good example of how “our adversary goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.” Like one brother pointed out, he first seeks permission from us through deception before he devours us.
“Blessed is the man [or woman] who walks not in the counsel of the wicked [ungodly], nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers.(Ps 1:1 ESV2011)
I often think of this verse when someone is trying to advise me as to what coarse I should take… I consider the source from where that advise is coming from. Are they ungodly sinners who listen to the deceiver or are they walking IN Christ and is it HIS voice I am hearing through them?
But he [Jesus] said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:28, ESV2011)
Well, done dear sister! ⭐
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Thank you so much for your encouraging words, Michael! 😊
You know that Psalm 1 is one of my favorite Scriptures. I read it almost every time as I open my Bible program on the computer where I fixed it as the featured Scripture in front of all others. 😇
Since I know no one who walks by the Spirit here in Germany, I always need to discern when God speaks through the ungodly also. It does not happen very often, yet it does. But most of the time he uses my husband Paul who also “saved” me out of this very painful second talk with these people. In fact, there is something about this hierarchy in marriage as it was written by the apostle Paul. God uses husbands to protect their wives and wives to help their husbands when they, the latter, don’t know what to do.
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So true, Susanne. ⭐
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I recently had a comparable experience w/ an unsaved friend. Thank you for sharing this, Susanne. ❤
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You are very welcome, dear Anna. 💗 I am glad to hear you could relate to what I described. 😊
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