Standsure Ministries

The following is part of what I taught in Issaquah, Washington at Y.O.U.R. Church Without Walls concerning the breaking of the orphan spirit:

Recently, I was asked to tell the testimony of how I came to Christ. This is something that is rarely asked of me and I don’t think I’ve told the story in a few years. However, it reminded me of some important principles that we all need to live by.

Our son was dying of some strain of spinal meningitis and was not expected to live more than a few hours. While staying by his side through that grueling time, Irene and I were terribly tired so a nurse came to us and said that she would take our place at his side so that we could go get a cup of coffee together. I remember so well how we were walking down the hallway of the hospital hand in hand and talking. One of us said, “Well, if he dies, we will simply thank God for the wonderful and joyous time that we were given to have him. If he is incapacitated by the disease and is unable to care for himself then God probably just has so many children for some purpose like that and we should have him because we have the love and abilities to care for him.”

At this point the weight of it all seemed to leave us both. We were not offended by our circumstances and we would meet with the future without any offense toward God. Please keep in mind that we were not even born again at this point. Yet, our feeling was that we had a future and a hope!

We would carry no offense! Our circumstances were not evidence that God was not doing His job and we were not questioning Him in any way.

That evening, as I lay on a couch outside our son’s room and Irene lay on a couch two floors above me, we both, without knowing what we were doing or without consulting the other, turned our lives over to Jesus Christ. Our son, just moments afterwards, awakened from a deep coma and a debilitating fever and was totally healed.

A few years ago, we were doing a conference in Seattle with Mahesh Chavda. Irene and I were driving to the hotel with Mahesh and he asked us how we came to Christ. We told the above story and he was particularly moved by it in that he then told us of a time when he and Bonnie had a son that was born premature. He had heard the voice of God telling him to go to Africa and yet was ready to cancel his trip due to the very grave condition of his newborn son, who’s life was hanging in the balance. They too, were not offended. Because they were not offended, God took them to new realms of the miraculous!

In our conversation with Mahesh, it was apparent that God was revealing the devastation that takes place when people are offended by their circumstances and do not allow for the full effects of life from God to lead us into our destinies! I believe that Mahesh, Irene and I were seeing something that was very important to us and our future in the wonderful works of Christ Jesus upon the earth.

It is my continual experience and observation, that people who are offended by their circumstances in life have the inner need to shift the blame off of their souls to someone else. It seems that their minds cannot stand the strain of dealing with the circumstances in faith so they must find someone who is wrong. Although this is an intricate problem of the heart it is all too common to mankind.

When this phenomenon comes into religion, it is ultimately God Who gets the blame. As Christians, people usually do not have the inner strength to realize that they are offended by God Who, in their mind, is supposed to control their circumstances and not allow anything bad to happen to them. They have somehow come to believe that God’s love toward them can be measured by the good things that happen, both to them and around them. Thus, when circumstances are increasingly bad, the easiest work is to shift the responsibility for those circumstances to the God who is supposed to make it all okay. He doesn’t, so now they are offended.

Of course it is impossible to openly admit, even to themselves, that they have a problem with God. So, they take a lower road in their minds and begin to blame God’s servants. You see God’s servants (pastors and Church leaders) represent Him and surely they are the ones at fault. It is like a new set of glasses that are now placed before the eyes of the offended. The eyes see inconsistencies where love used to cover those inconsistencies. Now, there is a remembered list of offenses. Now, there is trouble that brews and does not go away. There is no balm that will fix it.

Our relationships are of vital importance to lives but can often bring consternation and pain. Much of the pain is caused by misplaced agreement. We all have an inner need to have harmony and union but that agreement is not always a good thing. In fact it can be disastrous. Agreement is most dangerous to us when we must find accord with others in our hurts, pains and offenses. If we just want camaraderie and it doesn’t matter if we are right or wrong we can find a great bondage and deception awaiting us.

The old adage, “misery loves company” actually holds some truth here. Our supposed superior judgment of good and evil then assures us that we are always right. Oh we may humbly say different but we judge according to our assumption that we are right or at least more right than the other person. Now comes the spirit of deception. The accuser of the brethren touts the “facts” or the circumstances of the case. Love doesn’t take a stand so it gets run over by the “facts.” The offended thinks that love is weak. But then mercy and forgiveness are also weak to the offended.

Deception takes its place when we are offended and do not act positively in love. I have found that it does little good to quote the scripture since “it never applies,” so they say. When, “love does not take into account a wrong suffered,” is discussed you find a denial that there is anything but love for the person that is actually hated. The deception grows as the offended begins to practice deception and get agreement from others who at first are consolers and then confidants, but eventually co-laborers in the crusade to rid the world of the evil doers.

Gangs are an example of how we can degrade socially into a covenant agreement that warms our emotions and each gang member believes that they are right – the world is wrong! Yet, the gang is agreed upon hate and discontent and doing that which is evil instead of that which is good. They are orphans who are deceived.

Here is a great rule that you can live by victoriously: When you have a complaint about how you have been mistreated, do not talk to someone who will agree with you. That’s right, don’t share with someone that cannot reprove you. The last thing that you need when you have been wronged is agreement.

This is contrary to your desires. When you are offended by your circumstances, agreement is what you will want to seek. Agreement is a very powerful thing and should instead be used with faith to see the miracle works of Jesus Christ made manifest upon the earth.

Although offense is possible with even the most informed, it is what is done with that offense that separates the overcomer from the deceived. Those with faith in God and not their circumstances – know that no matter what happens, God is their ultimate rescue. These prominent people of faith will find those who agree with heaven and not with earth or their only agreement will be in heaven.

There is a higher wisdom that says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” Understanding this means that you will not find agreement with a true friend but reproof that will cause you to be thrust into a destiny of faith and trust in your glorious King.

The scripture shows us that Absalom had favor in the eyes of his father king David, yet he had agreement with others who were also offended by God’s lack of deserved acclaim. God had not been running the kingdom properly or they would have a better king. A king like Absalom would be so much greater, wiser and more compassionate toward the people.

David, upon the other hand, did not want to destroy the uprising of this rebellious group of deceived people. He instead relied up his God to either protect the kingdom that was given to David to oversee or remove him as its overseer. It was actually God’s kingdom anyway. He didn’t place himself as the king over God’s people and he wasn’t going to cause himself to remain the king. He was either there by God’s choice or he wasn’t. He left the outcome up to the Lord.

The coup d’état of the offended can not only arise in strength but it can cause people that have held your trust to be swept into believing a lie and seeing nothing but lies in every direction. Yet, the fall of the deceived is first felt when offenses go unanswered and the opportunity to listen to the reasoning of another offended person comes to the ears.

The answer is not so difficult. First of all, diligently care for your heart at all times and never give way to offenses. Do not ever think that you are above being offended. Settling these matters is a part of your deep abiding relationship with Jesus.

Next, teach it and keep teaching the matters of the heart as you equip the saints to do the work of the ministry. This teaching gives them a fighting chance against the accuser of the brethren and a relationship with Christ that will not be clouded by unrighteous judgments.

Then, never listen to the person who describes the “facts” of another persons behavior. Listen to the person who says nothing. Jesus said nothing to support Himself against His accusers. The real Spirit filled person will say nothing like their Master. Remember that the Pharisees gave all the evidence while Jesus worked the works of compassion – doing the works of the One Who sent Him.

Now offenses usually start when we allow ourselves the luxury of discouragement. Discouragement is simply pride, ego and vanity. Discouragement cannot exist unless circumstances are not going our way. When we don’t get our way we are offended and wallow in discouragement. To understand this and to accept this definition of discouragement is the beginning of victory in this battle.