After going through two weeks of my granddaughter, Brailee, fighting off sickness and infection, we were all exhausted. When she began to improve, and I got some sleep, I couldn’t help but reflect on the past couple weeks.
It was hard. It seemed to be a constant battle. With no sleep, those kinds of battles are not fun. However, we could not let up.
During this I was reminded of a time when Bryson, my grandson, was two-years old.
I had told my daughter I would watch Bryson while she ran errands. Early that morning my daughter called and said he had been sick all night and I may not want to watch him.
I assured her it would be fine. I instructed her to bring him on over. She did. Bless his little heart, he was so sick. He would lie on the floor and hold his little head. There was no soothing him. He could not keep medicine down. He was unable to eat. He didn’t even want Nana petting him.
After hours of this, I was standing at the kitchen sink when the Lord spoke to me. He sternly instructed me to deal with what was attacking his little body. I walked over to him and laid my hands on him and prayed for him.
In a matter of moments, he put his head on my shoulder and began to cry. Then he reached his little arms out for me to pick him up. I picked him up and coddled him for a bit. Then, I cooked him something to eat. He ate and ate. He began to act like Bryson, happy, laughing, playing hide and seek.
Later, I walked back to the sink and God spoke to me again. He said, “stop tolerating the little things from the enemy – what you tolerate, I tolerate.”
I was reminded of the scripture that says, “Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 18:18
Suddenly I realized something. If Bryson had been suffering from a major illness, I would have immediately prayed and sought God. I would have told that thing to take its hands off my little buddy. But since it was just a cold, or stomach flu, I allowed it, I tolerated it. Why?
Because it is normal, it happens to everyone. Right? Wrong! The Bible says, “by the stripes of Jesus we were healed.” Already healed.
The Bible says, “no weapon formed against us shall prosper.” Isaiah 54:17
The Bible says, “we are redeemed from the curse and sickness of all kinds is a curse.” Galatians 3:13
It also says I have authority over all the power of the enemy and that I shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. They shall recover, every time.
Why would we tolerate anything, small or large, that the enemy brings to us? We should not tolerate anything from him. He has no legal right to bring sickness on Bryson. I know my authority. Then…why would I allow that little boy to be sick for days instead of taking care of it from the beginning? Simply because we often have the mindset that some things are normal.
We resist cancer but receive the flu. Why? We resist disease but receive weariness. Again, why? Would it be okay for the enemy to steal your entire life savings? No? Well, how about if he only stole $20? Is that okay? No, absolutely not! Yet, some of these things, we tolerate from the enemy.
We won’t allow him to steal our husband or wife, but we often allow him to bring a little division in our home. The Bible says that it is the small foxes that spoil or corrupt the vine. It is the small things that lead to bigger things. If you ask people why they divorced, it is not usually over one big thing but a lot of little things.
If a business fails, it is not usually over one big thing but a bunch of small things. Division in a home doesn’t happen overnight, it is a bunch of small things over time. Therefore, we must stop the enemy at the small things, then it will not become a big thing.
Ask God to show you what small things you have been tolerating from the enemy and then stop him in his tracks. It may be a cold, or a headache, or missing a day’s work. Have you ever heard the statement, if you give him an inch, he will take a mile? That is how it is with Satan, give him a little room and he will invade your entire life. Give him no place, no small place.
Matthew 16:19 says whatever we bind on earth is bound in heaven. Do you know that scripture means whatever we allow on earth, God allows? The Good News is whatever we refuse to tolerate, neither will God tolerate. Stop tolerating the small attacks. Stop allowing the enemy to get a foothold by bringing a small fox to spoil your vine. Put your guard up and tell him, NO! in no uncertain terms.
You see God showed me something that day. I am good at going after the enemy when it is a large attack but tolerate too many small ones. No more. No more for me. I will stop the enemy at every attack, large or small. He will in no way spoil my vine. I hope you come to the same decision today.
Remember, what you tolerate, God tolerates. What you allow, God allows. It’s up to you, you choose.
Meditate:
Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Luke 10:19
