As I was walking home last week, I fell and broke my ankle very badly. I told my husband that my entire world was turned upside-down (including myself) in two seconds. This threw a wrench into all my travel plans for the summer. It interrupted all the projects I was involved in. I felt blindsided, like the enemy ambushed me and knocked me flat on my back (literally). (I am learning a lesson in patience and being still and quiet before the Lord while I am immobilized.)
When the Israelites were brought out of Egypt and headed to their Promised Land, they too met some enemies along the way who tried to derail them from receiving their blessing. But look at what God said about these enemies in Deuteronomy 23:3-5,
“The Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the LORD…because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam…to curse you. Nevertheless the LORD your God would not listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the LORD your God loves you.”
You, too, have been brought out from the bondage of sin and are headed to your heavenly Promised Land. And there are plenty of enemies along your journey who are trying to derail your faith. These enemies are not just people who can’t forget the mistakes you made in your past or can’t get over a past hurt with you, but they are also things like sickness, injuries, anger, fear, temptations, addictions, depression, and other heavy burdens that pounce on you without warning in your walk with the Lord.
But thanks be to God, you do not have to live with these curses that the devil brings against you! God does not listen to the devil any more than He listened to Balaam. The devil is a LIAR! God loves you and He wants to bless you. None of the trials the devil tries to blindside us with catches the Lord by surprise. He has already won the victory over any and all “curses” the devil or the world can lob at you. He has given us the keys to unlock the shackles that weigh us down:
“Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me; LORD, be my helper! You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, to the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent…” (Psalm 30:10-12)
“He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth—Praise to our God!” (Psalm 40:2-3)
“…let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…” (Hebrews 12:1)
We all find ourselves in a pit of despair at one time or another, but use those trials when they come (for surely they will come) as springboards to propel you into the outstretched arms of the Lord where you can be fed and nurtured in His presence as you let Him turn what looks or feels like a curse into a something beautiful in your life.
Now, you are free to run! So what are you waiting for? Pick up your feet and start dancing! God has turned your curse into a blessing today! All you have to do is receive it in the name of Yeshua. Claim your victory today and start praising the Lord for it!
P.S. Look at 2 Peter 2:4-20 for more information about getting deliverance from those “curses” and what will happen to those enemies like Balaam.
–dmrf