Hi Everyone,

It is officially summer now that we have celebrated Memorial Day.  This is definitely my favorite time of the year.  Spring is beautiful with the gorgeous flowers and blossoms on the trees, but there is something special about the warm air, it relaxes the mind and the body!  I love the sounds of children playing outdoors and it is nice to see people out walking and talking with neighbors.  It is a happy time of the year.

I have a vision to share with you today, concerning overcoming the enemy and our walk with the Lord.

The Wrapped Foot

I saw someone’s left foot in a flesh colored soft brace made of a stretchy fabric. It looked to be lightly padded, covering the entire foot up to several inches above the ankle.  But there were no straps.  There were rounded flaps that closed around the foot using sewn-on velcro.  Because the brace was not rigid, it would allow some movement at the ankle.  I believe that the brace was meant to  give support, and a modest amount of protection to the foot so that it could heal. 

Whenever I see a foot or shoe in the visions the Lord has given me, it generally speaks of our walk with the Lord.  There is no doubt that in our walk with him throughout our lives, we will encounter setbacks.  There will be trials and difficult circumstances that will test our faith.  We can either seek the Lord more diligently or lose heart and run from him.  The enemy plans and schemes against us, using lies and fears to cause us to doubt the Lord, lose heart or give up.  Our minds, our wills and our emotions along with the flesh are the places where the enemy targets his attacks.  It is up to us to stand firm and stay grounded in our faith by being persistent, studying of the word consistently, and making our relationship with the Lord of utmost importance.   

In the vision the soft brace was not rigid, so as to impede movement altogether. The brace allowed the foot to move, so that as it heals, it does not become overly stiff or “frozen.”  It is really designed to prevent further damage so that healing can occur. 

If we were ill, we would take to bed to rest and do whatever therapies that are appropriate for the illness. And if we are speaking of a spiritual state or condition, as our walk with God, we would want to do all we can to enhance and promote a healthy relationship with God.  We would curtail, or inhibit anything that proves to be detrimental to our walk with Him.

The letter to the Ephesians, was to encourage them to protect themselves against the schemes of the devil by putting on the full armor of God.

The Full Armor of God

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.  Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.  Ephesians 6:10-18

As the brace protects the foot from further injury, we need to do put on the armor of God and what is necessary to protect us from the evil one.  From the very beginning, God revealed to Adam and Eve that their enemy was the serpent, and that there would always be enmity between the serpent and them.  The serpent of course is the devil, who is our number one enemy, as well as God’s.

The Serpent - The Devil

So the LORD God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and every beast of the field! On your belly will you go, and dust you will eat, all the days of your life.  And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed.  He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”  Genesis 3:14-15

So the left foot in the vision is covered with the brace, to represent the need to protect ourselves from the devil’s attacks.  The heel of the foot represents our point of vulnerability.  But it can also be our strength for we are to crush his head.

The word of God declares that the battle belongs to the Lord. It is his to fight. But we play an important role in ousting the devil from our lives. It is our job to seek the Lord’s wisdom and discernment to know where and how we have opened the door to demons and have given them authority to operate. 

We are not to cower in fear when we see the enemy exerting his will upon us.  No, we are to crush the enemy’s head. The Word of God tells us to resist the devil and he will flee.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7

If we fail to stand up to the devil and resist him, we will fall for his many lies and schemes that can lead us away from following the Lord.  An example is shown in the lives of Cain and Abel, the sons of Adam and Eve.

Cain and Abel

Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, while Cain was a tiller of the soil. So in the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruit of the soil as an offering to the LORD, while Abel brought the best portions of the firstborn of his flock.

And the LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but He had no regard for Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry, and his countenance fell.

“Why are you angry,” said the LORD to Cain, “and why has your countenance fallen? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you refuse to do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires you, but you must master it.”  Genesis 4:2-7

Cain did not accept the Lord’s advice and do what was right.  He knew that he was to present an animal as a sin offering.  But because he did not raise sheep, he would have to trade the produce that he grew for one of Abel’s sheep and offer that to the Lord.  But most likely out of pride and stubbornness, he was not willing to offer God what was acceptable.  And out of jealousy he killed his brother Abel.  Had he accepted the Lord’s advice and done what was right, he would have been accepted by God and he would have saved his relationship with his brother.  But instead he became defiant and chose to exert his will over God’s and rebell.

We can sin by following our own evil desires or we can have a little “help,” from the devil. Cain thought that his hard work in the field to produce his crop should have pleased God. But his sacrifice was unacceptable and he acted in disobedience to God’s command. Opposing God is an act of rebellion. It is sin which opens the door to the devil. With an open door, the devil then stokes the fire of discontent with feelings of rejection, and self-righteousness. Those negative thoughts then fester and turn into bitterness and hatred. The devil goads him further by inciting him to killed his brother.  And so he does.  

We are to resist the devil, and flee temptation.  Cain did the opposite.  He did not resist the devil and he did not flee temptation.  And so he was cursed and banished.

“What have you done?” replied the Lord.  “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.  When you till the ground, it will no longer yield its produce to you. You will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”   Genesis 4:10-12

The Word of God is full of his commands, leading to blessings when we follow them, and curses if we do not. We are commanded to go into all the earth and share the gospel.  We are commanded to take up our cross and follow him.  We are commanded to resist the devil and he will flee.  The Lord  expects us to take dominion over the earth, and to take back the ground that had been given over to the devil because of our negligence and sin. Jesus said:

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” John 14:15

For us to be successful in resisting the devil and casting him out of our lives, we have to have spiritual authority. Authority comes from having a relationship with the Lord. We will not be taken seriously by evil spirits if we do not have a genuine relationship with God. If we have compromised our faith with sin, or have an open door in our own lives, we will have no authority to cast anything out.

However, if we have a strong relationship with the Lord, and are able to fully trust in him, then we will move in the power of the Holy Spirit. The power of God was made available to David because he knew and trusted God.

David and Goliath

David was empowered to challenge Goliath because he knew that God would back him up. His faith was strong because he had already experience God’s power moving in him to defeat a lion and a bear. He was zealous for God’s honor, which you can see with the tone of voice and choice of words with which he challenged Goliath.

But Goliath was insulted that Israel would send out a boy to fight him, and with nothing but a slingshot. 

And David took his staff in his hand, selected five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag. And with his sling in hand, he approached the Philistine.

Now the Philistine came closer and closer to David, with his shield-bearer before him. When the Philistine looked and saw David, he despised him because he was just a boy, ruddy and handsome. “Am I a dog,” he said to David, “that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he called to David, “and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”

But David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 

This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand. This day I will strike you down, cut off your head, and give the carcasses of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the creatures of the earth. Then the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. And all those assembled here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.”

As the Philistine started forward to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Then David reached into his bag, took out a stone, and slung it, striking the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.

Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.  David ran and stood over him. He grabbed the Philistine’s sword and pulled it from its sheath and killed him; and he cut off his head with the sword.

When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Then the men of Israel and Judah charged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. And the bodies of the Philistines were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron.

When the Israelites returned from their pursuit of the Philistines, they plundered their camps. David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, and he put Goliath’s weapons in his own tent.  1 Samuel 17:40-54

David overcame Goliath by trusting in God, and allowing himself to serve as an instrument in the Lord’s hand. Our enemy is the devil and his demons and we overcome them by the Spirit of God.

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty. Zechariah 4:6

  When we are born again and filled with the Spirit of God, the Lord gives us authority over the powers of darkness.   

Spiritual Authority 

The Lord wants us to move in the power of the Holy Spirit.  If we do not know or understand who we are in Christ, then we will be ineffective in the kingdom of God, and we will be powerless to defend ourselves against the evil one.  We have been given authority “to trample upon snakes and scorpions,” (Luke 10:19) to overcome the powers of darkness.  But it is up to us to use the power that the Lord makes available.  

And I bestow on you a kingdom, just as My Father has bestowed one on Me, so that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  Luke 22:29-30

 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”  Matthew 16:19

We have been given the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and we use them right here on the earth.  In the name of Jesus and by the authority of that name, we bind up demons, and we loose those that are bound by spiritual chains.  

We have been given authority in the name of Jesus to command those things that are not as though they were, simply because there is the power of life and death in our words.

“..so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.  Isaiah 55:11

Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.  Proverbs 18:21

We have power also when we agree with another believer in prayer, asking in the name of Jesus.

Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.  Matthew 18:19-20

We have power to witness, to do mighty miracles, to believe for healing and provision and all things, when we understand that our power comes from the Lord and we have nothing to add to it.  The spiritual power resides in God alone.  He asks us to believe him and to remain in him, so that his power and his spirit can flow through us, thereby bringing him glory and honor. 

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”  John 15:5

“You did not choose Me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will remain--so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.”  John 15:16

The fruit that comes from God is seen as the fruit of the spirit but also being fruitful in the kingdom of God.

The fruit of the Spirit is a product of the Holy Spirit living in us and daily changing our character.  We become more and more like him as we are shaped by the Word of God and the presence of the Holy Spirit.  These fruits are evident in a spiritually mature believer:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.  Galatians 5:22-23

The effectiveness or fruitfulness of the believer is one who after receiving the Holy Spirit yields an increase in the harvest of souls, those that come to believe in the kingdom as he had.  In the Parable of the Sower, the person whose heart represents good soil, will hear the word of God, which is the seed that is sown, and will commit himself to the will of God and produce a crop.

Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”  Mark 4:20 

In Summary

The foot placed in a soft brace is a reminder that we have to protect our relationship with God, as represented by our walk with him.  We need to protect ourselves from the evil one (Satan) who will try every tactic he has to derail our faith and inhibit our walk with the Lord.  He uses lies, fears, and temptations to get us distracted or cause us to doubt the Lord and put our trust in man and things rather than God.

We must resist the devil and flee his temptations.

We should understand how the kingdom of God works, with binding and loosening, with the power of the tongue to make declarations of what should be, over what is.

We need to understand our authority in Christ and in the name of Jesus.  

And we need to bear the fruit of the Spirit and be productive in the kingdom of God with regards to saving souls.  

We must protect ourselves from the attacks of the wicked one, by putting on the armor of God and knowing the Word of God which in our offensive weapon against the devil.  

And most importantly, we should place our trust in him alone, so that when the time comes and the giant before us is like Goliath, we can slay him with the power of God on our side.  For the battle belongs to the Lord!

Please share this important message with those who have giants in their lives.  We are all meant to be overcomers!

To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations—  that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’— just as I have received authority from my Father.  I will also give that one the morning star.  Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.  Revelation 3:26-29