Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer request has been heard and I join you in bringing it before the Lord Jesus with care and seriousness. The burden you carry for your son and for yourself, and the pain that has come through family relationships marked by bitterness, is real, and God sees it clearly.
Scripture warns us to watch diligently lest any root of bitterness spring up to trouble us and by it many be defiled. Bitterness is not something that simply happens to us because of difficult circumstances. It is an attitude we allow to take root. Two people can go through the same hardship and one becomes better while the other becomes bitter. That shows it is a choice of the heart. When bitterness is kept inside, it does not harm the person who offended us. It harms us. It is described as the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity, a poison that binds the heart and defiles not only the one who holds it but many around him. One bitter person can spread that defilement widely. That is why the call is to guard your own heart first, to follow after peace with all men, and to refuse to let that root take hold in you or in your son. The way to be free is to release it, to forgive, and to ask God to forgive and cleanse the heart where bitterness has settled.
You also prayed about binding any transfer of spirits and standing on the promise that whatever we bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. As children of God we do have authority in Jesus over powers of darkness, and Jesus has shown his complete power over unclean spirits. At the same time Jesus taught that we must not seek deliverance as an empty ritual. He spoke of an unclean spirit that goes out of a man and then returns with seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first, because the house was left empty. Simply trying to expel what is evil without filling that place with what is good can do more harm than help. The vacuum must be filled. That means inviting the Holy Spirit to fill and rule the life, filling the heart and mind with the Word of God, with prayer, with fellowship in the family of God, and with obedience to Christ. Deliverance is not only about what is cast out but about who comes in to reign.
I also hear the ache of family division in your request. Jesus himself knew what it is to be without honor among his own family and in his own household. At one time even his brothers did not believe in him and thought he was beside himself. He understands the rejection and misunderstanding that can come from those closest to us. He taught that when blood family does not share faith in him, those who do believe become our closest family, with a deeper bond and a tighter tie than mere blood. If you have felt alienated because of your faith, you are not alone, and you have a place in the family of God that is secure and loving. That family is meant to provide the secure environment where we are strengthened and restored.
So I pray with you now that God will bring true conviction where it is needed, that he will root out bitterness wherever it has taken hold, and that he will protect and fill you and your son.
Lord Jesus, we praise you and thank you and glorify your name. We ask that you work deeply in the hearts of this family. Where there is bitterness, expose it and root it out. Where there has been hurt and anger held for a long time, bring release and forgiveness. We ask that you guard this dear one and this son from any influence of darkness, and we exercise in your name the authority you have given to bind what is evil and to forbid its influence. Fill every place in their hearts and home with your Holy Spirit, with your peace, with your Word, and with your love, so that nothing empty remains for the enemy to return to. Keep them from the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity. Lead them into the fellowship of your family where they can be strengthened and encouraged. Make them whole and keep them in your care. In your name, Jesus, Amen.
Continue to walk in forgiveness, keep your heart open to the Lord, and let him fill you daily. He is faithful to complete his purpose and to keep those who trust in him.
Scripture warns us to watch diligently lest any root of bitterness spring up to trouble us and by it many be defiled. Bitterness is not something that simply happens to us because of difficult circumstances. It is an attitude we allow to take root. Two people can go through the same hardship and one becomes better while the other becomes bitter. That shows it is a choice of the heart. When bitterness is kept inside, it does not harm the person who offended us. It harms us. It is described as the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity, a poison that binds the heart and defiles not only the one who holds it but many around him. One bitter person can spread that defilement widely. That is why the call is to guard your own heart first, to follow after peace with all men, and to refuse to let that root take hold in you or in your son. The way to be free is to release it, to forgive, and to ask God to forgive and cleanse the heart where bitterness has settled.
You also prayed about binding any transfer of spirits and standing on the promise that whatever we bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. As children of God we do have authority in Jesus over powers of darkness, and Jesus has shown his complete power over unclean spirits. At the same time Jesus taught that we must not seek deliverance as an empty ritual. He spoke of an unclean spirit that goes out of a man and then returns with seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first, because the house was left empty. Simply trying to expel what is evil without filling that place with what is good can do more harm than help. The vacuum must be filled. That means inviting the Holy Spirit to fill and rule the life, filling the heart and mind with the Word of God, with prayer, with fellowship in the family of God, and with obedience to Christ. Deliverance is not only about what is cast out but about who comes in to reign.
I also hear the ache of family division in your request. Jesus himself knew what it is to be without honor among his own family and in his own household. At one time even his brothers did not believe in him and thought he was beside himself. He understands the rejection and misunderstanding that can come from those closest to us. He taught that when blood family does not share faith in him, those who do believe become our closest family, with a deeper bond and a tighter tie than mere blood. If you have felt alienated because of your faith, you are not alone, and you have a place in the family of God that is secure and loving. That family is meant to provide the secure environment where we are strengthened and restored.
So I pray with you now that God will bring true conviction where it is needed, that he will root out bitterness wherever it has taken hold, and that he will protect and fill you and your son.
Lord Jesus, we praise you and thank you and glorify your name. We ask that you work deeply in the hearts of this family. Where there is bitterness, expose it and root it out. Where there has been hurt and anger held for a long time, bring release and forgiveness. We ask that you guard this dear one and this son from any influence of darkness, and we exercise in your name the authority you have given to bind what is evil and to forbid its influence. Fill every place in their hearts and home with your Holy Spirit, with your peace, with your Word, and with your love, so that nothing empty remains for the enemy to return to. Keep them from the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity. Lead them into the fellowship of your family where they can be strengthened and encouraged. Make them whole and keep them in your care. In your name, Jesus, Amen.
Continue to walk in forgiveness, keep your heart open to the Lord, and let him fill you daily. He is faithful to complete his purpose and to keep those who trust in him.
