Sunday was our youngest daughter's birthday. To celebrate, we went to the Probowl game in Honolulu with friends. On our way to the game, we had to drop our dog off at our store. For some strange reason, doggie seats were not available at Probowl. Otherwise, I'm sure Bo would have thoroughly enjoyed himself as much as we did!
When we drove up in the parking lot of our store to drop Bo off, individuals had "set up shop" in our back door and was doing business. Literally, complete with bed, full length mirror, etc.
I have never seen Mike get real forceful (verbally or otherwise). He is a very quiet, gentle, compassionate man; however, he is a Texan to his core and has very deep ideas of what is right or wrong. He drove right up to the "hooch" (that was a new word for me) and put the car in park. He ripped the tarp back and...well, lets just say everyone on the block knew he was not playing around when he said, "Get out!" He turned to me and said, "Call the police." At which time, people started to scatter.
There was one person who, lets see...how do I describe this...stalled in leaving. I'm sure street drugs were preventing this person from using common sense.
The police arrived very quickly. (Mucho mahalos to the Honolulu Police Department!) Once the police cars arrived, there were no trespassers to be found in any direction. The police quickly took our report and searched for the people to insure there was no misunderstanding they were to never trespass on our property again. We were told we could dispose of all their property (approximately a small truck load). We assumed we would have to clean up the nasty mess but we decided to clean up later because we didn't want to be late to the game.
We made it to the Probowl just in time for kickoff. Once the game was over, we went back to the store to get Bo. Obviously, the officers handling the case was very convincing because all the items had been removed and the area was totally spotless! Not even a piece of trash remained.
Here is what I learned: When we walk in our God given authority, darkness scatters.
Here is the analogy:
Mike knows he is the store owner.
We must know who we are in Christ! (Luke 10:19)
Mike knew he had the authority to remove the trespassers.
When darkness (strife/offense/envy/depression/murmering) attempts to trespass, we must use our authority and remove it! (Mark 11:23)
He boldly took the necessary steps to protect his store.
We must boldly approach God and seek His Word on how to take the necessary steps to protect our mind/mouth/home/relationships and Facebook pages! (Ephesians 3:12)
When one trespasser stalled, the HPD removed them.
When we submit to God and resist the devil, he has no other option, he must flee! God rebukes the devourer for us! (James 4:7, Malachi 3:11)
My youngest daughter got upset when she saw the homeless man taking down his bed and tarp and said, "But Mommy, if CPR is a house to that homeless man, now he has nowhere to live!" We prayed for the trespassers and I explained, we tried to work out a deal with the man. He was to keep our parking lot clean of trash and debris and he was allowed to stay. But he continues to occupy more space. And the more we looked the other way. Initially, he only had one small corner in our parking lot. But left unchecked, he had his belongings strewn halfway across our parking lot and ended up completely blocking the door.
Darkness operates the same way; for example, when strife attempts to rear it's ugly head, we can't look the other way. A "deal" can never be cut with darkness. If not addressed immediately, darkness continues to occupy more and more space until we adversely affect everyone we come into contact with.
- We must take every thought captive and refuse to sow discord! (2 Corinthians 10:5, Proverbs 6:16-19)
- We must shine our lights before man so our Heavenly Father is glorified! (Matthew 5:16)
- We must speak peace and life into every situation! (Romans 12:18, Deuteronomy 30:19)
When we pray, walk in authority and purpose to speak God's Word about every situation, darkness doesn't block the door, we block the door to darkness and protect what God has so richly blessed us with!
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