The oil of gladness
Jesus Christ was anointed with the oil of gladness above all His fellows, which means He was the happiest man to walk the earth. My fasting recently is directed at what is blocking my life from moving forward. I felt heavy resistance for years. Bondage. Oppression. Unhappiness. It might be something in me or some sort of spiritual oppression around me. Or both. The devil will always resist me. But I needn't feel sad or oppressed — because other people feel that. (Sometimes the devil's attacks are so strong, other people around me can feel it, too. Sometimes they even get hit, like the people with Jonah in the boat. They probably want to throw me overboard too.) I want to be like Jesus, who was happy!
The best kind of fast is this: "Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity; And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day: And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not."
All fasting is good because it makes the flesh weak and increases the strength of the spirit. I fasted two days last week, ate, then fasted two more, and ate again. I decided I wanted to fast this entire week. I'm on day two. The importance of fasting for me is it says to God I am serious. The verses above from Isaiah say God was tired of men's reasons for fasting. He wanted them to be obedient and do those things instead. They fasted and prayed to be seen of people, to be seen as holy. My fasting is out of a seeking and humble heart. I want to do those things He says to do! I pray God accepts my fast, as it is all I can offer. I only do this when I am at a dead end. I'm praying God does those things for me in the first few lines. I am under a heavy burden and feel oppressed and grind under a yoke. I'm asking God to set me free to serve Him more. And with a happy heart. I'm asking for happiness. Not for a life without trouble. But for happiness as I live, regardless of the trouble. God began a good work in me, but it isn't finished. Who wants to be like a Christian who isn't happy? What kind of witness is that? It's like I went to the Eyore school of life. It's not like I don't have reasons for being unhappy. It's just that I have so many more reasons to be happy! This has weighed on my heart for a long time. It weighed on me so much I decided to fast about it.
Those who don't do spiritual warfare excessively don't understand the amount of hate the enemy throws against those who do. But I feel I am called to do this work, in spite of the cost. The cost is high. Absolutely. But so is following Christ. But it shouldn't grind you to nothing. That's where I've been. I got destroyed in my life. But I'm still here by the grace of God and I want to praise Him and bless those around me mightily. That is in my heart. I want to spread love and grace and mercy to all those around me, dispersing widely. Anyone with me? I certainly don't want to spend the rest of my years a broken man, sad and depressed. I'm taking a stand. I'll surely fall from time to time, but last week started a revolution in my soul. It all started with fasting and prayer. I've also been praying in tongues (now y'all really think I'm crazy) because I've run out of my own prayers. I'll let the Holy Spirit pray because He knows what I need better than I do. It could be He's praying for someone across the world. I have no idea. Let Him do it, though. He knows best.
I'm not a good Christian. I'm barely a person. Why? I'm unhappy. Today I prayed and was anointed with the oil of gladness. Today is when things change, I feel God saying. I prayed God would break the power of whatever is coming against me, resisting, oppressing, and driving me down to the ground. As a warrior Christian, I know I will come up against incredible obstacles. But the oppression I feel is palpable and malicious. It is a spiritual oppression that is leaking into my soul for years. Yes, I am under attack normally, but I should carry on as Jesus Christ did, nonetheless. This has been on my heart for years. If you care, pray with me that God will break it. I've been saying this year is the year of Jubilee. I always strive to treat others well. This isn't about that. I'm a kind and generous person. I just want to feel free from the burdens that weighed me down for much of my life. I feel God is saying now is the time. I can't get back anything I lost or undo the damage in my life, but God can. My soul was hurting. Today that hurt is gone. A great miracle is happening in me. I feel blessed, like I have a new lease on life. I feel something breaking in me, but in a good way.
Okay, as I was writing this, I felt God told me when the blockage came about. The blockage to being happy and leading a fulfilling life. It was when a pastor was praying for me and snapped. I witnessed the man snap. Literally. Something took over him. He started swearing and got really aggressive. I was probably 16 years old. His name is Monty Mulkey. You can look him up. I don't normally name names, but it's okay this time. We are supposed to mark those who are a danger. I believe something in him put a blockage in me. I won't get into all the details here, but it was brought to my attention when I was writing this. I was getting prayer (he came in at the last minute) and had this vision that I was free, had a ministry, was serving the Lord, and then the man snapped. A pastor. A deliverance pastor. Was in complete control by a demon. Be careful who prays for you. That's when the blockage took place. A girl at that meeting broke my heart later on. It was nothing but heartbreak after heartbreak since then. Oh, it makes so much sense now. So, there's that. I got my answer and will pray about how to apply this information. God honored my fast in a big way. Wow. Onward.
God also brought about a great victory when I sought Him about jobs. I kept asking for something better, and He kept providing better opportunities, fitting my requests. One after another He did it. We don't have because we don't ask. I'm asking for happiness. Joy. Peace that passes all understanding. Victory. I claim all of those things — and more — in the name of my savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Thank you all for following along.
Thank you for reading. And God bless.
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