“Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5 NKJV)
“So shall they fear The name of the Lord from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.” (Isaiah 59:19 NKJV)
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.” (Isaiah 61:1-3 NKJV)
As I was approaching Thanksgiving the Spirit clearly revealed in my spirit what had been happening in the spiritual realm surrounding me. The enemy had launched an all-out attack on my mind (depression, procrastination, & cravings) and body (fatigue, weakness, & lack of energy). Every time I by faith stand on the Word and proclaim victory he does all he can to steal the Word, kill my dreams, and destroy my life.
As I was reading in Isaiah the Spirit reminded me of a subconscious pattern (stronghold) that I had developed which opened the door to the enemy. At this time of year for the last 3 years I willingly gave in to temptation giving my attacker an open door to work with my flesh in bringing hurt and defeat into my life. As I looked at the calendar I realized that 2 weeks from that day 4 years ago was when Melody ran away with Jesus. I was completely oblivious to this fact and could not understand why I was struggling so deeply. I was on the verge of throwing in the towel.
Following Melody’s departure I opened the door to the enemy at this time of year in 2022, 23, & 24 (just like I did between July 12 & August 11 in each of those years – birthday & anniversary). Last December I took steps to close that door. However I failed to lock it.
I made a commitment entering into this year that I would hold up three passages in Isaiah that God used mightily in my life in 2018 and again in 2021. I committed to a plan of action to implement during these seasons in 2025 focused on flooding my soul with the Word given through Isaiah to intentionally control my thoughts, words, and actions. I committed to walking with the Spirit during these times in which I had stumbled in the past to resist the devil and walk in the victory I have in Christ. I completely neglected to do this from July 12 – August 11 and once again fell short.
Now there I was in November and found myself fighting a battle that Jesus already won. Satan used my stumble earlier in the year to increase the intensity of attack culminating in waking up with more severe symptoms of depression and stronger cravings than I have had in many years. Honestly, I was ready to throw in the towel. Praise the Lord It’s never too late to turn things around
With the Lord I knew I could do something about it. I was confident I would pull out of this with a few changes to how I think, speak, and act based on the Word given through Isaiah as I began to live out the battle plan God gave me last December.
God used Isaiah 53, 59, & 61 (along with parallel passages in the New Testament) to break me out of depression 7 years ago after life had beaten me down, and again to deliver me from all grief and sorrow after Melody departed. I knew he was doing it again.
Admitting all of.this to myself and sharing it with another person (you) is a big step forward in recovery and deliverance. I am once again exchanging the “garment of praise” for the “spirit of heaviness” (depression).
Are there areas in your life where at one point you were experiencing what you thought were going to be once and for all final victories only to be losing once again? DON’T GIVE UP!
As long as your heart is beating and there is air in your lungs, victory is possible. Life has already been beating you up so don’t beat up on yourself. You can forget the past and press toward the future!
If I can get back up, so can you!