In spiritual warfare, the secret is to pray

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Luís Alberto Alves

The best defense is attack. It is nothing new that God's servants are targets of darkness. If you are persecuted by the Enemy, it is because you are bothering hell. Does anyone kick a rabid dog while it's alive? However, if he is dead, people will even step on his head.

Be glad that Satan torments you. You are pleasing God, his commandments, and you fight to go live in Heaven. He is not a chubby Christian, who in each place acts in a way to please everyone. Jesus himself said, in Matthew 6/24, that it is not possible to please two masters. In this world we either please the darkness or the light, there is no middle ground.

Spiritual warfare lesson: when you are being bombarded by the devil, try to pray. The enemy used images of women to put thoughts of adultery and prostitution into your mind and heart; try to pray for the person the devil is using to attack you. She could be a colleague at work, at school, a neighbor or even someone from the church where you attend.

Church

This tip applies to women too, when the devil puts sinful desires in your heart, thoughts that you married the wrong man, someone who deserves to be kicked out of your life, or the desire to commit adultery with a co-worker, a neighbor, a college, church or anyone you meet on the street.

The secret to winning this war is to pray for this someone Satan is placing in your mind and heart. Pray asking that Jesus Christ free, convert and save that life, that the Lord rebuke the unclean spirit that is using that person to try to remove him from the Lord's paths.

If you know the person's name, say their name so that Satan and his demons use it at that moment to lead you into error. Remember that prayer needs to have a target. It shouldn't be something empty. Pray using the Word of God. As it is written in Psalm 18, verse 3: “I call on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.”

Ways

Never forget that demons are our enemies. There is no good devil as some religions preach. And in this prayer name the evil spirit that is confronting you. Do it like this: “I cry out to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies, from the spirits of prostitution who are using (name the person) to try to remove me from their ways, from the spirits of robbery, who are trying to induce me to do something that the Lord condemns.”

“I cry out to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies, from the spirits of vice, to which I was a slave in the past, from the spirits of infirmities, which attack my body to make me weak in faith, from the spirits of strife, which makes me not have a good relationship with anyone, from the spirits of oppression, which at all times pressure me to abandon you, Lord.”

As I said, the secret of this battle is for you to attack what came to confront you. Listen to lots of praise, preferably those of the Christian harp, whose lyrics are very spiritual so that you remain in the presence of the Lord. Avoid legalities. There is no point praying in a spiritual war and then running to the computer or cell phone and continuing to see what the Lord is not pleased with. Acting like this is like a dog that comes back to eat its own vomit.

Addiction

If you are the target of spirits of prostitution, try to guard your mind. Don't give the devil any room. The enemy will try to place other people in front of you, but try to avoid places where the presence of these evil spirits is visible. For example, you are at a gym. Don't stay near the place, where there is a large presence of women in provocative clothes, highlighting the curves of their bodies. Women do the same in relation to men.

If the devil has decided to attack you with spirits of vice, try to stay away from tables in bars and restaurants, where your colleagues will be drinking alcoholic beverages, as is written in the Psalm in verse 1, of Psalms 1: “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, neither stand in the way of sins, nor sit in the seat of scorners.” Stay away from places where there are drugs, drinks and gambling, especially for those who have been slaves to games worth money.

The secret to your victory is to remain prayerful and vigilant. When David killed Goliath, he took the sword and cut off the giant's head, preventing any kind of reaction. You prayed for the person the enemy used to attack you, don't make the mistake of staying by their side. Prayed to rebuke spirit of theft, do not keep the company of thieves. The weapon to defeat the devil is prayer, but know the reason for your prayer. Target.

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor

Learn how to ask God for help

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Luís Alberto Alves

The Word of God reveals to us in the Bible that the Lord has several names. Yahwen means “I Am”, El Shaddai, “Almighty God” among others. Through prayer, the Lord, out of his mercy, granted me a new strategy to present our requests to God.

Remember that Satan is afraid of the Word of the Lord. Thus he was defeated when he faced Jesus in the desert, as written in Matthew, chapter 4, verses 1 to 11. Through the Word, Jesus removed the devil from his face.

I don't know what war you're fighting. But be precise with your requests. If the cause is financial, money has disappeared from your life, you only live to pay bills, your salary is never multiplied, it's like putting something in a bag with holes, you must cry out to Jehovah Jireh, “Provider God”, to join this fight, but praying as I wrote below, because first the Lord needs to have mercy on you.

If the cause is health, medicine will not solve your problem; you must cry out to Jehovah Rafah, “God of healing,” to resolve this issue. If you are in a war, where your strength is exhausted, cry out to Jehovah Nissin, “God is my flag”, fight the battle that you are no longer able to fight.

If after so many years in the presence of the Lord, you realize that you no longer seek Jesus Christ, if you have weakened in faith or have someone in your family who is like this, cry out to Jehovah M.Kaddech, “God who sanctifies”, for the Lord to sanctify you and bring you back into his presence.

If your home has become a battlefield, where fights are constant, cry out for help from Jehovah Shalom, “God is my peace”, so that He can come to your aid.

If you or someone in your family is the target of injustice, cry out to Jehovah Tsidkenu, “God is my righteousness”, for Him as Supreme judge to enter this battle.

If the presence of Jesus has disappeared in your home, cry out to Jehovah Shammah, “present God”, to return and strengthen you. Pay attention to the text below that I wrote, according to the Lord's instructions, how you should pray. Never forget that the spiritual world is moved by the Word, it was through it that God created all things. Therefore, be wise and wise in your prayers.

My brother and sister, present your petitions to God this way: Jehovah Jireh, “God Provider” have mercy on me and sow his provision upon me and my family.

Jehovah Rafah, “God of healing”, have mercy on me and my family and heal the wounds and illnesses that we are unable to heal.

  Jehovah Nissin, “God is my flag”, have mercy on me and my family and fight the wars that we are unable to fight.

  Jehovah M.Kaddech, “God who sanctifies”, have mercy on me and my family and sanctify us all more and more.

  Jehovah Shalom, “God is my peace”, have mercy on me and my family, pour more and more of your peace on our home and our lives.

  Jehovah Tsidkenu, “God is my justice”, have mercy on me and my family, and intercede to bring justice to our causes.

  Jehovah Shammah, “present God”, have mercy on me and my family, and be increasingly present in my home and in our lives.

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor.

Be brave like David

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Luís Alberto Alves

How many times do we not have the courage to take David's attitude and pray to the Lord sincerely asking for forgiveness regarding our sins. Meditate on verse 5 of Psalm 32: “I confessed my sin to you, and I did not cover up my iniquity. I said: I will confess my transgressions to the Lord; and you forgave the evil of my sin. (Saddle.)".

I remind brothers and sisters that it is a brave thing to go into your room, alone, and pour out all the dirt that lived inside your heart, your soul, mind and spirit. Talk, that's right, talk to God and present before Him the mistakes you made and still insist on making.

None of us are saints. The argument that we do not make mistakes, we do not make mistakes, we are people above suspicion is false. All of this is false. Which man, when he sees a woman with a beautiful face, body, and very elegant, doesn't look away from her for a few seconds? For fractions of seconds, don't dirty thoughts about that person cross your mind?

Popular

How many women, when they come across a man with a well-toned body in a gym, the famous “six-pack abs”, handsome, standing next to a car worth millions, don't let their thoughts wander for seconds when comparing their husband or fiancé, who walks of a popular car, and the current account only experiences flashes of green color? Imagine that that man could give you a credit card for R$20,000 or R$50,000, with him paying the bill every month?

The popular saying says that the heart is an unknown land. Truly, our heart is a master at creating proposals that, if implemented, will lead a man or woman to the abyss. He turns wrong into right and vice versa. At the height of distress, our heart sends a message to the brain stating that it is good. That it is worth investing in this proposal.

The mistake will never manifest itself as something bad. Never! Adultery will present itself as just a distraction, just to bring satisfaction and will never be discovered. It is on this leaky boat that millions of men and women embark. They imagine that this betrayal will never come to light. Jesus Christ said that “there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be discovered.”

Soul

The problem is that the garbage of sin accumulates inside us. And trash contains dirt and this causes damage to the spirit, to the soul. Try going for a long time without going to the bathroom to pee or poop. Soon you will feel sick. Even walking will be difficult. The body begins to feel the impact that that dirt needs to be expelled.

The same thing happens with sin. A person committed to God's commandments and has fear of the Lord cannot get used to sin. She is out of place. Out of the presence of Christ. The weight of sin bothers the mind, the heart is saddened, because something bad is still present and needs to leave within us.

Few people have the sensitivity to close the door of their room and alone expose before the Lord all the mistakes they have made and cry out for His forgiveness. Many imagine that God's wrath will consume them in seconds and leave worse than when they entered that place. Of course, every action has a reaction. The Lord forgives, but we need to bear the consequences of our error.

Pity

He is the same as the murderer, the author of a death that the police determine to be unknown. God will forgive, but he needs to go to court to pay for this crime. Do not imagine that confession before the Lord is enough to solve the problem. This person took someone's life and before society he needs punishment. Justice, through a jury trial, will determine what the sentence will be.

Before meeting Jesus Christ, Saul was complicit in the deaths of many Christians. He took pleasure in seeing a family that worshiped the Lord being tortured and dying, as occurred in the scene where Estevão lost his life under several stones. Saul never intervened to prevent that martyrdom. It was so bad that Ananias, when he received the mission to speak about Jesus Christ to Saul, who later became Paul, was afraid.

Ananias told the Lord that Saul was a bad person who persecuted Christians. I imagine that Ananias, when he was before Saul, may have been afraid of ending up in prison and dying under torture. The first cults Paul attended, people were afraid of him. They imagined it was just a pretense and a strategy to arrest them and end their lives.

Blind

But Paul's encounter with God was intense. I believe that in the three days he was blind, he meditated on all the wrong actions he had taken. Of having committed countless sins against God, thinking he was doing right. Generally the sinner imagines that he is not doing anything wrong. In his view, everything is fine. The others are the ones who see an error, where in their opinion something is correct.

Ask the husband who cheats on his wife or the woman who cheats on her husband if they think adultery is wrong. Some even justify it by saying that it is just an adventure and it will soon come to an end and everything will end well. In the thief's mind, stealing millions from a bank is not wrong, because banks are professional loan sharks, charging countless fees from their customers, without any type of refund.

But everything has consequences. David, after his conversation with the prophet Nathan, sent by God to warn him about his attitude of ordering the death of Uriah, the husband of his lover Bathsheba, would bring consequences. When he came to his senses and analyzed the size of the mistake he had made. He was honest with God. The Lord forgave him, but warned him that he would have to face the consequences.

Throne

God did not abandon David. He continued beside him. He went through bad times to the point of seeing his own son Absalom conspire to try to remove the throne from Israel. Previously, Absalom killed his brother Amnon, David's firstborn son. Another disappointment was seeing Amnon rape his sister Tamar. But why did all these tragedies happen to David? The devil is a master of illusion. He will never warn about the harm that sin will cause.

It just suggests that something is good and one should try it. How many drug addicts have entered the hell of drug addiction because they decided to smoke a marijuana cigarette or snort a little cocaine during a party, just to relax and not disappoint their friends? They got stuck and entered a road full of potholes, losing their jobs and even their families.

Any act we commit results in consequences. In life we are responsible for our mistakes. It is childish to imagine that before God, He will see the transgressions we commit and everything will have no effect. Yes, the Lord erases our sins, but the effects remain and we will have to bear them. It's not the same on social media where someone deletes the post that caused controversy and everything is ok.

Files

Therefore, every Christian, whether man or woman, needs to think hard about every action he takes. In every word that comes out of his mouth, in every gesture he takes with anyone. Words cause wounds and many of them take years to heal. Some never leave the mind of those who were offended. It's the same as the Public Security file. The convict served his sentence and was released from jail. But the information remains in the files that he was once in the prison system.

If he has made a mistake, he confesses his sins to God. Be careful who you talk to. Not everyone is prepared to hear about their mistakes, especially those that could cause a series of disturbances. Many of them, only God has the structure to listen to you and forgive you. The Lord will prepare you to bear the weight of the consequences. You won't be alone.

The important thing is to take the attitude of opening yourself before the Lord. Present everything bad you did that displeased Him. But do it sincerely. Don't lie or be false to God. The Lord knows what's going on inside your mind. Open the game and ask that the Lord's mercy be upon you and that you be blessed. In this way, your soul will be freed from the prisons where the devil once imprisoned you. It is the way to take possession of the blessings of the Lord. They had not arrived yet, because the dirt of sin prevented them. Have a great month.

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor.

Do we not treat God like a butler?

 Pixabay

Luís Alberto Alves

21st century, a time of anxiety, a time in which most people live in a hurry, a time of excessive demands, a time where many do not reserve time for God, a time where thoughts are only focused on putting more money into the current account, a time where even the family is left aside, time for egolatry, time for everything except Jesus Christ.

We often wake up in the morning, already worried about our daily tasks. Everything on autopilot: take a quick shower, brush your teeth, comb your hair or, in the case of women, do a quick brush, change your clothes, have a cup of coffee, eat a slice of bread or cake, catch the car, the bus or Subway to work or school or college.

We focus our mind only on the material. The second semester hasn't even arrived, but we've already planned what we're going to do in August, September, October and even at the end of the year. The rule is not to waste time. Social media fans give the famous likes to posts that even they don't know the origin of. The important thing is to show your virtual friends that your presence will be registered in the banality ranking. In other words, he is in tune with the nonsense of that day.

Loneliness

But God knows us in the deep, in the secret, in the hidden where we don't even know. The bad day comes, and it comes for everyone, whether evangelical or not. The arrival of this terrible day is filled with pain, anguish, sadness, melancholy, discouragement, the desire to throw everything up and run through the streets, screaming like crazy people do. On a bad day, colleagues and friends disappear. Our messages are not read on WhatsApp, no one answers our calls, loneliness knocks on our door and manages to enter and make an address.

That's when the ground opens up beneath our feet. The appetite disappears, the throat becomes dry, insomnia becomes a daily companion when we lie down thinking about sleeping. We were unable to take the focus off the problem. It seems like the light at the end of the tunnel has gone out. But why does Jesus Christ allow us to go through this bitter experience, if he is love? Why does someone feel the intensity of pain in their soul, which greatly hurts their heart, to the point that we wish for the end of our lives?

My brother and sister, the Lord turns on the green light for the bad day to come to us, because due to lack of spiritual experience we begin to treat God like a steward. We only remember Him in times of difficulty. Of the 24 hours a day, in the good times, we do not reserve even ½ hour of worship and prayer to Jesus Christ. The strategy is to focus only on perishables. It's about showing yourself beautiful on social media. It is revealing to others that we are someone important. We're over jerky.

Life

Humility, during the good times, is relegated to the background. It's a funny word. The interesting thing is to humiliate others. Even our family members. After all, when you are well, even praising God is uncomfortable. Listening to good preaching is something bad, despicable. Talking about Jesus Christ to the lost is something out of the question. Time is reserved for trash, wrapped in pretty packaging by Satan. The thing is to enjoy life. Going to trendy bars, drinking alcohol and drugs, prostituting herself with countless people. In short, please the world.

However, when we make God our steward, life begins to spin, like a car stuck in the mud. Nothing goes right. The presence of the Devil is constant on our path. The work doesn't pay off. The car becomes a mechanic's customer. Money disappears from the current account like water on a hot plate, illness starts to overcome health, family life becomes tragic, persecution at work increases, grades at school start to get low, even though we study hard. In the end, nothing shows a positive result. Even if you sleep all night, you wake up tired or tired. We feel like we've been beaten, because of pain all over our bodies.

The butler only serves the master. That's his job. Never questions. He just obeys, even the most absurd requests. Most of the time we make God our steward. We never thank you. We just charge. We demand the realization of dreams, which for Jesus Christ will be a tragedy later on. The boss has no time for the butler. In our ignorance we think we are in charge of God. He, at the height of his infinite wisdom, only allows a weak wind of darkness to blow over us, to show that He is the Lord, and we are just servants.

Bad

I don't know what your life is like. Not much less if you felt nervous or nervous when reading this message. But I'm sure of one thing: Jesus Christ is not his butler! He is master of your life. Stop treating him like someone worthless, unimportant. Brother or sister, with God you are everything, without Him you are nothing. Even though you have been converted for many years, you do not have the spiritual structure to face, alone, the smallest demon in hell. It is the Grace of the Lord that does not allow you to be destroyed by the Devil, who hates you and always desires your harm.

Set aside quality time for God. When you wake up, talk to Jesus Christ. Have affection for the great Master. Let go of anxiety. Your haste will not accelerate God's movement towards you. Your time will never impact the Lord's time. Stop charging God. Don't make the mistake of saying that He has forgotten you. Look more at Jesus Christ than at garbage offered by the Devil in false colored packaging. Focus your life on the Lord. You are just a passenger in this world. One day, your password will be called.

Don't worry. What Jesus Christ promised you, everything will be fulfilled for the Glory and Honor of the Lord. Look more at God. Don't fall into the trap of satisfying the world. You need to give your best to God. Be a light where you place your feet. Don't just go to worship, be a practitioner of the Word of the Lord. Don't allow the Devil to make your communion with God just a fad. Remember that the Word of God is fulfilled. When you treat God as the lord of your life, in everything, the troubled seas of your life will become calm. The storm will turn into a breeze, and you will sleep the sleep of the righteous. It's your decision.

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor.

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Are you a vulture or an eagle?

    Fotos: Pixabay

Luís Alberto Alves

There are two types of people in this world: those who are eagles and those who are vultures. You can't escape the way these two birds act. The vulture is attracted to decomposing animals and likes to consume rotten and spoiled meat. Its natural habitat is garbage dumps. The bad smell is the strong point to attract this bird. When there is a corpse abandoned in the woods, vultures fly over the place in flocks to consume it.

In the spiritual world there are people who behave in a similar way to vultures. Their thoughts are full of tragedies. They can't visualize anything good. The pleasure is to comment on what is bad. They are attracted to programs that highlight bad news, such as couples fighting, physical degradation of drug users, prostitutes, police violence, torture, etc.

When you meet someone whose marriage was destroyed because of drugs, drinks, betrayal and even physical and verbal aggression, you feel pleasure in passing on the end of this marriage. You can't be happy with other people's happiness. When a brother testifies that Jesus Christ has given him a great victory, he is not happy. Hope that blessing is temporary and everything goes back to the past of failure.

Environment

It is possible to identify Christians who behave like vultures. They don't take care of personal hygiene. Both men and women neglect their appearance. They rarely wash their hair. Men don't shave often and refuse to comb their hair. They wear the same clothes for several days, even though they give off a bad smell. The shoes are dirty. Signs of filth are visible on the nails, as they are rarely cut or put on any type of nail polish.

At home, it is not advisable to drink even a glass of water. Dirt is visible in every room. In the sink, dishes pile up. In the bathroom, both the shower stall and the toilet are rarely washed with bleach to kill bacteria. In fact, the bad smell inside this place is very strong. Bath towels are rarely hung on the line to remove moisture. Because of this, the smell of mold permeates the environment.

The Christian vulture's companies are made up of pessimistic people. They criticize all preaching. No one within the church, in the view of this type of evangelical, deserves praise. They are uncomfortable with happy families, who are clean and behave ethically. The success of others bothers them. They say this type of Christian is stuck up. They don't like poor people, as if poverty were synonymous with dirt.

Vision

The Christian vulture got used to eating crumbs. He refuses to think big. In the company where he works he doesn't fight to be promoted. He is not supportive of others. Selfish, he never extends his hands to help anyone. In his view, the thing is to think about yourself, others who are consumed by darkness. Don't pray for others. He does not participate in any type of campaign. Reading the Bible is something that tires you. He spends a lot of time on social media just sharing nonsense. Everything rotten that the world offers you, you accept easily. He sits in the circle of scoffers, he is still tied to the world and criticizes those who pray a lot. In his view, this type of evangelical is a fanatic. Praises bother you, even if they are not noisy.

The Christian Eagle, on the other hand, has a different lifestyle. He is a fighter. He knows no difficulty in serving Jesus Christ. He likes to read the Bible and share quality Christian content. He is happy to see his brothers achieving blessings. Pray for others, without advertising. He does this in the silence of his room. He is not attracted to the lentil dishes offered by the darkness. He flees from the appearance of evil. He does not participate in worldly parties. Secular, biased music doesn't reach his ears. He is not a fan of television programs where the main dish is tragedies and prostitution.

Even when he doesn't have much purchasing power, he likes to be clean. Your clothes give off a good smell. Both men and women take care of personal hygiene. When approaching them, you can smell the essence of perfume or deodorant. In their homes, cleanliness is the watchword. Dishes don't stay in the sink for long. It is then washed. Household rubbish is soon collected and taken out. The children are clean. When they have animals, they are also cleaned frequently.

Path

The eagle Christian always envisions a better future. At work, you never take a promotion out of your mind. He is a good employee. It performs its functions well. He is rarely late. He maintains excellent contact with his manager. He doesn't fall into the trap of speaking badly about the place where he earns his daily bread. He always tithes and offers in the church where he congregates. He is supportive. He thinks out loud. He tries, as far as possible, to take professional retraining courses, aiming to obtain a higher salary to benefit his family.

The Eagle Christian's friends are hard-working people, warriors for the gospel. He likes to pray a lot, fast, cry out to God, climb the mountains and participate in vigils. He is attracted by preaching with excellent content. They seek to deeply understand the history of the Gospel, of the heroes of faith. Even in times of difficulty, he always tries to keep his eyes on Jesus Christ. They don't keep whispering. They try to take advantage of the opportunities that come their way.

In these two examples I tried to show, in accordance with the Lord's Mercy, the differences between those who like to live in dirt and disrespecting the Gospel of Jesus Christ and those who are truly in tune with Heaven, a place where there is no type of imperfection. It is up to you, brother or sister, to meditate on this text, to understand which context you are in. And, of course, look for the best in Christ. The Lord does not want anyone to get lost and plunge into the abyss. His interest is to lead you to Glory, but you have to pay the price of being an excellent witness for Christ. Are you a vulture or an eagle????

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor.

Every year the situation will get worse!

    EBC

Luís Alberto Alves

Every end of the year the same greetings arise: “I hope next year is better than this one, what a grace to Jesus it is ending”! When you look at this phrase, quickly, it seems like something cool. Asking for the New Year to be better in everything. After all, human beings always aim for what is good, victory, not fights, desert, etc...

But when coldly analyzed, the tendency is to get worse. For those who have already passed the 60-year-old barrier, like this one who writes to you, when compared to past decades, the situation was different from several angles. For example, in the 1970s public school students did not threaten teachers, much less principals.

The words of father and mother never became the target of dispute. The son would ask for something and if it was not possible to give it, the conversation would end with a loud “no” and it was over. There were no tantrums, feet hitting the floor, swearing or emotional blackmail. Finally, there was respect for the parents, even if they appeared fragile in their walking and even speaking.

Couple

Dating, in most cases, was not something like a pornographic film, with the girl having sex on the first day she met the boy. Until the wedding arrived, which often ended in this way, respect prevailed. There were kisses, hugs, walking on the street, but without exceeding the limits. The couple enjoyed romance.

Drug consumption, even with the hippie revolution in the 1960s, with the famous motto “Peace and Love”, and men wearing long hair and long beards, did not reach the current level, where drugs can be bought on any corner, at sometimes next to the police station or barracks. Even the elite did not openly demonstrate their attachment to drugs.

The bandits acted, however, always opposed by the authorities. People, even on the outskirts, could walk at night, without the paranoia of being robbed or hit by a bullet that doesn't get lost, but finds someone. Rape cases did not occur in large numbers as they do today. As is the murder of women, currently an epidemic.

Entrance exam

People entered school, the famous gymnasium (currently Elementary School), then high school (High School) and the battle to enter higher education (college). There was no Fuvest, which only appeared in 1975. Exact and Engineering were grouped under the acronym Mapofei because of the initials “MA”, for Instituto Mauá de Tecnologia; “PO”, from the Polytechnic School of USP and “FEI” from the Faculty of Industrial Engineering.

These acronyms joined “Cescem” which was the entrance exam for the Biological area in São Paulo, created in 1964. Finally came “Cescea”, for the humanities area created in 1967. Unified they became Fuvest. Most had the goal of becoming successful. Teaching was not trivialized, as is the case today, with the majority of students leaving school semi-illiterate.

The few evangelical churches that existed in the neighborhoods were seen as places for serious, honest people. Generally, when girls passed by on the street for services, especially on Sunday mornings, they rarely became the target of teasing. The countenance revealed the striking presence of the Holy Spirit. Commerce respected the evangelical consumer, who generally honored their commitments, at a time when opening credits required in-depth research.

Patients

The praises hardly played on the radio, much less appeared on television stations. Any song in which the name of Jesus Christ was mentioned was soon called “believer’s music”. However, these songs had very spiritual lyrics, a strong presence of God. Luiz de Carvalho's big voice transformed many praises into true weapons of war against the evil forces sent by hell.

Humble men, when they ascended the pulpit, the Lord filled their lips with wisdom poured from Heaven. The result was cripples walking after the preaching of the Word, disillusioned patients receiving healing, drunks giving up alcohol and people with a bad temper becoming kind, in a clear sign of transformation.

The brothers had a lot of unity, as occurred in the early church, a record of which is found in the book of Acts of the Apostles. As a teenager, I remember the late man of God, Billy Graham, filling the Maracanã and Morumbi stadiums in São Paulo, without any type of advertising on radio, television, newspapers or magazines. All under the strong anointing of Jesus Christ.

Technology

Thousands of people went to these services without the promise of receiving the keys to their own house or new car, or a future millionaire husband or a beautiful woman like Raquel, who drove Jacob crazy and made him work 14 years to conquer the your love. They were interested in the presence of Jesus Christ. Drinking water from the fountain of life, which only the Lord is capable of providing, to invigorate the spirit and soul.

The praises had simple instrumentation: guitar, bass, drums, piano, sax. It was in no way reminiscent of current hymns, with so many instruments and effects used in mixing and mastering, more similar to secular music and most of the time with lyrics full of theological errors and without the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

In the lyrics, the authors spoke more about Jesus Christ, without giving any praise to the devil. Beautiful melodies that impacted and still impact the person who needs to find the love of Christ. Compositions written by people, many of them with only a primary education (currently the first five years of Elementary School). But inspiration sent from Heaven transformed these songs into a great weapon of war against evil.

Word

I cited these examples to show that in the last 53 years the Gospel of Christ has suffered a lot of deterioration. In some denominations the customs of the world entered and caused changes that saddened the Holy Spirit. In some churches, the space reserved for the Word was reduced to 30 minutes or even 20. The cool thing is to fill the 2 hours of worship with lots of singing, preferably very upbeat, as if it were a show.

In the view of these churches, it is not the Word of God that converts, but the guitar solo imitating a worldly hit that will hold the person in that place. Or the strong sound of the double bass, combined with the beat of the drums, in a very fast rhythm, can put in that person's mind that they need Jesus Christ's help.

Another interesting detail is that the Word in this type of worship needs to be light. Nothing to talk about sin, which separates man from God, about obedience to the Lord's commandments, about abandoning addictions, wrong behavior, a life of prostitution, idolatry, lies, infidelity and excessive love of money. The proposal is to accept Jesus, but without committing to obey him.

Pagoda

As the decades passed, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010, 2020... the same tumor that at first was a small lump, has now turned into an immense ball filled with pus and trampled blood from sin. Evangelical church that seeks to follow the commandments of Jesus Christ, most of the time does not bring together many members. In fact, they are branded as grimaces, fundamentalists, backwards. They lost touch with the world. They live stuck in the past.

It is correct, for the merchants of the gospel, for the member to please two masters: the devil and Jesus Christ. The cool thing is to have two or more women. Just as a wife can exchange her husband, already fat, bald and with a face full of freckles, for a big boy full of muscles that she gained in the gym. At the end of the year, evangelicals, in the view of this type of church that proliferates throughout the world, need to drink with their colleagues.

Enter the pagoda circle and sing along to the sambas that are currently in fashion. Without forgetting, of course, the glass of caipirinha and beer. Then just ask Jesus Christ for forgiveness and everything will be ok. After all, we are in the season of Grace, of undeserved forgiveness. God will not be angry with the few hours spent in the circle of mockers, where gossip ran rampant. In Holy Supper, just ask for forgiveness and everything will be resolved before God.

Promotion

The sister's very short skirt, which causes everyone to sigh, will also not be a reason for Jesus to be sad. After all, these are the last days of the year, and no one is made of iron. From these people's perspective, always being in the presence of Jesus Christ is boring. Having to walk the line, stay away from sin, obey the commandments. Sometimes it's nice to feel the sweet taste of sin, even to guarantee a future promotion.

In the opinion of defenders of this type of gospel, the Bible is outdated. Jesus Christ needs to update himself. Monogamy is rude. When a man and a woman get married, they do not need to be faithful to each other. Everyone can have lovers, because loving the same person until the end of your life is quite boring. The evangelical church that considers this behavior wrong is classified as fundamentalist and backward. Missed the train of history.

The business is to encourage “gospel marijuana”, “gospel cocaine”, “gospel prostitution”, “gospel homosexuality”, “gospel lies”, “gospel corruption”, “gospel spells”, “gospel dispatch”. ”, “gospel betrayal”, “gospel abortion”, and all kinds of anomalies with a Christian veneer, as if Jesus Christ was pleased with this type of thing.

Price

That's why with each new year that arrives, it doesn't get better. The tendency is to get worse. Just like cancer that spreads throughout the sick patient's body. Sin advances quickly over the evangelical church. But for what reason? Simply for Jesus Christ to separate the chaff (people who are in the church, but never converted and do all the desires in the world) from the wheat (those who remained faithful to Jesus Christ, despite paying a high price, even among their family members) .

Christ himself said that: “he who is dirty, let him become dirtier and dirtier”, as described in Revelation 22/11. The tendency is to increase filth. Each year, the situation will get much worse until the day comes, and it is very close, when the Lord will separate those who belong to Him and leave those who belong to the devil, to be taken to hell. Because they never wanted a commitment to the Lord.

If you hope, my brother or sister, that 2024 will be a wonderful year, you can take the horse out of the rain. The trend is to have more corrupt politicians, criminals committing increasingly terrible crimes, an increase in sexual depravity, where prostitution will be considered a lifestyle and fidelity something outdated.

Elderly

Terrible crimes that shock public opinion will happen more frequently. As well as the increase in the absence of love in people's hearts. Few people will be sad to see an elderly person being attacked in the street or a mother asking for mercy so that her family member is not coldly executed by criminals. It is the principle of Talião (an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth) being applied fiercely.

Because of discredit, millions of people will no longer trust Justice. With the approval of the antichrist, the pending issues will be resolved through fire emitted by weapons or several blows with a piece of wood, until death arrives. Love, as we know it until this 2023, will disappear from the face of the Earth. Hatred will gain gigantic proportions, to the point that anyone who is good will be considered endangered.

The advancement of technology will drive people even further away. Even within a house, dialogue will take place mechanically, without hugs, kisses or any act of affection. The paternal and maternal figure as we know it today will cease to exist. The devil, through the antichrist, will work fiercely to destroy the family as God's project. Just as no one will have any type of authority over their children.

Extinct

People who today label the Gospel of Christ as a frown, especially those who are teenagers, when they reach 40 years old, will cry with sadness at the situation they will have to face, to try to enter Heaven. They will not be able to use the Bible digitally, as the antichrist will consider it a terrorist act for anyone to believe in Jesus Christ. Domestic cults will be extinguished. No person will be able to gather, even within their own home, to talk about the Word of God.

No person will have authorization from the antichrist government to baptize someone with a name that has a strong connection with the Kingdom of God. For example: Joseph, Mary, John, Abraham, Magdalene, Isaac, Joshua. Anyway, any name that is in tune with God will not be allowed. Because this type of nomenclature will denounce that that person had, in the past (2000, 2010, 2020, 2030...) some type of connection with the Gospel of Christ.

As Daniel prophesied, technology will be so sophisticated that the antichrist dictatorship will have the ability to read people's thoughts. And depending on what's on this person's mind, they could go to prison. Everything arbitrarily without any judgment as currently occurs. There will only be one justice: that of the antichrist. And she will be tyrannical.

Nation

Subtly, people's freedom is evaporating. Every day something is done in the Supreme Court of different countries. Rights that existed for decades are becoming distant from people. In the United States, a nation that was evangelical for centuries, it is now forbidden for students to read Bible verses. In some regions of that country, the Bible is already considered a profane book. Therefore, it should not have the privilege of being worth reading.

In some European countries it is forbidden for anyone to mention the name of Jesus Christ as a gesture of help for another person. Evangelizing is also considered a violent act, as it would be trying to suggest to someone that only Jesus Christ has the power to resolve a given situation. And he has. But in the view of some rulers, religious people need to stay away from political management, which governs the State.

Like a rope that slowly tightens a person's wrist, the forces of darkness work subtly to carry out the evil plan of granting great strength to the antichrist. Sell the solution to something, as if it were good. Just a single document bringing together all that person's information. It looks beautiful. It is not. Simply put, the dark system will have absolute control of the population.

CPF

Much is said about the chip that will be placed in people's hands. Everything to speed up the process in your daily life. Few people know that we all already have a number, which is the CPF. With it, the government knows how much money we have and what we buy, when we buy it, how we buy it, where we buy it. Everything recorded quickly. The Income Tax declaration period is just to confirm what he already knows.

It is estimated that the new ID will have the CPF number as the only one to identify that person, valid throughout Brazil. It will gather various data, including those related to health. In other countries, similar processes exist. Technology advances, bringing benefits in which we subtly renounce our freedom. We admit to being watched by the State, in the name of security.

It is in this gap that the antichrist's government strategy gains ground. Whether in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Oceania. In fact, in Australia financial transactions are no longer made with money. It's card only. Therefore, the Christian who truly fears God, not just a pretend one; Raise your hands to heaven and be thankful that you are still free to worship the Lord. Future generations will not have this privilege.

Luís Alberto Alves is a pastor.

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What is your thorn in the flesh?

Luís Alberto Alves

“And so that I would not be exalted by the excellence of the revelations, a thorn was given to me in the flesh, namely a messenger of Satan to buffet me, so that I would not exalt myself”, 2 Corinthians12/7. This passage is famous and most Christians know it. When the apostle Paul complained to the Lord three times, and heard from Him that His Grace was sufficient for him.

No one has known to this day what this thorn in Paul's flesh was. Several theologians wrote studies, but no one explained exactly what this thorn was, which tormented the apostle day and night. When we are all in Glory, walking the streets of gold, contemplating all the beauty in the Heavens, we will be able to resolve this doubt with him.

But I warn brothers and sisters that all of us who were rescued from the clutches of the devil, who kept us trapped using the ropes of sins, have a thorn in our flesh. The memory of where we came from, what kept us tied to the world and far from Jesus Christ.

Darkness

Remove from your mind that you are a super Christian or a super Christian! We are dependent on Jesus Christ and his infinite Mercy. The devil and his demons watch the Lord's servants, because whoever is not converted to Jesus Christ is already trapped in his hands. The concern of darkness is to try to bring anyone who once left there under the influence of hell.

Imagine someone addicted to alcoholism. A person whose breakfast was a glass of drink and repeated this gesture throughout the rest of the day and part of the night. I started at home, on the way to work I would stop at a bar and drink again, at lunch time I would put more drink in my system, when I returned home the drink would be present and before going to sleep I would also drink.

The darkness will not attack this person rescued from the rotten world of alcoholism with drugs, because cocaine, marijuana, heroin, morphine or any other type of drug will not awaken desire in this person. She had no contact with this when she was a slave to the devil. Drink was the thorn in his flesh. It is at this point that the demons will work intensely.

Drunk

Tactics vary, but always with the same focus. Alcoholics will appear as false friends, parties filled with lots of alcohol, invitations to a company, school, college or event where alcohol is present. Some envoy will say that Jesus turned water into wine (and wine is an alcoholic drink), so it is not a sin to drink one or more glasses of this drink.

Satan will create situations for the former alcoholic to feel embarrassed. The director or manager of the company where he works decides to raise a toast for the month's excellent results and everyone must drink along with him. The lack of spiritual firmness will make this Christian fall into the devil's trap and take the first drink, then the second, the third until he gets drunk.

It is in this gap that the devil will use someone to say the famous phrase: “I didn’t know that believers drank to get drunk”. The dirty work is done. Unable to drive, he will not be able to return home and if he tries to take the car he could cause an accident and the problem will worsen. The next day, the reputation of a good servant of Jesus Christ will be destroyed. Few will give credibility to someone who was seen as an example, but gave a terrible testimony in front of many.

Alcohol

Even with many years in the presence of Jesus Christ, the thorn in the flesh of alcoholism will be in this person's life. It will serve as a reminder of where the Lord rescued you. If he has great intimacy with God, he will have the discernment to not fall into this trap of the enemy. He will look at the drink and for seconds he will feel attracted to it, but the Holy Spirit will soon catch him to prevent this fall. However, the devil, always repetitive, will never give up attacking this weak point.

At this time it is necessary to remember what is written in 1 Thessalonians 5:22 “Abstain from every appearance of evil”. Anyone who has been freed from alcoholism is not recommended to frequent environments where drinking predominates. If you have a birthday party at your home, do not allow alcohol to be present to please a guest. He should not have as friends alcoholics and especially people who refuse, of their own free will, not to follow Jesus Christ.

Even at the company's famous get-together parties, stay away from the crowds where beer, caipirinha, wine and whiskey are present. Make it clear to people that you don't drink. Do this in an orderly manner, without needing to argue or appear arrogant. Don't make the mistake of harming yourself to please others.

Ritual

The same rule applies to those rescued from drugs. The first piece of advice is to stay away from people who use this type of poison. If you accept Jesus Christ, you need to change your life. Leave bad habits behind. Keep away from places where drug dealers sell drugs. Don't make the mistake of going there, alone and without spiritual support, to evangelize. The devil may use someone to bring you back to the hell you came from.

All the tools Satan and his demons will use to try to remove the sheep that one day gave up drugs from the path of Christ. It will always put someone with a history of this poison in the path, especially false friendships. Even in the sentimental area, he will try to work for a person, a user, to enter the path and, with the excuse of finding Jesus, lead the convert astray.

Because the drug addict promises to take the last dose every day, and this ritual is repeated for a long time. Without spiritual strength and the desire to change his life, drugs are his refuge. In this person's mind, the drug is what brings happiness (even for a few seconds). And in this Russian roulette of hell he will sink deeper and deeper into this mud until he loses his own life. If you have a recent convert or even someone weak in faith on your side, they will enter this boat of darkness.

Good

Female or male prostitution is another area in which the darkness invests heavily. Most of the time, people far from Jesus Christ have no idea what this sin is. For her, having sex with someone is good and provides seconds of extreme pleasure, because sex has the ability to provide ecstasy. Whether a man or woman, still far from Christ, believes that sex is something for personal satisfaction, they never imagine that God reserved these good moments for marriage.

How many beautiful women prostitute themselves to have a good financial life? They believe that they combine the useful with the pleasant: money and pleasure! Is not true. Studies show that most prostitutes are depressed. They live and die alone. Since there are few people who marry a call girl, who has already had sex with more than a thousand or 3 thousand men or women. To support relationships, sometimes painfully, they take drugs.

Other women, in exchange for a good boss, agree to live temporarily with elderly people, receiving money for moments of sexual pleasure with those people. The famous sugar babies. Apparently it's something harmless. After all, the devil will never offer his trash in an ugly package. Pay attention to the packaging. The young woman enters this trap and when she tries to get out it will be too late.

Pleasure

Men, many without Christ in their hearts, consider nights in brothels to be natural. With money in hand, he satisfies the fantasies that he cannot fulfill with his wife at home, with those women who pretend love and pleasure, because of the money in his hands or checking account. How many executives or senior employees of large companies have not been left in poverty because of spending on prostitutes? Many marriages have ended in divorce because of this too.

This person accepts Jesus Christ and decides to change his life. Will the devil give up on her? Never! He knows that the thorn in the flesh of this convert is prostitution. He will continue hitting this button until the day he embarks for Heaven. He will create situations to try to justify falling into this sin. Sometimes he will use the wife or husband to throw that person into this search for pleasure. If he is a woman, he will try to attack her financial life and put someone with a lot of money in front of her to force her to do some program.

In the case of the man, if he is single or divorced, he will bring some woman disturbed with this evil spirit of prostitution to try to seduce him. If faith is weak, the person cannot resist and falls into the trap. The devil's plan is to rescue the convert from the presence of Jesus and bring him to the rotten world where this someone was trapped for many years and brought joy to the darkness.

In the case of the man, if he is single or divorced, he will bring some woman disturbed by this evil spirit of prostitution to try to seduce him. If faith is weak, the person cannot resist and falls into the trap. The devil's plan is to rescue the convert from the presence of Jesus and bring him to the rotten world where this someone was trapped for many years and brought joy to the darkness.

Temptation

In this text I could list different types of thorns in the flesh that exist in this world. Describe how you act and the reaction in the person’s life. But I would have to write countless lines. Because we all have this thorn. No one is tall enough. He was born and lives in the presence of Jesus Christ without ever having suffered any type of temptation. Jesus himself was tempted by the devil, imagine we are people who depend on the Master's mercy to stay alive!

I learned in a cult aimed only at men, that temptation is not faced, it is avoided! The servant of God cited the case of Joseph before Potiphar's wife. She attacked him several times trying to get him to bed. Last time, the escape valve was running away. Usually the temptation is very strong. The devil will hit hard to try to remove the convert from the Lord's paths. He will use sophisticated ammunition and mechanisms to swing a person's heart and mind.

Every person reading this text knows and knows their weak point. Don't fall into the illusion that you are immune. It's a lie. The name varies, but they all have the same objective: “to reach you and keep you away from Jesus Christ”. The advice I give you, my brother and sister, is to pray to God to keep you. Always send your angels to hold your hands firmly so that you do not stumble with your feet on stones thrown by the devil in your path. And always run away from anything that looks evil, even beautiful. Stay in the Peace of the Lord.

Luís Alberto Alves, is a pastor.