Reinstating the Blessing

One of the great benefits that has come to the Church from the Faith Movement of the last century has been the revelation that what we say with our mouths has a great deal of effect on our lives, as well as on the lives of those around us. A man shall indeed eat good by the fruit of his mouth, 1 but he may also eat bad, depending on the fruit his speech brings forth.

I witnessed a sad thing not many years ago. A man who had been relatively happy in life lost both his wife and his family during the course of a year or two. Not only did his wife leave him for another man, but his children turned against him for a season, and sided with their mother. Those of us who knew him watched helplessly as a once united family fell to pieces.

During this heartrending period, the forsaken husband and father slid into a pit of despair that no one should ever have to experience. Because he didn't know how to lean on the strong arm of the Lord for strength and comfort, he succumbed to demons of insanity and hopelessness that heartlessly hounded him. The beleaguered man began writing some of the most morbid poetry I have ever read; poetry that chronicled the vicious assault he was experiencing from the hand of the devil. His poems were filled with haunting despair. For months he wrote of how death would be a sanctuary, a pleasant release from the pain he faced each day. Many times he wished himself to be dead, verbally expressing this desire in front of other people, and always wishing for death in the prison of his own thoughts.

Death wishes are like self-inflicted gunshot wounds to the head and heart. They may not bring death as suddenly as a bullet from a real gun, but they bring death all the same. When a person wishes they were dead, they unwittingly appeal to the forces of darkness to begin cutting away at their lives, little by little and piece by piece. The end result is always more tragic than was life itself. But do any of us really have this right? Do we have the right to curse our own lives and wish ourselves dead? Do we not rather have an obligation to God—who is the Giver of life—to live completely for His purposes, and trust Him with everything? The years He gives to us are a gift, and we have no right to wish them away before fulfilling His desired plan for us.

Eventually, by God's grace, my tormented friend emerged from this devilish nightmare and began to recover his mental sanity, as well as a somewhat normal life. But something was now different. A dark cloud of infirmity hovered over his physical body. One physical problem after another began plaguing him. During his time of great emotional despair and agony, he had cursed himself repeatedly, wishing himself to be dead. As a result, a host of demonic spirits gained unfettered access to his life. Their aim was to bring to pass his desire and force him into an early grave.

Invoking the Curse

When men and women wish themselves to be dead, and even give voice to this woeful desire, they invoke a curse that the devil is all too eager to enforce. Proverbs says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” 2 The fruits of death are weakness, sickness, poverty, and an early grave. The fruits of life are strength, health, financial stability, and a long life. Therefore what we say does matter. The course of our lives is set on fire by the words we speak, either for positive results or negative ones. God's angels stand ready to heed the voice of blessing, and the forces of darkness—the demons—stand ready to heed the voice of cursing. 3

I once heard Derek Prince tell how he, while praying for his wife Ruth, whose legs were giving her a fit, asked if she had ever cursed them.

“Why, you know, Derek, I have!” was her immediate reply.

“How so?” he asked.

“When a was yet a girl in school,” she replied, “I saw another girl who had the most beautiful legs. I felt that my legs were so ugly when compared to hers that I looked down at them and said, ‘I hate you!' From that time till now, my legs have given me problems.”

Can you see what was at work in Ruth's life? A self-imposed curse! Like my friend, Ruth had released a curse on herself through the words she had spoken, and the kingdom of darkness was working methodically to bring to pass the curse she had invoked. Thank God, Derek and Ruth knew what to do about it.

Revoking the Curse and Reinstating the Blessing

If you have been guilty of cursing your own life or body, you can do something to reverse the negative results. But it will require some commitment.

When Peter denied Jesus three times on the night of His betrayal and arrest, he forfeited his right to be called a disciple. That is why, after Christ's resurrection, an angel told Mary, “Go tell His disciples— and Peter— that He is going before you into Galilee .” 4 Had Peter then been numbered among the disciples, the angel would not have spoken thus. He would have simply said, “Go tell His disciples to meet Him in Galilee .”

A few days later, The Lord asked Peter three times if he loved Him. 5 Peter responded affirmatively each time. This appears to be a record of reinstatement to discipleship that needed to occur before Peter could fulfill his destiny in Christ. The same principle holds true when it comes to undoing a self-imposed curse. Peter had cursed himself by denying the Lord, but was reinstated when he again confessed the Lord.

When undoing a self-imposed curse, a death wish, or some other self-inflicted wound, we must confess our sin to the Lord and, by faith, revoke its results in our lives. We should also ask Him to empower the strong Biblical confessions we begin to make that will counteract the effects of the curse that has worked against us. We should also ask Him to reinstate the blessings of the covenant we so foolishly forfeited when we began cursing our own lives.

Building a positive confession of God's Word in our lives actually does several things for us. It enables the angels to get more involved with us, bringing us the blessings of the covenant. It also releases endorphins in our brains, which elevate our mood. Positive confession also enhances the ability of our immune systems to ward off and fight diseases. Maintaining a strong positive confession elevates our spirits to places of ascendancy over the negative effects of life, and it empowers us to move ahead with confidence.

As I explained this spiritual principle to my sick friend, a light went on in his heart, and he immediately set out to make things right with God. He promptly confessed the sin of wishing himself dead. Next, he revoked the power of the curse that had been strengthened each time he had cursed himself. And finally, he asked God to reinstate the blessings of the covenant in his life. The Lord heard and answered. A marked change occurred, and today my friend enjoys the blessing of good health as He lives for the Lord with a heart of gratefulness.

Footnotes

1. Proverbs 13:2.
2. Proverbs 18:21.
3. Psalm 103:20; 39:1.
4. Mark 16:7.
5. John 21:15-17.