Jentezen Franklin: How to Stop Satan From Building a Stronghold and Blocking Your Destiny
“The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, who were living in the land. They said to David, “You will not enter here; even the blind and the lame will turn you away”—thinking, “David cannot enter here” (2 Sam. 5:6).
Isn’t it amazing that God can move on our behalf, and in a moment of crisis, come through with just the right answer or provision for that hour? And then, isn’t it even more amazing when He does it again, and again, and again? But as remarkable as this is, I find it even more amazing that when we go through the next major crisis, we suffer from amnesia and immediately forget all the times He has come through for us.
In this passage of Scripture, we come across David, a man with inner conflict. He knew that he and his men were supposed to take the city of Jerusalem. It was not only their right; it was an order straight from the throne of God. The problem was, to any trained or untrained eye, it was impenetrable. It looked impossible. Ever been there?
Satan is the great deceiver, and if he can create just enough doubt, then he can set up a stronghold that keeps us from the high place that God has called us to. So when David’s men were divided in their mind, they could not conquer the city.
And so it is with us. We can know that we know that God is calling us to the next place, the next step in our journey. Yet, rather than remembering God’s legacy of faithfulness in our past, we choose to see our physical limitations and surface circumstances through human eyes using human logic. We turn back in discouragement, because we know that we know we are settling for less than God’s best.
When David and his men came together, they realized they had a right to that city. David could have said, “I’ve come so far; I ought to be happy, I ought to be satisfied, I ought to stay in this comfort zone. I don’t have to fight any more battles.” But something in him moved, because he knew there was a place greater than where he was. There was to be a city of David.
My oh my, how easy it would be to settle right where you are, in the land of familiar rather than take the risk of getting out of that boat. The problem is you know that you know you have been called to get out of that boat.
David remembered when he went out and slew Goliath and cut his head off with his own sword. He remembered picking up the head of that giant, dripping with blood, and he taking it not just back to his tent, but back to the city of Jerusalem (1 Sam. 17). Remembering this caused him to consider who He was and that God would always be with him.
You have a legacy—the DNA of tried and tested faith. And God is calling you to do even greater things than you did before, maybe in a different field, in a different way, or a different place, but you’re going higher not lower. You need to believe that as you go up, the strongholds are coming down in Jesus’ name. Never trust your eyes in matters of faith. And rather than count the cost, instead remember and consider the many times God has come through, even when it seemed impossible.
Pastor Jentezen Franklin is the senior pastor of Free Chapel, a multi-campus church. Each week his television program “Kingdom Connection” is broadcast on major networks all over the world. A New York Times best-selling author, Jentezen has written eight books including his latest, Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt.
