If you were outside your home and saw your child walking too close to the road, you would run after your child and get their attention with spoken words, right? No good parent wants their child’s life cut short. You would yell “No,” rather quickly and not think twice about it…for sure. 

You will take a stand if you are going to lose everything. You will take a stand when you align yourself with God and see people walking down a wrong path. 

If you were clipping limbs off a tree and a copperhead snake slivered out, would you pet it and invite it in for dinner or cut the head off? You either have to stand up to evil or be bitten. Satan is mad and there is a real war raging over the future of America and the nations, over the culture, over destiny and the prophetic. Satan knows his time is short. 

Laws have been changed to go against God’s Word, bills that appear good for the people but bring about destruction and ruin are in place, and like the leadership had to be changed in the time of Daniel, we need a change in some areas as well. (See Daniel chapter 1). Daniel and his friends faced the opportunity to please God or please mankind. For Daniel, he chose to obey God. 

Satan knows how to cleverly disguise something to appear good, to save us money or make it appear that way, but in the end to bring about destruction. Any time a person is moved by padding their own pockets, and do not care about the good of the people, it is an evil plot. 

Esther encountered such a time as this recorded in the Bible. God saved the Jewish people because Esther chose to stand up and take a risk.

In our culture and media, God’s name is mentioned with little reverence. Only in the midst of tragedy did the nation turn to God on September 11, 2001 for about three weeks. Satan has infiltrated the minds of people to even state that people who hear God have some type of mental illness. 

Instead of allowing the enemy to devour and destroy us, it’s time for pest control. Get rid of fear, doubt, and unbelief. Run the enemy out of your mind and heart. Take a stand and speak truth in love. 

If at any time any of us get more concerned about money than we are souls, we are in trouble. If a pastor won’t speak truth to a person because he or she is one of their biggest givers in the church, or speak to friends and family who go against God’s Word, it is no different than big government that is more concerned with profit than the people they are called to serve. 

Fear can prevent any of us from taking a risk and taking a stand. It’s time for all people to know that we can live and have abundant life in Christ—but the world system and God’s ways are not the same. 

God’s ways are always best. Our view of Him impacts three areas of our lives. First, our prayers. When we recognize His greatness and power, we will become more confident that He can accomplish mighty things—(Ephesians 3:20; James 4:2). 

Second, our understanding of God’s righteousness and His goodness influences our behavior. As we desire to be more Christlike, if we want to be blessed by Him, then it is in our best interest to quickly obey Him and His Word. As we desire to be like Him, to desire righteousness, we will be quick to repent of sin instead of blaming people, manipulating, and acting out in the flesh. 

Third, our faith is highly impacted. Knowing that God can be trusted, that we know He is good and wants the best for us, causes us to fully trust Him. Knowing God and remembering His awesome acts on behalf of all mankind and those in our personal lives will build our confidence in Him. 

The Bible says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28).  Who on earth would not want eternal life in Christ? 

God’s name was not mentioned in the entire book of Esther but His Hand was evident throughout. God is awesome. He is forever to be praised. He saves His people. 

Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, who was planning to kill all the Jews. Purim, or the Feast of Lots, is a joyous holiday that recounts the saving of the Jews from a threatened massacre during the Persian period. Esther, who chose to take a stand shows the leading role she played in saving her people. She chose. She took a risk. 

Look at her background for a moment. “Mordecai had a cousin named Hadassah, whom he had brought up because she had neither father nor mother. This young woman, who was also known as Esther, had a lovely figure and was beautiful. Mordecai had taken her as his own daughter when her father and mother died” (Esther 2:7). 

Take time to read the Book of Esther. Ask the Lord to open your eyes to come under His Mighty Hand—the Holy Spirit, Prayer, the Word of God, the five-fold ministry, and the brethren. Don’t allow the enemy of your soul to isolate you from those you love. Satan is evil and always scheming to take God’s people out.

Our rights come from God, not from government. Every living human being has a soul. God has a plan and a purpose for every person…it’s up to us as individuals to make the choice to obey God or not, to receive the gift of eternal life or not. Will you choose? What will it take for you? 

Stand strong, take a stand, step out and take a risk with God. When we wholeheartedly align ourselves with God…we stand with Him. We cooperate with His plan and purposes in the earth. Since God is for us, nothing can be against us. I have read the end of the Bible—and it ends well. How will your story end? 

God is raising up precious men and women of God who will take a stand with Him, and spread the message of hope in God—the Blessed Hope—Jesus Christ! The Promises of God are “yes” and “amen.” God’s best is stored up for you. Yes, you will have to overcome obstacles and opposition in order to lay hold on all God has for you. Meditate upon God’s Word. Pray the Word and obey God’s instructions. Get His Word on the inside and then share it with the world about you. The Word of God will sustain you through the fire, through the storms, and while you are fighting the good fight of faith required to lay hold of all God has promised. 

Share the Word…tell your children and grandchildren. Tell your family, friends, and those who come against you. Tell the world about Jesus! 

God may have called you to take a stand in the realm of government, He may have called you to do full-time ministry, or start your own business. God may have you homeschooling your kids, raising your family to know God or you may be a full-time parent and work a full-time job as well. God’s plan and purpose for you is good…the most important thing you will ever do is fully and wholeheartedly receive and align yourself with God through Jesus Christ! The second most important thing is living that life out before the world around you…will you take a stand for Christ? 

Love,

Deborah

Books by Dr. Deborah Starczewski…available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors.

GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed, And Know Your Purpose)….learn how to move from drama to destiny, a mess to a message, pain to purpose, and trials to triumph through turning to Jesus Christ. 

 A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)….read the amazing accounts of how God intervened, raised my husband from death, healed him from two strokes, and walked with us through two open-heart surgeries at Mercy. The natural manifestations and extreme details revealed will give you hope to believe God for yourself, for your family, and the nations.

THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)….we are living in the Last Days…before the return of Jesus Christ….make sure of your relationship with Jesus and lead your family and friends to Him. You are a world-changer! 

It is time for the church to arise and turn back to God in unified prayer and fasting. Always remember, if God can save you, He can save anybody. He saved Saul of Tarsus and changed his name from Saul to Paul. “Paul” means “a little man” and that was a constant reminder to him that he had to rely on God, not himself. He was equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit. It takes no more grace to save a Saul of Tarsus, who was persecuting Christians, than to convert you or me. 

If God could save Saul, who was persecuting Christians, He can save anyone. Saul was confronted by Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, and realized what he had been doing was wrong. His encounter with Christ brought conviction in his heart and it led to conversion. After he was converted, Paul experienced communion, consecration (being set apart totally to God), and was commissioned by Jesus as an apostle to preach the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul had been blind, but when He met the light—the Son of God, he experienced a heart change. 

We must choose to turn to God, rely on His strength, and take back our land. We must stand upon God’s Word for the lost. That is the heart of God. We have the same resurrection power within us (as believers) that raised Jesus Christ from the dead. 

When we fully come to know God, we live in a state of amazement and awe through every day. We have divine appointments on a daily basis, we see God’s hand in details, and we sense His presence. God is waiting on us to be a people who will be fully committed to Him. He desires to show Himself strong on our behalf. 

When we are committed and get to know the Lord, we begin to hear His voice and we know it. We hear Him in small details and we watch life unfold just as He has spoken. We live in such a state of time that we must hear God and know His voice. Whether we believe it or not, there is a war raging between good and evil. Let us pray together for revival in our own hearts and for this nation. Get back to prayer in individual homes, altars—and may it spread throughout the communities. We must fully commit to God in every area. 

The Bible says, “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chron. 16:9, NIV). The King James Version says, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew him-self strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.” 

In 1 Samuel 30, after David and all his men came back to Ziglag—they all wept till they had no strength left. The men that were with David blamed him and wanted to stone their own leader. But David chose to encourage himself in the Lord. He worshipped and then cried out to God in prayer. God spoke specific instructions to David—and he obeyed God. David recovered all and then helped those who stayed behind. Take time to study 1 Samuel chapter 30 and pray. 

We learn a highly valuable lesson in this chapter. It’s time to understand the steps that David took–and do them as a nation.  Stop allowing the enemy to destroy within. Satan sits back and laughs—because he has got people turning on one another. Choose to be the change in every situation. Go out of your way to be kind to people. Don’t fall for the enemy’s trap of isolation and shutting down communication. 

God have mercy on this nation. We decree light, blind eyes opened, and a nation that turns back to God as a people. May the fire of the Holy Spirit set your heart ablaze for souls and give you a greater desire to obey God fully. Pray for the President of the United States. Pray for all leaders and choose to bless one another in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! He is coming back! 

God bless you!

Deborah 

(Excerpt from THE MIDNIGHT HOUR: Will America Turn Back To God?….available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.xulonpress.com/bookstore, and other distributors. See www.starministriesinc.com for other books by Dr. Deborah Starczewski) 

BOOKS BY DEBORAH STARCZEWSKI

God’s Priceless Treasure (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed and Know Your Purpose)

A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)….a modern, up-to-date resurrection story. This book will give you hope and faith to believe God for anything. 

THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?)

Stand firm in Christ. Scripture: Isaiah 52:7; Romans 10:15

It’s Christmas time, but no time to compromise. It’s really Christmas 365 days a year to the believer. We have the gift of Jesus and the power of standing on His Word. We must stay in peace to keep our walk with the Lord pure and holy. And learn to stand in agreement with GOD in prayer. We must heed the warnings of God however He sends them…through a check in our spirit, an uneasiness or burden we sense, a dream, vision, through His Word, or voice. Never ignore the warnings and promptings from God. Keep your heart pure and your feet shod with the gospel of peace at all times so you can hear the Voice of God. 

When was the last time you heard a message about feet? You might be reminded of the time in Scripture when Jesus washed the feet of His own disciples. Some of you might think of walking on sand in the heat of the day and coming in to a refreshing bath. Some of you might be thinking about coming in from a ski trip out in the snow—with your feet by a fire and a cup of hot chocolate.

The Apostle Paul did not avoid the subject of feet. He made feet a focal point of one of his most powerful messages. We must learn to stay in peace…with our feet shod with the gospel of peace, at all times. We must not allow the wind and waves of life to get inside us…no matter what we are facing in life. No matter what battle is raging, what attack has happened, or what you are seeing all around you, don’t allow the raging seas to get inside your heart. Keep your eyes focused on Jesus and don’t allow the enemy to abort God’s plan for your life. Look at what Scripture says about standing firm. 

You can read about it in Ephesians 6:10-18—about the armor of God. Let’s take a closer look.

The Bile says it four times in four verses (verses 11-14 NIV), Paul declares that the armor’s purpose is to help us “stand,” “stand against the devil’s schemes,” “stand [our] ground,” and “stand firm.” Armor would be incomplete without shoes. Paul identified this as “the preparation of the gospel of peace” (verse 15). Paul knew that we would need to be equipped and have a firm foundation in Christ to face opposition. And you get rest assured, if you are still breathing, you will face opposition. 

The Roman soldier’s sandals had a long spike at the heel of the shoe. The purpose was to allow the warrior to plant his feet firmly in the ground when an opponent approached. The soldier would have an obvious advantage with his feet secured in the ground. He would be able to stand in the face of opposition and not be moved. This part of his uniform enabled him to keep his footing even in the face of the enemy and danger. 

That is precisely what our Father God wants for every one of His children today: the ability to stand firm in the face of troubles and opposition. This is possible when we plant our feet on a firm foundation—the foundation of faith in Jesus Christ—the Solid Rock on which we stand. That’s what happens when we are in a life or death situation, we can cry out to God for help. We know WHO to turn to when problems arise because we know WHO we are IN CHRIST and we belong to HIM. We must learn to live by faith. 

Ask yourself this question: “Is my faith well grounded?” 

With the evil that has escalated across America and the unrest across the nations, it is imperative that we are secure in Christ and learn to stand firm in Him. We are also to be identified by the fruit of our lives—the way we act. (See Luke 6:44 and Matthew 7:16). The Holy Spirit has graciously given us love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23). When we are faced with extreme adverse circumstances, any of us can act inappropriately. Often times our fruit can be anger, conflict, sorrow, defensiveness, harshness, impatience, and even rudeness. We could say it may be anything but self-control. Oh, and let’s not get in the seat of judgment and pretend to know how it feels to walk through a crisis of one sort or another. You really don’t know how you would respond or react till you walk in the same situation. So ZIP IT now….God doesn’t call us to be jury and judge. We are called to pray for one another. 

We also must not pretend the enemy does not exist…like an unwise person who walks up on a python and thinks it is okay to play with it. We are not called to ignore the enemy or his tactics. We must know that the deceiver can use our wounds from the past, agreements we have made, weaknesses in our flesh, and the lies we have believed of the enemy to keep us locked in a negative cycle of sinful behavior and wrong choices. 

I can assure you that if you have any knowledge of God at all, when faced with a crisis, most people will call upon God. Even America called on God in prayer right after September 11th…and churches were filled to overflow for about three weeks. Then life went back to what the world thought was normal. But it is anything but normal. 

We must seek godly counsel and wisdom, along with prayer and ministry to find lasting help. For immediate help, prayer is the first thing we must do. No matter if you personally believe it or not, Satan is real and so are his evil tactics. He uses a hierarchy of fallen angels for his evil purposes because he doesn’t have the authority, power, and abilities of God. Satan is not omnipresent. And don’t think Christians cannot be harassed, oppressed, or afflicted. If you think that way—you are already deceived. 

The enemy comes like a roaring lion—seeking those he may devour. So what can we do when it is obvious that we are being attacked? What can we do when we are acting out in ways that are not in our character as a born-again believer of Jesus Christ? Get on our knees in prayer—cry out to God for help.

Pray Psalm 91 and Psalm 59. Say them out loud. The spoken Word of God cannot return void. What else can we do? Put on the armor of God. (See Ephesians 6:11-18) The shield of faith, the helmet of salvation that guards our mind, will and emotions, shoes of peace, and the belt of truth are defensive weapons. The Word of God is an offensive weapon. We need to stay close to God…read His Word and study the Bible on a daily basis. Our other offensive weapon is prayer. Choose to cultivate a life of prayer that goes far beyond praying over meals and crying out to God only in a crisis. Talk to God all day long. When you wake up in the night time, tell the LORD that you love Him. Talk to Him throughout your day. Each day of life is a gift from our Father God. 

The Bible and prayer will do more to help show the true fruit of who we are than anything else we can do in this life. We must ask God to help us cast aside any of the rotten fruit of Satan and enjoy the precious fruits of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Choose to enjoy Christmas—365 days a year. Choose to enjoy family and friends. Make wise choices and stand firm—planted on the solid Rock—Jesus Christ. 

#Christmas365 #telltheworldaboutJesus #AbidingInChrist 

(Excerpts from all three books…) 

Stand strong in the Lord,

Merry Christmas,

Deborah Starczewski 

BOOKS BY DEBORAH STARCZEWSKSI

GOD’S PRICELESS TREASURE (How To Overcome Challenges, Be Transformed and Know Your Purpose)…learn to move from drama to destiny. Learn that you can make right choices and change your life through turning to Jesus Christ. You can overcome the pain of divorce, heartache and loss. Learn to triumph through trials and tribulation by turning to Jesus.

A LEAP OF FAITH (25 Days At The Mercy Seat)…the full account of God raising my husband from death, healing him from two strokes, and the walk through two open-heart surgeries. Read the amazing ways the Holy Spirit led us—through our son’s first open-heart surgery….and through the loss of a loved one—my daddy. The amazing ways God led us will encourage you and give you hope to believe God for yourself, for your loved ones and for the world around you. 

THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (Will America Turn Back To God?) …a must read for ALL! 

Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.starministriesinc.com and other distributors.