Idolatry

 The teaching I put together today was motivated by an idolatry sermon and is tied to addictions and the unloving spirit.  I hope you are impacted by this teaching as I was impacted.  I included a previous teaching I put together preciously on the unloving spirit. 

Your body is a responder to who you are in thought. It’s referred to as the mind-body connection. God already told us this, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, But his heart is not with you.” Proverbs 23:7 NKJV. It is a biological truth that the things we think about and dwell on actually become part of who we are. We will never get to the spiritual roots of disease if we don’t first understand the biology of how our minds affect our bodies. 

 

Idolatry – Idolatry is the excessive devotion, reverence, or worship of any person, idea, or object over God.  It acts as a spiritual, emotional, or physical replacement for God, commonly manifesting as worship of money, power, fame, objects, or self. Consequences include spiritual emptiness, mental and physical illnesses, broken relationships.  Overcoming idolatry requires refocusing on God and His Word.

Different Forms of Idolatry

• Physical Idols:  Ancient Israelites often worshipped idols made of wood, gold, or stone, such as the Golden Calf (Exodus 32) or figures representing Canaanite gods like Baal and Asherah.  Exodus 20:3-5 You shall have no other gods before Me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me.

Interesting how worshiping physical idols are tied to iniquities leading to generational sin all the way down to the present.  Carved images include crosses we wear.  Jesus died on the cross as an atonement for our sins. Would we do the same? Our spiritual connection to God is not through carved images. 

• Modern/Internal Idols: Anything that absorbs the heart, mind, and imagination more than God, such as career success, wealth, reputation, credentials, education/degrees, or hobbies. God want us to seek Him first!

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Proverbs 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Psalm 63:1 O God, You are my God; I earnestly search for you…

• Relational Idols: Making family or romantic partners more important than God. 

When we make family or romantic partners more important than God, we are out of order says 1 Corinthians 11:3 But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.  When we make God first in everything we do and follow His Word, it makes God more important and makes our relationships better.

• Self-Idolatry: Placing one's own desires, pride, or intellect above God and His Word.  It is especially prevalent with addictions. Addiction is the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity.  It includes psychology, addictions.  Psychology addictions are defined as a chronic relapsing brain issues characterized by compulsive substance use or behavior despite harmful consequences. It involves functional changes to brain circuits related to reward, stress, and self-control, leading to intense cravings, loss of control, and neglect of daily responsibilities.

Common Addictions – Nicotine/caping, alcohol, drugs (illegal and prescription), caffeine (coffee and power drinks), gambling), social media, food, shopping, work, video games, television, sports, and apps like U-Tube, Netflix, HBO, Prime, and Apple TV to name a few.  These take us away from God.

To understand the addiction concept, we must understand the primary causes of the addictions. From a biblical perspective, addictions are understood as a form of idolatry, defined as "idols of the heart." In this view, addictions are more than just a physical or psychological dependency; it is a spiritual issue where a substance or behavior replaces God as the primary source of comfort, security, and peace.

The Primary Spiritual Root of Addictions

The primary cause of addictions is the unloving spirit.  The unloving spirit is contrary to God’s love.  God’s love is the greatest gift, 1 Corinthians 13: 13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Where Does the Unloving Spirit Come From?

We have been so tragically victimized in the family.  The failure in all family problems begins with the man.  The salvation of the entire family should begin with the salvation of the father/husband in the home.  God did not create woman to be the spiritual leader of the home; He created the man to be the leader.  The Bible says the head of the woman is the man, 1 Corinthians 11:3.  Fathers have a great responsibility to declare love to his self, the family, God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit.  How often do you declare your love?

When ministering to people my first questions are: 1. what is your relationship with your earthy father and 2. Has your father ever said these words to you “I love you” or if he did, you did not believe him because of the way he treated you?  Another question to ask is “Was your father engaged in your life?”

An Unloving spirit enters you when you have been rejected most often by your earthly father. The dad whose responsibility is to shower the children and mother with God’s love.  Specifically, declaring these words “I love you” over and over throughout their lives.  When someone who is supposed to represent God to you treats you badly, it creates a breach that only God can heal.  Many times, an Unloving spirit enters you because you have been a victim of abuse from others.  The people victimizing you will tell you it is all your fault. This happens in marriages, in families, and in any relationship.  God intended the father/husband to be in charge and represent himself as Godly figure to the family, as Christ is to the church.  Any violation of that produces an Unloving spirit.

The Unloving spirit and fear are linked together.  Both are antichrist.  An Unloving spirit is deeply rooted in fear.  Fear you do not like yourself, you are afraid of yourself, and fearful of what others may think about you. All of this is fearing into the future every hour day and even when we are sleeping.  Satan knows this and will continue to keep you in captivity with fear and the unloving spirit.  Fear will only go away by praying fear away.

The Progression of the Unloving Spirit

1. Feeling unloved or not worthy to be loved – This brings fear of not being loved.  The parents and especially the head of the family (father) failed to say “I love you.”
2. Rejection – Rejection from not being loved.
3. Anger – Angry because of not being loved or worth to be loved, and rejection.
4. Bitterness – Bitterness comes from anger built up over the years and even decades.
5. Unforgiveness – Not able to forgive those who hurt you because of the bitterness and anger.
6. Hatred – Extreme dislike at those who refuses to love them.
7. Depression – This is from fear, Proverbs 12:25 Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression. NKJV.
8. Addictions – Turning to addictions to fill the unloving void that will not fill the void.

Addictions have become their idols.  When you find an addiction in ministry, you will find multiple addictions.  This holds true for all ages.  Can you imagine how many sicknesses and diseases come from not being unloved and especially as we get into our sixties, seventies, and eighties?

Ministry For the Unloving Spirit

The ministry for the unloving spirit is not rocket science.  We teach people the causes of the unloving spirit and how to be delivered through scripture, prayer and our declarations.

Prayer: We confess unloving, rejection, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, hatred, and depression as sin to God. We ask forgiveness of our sins, and cast away all these sins in the name of Jesus. This must be done throughout the day every time Satan reminds us that we are not loved. 

Understand, that the unloving spirit has been tormenting us since Adam and Eve.  We must consider that the previous generations passed down the unloving spirit and to our current generations as well.  There is a prayer for canceling the unloving spirit from the previous generations because God give us power and authority as disciples, Luke 9:1 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.  Luke 10:19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 

Prayer: Father God, in the name of Jesus, I cancel the unloving spirit from the previous generations.  I cancel the unloving spirit as a partaker of the generational unloving spirit.  I cancel the unloving spirit in my children as a partaker of this generational unloving spirit that came down from me.  Amen!

What are the weapons against the unloving spirit? Using scripture as a basis of our declaration of prayer and prayer from us as the Holy Spirt leads us. 

Let us pray:  I receive God’s perfect love that casts out all fears that led to an unloving spirit.  I declare 1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. Amen!  Fear attacks us 24/7.  We must counter fear with 1 John 4:18. This scripture works only if you believe what God tells us in the Bible.  If fear is the biggest issue in the Bible, fear should be our biggest issue we must confront with our prayers to bring out of captivity.

Healing is a process.  The illnesses we have had for decades requires ongoing prayer until the illnesses are not an issue anymore.  We can’t afford to bring back the sin that caused the illnesses.  If we do, we will have to start the prayers over again to be healed.

We cannot continue to ignore what Jesus showed us to do in His ministry.  We must teach people how to come out of captivity thorough teaching and prayer in the church.  We must continue to pray without ceasing 1 Thessalonians 5:17 before, during, and after every church function.  Key to healing in today’s world is making yourself available for prayer so that you may be healed.  James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.  

Holy Spirit

 Holy Spirit Message – 2-18-2014

Last night I was driving to our intercessory prayer meeting and I started calling on the Holy Spirit to be present during the 12-minute drive.  I did this without ceasing until I got to the church.  Understand that I have on numerous occasions felt the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Many times, it was a heavy presence.  As I walked in, I could feel a presence a tad bit different, but I knew it was the Holy Spirit.  I felt a presence that was so special and I now know I don’t have to wait on Holy Spirit show up in church or wait for a special occasion.  I can call on the Holy Spirit and by faith, I believe in my heart that the Holy Spirit will show up.

I received a couple of things as I was praying later that night and I would like to share them with you.  In a time of trouble (rejection, unloved, stress/anxiety/fear/worry, anger, despair, loneliness, depression, hopelessness, etc.) we must remember that the Holy Spirit is “contrary” to these thoughts and spirits (Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another).  In other words, the Holy Spirit will not co-habitat with unclean spirits.  Therefore, we must call on the Helper, the Holy Spirit (Holy Spirit John 14:16,26) continually during spiritual attacks and especially when praying.  Trust the Holy Spirit to help us cast out these spirits that are tormenting us. We have received power and authority from God Almighty and we must use this in spiritual warfare.  Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you Luke 10:19.

This second thing I received is about churches.  Many times, churches have received a Holy Spirit anointing and with this you will see God working in these churches in an awesome way as with missionaries, bringing people to the Lord, teachings, and prayer for self and others.  And then you see a church lose the anointing.  It is as if the anointing was for a season.  Most often it is because the church lost their way and they failed to call on the Holy Spirit for answers and to follow the Word of God.

The message I got is tied to the Holy Spirit.  We as a church body must access the power of the Holy Spirit.  We must include the Holy Spirit in everything we do throughout the day.  We must operate in the Holy Spirit and when we do this, we will see the anointing of the Holy Spirit over the body of Christ.  The church will come alive.  We can’t leave the Holy Spirit out of the church body and when praying.  We can’t just pray “In Jesus name”.  We can pray this way when led: Father God, in the name of Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit….. God is the head of Christ and there is an order even when we pray, But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God 1 Corinthians 11:3. Jesus himself said this in Matthew 6:6  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Jesus himself said to pray to God the Father first. 

Just because we are gathered in a church service, we can’t expect the Holy Spirit to automatically show up.  It doesn’t mean that a church or a few may feel the presence of the Holy Spirit.  But we can call on the Holy Spirit and the promise in His Word is that the Holy Spirit will answer us and be there in church with us as we teach, pray and seek answers.

Psalm 50:15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”

 

Psalm 86:7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon You, For You will answer me

 

Psalm 91:15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.

 

Jeremiah 33:3 Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.

 

Isiah 58:9 Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;

 

Luke 11:13 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly          Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”

 

John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.  Verse 26 tells who the Helper is: But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

 

Isaiah 63:10-11 But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; So, He turned Himself against them as an enemy,

And He fought against them. 11 Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and his people, saying: “Where is He who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of His flock? Where is He who put His Holy Spirit within them.

 

It baffles me when I visit churches and leadership fails to call on the Holy Spirit before praise and worship, prior to the sermons, and why, we as a congregation are not led to call on the Holy Spirit either individually or in unison.  The Helper (Holy Spirit John 14:26) sent by God to us and is part of the Triune God here on earth. The most powerful presence here on earth.

I have been asking the Lord for the past three years to take me to another level.  In the last 6 months the Lord has made the Holy Spirit a focal point and I have shared this with my brothers and sisters in Christ the last couple of months as things were revealed to me

I will share tidbit that was revealed to me a couple of weeks ago. I was eating at a restaurant and it was imparted on me that we must access the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome the strongholds that really have a grip on us.  The strongholds we can’t seem to overcome no matter who prays.  We must access the Helper and the power that we have received when we were baptized with the Holy Spirit so that we can cast out those strongholds in our lives.  Acts 1:5 or John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Verse 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”  We have great power form the Holy Spirit. Why are we not accessing the Holy Spirit every day?

There are many that are hurting and are being held captive and we need to bring all out of bondage.  We need the Holy Spirit who is on earth more than ever until the coming of Jesus Christ here on earth. Tony 2-18-14

March 3, 2026 – This is just me, but I don’t invite the Holy Spirit.  The thing about invitations is people choose to come or not to come.  The Bible does not have a verse where we invite the Holy Spirit.  So, I continue to call on the Holy Spirit throughout the day.

·       I call on the Holy Spirt when I compose a teaching

·       I call on the Holy Spirit when I get stuck on how to structure a teaching sentence or paragraph 

·       I call on the Holy Spirit when I and we don’t know how to pray for others with sickness and disease

·       I call on the Holy Spirit at the beginning of a Bible study

·       I call on the Holy Spirit to show me how to pray for myself

·       I call on the Holy Spirit for answers because the Holy Spirit is never wrong 

·       I call on the Holy Spirit because God commands us to call on the Holy Spirit

·       I call on the Holy Spirit when I am in spiritual warfare

I have become one with the Holy Spirit and Holy Spirit has become one with me.  When you become one with the Holy Spirit, you become one with the spirit of God and Jesus. 1 Corinthians 6:17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

There were so many times when I didn’t get a message on what to teach until two hours before everyone was showing up for Bible Study.  I never panicked because I knew God would come through for me. There are many, many times when I started a teaching and God took me in another direction.

God is faithful but He expects more from us.  Not reading the Bible consistently is not an option.  Not knowing how to fight Satan and his posse is not an option.  Not spreading the gospel is not an option.  Not praying for people is not an option.  Only by reading God’s Word will we be able to win the spiritual, mental, and physical battle and improve our health, 3 John 1:2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.

I encourage you to read at least one page in the Bible each day. I encourage you to call on the Holy Spirit throughout the day.  It will forever change your life as it has changed my life and my relationship with God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen and Amen! Tony 3-3-2026

Ephesians 5:18 Don’t be drunk with wine (and this world), because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit.  Tony 3-3-2026

 Depression – This past week I encountered five people who are suffering with depression.  They do not feel things will ever get better. 

Most everyone including many children have bouts of depression at some level.  Yet, people will deny they are depressed. They don’t want to be judged as imperfect in so called perfect world.

Depression is a huge issue not being addressed by the body of Jesus Christ through effective prayer.  Bottom line is we have not been taught how to pray effectively.

Depression Definition – Depression is a common and serious mood disorder or a mental health disorder characterized by persistent, severe, and disabling sadness, sorrow, loss of interest, and changes in mood, sleep, eating, and thinking that interferes with daily functions.

Mankind tells us depression is caused by a complex interaction of genetic, biological, environmental, psychological, and social factors, rather than a single cause. Factors that increase risk include stressful (fearful) life events, personality traits, family history of depression. Depression is an emotional disorder.

Spirit of heaviness

In the Bible, "heaviness" signifies deep sorrow, spiritual burden, grief, or despair, often described as a "spirit of heaviness" that weighs down the soul stemming from hardship, sin, and spiritual oppression.

Psalm 69:20 Reproach (disappointment) has broken my heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity (sorrow/sympathy), but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none.

Psalm 119:28 My soul melts from heaviness; Strengthen me according to Your word.

Isaiah 29:2 Yet I will distress (pain and suffering) Ariel; There shall be heaviness and sorrow (sadness/depression), and it shall be to Me as Ariel.  Every

What Does the Bible Say About the Causes of Depression?

First, I want to focus on anxiety and despair.  Anxiety and despair often exist in a destructive, self-perpetuating cycle, where intense, uncontrollable worry (anxiety/stress/fear) triggers feelings of hopelessness and despair leading to depression. 

We must focus on fear and the many like words such as anxiety, worry, terror, dread, trembling, dismay, and afraid. Many say that fear and like words are mentioned hundreds of times in the Bible.  The Bible is telling us that fear is a huge issue.  God says Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, Isiah, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isiah 41:10.

Now, we can discuss what causes depression with a single scripture: Anxiety (fear) in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad, Proverbs 12:25 NKJV.  Why do we ignore this impactful scripture? It is not complicated.  Fear causes depression and it’s not from God, 2 Timnothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.  Fears are evil spirits and they need to be prayed out as I said in my last teaching. Prayer – Father God, in the name of Jesus’, I (we) cast out the spirit of fear causing depression and we send it to the dry places (Matthew 12:43).  We pray for healing.

Greatest Fears I See in Ministry

1. Fearing Into the Future – The vast majority of believers cannot identify the fears they are experiencing.  Number one fear is fearing into the future. Examples: Fear of not being loved, fear for our children, fear of losing our jobs, fear of dying, fear of nothing will change, fear of car accidents, fear of dementia, fear of cancer, fear of diets, fear of divorce, fear of being hurt, fear of getting ill, fear of being found out, fear of letting people down, fear of failure, fear of losing our wealth, and many, many more.  All of these are future fears that may never happen.  These future fears cause depression and many other health issues.  

What does stress, anxiety, and fear do to our health? It causes many health issues and especially hyper- tension.  Science tells us stress causes blood vessels to constrict (narrow) as part of the body's "fight-or-flight" response, releasing hormones like adrenaline that tighten vessels and raise blood pressure; while helpful short-term, chronic stress keeps vessels constricted, increasing strain on the heart and risk of high blood pressure, inflammation, and heart disease, leading to poor circulation and other vascular issues. So, fear causes high blood pressure.  119 million people in America have high blood pressure.  Do you see the correlation between fear and high blood pressure? It’s a mind-body connection.  What we think can lead to health issues.

An Unloving Spirt – Meaning, we don’t feel loved, not worthy to be loved, don’t love ourselves, don’t love others.  There is progression of an unloving spirit:  1. Feeling unloved. 2. Rejection. 3. Anger. 4. Unforgiveness. 5. Bitterness. 6. Addictions.  Addictions try to fill the void of feeling unloved. Unloving brings high level present and future fears.  It starts with our fathers who are tasked by God to love and nurture the wife and children.  This includes a failure by the father to say these simple words, “I love you” throughout the lives of the children and the wife.  Many say “I know my dad loved me,” but did he declare the words “I love you?”  My dad did not say “I love you” once in my lifetime.  He never gave me a hug or said I was a good boy.

For many of us, a strong spirit of fear has infiltrated our lives over the years.  We have become one with fear and we cannot overcome this fear (sin).   Fear will not give the person the ability to believe they can be loved or worthy to be loved and they remain in captivity because of an unloving spirit.

“Perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love” 1 John 4:18. We must teach others how to overcome the fear that is so damaging to their health.  It means making ourselves available for prayer so we can be delivered from an unloving spirt. We can do this by declaring our love to God out loud and receiving His perfect love every day.  Have you consistently told God how much you love Him?  Do you know how much God loves you?  God loved us so much He sent His only Son to die on the cross.  This simple uncomplicated prayer below can and will heal you.

Prayer – Father God, in the name of Jesus, I receive Your perfect love and I cast out all the fears that have caused depression and the unloving spirit. Amen!

There are many, many fear related sicknesses and diseases.  We must address each and every fear related symptom with effective prayer, James 5:16.

We and our children are being destroyed because we lack knowledge according to God’s Word, Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Lastly, I want to share a testimony of a person I have been ministering to for about four months.  I will list each issue and the healing outcome. This person was open to learning about the causes of his health issues from Biblical truth.  He believed and made himself available for prayer.  Our mind and body has to catch up with the prayer we received for healing.  Understand that healing is a process.  Very seldom is one healed immediately. 

Pimples in Back of head – Fear related.  He had this issue for 12 years.  The sores are gone

High Blood Pressure – This is one of most difficult things to be healed from.  This is a work in progress because it is a stronghold.  These only come out with prayer and fasting, Matthew 17:21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”  It takes ongoing, consistent prayer for breakthrough.

Hemorrhoids – This is an anger issue.  He had hemorrhoids for 20 years. The hemorrhoids are gone.

Lower Leg and Foot Numbness and Pain in Foot (neuropathy) – Primarily from bitterness at self, others, and, organizations such as churches, employers, governments, political parties, and others.  Bitterness causes Cortisol drip which destroys soft tissue such as nerves and bone marrow which produces white T cells for the immune system. 90% healed.  Key prayer was forgiveness for self and others.

Lower Back Pain – Prayed away the fear nesting in the lower back causing muscle inflammation that was pressing against the nerves resulting in pain in the lower back.  Pain was gone within 24 hours.

Shoulder pain next to joint – Same as the lower back prayer. Paing gone within 48 hours.

Plantar fasciitis – Same as the lower back prayer.  Pain gone in one week.

Arthritis – Arthritis in the hands.  Caused by bitterness unforgiveness of people. 80% healed.

Dark Knees – Specific to Hispanics and blacks.  I had to do research to know what caused this. Through asking questions, I found that he, his dad, and grandfather had dark crusty knees.  It was inherited according to scriptures telling us the consequences of sin, Exodus 20:5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me.  (Exodus 34:7, Numbers 14:18, Deuteronomy 5:9) All because of sin (immorality) and iniquity (deep-seated immorality.  This is a perpetual generations curse until the curse is broken by prayer.  The prayer to cancel the curse of dark knees or any generations issue is:  Father God, in Jesus’ name, we cancel this generational curse and as a partaker of this generational curse. We pray for healing from the curse.   He was healed of 30 years of dark knees!  Same prayer for any generational curse.

The point in sharing this testimony is we all can be healed just as this gentleman was healed. Jesus taught, but His prayer for healing and healing testimonies brought in thousands. Acts 4:4 However, many of those who heard the word believed (and were healed); and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.  Start a prayer and healing ministry and you won’t be able to hold the thousands who will come to be healed.

The Spiritual Battle – We are losing the spiritual battle because we fight in the flesh.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against (spiritual) principalities, against (spiritual) powers, against the (spiritual) rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places, Ephesians 6:12.  We have not been taught to battle in the spirit with Biblical scripture and prayer. Tony 2-5-2026

God's Order

God’s order is not something being discussed or taught in the body of Christ.  Yet, it is all about order in the Kingdom of God.  Let’s start off with a very important scripture in 1 Corinthians 11:3 But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 

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The head of Jesus Christ is God – John 14:28 28 You have heard Me say to you, ‘I am going away and coming back to you.’ If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, I am going to the Father,’ for My Father is greater than I. 

John 14:12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.

Matthew 6:6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Order and prayer is established by the words of Jesus Christ. We are to go to the Father God in Jesus name.

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The head of every man is Christ – Ephesians 1:22-23 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. 

1 Corinthians 11:3, "Christ is the head of man" signifies Christ's ultimate authority, source, and leadership over men, establishing a divine order where He holds supreme rule, similar to how God is the head of Christ, and man is the head of woman, emphasizing roles and submission within God's created structure, not inferiority. It means men are to follow Christ's example, submitting to His will as their ultimate authority and source.

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The head of woman is man – Genesis 3:16 “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.”

Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.

Questions we must ask: Who is the head of the family in most cases?  Who do the children go to first?  Who do the children go for comfort first?  Who makes all the decisions for the children and family?

The husband primary job is to nurture and love his wife and children as God loves us.  The husband is called to be the head of the wife and children.

The husband has ignored his responsibility as husband and father.  Basically speaking, the husband fails to do what is commanded in 1 Corinthians 11:3.  The wife has become the head of the family in the majority of families because the husband ignored his responsibility.  It is the fault of the husband. Not the wife.  She is doing what the husband/ father fails to do.  The Body of Christ fails to understand this and fails to do anything to correct this through teachings in the Bible. 

Is The church Out of Order?

This is what I am seeing in the churches I visit over the years.  I see a shift away from God to Jesus simply by what is coming out of the mouth from believers and the church.  I hear the word Jesus throughout church service and church functions.  God is not mentioned very often in most visits.  I see the church praying to Jesus when Jesuse himself said: But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

I am not taking anything away from Jesus, but God is the head of Jesus and God is the only healer.  Jesus, through God prayed for healing in His ministry.  Every prayer should start with: Father God, in the name of Jesus………...  This is honoring God’s order

Are Women Pastors Out of Order According to Scripture?  What does scripture say?

The following is a touchy subject in the church.  There is much confusion when it comes to women pastors as it pertains to the family and God’s order.  The spotlight is on women pastors in the eyes of the congregation and the family.  The result is the husband takes secondary role in the eyes of the family and the church.

God has ordained that only men are to serve in positions of spiritual teaching authority in the church. This does not imply men are better teachers or that women are inferior or less intelligent. It is simply the way God designed the church to function. Men are to set the example in spiritual leadership in their lives and through their words. Women are also to set an example in their lives, but in a different way (1 Peter 3:1-2, 5 In the same way, you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over 2 by observing your pure and reverent lives. Verse 5 This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They put their trust in God and accepted the authority of their husbands. Again, the husband is head of the wife, Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body Ephesians 5:22-23.

The Bible does not restrict women from teaching. The only activity women are restricted from is teaching or having spiritual authority over men. This bars women from serving as pastors to men. This does not make women less important, by any means; rather, it gives them a ministry focus more in agreement with God’s design.

God has always been a God of order from the beginning.  It is not for us to question God’s order.  It is not up for debate according to scriptures. We cannot compromise and ignore God’s Word.                                                     Tony 12-31-2025

 

The Mind-body Connection

 The Mind-body Connection – It’s a biological truth that the things we think about and dwell on actually become part of who we are.  We will never get to the spiritual roots of sickness and disease if we don’t first understand the biology of how our minds affect our bodies.  There is a mind-body connection with the hypothalamus being the switchboard from the mind to the body.

  

Hypothalamus - The hypothalamus is a small but crucial region that regulates many essential bodily functions in the brain which coordinates both the autonomic nervous system and the activity of the pituitary controlling body temperature, sleep-wake cycles, heart rate, thirst, breathing, digestion, blood pressure, hunger, and other homeostatic systems, and involved in sleep and emotional response activity without conscious thought.  It controls the release of hormones from the pituitary gland, which in turn affects other glands like the thyroid and adrenal glands

Functions of the hypothalamus

• Hormone regulation: The hypothalamus produces releasing and inhibiting hormones that control the pituitary gland, which then manages the activity of other endocrine glands. This is crucial for growth, metabolism (thyroid gland), reproduction, and more. 
• Autonomic nervous system control: It influences the autonomic nervous system to manage functions like heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing. 
• Thermoregulation: It acts as the body's thermostat, regulating body temperature. 
• Appetite and thirst: The hypothalamus controls hunger, satiety, and the drive to drink, helping to maintain fluid and electrolyte balance. 
• Sleep-wake cycles: It helps regulate the body's internal clock, including the sleep-wake cycle. 
• Emotional response and behavior: It plays a role in mood, emotional responses, and behaviors like sexual drive and aggression. 
• Reproduction: It is involved in controlling reproductive hormones and behaviors. the hypothalamus acts as a crucial link, taking signals from your thoughts and emotions (processed in other brain areas like the amygdala) and translating them into physical, automatic body responses through the nervous and endocrine systems, controlling things like heart rate, stress hormones (cortisol), sleep, thirst, and body temperature to maintain stability (homeostasis). Note: Cortisol is a vital steroid hormone produced by your adrenal glands that acts as a chemical messenger, helping regulate metabolism, immune response, and blood pressure, and playing a crucial role in the body's stress response (often called the "stress hormone").  Too much cortisol secretion destroys the white T cells that fights off autoimmune diseases such as cancer. 

 

How it works:

1. Receives Input: When you think something stressful or feel an emotion (fear, excitement), signals are sent to the hypothalamus.
2. Interprets & Commands: It acts like a command center, deciding how the body should react.
3. Acts via Nervous System: It triggers the autonomic nervous system, specifically the sympathetic ("fight-or-flight") system, increasing heart rate and diverting energy.
4. Acts via Hormones: It releases hormones (like CRH) that tell the pituitary gland to release more hormones, like cortisol, for a sustained stress response.
5. Maintains Balance (Homeostasis): It also regulates hunger, thirst, body temperature, sleep cycles, and sexual drive, ensuring your internal environment stays stable. 

 

Thoughts come from three places, God, self, and Satan.  Thoughts from Satan are in the form of temptations to bring us into sin every day.  Your thoughts, including emotions) create the "message," and the hypothalamus delivers that message to your body's organs and glands, causing physical changes that can result in sickness and disease. 

 

Fear – Stress/anxiety which is fear is mentioned a multitude of times in the bible.  It’s probably our #1 cause of medical issues.  Fear enters our brain and it goes through the hypothalamus and produces many, many, physical and emotional symptoms that lead to health issues such as high blood pressure, panic attaches, migraines, heart issues, circulation, and many more.

 

Unloving Spirit – The unloving spirit is interconnected with fear and the vast majority suffer with not feeling loved or not worthy to be loved at one level or another.  The unloving spirit can be passed down the generations and will affect us from the time we are born until we pass. 

 

Fear is not from God, 2 Timothy 1:7 God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Fear is from Satan and he will use fear to torment us and destroy us. 

 

I believe that the most effective prayer for this is:

Father God, in Jesus Name, I command the hypothalamus to stop taking destructive information from the brain to our bodies that leads to sickness and disease.  We take every evil spirit captive according to 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 and cast it away.  (2 Corinthians 10:4-5 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ).

 

If you have control of your thoughts and especially emotional thoughts, you have control over your physical body as it pertains to sickness and disease.  The only way to do this is through effective prayer.  We cannot get healed if we don’t pray.  Doctors and self-help will not heal us.

 

I will leave you all with this again: It’s a biological truth that the things we think about and dwell on actually become part of who we are.  We will never get to the spiritual roots of sickness and disease if we don’t first understand the biology of how our minds affect our bodies.  There is a mind-body connection with the hypothalamus being the switchboard from the mind to the body.

It is time for the church of Jesus Christ to make ourselves available for teaching on how to effectively pray for each other so that we may be in better health. 3 John 1:2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.                                                                  Tony 12-14-2025

Not being Healed?

 Why Are You Not Being Healed?

The above subject is not being addressed by the Body of Jesus Christ.  Yet, our health issues physically, emotionally, and even spiritually (unbelief) dominate our lives. Why have we been programed by science, doctors, and mankind to seek every alternative cure and ignore God?  The answers to being healed are not complicated and it is very frustrating people are not being healed even though God in His Word promises healing through prayer.  God sent His Son Jesus to show us how to pray for healing.  Luke 4:18-19 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”  So, why are we not doing this?

Five Things Keeping Us in Captivity to Sickness and Disease?

1.     We don’t read the Bible consistently to know that we can be healed.  Exodus 15:26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”

2.     Even if we read the Bible, we don’t believe we can be healed.  Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  Romans 14:23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin. Mark 9:24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

3.     God is not our first option for prayer and healing.  1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

4.     We seek doctors as our first option for a cure. Deuteronomy 4:29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

5.     We don’t make ourselves available for prayer and healing. Romans 12:1-2 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. 

It is completely baffling to me when people turn down prayer when it is obvious they are ill.  I can’t count the number of times people have rejected prayer.  I see people struggling with back pain, depression, cancer, plantar fasciitis, high blood pressure, immune diseases, nerve issues in the back/knees/shoulders, migraines, panic attacks, arthritis, circulation issues, anger, and many more who refuse to accept prayer and they continue to suffer. All of these can be healed or greatly minimized through prayer.

It is our responsibility as Believers in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and God to pray for the sick and diseased.  James 5:14-15 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save (heal) the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 

Prayer - Why are we not going to the altar for prayer?  Most often because 1. they don’t want people to think they are flawed when their sicknesses and diseases make it obvious, they are flawed, 2. the don’t believe they can be healed.  Perhaps we need to teach and encourage the flock to accept prayer.  Perhaps people would more apt to seek prayer if have a team praying for people outside the sanctuary before, during, and after church functions. Especially the seniors.

We must teach people that we all need prayer for our illnesses and it’s ok to confess our sins that have caused sickness and disease.  We can’t pray for people if we don’t know their sins. James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse (heal) us from all unrighteousness (sin). Proverbs 28:13 He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.

We all have a responsibility to do what Jesus did in His ministry whether it be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors’ teachers, Ephesians 4:11, or any believer in Jesus Christ. We must get everyone involved without excuse.  We must pray without ceasing, (1 Thessalonians 5:17) until we are healed.

We are in a spiritual war with Satan and his fallen angers who hate God’s sons and daughters.  Their goal is to kill us.  People must stand up and be leaders in a prayer movement against the one who is trying to destroy us and our children. Matthew 21:22 And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

We must understand that there will always be a cause of our sicknesses and diseases because we are responders to our sinful thoughts that will affect us physically and emotionally leading to sickness and disease, 2 Corinthians 10:4-5  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.  

Where do our thoughts come from? Is everything we think from ourselves? For Christians, some of our thoughts are from the God/Holy Spirit. Some of our thoughts are from us. Some of our thoughts are from the enemy – Satan.  Your body is a responder to who you are in thought.  It’s referred to as the min-body connection.  It’s not anything new to a believer.  God already told us, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he” Proverbs 23:7. God knew what He was talking about. It’s a biological truth that the things we think about and dwell on actually become part of who we are.  We will never get to the spiritual roots of disease if we don’t first understand the biology of how our minds affect our bodies.      

Prayer is a declaration/proclamation/decree that goes out to the three heavens.  We can speak (out loud) prayer into existence just as God did in Genises 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. Prayer is very powerful, but is rendered ineffective if we don’t pray. We can’t be healed if we don’t pray! 

The days of feel-good sermons and teachings must change.  We must hold each other accountable in the eyes of God and train up prayer warriors in the church to bring people out captivity as we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ  

Lastly, I hear so many say “I want to be like Jesus.”  Then, do what Jesus did in His ministry.  It’s not an option! Mark 16:15-18 14 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; Don’t ignore this commandment!                                                                    Tony 12-2-2025