The Covenant Trumps Everything

It is always so great when you read something in the Word of God that encourages you to keep focused on Him instead of your circumstances.  Recently, as we were reading with our kids in the book of Exodus, for school, we ran across some Scripture that reinforced the fact that God sides with the Covenant.  If you have a Bible, you should get it out to follow along and read for yourself.

As you may well know by now, we believe and take great comfort in the fact that God always sides with the Covenant.  It does not matter what the Covenant references.  He always will support, honor, defend, and remember His Covenant.  When God makes a Covenant with His people He does so knowing the full ramifications of His doing so.  He knows that we may fall short of upholding the Covenant.  He knows that we will forsake the terms of the Covenant.  He knows that we may not always honor the Covenant.  But He ALWAYS will remember His Covenant.  Even if it seems to us that it would be easier to negate the full terms of it and allow it to be forgotten.  He honors His Word that He swore in the Covenant.

Exodus 6 is the beginning of the story of when God has Moses lead the children of Israel out of Egypt.  There is some very interesting wording that is used in this passage.  In verse 4 it says, "I reaffirmed my Covenant with them."  What Covenant was God referring to?  The one that He made with Abraham MANY years before.  He had sworn in that Covenant that He would give Abraham and his descendants the land of Canaan.  God did not need reminding of His Covenant.  Verse 5 says the He heard the groans of Israel and was well aware of the Covenant.  The Covenant was still the foremost thought in the mind of God even though it was over 400 years that Israel had been in Egypt.

Israel could not understand that God had promised them land of Canaan but they were stuck as slaves in Egypt.  They could not see the fulfillment of the Covenant because of the situation that they were in.  In verse 9 it says that Israel had become too discouraged by the brutality of their slavery.  However, their situation (being slave in Egypt) or the brutality of it did not negate or detract from the terms of the Covenant.  God was still going to honor the covenant and bring them into that promised land.

Whats does this mean for us?  It means that in spite of the horrible situations that we find ourselves in our marriages that God has not forgotten the Covenant.  It means that in the midst of the brutality of our current circumstances that God's marriage Covenant is still His foremost thought towards us.  It means that although our marriage may look like Egypt, He is taking us from Egypt into Canaan, the land of promise.  Do NOT misread this and think that we are advocating you leaving your spouse in order to find a new relationship to get into or that we are suggesting that your marriage is not the promised land and you need to be waiting for a new marriage.  What we are saying is this: God has not forgotten His Covenant between Himself, you, and your spouse!  He remembers it in its fullness and is currently working to accomplish all of it.  Even though your circumstances may cause you to doubt His ability to accomplish it, He will still do it.  Why?  Because God CANNOT lie.  If He lied even once all of creation would crumble because everything that is was formed by His Word.  Therefore, the words that He spoke when the three of you (you, your spouse, and God Almighty) joined into the marital Covenant MUST be accomplished.

What we must realize and what the enemy of our souls (aka the Devil) wants us to forget is this: the Covenant trumps everything!  The power of Covenant does not reside with the weakest of participants and, as a result, easily broken.  The power of the Covenant comes from the most powerful of participants and, as a result can only be broken by one more powerful that He.  All lies are subject to the truth of the Covenant.  All disobedience is corrected by the honoring of the Covenant.  All other ties are broken by the binding of the Covenant.  The Devil knows that the Covenant is  binding agreement.  He knows that he has no legal ground upon which to stand.  He knows all of this and wants you to forget it.  However, it does not matter if you forget or have moments of doubt; the Lord is well aware of His Covenant.  He remembers it.  He honors it.  He defends it.  Even at our weakest moments, and when we cannot see the Covenant because of the brutality of the situation, He is still powerful and is remembering His sworn Covenant.

You may feel like you are in Egypt: a hopeless house of bondage from which you cannot escape the pain of. It may look like there is nothing good that can come from this situation.  But do NOT stop standing.  You don't have to advance the Covenant; you just have to hold on to it.  He will do bring in the fullness of the Covenant.

It may feel like Pharaoh (the Devil) is not allowing the Covenant to come to pass.  But, do not forget what Exodus 6 says.  Verse 1 says, "When he (Pharaoh) feels the force of My strong hand, he will let the people go.  In fact, he will force them to leave his land."  And in verse 6 is the promise, "I am the Lord.  I will free you from your oppression and will rescue from you from your slavery in Egypt.  I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment."

All we have to do is stand, friend.  Don't give up.  Take comfort in the fact that He remembers the Covenant and is actively working to cause it to happen...even if we can't see it at the moment.  The Covenant trumps EVERYTHING!!  The Covenant never loses!!  The Covenant is never lost!!

Josh and Serena

A Mission or Just an Idea?

Dear Stander, 

A lot of people are NOT going to stand with you. My advice is to just stand, and pray that God reveals to you the people who are standing with you. Now, if you are unsure about your stand maybe THIS is the reason for the hesitancy you may see around you. I finally had to tell my friends and family that I was standing--no matter what--no matter HOW bad it got. AND if they were my friends then they would REMIND me that I said I would NEVER give up...and to NOT let me. Yes, I was THAT serious; IF I wavered I needed people to stand alongside of me, even if they thought it was crazy. I wanted them to REMIND me of what I said. It didn't get to that point. The reason was not because I was so strong but as we build ourselves up in the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to come alongside and encourage us DAILY, asking God to confirm His words in our heart it's really difficult to change our minds and go against the Heart of God. If He gave you a word to STAND, then He isn't changing your mind. He hasn't changed His mind; He is right there. WE choose to walk away from the mission. Family will SEE your resolve. Does this mean you won't hurt....oh, I promise you will. If your heart is soft it will WEEP with a pain you can't imagine. BUT this is GOD; he wants to give you HIS heart for the lost. Your prodigal is LOST. WEEP for them. "Standing" is not just an idea, if it is....you won't be able to stand for long. 

Now, some of you have children!  Many of your friends might think you are teaching them to accept sin and bad behavior.  In regards to your children, maybe this is the reason you are having the questions. In your stand, are you displaying faith in the impossible?  Are you steadfast?  Are you loving God and the sinner? Are you displaying your stand for the covenant?  Are you praying for the lost? How can this be a wrong example for your children? Are you excusing sin? My children, without doubt, KNEW/KNOW that sin is unacceptable and displeasing to our Father. They knew Josh's behavior was unacceptable, so it's not that you are standing for sin being right; God deals with the sinner. You are standing for the covenant to be upheld. Make sense? 

We have received DOZENS of e-mails the last month, and so many keep saying "our stories are alike."  Yes, because the master of deceit, lies, and evil is the same no matter the person. Satan seeks to destroy destinies, and he really doesn't have any new tactics. Things look the same, because it's the SAME spirit. 

BUT, be encouraged, the Spirit that lives inside of you is MUCH stronger, and if GOD be for you WHO can be against you? God is FOR YOU!!! He does impossible things!! Stand with Him! Gain confidence in your stand, and your friends will see that you mean business. Are you passionate? People want a mission--give them one!! 

"Finally,brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one." II Thessalonians 3:11

I will be praying for you. Thank you for sharing your stories with us; it helps us to know how to pray!  

Much love, 
Serena Abdelaziz

Bare Knuckled Books First Release

Many of you have inquired about what we have been up to this last year. Let us share with you, Josh just finished his book Zombie Killer: A Bare-Knuckled Approach to Christian Living.  It was almost a year ago that he was one of many featured authors at the 2012 Convergence Conference at Resurrection Fellowship in Loveland, CO.  It has been quite a journey for us to bring this book to publication.  However, the time has finally come for this message to be made public.

This book is about our need to die to our flesh daily.  Too often we assume that we can live our new-found Christianity through our old habits and vices.  When we try to do this we wind up discouraged and frustrated.  Many of us have given up the faith because we lost heart.  Hopefully, through this book the Lord will allow us to overcome the things that cause us to stumble in our walk.

We chose to make this book available through Amazon.com as an e-book.  We chose this avenue to hopefully reach more readers with the truth that is expressed within its pages.  Although we have released it exclusively for Amazon’s Kindle, you do not have to have a Kindle to read it.  You can easily download a Kindle e-reader for PC/MAC.  We have made it available for only $2.99, a reasonable price.  It is also available through Amazon’s lending library which would cost you nothing.  This is not about making money for us; it’s about getting the Gospel out.  And for those that don’t feel like spending the money to purchase, Josh will be making it available for free downloads from time to time.

Our desire is to have it ready and available for hard copy purchase in the near future.  However, that costs money.  If you feel led to contribute to investing in this ministry and the needs associated with this endeavor, you may contribute via Paypal. (see link below or on the main blog page) 

Our prayer is that this is just the first of many books that the Lord will pen through us.  Thank you for your belief in us and the Lord’s work.
            We will continue to speak into your marriage and help in any way we can. Many of you have asked if there was another way to see the life of a returned prodigal, and this will give you a picture of the things that were necessary to keep the zombie, in Josh, dead.  Feel free to leave reviews and comments on here or on Amazon. Thank you for your continued love and support, as we put ourselves back on the front lines of battle.

Josh and Serena

CLICK to BUY Zombie Killer: A Bare-Knuckled Approach to Christian Living

Like us on Facebook!

A Prophetic Repentance

From the prodigal to the stander:

There are some things that I need to say to you.  When you read this I may not even be at the place in my life where these words can actually come out of my mouth.  However, I know that somewhere deep down locked away in my heart these words desperately want to come out.  Even though I am sorry, this is more than just an "I'm sorry"; this is a prophetic repentance.

I need to apologize for who I have become.  Who I am right now is not the person that you married.  The person that you married would never hurt you or do you harm.  I am confused, lost, and sick.  I don't know who I am.  I cannot seem to find my bearings to get home to you.  I am so sick that everything that I once held dear I have forfeited and sold so that I could remain sick.  Any sane person would have sold everything to find a cure for their illness but I have sold everything so that I could become sicker.  The person that you married was strong and secure.  They were unafraid to put a ring on the finger and be called yours.  But the person that I was on our wedding day was replaced by a deranged individual that wants to hurt you.

I need to apologize for lying to you.  I told you that I would love you forever.  I told you that I would be there in sickness and in health.  I said I would be there for richer or for poorer.   I said I would love you for as long as we both lived.  Our love was supposed to be the one that made everybody else jealous.  We were supposed to be together until death.  When you ask me if everything is OK, I lie to you.  I'm not OK.  I have been struggling for a long time.  You have never judged me but I feel as though if I told you how I was struggling, you would.  It is my own insecurities that make me this way.

I need to apologize for being extremely selfish.  I have not cared for a moment about the consequence of my actions.  I have only been interested in the things that made me happy.  Actually these things I have been doing and involved in didn't really make me happy.  They appeased me for a moment.  It feels like I am addicted to doing the wrong thing.  My actions give me a temporary buzz but afterwards, when I am alone, I feel completely empty.  I don't remember the last time I felt complete.  Wait!  Yes, I do remember.  The last time that I felt whole and complete and truly happy...was with you. I want to come home.

I need to apologize for breaking your heart.  I took your most precious gift and tore it all to pieces.  I did not think for a moment about what I am doing and how it would affect you.  When we became husband and wife, and probably some time before, you gave me all the pieces of your heart.  The good, the bad, the ugly. You entrusted me with all those pieces.  And I took them and have used them as a weapon against you.  I took your heart, broke it, stepped on it, and spat on it.  I took the only thing that ever really mattered to me and destroyed it.

I need to apologize for destroying your ability to trust.  You trusted me to keep your heart safe.  You trusted me to act as though you were physically standing next to me, even when you weren't.  You trusted me to make decisions that were in the best of us, not just me.  You trusted me to share only with you my most intimate parts; physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  I took those things and gave them to someone else.

I need to apologize for failing you.  You used to lean on me for strength when you were weak.  I used to protect you from everyone.  I promised to love you.  I promised to be there.  You trusted me.  You loved me.  You were always there.  And I failed to hold up my side of the covenant.

I need to apologize for turning from and running from God.  He is the One that brought us together.  He is the One that was going to keep us together.  He still is.  However, right now I left Him.  I don't feel like I can even approach Him.  It feels like I can't come back to Him because of everything that I have done.

You know me better than anyone else.  You always have.  I think that is what makes all of this so difficult for you.  Who you see in me now is not who you have always known.  But the me you have always known is still here.  I am covered in sin, filth, and shame right now.  And I don't want you to see me like this.  It makes me feel uncomfortable.  That's why I always put on a front when we are around or when we talk.  I might come off as carefree and uncaring, or mad and unavailable, or cold and calculating.  But I have to act that way to push you away because the way that you love me makes me feel unworthy.  I know that you want us back together.  I do too but I don't know how to get there.

The way that I look on the outside is not how I feel on the inside.  I still love you.  But I put myself into this extremely dangerous cycle that I don't know how to break.  This cycle that I find myself is going to kill me if I don't get out of it.  Will you please help me break it?  Will you pray for me?  Will you pray that God finds my weak spot?  Will you pray that in that weak spot God pours His powerful grace though it?  Will you pray that His grace breaks me to my very core and allows the person that you married to be made right again?  Will you pray that who you know I really am to come back into the foreground?  Will you pray that who I have become is destroyed?  Because I want to come home.

I know that the road home is going to take a whole lot of hard decisions.  I know that getting us back to where we are supposed to be is going to take a whole lot of work.  And I am sure that I am going to act as though I don't want to do it.  But deep down, I am willing to do anything to get us back.  I want to come home.

Can I come home?  Will you help me find my way?

Your prodigal

This may not seem true to life for you right now but it is the truth.  You may never hear this from your spouse but this is what is going on inside of them.  These are things that you need to know.  This is a prophetic repentance from a former prodigal (Josh) that is now a stander.

Do not lose heart in your stance.  Your prayers do not fall on the ears of a deaf god.  Our Heavenly Father hears every one of your prayers.  Stand strong, friends.

Josh and Serena