I noticed that some believers have a hard time winning spiritual warfare despite having the gift of praying in tongues. I have seen believers spend a lot of time praying in tongues and fasting to break the enemy’s yoke over their lives, yet nothing seems to happen.
This led me to research why that happens. In the process, I discovered a very simple solution. In fact, the solution was so simple that it puzzled me how some believers fail to notice it.
It emphasized how seemingly small mistakes can keep many believers in bondage. There is even a Scripture that directly outlines the solution.
To make sure the solution actually worked, I implemented it in my own life. I noticed tremendous change within a very short time. I was amazed at how subtle changes could have such a tremendous impact on my life. Ever since then, I have never struggled in spiritual warfare the way I once did.
Today, I will be sharing the mistake that many believers who pray in tongues make and the solution they need to win spiritual warfare.
The spiritual blunder
I used to pray in tongues to break free from ancestral curses. I attended many night vigils and prayer services to break ancestral yokes, but I barely saw any difference. Despite the intense prayers, I could still feel the influence of ancestral powers in my life.
One day, I decided to ask God to reveal anything I needed to know about the prayers I was making. I believed I could learn something that would improve the effectiveness of my prayers. That decision led me to discover the simple mistake I had been making.
I still see many believers making the same mistake, and I do not blame them. It made praying for deliverance from ancestral powers extremely difficult. I was getting tired of repeating declarations without seeing any noticeable results.
Some of the friends I prayed with eventually quit praying and stopped attending prayer services altogether. That frightened me and made me wonder whether I would also give up. However, because I was determined to be free, I resolved not to stop until I received the freedom I desired.
My plan was simple: pray to be set free, and if I did not get the freedom, ask God to reveal what I was doing wrong. The plan sounded simple on paper, but in reality, it was excruciatingly difficult. Staying up all night praying against bondages that showed no signs of breaking was not easy. But because that was all I knew to do, I kept doing it.
While I was struggling through these prayers, there was another challenge. In church, we had been taught that praying against ancestral powers often comes with retaliation. Sure enough, as I intensified my prayers, I began feeling increasingly alienated from my relatives.
This was especially difficult because I was already dealing with rising tension within my family. I distanced myself from many of my relatives and cut communication with others. Some of them noticed and were unhappy about it. Nevertheless, I remained determined to be set free.
As I persisted in prayer, the sacrifices I had made eventually began to pay off. One of the greatest breakthroughs came when I learned the mistake I had been making.
This is the mistake I was making while praying for my deliverance.
The parable of the branch
The Lord revealed to me that I was like a man cutting a branch high up in a tree while the ladder he is standing on is being supported by that same branch.
This revelation puzzled me. “What is the branch the Lord is talking about? If my approach is wrong, what is the right approach? What will happen if I do not change my prayer strategy?” I wondered.
The revelation
Over the following weeks, the Lord revealed more details about the parable.
The branch represented my ancestral lineage. It was true that the enemy was using aspects of my ancestral lineage to influence my life negatively. However, my approach to dealing with the problem was completely wrong.
In Isaiah 11:1, the Lord speaks of a shoot coming up from the stump of Jesse and a Branch growing from his roots. Clearly, the Lord was referring to the Messiah, who would be a descendant of Jesse.
Later, in John 15:5 Jesus declares that He is the vine and His disciples are the branches: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Through these two Scriptures, the Lord helped me understand that He often uses the analogy of a tree to describe lineages. In my case, as I was praying against my ancestral lineage, I was trying to cut off a branch. The problem with my prayers was that I was still dependent on that very branch that I was busy cutting.
I depended on relatives for financial support, emotional support, and many other needs. If I completely severed that branch while still relying on it, I would collapse with it. For that reason, God did not allow me to succeed in my prayers against ancestral powers.
After discovering my mistake, I became curious to know the solution that the Lord recommended. The Lord then led me to a scripture that I had read many times before, but didn’t think much about it. The verse was Romans 12:21, where He instructs us to overcome evil with good; ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.’
While I was praying in tongues and seeking deliverance, I was trying hard to overcome evil. However, I was missing a key element: good.
My ancestral lineage had weaknesses that the enemy was exploiting to destroy my life, but there was no way to remove those weaknesses without replacing them with something. God’s recommendation was that I replace every weakness in my ancestral lineage with the commands taught by Christ.
In essence, I needed to be integrated into the lineage of Christ, and in so doing, I would be automatically set free from my ancestral lineage. The integration would require me to study the lifestyle that Jesus recommended, and live according to His commands.
God’s strategy had nothing to do with me praying against my ancestral lineage; however, through obedience to Christ, I would still get the deliverance I was seeking.
I knew the process would take time, but since it was the only path forward, I committed myself to it.
Instead of praying against ancestral powers, I began praying for understanding of Christ’s teachings. I devoted myself to studying the Word of God and asking for grace to obey His commands.
At times, I was tempted to return to prayers focused on fighting darkness, but I did my best to remain faithful to God’s instruction.
The process was not easy. The enemy continued exploiting weaknesses in my lineage to oppress me. Yet each time, I would pray for greater understanding of the teachings of Jesus rather than focusing on the attacks.
At times, it almost felt as though I was giving the enemy room to oppress me.
The breakthrough
After many months of diligently following the Lord’s instruction, I began to see change.
Although attacks still came, my love for Jesus increased. Negative thoughts and desires slowly gave way to a deep longing to worship God. I began experiencing God’s love more deeply than ever before.
Praying in tongues became so sweet. Before long, my mind was constantly focused on Jesus and His goodness. Barely did I think about the enemy and his attacks.
The transformation continued over the following months. Eventually, I felt very close to Jesus and very distant from anything evil.
That was when I finally understood why God instructed me to focus on building good within me to overcome evil rather than constantly fighting evil.
Sadly, many believers struggle to resist the urge to fight evil, yet the Bible teaches that evil is overcome through filling yourself up with good.
I admit that patiently filling your life with goodness while facing spiritual attacks is not easy. However, if that is God’s prescribed path to freedom, why not endure the process and experience lasting deliverance?
It worked powerfully in my life, and I thank God for the grace He gave me. Why should it not work for you?
Conclusion
If you have been struggling to experience deliverance, consider changing your prayer strategy.
Instead of cutting a branch you are still leaning on, lean on the Tree and allow the Lord to cut off the branch for you.
God bless you.