It's time to kick the enemy out of our homes and our of our family's lives. My wife and I recently bought an 85 year old Victorian home in Stephenville, Texas. We call it Vanderbilt Place and we run it as a rooming house. On New Year's Eve 2005, along with some friends, we prayed a blessing over the house. It made such a huge difference insofar as not only keeping the place occupied but also in the quality of renter we attracted from that day onward.
Later, after sharing this experience with a friend, a local business woman asked if we would pray with her over her business. Once we prayed, not only did productivity soar, but the strong ungodly element decreased dramatically, starting with the manager's resignation several months later.
Property
In this message, I did not want to get too ritualistic, thereby possibly inviting some other religious devil. Consider this a model; feel free to customize it for your needs. So, I'm keeping it simple and duplicatable so that others might be able to bless THEIR home...people like YOU! Don't wait for Sunday to do something spiritual...we are the Church, NOT the buildings! Don't wait for a minister either...you ARE one according to Scripture.
In America today, we tend to scream at societal issues and throw money at our problems. We do a great deal of finger pointing, too. What I'm proposing is that, house by house, American Christians must take back what the enemy has stolen from us. Starting TODAY! As they say, if you want something you've never had, you've got to do something you've never done.
Single parents, grandfathers, college students alone in your dorm, apartment dwellers AND apartment managers or property owners - if you are a Christian, you have the authority to take dominion over your dwelling place. Don't delay. Gather some friends and a bottle of virgin olive oil from the kitchen and start praying and anointing as the Spirit leads...first your place, then THEIRS! There's power in agreement so, regardless of their denomination, go for it! If you like, have communion afterward or sing some hymns. Here's what we're doing. Do likewise and be blessed!
1) TAKE AUTHORITY OVER SPIRITS THAT HAVE BEEN WELCOMED THROUGHOUT THE HOME'S HISTORY - LEAVE DOORS OPEN FOR THEIR ESCAPE. The Bible declares, "Submit yourself to God, resist the devil and he will flee." Here's a prayer you can begin with:
In the Name of Jesus our Messiah,and by the power of His Blood and His Cross, and the Holy Spirit that raised Him from the dead and now dwells within us, we bind all spirits in the air, and the fire and the water, in the ground and the underground and the nether world,and we bind any satanic forces of nature that have been assigned to this dwelling place. You will steal from us no longer! In fact, you will repay us sevenfold, according to Eph 4;28. "When the thief is caught he must repay seven fold". That includes sevenfold time, energy, money, health and anything else stolen from God's children.
We break all generational and word curses, hexes, or spells, or any witchcraft or occult activity that have been invited into this house - on purpose or by accident - throughout the generations past.
We bind the interaction and interplay of demonic spirits within these walls. And we claim the protection of the shed Blood of Jesus Christ over this house and grounds, and over every person who ever spend so much as a few moments upon this property. May they receive God's blessing!
We call out to you, Holy Spirit. Come now and fill this place, never to leave! We pray this in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Here are a few Opening Scriptures you may choose to start with:
"Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 1:7)
"Jesus said, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will go in..." (Revelation 3:20)
2) PRAYER OF BLESSING WHILE ANOINTING WITH OIL
Most loving God, we thank you that through faith in your Son Jesus Christ, you make us all members of your eternal family. We give thanks for all the love that you send to draw our earthly families together, to heal us, and to heal those who have gone before us. Fill this house with your divine presence, we pray. Pour out your love to deepen the fellowship shared here. Let your wisdom guide us, your trust free us, and your peace bless us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
We dedicate this home to love and understanding. May its joys and sorrows be shared and the individuality of each person who lives and visits here appreciated.
We dedicate this home to work, and rest and play. May our home have joy and high fellowship, with kindness in its voices and laughter running within its walls.
We dedicate this home to friendly life. May its doors open in hospitality and its windows look out with kindness toward other homes and those who pass by its doors.
We dedicate this home to cooperation. May its duties be performed in love, its furnishings bear witness that the work of others ministers to our comfort, and its table remind us that God works with us for the supply of daily needs.
We dedicate this home to the appreciation of all things good and true. May the books bring wisdom, the pictures symbolize things beautiful, and the music bring joy and inspiration.
We dedicate the time and talent of those who live here to help build a world in which every family may have a home of comfort and fellowship.
We dedicate this home as a unit in the Church universal, an instrument of the Kingdom of God, a place of worship and Christian training and a threshold to the life eternal.
With our hearts turned toward you, so our thoughts rise in gratitude to God for this home, and in prayer for God's blessings upon it.
Following are s few Scriptures and Reflections about Homes and God's Care:
1. The Bible teaches us that a home is far more than a physical building.
Proverbs 24:3-4
By wisdom a house is built,
and by understanding it is established;
by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.
2. We need God's presence, power and direction for our lives and homes to be fruitful.
Psalms 127:1
Unless the LORD builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
3. The Bible indicates that it is important to dedicate our homes to God. Before going into battle, the men in the Bible were warned to dedicate their homes!
Deuteronomy 20:5
Then the officers shall speak to the people, saying, 'What man is there that has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go back to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicate it.'
4. God told his people to write his word on the doorposts of their homes.
Many Jewish people today place a portion of God's Word on a parchment scroll in a container on the doorposts of their homes. They touch the scroll every time they go in or out to remind them that their homes belong to God, and what happens there is to be directed by God's Word.
Deuteronomy 6:6-9
And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your hearts and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
5. When a person dedicates their house to God, we trust that God responds to their commitment. When Solomon dedicated the temple, God responded, speaking to him.
2 Chronicles 7:15
Now my eyes will be open [says the Lord] and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place.
For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all time.
6. When people in the Early Christian movement gathered to teach and preach about Jesus, and to pray in the power of the Spirit, they often met in homes. Even today, there is a growing movement throughout the Western world - something our third world brethren have been doing for decades - meeting in homes or anywhere the Spirit leads them to.
Acts 5:42
And every day in the temple and at home they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.
Acts 28:30,31
[Paul] stayed two full years in his own rented quarters, and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the Kingdom of God, and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ...
7. Jesus can use our homes to minister to us and with us if we will welcome him.
Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
8. In his teachings, Jesus presented home life as a model of what it means to live a life in God's presence and love.
John 14:1-3
"Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms;
if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
9. The Psalmist saw God's care in a similar way.
Psalms 91:1-2
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, who abides in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress;my God, in whom I trust."
10. How will we use the homes God has loaned to us? Dedicating our homes to God is not a one-time act. It is an ongoing ministry!
Hebrews 13:2
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers,for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
11. We are accountable to God for the use of our homes and our hospitality. God honors those who consecrate the use of their homes to bless others in need.
Matthew 25:31-46
"When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.
Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats... Then the King will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was ...a stranger and you welcomed me...'
Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see thee...a stranger and welcome thee...? And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.
Final Prayer of Blessing:
Almighty God,we thank you for the desires of our hearts for this home and all who enter its doors,that all we have and do here may be in accord with your divine plans,that this home and its residents may be truly and completely dedicated to you, and to serving your kingdom.
We ask you to strengthen them in this commitment. We pray to you, O God, for this home, its occupants and possessions,that you may bless and sanctify them, enriching them by your kindness in every way possible. Pour out on them, O Lord, heavenly dew in good measure, as well as an abundance of earthly needs.
Mercifully listen to their prayers, and grant that their needs be fulfilled.
As we come before you, Father, bless this home & every aspect of it,
cleansing any misdeeds of the past, and leaving it pure, fresh and holy.
Bless this house, just as you blessed the homes of Abraham and Sarah, of Isaac and
Rebecca, of Jacob and Rachel.
Within these walls, let your angels preside and stand watch over those who live and
spend time here, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Pastor Michael has been accused of saying that which everyone else is afraid to say. He has written nearly 700 online articles since 1999. He has also written 15 books, all designed to challenge and strengthen the thinking person. His latest book, "8 Things I Hate About Jesus," is receiving great reviews and is now available at http://www.lulu.com/content/1472061