I knew the scripture regarding, where there is jealousy and strife there will be confusion and every evil work!
Look how James 3:16 spells it out from the amplified translation: "For wherever there is jealousy (envy) and contention (rivalry and selfish ambition), there will also be confusion (unrest, disharmony, rebellion) and all sorts of evil and vile practices."
When I see confusion, I look to see if there is also strife in a situation. Starlie and I have both learned to do this. I turned to her, "Are we good with each other, Honey? Is there any jealousy or strife?" "No, Mom, we're good!" she said. "Alrighty then", I declared, "Starlie and I are good with each other. There is no jealousy or strife here, so we command all confusion to leave this house in Jesus name! There is no opportunity for evil to work in this place! We release the Shalom of the Lord here! His peace rules in this house!"
First, we checked to see if it had a "right" to operate, and it didn't. If it had, we would have taken care of it by repenting and working through the issue and then forgiving one another. But since it had no right to be there, we took authority over it and commanded it to leave. We guarded our hearts to not get frustrated or upset with ourselves or each other for tensions can rise during the holidays and with events that we want to be especially nice. Notice that we released the opposite into the home. Peace was needed and His Shalom to rule! It wasn't enough to take authority over the negative, but we needed to fill the void with what was in line with the will of Heaven!
Also note confusion and strife can be sent your way as well. If someone is speaking negative about you even in another place, they are giving it permission to go to you. It's our place to keep ourselves covered and in check. "A causeless curse cannot alight" (Pro 26:2) If there is no "cause" don't let it stay! You can't stop the birds from flying overhead but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair!!!
If we would have agreed with the confusion and got upset with each other, we would have also given it the right to stay. See how this works? Don't just buy into whatever comes your way or "knee jerk" to a situation! We chose to stay in peace! We laughed, wiped up our mess, and said, "Glad we made extra!" Getting upset would not have put the potatoes or cranberry fluff back into their containers! We guarded our hearts and had a precious time with our family! (I wish I had learned this more as a young wife and mother raising kids! But it is never too late to put this into greater practice!)
As you go into 2018 can I encourage you to "count it all joy" (James 1:2) and choose to stay in peace? It comes by choosing to praise in all things instead of grumbling! It will keep you from confusion and opening the door for evil to work! Don't cry over spilled milk or potatoes!
