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A Lesson in Plumbing
Insuring Flow Through Water Lines
by Ron Horner
Have you ever wondered why you weren't able to hear as well as you needed to, or why blessings that should be coming to you were not coming? Then this analogy may prove
helpful to you and give you some things to prayerfully consider so that you may hear clearly and receive all God has in mind for you to receive. This article won't cover every scenario, but it will cover some of the
most common ones. Read on.
When water doesn't get through a pipe and the water is turned on at the source, either:
a) the pipe isn't connected to the source;
b) the pipe is disconnected somewhere between the source and the destination, or the pipe has been severed somewhere between the source and the destination;
c) a valve is turned off inbetween the source and the destination;
d) a kink exists in the hose/pipe somewhere, or
e) debris is clogging up the pipe.
To determine the source of the problem you have to inspect some things.
First, determine if the pipe is connected to the source. Are you in relationship with Jesus? Have you given your life to Him and made Him your Lord and Savior. If not, then no
relationship exists for you (the pipe) to receive water. The pipe must be connected to the source. If you are not yet connected to the pipe, simply pray this prayer with me right now:
"Jesus, I have sinned against you and I am sorry. I ask you to forgive me of all my sins and take control of my life. I ask this in Jesus' name."
If you prayed that prayer sincerely, then you are now connected to the pipe. If you had already prayed that prayer and sense that something is affecting the flow, then read
on.
Next, check to see that the pipe has not been disconnected or cut in two somewhere between the source and the destination. Has something caused a disconnect? Has another party or the
carelessness of the plumber caused the pipe to be severed?
If this part passes inspection, then proceed to step three;
Thirdly, check and see if all the valves are fully turned to the on position. Valves that are not fully turned on will have restricted flow through them because that is the purpose of
valves – to restrict the flow of a substance through that valve or allow the flow of a substance through that valve. Turning a valve off or on is an act of the will. It cannot do it on its own. Someone must turn the
valve on or off. It is a choice to turn the valve on just as it is a choice to turn the valve off.
If the valve checks out, then proceed to the next step;
Fourthly, check to see if a kink exists in the line somewhere. Kinks occur when the pipe or hose has been placed in a position that restricts the flow. If the change in direction is
too severe for the hose to be able to handle and if the resulting kink is severe enough, the flow can be entirely interrupted from the source to the destination. The solution is to straighten out the hose to a less
severe angle so that flow is unimpeded.
If no kinks are found, or they are corrected and flow is still not obtained, proceed to step five.
Fifthly, search for debris clogging the pipe. Debris may have entered the pipe during its construction or may have been pre-existing in the pipe and was not removed prior to all the
connections being made. To remove debris, the lines must be flushed. They must be examined and the location or type of debris determined, then flushing of the lines can occur. You can cleanse debris by inserting a
tool to dig out the debris; or flush the lines with a liquid (often from the opposite direction of the flow using a substance that may have more force than the debris within the pipe can withstand. In either case, a
purging must occur whether by mechanical means or by flushing. Once the debris is removed, flow can be restored through the pipe and the destination can receive the needed substance.
Once these areas are checked, flow should be established to the destination.
What causes disconnects?
The severing of covenant relationships can cause disconnects that will not allow flow from the source to the destination. Severing of vital relationships; whether between
you and the Father, you and your parents; you and your spouse, or you and the spiritual leadership over your life can cause these disconnects.
Here are some things God has to say about these vital relationships:
With God
And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your
heart and with all your soul, That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the LORD's wrath be kindled against you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the LORD giveth you. Deuteronomy 11:13-17 KJVR
With Parents
God setteth the solitary in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land. Psalms 68:6 KJVR
Honor thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; Ephesians 6:2 KJVR
With Spouses
Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered. 1 Peter 3:7 KJVR
Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant. And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. Malachi 2:14-16 KJVR
With Spiritual Authorities
Sometime we have issues with those God has placed in your life to aid you in your walk. Your greatest blessings result from proper alignment and this includes relational
alignments.
Did you realize that God may have a leader do something that offends your flesh in order to determine your level of commitment to the greater purposes of the kingdom? What you thought
was an offensive act, was merely a test of character for you. Hopefully you passed the test. One aspect that is often forgotten concerning leaders is the fact that their lives are lived in a fishbowl. Everyone is
watching to see if they are going to mess up. Some are even hoping they will.
The Word has this to say about our responsibility to leadership:
Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with
grief: for that is unprofitable for you. Hebrews 13:17 KJVR
We don't like that word "obey". We tend to say, "Bless God, I'll not obey any man!" Really? Do you have a drivers' license? Do you pay taxes? Do you stop at the red light?
If you do any of these things you are "obeying man". Lay aside the rebelliousness and use some common sense. Those God places over your life are specifically anointed to help you in your life…if you will let them.
They can have all the anointing in the world, but if you don't partake of it, you will not benefit from it. Our "Americanism" of independence too often carries over to our spiritual walk and sets us up for failure
because we refuse to allow someone the option of speaking into our life. We must grow past this rebellious, two year old mentality. We must if we expect to mature. Someone once said, "You don't know what is in a
seed until you throw some dirt on it!" You thought someone was out to "hinder your ministry", when they were actually helping you discover what was in your seed.
Why are valves not turned on or only turned on partially?
Misunderstandings
Whether wrong understandings, or wrong teaching, we can cut ourselves off from the benefits of the relationship to the source. We may have been taught "God doesn't do that
anymore (speak, bless, etc.)…" when in fact He does, but because we believed what we were told, it causes an inability to receive. We must weigh what we believe against what the Word of God actually teaches. Our
misunderstandings of the Word must bow to the truth of that Word. Regardless of who taught us wrongly, we must be willing to release the false in order to obtain the true.
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: Hosea 4:6 KJVR
Trust Issues
You may not trust what is coming from the source, or don't trust that anything will even come from the source. Religion would have us to place more faith in the devil to
deceive than in God's ability to bless. Jesus addressed this issue in Luke 11:
And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Luke 11:9-13 KJVR
Trust issues are borne out of fear and as such impede our ability to receive. If you don't believe someone will catch you, you won't be willing to jump into their arms, will
you? If we ask the Father, the Father will do what is best. We often expect our heavenly Father to treat us as our earthly fathers may have treated us. Our heavenly Father is love and loves us with an everlasting
love. His desire for us is good. Our minds must be renewed to this truth in order to receive from our heavenly Father.
If we fully believe, we will be willing to open the valve completely and trust what is coming from the source. The less complete our faith in our Father, the less the valve will be
open and the more restrictions will be placed upon the flow through the pipe.
What causes kinks?
One reason kinks occur in garden hoses is that care is not taken to preserve the integrity of the hose. It can get bent out of shape allowing kinks to develop. These kinks
will restrict the flow through the pipes. Some kinks are more severe than others. Some kinks are minor and allow a limited amount of flow past them to the destination; others are more severe and may not allow any
flow through them at all. The solution for kinks is simple: straighten the hose out. Another reason kinks develop is because the hose forced to go in directions it is not designed to go.
Do we allow ourselves to go in directions we ought not to go? Are we determining the direction of the pipe, or are we allowing the master plumber to do his job and determine how and
where the pipe should be laid?
If you were to go to the local home supply store, you would find a variety of hoses of widely varying qualities. Theoretically, the more expensive the hose, the less likely
it is to kink. The ability or inability of a hose to kink is related to the integrity of the hose itself. Here are a few verses that apply to the principle of kinks.
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 KJVR
Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore. Psalms 16:11 KJVR
Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies. Psalms 27:11 KJVR
Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. Proverbs 4:14-15 KJVR
If, in our examination for kinks in the line, we find none that we have created, then we must realize that sometimes others try to cause interferences (kinks) in our lines.
Often, well-meaning people try to determine the direction of our pipes. It isn't necessarily up to these well-meaning people to do this – this is reserved first for the Lord to do, and secondly, for those who are
authorities (i.e. parents if we are under their roof, or other spiritual authorities in our lives) to do for us or to help us determine, but not everyone else.
Many people will try to guide you in order to fulfill something in them. This sometimes happens when parents (without consulting the Lord) try to live their life through their children
urging or forcing the child to do something because the parent wants it, not because it is the plan of God for that child. This displacement is a cause of trouble for many unsatisfied adults. Proverbs instructs us
to "train up a child in the way he should go…" (Proverbs 22:6). The key phrase is "the way HE should go…" not the way the parent or other person should go. This passage has far less to do with disciplinary matters
than it does in helping guide the child into their vocation—discerning God's direction for them and helping them to achieve it.
Now, let's look at the final issue.
What debris clogs the pipes?
The obvious answer to this is sin. Sin is debris, but this debris comes in various forms and is generally classed into two categories: sins of commission (things we do); and
sins of omission (things we fail to do that we should have done).
Offenses & Forgiveness
A primary arena to look at however, is the arena of offense. We live in an offense-filled society and because of that, not only are people easily offended, but many are
quick to offend. When you are quick to offend, you are often self-willed and selfish. You want your way at the expense of doing the right thing or behaving in the right manner. Many people live offensively and have
forgotten what has been called "The Golden Rule"
Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them…. Matthew 7:12 KJVR
Jesus gave some strict warnings to us about offense. Let's look at a few verses:
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be
in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Matthew 5:22-24 KJVR
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses. Matthew 6:14-15 KJVR
Unforgiveness is often the first place to look when we discover an interruption in the flow between our lives and God. If we are experiencing a failure to receive the blessings of God,
an inability to hear from God, or a sense of a loss of fellowship with God, then we would do well to begin a self-examination to determine the reason for the failure.
Remember too, that offense with those in authority in our lives can also cause, not just a build up of debris, but disconnects.
Taking offense is a choice. We allow offense a place in our lives. We forget that those who offend us are not our enemies. They have simply been used by the one who is our
enemy to bring us harm. We must choose to walk in forgiveness and offer mercy and not judgment. Our choices are only two: mercy or judgment. We cannot desire mercy for ourselves and judgment for someone else. If we
desire mercy for ourselves, then we must offer mercy to others – even the offending party. If we desire judgment, then judgment is what we will receive as well. We must be willing to give what we desire.
Choose to live your life offense free. In an easily offendable society, we as believers must live by the opposite spirit. We must choose to walk in love and forgiveness even if
everyone around us is not. Remember the prior verse that stated if we wanted forgiveness, then we must forgive. Our forgiveness is tied to our willingness to forgive. We hold the key to our own freedom!
We must realize that Jesus was that manifest expression of the Father upon the earth, now we are to be that manifest expression. We have no other option if we are to be called Christ's.
Sins (secret and otherwise)
The psalmist said:
Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion
over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my
redeemer. Psalms 19:12-14 KJVR
Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance. Psalms 90:8 KJVR
David realized that not all sins were public in nature. Some sins are known only between you and God. However, sin is still sin, regardless of how many or how few know about
it. If you entertain unclean fantasies in your mind, no one else may know about it, but your heavenly Father knows and you are still held accountable for that sin. You have the responsibility before the Lord to deal
with that sin responsibly.
Public sins – the ones the whole world may know about also must be dealt with. A principle proven by history is that if you won't deal with an issue privately, then God may bring it
out into the open so it can be dealt with. Look at the news reports of the past few years where the private indiscretions of some leaders became quite public when the offenders refused to deal with their issues. God
may not deal with everyone this way, but he generally deals with leaders in this way. He prefers private correction in lieu of public correction.
An old saying goes something like this: "The higher up you are on the flagpole, the more people can see your rear end!" Deal privately in the early stages with your sins, so that God
is not forced to deal publicly with them. God is not against you or trying to disgrace you. Rather, you, as a leader, have a responsibility in several arenas to live uprightly. God requires you live by the same book
as the brand new believer and neither your calling, nor any "anointing" excuses you from right behavior and obedience to the Word of God.
God understands far more fully than we do that sin destroys...not only the sinner, but that it can have multi-generational impact and can affect those in your family, your
friends, your co-workers, your fellow believers, and even entire nations can be impacted by the sin of one man or woman. Sin has a price called death (Romans 6:23) and though that death may not always be physical
initially, it may impact relationships (such as how adultery may affect a marriage), or communities (i.e. a mass murderers impact on the lives in a community), or churches (such as has occurred in multiple churches
throughout history when the pastor or other leader sinned and it cost the church influence, reputation, or in other ways.
Every sin is a "clogging of our pipes". It impedes the flow of the blessings of God and the hearing of the voice of God.
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us…. Hebrews 12:1 KJVR
Sin is not merely something we do; sometimes it is something we fail to do.
Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. James 4:17 KJVR
We may have chosen to not obey the Word of God, or godly instruction. We may have been urged by the Holy Spirit to speak a word of hope to someone and failed to do so.
The good news is this:
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 1 John 2:1
KJVR
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 KJVR
If we have sinned, we can obtain forgiveness. That's very good news! We need not allow anything impede us from receiving all God has for us and from hearing all God wants to
speak to us. His desire for us is good and we must continually allow the Holy Spirit to work His cleansing work in our lives revealing and removing sin from our lives wherever He finds it. In so doing, our
pipes will remain unclogged.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John
1:7 KJVR
Let us yield to His working so that all He desires may be done in our lives.
He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow. Psalms 147:18 KJVR
The Impact of Curses
Sometimes kinks may be the result of curses in our lives – whether generational curses or other types brought upon our selves by our own actions or words, or by others. We
can set ourselves in agreement with curses by actions or by the words of our mouth.
Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Proverbs 18:21 KJVR
Much more power is in our tongue than we realize. Someone may have said to you or about you: "You'll never amount to anything!" and if we chose to believe that (especially when those
words came from someone who was an authority in our lives, then we set ourselves in agreement with that curse and bind ourselves to it. It would do us well, to go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to reveal to us
any and all word curses that have been spoken over our lives that we have set ourselves in agreement with.
As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come. Proverbs 26:2 KJVR
A curse only can have impact if legal grounds exist for it to work. If we, as believers, are living a consistent, committed lifestyle of service to the LORD and are not
doing things that bring curses upon our lives we can stay free of fear that unjust curses will have impact upon our lives. We need not fear unjust curses. This is another reason why it is important that we live
offense free which we will speak about in the next segment.
Generational curses are those allowed to pass from our ancestors to us because of the sin(s) of our predecessors. It behooves us as believers to examine our lives and our
propensities to see if perhaps iniquity may be a factor…a generational curse is having impact upon us.
The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. Numbers 14:18 KJVR
These iniquities may take many forms including (but are not limited to) alcoholism (or other substance abuse issues), sexual infidelities (i.e. adultery, incest,
fornication, homosexuality, perversions, etc.), emotional/mental issues (i.e. schizophrenia, insanity, bi-polar, and other disorders affecting soundness in the mind), physical maladies (i.e. heart disease, physical
impairments, deafness, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.).
Clearly these propensities need to be broken so they pass no further through our family lines. [Pastor Larry Huch (http://www.larryhuchministries.com) has a great deal of material on the subject of curses and offers much more extensive information than can be presented in this brief article.]
Paul tells us:
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:13-14 KJVR
Curses can be broken off of our lives. If it is generational in nature, repent for the sins of your fathers (or mothers) (including grandparents and great-grandparents), ask
forgiveness for those sins, and loose every curse from off your life. Once the sin is repented of and covered by the blood of Jesus, it no longer has a legal right to remain…it has become causeless (Proverbs 26:2).
If, by the words of our mouth or actions we have taken, we have brought curses upon our lives, then we need to repent of the words or actions that gave it legal grounds to exist,
rescind the words or actions (take them back or cancel them), and replace them with what the Word of God says about the situation, hence undoing the legal standing by which the curse operated or existed. Break the
power of that curse from off of your life and cancel its assignment against you and any future generations so it is not perpetuated any further.
Curses from others may need to be recognized and their power broken and the assignment given by it cancelled from off of your life. It is the culture of certain false religions to
invoke curses against others (particularly of a revengeful nature) in order to cause trouble for the person being cursed. However, as believers, we can live in a place of safety from these things (see Psalm 91).
Undeserved curses have no legal right to impact you (Proverbs 26:2) and according to Psalms 7: 16, the mischief invoked will fall upon the one who invoked it.
Behold, he travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood. He made a pit, and digged it, and is fallen into the ditch which he made. His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate. Psalms 7:14-16 KJVR
Another option for curses is described in what happened with Balaam. God simply turned the curses into blessings.
Nevertheless the LORD thy God would not hearken unto Balaam; but the LORD thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the LORD thy God loved thee.
Deuteronomy 23:5 KJVR
God, being the final authority did not allow the curses desired by Balak to come upon Israel. God may choose to turn a curse against you into a blessing as well. In either
case, we would do well not to ignore the subject of curses when looking at their potential impact upon our lives. The purpose of such observation is not to bring fear, but simply awareness. The old adage, "what you
don't know can't hurt you" is not true.
People are harmed everyday by things they were not aware of. It is to our advantage and it is our responsibility to gain understanding so we can experience freedom and minister that same freedom to others.
It is time for you to perform a self-examination. Are you hearing clearly? Is the promised provision coming freely to you? Are you disconnected? Is the flow of God to
you restricted? Is their debris in your life? Take a sober look at yourself and take the prescribed steps to freedom. Much exists for you to do upon the earth and your greatest joy awaits your steps of obedience.
Jump on in. The water's fine!
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