It stops with Me

God keeps bringing me back to generations.

    In my own personal studies he's been speaking to me about Generations and these daily devotions and reading are lining up with it.

What are we building? What are we handing down? What are we teaching our children? What are we placing in the hands of the people coming behind us?

    I've spent a lot of time lately thinking about the things I want to pass down. My faith. Scripture. Worship. The lessons God has taught me. Even the old Supertones songs that helped point me toward Jesus when I was my son's age.

    But today's reading reminded me that generational discipleship isn't only about what I pass down. It's also about what I refuse to pass down. And I've had to do a lot of that in my own life.

There have been things God has had to break off of me, things I've had to unlearn, things I've had to heal from, and patterns I've had to recognize and finally say, It stops with me!

       But I won't pretend that work is easy.

It's one thing to recognize a pattern in the generations before you. It's another thing when God starts showing you where pieces of that pattern are still living in you.

   That's where 2 Chronicles 13 really spoke to me 

Abijah knows exactly what Israel is doing wrong. He stands there and gives this whole speech about their rebellion, their false worship, and the ways they've walked away from God. And much of what he says is true.

But if we look back at 1 Kings 15 it gives us the fuller picture and tells us that Abijah's own heart wasn't fully devoted to God.

     We can know what's wrong and still need God to get it out of us. We can recognize unhealthy patterns, talk about them and teach about them. We can say, “I'll never do that.” And God can still take us aside and say Okay, Now let Me show you where this is hiding in you.”

     That's where real generational change happens. Not when I can point backward and identify everything that was wrong. It happens when I'm willing to let God search me.

    Then Asa becomes king in chapter 14, and I love what he does. He starts tearing things down. The Foreign altars come down. The Sacred stones come down. The Asherah poles come down. Things that had been allowed to remain through previous generations were not going to continue under Asa.

    There are things worth preserving from the generations before us. I was taught Scripture. I was taught to pray. I was taught to worship. There are truths planted in me as a little girl that are still bearing fruit today. I want to pass those things down.

    But I've also had to stand in places in my own life and say ,No, it stops with me.

This hurt doesn't get another generation.

This unhealthy pattern doesn't get another generation.

This way of responding doesn't get another generation.

This thing I've carried doesn't automatically get handed to my children just because someone handed it to me.

                          It stops with me.

But saying “it stops with me” isn't enough. God has to be allowed to actually deal with it in me.

I have to let Him expose it, Heal it, Correct me and Teach me a different way. And there are moments when that's painful. There are moments when it's much easier to talk about what someone else did than to acknowledge what their actions produced in me. But I don't want to spend my life blaming previous generations while unknowingly handing the same things to the next one in a different package.

                            I want freedom.

And I want the people coming behind me to start from a healthier place than I did. That's why I love the contrast in these chapters. When Judah is surrounded in chapter 13, Scripture says they were victorious as they relied on the Lord. Then Asa faces his own overwhelming battle in chapter 14 and prays “Help us, Lord our God, for we rely on You.”

          There it is again.

Rely on Him.

    Breaking generational patterns isn't something that happens just through determination alone. I can't simply announce, “I'm going to be different,” and expect every deeply rooted thing to disappear.

     I need Jesus.

I need the Holy Spirit to show me what I can't see. I need His Word to correct what I've believed. I need His strength when an old response tries to come back. I need His grace while I'm learning a new way. I have to rely on Him.

    And Asa didn't wait until the giant army appeared to start seeking God. During the peaceful season, he was already removing what didn't belong and strengthening what did.

 We have to Do the work now. Let God search the heart now. Deal with what He's revealing now. Tear down what needs to come down now. Build something healthier in its place now.

I've had to do a lot of that.

    And when I look back, I can see places where God didn't just heal something for me. He was changing what would flow through me. That's what makes this generational.

Its not just about What did I inherit but also What will they inherit from me.

   I don't want to hand my children every battle that was handed to me. I know they'll have battles of their own. I can't clear every obstacle from their path. But there are things I can refuse to place there myself. That's part of building for the generations too.

We've talked so much about gathering stones to hand down. But we also have to move stones out of the way.

        Both matter.

I'll pass down the good.

I'll pass down the faith.

I'll pass down the Scripture.

I'll pass down the worship.

I'll pass down the stories of God's faithfulness.

And the things God has broken off my life?

They don't get passed down.

They stop here.

Love Pastor Mandy 

MandiesDandies / Ark of Hope 

Daily reading 2 Chronicles 13-14