Fighting the enemy called familiarity or nonchallance

1 Samuel 3:18 “And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: LET HIM DO WHAT SEEMETH HIM GOOD”. 1 Samuel 2:30 “Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me forever. But now the LORD saith, be it far from me; FOR THEM THAT HONOUR ME I WILL HONOUR, AND THEY THAT DESPISE ME SHALL BE LIGHTLY ESTEEMED”.

It has been established that one of the hidden enemies of our advancement in life is the enemy called “FAMILIARITY”. This enemy attacks our spiritual fervency, vitality and productivity. Summaries from various dictionaries define FAMILIARITY as a state of acquaintance without any stimulus, vibrancy or appreciation, a state of maintaining relationship with indifference, nonchalance and without mutual respect and shared benefits. Familiarity, they say, breeds contempt. Familiarity makes us to become lethargic and nonchalant about important matters. It makes us to be fluid and careless with relationships and opportunities that would have added so much value to us. Familiarity makes us to have low-sense of value for matters and people of momentous significance. It does not allow us to place accurate value on opportunities, serious matters and events, thereby, leading to untold devaluation, depreciation and losses. Familiarity makes us to dissipate energy for that which is minor-to major in the minor and minor in the major. It is a state of exhibiting indifference for that, which is valuable and beneficial. It allows casual relationships between husband and wife, children and parents, employees and employers, leaders and followers.

It makes us to have distorted view of that which is ultimately significant and important. The Israelites suffered greatly because they were nonchalant and did not recognise the days of God’s visitation. Despite the fact that the LORD JESUS came publicly to announce His readiness to heal, deliver the oppressed and set the captives free, the Jews were TOO FAMILIAR with Him to accept and receive their turn-round, healing and breakthrough. They looked down on JESUS, saying He was a mere carpenter’s son. Matthew 13:55-58 says: “Is not this the CARPENTER’S SON? Is not his mother called Mary? And his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56 And his sisters are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? 57And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58 And HE DID NOT MANY MIGHTY WORKS THERE because of their UNBELIEF.”

All those who came to receive from the LORD in Scripture, PLACED GREAT VALUE on the Anointing of the Messiah. They did not come casually, but intelligently and faithfully to experience the Power of the Potent Son of the Almighty God. Blind Bartimeus, the Woman with the issue of blood, the Lepers, etc all recognised the Anointing of JESUS the Messiah. The value you place on JESUS- the LORD OF ALL- determines the degree of power that accrues and is released to you. JESUS the LORD said it severally that “according to your Faith, let it be done unto you.” Your Faith is a function and a product of your perception and recognition of the overflowing Anointing of JESUS – The Anointed One and His Anointing. Today, most people don’t get maximum benefits from the Word of God because of familiarity, indifference and non-challance.

Some people/Christians do not read their Bible anymore. They are obviously too familiar with God’s Holy Word; hence, they are not producing thirty, sixty or hundredfold from the incorruptible Word. It is quite clear that what terminated the Priesthood and Prophetic mandate of Eli- the priest was his indifference, non-challance and careless attitude towards God. Despite the repeated warnings about the imminent disaster, he refused to repent- he told God to go ahead and do whatever God decided to do. His Name did not appear like 1 Samuel or Second Samuel in the Bible. He lost his prophetic space and mantle to non-challance, familiarity and carelessness. Today, let us not take God for granted. We must not be too familiar with God and Spiritual matters. This year, you will not treat God with levity, non-challance or complacency. Come against every DEMONIC FAMILIAR SPIRIT that has been robbing you of spiritual fervency, dynamism and productivity in JESUS MIGHTY NAME.