Serpent Proof!

Summer is winding down and for many of us that means it’s back to school for our children. Whether this is your child’s first year of kindergarten or final semester of college, or you have grown children with children of their own, as a parent or grandparent, we know you want to see your children excel and fulfill the dream that God has for each of them. You want to protect them from harm, and see them grow strong in the Lord no matter what they might encounter in their classroom and peers. And you can!

Jesus told His disciples, “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you” (Luke 10:19). What does this mean? It means that you have authority over spiritual forces that would try to harm you or your children. These “serpents and scorpions” are demonic forces that would try to influence your children through bad friendships, bad language, spirits of depression, drugs, doubt and unbelief, poor self-image… all kinds of physical, emotional and spiritual assaults. This promise is for you. Here are some ways that you can begin to release it for your family today:

1. Begin with Jesus! The only foundation that will stand through the storms in this life is Jesus, our Rock. If you build your personal life on this foundation, then you and your family can weather any storm. Matt. 7:24

2. Hearing and Doing God’s Word. The key to building a solid foundation is to hear and do God’s Word. Begin to instill this in your children from a young age by making God’s Word exciting and age appropriate. When our children were small we would read the One Year Bible together and act out the Bible stories with our children as the key players. It was fun and our children were getting God’s living Word planted deep in their hearts to shape them and guide them as they matured.

3. Pray the Word over Your Children. Make declarations from Scripture. Frame your children in the prophetic pictures God has given you for them. Speak what God says about them. This is something you can do with your children as well. Help them declare God’s promises in areas that they may struggle. If they have learning issues, they can declare, “I have the mind of Christ.” If they are afraid, “I have not been given a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind.” Etc.

4. Intercede for Your Children. In Genesis 18 we see Abraham serpent proofing his family. Lot has made some bad decisions and settled down in Sodom and Gomorrah. Yet even though Lot had made his home in the middle of a viper’s pit, Abraham’s prayers sent angels to go and deliver him from utter destruction. Don’t get discouraged if your children have taken a detour to a spiritual Sodom and Gomorrah. Keep praying for them. The beautiful picture we see here is that even when judgment was coming on the entire city, Abraham’s intercession brought mercy.

5. Take Authority. Matt 18:18 says “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.” You can bind satanic powers, and as you bind them, God binds them away from your children. Declare to the devil that he can’t have your family. As you bind the power of the enemy, begin to loose your children from spiritual bondage and oppression, declaring the promises God has for them no matter what you may see in their current circumstances.

6. Pray in the Spirit. When you pray in your prayer language you are building yourself up in faith (Jude 20). You are also allowing the Holy Spirit to intercede through you for your children (see Romans 8:27).

7. Set Godly Boundaries. Abraham was commended for commanding his children in keeping the ways of the Lord (see Gen. 18:19). God wants you to train your children in the way they should go when they are small, so that as they get older they will know His ways and follow after Him. Too many times we see mothers and fathers that treat their toddler’s demands as if they were in a debating society! When your child is 18 it’s a different ball game, but while your children are small, you set the values for your house. Like Joshua you can declare, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 25:15).

8. Release Blessing. One of the best ways to serpent proof your house is to learn the power of the blessing. When God created the heavens and the earth and formed man in His image, His first act was to bless them! When you bless your children you are releasing God’s benefits to them. Blessing makes things whole. Blessing releases prosperity. Blessing brings health. Combine blessing with faith and see God move on His promises on behalf of your children and family. We all need the blessing of the Most High God. You can release it for your household as you take your place as God’s priest for your family.

9. Break Generational Curses. When you bless, learn also to break generational curses. Rahab broke generational curses that condemned her entire nation when she hung that scarlet cord out her window. She saved her entire family. It was a type given for us of the power of Jesus’ blood. Curses are real and can come down generations. Different kinds of infirmities, lifestyles, addictions or oppressions that flow from generation to generation indicate a generational curse. Apply the blood of Jesus to your family and break those curses off your children as you release God’s blessing over their lives.

10. Praise and Thanksgiving. Praise and thanksgiving set the atmosphere for God’s presence to invade your circumstances. Enthrone Him over your house, your children, your circumstances with your praise (Ps. 22:3). Praise binds the enemy and makes his weapons powerless (see Ps. 150). The more you praise and worship the Lord, the more you will begin to see Him, His glory, His purposes, His promises. Praise will take you, “above the snake line” in the spirit realm and allow you to pray for your children from a place of confidence and authority in God and not out of a place of fear.

God promises household salvation. He says that He will pass on blessing to a thousand generations of those that love Him. He says that you will turn back the enemy at the gate. There is power in God’s word and His blood that will protect your children as you step into your place as His priest for your family. We wants to bless you and your entire household today.

If you want to learn more about how you can serpent proof your family. If you want to release more of God’s blessing over your children. If you want to see your children excel and fulfill the purposes God has for them, then you need to get our full teaching, Serpent Proof your Life and Family.” In it I, Mahesh, go into further detail about how to protect your children and how to release the power of the blessing over their lives.

Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda, 9/2/2010