Generational Strongholds

DeAnna Willman photo vitaly-gariev@unsplash

“O YHWH, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble, to you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth and say: “Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit…” Jeremiah 16:19

In Exodus God told Moses, “YHWH, YHWH, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children to the third and fourth generation.” This sounds rather harsh! Yet, it is a truth. No, children will not die due to their parents’ sins (Ezekiel 18:20), but they will endure the consequences of the parents’ sins in many ways. One of those ways is in the DNA that is passed down to the child. Remember, our thoughts affect our whole body, including our DNA. Our thoughts will turn on or switch off individual DNA. That DNA is then passed down to the child. Science has revealed that this will be passed down to the third and fourth generation, just as God declared.

A person is born with a predisposition to certain issues and dis-eases, but it is the thoughts and beliefs of the person that determine whether those issues become reality. A parent may, out of their self-hatred and self-rejection pass on the gene for autoimmune dis-ease. But the child will not necessarily develop an autoimmune dis-ease. It depends upon whether this lie is a generational stronghold, environmental factors (childhood home) and upon the decisions the child later makes. One who develops the disease very early in life is usually one who was born with the generational stronghold of self-hatred and self-rejection within the family line. One who develops the dis-ease later in life is one who has had the gene switched on due to environmental factors within the family and home, or through his/her own thoughts and choices of self-hatred and self-rejection. But science has shown that DNA that has been turned on, can be switched back off as the body responds to the mind. Just because one is born with the predisposition to a certain dis-ease does not mean they will automatically develop that dis-ease.

Each of us will affect not only ourselves with our thoughts, beliefs, and choices, but we will affect those around us and our children. We affect the future with our beliefs, thoughts, and choices! Is this not a good reason to be sure that our thoughts are aligned with God and truth?! To help our children at a young age to align their own minds with God and truth! We also affect our children with our example. If we model fear, our children will most often develop fear. This opens the door to the spirit of Fear to enter the child. If the parents are fearful before and during the pregnancy, the spirit will be able to enter the child within the womb. Same with all other spirits. It will be within them and have affected the DNA they receive. This is what it means to have the sins of the fathers visited upon the children to the 3rd and 4th generation.

Personal example: We can trace depression back 4 generations in my mother’s family line. We have learned that depression is a manifestation of low self-esteem, even self-rejection. Does the lie of low self-esteem also go back four generations? Yes! I do not know the circumstances within my great grandmother’s life, but I do know my grandmother bore the anger and bitterness of her mother that was expressed in awful forms of abuse. On top of that, my grandmother was ¼ American Indian and ¼ Irish. Both groups of people suffered great rejection among society in this country for a time. Yes, there was low self-esteem and even self-rejection living in the “house” of my grandmother. It was a generational stronghold that was never addressed and destroyed; a lie that was never corrected.

However, every stronghold, even those that have been within a family for generations can be destroyed. God said so! Through the Apostle Paul we are told, “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God and take every thought captive to the obedience of Messiah.” Strongholds can be destroyed with the word of God, with faith in God, with obedience to God, with minds aligned with God. HalleluYah!

No matter what strongholds or DNA you have received from your family line, you still have control over what becomes and remains a part of you. That’s a manifestation of the mercy and grace of our God in action within our lives! The sins of your fathers may be visited upon you, but that doesn’t mean you will experience the same dis-ease they have. You have a choice.

Now that you are already working on some of the strongholds in your life, take a look at some of the ones within your family line. What has come down the genetic pipeline? Ask our Father to guide you in this exercise. Ask Him to reveal things that may not be obvious. Some sins are not obvious or were kept secret. But, our Father sees and knows all. And Yeshua told us to ask and we will receive. As He guides you in this exercise, take on the humble attitude of repentance for the sins of your fathers similar to Nehemiah (chpt 9) and others in scripture. Then, take your own thoughts captive, recognize where you may be operating in those strongholds, come against them with truth, faith, and obedience, and watch the strongholds be destroyed as you walk in freedom. HalleluYah!

You are in my prayers this week. May there be the amazing rejoicing as strongholds are being destroyed and freedom being realized within your life this week! All glory be to our God!

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me!”

Psalm 51:10

I just wish to point out that I use the words generational strongholds, not generational curse. Scripture tells us that “a curse without cause will not alight.” Proverb 26:2. YHWH made it clear in Leviticus and Deuteronomy that curses come with disobedience. With our disobedience we bring the curses upon ourselves. Nowhere does scripture tell us that a curse will automatically be passed to our children. They may experience the effects of the curse, but it does not make them cursed. Their blessings and curses will be determined by their own choices. May they be choices of life and blessing!

Until next time…

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore, choose life that you and your offspring may live, loving YHWH your God, obeying His voice and holding fast to Him, for He is your life and length of days…” Deuteronomy 30:19-20