Coronavirus: Protect Yourself God’s Way
We are now in the very beginning of a time of multiple crises God has been warning many of us about for decades. He is bringing down the kingdoms of darkness. Everything as we have known it is going to crumble, but at the same time God is drawing very close to his people. We must do everything we possibly can to be available to God so he can speak to us and guide us through these times of great trial. As the kingdoms of darkness fall and those who love darkness fall with it, we who love Jesus will be rising up in Christ and entering the kingdom of God on earth. We can expect miracles and supernatural provisions as we look to Jesus for all things and remain faithful to him in all respects. We will have many opportunities to witness to others about the power and love of Jesus, and we will demonstrate these qualities in our own lives before them.
There are things we can do in the natural to protect ourselves from sickness, but the most important things we can do are spiritual in nature. We need to live out of every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. In order to do this, we need to spend time with him every day. We must yield our lives to him so that he can live through us. We must love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and our neighbor as ourself. One of the greatest deterrents to this is pride, and pride is the very warp and woof of our sinful nature.
Pride and Judgmentalism
When we are in pride, we are critical and judgmental of other people. I have found over the years that this judging of others opens me to sickness quicker than about anything else. Praying to see others as God sees them will help with this tendency. We can be so quick to judge without knowing anything at all about the other person’s life and what may be behind the behavior that we are so quick to judge. One time my husband and I were on vacation and visited a little church in the area where we were. During the service, the preacher’s wife went up on the platform and sang a worship song using a background tape. The woman could not sing on key at all. I judged her in my heart assuming her motives for doing this were not pure. I got sick with a bad cold shortly thereafter. I knew immediately when the cold struck that it was because of my judgmentalism. For all I knew, she might have been worshiping with all her heart and God thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe she had just overcome fear of people and this was a demonstration of the victory in Christ she had gained. I had no way of knowing and therefore I had no right to judge her. When I did, the presence of the Lord must have lifted just briefly enough for me to get sick. Jesus has made it clear to me that I have no business judging another person’s motives because only God can know their heart.
Fear
Fear is another thing that opens the door to sickness. One time a satanically abused woman was living with us for a few months to ensure her safety. During this time she came down with the flu. She was incredibly sick with fever, congestion and a deep cough. This caused me to fear that I too would get it, but God gave me a prophetic word that if I would continue ministering to her without concern for my own health, he would protect me—so that is what I did. This necessitated my being close to her and letting her cough all over me as I delivered her from the demons that had been attached to her memories. I never did get sick.
This had a profound effect on me and released me from a very deep fear of being around sick people. However, a few years later I was again in a similar situation and allowed fear to come in again and I got sick. The situation was we were in a home church meeting and a man who seldom attended decided to come when he had a horrible cold. I made sure not to touch anything he touched and when I was in the bathroom, I dried my hands on toilet paper rather than the towel everyone else was expected to use. I was careful to cover my hand with toilet paper before touching the doorknob that I knew he had touched. On the way home from church I felt a horrible sore throat coming on me, and that was the beginning of a miserable cold that lasted several days. I realize colds don’t incubate in our bodies in that short length of time, but I believe this was supernatural to teach me a lesson. It was fear that allowed this to come on me because I chose not to act on the lesson I had learned previously when my friend had the flu.
After this experience, I have been careful to deny my thought to cover the door handle with a paper towel as I leave a public restroom. I never get over wanting to do that, but I remember the lesson I learned from the above experience, so I don’t do it, and I don’t get sick. However, I do carry my essential oils hand sanitizer in my purse and spray my husband’s and my hands before we eat when we are out. Again, I don’t expect anyone to follow my example but only do what God leads you to do. My experiences are just illustrations of how I learned not to fear sickness.
Each person must hear from God what to do for themselves because we are all at different places in Christ. We must also use common sense. When I was growing up my mother taught me to wash my hands with soap before a meal and to wash them when I got home from shopping, before preparing food, and of course after using the bathroom. To me this is just common sense and cleanliness, and I still follow her teaching.
Lies We Believe
Believing certain lies can make us more vulnerable to sickness. Sometimes we believe that if we do or don’t do something we will get sick—and we do. We never stop to think we get sick because of what we believe, and that if we didn’t believe it, it wouldn’t happen. Here is an example from my own life:
I used to get a lot of horrible colds. I knew that if I was outdoors without a hat on a chilly day, I would catch a cold—and I always did. If someone opened the window in our car and a cool breeze blew across the back of my head, I got sick, always. A few years ago a prophetic friend had a word for me from God in which God said that the only reason I get sick when not wearing a hat is because that is what I believe. If I would trust him and go ahead and let the cool breeze blow on my head, I would not get sick. I knew my friend heard from God and I could trust that word, so I allowed myself to feel the cool breeze and not put on a hat. I never ever got sick again from that cause. It was because I believed the lie and when I chose not to believe it, I never again had that experience. I believed it because it always happened, but it always happened because I believed it.
This is why it is so important that we be able to hear from God. My husband and I have been blessed in having prophets in our churches. These prophets have been people who suffered extreme abuse when they were children and even into adulthood. We ministered to these people and as we did so we learned that suffering opens the veil that blocks our ability to perceive spiritual things. These people, most of whom had been rejected by society at large and churches in particular, had incredible gifts from God that no one knew about because they rejected them. However each one of us should learn to hear from God for ourselves. This requires taking time to get alone with him every day, pour out our hearts to him and expect him to communicate with us. This, of course, is a huge topic that cannot be covered in this short article, but I do share more about it in other articles.
Replace Lies with Truth
If we faithfully read our Bible every day and seek the Lord in prayer, he will begin to show us things we believe that are not true. Many of the lies we believe have to do with our own identity—that we are not good enough for God or we are inferior to other people—things of that nature. Some of these things are best identified and also overcome in open caring, sharing relationships with fellow Christians.
Replacing lies with truth requires a renewing of our mind and one way we can do that is through memorizing Scripture. Memorizing a whole section of the Word is most helpful because when we are in a painful or desperate situation, we can calm our mind by reciting and meditating on passages of scripture that we have memorized. For example, many years ago when I was struggling with my own identity issues, I memorized Psalm 139. I remember relaxing afternoons floating on a little raft in my friend’s swimming pool and continually reciting that psalm silently in my mind over and over again. Currently I am working on Psalm 91 that deals with God’s protection in all situations we are now facing in our nation and world.
The most helpful and permanent way to memorize Scripture is to sing it. The website ScriptureSongsForWorship.com has the best songs for this I’ve run across. Many complete chapters of the Bible are presented there in song. This is how I am memorizing Psalm 91. I memorized it many years ago and then forgot a lot of it. Now that I’m memorizing it again in song, it is really sticking in my mind and I believe it will remain.
When fear begins to creep up on you, immediately begin quoting Scripture and singing it to gain control over your mind. I believe there is a supernatural quality to this practice. There really are demons that assail us and try to overcome us. They work on our mind to get us to believe lies and fall into emotional distress. They are rendered powerless by the Word of God. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. As we focus on his truth, his presence becomes very real to us. The songs we have memorized continually flow through our mind all day long if we have focused on them at an earlier time. It also helps if you turn off the TV and keep it off because it continually floods your home with lies and propaganda that is anti-Christ.
Another way you can strengthen your faith and release more of God’s healing power in your life is to personalize scripture verses and pray them. For example, Deuteronomy 7:15 says, “And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay them on all those who hate you.” Here is how I personalize that scripture verse: “I thank you Jesus that you will take away from me all sickness, thank you that you will not afflict me or my loved ones with the coronavirus or any other sickness that is coming upon this world.” The following are just a few of the scripture verses you might want to personalize and pray:
Exo 15:26 If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.
Deu 7:15 And the LORD will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee; but will lay them upon all them that hate thee.
Psalm 103 Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
1 Pet 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Luke 4:40 Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
Isa 58:6-8 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.
Rom 8:1, 2 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Prov 17:22 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
Isa 53:4, 5 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Rom 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. (“Infirmities” in Greek means “feebleness of body, disease, sickness.” Praying in a prayer language can add to the healthfulness of our body.)
Prov 3:7, 8 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
Prov 4:20-22 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
Hosea 6:1-3 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
Mat 10:1 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
Eph 3:20, 21 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
These are just a few of the scriptures one can use for battle against sickness. Memorize them, picture them in your mind and pray them. As you seek the Lord, he will lead you to many others.
In closing I would like to add just a few things you can do in the natural to protect yourself from sickness. Jesus told me many years ago not to eat sugar. Sugar lowers your immune system’s ability to fight off infections. He also told me not to eat grains. Grains would include not only wheat but also corn, rice, barley, rye, and oats. Grains are highly genetically engineered and turn to sugar in your digestive system. When I removed grains from my diet, I lost twenty pounds. That was in 2011 and I have retained my ideal weight ever since with no difficulty whatsoever. If you look around on the Internet, you will find many alternatives to grains and lots of great recipes. This will give you something interesting to do while you are in lockdown and it will go a long ways towards keeping you healthy.
Other things you can do to ward off sickness are take vitamin D3 which we have read is good protection from the coronavirus and take a good probiotic. Dr. Mercola has many excellent articles out now regarding protection from the coronavirus.
