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                            Turn Off the Stew!

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By David Wilkerson
March 9, 1998
__________

          Everyone knows what stew is. It's the
          meat-and-vegetable dish you put in a pot, simmer in a
          slow boil, and then eat. Yet "Webster's Encyclopedic
          Dictionary" offers another definition. It describes
          stew as "a state of being agitated, disturbed." This
          same definition also includes the phrase "stewing in
          one's own juices" - meaning, "to allow trouble and
          agitation to simmer; to continue in a disturbed state
          of mind."

          We Americans tend to overlap these two meanings of the
          word "stew." Whenever we want to describe our troubled
          emotions, for instance, we use cooking terms. For
          example:

          An upset person is said to be "steamed." And a very
          angry person is thought of as being "boiling mad." When
          someone rages excessively, his "mind is fried." Indeed,
          human emotions are sometimes described in terms of tap
          water: hot, cold or lukewarm.

          Such expressions abound in the workplace. Many people
          describe their office as a "pressure cooker." The
          phrase "turning up the heat" means to put on pressure.
          When someone is lethargic, his coworkers say, "Somebody
          ought to light a fire under him." And when someone
          can't handle the pressure, he's told, "If you can't
          stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." Likewise,
          someone who's making progress is "really cooking."

          A house that's overheated is described as being "hot as
          an oven." And a frigid home is said to be "cold as a
          deep freeze."

          In this message, I want to focus on the expression
          "stewing in one's own juices." The fact is, Jesus
          taught eternal truths by using everyday illustrations -
          parables, stories and familiar expressions of his day.
          And I believe "stewing in one's own juices" is a
          modern-day expression that can reveal much to us about
          our walk with Christ.

                      -------------------------------

                         I Pray That What I Have to
                         Share With You About This
                           Expression Will Offer
                           Life-Changing Truth!

                      -------------------------------

          Not long ago, I preached a message about our need to
          show charity to those closest to us. In that message, I
          spoke about the sinfulness of being easily provoked.

          I was so convicted by what the Lord showed me on this
          subject, I determined to deal a death blow to this sin
          in my life. After much prayer and seeking God, I was
          convinced I had victory. I thought, "By God's grace, I
          will never again become easily provoked. I'll always
          stop and pray, count to ten, and trust the Holy Ghost
          to calm my spirit. He'll help me to turn the other
          cheek and walk away."

          Well, my "victory" lasted just four days. That's when I
          received a phone call from a close friend - a call that
          took me by surprise. My friend said something to me I
          felt was cutting - and I resented it deeply. It
          disturbed me so much, I cut short the conversation. I
          didn't hang up on him - but he knew I was truly
          provoked.

          That conversation lit a fire under my flesh. I was
          disturbed, hurt, agitated. And all my fleshly juices
          began to pour out: anger, indignation, grief. In short,
          I began to stew in my own juices!

          I began pacing around my study, trying to pray - but I
          was so bothered and troubled, I could hardly keep
          focused on the Lord. I prayed, "God, that call came
          straight from hell! My close friend put me down, and
          there was no reason for it. It had to be the devil
          trying to provoke me. I don't have to listen to that
          kind of garbage!"

          I allowed these thoughts to simmer for about an hour.
          Then, finally, I came to a boiling point - and I cried
          out, "Lord, I'm really stewed about this! I'm hot and
          bothered - really steamed!"

          That's when I heard God's still, small voice, saying,
          "David, turn off the stew - put out the flame right
          now! You're stewing in your own juices of hurt, anger
          and hatred, because you've been deeply hurt. But what
          you're doing is dangerous - and you dare not continue
          stewing!"

          I learned a long time ago that when the Holy Spirit
          speaks, it pays for me to listen. I repented on the
          spot and asked his forgiveness. Then I sat down and
          began thinking: "What was it that so provoked me? And
          why did I keep things stewing and simmering inside? I
          can't stay mad at this friend - we've been close for a
          long time. And I know I'm going to forgive him. So, why
          am I so upset?"

          Suddenly, it hit me: The stewing and simmering inside
          me wasn't the result of that hurtful conversation. No -
          I was angry because I'd allowed myself to be easily
          provoked again! I was troubled, agitated at myself -
          because I'd quickly fallen back into an old habit I
          thought I'd conquered.

          When I saw that I hadn't learned that lesson after all-
          that I was still easily provoked - I cried, "Lord, I'll
          never learn! You gave me this message, and I preached
          it to hundreds of people. But I don't have the victory
          in my own life!"

          I felt like a runner who had fallen in the race. And I
          began to weep inside, "Lord, I want so much to win the
          prize of being conformed to your likeness. But now I
          see I'll never make it! After all these years of
          walking with you, receiving your revelation and
          enjoying your communion, I still don't come near the
          mark. I still have anger in my heart - and I still
          react with self-righteous pride. Oh, God, will I ever
          be like Jesus?"

          Here is what the Lord showed me:

                      -------------------------------

                           Satan Is So Subtle and
                        Deceptive in His Temptaions,
                        He Uses Those Closest to Us
                              To Provoke Us!

                      -------------------------------

          Consider Job's experience. Who but the devil could put
          such hurtful words in the mouth of this man's wife? In
          the midst of their horrible suffering, she told Job,
          "Curse God and die!" Imagine how deeply those unloving
          words must have wounded this godly man - especially
          when he was so down and in need of encouragement.

          It was also the devil who spoke harshly to David
          through his brothers. When David's father sent him to
          the front lines of battle to bring food to his
          brothers, David's older brother Eliab said: "...Why
          camest thou down hither? And with whom hast thou left
          those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride,
          and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come
          down that thou mightest see the battle" (1 Samuel
          17:28). In other words: "You're here only because you
          want to see the spectacle of war!"

          Who but the devil could have taken hold of Eliab's
          tongue to say such demeaning things to a young man who
          had the call of God? Thank God, David didn't simmer
          over those words and slink his way home. Otherwise,
          God's plan might have been aborted!

          I think also of the angry, accusing words that Joseph's
          brothers leveled at him. Satan prompted those words -
          because he wanted Joseph to hold onto bitterness and
          spend years stewing in the juices of anger, revenge and
          hatred. Thank God, Joseph laid it all down. He didn't
          allow it to simmer!

          Even Jesus' brothers spoke hurtful words to him. They
          challenged his claim of divinity, saying, "...If thou
          do these things, shew thyself to the world" (John 7:4).
          In other words: "If you're really the Messiah, then
          prove it! Go perform your miracles in Jerusalem, so the
          whole world can see."

          "For neither did his brethren believe in him" (verse
          5). There's nothing quite as painful as being thought
          of as a fraud by your family. Only the devil could have
          spoken to Christ that way, through his own brothers. He
          wanted to provoke Jesus to anger!

                      -------------------------------

                       It Is Dangerous to Allow Your
                        Stew to Simmer - to Keep the
                         Flame Burning and Continue
                        Boiling in Your Own Juices!

                      -------------------------------

          Are you still stewing or simmering over some hurtful
          thing said or done to you in the past? Is the flame of
          anger still burning, bringing you to a slow boil, and
          yet you refuse to shut it off? If so, you are in danger
          of boiling over! You'll be burned by your own stew -
          scalded for life! The headlines are full of such
          examples:

          * A Bronx man held a simmering anger against society
          that he allowed to stew for five years. Finally, in a
          single moment of rage, it all boiled over into
          destruction. He ended up suffocating the seven-year-old
          daughter of his live-in girlfriend. The girl's mother
          held her daughter's legs while the boyfriend tried to
          drown her in a bathtub full of boiling water. When that
          didn't work, he used duct tape to close her mouth and
          nose, finally smothering her to death.

          * A man has been sentenced to life in prison for
          shooting the driver of another car. The convicted man
          had been an angry driver for years, seething with "road
          rage." It all boiled over one day when the other driver
          passed him, maneuvering one car ahead of him on the
          highway. The angry man then pulled up beside the
          driver, drew a gun and shot him to death.

          These examples from the world are extreme. Yet, how
          many Christians have no life at all because they hold
          onto a simmering bitterness, letting it stew?

          * I know a divorced woman - a Christian - who has
          wasted thirty years of her life. She's still simmering
          in anger at her ex-husband, who abandoned her. He's
          been remarried for almost thirty years - and yet she
          still curses him. She's stewing in the juices of
          bitterness!

          * A woman who's been divorced for eight years has a
          picture of her ex-husband posted on the wall - and she
          throws darts at it! All she's thought about for years
          is the hurt he caused her. And now the only life she
          knows is spending year after year seething in anger -
          boiling over in rage!

          * A young waitress who waited on my wife and me
          recently was obviously boiling over with bitterness.
          When we asked her what was wrong, she told us she was
          once a Christian - but she quit on God after a series
          of tragedies occurred in her life.

          A few years ago, her brother was riding his bicycle
          when he was hit by a car and killed. Shortly after
          that, her mother developed cancer and died. Then,
          within a few months, the young woman found out she had
          sugar diabetes.

          Now she was stewing in anger at God. She said, "If
          there is a God, why has he put so much anguish on me?
          He wasn't there for me when I needed him. He never
          answered any of my prayers. So I've dropped out!"

          That young woman is dying a slow death - stewing in her
          own juices! She admitted to us, "I'm numb - I don't
          feel anything anymore. I'm not living, I'm just walking
          around."

          Perhaps you can identify with her. Maybe you're
          simmering inside, about to boil over. You don't want to
          curse God - yet you feel he isn't there for you. So you
          cry out in frustration, "Lord, I feel nothing from
          you!"

          Consider these similar words, spoken by an anguished
          man of God: "...I will speak in the anguish of my
          spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my
          soul...my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather
          than my life. I loathe it...for my days are vanity
          [worthless]" (Job 7:11-16). Job was boiling over with
          frustration - seething because he didn't understand why
          tragedy after tragedy had fallen on him.

          Yet, Job wouldn't allow the fires of bitterness to keep
          burning inside him. He faithfully turned off the flame,
          until he could say, "Though he slay me, yet will I
          trust in him..." (13:15).

          Scripture warns us: "Grieve not the holy Spirit of God,
          whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption"
          (Ephesians 4:30). "Looking diligently lest any man fail
          of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness
          springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled"
          (Hebrews 12:15).

          God is saying, "Be careful! Don't let even a tiny bit
          of bitterness take root. No matter what has been done
          to you - no matter how you feel, or how unjustly you've
          been treated - you cannot carry a root of bitterness.
          It will kill you!"

          Beloved, if you refuse to lay down your bitterness - if
          you keep simmering, boiling and stewing - you can bring
          judgment on your home, your spouse, your children,
          everyone around you. And it can literally kill you!

                      -------------------------------

                          Only the Holy Ghost Can
                           Empower Us to Turn Off
                          The Fires of Agitation!

                      -------------------------------

          A bitter person will not listen to anyone's counsel.
          And a bitter Christian won't even heed God's word. Why?
          Agitation, bitterness and hatred shut the eyes and ears
          - and harden the heart!

          Occasionally, a person who's stewed for a long time may
          show some evidence of repentance. He'll say, "Yes, I'm
          trying to put off my anger - but it's difficult." Yet
          he leaves a tiny flame burning - and over time his
          bitter stew is brought back to a simmer.

          The prophet Hosea likens the human heart to an oven. He
          says this oven can be heated by the fires of lust,
          anger, agitation, bitterness, idolatry:

          "They are all adulterers, as an oven heated by the
          baker, who ceaseth from raising after he hath kneaded
          the dough, until it be leavened...For they have made
          ready their heart like an oven, whiles they lie in
          wait: their baker sleepeth all the night; in the
          morning it burneth as a flaming fire. They are all hot
          as an oven..." (Hosea 7:4-7).

          The bread that's produced in this oven represents the
          fruit of our life. Think about it: Like a baker, we
          take the dough of our life and knead in leaven: lust,
          bitterness, anger. Now, we may leave the dough on a
          counter near the oven, without baking it. And the fire
          in the oven may even begin to die out. But the fact is,
          the leaven is still at work - weaving its way through
          the loaf, spreading its decaying properties.

          Beloved, the leaven in your heart is hard at work right
          now. You may not be stoking the fires in the oven. But,
          eventually, the leaven will cause a rise. And, in a
          single moment of rage, it will bring forth the bread of
          iniquity!

          This describes the lives of many Christians today.
          They've got a little leaven in their heart - some small
          anger or hurt they've never dealt with - and they won't
          face it and repent. Instead, they simply turn a blind
          eye to it. They may believe their heart is clean,
          innocent. They may even testify, "I have nothing
          against that person. I'm not stewing over anything."

          But the leaven of bitterness is still at work in them -
          reaching into every area of their life. And the time
          will come when it will surface again, rising up like
          leavened bread - because it hasn't been dealt with!

          "An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man
          aboundeth in transgression" (Proverbs 29:22). Anyone
          who has a hidden anger eventually will stir it up - and
          he'll end up abounding in sin!

                      -------------------------------

                         There Is a Kind of Stewing
                           You May Do - and Satan
                         Will Do Everything in His
                           Power to Keep You From
                             Shutting It Off!

                      -------------------------------

          Let me return now to my opening story - about the phone
          call I received from my friend. The kind of stewing I
          did after that conversation is the kind Satan wants you
          to do: It's a stewing over your failures in your
          efforts to be conformed to the likeness of Christ!

          The apostle Peter says something very important on this
          subject: "For this is thankworthy, if a man for
          conscience toward God endure grief, suffering
          wrongfully....Who did no sin, neither was guile found
          in his mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not
          again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but
          committed himself to him that judgeth righteously" (1
          Peter 2:19-23).

          Peter has just described how Jesus handled every
          situation in life. When people hurt him, he didn't
          fight back. When they reviled him, he didn t threaten
          them. When they wanted to argue with him, he didn't get
          involved. Instead, he simply walked away. Even when he
          faced death, he didn't utter a word of protest.

          "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also
          suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should
          follow in his steps" (verse 21). Peter makes it clear:
          Jesus is to be our example of behavior.

          The apostle Paul adds, "If you don't have charity -
          that is, the love of Christ - you are nothing!" Yet,
          what does it mean to have charity? Simply put, having
          charity means putting up with a lot of things that bug
          us!

          According to 1 Corinthians 13, charity means showing
          kindness to everyone, with no exceptions...having no
          jealousy whatsoever...not boasting or promoting
          oneself...seeking others' interests above our own...not
          being easily provoked...not thinking evil of
          anyone...not rejoicing when someone falls, even an
          enemy.

          Both Peter and Paul are stating very clearly in these
          passages: "Here is our command to you: There is to be
          no fighting back, no revenge, no threatening among you.
          Instead, commit all your agitations, fears and
          bitterness to Christ. Follow his example!"

          Our hearts may answer, "Lord, that's what I want!" And
          we may set out to obey. At first we may get a few
          victories under our belt, and we start to feel
          confident about what God is doing in us. We tell our
          friends, "God is really working in me - and I'm
          changing!"

          But suddenly, out of nowhere, an arrow is shot into our
          heart. Someone says or does something that plunges an
          ugly, unexpected, acid arrow into us - and we quickly
          have a rush of angry thoughts. Then, before we know it,
          we're shooting poisoned arrows back at the one who
          crossed us!

          Not long after this, we realize we've failed. We'd
          tried hard - praying, seeking God, clinging to truth,
          and enjoying many successes. But, suddenly, the enemy
          came in like a flood - and we failed completely in our
          effort to be like Jesus!

                      -------------------------------

                          When We Fail, Acting in
                          An Uncharitable Manner,
                         Another Kind of Simmering
                         Happens - a Brooding That
                                 Condemns!

                      -------------------------------

          Suddenly, we're plagued by a sense of unworthiness. We
          turn inward, thinking, "I did it again! I haven't
          changed at all. I'll never be Christlike. Lord, I've
          been walking with you for years - yet I still react
          like a babe, not a mature Christian. Why haven't I
          changed?"

          Beloved, that is exactly where the devil wants you! He
          wants you to keep stewing over your shortcomings,
          worrying about a lack of growth, thinking the race is
          impossible - so you'll become discouraged and drop out!

          The author of Hebrews writes, "...let us run with
          patience the race that is set before us" (Hebrews
          12:1). You simply must have patience with yourself and
          with your growth. After all, the race is going to
          continue until Jesus returns. Yes, you're going to
          stumble, trip and get winded. But if you fail, you're
          to get up and move on!

          God's word speaks of overcoming: "For whatsoever is
          born of God overcometh the world..." (1 John 5:4). "He
          that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be
          his God, and he shall be my son" (Revelation 21:7).

          To overcome is to "conquer and get the best of all
          temptations and obstacles." What are our obstacles?
          They are every new reaction in the flesh, every failure
          to be Christlike, every uprising of temper, bitterness
          or agitation. These are hindrances to conquer and
          overcome!

          I believe multitudes of people who once served the Lord
          are now living in sin and unbelief because Satan
          convinced them they could never be Christlike. They
          kept making mistakes - and they reacted by beating
          themselves down, feeling like compromisers, stewing
          over their failures. Finally, they just gave up.

          I ask you - what if David had simmered and stewed in
          his failures? This man was exposed before the whole
          world as an adulterer and a murderer. He wrote, "...my
          sin is ever before me" (Psalm 51:3). "For mine
          iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden
          they are too heavy for me....I am troubled; I am bowed
          down greatly; I go mourning all the day long" (38:4-6).

          Yet David did not stew in his failures. He repented
          wholeheartedly - and he could say, "Thou hast turned
          for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my
          sackcloth, and girded me with gladness" (30:11).

          The fastest way to "turn off the stew" is to trust in
          Christ s forgiveness. And Christ is ready to forgive at
          all times: "For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to
          forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call
          upon thee" (86:3). "Who forgiveth all thine
          iniquities..." (103:5).

          Amen!

          Mt. Zion School of Ministry

          ---
          Used with permission granted by World Challenge, P. O.
          Box 260, Lindale, TX 75771 USA.

          This material is solely for personal use and is not to
          be posted publicly on other web pages. The Lorain
          County Free-Net Chapel holds exclusive rights from
          World Challenge, Inc. to publicly post these messages
          on its web page. You are free to download, copy, print
          and distribute this material, so long as you do not
          post it on a different Internet site. You may, however,
          link this site to reference these messages.

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