James 1:12
Of course Satan cannot directly block God’s blessings in your life. Therefore, he takes a more indirect route by tempting you in ways that will lead to you actually blocking your own blessings that God wants to give you.
One of Satan’s favorite tactics to accomplish this is to get us to believe lies in the form of self-fulfilling prophesies. So here are 3 signs that could mean Satan is using a self-fulfilling prophesy to block God’s blessings in your life.
1. If Every Setback Leads to a Complete Meltdown in Your Life, This Is Often a Sign You Are Blocking God’s Blessings By Believing a Self-Fulfilling Prophesy
When I use this term “self-fulfilling prophesy,” I’m talking about a negative belief that you are actually causing to happen in real life because you believe it. I’m not saying that just believing something will make it true in your life. Rather, when we believe something, we often live as though it is true and thus create the necessary environments in our lives for this thing to actually occur.
For example, if you believe that every boss at all your places of employment are out to get you, this belief will actually cause you to act in a way that allows your bosses to dislike you. Perhaps they will correct a mistake you made, which is their job as the boss, but then you will interpret this as them just not liking you because that’s your belief. They will then feel your distrust and disrespect towards them and then they will naturally dislike you because of your negative response to their initial correction of you. You belief has now come true because of your own actions.
Or perhaps you have come to believe you will never get married but you really want to. But every time you start getting to know someone that seems to have some potential, you ghost them as soon as you have any doubts because you see this as a sign it’s just never going to work. Your belief has now come true because of your own actions.
The point is, self-fulfilling prophesies often reveal themselves through little setbacks always turning into major meltdowns. Because you have a negative belief, you are always looking to validate that belief. When you experience a little setback, you see this as the validation that your negative belief is true. You then overreact and actually make things worse.
To avoid this, we have to resist the temptation to believe the worst of God because oftentimes are negative beliefs are really a reflection of our disbelief in God’s goodness. Therefore, we must regularly take time to remember the goodness of God. As Psalm 103:2-5 says:
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
2. If You Are Projecting Past Negative Experiences Onto Present Opportunities, This Is a Sign You Are Blocking God’s Blessings
Experience is one of the most powerful teachers. For example, when you go through a bad relationship experience, it’s impossible to not learn something. But what you learn is not always the truth. And we often take valid lessons and overapply them to parts of life that don’t relate.
For example, perhaps you were in a committed relationship with someone you really loved but then they cheated on you. Or perhaps you were just starting to open your heart to someone, and then they just disappeared and started ghosting you. Or maybe you and someone started out wanting to please the Lord but eventually you fell into sexual sin together and broke up.
There are valuable lessons to learn form experiences like this. But Satan can also use these types of experiences to tempt you to believe lies. For example, if someone suddenly leaves you, it would be a good lesson to learn to not overvalue someone’s words and undervalue their actions so you are not falling for lies. But it would be wrong to say, “Everyone leaves. It’s just a matter of time.” If you believe that, it will be impossible to ever let someone get close to you, thus everyone will leave you because you are blocking everyone from getting close to you.
The key is to forgive people of the sins they committed against you so you don’t take it out on other people who haven’t actually sinned against you. As Hebrews 12:15 (NIV) says, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Notice how bitterness actually grows over time and will defile you. The way you chop bitterness at the root is by forgiving the people who have wronged you rather than letting those wrongs fester in your heart.
Offering others grace frees you from believing bitter lies that will keep you from the blessing of loving others.
3. Satan Is Tempting You to Block God’s Blessing Through a Self-Fulfilling Prophesy If You Are Believing Your Feelings Over Biblical Facts
“I feel like God doesn’t love me.” “I feel like God doesn’t hear my prayers.” “I feel like it’s okay to date an unbeliever if I really love them.” “I feel like I can live in sin and still be blessed.”
If our feelings disagree with what God says in his word, we have to disagree with our feelings. Believing your feelings over biblical facts is one of the fastest ways to get yourself into places you will regret.
Rather than allowing your feelings to shape your truth, you have to let biblical truth shape your feelings. By choosing to believe God even when you feel otherwise, you will be avoiding the trap Satan is trying to set for you.
As James 1:12 states, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” Don’t give in to false feelings. Belief God’s truth through the trials and you will be blessed.
