Break the Chains: Praying Off Grief & Trauma

I'm going to be talking this morning about praying off grief and trauma. Thank you, Sue.

Can I just invite you into my mind for a little while, okay?

Into my life, into my week.

Wednesday night, I've told you before, when I preach on a Sunday,

my week is basically taken up by listening, hearing from God, hearing from you guys.

I heard from Sharon a couple of weeks ago, and I preached a message that she shared with me.

I heard from Sue this week, but wait, there's more.

On Wednesday night, we were studying the book of Mark, and it's the chapter

of Mark, I think chapter eight or seven, where it talks about honoring our parents,

honoring our mother and our father, as tough as that can be,

but honoring our mother and our father.

And we had a very full-on discussion about that. We heard of trauma.

We heard of grief that came from perhaps our relationship with parents and with

other people. So I decided there and then, and Sue, you weren't even there on Wednesday night.

And I decided there and then that I would preach on praying off grief and trauma,

not necessarily from parents, but just in general, praying off grief and trauma.

I'm just going to grab my phone because I want to read a text message to you.

This is a message that Sue sent me on Thursday morning, Friday morning.

Okay Lynn's not here today But the message says this It says Morning Tim As

Lynn was praying for you She had a word of knowledge To pray grief and trauma off.

Off you, off me, and look at different facets.

So I decided on the Wednesday that I was going to pray off grief and trauma

for myself, for you guys, for whoever wants to receive it.

And then Friday morning, Friday morning, 922, I get a message from Sue saying

that Lynn received a word of knowledge to pray grief and trauma off you.

Is that not God? Is that not God? So I know Lynn's not here today.

Well, she was, and I hope she will listen into this message afterwards because

it's powerful stuff. I know that what I'm saying this morning is right.

It's come from God and it's been confirmed. So I hope you receive this.

So I want to start by reading Isaiah 61 verse 1 to you.

Isaiah 61:1

It says, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me

to preach good tidings to the poor.

He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to all, to those who are bound.

So there's a battle that many believers fight that nobody necessarily sees.

They love God, they worship passionately, and they serve faithfully.

But deep inside, there's wounding. Deep inside, there is wounding.

They carry hidden grief.

They carry emotional scars.

They carry memories that still hurt. They,

They carry fear that they cannot explain, and they carry pain that maybe has never fully healed.

And the tragedy is this. Many Christians think that that's normal.

Many Christians think that that is normal, to have emotional scars,

to have memories that still hurt, to have fear they cannot explain.

Many Christians think that that's normal. That's part of life.

They believe this is just my personality, perhaps, or this is just how life

is, or this is something I will always carry.

But I want you to hear the truth this morning from somebody who still carries

hurt and pain in their life.

I want you to hear the truth.

Jesus died, not so that you could live.

Let me read that again. Jesus did not die so you could live saved but wounded.

He didn't die for us to live a wounded life. He died so that we could be set free.

He died so you could live free. He died so you could live whole.

He died so that your life could be restored and that you could be healed in your soul.

Now, you all know my background, I think. An ex-policeman, 20 years of policing,

saw some horrific things, still bring nightmares, still bring panic attacks to my life.

But God didn't die so I could live like that. He died so that I could be set free.

He died so that you guys could be set free from your wounds,

your grief, and your trauma.

Trauma is one of Satan's greatest weapons and most powerful weapons.

The enemy uses trauma because it damages our identity.

It distorts trust in our lives. You know, we're talking about honoring father and mother.

Very often, we might be in an abusive relationship with our father or our mother,

and that projects to how we see God. It distorts the truth.

It distorts the truth. It creates

fear cycles in our lives, and it weakens spiritual authority in our lives.

Trauma keeps believers stuck in survival mode, and that's not how Jesus wants

us to live, in survival mode. He wants us to live in freedom.

Trauma keeps us stuck in survival mode, always guarded, always anxious.

Always bracing for the next hurt.

But the scripture says this in John 10, 10, it says the thief's purpose is to

steal and kill and destroy. But my purpose, Jesus' purpose, is to give them

a rich and satisfying life.

Trauma is one of the ways the enemy tries to steal our peace,

to kill our joy, to destroy confidence.

But Jesus came to destroy that destruction.

Jesus is not just a saviour. He's an incredible saviour, but he's also a healer of our souls. Okay?

Many people accept Jesus as their saviour. Hallelujah.

That's what we are here for, to draw people to accept Jesus as their Lord and saviour.

But I wonder why they necessarily do not allow Jesus to be their healer as well.

Psalm 47 verse 3 says it very clearly. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Psalms 47:3

He heals the brokenhearted and he heals up their wounds. Notice God does not just forgive sins.

He heals emotional wounds. He restores shattered places and he binds what life broke.

And this is crucial because,

God does not ignore our pain. He targets it. He targets our pain.

Trauma begins perhaps as an event, okay?

In my case, seeing countless death,

seeing countless dead bodies, seeing ridiculous amounts of lives that were taken

way too soon, violently, without any understanding why that would happen.

So trauma sometimes starts as an event like in that case, but it becomes a stronghold

in our life when pain stays unresolved,

when fear is never released, and when lies take root in our souls.

Strongholds sound like this. These are some examples of some strongholds. I'll never trust again.

I'm not safe. I'm not worthy. and I'm always alone. I'm always alone.

But the scripture says this, the truth says in 2 Corinthians 10 and verse 5,

we are destroying sophisticated arguments and every exalted and proud thing

that sets itself up against the true knowledge of God.

And we are taking every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ.

And this includes the lies planted by trauma in our lives.

Jesus came specifically to break emotional bondage in our lives.

Look again at Isaiah 61. Jesus came to heal the brokenhearted.

He came to proclaim freedom to the captives.

He came to release prisoners from darkness. He came to comfort those who mourn.

And he came to replace heaviness with joy, with joy.

And this is not just symbolic language either. This is literal spiritual reality.

Jesus is not intimidated by trauma. Jesus specializes in trauma. He does.

You can be spiritually alive in your life.

You can be eternally secure in your life, yet emotionally imprisoned. Why is that?

Why is that? Because salvation deals with our sin. We sang about it this morning.

Andrew spoke about it this morning.

Salvation deals with sin, but healing deals with our wounds.

Okay. And many believers never bring their wounds to God.

They bury them and they just come out occasionally, you know,

in the form of an anger burst or a panic attack or something like that.

They bury them. They manage them.

They manage them. They live around them. But God is saying, no more managing.

Today, I am breaking chains.

I'm take breaking chains of bondage in your life today.

Trauma does not leave quietly either.

It must be confronted. It must be confronted with truth, authority,

and the power of the Holy Spirit. That's what we confront it with.

Because Scripture says in 1 Corinthians 4 verse 20, the kingdom of God is not

1 Corinthians 4:20

based on talk, but on power.

On power. And today, this is not just a teaching.

Today, this is a power message. Receive it.

God wants us completely free. God wants me completely free. Hear this prophetic truth this morning.

God does not want you partially healed. He wants your mind free.

He wants your emotions free. He wants your heart restored, and he wants peace

established in your body, in your life.

Because you cannot carry revival in your life while you carry trauma in your life.

You cannot move in bold faith while bound with fear. Today, God is preparing us.

He's preparing me. He's preparing you guys. He's preparing people who are listening

in for greater authority,

greater peace, hallelujah, and greater spiritual capacity by removing the weight of past wounds.

Will you let them go with me?

I sense strongly in the spirit this morning, today is a day of freedom.

Not just encouragement, it's been encouraging. Not just comfort,

I feel comforted, but freedom.

Freedom today for each and every one of us. Chains are about to break.

Strongholds are about to collapse and heavy burdens are about to lift.

Okay. This is what I hear God saying that he wants to target this morning, okay?

Trauma from childhood rejection.

Trauma from childhood rejection.

Trauma from abusive relationships.

Trauma from betrayal by trusted people. Trauma from sudden loss.

Trauma from frightening life events. God's targeting those things this morning, I hear.

Frightening life events. If you know you're carrying trauma this morning,

if you know you're carrying emotional wounds this morning, if you know you're

carrying grief that's never healed,

and if you know you're carrying a fear that's rooted in past events,

then I would love for you to stand with me right now, because I'm standing with you.

Hear the word of the Lord this morning. What has tormented you will not follow you into your future.

Today, trauma loses its power in our lives.

Today, fear loses its voice and pain loses its grip in our lives.

I've seen you standing, Gene.

You can sit back down again if you need to. But you've taken a step of faith.

You've taken a step of faith.

The Spirit of the Lord is here with each and every one of us this morning.

And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom in our lives.

If you know that this is you, then stay standing. Stay standing.

Josh, do you want to come? You're already there.

I thought I heard a keyboard. I thought, oh, Josh, come.

There's freedom this morning.

Deliverance requires participation, okay?

You're not here just to observe.

You're here to fight for your freedom today. I'm here to fight for my freedom today.

Repeat after me as I pray and repeat loudly so that God hears,

the devil hears, and even you here, okay?

So repeat after me loudly. In the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.

I renounce every spirit connected to trauma. I renounce every spirit connected

to trauma. I renounce fear.

I renounce fear. I renounce torment.

I renounce emotional bondage. I renounce emotional bondage. I renounce every lie spoken over my life.

Spoken over my life. My past will not control my future. My past will not control that future.

I belong to Jesus. I belong to Jesus.

In the name of Jesus Christ, I break the spirit of trauma off your life this

morning. I break the spirit of fear off your life this morning.

I break the spirit of rejection off your life this morning.

I break the spirit of grief and heaviness off your life this morning,

and I break the spirit of emotional torment.

Every chain, break now.

Every stronghold, collapse now. Every tormenting memory, lose your power now

in the mighty name of Jesus.

Fire of the Holy Spirit, come and burn out pain that's stored in our souls.

Burn out pain that's stored in our bodies and burnout lies embedded in our mind.

Let healing flow through every wounded place in this place this morning. Hallelujah.

Now some of you may feel this morning heat moving through your body.

Some of you may be feeling a sudden sense of weeping in your body,

shaking perhaps. Some of you may be feeling a deep peace, replacing anxiety this morning.

Some of you might be feeling the lifting of emotional heaviness in your life.

This is not emotional hype.

This is the Holy Spirit breaking chains in your life this morning.

Now declare this with me this morning. I'm not a victim.

I'm not broken. I am not bound.

I am healed, I am restored, and I am free in Jesus' name.

Free in Jesus' name. Come on, let's give a loud clap for that,

that we are set free in Jesus' name.

Hallelujah, Lord. We thank you, Father.

Thank you, Father. Hallelujah.

Hear the word of the Lord this morning. what

you held for years is breaking

right now right now you

will leave this room in a little while lighter calmer

free from tormenting thoughts and no longer triggered by the past who would

want to receive that this morning

i do because today is not just healing today is freedom in our lives.

Lord Jesus, I pray right now, by your authority and by your blood,

by your blood, break every chain of trauma in Jesus' name.

Silence every tormenting voice.

Hallelujah.

Heal every wounded heart this morning in Jesus' name.

Restore emotional strength and release supernatural peace in every life here

this morning and every life that is listening in to this message this morning.

Let freedom flow like a river in our lives right now, Jesus.

And let this day mark the end of bondage forever and ever in the name of Jesus.

And everyone said, amen, amen. Hallelujah.

Now, God can just fix that just like that, just like that. And that's what I

believe he can do and he will do.

Sometimes it can drag on a little bit. And if you need help in that regard, come and see me.

Who knows that people who suffer with this sort of stuff are sometimes the best

people to offer counseling and wisdom in your life as well.

So if you need further help, if you need further prayer, come and see people

like me and Elaine and Angela, and come and receive peace and freedom in your

lives. Who's receiving this this morning?

Yeah, come on. Come on. Who feels good now?

Who feels good? So do I. So do I. It's good.

It's good. We serve an awesome God who wants to see us set free in every area of our lives. Amen.