Strongholds

The week had been difficult as God’s truth was beginning to dawn on Mary that perhaps she was a bit obsessed with houses and security. She wanted freedom from this obsession. She realized it was perhaps a stronghold. But she also knew the weapons of her warfare ( and praying was an important one) were mighty in bringing down these strongholds. She also knew it wasn’t all up to her.
God drew Mary into a gentle humbleness of this reality early one morning as she sat in prayer. She read from three different translations the powerful truth that it was God who must do the work in her. She read from I King 8 v 58
"that

He may incline our hearts

to Himself, to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, which He commanded our fathers.NKJ
58 May

he turn our hearts

to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep the commands, decrees and regulations he gave our fathers.NIV
58 May

he give us the desire

to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, laws, and regulations that he gave our ancestors. NLT
After reading this Mary prayed:
Lord, the last few days we have prayed about moving to Windsor but I get a vague sense that moving may not be what you are after but a new heart in me. I have been made aware that sometimes we have strongholds, things we are attached to in an inordinate way.
As I look at my desire to move I wonder if it is the desire for a house that is the stronghold, the desire for financial security or just the comfort in decorating that is my stronghold. I confess Lord:” I need your help in this.”
Now as I read King Solomon’s prayer this morning from I King 8 I realize that You, O Lord, have to do this work in me. I do the praying. It is you who work in me even to incline my heart to yourself, to turn my heart and all its desires towards you. It is You alone who give me a desire to do Your will.
Father, forgive me if I have been attached idolatrously to houses, safety, protection and money rather than You. I need a revelation, a rema of this sin or sins, Lord. I want to bring down these strongholds and follow only You no matter where you take me. I want Your aspirations for my life. I realize Lord I can’t even want this change unless you make it real within me. Dear Lord, I am helpless without You. Have mercy on me today and be gentle in me to clean my heart of these sins and put your desire in me, Lord. Thank you, Lord, for this prayer which even you have instigated within me. I realize I do nothing on my own but all things comes from You. You make all things possible. I will trust You today for a more complete revelation of my sins and a tearing down of these strongholds.
I pray also Lord that You deal with the disappointment and other negative emotional baggage that might be attached to these obsessions. Lord, my final please is that through this time I might find that Your Joy is my strength.
All this I pray In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen