SLUMBERING IN THE TENT OF YOUR FATHER’S HOUSE | Dealing with The Evil Power of Your Father’s House by Dr. D.K Olukoya

SLUMBERING IN THE TENT OF YOUR FATHER’S HOUSE

The title of this chapter may sound strange to you but you will realise what it is all about as you go on, Meanwhile I will quote some Scriptures, beginning with the book of Jeremiah 48:11:

Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed.

God has a message for everyone reading this book. There are also some specific persons for whom God has this message for. Moab had problems. He had always lived a life of ease, he had settled on his knees, he had not been emptied from vessel to vessel, he had never gone into captivity.

It is when a man has gone into captivity and has come out of it that he knows the value of freedom. Many people whose parents got born again before they were born would not understand what is called bondage. But when someone has been dipped into darkness and has been out of it, he automatically appreciates the value of freedom.

Moab had never been into captivity, so his taste remained unaltered; his flavour was not changed. The long and short of the matter is that Moab had been slumbering in the tent of his fathers. Moab had refused to change.

Unfortunately, there are many that are still slumbering in the tens of their fathers, and like a drunken man or a man under an evil spell, they are cleverly following the evil pattern that destroyed their fathers.

If you look at the book of Luke 7:31-34, Jesus too complained that there are people like this who are slumbering in the tents of their fathers:

Luke 7:31-34:

And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like? ³²They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced: we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept. ³³For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine: and ye say, He hath a devil. ³⁴The Son of man is come eating and drinking: and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!

The bottom line of what. Jesus was saying is that this generation is slumbering in the tent of its father. There are many things happening around us now. We have piped unto people and they had refused to dance, we have mourned unto people, they have refused to weep. The bottom line is that there is no change, and this is very sad.

Le us look at more of the troubles of Moab as recorded in Isaiah 16:6:

We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud: even of his haughtiness,

and his pride, and his wroth: but his lies shall not be so.”

Verse 12

And it shall come to pass, when it is seen that Moab is weary on the high place, that he shall come to his sanctuary to pray; but he shall not prevail.

Moab has refused to change: he was slumbering in the tent of his fathers. You

may then ask the question: “What is the origin of Moab?”

In Genesis 19:29-38, we can see where the problems of Moab started from so

that you too can know how to cry unto the lord today.

And it come to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt. ³⁰And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cove, he and his two daughters. ³¹And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth: ³²Come, let us, make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³³And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁴And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³⁵And they mode their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁶Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. ³⁷And the firstborn bore a son, and called his name Moab: the some is the father of the Moabites unto this day. ³⁸And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Benammi: the some is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

Now we know the origin of Moab. The origin of Moab was in the city of Sodom and Gomorrah. It was someone trying to compromise his faith amongst Godless people.

Its origin was in a city filled with sexual immorality, sin, abomination and sodomy. The origin of Moab was when God asked a man to get out of a place and the man didn’t want to get out and he lost his wife.

Its origin was in the fact that God asked a man to go out to the mountain but man preferred the valley. It was in drunkenness, incest, and deception with wine to commit atrocities.

So Moab had a lot of terrible things in his background. That would not have been a problem if Moab had decided to change.

There were people with more terrible backgrounds in the Bible. After all, the father of Hezekiah was the best king in the Bible, but Manasseh was a terrible wizard, a very occultic man. In fact, the Bible gave him a special place. But Hezekiah determined not to dumber in the tents of his father, and he jumped out of that evil tent, and so we read good things about him today.

We need to read the Bible very well. There are several cries in the Scriptures. Look at those men who cried, and cried and cried. And when the Bible says that someone prayed, it is another thing, a different thing from an actual cry unto the Lord. And the Bible says, someone called, it is another thing still. A talking to God, a crying to God or calling upon God are all different things. When you read that people cried in the Scriptures, the cry is normally a battle cry for a change.

Jacob cried for seven hours, Unless you bless me, I will not let thee go.” What was the angel doing there? He wanted to see whether Jacob would give up easily. Technically, there is no way a man can wrestle with an angel and win in two minutes. The angel may dismantle the whole of his body system in one second. But in the battle there, God wanted to know whether or not Jacob really meant business. He wanted to know whether Jacob would give up.

And as Jacob went on, the angel too must have been praying secretly; although he could not tell Jacob directly, “Don’t give up, continue the struggle; don’t give up, don’t give up.” And by the time the fulness of time came, he looked at him and said, “What is thy name?”

Jacob replied, “Jacob”.

And the angel said, “Thy name shall not be called Jacob anymore, but you shall be called Israel.”

That day, the destiny of Jacob changed. I pray that today will be your day, in the name of Jesus.

So the cry that Jacob cried was because he didn’t want to slumber in the tent of his fathers; he wanted to move forward.

The Israelites in Egypt cried unto the lord: “O lord, deliver us from the hands of Pharaoh.” They were crying for a change.

Somebody like Jabez cried unto the lord, “O that thou would blest me truly, and thou would excuse me from evil, and thou would enlarge my cost, and keep me away from evil.”

The man saw that by his background he was in a big trouble, so he cried for a change and something happened. His life changed.

Elijah was at the celebrated torment at the mount of Carmel with 450 men of the devil and one man of God standing before them. Many of us complain of being persecuted in the house of God but I am yet to see 450 people persecuting one person in any church. And Elijah stood before them and asked them to call upon their god and see if he would answer, arid the Lord that answers by fire, let Him be God.

The people of Israel that God delivered from the land of bondage sat down there as spectators while Elija did all these. Israel had backslided completely. By the way God brought them up they didn’t need any Elijah to tell them that God could answer by fire. But that day, all they could do was to look on in amazement, and eventually, Elijah stood and cried unto the God of Israel and Abraham, “Let it be known this day that I am thy prophet, and that I am doing these things at thy word; answer me, O Lord, answer me that these people may know that thou, O Lord, art God, and that thou hath turned their mind back.”

And fire fell. What would have happened to Elijah that day if fire did not fall

down? That is why I know that, the God that answers by fire is my God.

I am taking you through these cries in the Scripture so that you can see the cries of men who cried unto the Lord because they were not satisfied with the way things were going.

Eventually it got to Elisha. Elisha got to the river of Jordan after Elijah had gone away. The only thing he had was the mantle of Elijah that had fallen unto him. He had to cross the same river; if not, he would be destroyed by terrible creatures by the side of the Jordan river.

His master Elijah had a portion of power and yet, with that portion, Jezebel drove him into wilderness. Elisha knew that, if he was going to survive, he needed more than what Elijah had. The fellow cried for a change. He held up the same mantle and cried, “Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” And the striking of that Jordan represented a change in his life completely.

There was another man in the Bible called Zerubabel. He too uttered a cry unto the Lord. His cry was this: “Who art thou o great mountain? Before Zerubabel, thou shall become a plain.” This can be personalised to reflect your situation. And what happened after Zerubabel’s cry? The mountain became a plain before Zerubabel.

When Jesus arrived at the tomb of Lazarus He did not raise up His hand and begin to beg. He spoke to His Father in adoration, quietly and reverently. The voice which He too spoke to His Father had changed by the time He turned to the tomb. He spoke to His Father in adoration and thereafter uttered a cry, “Lazarus, come forth.” And, quickly the man came. Why did Jesus have to raised His voice now? It was because He was praying for a change of spiritual position. He wanted a man withdrawn from the spirit world back into his natural body and the body to be made whole once again, and for the prison wardens of the gate of heaven to release Lazarus. For these, Jesus had to make a cry.

It is amazing that there could be somebody whose benefit could be in the

grave and only for ice cream prayer to be prayed for such a person.

The same cry was what blind Bartemeus raised because he wanted a change. He was tired of begging for alms to survive. He was tired of being rescued from the gutter each time he fell there. So he cried unto the Lord. That is the kind of cry you need to make to obtain the desired change in your life.

Beloved, the truth is this. You either change or you harden. No change is made without some inconvenience. There must be some inconvenience somewhere. You may not like it, but it is that change that will bring you progress. Only the dead man or a very foolish man would not change. Change itself is the very essence of life. To resist change is to resist life itself.

Form the many messages that you must have heard or read, all God is telling you is that He wants a change. Some changes may occur that many of us are not willing to embrace. A lot of people want to stick to their familiar past. If you must stick to your familiar past then forget your future.

If, as a driver, instead of looking through your windscreen you keep looking at your back view mirror, you will certainly crash the vehicle. Even if you are not driving a vehicle but you insist on seeing everybody coming behind you, while you want to move forward, it means you have to turn your head to the back; and if you keep moving forward with you head to the back, you will soon stumble and possibly harm yourself.

A lot of believers are so afraid of venturing into untravelled territories, and many stubbornly cling to dead, old habits. Some cling to old childhood friends that have misguided their lives up to this level. Some cling to the kind of people who have demoted their lives. The Bible says, “Move with the wise and you shall be wise. Move with the foolish and you shall be foolish.”

You must make a decision that you want to make change. You must examine all those old habits and practices. Examine all your old friends. Sit down somewhere quiet and aks yourself what each person in your life has contributed

to your life. Has he or she added to me or subtracted from me? You must challenge all those old traditions that have yielded nothing to you.

Has your father has bought a pew in the church, with your family name on it? And you tie a high head-wear on Sunday and take your position in it without knowing that you are just cooking yourself? And when trouble comes, you start running around ‘for deliverance; and after finishing the deliverance you go back to your father’s seat in your father’s church where they apply newer weapons on you, then you run back again?

How long will you slumber in the tent of your fathers? The tent that was not comfortable for your fathers, why do you want to remain there. Remember, beloved, a seed does not take roots until it falls to the ground. If a person decides to keep all his seeds in his hand and keeps resisting change, he is sure to remain with just, the number of seeds he holds on to.

I want you to know beloved, that when you look at the sky, you will notice that the stars will not shine until the darkest hour. So if you are a member of MFM and you attend our prayer meetings regularly and you keep saying you are always what you were, you are to be pitied. It means you don’t want to change; such a person is a fool of mighty magnitude. It is like somebody standing in the water and keeps breeding mosquitoes in his mind.

Once God is calling you for a change and you refuse to change, He will bombard you in all areas, and when the bombardments come, you will keep shouting, “Hindrance, hindrance, clear out of the way'” But the hindrance will say, “Mr Man, in the name of Jesus,” the hindrance will tell you that, that very name you mentioned was the name that put it in your way.

When a life is a changed, a world will change. To go from where you are now, to where God wants you to go, a change is needed. Lack of change is what produces talented but unsuccessful men. Changing just one thing about your life can completely change your whole life.

Many of us need to pray to ask God to get a very good padlock for our mouth. because once God closes that mouth for you, you will move forward by fire. That was how the Lord had to close the mouth of Zachariah. The man was talking absolute rubbish. A person can talk himself out of his breakthroughs. The little change that God may be asking you to make may be to put a guard in your mouth.

For most of us, all He may be asking of us is to be Bible addicts, and when you drop that flimsy excuse that your brain can hardly hold anything, read the Bible, and decide to change, you will be surprised what the Lord will do for you.

Although you cannot change your biological inheritance, you can change your spiritual inheritance. You can get out of that evil tent that. caged your parents. Look at the industries, many of them are closing down in so many areas. When you get to some areas abroad, you will see the remains of once-successful industry which has closed down. Their main problem was that they refused to change.

Change means movement, and movement means friction. What I have found out in my years of counselling is that, it is easier for many people to cry than to change. Women who keep their mouths shut hardly get beaten up.

The change may be difficult, but it is often essential for survival. We cannot become what we seek to become by remaining where we are, The change should start, and the day you finish changing it is that day you are finished.

To slumber in the tent of your father, beloved, is to stagnate. If you do not change, you would not grow.

Sometime ago, I went to the town where I had my primary school. The place was as we left it. I am sure if you enter the classrooms, you will still find all those small seats we sat on when we were six years old, And if I decide to still sit on those seats now, would I be comfortable? Therefore, there must be a change.

The world hates changes, yet it is the only thing that brings progress. When people come to Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, one of the first things that change in their lives is their prayer life, and by the time a small thing changes in their prayer life, all other things start moving.

When the enemy wants to finish a person, the first area he attacks is his prayer life. Once he takes that out of the way, all the person’s shout of superiority over the devil is a mere waste of time.

Progress is impossible without a change. The only human institution where nothing changes is the cemetery. Many resist changes, some tolerate it while some embrace it. If you do not cry out for change this day, you will remain in your chains.

Perhaps you have looked at your life and discovered it is limited, confronted, harassed, attacked, diseased, you need to cry for a change.

May be you are a horizontal person whose main concern in the church is to backbite and spread rumours. Horizontal people normally remain where they are while vertical people move towards God and always move forward. You must cry out for a change today so that you will not be like a person seeking to collect milk from a dead cow or someone who has registered in the school of stagnancy, or someone who covers up a mouth sore or wound with lipstick. Only you can cry out for a change, nobody can do it on your behalf.

If you cry and things change, then your life becomes different. But if things do not change, you are sure to remain the same. If you have hatred for change, it is the architect of decay. That is why some of my favourite songs that I have been singing for a long time is:

Do something new in my life, something new in my life, something new in my life, today. Do something new in my life, something new in my life today.

That song says you want a change. Perhaps you are still one of those people

still waving their rosary at the village serpent, and the serpent is swallowing up your rosary and you keep wondering what is happening, or you are one of those people who are as educated as you are, but who still leave their car and walk barefoot to the church?

Or you are one of those people who have been ordained out of salvation and given a big post to take you out of your destiny, and you keep rejoicing that you are this and that. You may need to cry out to the Lord in order to know where you are.

If you have been experiencing lame breakthroughs, cry out to the Lord now. If you have seen yourself inside an evil family pattern, cry out to the Lord now. If you know that your names are being circulated around evil altars, you need to cry to the Lord now. If you know that your accounts are dead, the enemy has breathed the spirit of death upon it: cry out to the Lord.

Perhaps you have been suffering from what is called prayer paralysis, you need to cry out for a change. Perhaps you have been suffering from evil diversion, you have foreign benefits but have been captured, you have been trapped in the fowler’s net, you need to cry out for a change now. Perhaps you have been living in disillusionment, you need to cry out to the Lord for a change.

Sometimes, all that is required for a breakthrough is just a little change in life. What many people call problems are often trumpet calls for a change. After God has used several avenues to talk to a person without obtaining any tangible response from the person, what He does next, is to personally resist such a person, like He did to Adam, Balaam, and Jonah.

Failure in now befalling the experts. The person who thought he was smart is now being outsmarted. The liar is now being outlined. God may just be asking for a change. He wants you to change. He wants areas of your life to change. God is calling for that today.

Perhaps you are at present dissatisfied with all this feeling of being resisted,

you have the feeling of frustration, of being useless, being aimless, or being wasted, you know that you are intelligent but nobody is asking to use your brain, and you are being discouraged because of that; or you know that, right now, as you are, the enemy is the one dancing all over the garden of your life, you need to cry out to the lord now, tell Him that you need a change, that you need to open up the garden of your life to the Holy Spirit, that you must take action against all unchristlike attitude in your life.

You must cry to the lord that all He has been telling you, you want to do them one hundred percent. God has a job to do, He has provided men and women who will do the job. If you are privilege to be one of those He has put in positions to do the job, and one way or the other, He is calling for a change in your life, but you keep resisting, He will raise up a stone. He cannot leave a vacuum in His programme. No one is indispensable in the work of God. If you think you are the most talented person in the universe, God can create a new person, put more talents in Him and send him down, just to disgrace your pride.

Many people are following the pattern in the tent of their fathers. If you are reading this book, and you know that you have not given your life to Christ, I advise you to do so quickly now so that you can get a prompt response to your cry to the Lord today.

What God showed to me before writing this chapter is that, there are millions of people walking behind their breakthroughs. This means that, the breakthroughs should have been in their hands but those breakthroughs walk past them because of certain changes they have refused to make.

The day you begin to pray the correct prayers, correct things will begin to happen. Do not worry about those witches that have been following you around; when they all die one by one, they ‘will leave you alone. Do not worry about the people who have threatened your life. When God padlocks their power they will leave you alone. But for God to do these things, He has certain things for you too to do. if your spiritual hands are weak and you want to carry a big thing, and the Lord keeps telling you, “Son, add this strength to your hands first,” but you keep resisting that power into your hands, you are walking away from your breakthroughs.

The Lord has provided us with table in the presence of the enemy of most of us, unfortunately, they keep scattering the table with their own legs. This is very sad.

As you read this, confess your inadequacies to the Lord; tell Him you are sorry. In many areas, God wants you to change, you keep resisting Him? You had better tell Him to forgive you, so that you can move forward immediately. Promise the Lord you will change, no matter which area of your life He wants you to change. Ask Him to forgive you, that you will start changing as from now on. If He has been complaining about the temperature of your prayer, ask Him to forgive you.

PRAYER POINTS

1. O ye that troubles my Israel., my God shall trouble you henceforth, in the name of Jesus.

• Every generational spirit, reporting my past to my future, depart now, in the name of Jesus.

• Every dark power, working against my family, what are waiting for, die, in the name of Jesus.

• O God that delivered Daniel from the lion’s den, deliver me by fire, in the name of Jesus.

• Where is the Lord God of Elijah? Manifest Your power in my destiny, in the name of Jesus.

• Every witchcraft stagnation of my progress, die, in the name of Jesus.

• I need a divine change by fire, in the name of Jesus.

• Hear the voice of the Living God, you my destiny and change to the best, in the name of Jesus.

• I shall not slumber, in the tent of my fathers, in the name of Jesus.

1. You powers in the heavenlies, listen to my prophecies, I need a change by fire, in the name of Jesus.

1. Anti-success witchcraft, die, in the name of Jesus.

1. Every cage in my father’s house, die, in the name of Jesus.

1. By the power that changed the life of Jabez, let my life change, in the name of Jesus.

1. (Raise your hands to the heavenlies) Any power that says these hands will not prosper, die, in the name of Jesus.

1. The power of the idols of my father’s house, hear the word of the Living God, I am not your candidate, therefore, die, in the name of Jesus.