Last week,  Dave Kubal shared a message for the nation about trading our freedom for security.  It focused on how the orphan spirit affects us on a governmental level. I’d like to share a response to that article that is deeply personal. You see, as I delved into the concept of an orphan spirit, I was struck by what I read–my eyes were opened to the conditions I had been living in all my life. Yes, the concepts of orphan spirit and sonship can be applied to how we respond to the coronavirus crisis. But it also describes how some of us are living personally. I believe that we can also benefit from a more personal look within.  I know I did.  I hope you will  be encouraged or enlightened. I would love to hear your thoughts, reflections, and testimony on this very personal subject.

An orphan spirit drives a sense of loneliness, abandonment, and isolation. It causes us to question our standing—both in safety, and in relationships with others.  The breakup of the family in America has certainly fed into the operation of the orphan spirit in our country. Although I haven’t experienced a breakup in my own family, I certainly experienced a lifetime of striving and struggle to feel worthy and valued.

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An orphan spirit causes us to struggle with relating to our father figures—either our actual biological fathers, any authority figures (male or female), and especially our Heavenly Father. The enemy knows that if he can keep us from the fullness of our relationship with our Heavenly Father, we will lack the gifts, effectiveness, and blessing that God designed for us when he called Himself Father to us. (Rom 8:14-17)

What “fruit” does the orphan spirit produce?  Competition, rage, lack of self-esteem, jealousy, turmoil, insecurity, and striving to earn in our achievements and relationships. The orphan spirit can give way to addiction and self-indulgence as it seeks to find meaning and contentment. The orphan spirit robs us of right relationships that are healthy and fulfilling. Much of what drives those negative attitudes is the overarching perspective that we are not worthy. Whether it is a voice inside us that tells us that we do not measure up to others, or an unmet longing to have approval or inclusion, this wrong thinking robs us of a true perspective in relationships–both spiritually and interpersonally. Our reactions to situations can be skewed or disproportionate to the circumstance at hand. Look around. Finger-pointing, accusation, and fear is in abundance today. This is the orphan spirit.

But there is good news! We are not orphans and we don’t need to live like it! Scripture tells us the truth.

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.”   (Gal 4:4-7)

God is our Father, He has grafted us into His family and we can live as heirs–we are designed to enjoy that sonship that is talked about in Galatians. How can we move from orphan living to living in sonship? Here are six steps I used to start my journey to overcoming the orphan spirit in my life:

1. Choose to turn from harboring the orphan spirit and enabling it in your life.
2. Choose to forgive others that you have held responsible for your lack of happiness, worth, and security.
3. Ask for forgiveness from those you have hurt as you have sought your own way, demanded praise, and lived in competition and jealousy.
4. Ask God to forgive you and deliver you–and forgive yourself.
5. Pray the blood of Jesus over any orphan spirit that has gained control in your life. Renounce the orphan spirit and tell it to go in the name of Jesus.
6. Important next step: as we seek to cut off the orphan spirit in our own lives, we need to replace it with our right standing with the Father–the concept of sonship. This will be a daily act–declaring the truth of who God tells us we are in Him overrides the lies we have been believing for perhaps years or decades. I suggest a daily reading of Scriptures that reinforce to us just that. Here are a few to get you started: 2 Cor 5:17, Eph 2:10, 1 Pt 2:9, Rom 8:1, Jn 1:22, Eph 2:6, Jn 15:15, Eph 1:7.

What does sonship look like in contrast to the orphan spirit?

Humility. Living in sonship means that you can stop striving to show your “worth” and you can live from the place of “who’s you are.”

Kingdom-minded. When we have stopped focusing on getting accolades and approval from others, we can truly seek what God wants, and not what we want or think we need. This brings a greater capacity for working collaboratively with others as we are happy to share the ideas, the control, the blessings, and the credit.

Peace. There is a sense of greater peace when we can rest and trust in the Father’s direction for our lives. Without the pushing, finagling, demanding, and manipulation, we can enjoy the care, confidence, and peace of knowing our Father–who is all-knowing–is directing us.

Identity and purpose.  We are the children of the Lord of the universe–our identity is now of the highest pedigree. God the Father has a purpose for each of us. We will only find it when we look to His plans and purposes for our lives, instead of scratching out our own. The fulfillment that God can give us when we are in right sonship will be much greater than what we attempt to create.

Fulfilling relationships. Because we are no longer demanding, jockeying for position, and making it all about us, the people in our lives will find us more enjoyable and even attractive.  The love we seek will come to us when we are not demanding it, but more interested in bestowing it, under God’s power.

As we daily take on the mantle of sonship, let us declare that He is ours and we are His. Invite God the Father to guide and direct you–listening for moments of the Holy Spirit whisperings that tell us, “This is the way, walk in it.”  Let us pray that in this time of shaking our security in the natural, believers would look inward for how we can be set free from the orphan spirit and walk in the sonship God has designed for us. He wants to enjoy a relationship with us that is built on truth.

A nation of believers who have the proper perspective of who they are in Christ will be far more effective in intercession, more secure to speak against wrongdoing, and better able to live in unity with other believers. Look within first–it’s a good philosophy for us all. Let’s let God do something healing and freeing in our own hearts at this time.  Please share your experiences and thoughts in the comments below.

(Kris Kubal is the IFA Director of Strategic Resources and Engagement.)