Jesus frees finance manager from family bondages
S found herself stuck in a vicious circle of family conflict and bitterness at home, without realising that she had allowed evil spirits to preside over her family through her devotion to fortune-telling, fengshui, and zodiac divination. By humbling herself to submit her family to God and seeking the Holy Spirit’s counsel, S was set free from numerous bondages. Praise God!
(See Chinese versions: 简体中文 > 耶稣把财经经理从家庭捆绑中释放出来 | 繁體中文 > 耶穌把財經經理從家庭綑綁中釋放出來)
I came to know Jesus during challenging times in my marriage and family.
There was increasing discord, anger, and resentment built up with my husband and children. Although we tried different ways to address the issues, nothing seemed to work in bringing about lasting peace in our relationships and within my heart.
Finally, I humbled myself, admitted my sinful ways, and asked God to lead me and teach me to be more like Jesus and how to love my family.
When I told a church friend that I had been praying about the next steps to grow in my relationship with God, she casually suggested that I take Love the Lord class. After attending the first few classes, I knew that God had answered my prayer. It was a class where I could learn His truths and experience spiritual freedom through a renewal prayer.
To prepare for the prayer session, I needed to fill in a form about my background.
In my mind, I really wanted to complete the renewal prayer by mid-May before some family members arrived for vacation. However, every time I thought about completing the form, I felt very distracted, tired, and was filled with tremendous doubt. I was not sure if I would be able to adequately fill out the form and go through with the renewal prayer.
I continued to procrastinate until one of the prayer counselors texted me out of the blue to schedule my renewal prayer, and it was going to be on the same day and finish at the same time that my family was arriving for vacation! I was absolutely amazed that God cared so much about such small details, even down to the date and time.
Praise God that He knows the desires of my heart. His timing is perfect!
Over the next week, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I was able to complete the form and prepare for the renewal prayer.
The renewal prayer started by addressing the occult practices that I had taken part in. This stemmed from a pattern of idolatry, sorcery, and superstitious beliefs passed down through the generations and rooted in my family upbringing from a young age.
Many false idols filled our homes, including statues of guan yin, buddha, and the three gods of fortune, prosperity and longevity, etc. Our family invited fengshui masters into our home and believed in using fengshui objects and Chinese horoscope predictions to improve our fortune.
Several of my uncles practiced sorcery and claimed to see spirits and “catch” spirits with other occult masters. They even told us there was an unclean spirit living in our basement.
Every year, an auntie would go to Wong Tai Sin on our behalf to burn offerings to the Tai Sui god and mail us the red folded papers with buddhist scriptures. We would carry these buddhist scriptures around in our bags for good luck. We attended Taoist funerals for deceased family members and practiced ancestor worship during traditional Chinese holidays.
Later on, I carried these superstitious beliefs and idolatrous practices into my own marriage and family.
I became fixated with the Chinese zodiac and associated my husband and myself with the zodiac animal signs related to the years we were born in. My father was born in the year of the monkey and I was pleased that my husband was also born in the year of the monkey. I believed this meant we were compatible and destined for a good marriage.
When it came time for me to have children, I intentionally timed it so that I would have a baby that was born in the year of the monkey, so we could have three generations of monkeys. I bought two pictures of my husband’s and my zodiac signs and hung them up in our home to represent us.
I also became increasingly obsessed with fortune tellers, wanting to know and improve our family’s luck.
When both my children were born, we consulted fortune tellers to derive their names and provide predictions for their life. We also allowed my son to be dedicated to guan yin. Every year, I would buy the latest publication of the popular Hong Kong feng shui masters zodiac books and refer to the predictions throughout the year for advice and insight.
When we moved into our new home, we invited a fengshui master to help advise on the home’s “energy flow” and to give predictions over our family members, marriage, and relationships.
The fortune-teller said that there would be problems in our marriage and division of family relationships later on. That always lingered in the back of my mind and I had doubt and fear of what this meant.
During the renewal prayer, I repented and asked God to forgive me for sinning against Him by following false idols, occult practices, and seeking fortune tellers for my family. I didn’t realise that I had opened the doors for demonic spirits and spiritual darkness to enter my family and the lives of my husband and children.
I repented for allowing others to use counterfeit power to lead me and my family astray.
I declared the truth that Jesus is tenderhearted and full of grace. He gives me the power, love and self-control to love my husband and children. Also, where my heart had been blocked by the occult, I declared that Jesus’ blood would cleanse and unlock everything so that His love can flow through me to all my family and others.
2 Timothy 1:7 ESV for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
After I finished declaring repentance, I felt much lighter. My headache, neck and shoulder tightness were gone.
I also prayed to break the ungodly words I had spoken that we resemble the animals of the horoscope.
In Jesus’ name, I revoked all the curses that the fortune-tellers had spoken over me and my family. My counselors reminded me that we are made in the image of our Heavenly Father, not in the image of a monkey or any animal. We are all children of God.
My prayer counselors also led me to repent and break spiritual ties with ungodly places, people, and the demonic spirits related to the occult in Jesus’ name. This included temples, Taoist funeral parlours, ancestral worship halls, fortune tellers and sorcerers that I had previously sought out.
As I finished breaking ties with the occult, I saw a vision of a dragon tail leaving from the corner of my eye.
The renewal prayer also revealed childhood wounds that led me to make destructive inner vows and curses.
When I was three years old, my parents immigrated to the U.S. in the hope of a better life for our family. Things were difficult in the beginning and my parents spent most of their time working hard to earn a living.
From a young age, my sister and I stayed at home alone and we learned to take care of ourselves. My mother was very strict. We would be scolded or punished if we didn’t finish chores or responsibilities assigned to us. I was told by my parents to be good, work hard, respect our elders, and not interrupt when adults were talking. I spent most of my time either at home or working in our family business. Therefore, I grew up being more quiet and introverted.
At school, I felt different and insecure. I never felt that I really fit in.
I blamed and judged my mom and dad for being bad parents and not giving me a normal happy childhood. I always told myself that I would never be like them when I become a parent and have my own family.
During the renewal prayer session, I confessed feelings of unforgiveness, hurt, fear, shame, abandonment and rejection buried deep inside.
My prayer counselors led me to forgive my parents, break the curses I spoke over them, and to renounce the inner vow that I will not be like my parents. They gently pointed out that God calls us to honor our father and mother and when we curse our parents, it bounces back at us and we end up cursing ourselves to be like them.
Because of my childhood wounds, I had developed a sinful pattern of judgment against others, including those closest to me.
My family would sometimes say I was a perfectionist or that I always wanted things done my way. I seemed to always be quick to judge and criticise my family, husband, and children on little things they did at home or school.
I didn’t notice it at first, but those situations would lead to arguments, hurtful words, bitterness, and damage to our relationships over time. All I ever wanted was the best for my family. After all, I loved them with all my heart.
But I didn’t know that my judgment, control, and criticism felt condemning and caused pain to my loved ones.
During the prayer session, I repented of judging my family members and I broke the curses and rejected the lies I had spoken over my marriage and family in Jesus’ name. God calls us to love each other, not judge. We are to use words to build up others, our families and relationships, not to tear down.
Ephesians 4:29 ESV Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
I also rededicated my marriage and family as a fragrant offering to God. I revoked the fears planted in my heart in Jesus’ name. My marriage and family are in God’s hands and control. In my mind, I heard the words ‘Happy Family’ and my heart felt much lighter and was filled with peace.
After the renewal prayer, I cleansed my home of feng shui and idolatrous objects, including the two pictures of the zodiac signs.
The chronic pain in my neck and shoulders has subsided and no longer feels tight.
I realised that I been trying so hard for all these years, using my own strength and sinful ways to try to take care and meet my family’s needs. Thank God for His mercy, grace and loving correction. He has taken the burden from me and provides comfort for my heart.
I have surrendered my husband and children to our Heavenly Father because He is the One who knows and can meet their needs and He loves them more than I do. I know that God is in control and has good plans for us, and will give us hope and a future. I will go forward trusting only God to lead, guide, protect and fight for our family.
Jeremiah 29:11 ESV For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Also, see:
Why feng shui is unprofitable
What is your horoscope?
A prayer to break off curses from horoscopes and the zodiac
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