“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments” (Exodus 20:4-6).
Blessings are able to flow through generations when even just one person obeys God’s word. When we obey what God says He will show mercy to 1,000 generations because of the worship and love shown to Him above all other gods. An everlasting inheritance of goodness is possible when righteousness is in a family line. Notice that blessings are far stronger than curses. The curse for idolatry passes on to three or four generations. Idolatry occurs when something other than Jesus has the preeminent place in our lives; anything that rules us, dominates our thinking and our hearts, we worship.
But through prayer, worship, repentance, and the Word of God, you can be free. It doesn’t matter if every man in your family is an addict. You can do something different, you can be free from addiction and see our kids be free as well. To break the curse off your family, it has to begin with you. You have to put a stop to the negative behavior with God’s help. You have to trust that God will work to take the worst things in your life and make them the best things. We have to trust that in the place of a stronghold, a place of blessing will come. He works all things together for good. We will find, if we stay true to Him, that one day we will worship God in that place that once controlled us.
Reflect.
Are there generational curses in your family? Drinking, drugs, depression, illness, financial upheaval? How many years has it been present? Do you see God working in your life to change the course of your family from curse to blessing?
Prayer.
Pray for God to help you step into the blessings He has available to those who love and worship Him. Ask Him what step you can take or for a plan of action, and then write it down. Keep this in a place where you will see it and make a decision to put it into practice daily with His help.
