Vito Rallo - Breaking Generational Curses & Pulling Down Strongholds

ePub Version

ePub Version

All electronic book versions published by:
Real Truth Publications
PO Box 911
Jupiter, FL 33468-0911
www.RealTruthPublications.com

This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or other wisewithout prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from The New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified New Testament, Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1954, 1958, 1987. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society.

Scripture quotations marked NAS are taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked TMSG are from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing.

Italicized words in some Scripture quotations are emphasis added by the author.

Library of Congress Card Number: 00-107618 [Print Version]
International Standard Book Number: 978-0-88419-754-6 [Print Version]

[Original Print Version published by Free Indeed Ministries,
International Standard Book Number: 0-9675092-0-3]

ePub Version ISBN: 978-1-887915-80-9

Kindle Version ISBN: 978-1-887915-81-6

Copyright 2000 by Vito Rallo. All rights reserved.

This project was born late in 1998, but the revelation and insight that made this book possible began more than seven years prior. A special thanks to my dedicated and loyal wife, Pat, who has a real servants heart. Her intellectual and spiritual contribution were invaluable, and without her hard work and long hours of editing and formatting, this book would not have become a reality. I also appreciate her encouragement and support.

Also, a special thank you to Dean Schoonover for his review of the original, unedited manuscript!

Thanks also to Real Truth Publications for their work on the electronic versions of this book.

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21

"My People are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hos. 4:6).

This is one of the best known and most frequently quoted passages in the Book of Hosea. This passage referred to the children of Israel and their willful ignorance, rejection of Gods law and lack of obedience. But I believe many New Testament believers also perish or are destroyed because of disobedience and/or lack of knowledge. The Bible is clear on that. Some would argue that those people were never truly born again, for if they had a real experience, they would not have grown cold, fallen away and lost their faith in God. That argument might be true of some but not of everyone.

I believe there are some who are truly born again and maybe even serve the Lord sincerely, yet for many reasons they struggle and sometimes fall away completely. One reason is their lack of knowledge about who they are as born-again children of God and the vital role they play in the body of Christ.

We need knowledge of who we really are in Christ.

The enemy of our soul knows that each of us plays an important part in the body of Christ (the church) and will use every tactic and every means at his disposal to discourage and distract us in order to keep us from reaching our full potential.

Never before in history has so much information been made available to us. This is called the Information Age, and we dont have to look very far to find Bibles, books, video and audio-tapes, as well as preaching and teaching, on how to have a relationship with God and achieve spiritual growth and maturity. Yet with all these materials and all this teaching avail able to us, the church is still experiencing many casualties and failures along the way.

During the early 1970s, a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit was spreading like wildfire. It crossed every denominational line and ushered in the Charismatic Movement, which meant the gifts of the Holy Spirit were in operation and evident in those who were born again and who had received the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

There was a fresh plowing in peoples hearts. The people responded to the free gift of salvation being offered, and hundreds of thousands of lives were changed by the power of the Holy Spirit. Church growth exploded, many new ministries were birthed, and preaching and teaching had a renewed vigor. I was saved during this period while reading Hal Lindseys book, The Late Great Planet Earth. Many were saved through Hal Lindseys ministry, and many others through the various great ministries of that day, some of which are still reaching the lost and hurting.

During this outpouring in the 1970s churches were popping up everywhere, some of which became known as megachurches where thousands attended. These churches were truly blessed as people were growing in the Word of God.

But after a few years, something began to happen. Many of these established churches faltered and came apart at the seams. Believersfaithful men and women of Godfell by the wayside, no longer attending church. Pastors were falling into diverse sins, or becoming discouraged and dropping like flies. Attendance in many churches dropped dramatically, no matter what the size of the church had been before. Some ministers who had been admired as role models were now shunned and looked upon as disgraced. Families were following suit, divorce became rampant, and many found themselves back where they started, wallowing in sin. Why?

I believe there were problem areas in peoples lives that were either not addressed or that were completely ignored. The person was born again, but the sinful footholds previously allowed in their lives were never removed or confronted. (See Ephesians 4:27.) For some, it was because of complacency or because the cares of the world were more important than the will of God in their lives. Some people think all is well as long as they are not being struck with a lightning bolt! In any event, many areas of our lives can be caught up in snares, traps and pitfalls if we are not aware of what they are and how to avoid them. This is the lack of knowledge that I am talking about in this bookthe lack of knowledge that can cause us to perish.

I, too, got off on the wrong track for awhile. In 1987 I walked away from a very effective ministry that God had truly anointed, through which thousands of lives were being changed. Instead, I chose to pursue a secular interest. But God had other ideas. He had a lot invested in me and was not willing to lose out to my personal pursuits, no matter how honorable they were. For three years I was doing my own thing, and in 1990 God used extraordinary measures to turn my life around and put me back on track.

It wasnt that what I was doing was necessarily wrong: it just wasnt what God had planned for me. I wasnt seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness [will]. It seemed that my life was out of control, and it wasfor awhile! God had prepared a road that I was required to travelone of discipline, obedience, dying to self and complete trust in Him. That road had room for two, and, indeed, the Lord and I did walk together, hand in hand. I never wavered, never looked back, always pressed forward as God was preparing the way before me, equipping me for a special call to His glory.