The Legacy of Former Generations

Have you ever been told you have a generational curse on your life? I have heard this expression many times and in fact have struggled with it myself. However, I have recently come to a fresh and deeper interpretation of what this means and the power that the Lord gives us to deal with these historical aspects of our lives. My prayer is that what has been revealed to me will provide a new perspective for you on your past and that of your ancestors.

In studying Ezekiel I was led to explore the power of chapter 18. Within this chapter, the Lord is declaring to Ezekiel that a certain proverb dealing with fathers and children shall no longer be used. He then explains in depth to Ezekiel the actual status of the individual soul stating in verse 4 "Behold all souls are Mine; The soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die." He goes on to describe specific behaviors that either bring life or death, moving from one generation to the next. When we reach verse 17,the Lord is concluding His description of a just son whose father is unjust. Ezekiel 18:17 - 18 ...helps the poor, does not lend money at interest, and obeys all my regulations and laws. Such a person will not die because of his father's sins; he will surely live. But the father will die for the many sins he committed – for being cruel and robbing close relatives, doing what was clearly wrong among his people. The Lord recognizes the obedience of the son in living the will of God, and punishes the father for his disobedience.

So how do we reconcile that scripture with the following from Exodus 20:5 You must never worship or bow down to them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not share your affection with any other god! I do not leave unpunished the sins of those who hate me, but I punish the children for the sins of their parents to the third and fourth generations.? We know that the Word never contradicts itself. We must seek to hear the voice of the Living Word to help us understand what is being taught to us. As I have sought the intimacy of the relationship that I cherish with my Lord, I have been blessed to have gained a deeper understanding of His sacred romance with us. Through the work of John Eldredge and Brent Curtis in their book by the same name Sacred Romance I have learned that there are generational interpretations of life which heavily influenced how we view life and how we react to what happens to us. Let me explain further.

We all see life through a filter that colors how we interpret what is happening in our lives, whether we are considering emotional, physical, environmental or any other kind of circumstance. Many times we have tunnel vision. The sad part is that this tunnel vision has been handed down to us through the generations. The Lord opened my eyes during my time of personal study with Sacred Romance to understand that the way I was raised by my parents was heavily influenced by how they were raised. If that sounds too simplistic, please consider this. If a parent was raised in an extremely structured environment in which affection was not shown, and imperfection was not allowed, then the role model that exists is black and white and non-dimensional. There are no other patterns in which to explore how to parent. This must be how it is done because that is how "I" was raised. Even if one is astute enough to sense that there must be a different way, it is very difficult to break those patterns that have been laid in your brain for decades.

I see this relating to the scriptures that I have just shared with you because we truly "suffer" when our home environment is anything less than the prefect harmony God desired when He created His children. For example, abuse is clearly documented as being generational. The majority of abusers in the world suffered abuse as a child. Did they determine early on that they would abuse someone in their future lives because of how they were treated? I don't believe so. In fact my spirit aches for them because I believe the opposite was true. Early on their lives they determined they would not be like that parent. However, life was interpreted in a very ugly way to them, and they don't have any other interpretation to use. Hence when circumstances in their lives begin to pattern their early experiences, without recognizing what is happening, they fall back on "known" behavior patterns.

Let me establish right now that I am not a clinical psychologist and I am also not justifying abuse. What I do want to do is introduce to you the concept that the choices our prior generations make have consequences that God is going to allow because they originated in free will. God will not interfere with free will. He is also a just God and will not allow disobedience to go without punishment. Our bad choices will impact our children. We cannot prevent that. We can make better choices though and that can alter the outcome.

God clearly recognizes obedience. Therefore even if someone has suffered at the hands of their elders, and even if that has come down through the generations, each individual can through the power of Holy Spirit alter the outcomes for future generations. We can recognize the limited interpretation of life which we were given and seek the rich full interpretation of life provided by God. We can choose life over death and we can stop the "generational curse" from continuing. We do this through the incredible power of Holy Spirit living within us. It begins with forgiving those that have hurt you so that you may also receive total forgiveness through the blood of Jesus.

I have made many mistakes in my life and I suffer as I watch the impact of those decisions on the ones that I love so dearly. Through the power of Holy Spirit I am seeking to change, to be transformed, so that the interpretations of life with which I grew up can also change and have a positive impact on those that I love. I cannot do this alone. I cannot do this through my determination and my power. I can only do this through His power and His love operating in me. I am humbled by what He has shown me that needs to change and by His ever present encouragement and unconditional love. I know that if I want "generational curses" to be broken in my life and for my children and grandchildren, then I must do more than proclaim it. I must walk it out. I am so grateful that I do not have to walk it out alone; He is always with me. Blessings to each of you as you explore this journey called life.