Copyright 2012 Theresa Harvard Johnson
2 Corinthians 12:20 CJB, “For I am afraid of coming and finding you not the way I want you to be, and also of not being found the way you want me to be. I am afraid of finding quarreling and jealousy, anger and rivalry, slander and gossip, arrogance and disorder.”
As a body, we must address a very serious issue among our members – not to shame anyone, but to continue equipping and bringing us all into the unity of the faith. There is a stronghold wreaking havoc among us, and it is literally hidden from the casual eye yet destroying God-appointed relationships daily. That stronghold, as father revealed it to me, is “the spirit of chaos.”
There are many levels of chaos. If it were obvious out-of-control behavior like anger, disruption, etc., we would quickly identify it as such and then run as far from it as possible; but this specific area of chaos is quite different. For the purpose of this discussion, the spirit of chaos is defined as living in a place of complete disorder, confusion, clutter and/or mess. There are many types of disorders, but this specific area is often overlooked because it masquerades as character flaws and defects. What makes this specific stronghold unique is the intense level of denial and arrogance that is bound to it. Those in chaos tend to live their lives in a messy or cluttered way in the spirit and natural.
If you were to drop by the homes of people under the influence of this stronghold, you would see lives lived out of suitcases so-to-speak – stuff would be just everywhere! If you were in intimate relationship with these people, you would quickly notice some of these characteristics below:
- Excessive tardiness. No matter the occasion, situation or event the person is ALWAYS late, sometimes even missing the scheduled appointment, meeting or gathering;
- Everything is an emergency or crisis. Daily there is a crisis or a level of drama that “interfered” with an aspect of “their” lives – illness, another meeting, last minute crisis, etc.;
- Constant rescheduling of events, appointments and meetings. Even when an event is known in advance or well planned out there are constant streams of final hour distractions and conflicts that compete for that person’s time and attention. It’s almost like a spiritual attention deficit disorder;
- End-less waves of excuses. There is a logical, well thought out “reason” for every broken commitment. These people are VERY GOOD at presenting real, irrefutable scenarios for work not completed, commitments broken, etc.;
- Always rushing and exhausted. Whenever these chaotic people do complete an assignment, arrive at the event, bring something to the table, etc., they are always tired, exhausted, worn-out and playing catch-up. What’s worse is that they always demand and expect that those around them “immediately” help them catch-up on what they missed, often disrupting the “established or orderly flow” of the environment they are a part of;
- Arrogance and selfishness. They walk in an intense level of arrogance and selfishness. Arrogance is an overbearing place of pride and self-righteousness. One aspect of it that you will see in the lives of those oppressed is entitlement. These people feel like they have a right to disrupt your life and demand your attention in that moment. For example, if they show up late or fail to be prepared for a rehearsal in play, there is a “FALSE” expectation in which they believe others MUST somehow help them play catch up or help them fit their last minute, final hour efforts into the existing situation. There is a complete, blatant disregard for other people’s time and boundaries;
- Over commitment. They are constantly taking on new projects and new initiatives – but fail to finish any of them well if at all. At least one of those projects will go without. While these people may be brilliant, capable, highly skilled, intelligent and talented, they are not dependable. As a result, this failure to prioritize poisons and sabotages their relationships. Their commitment to projects can be equated to a high or an adrenaline rush. As long as the high is strong, they appear strong. The minute they come down from that high, they forget the commitment and are moving on to something else that is “very important and that can’t wait.” Before long, that commitment is a part of a long string of “things to do” that never get done; and yet another area of sabotage is let loose;
- Excessive Busyness. Chaotic people are incapable of resting or finding rest. Every minute of every day is spent doing something (or even thinking of what needs to be done). They are in a constant cycle of unending movement in the natural and in the spirit (primarily project-oriented busyness) – often confusing true rest with falling into fatigue from exhaustion, exertion or a subtle depression. Even their times of recreation are excessively busy;
- Quick To Judge & Blame Others. In this cycle, the person who is in chaos blames everyone around them for their negative response to their “chaotic state.” For example, if you refuse to tell them what they missed during the play rehearsal or who-did-what, they might actually get angry or feel slighted by the director INSTEAD OF recognizing that the rehearsal is on a timetable and needs to move forward. So, they blame the director for not working with them and make judgments on how that director chose to handle the situation;
- No boundaries for themselves or for others. A person living in chaos has no self-control. They “earnestly believe” they do, but in truth they have no boundaries around themselves; or any respect or honor for the boundaries of others. They are big-time boundary breakers – pushing friendships, mentoring relationships and even working relationships to max with their chaotic, crisis driven behavior;
- Confusion surrounds them. Chaotic people tend to leave trails of confusion in their midst as they disrupt the lives of others. This behavior is also subtle – even passive aggressive. Read this article from the MAYO CLINIC on passive aggressive behavior. When they drop the ball on assignments, others are left to clean away the mess or fill in the holes from their absence. In addition, they often find themselves in conflict with how they see “their behavior” verses how “others see it.” It’s as if there is a complete blindness to their own condition.
Any one of these areas could describe you or I at any time in our lives. However, a person operating in the spirit of chaos manifests nearly all of these areas AT ONCE and on a consistent basis. They literally LIVE from this place and in the midst of every single relationship in their lives. Entire marriages, family relationships, godly mentoring relationships, friendships, etc. are pulverized under the weight of the spirit of chaos operating in the lives of these souls, God’s people.
I firmly believe that all leaders in the body of Christ will run into chaotic people during the course of their ministries. They are not always easy to identify by a single or even a few incidents. This level of chaos is often revealed over the course of relationship and as people are given or released into greater areas responsibility or authority. In addition, this stronghold doesn’t necessarily indicate that a person is immature in the things of God, but it does indicate that they are in need of great healing and deliverance.
Part II: Releasing Chaotic People From Your Life
