Forgiving an offender does not dismiss the "wrongness" of what they did. It was wrong; and it is still wrong. Forgiveness does not say that what was done to you was ok. Most importantly, forgiveness does not belittle the pain & misery you went through.What forgiveness DOES Do is take away the "wrong" your enemy would use against YOU to make you miserable, sick, afraid and angry. Your Savior has made the way for you to be free of the misery, the fear, the anger and weight of the offense. The way He has made does not cost you anything. He has paid in full to take away that very offense that is weighing you down and wearying you. The word for the way He has made for you to be free is the Greek word "teleo". It has a several meanings that are very important to you, but the meaning I would like to share with you today is "paid in full". John 19:30 says that at the cross, Jesus cried out, "It is finished!" It is "teleo"-paid in full!
Most of us have accepted that Christ "paid in full" for ALL of our sins (past ones, present ones, AND future ones)-that is the "good news"...that is the gospel of Jesus Christ. But, Christ paid for MORE than just your sins. He also paid for ALL the sins that have been done against you! He paid to carry away from you the burden of that hurt. He "bore/carried" our sins 1Peter 2:24 and the "our" includes yours and theirs). He bore these in His own body on the cross when He "was made to be sin" for you so you could be made righteous.(2Cor5:21) He paid in full for the sin they did against you so you would not have to pay for it OR exact payment from them. You can be out from under the burden this very moment; and you don't have to wait until they have apologized or changed or made it right with you.
You can accept Christ's payment for the wrong done to you and go free from the prison and burden of carrying those offenses yourself! Freedom is YOURS!- bought & paid for by Christ Himself!- the offenses carried & borne AWAY from you by your Savior. Let Him carry the burden, accept His payment in full for the debt owed you. Declare along with Christ, "It is finished!" Say out loud, "It is paid in full and I accept Christ's payment for that debt. I give over to Him the burden of that debt, the care of it, the anger & resentment, the hurt, the fear, the ugliness of it. I accept the freedom to walk out from under the Enemy's plan to snare me & weigh me down with that person's sin against me. Never again will I let my enemy talk to me about that debt, I will simply remind him & myself.."teleo"paid in full!
Tomorrow tune in to find out the "device" your enemy has crafted to talk you out of your freedom and lead you back into the prison of offense. Learn how to stay free!
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Still loved in the pigsty
This is a very important realization for each of us: The prodigal son was every bit the beloved son of the father even while he was in the pig sty. The Father loved him even during the squandering, the pride, the famine. His love did not start at the point of the son's return. He did not wait and withhold affection or acceptance until after he heard the son's confession. No! The scriptures say the Father was looking for the son and RAN and fell on his neck and hugged him. Now that's love!
When you "see" sons in those various stages of pride, foolishness, deception, squandering, famine, pigsty - do not judge them unworthy of the Father's love or of your compassion. Your prayers may be the VERY THING that "brings them to their senses" and reminds them of their Father's love.
There is a scripture that is an absolute goldmine regarding just such situations. It's found in 1 John 5:16, "If you see your brother sinning a sin not unto death, you shall ask (prayer) and God will for you give life to the one who is sinning." Notice the person IS sinning. Note that they have not yet repented (changed their mind), but God instructs us to ask for life to be given them. Father is ALWAYS seeking ways to get life to us even when we are dead in our trespasses and sins.
Christ laid down His life for us even when we were dead in our trespasses and sins so instead of criticizing and judging the person in the pig sty, open up your mouth and ask life for the one and soon you will see the results. They WILL come home - they WILL be restored and you will have been the conduit for grace and the Father's love to reach them even in that pig sty.
When you "see" sons in those various stages of pride, foolishness, deception, squandering, famine, pigsty - do not judge them unworthy of the Father's love or of your compassion. Your prayers may be the VERY THING that "brings them to their senses" and reminds them of their Father's love.
There is a scripture that is an absolute goldmine regarding just such situations. It's found in 1 John 5:16, "If you see your brother sinning a sin not unto death, you shall ask (prayer) and God will for you give life to the one who is sinning." Notice the person IS sinning. Note that they have not yet repented (changed their mind), but God instructs us to ask for life to be given them. Father is ALWAYS seeking ways to get life to us even when we are dead in our trespasses and sins.
Christ laid down His life for us even when we were dead in our trespasses and sins so instead of criticizing and judging the person in the pig sty, open up your mouth and ask life for the one and soon you will see the results. They WILL come home - they WILL be restored and you will have been the conduit for grace and the Father's love to reach them even in that pig sty.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Pow wow - WOW!
Imagine the power and fruit that would flow in your life if every morning you and Christ Jesus had a pow wow; He would tell you how much He loves you and how precious you are to Him & Father. Then He would impart strong, pure, unadulterated faith to you so you could believe Him and walk by faith instead of sight. After that would come might in your inner man - the might to overcome evil with good - the might to stand against the wiles of the enemy.
Strength would flow into your inmost being affecting your body, restoring your soul and certainly your spiritual disposition. That strength flowing into your inner man means you are NOT tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine.
During the conversation, He would help you make a list of what your day's activities would be and how to handle them. He would flow wisdom to your thinking and understanding to your heart. Next would come a dose of discerning of spirits so you would recognize the masquerades and disguises of your enemy and quickly "see" through the subtle devices and snares of your foe.
To top off the conversation, Christ would give you love for His brethren and compassion to deal with the humans wisely and patiently. That same love would bring boldness and courage "to loose the bands of wickedness and to undo the heavy yokes of the enemy - to allow the oppressed to go free and to break every yoke" {Isaiah 58:6] Plus, that same love would give you power and confidence to stop the enemy's plans, to "wrestle against" and win!
"For God did NOT give you a spirit of fear / timidity, but He HAS given you the spirit of love and power and a sound mind (the very mind of Christ)."[2 Tim 1:7] That love, that power, that mindset of Christ would cause you to overcome and more than conquer the kingdom of darkness that is trying to come against your loved ones. Use Christ's power and victory to vanquish your spiritual foes.
As the conversation ends, your Savior would pronounce a benediction over you. "Bene" = good, "diction" = speech / words. This GOOD word He pronounces over you would bring refreshing and rest to you - peace to guard your heart and mind. You would go out equipped for anything - for everything.
Wouldn't you just love to have that pow wow with Christ your Savior?!?!
Well that is EXACTLY what happens when you pray in tongues!
Do you see why your enemy fights tongues so much?!? Your enemy uses your flesh, some religious churches, the winds of doctrine to belittle this hugely important gift of God! Christ died to give us this gift! Father GOD has given you the very Spirit of Christ to abide in your earthen vessel! The Holy Spirit has agreed to never leave you, to teach you, to guide you, to help you, to comfort you, to make Christ known to you, to bring to your remembrance what Christ has said, to be be YOUR sound mind, to be the Love of GOD shed abroad in your heart, to give wisdom to your thinking and bring understanding to your heart. But, in order to do this, you have to let Him talk!
So, exercise that great & important gift today! Get the WOW pow-wow going with Christ your Savior this very instant. Pray in Tongues right now and let Him talk to you and tell you "great and mighty things "! He is willing to impart these gifts and more. All it takes is to simply yield that little member (your tongue) and let Him do the talking.
Strength would flow into your inmost being affecting your body, restoring your soul and certainly your spiritual disposition. That strength flowing into your inner man means you are NOT tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine.
During the conversation, He would help you make a list of what your day's activities would be and how to handle them. He would flow wisdom to your thinking and understanding to your heart. Next would come a dose of discerning of spirits so you would recognize the masquerades and disguises of your enemy and quickly "see" through the subtle devices and snares of your foe.
To top off the conversation, Christ would give you love for His brethren and compassion to deal with the humans wisely and patiently. That same love would bring boldness and courage "to loose the bands of wickedness and to undo the heavy yokes of the enemy - to allow the oppressed to go free and to break every yoke" {Isaiah 58:6] Plus, that same love would give you power and confidence to stop the enemy's plans, to "wrestle against" and win!
"For God did NOT give you a spirit of fear / timidity, but He HAS given you the spirit of love and power and a sound mind (the very mind of Christ)."[2 Tim 1:7] That love, that power, that mindset of Christ would cause you to overcome and more than conquer the kingdom of darkness that is trying to come against your loved ones. Use Christ's power and victory to vanquish your spiritual foes.
As the conversation ends, your Savior would pronounce a benediction over you. "Bene" = good, "diction" = speech / words. This GOOD word He pronounces over you would bring refreshing and rest to you - peace to guard your heart and mind. You would go out equipped for anything - for everything.
Wouldn't you just love to have that pow wow with Christ your Savior?!?!
Well that is EXACTLY what happens when you pray in tongues!
Do you see why your enemy fights tongues so much?!? Your enemy uses your flesh, some religious churches, the winds of doctrine to belittle this hugely important gift of God! Christ died to give us this gift! Father GOD has given you the very Spirit of Christ to abide in your earthen vessel! The Holy Spirit has agreed to never leave you, to teach you, to guide you, to help you, to comfort you, to make Christ known to you, to bring to your remembrance what Christ has said, to be be YOUR sound mind, to be the Love of GOD shed abroad in your heart, to give wisdom to your thinking and bring understanding to your heart. But, in order to do this, you have to let Him talk!
So, exercise that great & important gift today! Get the WOW pow-wow going with Christ your Savior this very instant. Pray in Tongues right now and let Him talk to you and tell you "great and mighty things "! He is willing to impart these gifts and more. All it takes is to simply yield that little member (your tongue) and let Him do the talking.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Take up your cross - right? Not what you think...
"Take up your cross and follow me." Matthew 16:24. Have you ever heard someone say a particular hardship was their cross to bear? Arthritis - stomach trouble - not making ends meet - whatever hardship that seems to be persistently constant in their life. Almost saying that God would want them to suffer that way. Guess what?!? That could not be further from the truth.
Here's the truth according to the Scriptures.
The Greek word for our phrase "take up" is airō which means to take upon one's self and carry what has been raised up. What has been raised up - what is that? It is Jesus Christ's finished work on Calvary. We take upon ourselves the finished work of Calvary.
When we are facing sickness, we DO NOT take up the sickness as our "cross to bear". We take up the finished work of Calvary by remembering Jesus took stripes for our healing. [Isa. 53:5] When we experience a situation that threatens our peace, we take up His finished work and say, "Jesus was chastised for me to have peace." [Isa. 53:5]. When we come across something that "runs in our family", instead of just allowing it to climb up on our shoulders to settle in for a ride, we remember the finished work of Calvary that He wore a crown of thorns (thorns are a picture of the curse). The curses fell on His head INSTEAD of our head. [Gal 3:13]
So take up the finished work of Calvary and "follow me". Follow Jesus where? What does He lead us in?
THE TRIUMPH! His triumph!
"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ." [2 Cor 2:14] The Greek word for triumph is thriambeuō which means to triumph, to celebrate a triumph, cause one to triumph. The only other place in the New Testament where this word is found in Col 2:15, "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
Our cross to bear IS Jesus' finished work on Calvary and we follow Him in His triumph over the kingdom of darkness.
Now with confidence and hope we take upon ourselves the finished work of Calvary and follow Jesus in His triumph over the kingdom of darkness.
Guest blog by Arin Rentz
Pat and Arin enjoying lunch together!
Here's the truth according to the Scriptures.
The Greek word for our phrase "take up" is airō which means to take upon one's self and carry what has been raised up. What has been raised up - what is that? It is Jesus Christ's finished work on Calvary. We take upon ourselves the finished work of Calvary.
When we are facing sickness, we DO NOT take up the sickness as our "cross to bear". We take up the finished work of Calvary by remembering Jesus took stripes for our healing. [Isa. 53:5] When we experience a situation that threatens our peace, we take up His finished work and say, "Jesus was chastised for me to have peace." [Isa. 53:5]. When we come across something that "runs in our family", instead of just allowing it to climb up on our shoulders to settle in for a ride, we remember the finished work of Calvary that He wore a crown of thorns (thorns are a picture of the curse). The curses fell on His head INSTEAD of our head. [Gal 3:13]
So take up the finished work of Calvary and "follow me". Follow Jesus where? What does He lead us in?
THE TRIUMPH! His triumph!
"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ." [2 Cor 2:14] The Greek word for triumph is thriambeuō which means to triumph, to celebrate a triumph, cause one to triumph. The only other place in the New Testament where this word is found in Col 2:15, "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
Our cross to bear IS Jesus' finished work on Calvary and we follow Him in His triumph over the kingdom of darkness.
Now with confidence and hope we take upon ourselves the finished work of Calvary and follow Jesus in His triumph over the kingdom of darkness.
Guest blog by Arin Rentz
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Three "T's" to Triumph
This last Saturday, the Lord gave me a Word picture that has helped me overcome. Each of us have a picture of the three crosses on Calvary in our minds. I saw the silhouette of the hill and the three crosses on top of the hill. Those three crosses help me remember the three "T's" of Triumph.
Because of what Christ has done on Calvary - the complete, finished total work, we can
Tread on serpents
Trample on scorpions
Take up serpents
The first two "T's" are from Luke 10:19 where our Savior reminds us He has gives us power and authority to tread on and trample serpents and scorpions and NOTHING shall by any means harm us. Every time you take a thought captive to Christ's obedience, you are trampling on scorpions - those unclean thoughts from the kingdom of darkness are like scorpions. When you bring the thoughts captive to Christ, you are NOT being taken captive.
Every time you choose to believe Christ and His report rather than your enemy's recommendation on how to handle the situations of life, you triumph AND you are treading on serpents. The promise to Joshua, "everywhere your foot treads, I will give you that land" is also a promise to you. Every time you tread on a serpent, you get to have that land. Whether it's peace, prospering of your soul, financial provision, relationship unity or any other provision from God, you get to have it and enjoy it when you don't cooperate with your enemy - you overcome him instead.
The third "T" comes from Mark 16:17, "These signs shall follow them that have believed in MY NAME." They will:
-cast out demons (you are doing this everyday when you are praying for other humans, meditating on the Word, speaking life - all of these are powers against demons and that kingdom of darkness)
-speak with new tongues (praying in tongues, Praying in the Spirit is how you "hear" the voice of Christ telling you what to do, telling you of His love, telling you how to overcome even if you don't understand the words. Praying in tongues bypasses your own understanding so you won't lean on your own understanding, but wholly depend on the leading of the Holy Spirit. Let Him do the majority of the talking by praying in the Spirit during prayer as opposed to you monopolizing the time. You will be amazed at the understanding and wisdom that will come to you from this very important practice of praying in tongues.)
-take up serpents (The Greek word "airo" that we translate "take up" means to remove, to take up, to cast away. See further explanation below)
-no harm from drinking any deadly thing (when my son was very young, he managed to get a bottle of Triaminic that had been left in the car and drank the entire thing. While rushing him to the hospital, I kept saying this portion out loud over him. When we arrived at the ER and the doctors examined him, he had NO SIGN of drinking anything harmful. Not even dialated eyes or racing heartbeat - no adverse effects at all!)
-lay hands on the sick and they will recover (When you pray the prayer of faith over someone and lay hands on them, know that they will recover. See them in your mind's eye recovering. See them whole by the stripes of Christ that purchased healing for them. These signs "follow" so don't be discouraged if its not immediate. Recovery often takes time.
When you see enemy activity (serpent / scorpion activity) against a fellow human remember 1 John 5:16 says, "If you see your brother sinning a sin not unto death, you shall ask (prayer) and God WILL for you give life to the one who is sinning." Notice; you ask, He gives and the human gets life even while sinning. That life will get them out of that sin trap.
Also, in Galatians 6:1,"Whoever sees a brother caught in a trespass or sin, you who are spiritual RESTORE such a one." In this passage, the Greek word restore has the threads of meaning of fresh, daily bread. The picture here is you have a fresh, full loaf of children's bread (Christ Himself - the bread of Life) and you go to the one who is caught and you take a hunk of your bread and give it to them. This bread brings them life and strength and power to GET OUT of that sin.
As Christians, we are not judgers of humans, we are restorers. When we see their sin, we do not judge - we pray FOR (not gossip about). Our enemy always desires us to judge, criticize, condemn the humans we see sinning, but Christ calls us to a higher way of dealing with the humans which is to love, pray for and do good to them.
Our enemy's tactics will result in us being taken captive along with the one we are judging, but Christ's ways result in freedom for us and the one trapped in sin. So remember our three "T's" of Triumph are to Tread, Trample and Take up. Use these Three "T's" to overcome your enemy.
You have been given His power and authority to do so by the complete work of Calvary.
Because of what Christ has done on Calvary - the complete, finished total work, we can
Tread on serpents
Trample on scorpions
Take up serpents
The first two "T's" are from Luke 10:19 where our Savior reminds us He has gives us power and authority to tread on and trample serpents and scorpions and NOTHING shall by any means harm us. Every time you take a thought captive to Christ's obedience, you are trampling on scorpions - those unclean thoughts from the kingdom of darkness are like scorpions. When you bring the thoughts captive to Christ, you are NOT being taken captive.
Every time you choose to believe Christ and His report rather than your enemy's recommendation on how to handle the situations of life, you triumph AND you are treading on serpents. The promise to Joshua, "everywhere your foot treads, I will give you that land" is also a promise to you. Every time you tread on a serpent, you get to have that land. Whether it's peace, prospering of your soul, financial provision, relationship unity or any other provision from God, you get to have it and enjoy it when you don't cooperate with your enemy - you overcome him instead.
The third "T" comes from Mark 16:17, "These signs shall follow them that have believed in MY NAME." They will:
-cast out demons (you are doing this everyday when you are praying for other humans, meditating on the Word, speaking life - all of these are powers against demons and that kingdom of darkness)
-speak with new tongues (praying in tongues, Praying in the Spirit is how you "hear" the voice of Christ telling you what to do, telling you of His love, telling you how to overcome even if you don't understand the words. Praying in tongues bypasses your own understanding so you won't lean on your own understanding, but wholly depend on the leading of the Holy Spirit. Let Him do the majority of the talking by praying in the Spirit during prayer as opposed to you monopolizing the time. You will be amazed at the understanding and wisdom that will come to you from this very important practice of praying in tongues.)
-take up serpents (The Greek word "airo" that we translate "take up" means to remove, to take up, to cast away. See further explanation below)
-no harm from drinking any deadly thing (when my son was very young, he managed to get a bottle of Triaminic that had been left in the car and drank the entire thing. While rushing him to the hospital, I kept saying this portion out loud over him. When we arrived at the ER and the doctors examined him, he had NO SIGN of drinking anything harmful. Not even dialated eyes or racing heartbeat - no adverse effects at all!)
-lay hands on the sick and they will recover (When you pray the prayer of faith over someone and lay hands on them, know that they will recover. See them in your mind's eye recovering. See them whole by the stripes of Christ that purchased healing for them. These signs "follow" so don't be discouraged if its not immediate. Recovery often takes time.
When you see enemy activity (serpent / scorpion activity) against a fellow human remember 1 John 5:16 says, "If you see your brother sinning a sin not unto death, you shall ask (prayer) and God WILL for you give life to the one who is sinning." Notice; you ask, He gives and the human gets life even while sinning. That life will get them out of that sin trap.
Also, in Galatians 6:1,"Whoever sees a brother caught in a trespass or sin, you who are spiritual RESTORE such a one." In this passage, the Greek word restore has the threads of meaning of fresh, daily bread. The picture here is you have a fresh, full loaf of children's bread (Christ Himself - the bread of Life) and you go to the one who is caught and you take a hunk of your bread and give it to them. This bread brings them life and strength and power to GET OUT of that sin.
As Christians, we are not judgers of humans, we are restorers. When we see their sin, we do not judge - we pray FOR (not gossip about). Our enemy always desires us to judge, criticize, condemn the humans we see sinning, but Christ calls us to a higher way of dealing with the humans which is to love, pray for and do good to them.
Our enemy's tactics will result in us being taken captive along with the one we are judging, but Christ's ways result in freedom for us and the one trapped in sin. So remember our three "T's" of Triumph are to Tread, Trample and Take up. Use these Three "T's" to overcome your enemy.
You have been given His power and authority to do so by the complete work of Calvary.
Faith v.s. Circumstance
In everything give thanks...when our enemy drops a circumstance in front of us and says,"What are you going to do about it?!?!?". Of course, his words are spoken in a taunting, teasing, condemning and accusing way.
Perhaps the circumstance is presented in such a way as to try and scare you off of The Triumph. Perhaps it is an attempt to try and "reason" you out of The Victory. Maybe it is the umpteenth try at wearying you or dis-couraging you (trying to diminish your courage supply from Christ).
But no matter how or why or in what way he bring the fight, remember - it is a fight of faith! So, pick up your first Smooth Stone and begin The Triumph! Begin The Victory parade with giving thanks. Thanking God is your first steps to Triumph. The Lord ALWAYS leads you in His triumph. Thanks be to God who always leads us in His triumph. 1 Cor 15:57.
Therefore, thanking Him is beginning our walk of overcoming. Begin immediately to gain advantage over your enemy and the circumstance he brought. You enemy means it for defeat and mocking you and your God; but your Savior will turn it into...
stepping stones of Triumph
"treading on serpent" stone of Victory
"trampling on scorpion" stones
These cause you to experience the "more than conquering" power to overcome evil! Fling those Thank Stones with the sling of your own mouth saying The Victory Truth.
Victory Truths:
I AM more than a conqueror
I AM an overcomer
I AM strong in the Lord
I AM the righteousness of God in Christ
I AM the victor, not the victim
These sayings are true regardless of the circumstances because of Christ's finished, complete work on Calvary! Praise the Lord!
Perhaps the circumstance is presented in such a way as to try and scare you off of The Triumph. Perhaps it is an attempt to try and "reason" you out of The Victory. Maybe it is the umpteenth try at wearying you or dis-couraging you (trying to diminish your courage supply from Christ).
But no matter how or why or in what way he bring the fight, remember - it is a fight of faith! So, pick up your first Smooth Stone and begin The Triumph! Begin The Victory parade with giving thanks. Thanking God is your first steps to Triumph. The Lord ALWAYS leads you in His triumph. Thanks be to God who always leads us in His triumph. 1 Cor 15:57.
Therefore, thanking Him is beginning our walk of overcoming. Begin immediately to gain advantage over your enemy and the circumstance he brought. You enemy means it for defeat and mocking you and your God; but your Savior will turn it into...
stepping stones of Triumph
"treading on serpent" stone of Victory
"trampling on scorpion" stones
These cause you to experience the "more than conquering" power to overcome evil! Fling those Thank Stones with the sling of your own mouth saying The Victory Truth.
Victory Truths:
I AM more than a conqueror
I AM an overcomer
I AM strong in the Lord
I AM the righteousness of God in Christ
I AM the victor, not the victim
These sayings are true regardless of the circumstances because of Christ's finished, complete work on Calvary! Praise the Lord!
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Faith thanks BEFORE it sees the results
Let me tell you about this past Sunday in church. We saw the heart of God to heal. As we sang the praises of God and the Truth in the song “Healing is Here", Pastor Scott called the people who needed to receive healing to come down to the altar. He reminded us of the purpose of Christ taking the stripes on His own back to purchase healing for us His people. Pastor encouraged us to believe God & receive what Christ has already purchased.
Sometimes receiving is difficult. Our flesh wants to receive and then believe. Our enemy wants us to doubt and do without. But our Savior tells us to have faith in God (Mark11:22). Faith is what enables us to receive - literally the Greek word means “to lay hold of so as to utilize it”. Healing has already been provided, but we need “to lay hold of it so as to utilize it” in our everyday life, and faith is like the “swipe card” that allows us to access what Christ has already put in our account.
Faith brings God’s provision that we don’t yet “feel” or “see”. Faith IS the evidence of things NOT SEEN (Hebrews 11:2). When Christ was faced with the dilemma of feeding 5,000 men and their families and only “saw” the provision of the 5 loaves and 2 fishes, he could have complained to Father God that the need was greater than the provision or that the provision was too small to be the answer to his dilemma. Yet, he didn’t complain. Instead, He did a very faith –filled action …He gave thanks! (John 6:11)
When you give thanks in the face of a seemingly “too big” problem or when looking at a seemingly “too small” remedy, your thankful words are faith- FILLED words also! Your words of thanks ARE words of faith in God! You are not saying what you “see”; you are saying what you “believe”. Oftentimes giving thanks is the way through to the remedy, the way to receive the “more than adequate” provision of your faithful Father!
Faith thanks BEFORE it “sees” the results! Faith thanks BEFORE it “feels” healed. Follow Christ’s example and give thanks BEFORE! Remember, when Christ gave thanks, the multitude was fed and there were 12 baskets of leftovers! Gratitude brings abundant blessings into your life.
Grate-full = Faith-full
Don’t forget we have an enemy that is working overtime to belittle what Christ has done on our behalf: the stripes Christ took to heal us, the Blood to remit our sin, grace to forgive all, the LOVE of God given through Christ. Our enemy magnifies the problem and belittles the remedy; and he tries to get you to do the same.
The way you magnify the problem is by complaining. The way you magnify the remedy is by thanking. (Ps 69:30)
Use the POWER of giving thanks to subdue & overcome! Giving thanks enables you to receive from your Savior and overcome evil with good - “It is GOOD to give thanks unto the Lord". (Ps92:1)
Giving thanks utilizes the POWER of faith to receive what Christ has already provided.
Start thanking and you will start receiving! Keep thanking and you will keep on receiving!
Sometimes receiving is difficult. Our flesh wants to receive and then believe. Our enemy wants us to doubt and do without. But our Savior tells us to have faith in God (Mark11:22). Faith is what enables us to receive - literally the Greek word means “to lay hold of so as to utilize it”. Healing has already been provided, but we need “to lay hold of it so as to utilize it” in our everyday life, and faith is like the “swipe card” that allows us to access what Christ has already put in our account.
Faith brings God’s provision that we don’t yet “feel” or “see”. Faith IS the evidence of things NOT SEEN (Hebrews 11:2). When Christ was faced with the dilemma of feeding 5,000 men and their families and only “saw” the provision of the 5 loaves and 2 fishes, he could have complained to Father God that the need was greater than the provision or that the provision was too small to be the answer to his dilemma. Yet, he didn’t complain. Instead, He did a very faith –filled action …He gave thanks! (John 6:11)
When you give thanks in the face of a seemingly “too big” problem or when looking at a seemingly “too small” remedy, your thankful words are faith- FILLED words also! Your words of thanks ARE words of faith in God! You are not saying what you “see”; you are saying what you “believe”. Oftentimes giving thanks is the way through to the remedy, the way to receive the “more than adequate” provision of your faithful Father!
Faith thanks BEFORE it “sees” the results! Faith thanks BEFORE it “feels” healed. Follow Christ’s example and give thanks BEFORE! Remember, when Christ gave thanks, the multitude was fed and there were 12 baskets of leftovers! Gratitude brings abundant blessings into your life.
Grate-full = Faith-full
Don’t forget we have an enemy that is working overtime to belittle what Christ has done on our behalf: the stripes Christ took to heal us, the Blood to remit our sin, grace to forgive all, the LOVE of God given through Christ. Our enemy magnifies the problem and belittles the remedy; and he tries to get you to do the same.
The way you magnify the problem is by complaining. The way you magnify the remedy is by thanking. (Ps 69:30)
Use the POWER of giving thanks to subdue & overcome! Giving thanks enables you to receive from your Savior and overcome evil with good - “It is GOOD to give thanks unto the Lord". (Ps92:1)
Giving thanks utilizes the POWER of faith to receive what Christ has already provided.
Start thanking and you will start receiving! Keep thanking and you will keep on receiving!
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