Victor, No Longer the Victim

We all know the verse, "The wages of sin is death." Rom 6:23.  We are certainly aware that many "sins" will eventually result in death, such as smoking, promiscuity, robbing banks, etc. We are also cognizant of a more subtle truth that other kinds of sin result in some form of death, for example selfishness has brought death to many relationships, lust has caused the demise of countless marriages, envy rots the bones, greed and avarice often bring death to financial prosperity after they first kill contentment and appreciation.

But a greater, deeper, more profound and revealing truth is also in those same words. Sin is not simply human bad behavior. If you simply capitalize the "s" in Sin so it is a proper noun rather than a verb, and if you recognize it as a name, you will see the dawning of that profound truth. Why would we capitalize the "s" in Sin? Because, Sin is an entity. Sin is the name of an entity, a personage that belongs in amongst the "principalities, powers, rulers of this present darkness." [Eph 6:12]

When humans sin, they are behaving, thinking and talking like that personage, Sin. Sin is also a principality. When we say the adage,"We are all born with a sin nature", we are certainly accurate.  We are  born into this world with the nature of Sin. Parents, have you ever had to teach your child to lie, be selfish or rebel? No! Rather, you have to work hard to train them to say "no" to that lower nature.

When we look at the behavior of humans when they are sinning, we can get a view of the nature, character and "fingerprints" of that entity, Sin.  Sin is a liar, a cheater, rebellious, demanding, demeaning, selfish, unkind, a trafficker in guile and trickery, deceit, doubt, accusation, guilt, blame and rejection.

Sin pays humans "wages" for acting like him and doing his dirty work. You may think you are acting on your own volition when you accuse, blame, withhold forgiveness or find fault, but, the truth is, you are being influenced by Sin and the many underlings that answer to him in that kingdom of darkness. They are endeavoring to train you to think like them, talk like them, react like them and, most of all, to adopt their attitudes and emotions.

Perhaps you "feel" an overwhelming urge to lie or blurt out hurtful remarks, or maybe negative thoughts have been bombarding you. It is NOT YOU - it is a device being used against you and has been initiated by that kingdom of darkness. The origin of condemning, judging, criticizing, accusing, and negative thoughts are ALL coming from that kingdom of darkness, meaning those very qualities, characteristics and behavior patterns originate from him, Sin. When humans act in those ways, they are simply following Sin's lead. They are obeying him. 

Why is this important? Because of this important principle- "To Whomever you yield your members, his slave you become to Whomever you obey."  [Rom 6:16] This word "members" includes your tongue, mind, will and emotions.

Obedience is what the enemy is after. Your obedience to him is what matters because he knows these principles. Your obedience to him results in Sin being the ruler over you and you being enslaved to repeat the very thing you don't want to do. The enemy knows how this works and wants to use it against you, but, today, you are going to learn how to NOT allow Sin to rule over you. "For Sin shall not have dominion over you for you are not under law, but under grace."[Rom 6:14]

God's grace is what defeated that dark kingdom and gave you the delegated power and authority over the "principalities, powers, rulers of this present darkness." [Eph 6:12] "Behold I give you power and authority over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means harm you" [Luke 10:19]

We've seen how the enemy intended this principle for harm, but, now, I want you to see how God intended this principle for your good.

"To Whomever you yield your members his slave you become to Whomever you obey, whether of Sin unto death
OR
obedience unto Righteousness." [Rom 6:16]

Stay with me here for a minute. Sin is a personage vying for your attention and obedience so he can enslave you. But, Righteousness is also a personage! Jesus Christ IS Righteousness. He, too, is vying for your attention and obedience; but, His intent is ALWAYS to bring you freedom. Jesus Christ is the One who sets humans free. "Whom the Son sets free is free indeed." [John 8:36]  

Just like Sin pays you wages for your cooperation, so does Christ. Jesus Christ is called
"The Righteous". So, capitalize the "r" in Righteous and you will see Christ. Also, notice what happens to you when cooperate with Him...you get life.

See it clearly in the Word:

"The wages of Sin is death." [Rom 6:23]
"The wages of the Righteous is life." [Prov 10:16a]

Both Sin & Jesus are vying for your obedience, but for very different reasons. Think about it- Who would you rather work for? Who would you rather have ruling over you? The one who enslaves or the One who sets free? The one who pays out death or the One who gives life and that more abundantly? "I have come that you may have life and that more abundantly." [John 10:10]

You get to choose who will rule over you. Religion tells you that God is punishing you for your sins, but, the truth is, He has personally taken away your sin and paid for every one of your sins (past, present and future) by Himself. The one who is making you miserable is Sin and his minions who are paying you for your obedience to them.

When you sin, you are following the enemy's lead - obeying him. Remember, Christ's victory was over the entire kingdom of darkness and He has defeated Sin already. The enemy cannot MAKE you do his work. You have to cooperate with him.  [Col 2:13-15] In fact, Christ has given you the victory over that kingdom of darkness and the authority and power to trample on serpents and scorpions and NOTHING shall by any means harm you. [Luke 10:19]

Christ's obedience on the cross is what bought you freedom from the rulership darkness. Every time they "introduce" or "plant" a thought, you can "bring it captive to the obedience of Christ." [2 Cor 10:5] and thereby avoid becoming a captive yourself!

"For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of One shall many be made righteous." [Rom. 5:19]

Christ's obedience paid for your disobedience. You are made righteous by the obedience of Jesus Christ. He fulfilled the requirements of the law and gave you the benefit of His obedience. Christ has given you the gift of His righteousness - "and those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by the One Christ Jesus." [Rom 5:17]. Start reigning over Sin, "Fear" and "Envy" and any other principality in that kingdom of darkness. Stop allowing Sin, Fear and Envy to rule over you. Overcome them! More than conquer them! Enforce the victory Christ won on your behalf. You are not the victim, you are the victor through Christ Jesus. Now that's good news!

Healing Promises Victory Story

We visited our family in Florida this past May. My husband's sister asked us to pray for a dear friend, Sandra, who had been battling cancer for 32 years. Sandra had gone through oodles of treatment options and was facing a dismal prognosis. We met with her and gave her "Healing Promises" along with "Your Miracle is in Your Mouth" by Joseph Prince. My youngest daughter had just purchased these books to read on the trip and felt impressed to give them to this lady.

We taught Sandra the power of communion, giving thanks to God and people, praising God and bringing to remembrance the complete work of Christ on Calvary. We heard from Sandra about seven months later...

"All tumors are gone...leukemia is in remission...praise the Lord!".

We were ELATED to see the benefit of taking God at His Word, believing Him and speaking out what He says is true. "Healing Promises" contains the promises of God that are "yes and amen" in Christ Jesus. Christ purchased these benefits for you.  Don't let your enemy or religion talk you out of these benefits. They're bought and paid for and they belong to you.  Use this book to start receiving them. We are thrilled to be giving away a copy of "Healing Promises" via our Facebook page. 


https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Place-of-Grace-for-You/150877131635688

Burdened? Want freedom instead?

Forgiveness - "forgiveness" in the Strong's Concordance (#859) is "aphesis" which means 1. release from bondage or imprisonment, 2. forgiveness or pardon of sins.

Definition #1 - release from bondage or imprisonment - most people unwittingly allow the enemy to put THEM in bondage or imprisonment because they refuse to forgive someone who has transgressed against them.  When you forgive, YOU GET RELEASED FROM BONDAGE AND IMPRISONMENT.  When you don't forgive, it's not the unforgiven that get imprisoned, but the unforgiver!

In John 20:23 Jesus said, "Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted (remitted means sent far from you, removed). Whosoever sins ye retain, their sins are retained."  The question is...who is carrying the load - the weight - the burden of the unforgiven sin?  It is the unforgiver; because Christ ALREADY paid with His blood to take away that very sin the enemy is trying to get you offended over.  Better to remit the sin (send it far from you) by forgiving the human rather than to retain the person's sin and bear the weight of the offense.

The enemy tries to weigh you down with the care, the weight, the sting of that other person's sin.  The enemy tries to get you to pick up the offense and carry the burden.  However, we are admonished to lay aside EVERY weight and the sin that does so easily beset us (Heb 12:1).  The sin of unforgiveness is a heavier weight than the offense / transgression that the person did against you in the first place.  Simply because unforgiveness is resisting / frustrating the grace of God who is The Forgiver.  It flies in the face of the grace Christ extended by laying down His life to pay the penalty for that person's sin against you.  Christ Himself bears the burden of that person's sin so you don't have to.

Let Christ's payment be enough and don't try to exact payment on your own.  If you do, you will be the one that ends up in debt, burdened, weighted down.  A wise person once said that unforgiveness and the resulting bitterness is like drinking poison yourself and expecting the other person to die.

It is a case of "give and it shall be given unto you".   The verse goes on to say"pressed down, shaken together and running over"(Luke 6:38).  What you give to others will come back to you like a boomerang, but multiplied as it comes back pressed down, shaken together and running over. 

GIVE FORGIVENESS - that is what grace is for..."for"-giving!

You will see that as you forgive, you will be the one "released from bondage or imprisonment".

Next blog to find out how to forgive from your heart all who have offended you.

Live-in help

Which one of us would not opt for a live-in housekeeper or live-in nanny or administrative assistant? We have something even better!  Each of us has been given a live-in Source of life and help called the Holy Spirit of Christ.  The Holy Spirit is with you, in you and flows through you to get life help and help to you.

Oddly enough, many of us hardly allows Him to speak.  We fill the airwaves with our own words, our own worries, our unbelief, our complaining or murmuring.  We all know the truth that says,"Life and death are in the power of the tongue" (Prov. 18:21) and most of us are trying to speak positively and nicely.  But, there is a greater truth in this scripture.  The Holy Spirit, who has been given to you by our Father, was given to us for purpose. 

What purpose?

First, to speak LIFE to us and through us.  The Holy Spirit NEVER speaks death.  He has only life to impart...and life more abundantly than what you are experiencing now.  Think about it, you've been doing most of the talking and how's that been working for you?!?!?

Chances are you've been pleading, begging, cajoling - nearly standing on your head trying to get God to move on your behalf when all along you've had HIS VERY PRESENCE with you and in you.  Instead of asking Him to provide something He has already done, let Him pray through you.

We don't know how to pray as we ought, but the Holy Spirit does!

Let Him!  Let, allow, permit Him, through your earthen vessel, using your tongue, to speak life into your situation.  You provide the tongue, He provides the utterance.  Praying in tongues allows the Holy Spirit to pray the good, acceptable and perfect will of God on your behalf.  He knows what to say - He knows your need and what's more - He knows God's supply.  The Holy Spirit also knows your enemy's tactics and plans AND He knows how to overcome that evil with the good God has already provided for you. 

The Holy spirit is well versed with the mighty weapons of your warfare and He knows how to lead you in the triumph.  He knows how to win the battle and give you the victory.  The Holy Spirit, that SAME Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead, dwells in your earthen vessel.  The Scriptures say that the excellent power is from Him, but it is in our earthen vessel (2 Cor 4:7).  When we pray in tongues, we are allowing that excellent power to flow, unhindered, by our thinking or our unbelief.  Plus, our enemy cannot gainsay or comprehend what the Holy Spirit is saying and, therefore, cannot devise a tactic or a rebuttal.

Praying in tongues is WIN - WIN situation for you and the kingdom of God, but a LOSE - LOSE situation for our enemy and the kingdom of darkness.  Are you aware that praying in tongues is an act of your will, not solely His?  The apostle Paul said,"I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all" (2Cor 4:18) and Paul also said these telling words..."I will pray in the Spirit and I will pray with understanding."(1 Cor 14:15).  Notice the presence of the word "will".  You choose to pray in tongues.  You choose to yield your member, your tongue - to the Holy Spirit and He prays through you.

Notice also that it's first praying in the Spirit and THEN follows praying with understanding.  That is because when you pray in tongues first, understanding comes to you so you will pray with understanding.  The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Understanding so when you let Him pray, understanding will dawn on you.  Then you will pray with understanding.

The Holy Spirit is also called the Spirit of Wisdom. You are all familiar with the passage that reads," If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all men liberally." (James 1:5) One of the quickest and most sure ways of getting wisdom to you is by letting the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom, pray through you and wisdom will manifest.

The Holy Spirit is also called the Spirit of Might so when you need strength, pray in tongues and you will receive strength.  The Holy Spirit is also called the Spirit of Knowledge.  Let Him give you a word of knowledge.  Pray in tongues and receive the knowledge that you need.

The Holy Spirit is also the Spirit of Council.  He is YOUR wonderful counselor and He does not charge you anything for His council.  It is free for the taking by simply by-passing your natural understanding and your many, many words and praying in tongues.  You might wonder where I am getting all of this about the Holy Spirit.  It is found in Isaiah 11:2, "And the spirit of the Lord will rest upon Him, the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, the Spirit of Council and Might, the Spirit of Knowledge and Reverence (fear of the Lord)." 

This last attribute of reverence / fear of the Lord is SO pivotal in all of our lives just like it was in Jesus' life when HE walked on this planet.  Remember when Moses struck the rock the second time after God had instructed him to speak to the Rock instead - Moses had struck the rock in his anger towards the people's behavior.  God did not reprimand him for being angry, but told Moses that he did not REVERE God as holy.(Num 20:12)  It was so important to God that Moses carry out the typology of speaking to the Rock that had already been struck BECAUSE striking the Rock was the picture of the cross.  It was imperative that the Rock not be repeatedly struck, but simply spoken to because it is speaking to the Rock that causes that river of living water to flow to our earthen vessels today.

Speaking in tongues is that river of living water unleashed to flow into your soul, your situations, your needs and on behalf of others.  This is the day that we speak to the Rock, Christ Jesus, by asking Him for the gift of His Holy Spirit in our earthen vessel.  If you have not asked Him yet to immerse you in His Holy Spirit, ask Him right now.  Jesus told the woman at the well,"If you knew the Gift of God (the Holy Spirit) and Who is speaking to you, you would have asked and He would give you living water!!!".  Dear ones - the Gift of God is the Holy Spirit.  The One speaking to you today is Jesus Christ, the Rock of Salvation.  Ask Him for that precious gift.  Freely receive what He has freely given.

Your life will never be the same.  You have that live-in help that is so necessary to overcome and more than conquer.  It is the joy of the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom, understanding, council, might, knowledge and reverence for our Father God who loves you dearly.

Limping through life? How to triumph instead!

1 Kings 18:21 (AMP) "Elijah came near to all the people and said,

 

How long will you halt and limp between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him! But if Baal, then follow him. And the people did not answer him a word."

 

Early on in my life, this verse jumped out at me and opened the way for me to rededicate my life to the Lord.

 

Recently, this verse has taken on a new and intensified meaning in my life.  Our enemy is always trying to introduce "his opinions" to us.  Of course, it's not that he offers his opinion so we can choose it - NO!  His way of doing things is always deception.  It is to "plant" a thought cloaked in the first person.  The thought from that dark kingdom comes sounding like this...

 

"I am upset."

"I am hurt."

"I am overwhelmed."

"I am afraid."

"I am stupid, ugly, can't do anything right, depressed..."

 

Sound familiar?  The enemy's strategy is to always make the thoughts from him look and sound like they are from us when in fact, they originate from that kingdom of darkness.  Our enemy is always working toward making us double minded (having two opinions).  The scriptures say the enemy "blinds the minds" of people and that a "double minded man is unable to receive" the good that the Lord is always sending. 

 

The Lord is always sending good to us, but we are not always receiving His "goods".  In fact, when we are "like-minded" with our enemy (I call it being blind minded) we are, most likely, receiving his "bads".  Our enemy is always sending out his "bads" even when he disguises them to look good or camouflages them to look godly.  Receiving anything from the enemy's kingdom ALWAYS results in harm to us.

 

Our enemy traffics in doubt, fear, hopelessness, depression, confusion, condemnation, criticizing, blame, self-pity, self-conscious, malice (ill will), apathy.  These are the core of the enemy's being, his disposition, his nature and his behavior.  When we are acting like this, we are acting like him because we are thinking like him.   We have allowed his opinion to enter into our thinking - his negative opinion about that person or his faulty opinion about us or his malicious opinion of God.

 

His desire is to give you a second opinion so you will be double minded, unstable, limping through life, confused and unable to receive the good that God is ALWAYS sending to you.  The Word tells us that our enemy is a liar and the truth is NOT in him, therefore, adopting our enemy's deceitful opinion is detrimental to us and will NEVER bring about a good result.

 

However, believing our Savior who IS the Truth, whose opinion is always right, positive, valuable WILL bring about that positive, valuable result that we so earnestly desire.  The Lord's opinion is made known to us through His Word and by His Spirit.  His opinion will always be testified by peace and will bring peace to us.

 

When we recognize the device of our enemy (negative-mind sets) we go right to the Word to shut down the double-mindedness the enemy is trying to introduce. 

 

When the thought comes, "I am afraid" say instead,"NO - God did not give me a spirit of fear BUT He has given me the Spirit of Love, the Spirit of Power AND a sound mind." 

 

When the thought comes,"I am overwhelmed, I'll never get through this!" say instead, "Thanks be to God who ALWAYS leads me in the triumph"  (2 Cor 2:14) and "Thanks be to God who GIVES me the victory." (1 Cor 15:57).

 

When the thought comes, "I don't care!", that feeling of apathy is a direct "feed" from that kingdom of darkness.  How do I know this?  Our English word "apathy" comes from the Greek word "api theos" which literally means "unlike + God".  God is love.  God cares for you - so apathy (NOT caring) is not like Him.  Apathy is "un"-like God.  It is the OPPOSITE of His character and behavior.  That is why the enemy wants you feeling overwhelmed, offended and weary so you just give up and say "I don't care anymore!".  This second opinion is meant to trip you up, weigh you down, paralyze you in a cocoon of apathy.  Say instead, "Jesus loves me. " "Jesus loves that person."  "Jesus is touched with the feelings of what I'm going through." " I am casting ALL of my overwhelming cares upon Him BECAUSE He cares for me."

 

Christ is never apathetic toward you!  His will is ALWAYS to benefit you, to profit you, to bless you, to save and rescue, heal and restore and calm you with His peace, but it is up to you to choose His opinion instead of the subtle lie of that second opinion coming straight from our enemy.

 

You are the chooser, you are the one who decides WHO you will listen to and believe.  Christ's opinion will cause you to triumph and walk securely through life.  Conversely, our enemy-supplied second opinion will cause you to limp through life.

 

So again the question is posed," How long will you limp between two opinions?  Determine today to not accept any of the enemy's opinions, no matter how artfully they are decorated.  Instead, choose to be single-minded with Christ your Savior!

Beggar or believer?

In one of his powerfully effective sermons, John G. Lake said,"We are splendid beggars, magnificent beggars, but poor believers." 

 He continued, "About the hardest thing to get hold of is a good old-fashioned Christian who believes God.
Lake also quoted a friend who said, "Quit begging... and believe God for a while and see if something will not happen." 
Beloved, whether you get an answer from heaven or not depends on the set of your soul. When your heart is set and fixed in God, in believing faith, something will take place!
 
"Beloved it is not our long prayers, but our believing God that gets the answer."

God's Word says the same thing to us-
Mark 11:23-24 "When you pray, believe that ye receive them and you shall have them." 

When ye pray...BELIEVE!

When ye pray...believe that you RECEIVE.

When ye pray...believe that you receive and you SHALL HAVE.

Notice the sequence of events - believe - receive - you shall have! 
You may ask the question - how do I go from" begging" prayers to "believing" prayers?
One way that is highly effective and not too hard is a very simple step.   

This is how you take that simple step:

Begging prayer - "O God, please heal me."

Believing prayer - "O God, I thank you for healing me."  (Did you hear the word "thank"?)
Frame your prayers with thanksgiving and you'll be amazed how different your prayer looks and sounds. 

Phil 4:6 tells us, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication
                             with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."

Many people leave the thanksgiving portion out of their prayer life and wonder why their prayers have no life!

Keith Moore adds this insight, "We do not receive according to the greatness of God's provision... we do not receive according to the greatness of the need... we receive according to our faith."
He adds, "There are believers who have learned to thank God when the answer arrives...but it is the believer who has faith that will thank God BEFORE the answer has appeared!

Use the power of faith by giving thanks with your mouth!
Pave the way for the receiving of your requests by thanking Him NOW.
Giving Him thanks before you have received is proof of your faith in God (faith is the evidence of things not seen)

Who do you think you are?!?

Just yesterday, I was listening to podcast by Joseph Prince about how the enemy tries to build strongholds in our minds.  Our enemy is a crafty liar.  He tries to get us to think wrongly - especially about ourselves.  When our adversary introduces a thought to us, he "decorates it" or camouflages it to look like one of our own thoughts.  Mostly, he will feed the thought to your mind dressed like this:

1.  Inside your mind, you will "hear" yourself accusing you with phrases like, "I am ___________." Then he fills in the blank with words like "stupid", "unloved", "lazy", "depressed", "sick", "sick-n-tired", "rejected", "hopeless", "helpless", "crazy", "not going to make it", etc.

The thought of, "I am ___________."(whatever bad thing the enemy has suggested) seems to you to be a revelation of who you "really" are, but IT IS NOT!  It is a lie!  It is an artful, subtle, crafty deception.  Christ alerted us to the fact that our enemy is both the Father of Lies AND the accuser of the brethren.  Notice: lies AND accusations.  The accusation comes cloaked in the phrase, "I am _______" and there is a very important reason he uses this approach.  There is a reason the enemy puts the accusation in the first person "I am". 

If you have been following this blog for any length of time, you will remember how we learned the truth that our enemy takes the good processes of life and corrupts them, bends them, perverts them to work against us.  The enemy "hijacks" the good processes that God has designed for our benefit.  For instance, the process of " renewing our minds", God designed hat process to result in our transformation; our minds renewed to the mind of Christ and thereby us becoming conformed to the likeness of Christ.  When we "think" like Christ, we become more like Christ (i.e. "as a man thinks in his heart, so is he"). 

So our enemy uses his "devices" (2 Cor 2:11) to cause us to think along his lines.  He uses trickery and deceit to make us think like him.  The RESULT?  We are transformed, but the image is so wrong!  We become like that wrong image (i.e fearful, doubting, bitter, envying, critical, accusing, sowing discord, being strife bringers, fault finding, depressed, angry, vengeful, complainers, whiny, morose, morbid, downcast, sarcastic, hopeless, apathetic, giving up, giving in, etc.  DON'T BE IGNORANT OF HIS DEVICES!

When you "feel" these negative emotions, that is your clue the enemy is using a device against you! 

It is him - NOT you. 

Start interrupting this cycle.  Bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and get your life back!

Now, back to the important reason why our enemy puts the accusation at the first person" I am ________."

Our Savior, the Living Word, says we are to "call those things that be not as though they are".  For example, let the weak SAY, "I am strong."

- Weak is what "is".
- Strong is what "is not" (at the moment).
- Therefore you call yourself strong.   

This is not delusional thinking, it is you using the faith that has been given to you by your Savior to call forth those things that need to be.  You are made / designed in the image of God - the very God who SPOKE the worlds into existence - the same God who "upholds all things by the Word of His power."  You speak what He says you are and you become that!

Say
"I am strong."
"I am loved."
"I am healed."
"I am redeemed."
"I am healed."
"I am accepted in the Beloved."
"I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus."
"I am more than an overcomer."
"I am patient."
"I am kind.
"I am peaceful."
"I am joyful."

You are calling things that be not as though they were.  You say, "I am ___________."BECAUSE He is _____________. (that very characteristic).  For example - I say, "I am patient" because Jesus is patient.

I say, "I am ______________" because He says I am _______________!

I say, "I am ______________" because He is the great I AM and He lives in me.

He is that way and He is in my earthen vessel "so that the excellency of the power is of Him"(2 Cor 4:7).

When I say, "I am ____________" I am yielding to Him, bowing to the truth instead of the enemy's lie.  This kind of thinking and speaking shoves out the old, accusing "stinking thinking" of my enemy. 

This is renewing my mind to the mind of Christ.

This is using faith to "overcome evil with good".

This is me speaking to the mountain and removing it.  The mountain of garbage the enemy has been trying to get me to think, believe and say.

INSTEAD of his garbage thinking / his garbage image / his garbage report.

I choose LIFE!
I choose to think - believe - say what God says I AM!
I choose to call those good things that be not...and they come. 

No longer am I allowing my enemy to call those garbage things into being.  No longer am I allowing him to usurp the authority that has been given to me by Christ.

INSTEAD...

I take hold of my thoughts (and words) and bring them captive to the obedience of Christ.  I only speak what I hope for, not what I dread.  I only entertain the thoughts that stem from Christ's love.  I stop permitting the enemy to use my thoughts to hate me.  I stop letting the enemy renewing my mind to his warped image.  I do not accept his woeful report.  I do not allow his accusations to creep into my thinking.  He is a creep and God gave us authority over every creeping thing.  Pick up that mighty weapon of authority over all the power of the enemy and stop letting him harm!

Christ said to us,"Behold (look and keep on looking) I give YOU power over all the power of the enemy and NOTHING shall by any means harm you." (Luke 10:19)  Use that authority to stop your enemy's barrage f lies and accusations.  Stop cooperating with him.  Stop accepting his report of how bad he wants you to think you are.  Start believing your Savior's report instead. 

You are loved.
You are accepted.
You are righteous.
You are an "able minister of the new covenant".
You are a king under the King of Kings.

You are all these things and MORE because He has made you by what He has done on the cross.You didn't make yourself that good thing.  You don't become these things by your doing or your performance; you are "made" this by His doing in the finished work on Calvary. 

You "become" those things experientially by:
Beholding Him (2 Cor 3:18).
Believing Him.
Saying what He says you are.

"I am ___________."

Then fill in the blank with His good report and you will see those good things come!  Put this into practice and you will see the good results!

P.S.  Also put this into practice on behalf of those humans in whom the enemy is trying to get you to reject, be offended at, be upset with and write off.  Instead of using your mouth to report on their shortcomings, say what Christ says they already are by His doing then watch the transformation in your attitude and in their lives.

Grace prayer

Today at our grace Bible study we prayed this prayer which was taken from a podcast by Joseph Prince.  It so beautifully captures the acknowledgement of Christ's finished work on Calvary and expectation that faith and hope bring into our lives.

"Father, I confess Jesus is my Lord and Savior today. Lord, you are the head of my life. I completely yield myself to you. My will is now your will, my plans are now your plans. As a new creation in Christ Jesus I accept the gift of righteousness and all that gift includes- health, prosperity, peace, joy and life abundant. I put aside every weight and the sin that so easily besets me and I now look to Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith. According to your Word, I can now reign in this life as a king. The power of sin and death in my life has been overcome. No longer am I ruled by the forces of evil, but by the God above all gods. I am more than a conqueror through Christ who loves me. I determine today to walk conscious of my right-standing with you, Lord. And with every step to draw closer and closer to you. Thank you for the gift of righteousness. Because of that gift, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Amen."

Use your mouth to bring these truths to the forefront of your mind and your hearing ears.  Call those things that you hope for...call those things that be not as though they were.  Call on the NAME of the Lord and you will be saved (in the Greek "sozo" which means saved, healed, rescued, prospered, protected, provided for, delivered).  The word confess is used several times in this prayer and it simply means "to say the same as" or "to say along with" God.  You are saying, along with God, what Christ has done on your behalf.  By this act of faith in what HE says, you are receiving the grace that Calvary supplies.  This is you using your tongue to speak life.

Come hear about the abundant life that grace brings.  Our Bible study meets every Thursday (July 12th is our next meeting) from 10am-12pm at Zion Christian Church in the south lobby.  Excellent childcare is provided.  We are studying "Unmerited Favor" by Joseph Prince and books will be available for purchase ($9) at the Bible study.  If you have any questions about the meeting, just leave a message below.  Hope to see you there and share with you the power of grace!

The Son's Heartbeat for You (JP)

 Daily Grace Inspiration from Joseph Prince

The Son's Heartbeat For You
3 John 1:2, KJV
2Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.


Let's say that you are now in your nineties. Someone comes along and asks you, "Sir, you have been a Christian for a very long time. You have seen much and done much with God by your side. You have prayed all kinds of prayers too. So what would you place as top priority when you pray for people?"

I believe the apostle John was asked a similar question and his reply was, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." When the apostle John wrote 3 John, he was already a very old man and probably the only disciple of the original 12 who was still alive. It had been so long ago since he last walked alongside his beloved Lord, and witnessed His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension.

The apostle John had also leaned on the Lord's bosom on the night of the Last Supper. And I believe that there on Jesus' bosom, he must have felt the heartbeat of the Son of God - that loving and compassionate heartbeat which had caused Him to go about "doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil". (Acts 10:38) In fact, two-thirds of Jesus' ministry on earth had to do with healing the sick.

And now, nearing the end of his life, and after all he had heard, seen and experienced, the apostle John prioritized, above all things, health as well as prosperity. He said, "I wish above all things that you prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers." He knew the Lord's heartbeat. He knew that the Lord wants and will always want these for His people.

Jesus had prioritized divine healing during His earthly ministry. And Jesus, who is "the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8), will do the same for you today. His heart still beats for you. He will never miss an opportunity to do good to you, to heal you of your broken body, emotional scars and weary spirit, and to prosper you!

I am justified OR I am justified!?!?!

If you have been in the church world for any length of time, you have heard that we are "justified by the Lord Jesus Christ.  Many preachers have explained justification this way: "just-as-if-I'd-never-sinned" and that is a valuable definition.  However, there is more - MUCH more. I am going to teach you a simple, yet VERY effective way to use this truth to triumph over your enemy!  Also, I'm going to teach you how to turn this truth against your enemy so you overcome his evil with the good Christ brought to you.

The scriptures tell us that Christ paid for our sins and stubborness, but there is more to what Christ did.  Look at this...

Rom 4:25, "He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised for our justification." 

When the Holy Spirit raised Jesus Christ from the dead, it was the validation to all mankind that Father God had accepted the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for ALL mankind.  God's good report says that I am justified.  I am justified whether I feel like it, or whether or not I think so, and certainly whether or not the enemy is accusing me.  The truth is... I AM JUSTIFIED.

The point I'm trying to make today is that I can say what my Savior says, "I am justified" which means I'm free from the accusing voice of my enemy and my own self. When I am saying the same thing as my Savior, it is called "confession" CON means "with" and fess means "to say".  Confession means "saying the same as".  We confess / say the same as Christ.  I say with Christ, "I am justified".

However, there is a subtle, crafty slant on justification that my enemy is all too eager to supply.  When I say I am justified, but I'm meaning I'm justified to feel bitter because of what a person said.  Or I'm justified in holding a grudge because of what a person did to me.  Or I'm justified in holding an offense until that person makes it right.  Or I'm justified to accuse them because they are wrong.

We all know who is the accuser of the brethren.  His name is Satan.  He is a crafty liar and a deceiver, so when I agree with his accusations; or when I agree with his mindset; I am behaving like him.  I am speaking like him.  I am thinking like him and because of that, I get the result of his handiwork which is turmoil, discord, bitterness, depression, strife, hatred and overall misery.

I experience misery whenever I believe my enemy in any way.  Conversely, I will have peace when I believe my Savior in any way.  Even in the smallest degree of believing my Savior, I experience peace.  I experience joy. 

Rom 15:13 "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

I can say with my Savior, "I am justified" and experience freedom.  I can say, "I am justified" in the face of my accuser and see his arguments fall to the ground. 

If I believe the lie of my enemy that I am justified in being offended or cold to that person or judgemental, I have strengthened his hold on my life, my mind, my body and my soul.  Don't give your enemy an inch - don't give him a toehold - don't give him even ONE of your thoughts.  Instead, bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. 

Take it another step further and think on these things that are "true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.  Phil 4:18

Then take it yet another step further and get free from that offense (that snare) by praying FOR the very one you are tempted to judge.

By taking these steps that are clearly laid out in His Word, you experience the truth that He ALWAYS leads you in triumph and He ALWAYS gives you the victory.  (2 Cor 2:14 and 1 Cor 15:57).

My job description as a Christian says:

I am a believer ( I believe Christ above what I think or what I feel or above what circumstances say).

I am a follower ( I follow the example of Jesus Christ who prayed for those who despitefully abused Him when He said,"Father forgive them, they don't know what they're doing.").

I can follow His example OR my subtle enemy's example.  The results will be vastly different even though they started from the same circumstance.  The result of following Christ's example is joy and peace and LIFE!

John 20:31 "But these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name."

When I agree with my Savior., I get to enjoy the benefits of my salvation, HOWEVER, when I agree with my enemy - I get to eat the fruit of his way and my own doing.  My justification is still the truth, yet I'm not enjoying the freedom that truth brings me if I'm agreeing with my enemy.

So today, if you have believed you are justified in nursing that grudge or "chatting" about that person's shortcomings or criticizing another human; you have taken the bait and the enemy is trying to hoodwink you into giving up your freedom and submitting to his slavery.  As the J. B. Phillips translation so aptly says:

Rom 6:15 "You belong to the power which you choose to obey, whether you choose sin, whose reward is death, or God, obedience to whom means the reward of righteousness."

So are you justified or are you justified?

I AM what?!?

"Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." We all have heard this scripture, but did you know God says this twice in the New Testament (Acts &Romans) and it is a quote from the Old Testament. When God says something that many times, we know there is great power in that word for us. "Whoever calls on the Name of the Lord shall be saved."

What did God tell Moses is His Name?   He said," I AM that I AM."  He is the great I AM.  The Lord instructed us in His Word:

Let the weak say I am strong. 
Let the poor say I am rich.

Look at that instruction / statement closely:

Say I AM strong!
Say I AM rich!

We are saying His Name.  We are saying His characteristics.  We are also saying this truth and applying it to ourselves and our un-toward circumstances of being weak and poor. 

The saying and the believing result in the receiving. Say that again. Let that important truth sink deep into your thinking patterns. Allow that truth to regulate your speech patterns!

                                        SAYING -BELIEVING- RECEIVING.

As I SAY His word, BELIEVING His word, I will soon be RECEIVING His word's effects!!

Soon, my weakness is swallowed up in receiving His strength by calling His name. Soon, my poorness is obliterated by receiving His riches by calling on His name. His riches are the supply to stamp out my lack.  "My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches..." 

When you are experiencing sickness, you say the truth of His report..."by His stripes I am healed."  By doing this, you are changing the circumstance and overcoming the "evil" of sickness with the "good" of healing.  You are "calling those things that be not as though they were".  You are calling on the name of the Lord (I AM healed) and you are being saved "sozo" which means- "rescued, delivered, safe, heal, protect, preserve, made whole."

Your mouth is given to you for a very important purpose.  The purpose is NOT to report on how you feel or what your circumstances look like.  That is walking by sight and emotion.  The purpose of your mouth is to say His report instead.  Your mouth saying the truth about His report by faith is bringing those very things into existence in your world. Those things you have need of already exist in glory (His Spirit realm)and you get to receive them (in the here and now earth realm)by believing and saying.

 Many believers believe those things exist, but they say with their mouth only what they see.
Walking by faith means we believe what we do not see AND we say what He says even though we do not yet see it!  But we will see it come into manifestation in our world by believing and saying.  When you believe in your heart and speak - "you shall have whatsoever you say." 

Say, I AM strong.  Say, I AM rich. Say, I AM healed.  Say, I AM loved.

Utilize the power of His Name and the power of His word to get His will done in your life.

Transformation...interested?

All the promises of God in the Old Testament and New Testament are Yes! (you many have it) and Amen! (let it be so) in Christ Jesus.  Every time you see a promise of God, you may obtain it through Jesus Christ.  There is one particular promise that you will be ecstatic to receive.  He promises that we would be transformed and made to be more like Jesus by a singularly, easy process.

It doesn't cost any money, you don't have to go to college - it is yours for the receiving.

That doesn't mean it won't take effort on your part, but the effort you expend is not grievous and results in HUGE benefits to you.

"Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."  Romans 12:2.  Renewing means bringing in a fresh supply of truth.  Your "mind" includes your thoughts, your thinking processes and the resulting words of your mouth.  The transformation is you becoming who you are meant to be.

Did you know the word for "transformed" (the process that happens to you) is the EXACT same word used in Matt. 17:2 and Mark 9:2 "transfigured" where Christ was transfigured?  Peter, James and John got to see Jesus as He truly is.  Light. Glory shining from His earthen vessel.  They heard His gracious words and saw the authority He carried.  Even being above Moses/Law and Elijah/Prophets.  The three disciples also heard Father say, "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased, hear you Him."

In the same way, when you are transformed, people will see the likeness of Christ in you.  They will hear your grace-filled words.  YOU will sense the love Father has for you and how well pleasing this transformation of you is in His sight.  The humans and the kingdom of darkness will see the results of you using the authority given to you by Christ Himself.  Christ says to us in Luke 10:19, "Behold I give to you power to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means harm you."  And in Luke 10:17 and again in Luke 10:20, Jesus tells us "the spirits/devils are subject to us in His name".

Father God desires that all of His children with their various personalities (individual wiring) will have this in common...the character of Christ Himself.  The love He has for God and humans.   

In the very same way Christ was transfigured, you are transformed.

You become all the things you've desired in your heart to be.

The next installment will be the tutorial on how this transforming / transfiguring can occur in your very own life!

You become what you think.

Picking up where we left off - Proverbs, the books of wisdom, tells us that pleasant words are SWEET to our soul and nourishment to our bones. The word nourishment in the Hebrew is the word picture of your bones taking a drink. The reverse of Proverbs 16:24 would be that unpleasant words are BITTER to your mind and emotions and dryness to your bones. The words you speak God have a profound effect on your health and wellbeing.

So how do you get pleasant words to come out of your mouth?  EASY!  You simply use the system God has designed:

You decide what to think

You entertain the thoughts you have accepted

Your heart speaks these thoughts out of your mouth

Your words begin to have their effect in your soul and body


Pleasant words come from pleasant thoughts.  The reason God told us to think on things that are true, honest, noble, lovely, praiseworthy and of good report is because, soon, those very things will be coming out of our mouths.  You become what you think.  The old adage, “You are what you eat” is true spiritually as well.  If you feed on (meditate on, entertain, rehearse, think and rethink) on those honest, lovely, noble thoughts – they become part of you and they come out of your mouth.

 As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.  The Lord tells us to think that certain way because we come what we think on.  Your enemy knows about this system of thinking, speaking, becoming and he uses it too.  The Scriptures caution us not to be ignorant of our enemy’s devices”.  The Greek word “devise” are exactly this system, but turned negative.  Your enemy is endeavoring to get you to think like he thinks, speak like he speaks and soon you will be behaving like he does.  His intention is to get to renew your mind to his way of thinking and get his disposition to be yours, thereby transforming you in to his image.  We become what we think upon.  The yucky thoughts from that kingdom of darkness, if left unchecked, weave their way into the fabric of our character.  We become critical, fault finding, judging, unforgiving, unkind, impatient, accusatory, suspicious and all the other yucky characteristics of our enemy.

 This is the tragedy of many Christian lives.  They don’t want to talk or act in those yucky mannerisms, but are forced to by what they have given place to in their minds and later, their hearts. The Holy Spirit quickened to me, "When you say what your enemy says, you get what he says, but when you say what your Savior says – you get what He says instead.

The 5 Smooth Stones on STEROIDS...the why of it all!

Dear ones - you have been reading how the five smooth stones God has given us to slay any giant that comes against us in our land, whether it be the giant of sickness, lack, hurt feelings, etc.  To recap, the five smooth stones are thanks, praise, praying in the Spirit, a merry heart and loving.  Remember the "sling" that gives these stones velocity, force and aim is your mouth.  This simple, but profound revelation of the power of these smooth stones is tied to another hugely profound revelation from God's own mouth in Genesis 4:7.

You know the story of Cain and Abel both bringing their sacrifices to God.  Abel's was accepted, but Cain's was not.  Cain was downcast and quite upset.  God said to him, "Cain, if you DO WELL you shall be accepted.  But if you do not DO WELL, Sin is crouching at the door and it's desire is for you, but you must master him."  I always thought the DO WELL in this verse was keeping the 10 commandments, doing good, etc., but the literal meaning of the phrase "DO WELL" is make a beautiful sound.  So let's read that verse with the literal meaning inserted so we can understand what God is saying to us.  He said,"If you make a beautiful sound, you will be accepted. But if you do not make a beautiful sound, Sin is crouching at the door and it's desire is for you, but you must master him."

The beautiful sounds that we make are thanks, praise, praying in the Spirit, rejoicing, singing, blessing, praying FOR, saying "I forgive", saying "I love you" and laughter.  On the other hand, the ugly sounds we make are complaining, murmuring, finding fault, being "un"thankful, cursing, mocking, slandering, scorning, sarcasm, belittling, criticising, judging and finding fault.

The kingdom of darkness here is represented by the entity Sin (he is in the hierarchy of those principalities, powers and rulers of this present darkness).  When you sin, you are behaving like this entity whose name is Sin.  Those ugly sounds are his way of talking and he is attracted to those ugly sounds just like God is attracted to those beautiful sounds which are His way of talking. 

Both kingdoms desire you to think, talk and act like them.  The kingdom of light is the ONLY kingdom that will benefit you.  Cooperating with that kingdom of darkness will ALWAYS result in harm to you sooner or later.  In Genesis, we are told "if you do not make a beautiful sound, Sin is crouching at the door".  Making the beautiful sounds causes you to overcome Sin, but making the ugly sounds attract and activate that kingdom of darkness.

That kingdom of darkness is waiting for you to commission them by your words.  YOUR WORDS!  Your words of complaining, murmuring, slandering, criticising, etc. attract them like poo attracts flies.  God inhabits the praises of His people.  So think who inhabits the ugly sounds...and that kingdom of darkness is activated by those very ugly sounds you are speaking.  These words are NOT working against the people you are judging or complaining about...they are working against you!  Your ugly sounds give your enemy mastery over you.  You "voice activate" them to steal your goods.  You commission them to destroy your life, your marriage, your finances, your peace of mind and your body. 

This ought not be so because Christ died to give you power and authority over that kingdom of darkness (Col. 2:15).  He has given His grace to you so that "Sin shall not have dominion over you".  STOP handing over to your enemy the mastery over you that Christ took away from him on the cross.  Jesus Christ disarmed that kingdom and GAVE you the keys of the kingdom of light. (Matt. 16:19 ) AND His very own words say,"Behold I give YOU power and authority over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means harm you." (Luke 10:19) You are to trample on serpents and scorpions - not mimic them!  Quit letting your words sting and bite and harm!  Your mouth is given to you to build up, edify, strengthen the kingdom of God - not demolish it person by person, relationship by relationship, offense by offense. 

Quit behaving, thinking, speaking like your enemy - the originator of all ugly sounds.  Instead, yield your members (tongue, mouth and thoughts) to the kingdom of light - Jesus Christ, the Righteous.  "DO WELL", beautiful sounds are the five smooths stones that will slay the giants that oppose you in your very own promise land.  Giving thanks is a beautiful sound.  So is praise.  Praying in the Spirit is music to His ears.  A merry heart is singing, rejoicing, blessing, forgiving...all beautiful sounds to His ears, BUT the most beautiful sound is loving because it is all the most beautiful sounds of this universe put to use.  Saying thanks to God and people, saying praises out loud to humans and God, letting the Holy Spirit talk through you is love to God and Christ because their love brought you the Holy Spirit.  Proverbs 16:13b outright tells us, "He who speaks right is loved."

So use your mouth for it's intended purpose to create good to the humans (yourself included), speak life and overcome your enemy!