No Deposit--No Return

"Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord." (Psalm 112:1,7)

Are you ready to face a crisis? Don't wait until one hits to find out. Prepare yourself now.

That's what a couple of my Partners did. They faced a situation that would have made many people panic. But when the crisis hit, their hearts were so deeply established on the Word of God that their first response was not one of fear but of faith.

What affected me most when I heard their testimony was one particular phrase they kept using:

No Deposit--No Return

What they meant by that was that if you don't take the time to deposit the Word in your heart now, it won't be there later when you really need it. You'll end up in a crisis with only doubt and unbelief instead of the faith and power you need to see you through. In a situation like the one this couple faced that could be deadly.

You see, their two-year-old son had suffered a fall that had cracked his skull and critically injured his neck. He had no feeling in his arms and legs and was unable to move. Yet as they rushed him to the emergency room, a great sense of peace rested on them. Rather than crying with fear, they prayed in faith and declared, "By Jesus' stripes, our son is healed!"

Sure enough, within hours, their boy was totally restored. Even the X-rays verified the fact that a miracle had taken place.

What's important to understand about that story is this: The victory was not won when the damage to that little boy's body disappeared. It was won all during the days and weeks and months before when his parents were listening to tapes and studying the Word and praying in the Spirit. It was won because these people had spent time building a foundation on the Word so that when this storm came, they were able to stand.

Now is the time for you to build a rock-solid foundation! Don't wait around until you're faced with a crisis. Get the Word in your heart in abundance now, so when you really need it, it will flow out in power.

Remember: No deposit--no return.

Start making those precious deposits today!

Scripture Reading: Psalm 112

Get the Two Together

"As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving." (Colossians 2:6-7)

Established in the faith and abounding with thanksgiving. These days it seems that's a rare combination.

A lot of people have been taught faith over the last several years, and a lot of people have been taught to abound with thanksgiving. But it's been hard to set the two together. Faith folks want to confess the Word all the time, but they don't praise God very much. And those who like to praise God just want to jump and shout and dance and have a good time in the Lord. You can't get them to get very serious about the Word.

Success comes from combining the two.

So, do it! Put them together in your life. When you run into a challenge, don't just stand around grim-faced and white-knuckled holding onto your faith. Raise your hands high and praise. Start thanking God in the midst of what's happening around you. Keep thanking Him for the answer until it comes.

Instead of just standing on the Word, let the joy of the Lord enable you to dance around on it a little. It will get you where you're going a whole lot faster...and both you and God will have a much better time on the way.

Scripture Reading: Colossians 2:1-10

Talk Like God!

"Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith." (Mark 11:23)

Jesus didn't say, "Whosoever shall speak to God about this mountain." He said we should speak directly to the mountain the desired end result.

From a worldly point of view, that sounds foolish. But 1 Corinthians 1:27 explains that God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. It's always going to sound foolish to the world when a Christian talks as if what God has promised is reality, especially when those promises seem to contradict the natural evidence around us. But if you want to keep the enemy defeated, that's the kind of talking you'd better be doing.

The Bible says God Himself talks that way! In Romans 4:17, it says, "[He] calleth those things which be not as though they were." God doesn't wait for circumstances to line up before He speaks. He causes them to line up because He speaks. You can do the same thing if you'll make your words agree with His and speak them out of your mouth by faith.

"But what if nothing happens right away?" you may ask. "What if the circumstances don't immediately change?" When Jesus spoke to the fig tree in Mark 11:14, He didn't go back and check to see if anything had happened to it. No, once He had spoken it, He considered it done.

Follow His example. Let your faith speak. Agree with God's Word!

Scripture Reading: Mark 11:12-23 

Free Your Faith

"And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any." (Mark 11:25)

Few people realize just how closely connected faith and forgiveness are. Jesus taught about that connection in His sermon on mountain-moving faith that's recorded in Mark 11:22-26.

He said, "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive."

Jesus backed those two sentences up together on purpose. He wanted us to know that releasing those who have wronged us is fundamental to receiving from God. He wanted to impress on our hearts the fact that we cannot have our prayers answered and hold grudges in our hearts at the same time.

Unforgiveness clogs the faith channel and keeps you powerless against the mountains in your life!

If you've been praying for something and you just can't seem to get an answer, check your heart for unforgiveness. Ask the Holy Spirit to bring any grudge that's hidden there to light. Unclog the channel of faith and you will soon see things you've been praying for come to pass.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 18:21-35

Step Across the Faith Line

Monday, April 19,2010

Step Across the Faith Line

"And being not weak in faith, [Abraham] considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God." (Romans 4:19-20)

In the years I've spent living by faith, there's something I've learned to do that helps me receive from God in the toughest of situations. It's something I call stepping over the faith line.

A faith line is what you need when you want God to do the "impossible" in your life. It's what you need when you want to be firm in your faith and yet you keep wavering back and forth between your circumstances and God's promises--believing first one, then the other.

It's what can make you like faithful Abraham. You know, Abraham had natural facts to deal with just like we do. He knew there was no natural way for God's promise to him to come true.

Yet the Word says Abraham considered not his own body. In other words, Abraham ignored the natural evidence around him and believed only God's promise.

Somewhere he stepped across the line of faith.

He made an irreversible decision to go with the Word of God. He made a final commitment. He chose to step past the point of no return. And if you and I are ever going to see God do the impossible in our lives, we're going to have to do the same thing!

How do you draw that faith line?

Begin with the Word. Search the promises of God and purposely believe what He has said, and is saying, about your need. Meditate on those promises until faith rises in your heart.

Then draw the line of faith. Draw it in your mind and heart. Draw it across the floor in your prayer room. Say, "In the presence of God, in the presence of all the angels in this room, and in the devils face, I am stepping across the line of faith. From this moment on, I consider this matter done. From this day forward, I give God the praise and the glory in the Name of Jesus.

From that moment on, speak only as if your miracle has already happened. Turn your back on the problems, on the doubts, and turn your face toward Jesus.

God will do the impossible in your life. Dare to step across the faith line!

Scripture Reading: Romans 4:13-21 

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