The Power to defeat fear and activate faith

The Power to defeat fear and activate faith

It’s Easter month again! What a joy to celebrate the selfless love of a wonderful Saviour. The spotless lamb who gave His all for us to live a life of freedom. Freedom from sickness, bondage and pain. Freedom from poverty and loss and freedom from all fear! Fear has the opportunity to creep into our hearts and minds in just about any circumstance to situation but its source is always the same. Fear comes from the pit of hell with the sole purpose to paralyze our emotions, render our reasoning inactive, immobilize our faith and just plain destroy us.

This is pretty much what Timothy was battling with when Paul was writing him in 2 Timothy 1:7. When Paul wrote to Timothy, it was a very difficult time for the early church. The ruler over the region in that day was the mad man Nero. Now Nero was truly insane and a large part of his insanity resulted in the most severe, cruel and gruesome persecution of the believers, wherever his power reached. He would have every believer hunted down, caught, hideously tortured and killed. He showed no mercy for anyone. At this time, Timothy was a pastor of the church of Ephesus, a town that was completely under Nero’s evil control. Timothy knew that Nero’s secret police would take special pleasure in killing him in some barbaric way if they ever got their hands on him.

Now Timothy was having to deal with a spirit of fear, threatening to discourage him to the point of giving up his calling and turning away from one of the greatest revivals the church of Ephesus would experience. Paul told Timothy, “For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

The phrase (sound mind) comes from a Greek word that suggests a mind that is delivered, rescued, revived, salvaged and protected and is now safe and secure.

This means that even when your mind is tempted to succumb to fear, like Timothy, you can allow God’s Word, by the Holy Spirit, to work in you to deliver, rescue, revive and savage your mind. This means your rationale; logic and emotions can be shielded from the horrible, ridiculous, fearful thoughts that have tried to grip your mind when you face challenging circumstances.

It works like this: The more time we spend meditating on the word of God, the more truth we invest into our minds and spirits. So when fear knocks at our door and tries to take control, the Holy Spirit reminds us of the truth that we have stored inside and that truth overrides the fearful thoughts. God’s word rescues us; it protects our minds as it replaces the thoughts of fear and brings us peace and hope. The word of God causes our minds to become safe and secure in the midst of trouble as we focus on His truth instead of the fearful thoughts. Pretty soon the word of God is speaking louder than fear filled thoughts and faith comes! Faith is that powerful, life giving force that makes the impossible and changes every unfavorable circumstance to line up with the promises of God.

No matter what we are faced with today, let’s decide to take Paul’s words to Timothy to heart. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind. A mind rescued, revived and protected from the talons of fear and is safe and secure, focused on the truth of His word. Just remember that it’s the word of God inside of you that has the power to protect and work for you. So don’t waste a moment on the truth of God’s word and build up the greatest investment of your life – the power to defeat fear and activate faith!

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

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Staying in Faith

Staying in Faith

Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many
days
Ecclesiastes 11:1

Staying in faith through the entire process is critical to receiving
your harvest. It’s like being on a job and having your boss promise you
that you will soon receive a promotion. You are excited to go to work
the next day, but eventually you get discouraged if it takes a long
time to happen. If you stop going to work, however, you won’t be able
to go into the boss’ office one day and ask, “Where’s my promotion?” It
doesn’t work that way. If you are going to get the promotion, you must
stay on the job.

Likewise, if you are going to receive the harvest God wants you to
have, you must stay in faith. You can’t just say, “Thank you, Father,
for my harvest,” on Monday; “Thank you, Father, for my harvest,” on
Tuesday; and then get to sleeping’ on your reaping’ for the rest of the
week. You must stay in faith. You’re invested!

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

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Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water

Hebrews 10:22

My dog Salty knows he isn’t supposed to get into the trash. But let the house be human free, and the dark side of Salty takes over. If there’s food in a trash can, the temptation is too great!

That’s what happened the other day. I got made, but I got over it. I cleaned up the mess and forgot about it.

Salty didn’t! He kept his distance. When I finally saw him, his tail was between his legs, his ears dropping. He thinks I’m mad at him. He doesn’t know I’ve already dealt with his mistake.

Somewhere, sometime, you got tangled in garbage…and you’ve been avoiding God. You wonder if you could ever feel close to God again. The message of his torn flesh on the cross is—you can

The door is open. Don’t trust your conscience. Trust the cross. You’re welcome in God’s presence!

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

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Being faithful in the little things first

Being faithful in the little things first.

 

Matthew 25:23 “His Lord said to him “Well done good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.”

Sometimes we get so focused on doing great and mighty things for God that we forget about being faithful in the little things. Our faith grows as we serve in the little things and that prepares us for the bigger things God has for us. He is watching and if you are faithful in doing good and doing it with a pure and excellent heart, God will reward you in due season. Remember that God has placed you where ever you are now, for a season. I want to encourage you today to stay hopeful, do not get discouraged in doing good and always stay faithful in the little things.

May the LORD bless Nigeria, American and Israel and take care of us; May the LORD make His face shine upon us, And be gracious to us; May the Lord lift up His countenance upon us, And give us peace, In Jesus Christ Name, we pray! Amen!

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Whoever is faithful in small matters will be faithful in large ones; whoever is dishonest in small matters will be dishonest in large ones

4 days of Evangelism Training in Southern California provided by LivingWaters Ministry. Obeying the great commission of Jesus Christ. "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to everyone" Mark 16:15 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Faith that is seen

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

FAITH THAT IS SEEN

Mark 2:5, “When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.”

MATTHEW 9: 1-8, MARK 2: 1-12, LUKE 5: 17-26

Faith can be seen. Just as Jesus explained to Nicodemus in John 3:8, faith is like the wind. Faith itself is invisible, but saving faith is always accompanied by corresponding actions which can be seen (James. 2:17-26).

It was not only the faith of the paralytic that Jesus saw, but also that of his four friends (Mk. 2:3). This demonstrates the effect our intercession in faith can have upon others. Jesus saw their faith. However, although our faith released on behalf of others is powerful, it is not a substitute for their faith. It is simply a help. The person who is to receive the miracle must have some degree of faith, also. Even Jesus could not produce healing in those who would not believe (Mk. 6:5-6). In this instance, it is evident that the paralytic himself also had faith because he was not resistant to the four who brought him; and he got up and obeyed Jesus’ command (v. 7) without having to be helped.

Why did Jesus minister forgiveness of sins to this man instead of meeting the obvious need he had of healing? God is more concerned with the spiritual health of a man than his physical health. Or, Jesus, through a word of knowledge, may have perceived that the real heart-cry of this man was to be reconciled to God. In some instances (not all – Jn. 9:2-3), sickness was a direct result of sin. Therefore, Jesus would be dealing with the very root of the paralysis. Whether or not this man’s paralysis was a direct result of sin, sin in our life (that has not been forgiven) will allow Satan to keep us in his bondage. Through Jesus’ act of forgiving this man’s sins, the paralytic was free to receive all the blessings of God, which certainly included healing.

The point Jesus is making is that both forgiveness of sins and the healing of the paralytic are humanly impossible. If Jesus could do one of these things, He could do the other. He then healed the paralytic showing that He did, indeed, have the authority to forgive sins. In Jesus’ day, the people were more inclined to accept His willingness to heal than they were to accept His forgiveness of sins without the keeping of the law. Today, the church world basically accepts forgiveness of sins, but doubts His willingness to heal. They were never meant to be separated. Believe and receive all God has for you today.

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God is faithful

Image via Wikipedia

God Is Faithful!

His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23, NKJV

Three hundred and seventy-one days after the Flood began, “God said to Noah, ‘Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives’” (Gen. 8:15, NIV). We can almost hear the “Hallelujah Chorus” playing in the background! What a day of rejoicing that must have been! God had been faithful to see him through!

God has not changed. If He was faithful to watch over Noah and all those within the ark, bringing them safely through the storm, He will do the same for you. Just as He was faithful to preserve Joseph through thirteen years of slavery in Potiphar‘s house and Pharaoh‘s prison, just as He was faithful to preserve the little baby Moses floating on the Nile . . . God will be faithful to you. Why? Because God is faithful! He cannot be less than Himself! Keep your focus on God’s faithfulness and on God’s greatness!

Blessings

May Our God The Almighty prosper Nigeria and Israel and defend us from all our enemies in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

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And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him

Image via Wikipedia

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6

Faith Alone

Do you have what it takes to please God? Don’t get me wrong; there is nothing we can do to earn His love, but as James 2:17 says, “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

Many think that God is impressed by works or by following the law in a legalistic manner. Some believe that if they show kindness or if they are “good,” this will please God. God is clear about what will please him-FAITH.

Do you have faith in God? Do you believe that He will answer your prayers and will provide for your needs? Faith doesn’t come without effort. To be faith-filled you must be in a place where you are growing in God.

Faith goes beyond just saying “God exists.” Faith is following Him all the days of your life. Faith is trusting in Him even in the worst situations, and remembering Him in the best.

Believe that God will bless you as you seek Him and you will witness answered prayers as never before…because God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Further Reading

• Hebrews 7:19
• Hebrews 9:9-10
• Hebrews 10:19-22

God Bless

May Our God The Almighty prosper Nigeria and Israel and defend us from all our enemies in Jesus Christ Name, Amen!

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The key to success or failure lies in doing things at the word of Jesus

Image via Wikipedia

The key to success or failure lies in doing things at the word of Jesus

AT THY WORD

Luke 5:5, “And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.”

LUKE 5:1-11

Peter and his companions had been working hard all night. Their efforts had not produced even one fish. They had given up and were headed home. But Jesus told them to try it just one more time.

It would have been easy for Peter to reject Jesus’ command. After all, Peter had been a fisherman all his life. Jesus was just a preacher. What did He know about fishing? Yet something, or rather someone, caused Peter to try just once more.

Many people are like Simon Peter and his partners. They have done all that they know to do and yet they’ve come up empty-handed. This breeds a despair and hopelessness that causes many people to quit trying. Yet, just one word from Jesus could make the same tasks that have been unproductive on our own bear great fruit.

The key to success or failure lies in doing things at the word of Jesus. Peter said, “at thy word I will let down the net.” God‘s words always get results.

Today, make sure your efforts are directed by God and you will experience the results that have eluded you in the past.

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Faith pleases God

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Faith Pleases God

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

From the very first line of the Bible, God requires us to have faith. He doesn’t go into elaborate detail about who He is or how He created everything. God doesn’t lay out His case as a logical legal brief. He just states plainly, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

Once you read these words you are compelled to either walk in faith and believe the Word of God or choose to dismiss it.

It’s clear that it takes faith to believe the Bible, because there are many unanswered questions. God wastes no time trying to talk us into believing His Word. The ability to believe God’s Word is a gift of faith from Him (Ephesians 2:8).

If you find yourself questioning the reality of God’s Word, then you need faith. How can you get faith? “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).

Read the Word of God, listen to the Word of God, repeat aloud the Word of God, meditate on the Word of God and sing God’s Word. This will allow faith to come-for without faith, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

Further Reading

•Hebrews 11:6

•Proverbs 3:5-6

•Romans 8:24-25

God Bless

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