Bob Shank (Regal)
Do you tend to separate your career goals from your family goals, while setting both apart from your spiritual goals? Marketplace mentor Bob Shank says that believers need to mesh their personal objectives with their spiritual relationship with God to fully realize their potential. He unpacks six keys for mastering life as an integrated whole, found through the life of Christ.
William Paul Young (Faith Words)
After selling 18 million copies of The Shack, William Paul Young returns with Crossroads, a novel about a comatose man in the ICU who awakens to discover he can feel the experiences of others. Now he must gain the courage to undo a detrimental injustice that he set in motion prior to his coma.
James Maloney (Destiny Image)
Seeing prophetically is key for walking with the Spirit, yet many people fail to associate this vision with a release of the miraculous. James Maloney challenges believers to be “panoramic seers” who view things from a higher plane through basic principles such as humility, compassion and faith that can unlock dreams and visions.
Every believer is privy to special things, such as wisdom, eternal life and God’s inheritance. But the Holy Spirit allows us to tap into these gifts in ways you may not have considered.
One thing you must know is that a benefit of coming to Christ is you become part of a family! Ephesians 2:19 tells us that Jesus causes us to be “no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” Because of Jesus you are part of a new race of men and a new family. So what do you need to know about this family?
Jesus Christ redeemed us from the curse by His death, paid our debt and has called us to an eternal inheritance (see Hebrews 9:15). As heirs of God you now have access to the benefits of an inheritance that can never be exhausted! It is forever unlimited. Everything in the natural on earth will end at death. Your benefits in the inheritance roll into your eternal domain with you!
You have access to God’s wisdom and God becomes your portion(see Ecclesiastes 7:11 and Psalm 16:5). That wisdom is necessary for those who would wisely use their inheritance! The New Testament gives the same promise of revelation knowledge! You have inside access to God’s wisdom. Wisdom, in Scripture, is knowing what to do!
Notice that this inheritance comes with the Holy Spirit. It is guaranteed, and He releases revelation knowledge and the spirit of wisdom. This opens your spiritual eyes to see all that God has for you. Look closely at God’s management of your life. There are seven gifts of God’s wisdom and five promises of your inheritance in Him.
The Seven Gifts of God’s Wisdom
Five Promises of Your Inheritance
Prayer releases the inheritance. You must stay in touch through prayer to receive what God has. Psalm 2:8 says, “Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for your possession.” God says, “Ask Me” and the world is yours! Prayer moves the resources of the earth and heaven into place for believers. Angels operate on behalf of those who are heirs, and miraculous wealth transfers from the world. Activate your faith and position yourself to receive.
Adapted from An Essential Guide to Baptism in the Holy Spirit by Ron Phillips, copyright 2011, published by Charisma House. The author demonstrates how the power of the Holy Spirit can help us to live godly lives, preach the good news, drive out devils, heal the sick, and see God’s kingdom grow. To order a copy click on this link:
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 10-22-2012
This week stay in touch with God through prayer to release your inheritance and ask. Thank Him for it and ask Him to make you aware of all that is yours as one of His heirs. Thank Him that He orders your steps and that His plans for you are good plans for your future and hope. Continue to pray for our nation and Israel’s protection. Also pray for the upcoming elections, and the safety of the candidates, their families, and campaign workers. Seek the Lord for His wisdom as you vote. Rom. 8:16-17; Ps. 37:18-26
To enrich your prayer life and learn how to strategically pray with power by using appropriate Scriptures, we recommend the following sources by Apostle John Eckhardt: Prayers that Rout Demons, Prayers that Bring Healing, Prayers that Release Heaven on Earth and Prayers that Break Curses. To order any or all of these click here.
Neil Simon Theatre, New York Opens Nov. 15
Revered as a popular early 1900s evangelist, Aimee Semple McPherson is known as much for the rumors and scandals surrounding her as she is for founding the Foursquare denomination. Now Kathie Lee Gifford, who wrote the book and lyrics for this musical, hopes to reintroduce her fascinating story to the world—on Broadway.
In God’s “family room,” we experience the inviting warmth of a hearth with a fire burning and a father sitting there, welcoming us into the family of God as forgiven children of God. This occurs after we are born again, and move from God’s “courtroom” where Jesus, our advocate, presents us as blood bought children to the Father. Following this, when we recognize subsequent sin in our lives, we do not have to return to the courtroom of God; but are the children of God, and our salvation is a settled matter from that time onward.
The Scriptures declare that when we are born again, there is no more condemnation for the believer (Rom. 8:1). We are also assured of ongoing forgiveness (see 1 John 2:1-2, 12). In that passage the apostle John exhorts the believer not to sin willfully. But when we do sin, we are assured that we have an advocate in Jesus who will forgive us.
It is here in the family room that we ask God’s forgiveness for subsequent sin so that we can maintain fellowship with the Father. In that way we grow in our faith and overcome any barrier to enjoying intimate communion with Him. Again, the apostle John explains this ongoing process of growing in grace (see 1 John 1:9-10).
It is important to recognize the distinction between our initial audience with a holy God in His courtroom and our daily audience with God in His family room. Here we come to commune with our Father and be continually washed from any unrighteousness.
Passing from the courtroom to the family room and beyond, we observe a most inviting room indeed—I call it the “sunroom.” It’s where we may bask in the warmth of God’s divine light and His peace.
The sunroom is a place of fellowship where we are learning to continually rest in His redemption. We can wait in His presence, commune with Him and cultivate our relationship there. The sunroom is a blessed reward for those who have settled the sin question in the courtroom and learned to confess their sins daily in the family room.
In this divine sunroom, we enjoy what the psalmist called “the pleasures at His right hand forever” (Psalm 16:11). Walking in His continual forgiveness gives us a chance to realize this promise of resting in His redemption. It is this place of intimate communion with the Father that equips us to become more useful for our purpose in life.
It is no wonder that even angels desire to understand this divine mystery of our redemption (1 Pet.1:12). This supernatural salvation works to redeem us so completely that it restores every part of our lives to God’s purpose: our past, our present and future.
For our past, Christ dies on the cross to provide salvation from the ravages of sin. Though we cannot change our past, when we submit our lives to His lordship, He can make our worst situation work for our good according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28).
In the present, as we learn to live with Him in the family room, we receive ongoing cleansing through daily confession. As our hearts are filled with the exhilaration of His forgiveness, we will want to hang out with Him in the sunroom, where we enjoy fellowship in His light (1 John 1:7). His love fills us more and more as we learn to rest in His redemption in the present.
In the future salvation, God will fulfill His promises of eternal bliss, of making us completely free from our sinful nature. No more will we suffer the mortality of our human bodies, and the eternal Sabbath rest of God will be ours forever, without end.
The Scriptures teach that as we wait before God, beholding His glory (3 Cor. 3:18), we receive the power of God’s grace to change us and continually make us more like Him. In that divine mystery of personal intimacy with God, our past, our present and future redemption is sanctified to God’s loving purposes. As we learn to receive His love, we will reflect His peace, His joy and His divine glory in our lives and we can rest in His redemption.
Adapted from Resting in His Redemption by James P. Gillis, MD, copyright 2011, published by Charisma House. We were created for communion with God, and He wants us to enjoy His love, joy, peace and companionship. This book demonstrates how to have this kind of personal, intimate relationship with God. To order a copy of this insightful book click on this link:
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 10/8/2012
This week draw near to God as He’s promised to draw near to you. Ask Him to reveal any areas where you lack understanding of His total redemption and thank Him for providing that need. Seek to have a deeper communion with Him and continue to pray for opportunities to share His love with others. Remember the upcoming elections and pray for wisdom during the voting process, protection for the candidates, and for God’s people to unite in prayer for our nation and the spread of God’s kingdom. Continue to pray for Israel and the persecuted church around the world. James 4:8; 2 Chron. 7:14; 1 John 1:9-10; Psalm 16:11
To enrich your prayer life and learn how to strategically pray with power by using appropriate Scriptures, we recommend the following sources by Apostle John Eckhardt: Prayers that Rout Demons, Prayers that Bring Healing, Prayers that Release Heaven on Earth and Prayers that Break Curses. To order any or all of these click here.
Five examples of people God used to move mountains
‘Praying Hyde’ and the Punjab
John Hyde didn’t just have a fondness for the Punjab region that today straddles the borders of Pakistan and north India. No, the American missionary’s heart burned to see the territory of 1 million non-Christians turned to Christ—so much that he developed a lifestyle of ministering during the day, then interceding before God throughout the night. “I used to keep such hours for myself, or pleasure,” he said, “[but] can I not do as much for God and souls?” Though he was only one of five missionaries when he first arrived in the Punjab, by 1904 “Praying Hyde,” as he became known, began gathering Indian Christians and western missionaries for an annual series of conventions. Before the first meeting began, however, he rallied believers for an intense season of prayer and fasting for revival, all for the sake of winning the lost for Christ. “Give me souls, oh God, or I die!” he cried at the 1910 Sialkot Convention, while issuing a public challenge to double his previous year’s goal (which was met) of leading one person to Christ every day. Prior to his death two years later, not only had that vision enlarged exponentially, but Hyde also witnessed revival sweeping through the Punjab and the rest of India.
Though evangelist Duncan Campbell became the face of the Hebrides Revival that began in 1949 on the Scottish islands, historians credit two elderly prayer warriors for laying the foundation through intercession. Peggy Smith, 84, was blind, while Christine Smith, 82, suffered from severe arthritis; neither could attend services at their local parish, yet both burned to see revival come to their tiny village. For months the sisters prayed faithfully from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m., rending the heavens for a move of God, until one night in prayer Peggy saw a vision of Campbell preaching on their island to crowds of young people (most of whom were absent from church). She shared the vision with a local pastor, who then gathered others to press in for such revival, and within months the entire island was consumed with a move of the Spirit that emptied the bars, filled the churches and transformed the remote region.
Ronald Reagan is often credited for sparking the demise of the Iron Curtain with his famous words in 1987: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Yet when the Berlin Wall actually crumbled two years later, few realize how God used the prayers of His people to do just that. What began with a six-person prayer group that met each Monday night at St. Nicholas Church in Leipzig, Germany, evolved into thousands of people across East and West Germany gathered in homes to pray for peace. By October, almost 300,000 believers were interceding in houses, churches and even prayer walking through the streets. After the wall fell on Nov. 9, 1989, one East German Communist Party leader remarked, “We had planned everything, we were prepared for everything—but not for candles and prayers.”
Wild Kentucky Prayers
While the Second Great Awakening swept through Great Britain and parts of the United States in the 1790s, Kentucky was far-removed from such an encounter with God. Lawlessness ruled this frontier state, where a mere 5 percent of the population attended a church and bank robberies occurred daily. Enter James McGready, a Scotch-Irish Presbyterian minister who arrived in 1798 to pastor three small churches—filled with escaped murderers, highway robbers and counterfeiters—in the southwest region of Logan County. McGready’s vision for revival began from a place of prayer, and he rallied his church members to a day of prayer and fasting for revival on the first Monday of each month, as well as at sunset every Saturday evening and sunrise the next morning. By June 1800, hundreds joined McGready at Red River for a camp meeting that lasted several days, and by the end God moved so powerfully that “the floor was soon covered with the slain; their screams for mercy pierced the heavens.” The Cane Ridge Revival soon followed, which not only transformed the state, but also birthed the entire modern missionary movement.
Jeremiah’s Business
As often happens, prosperity caused the revival fires of the Second Awakening to dim as the American economy soared in the early 1850s while people’s hunger for God waned. When the Panic of 1857 shook the financial world, however, few places were hit harder than New York City—which is exactly where Jeremiah Lanphier believed hearts would be most open to God. The quiet businessman had set aside his business to minister to the 30,000-plus jobless men wandering the city streets, but his efforts left him even more desperate for a move of God. On Sept. 23, 1857, after passing out more than 20,000 flyers announcing a noonday prayer meeting, he sat in an upstairs room praying—alone. Eventually, five men joined him. The following week, another 14; then an additional 20. Within weeks, thousands of businessmen were gathering to seek God’s face in prayer each day. As Lanphier’s prayer gatherings expanded, similar groups sprang up around the nation. What began with one man’s prayer grew into a nationwide revival in which 10,000 New Yorkers were saved each week—and an estimated 1 million people across the nation.
There are clear warnings in Scripture about interfering with the work of the Holy Spirit. In 1 Thessalonians 5:19 we read, “Do not quench the Spirit.” I like the Living Bible’s version of the same verse: “Do not smother the Spirit’s fire.” The Greek word translated quench means “to extinguish a flame” and to “stifle or suppress.”
The church in North America for the most part has quenched the Holy Spirit with some notable exceptions. When an unusual movement of God breaks out, some rejoice—but most investigate and criticize.
When our Lord Jesus Christ opened His ministry in Nazareth, His hometown, He announced the yoke-breaking anointing of the Holy Spirit. (See Luke 6:16-30; Isaiah 61:1-2). The people of Nazareth rejected Jesus’ anointed message and sought to push Him off a cliff! When you examine the passage in Luke, you discover Jesus announced the work of the Holy Spirit and the end of racial division. He infuriated His old friends by pointing to Elijah’s ministry to a Gentile woman in Zarephath and Elisha’s miracle for Naaman the Syrian. They were outraged and offended, so they slandered Him, calling Jesus “Joseph’s son” (Luke 4:22). They knew the story of Mary’s angelic visit and Jesus’ virgin birth. The facts are, they hated the supernatural, and they were closed to outsiders.
The rebirth of Pentecostalism and speaking in tongues began in an interracial group. Consequently there were and are elements of racism, denominational pride and cultural separatism that feed the opponents of the movement. Today, speaking in tongues has moved across the tracks and now is on Main Street!
This is hard for those who view church as a nice group of middle-class and upper-middle-class white people. When the Holy Spirit comes, all the walls must come down. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit will not be harnessed or housebroken by anyone. The Spirit who hovered over the waters at creation was the same Spirit who released the birth of the church.
The church was born as the outpost of another world—with values, miracle-working powers and its own language! John’s announcement was a baptism with the Holy Spirit and fire (Luke 3:16). On the Day of Pentecost, wind, fire and speaking in tongues heralded the arrival of God’s fresh presence on Earth.
The Holy Spirit can be grieved, lied to and blasphemed, but He will not be ignored. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit will upset all human order. Adam’s dead flesh cannot stand the presence of the Holy Spirit. Satan fears, mocks, intimidates and finally imitates the Holy Spirit.
A move of the Spirit of God according to the Word of God is Satan’s greatest fear. The great denominations are appointing committees about church resurgence, but no human plan can replace the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul’s ministry was marked by a “demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Cor. 2:4). Read this admonition Paul gave in Galatians 3:1-5 (NIV): “You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing—if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?”
Look at that word bewitched. Paul here gives a dire warning to the Galatian assembly that a retreat from the supernatural gifts of God back to dead religion was tantamount to witchcraft!
Like Samson, the church has been shorn of its power and now staggers blindly from program to program hoping for a reversal of the grave they are slowly sling into! Where are the leaders who will cry out to God as Gideon did in Judges 6:13?
If the leaders will not rise up and pray, what are we to do? Will we endure dead religion, faith without power or a work-based philosophy to give our lives meaning? No! We must seek after God’s full anointing and presence, lest we be “delivered into the hands” of our old, dead existence.
What is necessary to receive the gift of tongues? Jesus gave us the one clear, simple requirement (see John 7:37-39). Here is a promise that changes your life from a stagnant mud puddle to rivers of clear, fresh, flowing waters!
The condition is simple, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink” (v. 37). Simple, is it not? Jesus says, “Thirsty? Come and drink!” One of those “rivers” could be a prayer language. Will you answer the call?
Adapted from An Essential Guide to Speaking in Tongues by Ron Phillips, copyright 2011 by Ron Phillips, published by Charisma House. As a Spirit-filled Southern Baptist pastor, Phillips brings a welcome balance to this topic, helping you understand that this is a blessing from God that gives you the ability to boldly approach God’s throne with the Holy Spirit’s language. To order a copy click here.
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 9/10/2012
This week pray for our church leaders to cry out to God for His presence, anointing and revival. Continue to pray for the elections and ask the Lord to show you what is true and what is not. Ask Him to guide you in the process and pray protection for those running for office. Remember their families and others involved in the campaigns. Continue to pray for Israel and those persecuted for righteousness at home and abroad. Pray for the military and their families and ask that they return home soon. Remember those suffering losses of income, homes, and loved ones in the recent storms. Call America back to righteous roots and pray for unity in prayer and purpose among believers. Gal. 3:1-5; 1 Cor. 2:4-5; 2 Chron. 7:14
To enrich your prayer life and learn how to strategically pray with power by using appropriate Scriptures, we recommend the following sources by Apostle John Eckhardt: Prayers that Rout Demons, Prayers that Bring Healing, Prayers that Release Heaven on Earth and Prayers that Break Curses. To order any or all of these click here.
“Loving people right where they are … with just what they need is what shows God’s love to the hurting.”
‘Real Deal’ Dino
I had the privilege of attending Healing Place Church earlier this year. Pastor Dino Rizzo (“The Servolutionary,” July, by Marcus Yoars) is the real deal, and his heart for serving the needs of his community is reflected in his church family. The message that serving others is an intentional act—that there’s nothing “random” about kindness—and allowing ourselves to be inconvenienced and stretched beyond what we think we are capable of not only strengthens our faith in bigger ways than we can imagine, it also is what really reaches the broken. Just loving people right where they are (not where we think they should be), with just what they need is what shows God’s love to the hurting.
Finally, a church that gets it! The charismatic movement is becoming aberrant, lukewarm, selfish and apostate. Serving the poor with the gospel is the only thing that will save it. [Servanthood] must spread or the charismatic movement is done.
Racism Issue hyped up
I was disheartened to find the June issue focused on “The Church’s Response to Racism.” The focus should have been “The Church’s Response to the Media’s Desire for Racism to Thrive in America.” In the end of this Trayvon Martin tragedy, we will have forgotten about Trayvon and his family and concentrated more on the media’s desire to trump up, hype up and blow up the issue of racism. Once again the church has fallen for it by feeling guilty and thinking that we haven’t gotten very far in the area of bringing the races together. Do we have work to do? Yes. Are we doing it? Yes, and in many ways.
How divine was Jesus? (Part II)
I was greatly concerned when one of your readers stated, “Jesus performed all His miracles as 100 percent God and 100 percent man” in the letter “How Divine Was Jesus?” (May). I believe this is absolutely wrong, based upon Philippians 2:5-8. If at any time Jesus would have used any power that was not available to man, He would not have been the perfect sacrifice.
Carter Conlon (Regal)
Recognize Satan’s tactics of fear and learn to live courageously in uncertain times. Conlon, senior pastor of Times Square Church in New York City, gives practical examples of believers who have faced their enemies and overcome with God’s power.