Pentecost - May 1997

If we trust God and believe that whatever the enemy has meant to cause evil, God will turn and work it for good, you can never lose. Everything Satan tries to tear you down with can be used to bring his kingdom down. David cut the head off Goliath with the very sword that was intended to destroy him and the nation of Israel. 

Most people have never been taught to believe for miracles. But miracles are simple. Just believe God's Word. If God's Word says it, believe it. It doesn't require a ritual or a bunch of religious steps to see a miracle. It's not a feeling. You don't feel faith. Faith is a choice. It's simply a choice to believe God's Word. 

Don't lose the vision of giving. It is God's nature to give. Vision is from God. Fantasy is one step before failure. The most important thing about giving is our attitude when we give. It is important to expect when we give. When we give, we give to get, and then to give again. But if we give and hold on to it, that is what causes blessings to stop. The Lord sees what you give and the heart you give with, and He will always be faithful to provide. God gave His best gift. His Son. What will we give in return?

Was Judas evil from the beginning? Judas walked in the same authority as the other disciples. He seemed to walk by faith like all the other disciples. At the Last Supper, none of the disciples knew Judas was any different than them. So what was the difference? Even though Judas had been given authority over the enemy, he had unresolved issues in his heart, small things not dealt with, which eventually grew and led him to betrayal and destruction. If we are honest, we all have a little Judas in us that we need to get rid of. 

We tend to seek to please men instead of seeking to please the Father. Jesus did not seek glory from men but from the Father, so that He could bring glory to the Father. Do you receive from God just for your own personal gain or to bring glory to the Father? 

If you are a Christian without power, you have already lost the battle. We need the Holy Spirit to come alive in us as Believers. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. -Acts 1:8. 

God wants to use your life to fulfill His dreams. It is His Word and His presence that keep everything working around us. When we worship, miracles and provision simply happen in God's presence. God has given us the capacity to be the best lovers in the world. It is out of our love for the Father that we share Jesus with the people around us.

Are you praying for the best marriage in the world? God just might give it to you. As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. - Proverbs 27:17.  There is something added when different personalities come together. God causes the differences in men and women to sharpen one another. Even though there may be rough patches, we are not meant to try marriage out. It is not a contract between two people. It is a covenant relationship between God and a man and a woman. 

If we have to see to believe, we already have a huge problem. Strangely, seeing miracles does not cause you to believe God. It is the Word that brings us to believe. You cannot build on signs and wonders alone, but if you build on the Word, the signs and wonders will follow. 

In this fallen world, we have the right to give up when we fall, but we are not citizens of this world. In God's kingdom, when we fall, we have the right to get back up, and we have God's help in getting back up. Pity parties are not allowed in the kingdom of God. We have the privilege of getting back up. No matter what we are facing or how bad it looks when we turn our face to God, He can turn everything around.