Matt. 9:27-29 is the account of Jesus’ healing two blind men. They cried out for mercy. He asked them if they thought He was able to heal them. They said, “Yes, Lord.” God will speak to you if you will open yourself up to Him and to His Word. His Word changes lives and is the mouth of God. Operate in mercy. God gave us mercy. God loves people. Cry out for mercy- mercy for you, your family, the government. There is a lot of unbelief in the church. Do you believe that God is able to … ? You need a “yes” in your health, finances, job. God is releasing a heavenly “yes”. Everything that has and will happen to us has already passed through the Father’s hand. Jesus said that it would be done to the blind men according to their faith, or according to their “yes”. Don’t whine. “Shut up, go to your room, get it together, and then talk to the Father.” Pray for a “yes” on the inside of you. You were born for greatness. God has a door open for you. [Keith prayed for and laid hands on people for healing and instructed them to ask God to tell them what they needed to change in their habits, their eating, etc. and then to do it.]
Yes, Lord
Prepare an Ark and Pray for Your Family
What is God saying for the church? He is releasing a fragrance on the church so that others will want to be around us, a fragrance of love for people. This year is the beginning of a new decade, which will be better than the last. This is an exciting time. If you are waiting for something in the future, you won’t be responsible for the present. God is waiting on us. He loves us and wants to show us the many facets of Himself. God is releasing revelation for you to come into the will of God for your money, your ministry, your family, etc. Heb. 11:7 Noah was divinely warned of things not seen and was moved with godly fear to prepare an ark for the saving of his household. God can speak to you in different ways, such as what’s on a piece of someone’s clothing or on a billboard. (Keith told about the words “Last Call” on a biker’s jacket.) God is going to raise us up to show how much He loves us, like a proud daddy with his baby. To save this generation, the ones who are speaking into their lives must change. There is a shift in the church. God wants to move us over into the unseen (eternal) realm. People are looking for the supernatural. God is working behind the scenes. Be glorious, not goofy. As Noah prepared an ark for the saving of his family, you need to pray for your family. Prepare an ark through mercy and love for them. God came to us with a hand, not a pointed finger. Love wins out. Parents, don’t ever close the door on your children. Rejoice and pray for your family. A righteous wife sanctifies the family. Keith also had words of encouragement for Pastor Vitali and Natasha and for The New Jerusalem.
Don’t Limit What the Spirit of God Can Do Through You
The American culture labels people by their faults, allowing Satan to bring condemnation on them. We need to stop this, so people can find out who they are in Christ and where their lives are going. Don’t compromise, living by the flesh or by settling for less . You need to spend time with the Spirit of God in order to change your life and the lives of others. Jesus needed the Spirit of God; the disciples needed Him, and we need Him so we can go beyond what the disciples did in the book of Acts. There is no maximum to the Spirit of God. DON’T BACK DOWN! DON’T LIMIT WHAT THE SPIRIT OF GOD CAN DO! Chester tells about Dominic Russo’s vision to reach Honduras in a week. (It was done in a day in 2013!). Run toward your vision with all that you have. Shoot high! Leave the past and the cares and the people behind who will hinder you. Spend time with the Spirit of God, because He is your source of power and revelation. You are called to reach people who will go to hell, otherwise. Chester told of a dead man who was raised to life on one of his Amazon (amazing!) trips.
The Seer Anointing
If you can be a worshiper, you can have anything. Worship is the language of all mankind and is collective expression in God’s direction. We are created to worship Him. Expression is uncontrollable love unrestrained. Learn to be a worshiper. This is the day of the Lord, not the day of the preacher. When you are a Christian, you are living in the kingdom, and there is no lack. You are a king living in the kingdom, and we are family. Depression lasts as long as you let it. The older people must stand as mothers and fathers for this generation. Prisons are full of men who didn’t have fathers. The young ones will have God’s ability. We are the light of the world. People want to know Jesus. Jesus went to where the sinners were. Be in this world, but don’t be of it. Let your light shine and get the heartbeat of this generation to be affective. People are crying out for the love of God. They want to worship and want to be loved, but they never heard the real Jesus. Keith told of being in Singapore and about people with tatooed and pierced bodies lying before God in an altar call. This generation will go out on the streets to minister. God said that He would pour out His Spirit on all flesh and that the sons and daughters would prophesy. The word for this generation is the revelation of seeing. Rev. 4:1 says that he (John) looked and a door opened in heaven, and God said He would show him things to come. God has the answer for every situation. Speak and send out the Word through your mouthpiece. God has a word for you for everything you’re going through, and everything has already gone through the Father’s hand. You’re in the hands of the God who stilled the waters. He’s setting up people to help you. He has everything under control. Enjoy Jesus. He loves you, and He’s a lot of fun. God can turn things around in 24 hours, like in the book of Samuel, when the Jews went from starvation and cannibalism to abundance in one day. God is doing things now. Turn your looking into SEEING. This is a SEEING generation with a seeing anointing. We need to see some things about our money, our relationships, our jobs, our ministries, our future, and about the Word of God. Many of Jesus’ followers were lookers, not seers. They didn’t see His face. See the lost through the eyes of Jesus. Keith tells about a beggar boy in Paris and how he ministered to him by the Spirit of God telling him to give him a new cup filled with Euros and to tell him that Jesus cares for him. The anointing and and love of Jesus in us reaches out to others. We need to know what and how to do things to be successful without wasting time and money. An anointing on the congregation’s eyes was released for each person to be a seer. This anointing is for others. We often ask, “Why can’t that person see what they’re doing?” People don’t want to think for themselves. The direction of this nation is to not think for themselves, but to just expect what they need. This night is the last night we will look. We are seers.
Pray Prayer Night
Pastor Dale and others led the service in prayer for our president, for CWI events and outreaches, for ministers and missionaries associated with CWI, and for the body of believers at CWI Lancaster.
The Two Hands of Victory
Offering message: Judges 6:6 Israel cried out to God in a time of need and revival came through Gideon. Sometimes finances cause you to cry out to God. Sermon notes: (Pastor Vitali preached in the Slavic language, and it was translated.) Encouragement: God is not finished with America. America will again be an example of faith. I John 5:4, Whatever is born of God overcomes the world, and this is the victory that overcomes the world- our faith. The one who overcomes the world is the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Look at things with the eyes of Jesus: He reigns absolutely. We have faith to overcome the sinful system. Don’t be silent, but speak of the Lord. Ex. 17:8-14 tells of Moses needing the support of Aaron and Hur to win the battle. When you face opposition, you should be strong in the Lord, stand firm, and overcome. The victorious cross of Jesus Christ is the nucleus around which our lives revolve. Transform the victory of God into your daily walk. Everyday when the problems come, you must do something in the Spirit. If you’re tired of believing, the devil has deceived you because you weren’t really believing. Be renewed in the revelation of Christ as the living God, your Savior, your Messiah, the Son of the living God. Jesus gave you the victory. If you make mistakes and fall, don’t ignore them. Find honor, strength, and power in your life to resolve them. See yourself above the problems and hold up your hands. The first hand of victory is to speak and confess victory. The second hand that supports victory is a clean, pure life. When you sin, you lose power. God gives restoration through the blood of Jesus. Confession and a decision of a pure life establish God’s victory. That problem that is raging against you now, hear God say that He will remove even the memory of it.
Building on a Firm Foundation: Acting on the Word of God
Offering message: Poor economic conditions creates a cry in the hearts of the people. Cry out to save this nation and to bring deliverance. Sermon message: Matt. 7:24-28 tells us that: both men heard the Word of God from Jesus, both were building something, and both had the storms come. What you do determines who you are rather than what happens to you. Eph. 6 says to stand and that means, don’t back off, regardless of the time it takes. Faith without corresponding actions (works) is dead (James 2:17). Put your faith in the Lord and act on the Word by confessing and believing the Lordship of Jesus Christ and His resurrection. YOU CAN WALK ON THE PROMISE WHEN YOU REALIZE YOU DON’T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE. SOMETIMES THE POVERTY OF SPIRIT IS WHAT IT TAKES TO TAKE AWAY OUR STRENGTH IN OURSELVES, SO WE WILL DEPEND ON THE LORD.
Now We Have Everything We Need for Life
II Peter 1:3 God’s power has already given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. We have everything we need for life now. Heb. 11:32-34 tells us about people from the Old Testament who received by promise, because Jesus’ blood hadn’t been shed at that time. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, we have His power now- power to defeat our enemies, such as debt and disease, and to cast them out. We have absolute victory through His death and resurrection. We have daily victories over our flesh and circumstances. Judges 6:11-15 is the account of Gideon. The Angel of the Lord was there (verse 12), but he didn’t see him. God always shows up before we think He is there. In verse 13 Gideon questions God: Why is all this happening? Where are all Your miracles? When will we see miracles? When we believe and say that our God is a God of miracles. There are miracles. Pastor Vitali shares a healing miracle and a debt-forgiveness miracle. Gideon questioned what many Christians question: How can I _____? We don’t know what’s in us, because we don’t see ourselves as God does. Vitali tells of a trainer working with a girl on pole-vaulting. The trainer knew she could do it, even when she kept failing. After much encouragement and repeated tries, she got over the bar. God tells us that we can do what we need to do. He knows when things are bad, but He also knows we can get through it, because we have everything we need for life and godliness.
How Do You Cast Your Cares
After a time of praise and worship through songs and testimonies, Pastor Dale taught on Phil. 4:6. Be careful for nothing. That’s a command, not a suggestion, and since God told us to do it, it’s possible to do. Grab peace, and don’t fret or be anxious about anything. It doesn’t mean you don’t care because you aren’t worrying. Sympathy identifies with a person, but compassion meets that person’s needs. Even if you are addicted to and trained in worrying, it is possible to stop it. So what do you do? In prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. You can’t shout and doubt, and you can’t worry with thanksgiving. Praise is a choice. In everything give thanks and praise God. Matt. 5:11 tells us that even in persecution for Christ’s sake, you can rejoice and be exceedingly glad. Praising the Lord isn’t a feeling. It’s like priming a pump. Unless you first pour some water in, no more will come up, but as soon as you do, you will have great amounts of water. It’s the same way with praise: you have to pour some out first, and then your emotions will follow your praise. Luke says to leap for joy, not because you have it, but because you’re leaping to get it, just like holding a treat up for a dog to jump to get. Shout! Rejoice in the Lord (Phil. 3:1; Phil. 4:4). God’s promise to meet your needs is a promise you will always have needs. Rejoice! If you are worrying, you are not rejoicing.
Third Day Dreams From the Pit to the Prison to the Palace
Offering message: 2 Kings 4:8 and 2 Kings 8:1 tell of Elisha’s relationship as a prophet to the Shunammite woman. The woman got to know Elisha more and more and gave to Elisha; so as we get to know God more and more, and we give to Him, He has already arranged blessings for us in protection, provision, and healing. Sermon message: Art Remington shares of multiple examples of third day breakthroughs in the Bible. Joseph went from the pit due to his brothers’ betrayal. Pits build you up in patience and perseverance. From the pit Joseph went to the prison. It’s in the prison that you impart to others what you got in the pit. Finally, he went to the palace, where he received his robe, ring, necklace, and chariot. Don’t forget those who were around you in the pit and the prison, because they need you, and they need your and their deliverer. Praise God- in the pit, in the prison, and in the palace. Let the Spirit of God fall on your situation. Keep praising Him!
Prayer Praying in Tongues
Prayer is work, but Isaiah 28:11 and 12 tell us that our prayer language is the rest with which you may cause the weary to rest. The problem is further in the verse where it says, “yet they would not hear”. Don’t let prayer wear you out. It should energize you. Speaking in tongues builds you up and gives you rest. Like a dynamo, it produces more energy and strengthens you. John 16:24 says for us to ask, and we will receive, and then our joy will be full. Deepest joy can sustain the heaviest burden. Leave the prayer closet with joy. Ask for a fresh infilling of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the true intercessor. You may feel burdened in prayer and heaviness in the Spirit. Don’t confuse it with depression. It’s a burden that you need to press through. Rejoice and carry it to the birth. When you pray in the Spirit, a person’s face may come up. Stop and pray for that person. [The congregation spent time praying in tongues.]
Assignments Revealed For Increase
A Word was presented for the Church. Offering message: Mal. 3:10-12 tells us that God rebukes the devourer for our sakes when we bring in the tithes. It also says that all nations (peoples) shall call us blessed. Ps. 115:14-15 gives the truth that God will increase us more and more, us and our children. A word was delivered for two young men in the congregation. Sermon message: God has given us special assignments. We have favor and abilities no one else has, and this is the day for us to reap the harvest. Ps. 67:1-7 God wants His way known here. We need to be worshipers and praisers outside of the church service, too. Then the earth will yield increase. I Thess. 3:11-12 The Lord will make us increase and abound in love to one another and to all men. We are to let our fruit show outside the church building, so that He may establish our hearts blameless in holiness. We are to love in deed and in truth or in practice and sincerity (John 3:18). We are to hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, consider one another to stir up love and good works, and exhort one another as the Day approaches (Heb. 10:23-25). We need to seek God as to how provoke one another in love. We need new life in this body. Jesus taught, preached, and healed by going where the people were (Matt. 9:32-38). Get into the center of activity of the people of this generation. The revival in us must go out from here. The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few (Luke 10:1-2 and John 4:34-38). Our assignment is to pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into the harvest. We must step into the lives of people who need help. Win people to Jesus! I Cor. 3:6-8 God gives the increase to our labor. We’re in this together. We receive our reward according to our labor. Luke 14:12-24 relates about the banquet prepared for the poor, lame, maimed, and blind. Rise into action! Invite those who need to hear the Word to church. Invite them to your house for a meal. We are the harvesters of this generation. Take your assignment to this generation.
Confidence in Prayer
Carlene shares a powerful testimony of God’s creative power in blessing and developing a baby in the womb. I John 5:14 and 15 tell us that we have the confidence in God that He hears us if we ask according to His will and knowing that He hears us, we have confidence that we will receive what we have asked for. We must pray according to the will of God, which is what the Bible says. People often pray like they’re playing Russian roulette. If a person prays, “If it’s Your will…” and the person being prayed for doesn’t get healed, for example, then the person praying can say that it wasn’t God’s will. Really, we can know that it’s God’s will, because Jesus came to bring healing to us. To say that it wasn’t God’s will, is unscriptural and full of pride. You need to know your rights and what the Bible says and what His promises are. God said, and He keeps His Word. In Mark 11:12-24 Jesus cursed the fig tree- not that it would die, but that no man would eat food from it forever. Pastor Dale told of a young girl speaking to the warts on her hands and how the warts disappeared. Speak blessings. In Mark 11:23 Jesus raised the stakes from speaking to the fig tree to speaking to the mountain. Your words will work for you. You’ll get what you say, not what you believe. What do you desire? Mark 11:24 says whatever you desire when you pray believe, you will have. Prayer will have power when you have a strong desire to see the answer. Pray for the people on your top 10 list. Dwight Miller shared a testimony about warts being removed by speaking to them.
The Foundation of the Word
Communion message: I Cor. 11:23-26 Jesus paid an amazing price for our lives. He gave thanks to lay down His life for us. He was thankful for the healing of our bodies. Is. 53:4-11. Offering message: Mal. 3:8-11 We give to God, not to man. We rob God in tithes and offerings. Be wary of anyone who tries to explain away the simple truths of the Scripture. Tithing is for today. The principle is not to try to make people do anything. It is to enjoy the favor and blessings of the Lord, because He is so good to us. The devil is rebuked in our lives. We hold the Lord to His Word. What we don’t receive from God is what we really deserve. Sermon message: The chapters of the Sermon on the Mount have become the core of Christianity and give the structure of what it means to be a believer. His teaching was revolutionary in His day, such as when He addressed God as His Father, and then taught His disciples to call Him Father, too. Matt. 7:24-29 is the summation of the Sermon on the Mount. When Jesus taught, He took the Messiah’s authority starting from the Beatitudes. He used the analogy of the wise or foolish man. Caution: Don’t fall for lies saying that the Word on different topics only applied to people in the past. Act on the Word you hear. He will liken us to a wise man. Start acting wise. Watch and do what Jesus did in different situations. Be careful where you go to church and what they teach. Most people who come for counsel already know what to do, but they aren’t doing it. It’s foolishness to know what to do and to not do it. We are equipped for victory. In Mark 5 the woman with the issue of blood acted on the Word she heard, and she received her healing. Pastor Dale tells of his experience of being depressed and not wanting to act on what he heard from Kenneth Hagin and Kenneth Copeland, who said to take the path that is the hardest. Finish what you start and fulfill your word. The hard way is to build on the Rock. The foundation is the Word, not just a move of the Spirit, a vision, a dream, a prophetic word, which are given at a moment of time. Make sure that what you are receiving is based on the Word and remember that the Word and the Spirit always agree. The Word never passes, never wanes. James 2:15 Faith without corresponding action is dead. Faith is an act. When Jesus ministered healing, He tried to get the people to act, because faith needs action. Rom. 10:17 tells us that faith comes by hearing the Word. The foolish man had faith, because he heard the Word, but he didn’t act upon it. It doesn’t matter what you believe, but what you believe and act on. You can measure your Christianity by your acts. Who are you? Do you give, pray, serve…? Luke 5:1-5 There must be hunger in us to receive the Word. Peter responded at Jesus’ word. Launch out and do His Word. Search the Word to find out what to put into action. Take Him at His Word and act on it, whether it’s in tithing or whatever.
Back to the Basics: Prayer
Matt. 6:9. This scripture says to pray in the manner of the Lord’s Prayer. It begins (“Our Father, hallowed be Your name”) with an acknowledgment and recognition of the Lord and His presence. It’s being with Him, (as your devotional time should be). It invokes His name, meaning that it’s using His name to get access and also it’s summoning His presence. It’s the believer’s privilege to access Him and to summon His presence. Everything falls under control by its name. In heaven you get your real name. “Your kingdom come” invokes His power. We learn to pray step-by-step. Praying is hard work and is tough on the flesh. Mark 1:35 If Jesus made prayer a priority, how much more should we? Make prayer a habit. Have a place and a time that will give prayer a priority in your day, such as in the shower, in your commuting time, on lunch break. Create a habit of prayer. You need personal, private prayer times before your expectations and results increase in corporate prayer. It’s relationship first. Suggestions and reminders: record what and who God puts on your heart in times of personal prayer; have a top ten (10) list of people the Lord lays on your heart to pray for salvation.
Back to Basics
Offering Message: Luke 6:38. We give our tithe willingly. Giving is an opportunity. It is a seed. When a seed is planted, you wait for the final product. What you plant, God gives back multiplied. Giving is a choice, but the giving back to you is a sure thing. He packs in the blessings. We plant and tend our seed by believing that God will bring increase. We water it by speaking positively. We weed it by watching what comes out of our mouths. Speaking negatively is stomping on your young plants. Numbers 23:19 God doesn’t lie. He does what He says. Sermon Message: Texts: Gen. 1 and 2; Matt. 13:10, 11; Ps. 8:3-9; Rom. 8:19; Matt. 22:30. We were created to speak things into existence. We were created to take dominion over the earth, not over people. We were created in God’s image. We were created in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Dwight uses the analogy of an egg to describe God the Father, the Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. The shell is like the body of Jesus; the egg white is to be compared to the Holy Spirit; the yolk is compared to the Father. The whole egg is like God. We are a spirit, live in a body, and have a soul. The Holy Spirit hovered over the earth to create it. Jesus was the Word, and as the Word went forth, the Holy Spirit created and fulfilled what the Word said. The Holy Spirit hovers over our words to perform the words that we speak that are out of the Father. You cannot get to the Father without going through the revelation of the Holy Spirit, and you can only go to the Holy Spirit through the broken body of Jesus. When you receive Jesus, the Holy Spirit will reveal the Father to you. We will judge the angels, so we are higher than angels. We have power in our words. We should have dominion over sin, sickness, and disease. God gave us dominion, so the earth is to be under our control. Adam was to till the garden, which he did by his words. He was to be fruitful and multiply and the Garden would have expanded. God breathed into Adam His Spirit, and God lives in us. The Garden was God’s plan for us. Adam was in control. The earth is waiting for the sons of God to be revealed, the revelation that we have control and dominion. The earth is waiting for us to say “no” to the things that are not from God. A kingdom is a place to rule. When Jesus cursed the fig tree, He took the purpose of the fig tree out of it. Our purpose is to take control and to spread the Gospel. Take dominion over your body. After God made Adam, He said that it was not good for man to be alone, so He took the female “side, half” (meaning of the word “rib”), and made a woman. That meant that neither the man nor the woman is complete without the other. Your mate completes you. Listen to what your spouse says. You become one flesh and complete each other. Whatever the husband and wife agree upon (two or three), God is there, and it is established. Adam was to operate as God did, by speaking to things (that was his toil) and by taking authority over every area of life.
A Foundation in the Word Part 2
Offering message: II Cor. 9:6, 7 Sow to the Spirit and reap life. There is joy in giving, but hilarity in giving is when you see it working. Never give grudgingly, because then God can’t give the blessing. Giving is good for you. You need to give; don’t give only when there is a need. Sermon message: Text: Matt. 7:24-29. When you hear His sayings, do them, and then you’ll look like a wise man. Start doing what you know is right. Knowledge that is not acted upon is a waste and leads to self-deception. Use the knowledge you have. We know enough to live a life in victory and breakthrough and to win souls. Write down what God speaks to you. The foolish man built on the sand. It is easier and there is less resistance to build there. #1 The storms came to both men. Being established in the Word of Faith prepares you for the storms of life. You will encounter crises and conflicts. Religion dwells on the storms and the problems. #2 Both men built a house, but they built on different foundations. Your life is what you make it. You have to work at building your future. It is not easy to build on the foundation of the Word. Listen and do the Word. Begin where you are and think about eternity. Building on the sand is thinking that the storm won’t come to you. When the house fell, that represents a life or a marriage. It’s God idea that there wouldn’t be storms that defeat us. In Psalms 91:7-10 He says, … “it shall not come near to you, because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, your dwelling place.” We model the Word of God for others. He tells us who to follow. The issue is: Are you building on the sand or on the Rock? Joshua 1:8 informs us to meditate, observe, and do the Word if you want to see the result of standing through the storms. Build a strong foundation by praying and meditating and working. Help, don’t enable others. When you don’t know what to do, meditate on the Word and then act on it, and then you’ll make your way prosperous, and then you’ll have good success. Prov. 4:20-23. Keep your heart with all diligence. It’s a battle to focus on your destiny and on doing the Word. Guard your heart.
Pray in Jesus Name
There is power in praying in Jesus’ name. We represent God and His authority. Ps. 9:10; Ps. 44:4, 5; John 14:13. If we ask anything in Jesus’ name, He will do it, so the Jesus can bring glory to God the Father. There are many names for Jesus: Prince of Peace, Lion of the tribe of Judah, Lifter of heads, Light, Almighty, Scepter, Lord of lords… Art tells of a man who was called to a very dangerous area of China. Everyone feared to go with him, but he went, and many people were healed and saved. When he returned, everyone was shocked that he was not attacked by thieves, but the reports came in that eleven soldiers were seen with the man. Eleven people from the church that supported him were praying for his safety at that date and time. God was a Wall of Fire for the missionary as in Zech. 2:1-5. In Gethsemane Jesus asked His disciples to pray with Him for one hour. Art had a video clip of a five-year old boy declaring, decreeing, and interceding for babies being dedicated in a church service. There was a period of prayer, supplication, and intercession, and we were encouraged to do this on our own at home.
A Foundation in the Word
Offering Message: Revivalists Finney, Moody, and Wesley all had people behind them financing them. In Luke 8:2, 3 we are told that certain women, such as Mary Magdalene, provided for Jesus’ ministry, out of appreciation and gratefulness for what He had done for them. Sermon message: Matt. 7:24-29 is the parable of the wise and foolish builders. The difference is that the wise man built on the rock (Jesus Christ) and the other built on the sand (things of the world). The storms of life came to both. There are seasons of the evil day. The foundation is the Word, which you not only need to have, but must use and apply. Sometimes you can follow others who are wise and just act like them until you gain experience and wisdom. Pastor Dale told of one of his elders who watched and learned from a veteran who had survived a previous beachhead attack, and he in turn survived five other beachheads. It’s hard to fight when you’re losing the battle, but when you have built on the Word foundation, you can have peace and confidence in the midst of the battle. Ps. 112 tells us to not be afraid of evil tidings. Grab the respect of others when they go through a battle. You not only should be in the Word, but you can delight in it. Make the Word a priority. Pastor Dale tells of his cousin who died three times and how the Lord reminded him to not be afraid of evil tidings and to not make haste, and he saw a miracle. Make sure the foundation of the Word is in you. Go where God is feeding you. Get the Word at any cost. Listen to and get the Word in you, and when you face a crisis, you won’t react. Preparation meets opportunity. You can be in the bubble of God’s grace in a time of horror. Eph. 6:13 tells us to take on the armor of God. Not every thought is safe. You can’t trust them, but you can trust the Word. The grace of God is eternal life. Double-up on the Word of God, and when things are easy and going smoothly don’t slack off.
Prayer
In 1 Tim. 2:1-4 Paul write to Timothy exhorting him first of all to supplicate, pray, intercede, and give thanks for all men, for kings, and for all who are in authority. Our first ministry is to pray. It’s the first step in every endeavor. Praying is not just for a certain group of people but is what all believers are to do. Prayer is meant for answers. It is being with the Lord, but it will bring miracles and change. Spending time with God without getting answers is like spending time with Tiger Woods and never talking about golf with him. Don’t let the devil make you think that your prayers aren’t working. Your prayers for the President of our country are effective. You do have a sphere of influence; you will get more details when praying for those people and situations. Pastor Dale shares two experiences of answered prayer, one concerning the sale of a house and another concerning friends for his boys when they were living in Moscow. Prayer is the first step in being a Christian. You don’t need to know how to pray. Just do it! You’ll learn to pray by praying. You need to be encouraged to pray. There are different kinds of prayer: supplication, faith, salvation, consecration, thanksgiving, intercession, and others. Some prayers don’t work in certain situations. First John 5:14, 15 says that we can be confident that if we ask anything according to His will (what is in the Word), He will hear us, and that we will have the petitions that we have asked of Him. Your prayers will work when you know the will of God, so you don’t have to say, “If it is Your will.” We have confidence when we know what the will of God is from the Word of God. Pray to get the will of God. Then you can pray with knowledge. When we pray the Spirit will tell us what to pray. Eph. 6:18 says that we are to pray always with all manner of prayer and supplication in the Spirit. Intercession is praying for someone else. Your life of prayer is effective. The highest forms of prayer are praise and intercession.