LAW AND GRACE

By: Maggie Escoto

We do not keep the Ten Commandments, which is the old covenant, for the same purpose that Israel was commanded to keep them. In keeping covenant with God, Israel displayed faith by living “under” the law. The law (Ten Commandments) was external and written on two stone tablets. And so, Israel's devotion to God was seen in external works of the law.  The law was in the driver’s seat. It was in control for the purpose of leading Israel and all mankind to the Messiah (Jesus Christ). When Jesus Christ, came the law changed position, and grace took over the wheel. The law was exchanged with grace. We can view as the process in which a caterpillar evolves into a beautiful butterfly.

Law did not and does not have the power of grace. The law was and is defeated by sin, while grace defeated and will forever defeat sin. Those who lived under the law were in bondage to the power/control of sin. Jesus defeated sin and offered us grace.  If keeping the law was enough to make us acceptable to God, there would have never been need for Jesus to come. The law proved our need for Jesus Christ (John 3:16).

The Apostle Paul wrote, in Romans 7:7, “What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. No, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, You shall not covet.”

In fact, it is possible to be an obedient follower of Jesus Christ without knowing the literal words of the Ten Commandments from the old covenant law. This is said only to emphasize that with grace in control it is the Holy Spirit that empowers the believer to “walk in the Spirit” so as not to fulfill the “lust of the flesh”.

Paul states in Rom. 6:14... “for you are not under law but under grace.” He also makes it clear in Gal. 5:18 “if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”  The previous verses state “so that you do not do the things that you wish.” The Law is not given to the Christian as the standard to live by, but to show the everyone how below the standard we do live, as Paul states in 1 Tim.1:9 The Law is for the unrighteous.

This time was Israel's, as a whole nation under the law. But when God moved from law to grace (caterpillar to butterfly), Israel resisted that move, preferring the old program of rules and regulations from Moses, illustrating the danger of law. We look good from the outside, but in the inside, we are an awful mess. Not only are we an awful mess, the mess destroys us in the inside, hence, DIS-EASE. Grace, on the other hand, removes the mess and frees us from DIS-EASE.

For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law ... but the righteousness of faith speaks in this way... with the heart one believes to righteousness. Rom. 10:5-6, 10.

Law and grace work together as a team in bringing salvation in Jesus Christ. Law brings conviction of sin and shows our need for a Savior Grace.

LET'S DO IT AGAIN

By Pastor Troy Gramling

Not long ago there was a commercial for Kodak where a dad takes his little girl to a public pool with the purpose of teaching her how to dive off the diving board.  As she climbs the high ladder and looks down into the water...she freezes.  It's a long way down...the water looks intimidating...What will happen if she leaps off and lets go?

She looks over the edge of the board and can't move, legs solidly in place.  She can't move. Unmoving. Unsure.

Dad tells her to jump.  He reassures it will be fine. That she will be safe.  That he would never let anything happen to her.

Doubt is a powerful entity.  Our Heavenly Father wants us to jump but often...

We need reassurance.
We need security.
We need proof
We need God to do something first.

And so we stand in the same place expressing our needs at the end of a great leap...

But need doesn't move God's heart.

"Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  A Gentile woman who lived there came to Him, pleading, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely." 

But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word.  Then His disciples urged Him to send her away. "Tell her to go away" they said. "She is bothering us with all her begging."

Then Jesus said to the woman, "It isn't right to take food away from the children and throw it to the dogs."

She replied, "That is true, Lord.  But even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath the Master's table."

"Dear woman," Jesus said to her, "your faith is great.  Your request is granted." And her daughter was instantly healed. (Matthew 15:21-28)

This Gentile woman needed for her daughter to be healed....she begged and pleaded.  And interesting enough, Jesus did not say a word to her.  Was He being mean spirited or cruel?  Of course not.  He was on task...doing what He had been sent to do...serve God's chosen people, the Israelites.  He knew He couldn't (and wasn't meant to) get to everyone who asked for His time. 

She persisted.  Crying her needs into the air...seeking reassurance...a guarantee...proof that miracles still happen.  She expressed her needs to God...but it wasn't what she said that made Jesus change His course of action.

IT WAS HER FAITH.

It wasn't what she needed that moved Christ...IT WAS WHAT SHE BELIEVED.

Faith is what God is looking for. Persistent and unshakable faith.  Belief that...

That the pool will be deep enough...
That your prayers will be strong enough...
That your God is strong enough...

God knew her needs...but it was FAITH that healed that little girl.

At the end of the Kodak commercial, the girl closes her eyes and jumps...trusting in the depth of the water and the words of her father.   Splashing down and quickly popping back up, she looks over to the deck she looks at her dad and tells him, "Let's do it again, daddy!"

God will always be enough. Don't doubt. And remember, God knows you needs before you even have them...but it's not His knowledge of the things you need that fixes things...

IT'S YOUR FAITH IN HIS ABILITY TO DO IT.

And when you take that leap and God catches you,  you will tell Jesus the same thing.....

"LET"S DO IT AGAIN!"

GOD'S SHIELD OF PROTECTION - Part 1

By Maggie A. Escoto

Psalm 91 speaks directly to everyone's fear and need of safety and security.  It is very clear in verse 1 that God's thought of protection for us was at the very forefront of His mind. "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty."  When we are in danger we automatically run to seek shelter by covering ourselves with the hope that harm will not come. No guarantees here.  But God, on other other hand, promises that if we dwell or abide in His secret place, that place where we meet with God whether it is in a closet, a quiet spot at the lake, or in one of our favorite rooms in the house,  He will protect us and keep us from harm as we remain in His presence (shadow).

DON'T TELL......

SHATTERED DREAMS

by Os Hillman

Naomi's life was going well. A great husband. Two fine sons who had two wonderful wives. Then the unthinkable happened. Her husband died. A little time later both her sons die. Her and her daughter-in-laws find themselves in the midst of shattered dreams. This isn't how life was supposed to be.

How did Naomi react to her situation? "...for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!" (Ruth 1:13). Ah, we see her true feelings about the situation. "How could a loving God let this happen?!" "Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?" (Ruth 1:20-21).

Mara means bitter. She knew where she was. She was bitter toward this so called God of love. "How can I possibly reconcile this?!" No life insurance. No widow's fund. "What is going to happen to me and my daughters?"

The Bible says the rain falls on the righteous and the unrighteous. Naomi and Ruth move to a community where some of her relatives lived. Ruth goes out to work in the fields to put food on the table. She just so happens to work in the field of a wealthy farmer named Boaz. When Ruth tells her this the first ray of hope penetrates her bitter heart. Even she can recognize the hand of God.

So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, "The man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz. Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, "Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!?" (Ruth 2:19-20).

Hebrew custom was for the next in kin to care for the widow in the family. Boaz was to be this man. He would eventually marry Ruth. She would bare a son, Obed. He would be the father of Jesse, the father of David. Jesus would come from the same lineage.

Shattered dreams often lead to a world-impacting destiny. But getting there is often a process where we must work through honest feelings before we can see the God who redeems even the most devastating shattered dream.

JESUS SAVES

THE PLACE OF TEARS

by Os Hillman

"My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death" (Mt 26:38).

Often the place of our greatest pain becomes the place of our greatest triumph. Gethsemane was the place of Jesus' greatest trial. Three times He asked the Father to let this trial pass. It was not to be. The Father sent His Son to the cross to pay a debt owed by humanity.

Jesus was faced with His own temptation to quit, to not fulfill His destiny, to run from his assignment. It was a personal battle to persevere. Sometimes we face situations that cry out "Quit! I cannot endure anymore!" We want to throw in our towel of what little faith we have left. We conclude that this faith thing simply does not work.

"Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him"(Lk 22:43). After Jesus asked the Father if this cup could pass, an angel was sent to Him to comfort Jesus. The Father's answer to Jesus' prayer was "No." But, His compassion to His Son came in the form of an angel. Some temptations seem they are more than we can bare. However, God tells us: "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it" (1 Cor 10:13).

If we persevere we often realize later the place of our greatest battle becomes the place of our greatest victory. It would be here, on the Mount of Olives, near the Garden Gethsemane where Jesus ascended and would return triumphantly, not as a sorrowful soul, but a triumphant Savior. The battle He won in Gethsemane would result in the triumphant entry to be Lord of the universe.

God will use your greatest failure or greatest sorrow to be a powerful force in your life and the lives of others. Your Valley of Baca (weeping) becomes springs for you and others. You will go from strength to strength (Ps 84:6). It is in the dying that the new springs are allowed to come forth and a new strength emerges.

If you find yourself in your Garden of Gethsemane, lay yourself at the feet of the only one who can sustain you. Entrust yourself to your Heavenly Father. Let Him determine your fate. It will ultimately become a place of victory.

YOUR SECURITY IS NOT IN YOUR BANK ACCOUNT

by Rick Warren

"Your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well what you need and he will give it to you if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to." Matthew 6:33 (LB)

Many of us act like spiritual orphans. We forget that we have a heavenly Father who already knows what we need. He's just waiting for us to ask. He will provide. Does God take care of little birds? They don't worry. Human beings are the only things in all creation that worry. Everything else trusts the heavenly Father and creator to care for their needs.

"He gives food to those who trust Him. He never forgets His promises." (Psalm 111:5 LB) How much do you trust God? Worry is really just a form of atheism. Every time you worry, you're saying, "It all depends on me." That's just not in the Bible.

You must trust God with your life. Today's verse says, "If you give him first place." Why? Because as long as you love anything more than God that thing or person or item will become a source of anxiety.

"Don't put your hope in wealth which is so uncertain. But put your hope in God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." (1 Timothy 6:17)

You must always remember -- your security is not in your bank account; your security is in the Lord. If God turns off one faucet, he can turn on another. If he turns off one job, he can turn on another. You must seek the Lord.
The book of Romans says God sent his son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for you to pay for your salvation. If God loves you enough to send His own son to die for you, don't you think He loves you enough to take care of your bills? Don't you realize that any other problem is minor by comparison? He solved your biggest problem when he saved you. The bottom line is this: Are you going to believe God to do what He says He will do? And are you going to believe him enough to do what he tells you to do?

TRUST YOUR FINANCES TO GOD'S PROVISION

by Rick Warren

God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 (NIV)


Everybody has financial fears. You don't have to be poor to get anxious about money. You don't have to be on welfare to have financial fears. In fact, it seems the more you have the more you have to maintain, to insure, to protect, to worry over.

But God gives us a guarantee regarding our finances. Philippians 4:19 says, "God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." This verse is so packed! I want you to notice several words.

First it says, "God will..." It doesn't say, "He might meet your needs" it says "He will." It's a fact. He's staking His character and His reputation on it. "I will meet your needs."

Then it says, "God will meet all..." It doesn't say "I'll meet some of your needs" He says all. Does that include car payments? Braces? Home? Yes. All your needs.

It doesn't say "I'll meet all your greeds." There's a difference between needs and wants. God's not going to give you everything you want; you'd be spoiled to death.

But it says, "I will meet all your needs" according to His wealth, His riches. It's not based on your assets. It's based on what God has and He doesn't run out of resources.

Finally he says "... for you in Christ Jesus." This is not a promise for everybody. God has not promised to meet the needs of people who reject His Son. This is a promise only for believers. He says, "If you're one of my children, in my family, I promise to meet all your needs."

Then how come you have financial needs? Did God fail? Did He lie? Exaggerate? No. With every promise there are conditions or requirements. There are things God says, "I'll do my part and you do your part."

God says if you meet the following five conditions, then he will meet your financial needs -

If I ask for his help.
If I learn to be content.
If I practice giving in faith.
If I maintain financial integrity.
If I trust him with my life -- completely.

AT MIDNIGHT

By Pastor Marquis Boone

People of God, adversity comes in many shapes forms and fashions. These perplexing, confusing, and mystifying predicaments show up at the most inconvenient and awkward times in our lives, and the frustrating thing is that adversity does not need an invitation to enter your home.

One moment life appears to be serene, calm, peaceful and quiet; then the next moment we find ourselves caught in the middle of the storm. For some of us life is just one storm after another.

One of the strange things about this season is that it seems like it is lasting forever. One of the purposes God has for our lives is that we grow to maturity in our faith in Him and not in stuff or in people. You know your faith is maturing by what you do and how you act during your storm and in your problem.

"And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” Acts 16:23-28 (NKJV)

Here in the book of Acts we find a story about the Apostle Paul and Silas who find themselves in what seems to be a storm. Paul & Silas were called by God to take the gospel into the region of Macedonia. However, when they got there, instead of wide open doors, like they might have expected, they ran into a season of opposition!

They are locked up and in chains because they were at the place God wanted them to be, doing the very thing God told them to do. What I love about Paul and Silas is that they still had faith in God. The text does not say they were crying and angry but that they were praying and singing praises.

This is my favorite part of the text, it says “but at midnight”. I know you have heard people say that midnight is the darkest hour and it’s when you’re at your lowest, but what I want to point out here is that midnight is also a transition period. It is the transition from an old day to a new day. It can confuse you because when you think of transition you think of a sudden, rapid change.

Midnight transition is very minute because nothing really changes but the time. I want you today to put all your faith in God no matter how it looks my sister and no matter what they say my brother. Don’t allow the code red to detour you because there is a transition about to take place in your life but you have to trust God.

Remember you are where He wants you to be. It’s not time to put your faith in the things you see but put to your faith in the God who holds you in His hand.

Scripture Of The Day: "By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible." - Hebrews 11:3 (NKJV)

GOD WILL NOT FULFILL YOUR DREAM IMMEDIATELY

by Rick Warren

"But these things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day!" Habakkuk 2:3 (LB)

"We all have to go through these waiting periods. Even Jesus waited for thirty years in the carpenter's shop before setting out on his public ministry. "
Even as you make a decision to follow the dream God places in your heart, you can expect a delay. God will not fulfill your dream immediately because this is another step toward building your faith.

In Habakkuk 2, God says, "These things I plan won't happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled."
In this step of faith-building you will most likely start asking the question, "When, Lord? When are you going to answer my prayer?"

And we hate to wait. We don't like to wait in a doctor's office, or in traffic jams, or at restaurants, or for Christmas presents, or for anything else. But what we hate worst of all is waiting on God.

Have you ever been in a hurry when God wasn't? It's so irritating! You're ready, but God isn't. God wants to work on you before he works on the project. Every believer must go through the University of Learning to Wait (ULW). Some of us are still working on our degrees from ULW!

- Noah waited 120 years from the time he started building the ark until it began to rain.

- Abraham was told he would be the father of a great nation and didn't have a child until he was ninety-nine.

- God told Moses he would be the leader to lead his people out of four hundred years of slavery, but then made him wait in the desert forty years.

- Joseph spent years in prison before God raised him up and he became the ruler God wanted him to be.

- God had David anointed as king, but then David waited for years until he actually got to be king.

We all have to go through these waiting periods. Even Jesus waited for thirty years in the carpenter's shop before setting out on his public ministry.
Why do we wait? It teaches us to trust in God. We learn that his timing is perfect. One of the facts we have to learn is this: God's delay never destroys his purpose.

A delay is not a denial. Children must learn the difference between "no" and "not yet," and so must we. Many times we think God is saying, "No," but he is saying, "Not yet."

HEALED BY HIS WORD

He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. —Psalm 107:20

You can be healed if you will hear the Word. This Word says it is by faith, that it might be by grace. Grace is omnipotence. It is activity, benevolence, and mercy. It is truth, perfection, and God's inheritance in the soul that can believe.

Grace is God. You open the door by faith, and God comes in with all you want. It cannot be otherwise, for it is, "of faith that it might be by grace" (Rom. 4:16).

This is believing, and most people want healing by feeling. It cannot be.

By Thy Word, not my feelings,
I am healed. Hallelujah!

RENEW YOUR FAITH AT CHRISTMAS

But the angel said to them, "... I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people." Luke 2:10 (NIV)

Knowing that Christmastime is God's chosen time teaches us that Christmas is the time for us to renew our faith.

We need not fear God because of the Good News of Christ's arrival; it is a Good News meant to "bring great joy to all people." (Luke 2:10 NLT)

What is the Good News?

• You matter to God: God knows everything about you -- the good, the bad, and the ugly -- and He still loves you. He cares about you. He loves you more than you could ever know. God is for you, not against you.
• You are not an accident: Regardless of the circumstances of your birth, you were not the result of an accident. God has a plan and a purpose for your life. The only way you will find meaning and satisfaction is to discover God's purpose for your life and then to get right into the center of his will.

God sent Jesus so you could know what He's like. If God wanted to communicate to birds, He would have become a bird. If God had wanted to communicate to cows, He would have become a cow. If He wanted to communicate to dogs, He would have become a dog. But God wanted to relate to you and to me, so He became like us -- a human being.

The thing is this -- I don't have the foggiest idea of what it means to relate to something like 'The Force' -- some impersonal power in the sky. But when I see Jesus in human form, I can say, "That's what God's like. I can understand that."

This is why Christmas is not about a religion. You may be Catholic; you may be Jewish; you may be Presbyterian, or Buddhist, or Baptist, or Lutheran; I don't care what your religious background is, Jesus didn't come to give you religion. He came to give you a relationship.

Christmas is God saying, "I want to relate to you. I want you to know Me as much as I know you." That's joyful news. It's good news!

WHEN HOPE IS DEFERRED

by Os Hillman

"So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, 'Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!'" (Job 2:7-9).

I walked into the room and Angie burst out crying. "I'm so discouraged! I don't know what else to do. Will I ever get better!?" After three years of fighting a medical condition the doctor just told her no progress had been made in the last six months of treatments. Alternative treatment was needed that might have more severe side effects.

Great men of God with healing ministries had prayed for her. Thousands had prayed for Angie through our ministry. A string of doctors had failed to yield any position results. When hope is deferred, the psalmist says, the heart becomes sick. During these seasons, we can only do one thing. We must hang onto whatever faith we have to get through each day and entrust our lives to Him. "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior" (Hab 3:17-18).

When faith doesn't see results it challenges what we believe. We must pray as Job prayed: "Teach me what I cannot see" (Job 34:32). God says there is a purpose in everything we go through. Later that day Angie talked to a friend who once had the same issues, but was now better. "Angie, God is going to reveal things to you through this season of adversity that you would never receive had you not gone through this. This is part of your calling even though Satan is the instrument. God is always bigger than Satan's afflictions."

Our greatest tests come when we cannot see positive results from our faith and obedience. In such cases we must die to our expectations and entrust them to our Lord.

GRACE ABOUNDS

by Os Hillman

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (2 Corinthians 9:8).

God always knows what we need before we even ask. I recall a few years ago when God was allowing my business to dry up - it happened in order to lead me to an entirely new calling. Lack of provision is one way God leads us to a new place. This was a scary proposition because I had many outstanding obligations to banks and others, and I had to have some significant cash flow to make these payments.

I was ending a consulting contract with a client and saw no prospects for replacing it. Days before the contract expired, I received a call from a new ministry that was consistent with the calling I sensed God was leading me to. They asked me to consult with them for the next year. At the end of that year, I learned that God spoke to the ministry's founder to pay my entire salary out of his own pocket in order to meet the needs I had at that time. This was no insignificant amount either.

At the conclusion of my contract with them, I was wondering where my income was going to come from for the next year. The day before I was informed that their commitment would decrease by 50%, I received a call from the administrator of our foundation. They informed me that a supporter had just given $20,000 to our ministry. God encouraged me through this gift to know that He was my provider.

God equips us to fulfill the mission He has for us. Whenever there is a lack of resources, God is either teaching us to trust Him in greater ways or He is using this to direct our path to new sources of income. Trust the Lord to bring you what you need in the timing that He determines.

THE FRAME OF FAITH

Hebrews 11:1-16 We recently purchased some beautiful oil paintings painted by some Israeli art students. These students were temporarily in the United States selling their paintings to earn money for their art school in Jerusalem. They went door to door and also had a few shows in the U.S. The paintings were not framed, but we had the promise of these students that a fellow student would call us who could give us a good price on framing the pictures for us. We waited and waited for this call. Meanwhile our beautiful pictures were gathering dust while they were stored under our bed. No one knew we had such beautiful paintings because they were not framed yet and we could not display them on our walls.

Our reading in Hebrews today describes the beautiful lives painted through history by men and women of faith. As we read about those heroes of our faith, we can picture in our minds the scene of Noah who by faith prepared the ark; Abraham who by faith left his homeland to go to a strange land; Sarah who by faith gave herself to Abraham when she was ninety because of the promise of a child; and on and on the scenes pass through our minds.

We learn in Hebrews 11:3 that there is a very special frame for these pictures of faith: "By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible."

Through faith the Word of God framed the worlds. God sees to it that when we are presented with His artwork there is already a frame for each masterpiece. Just as our paintings could not be displayed until they were framed, these scenes of great faith painted by our Bible heroes could not be displayed without the Word of God framing these scenes. It is through the Word of God that we are able to read these wonderful stories that inspire us to greater faith. In every scene of faith conveyed in chapter 11 of Hebrews, we see how these men and women of faith received and acted upon the Word of God. They attached themselves firmly to the frame of God's Word and then displayed His Spirit, character, power and works to the world. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. God has framed the masterpiece of your life in the golden frame of His Word. Without His Word, we could never display the faith that works by love and moves mountains to the world.

IS HEALING FOR ALL?

By: Dr. Frederick K.C. Price

There are seven scriptural methods whereby you can receive your healing. I believe the prayer of faith is the highest form of prayer to receive healing.
In Mark 11:24 Jesus said,Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Well, is Jesus a liar or does He tell the truth? He tells the truth! He says, "whatever things you ask...." Wouldn't that have to include healing? Yes, it does.

Therefore, it must be God's will to heal. Otherwise He could not make that kind of bold declaration. "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray"-not after you pray, not a month later, not when you see something, not when you understand it, but "when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."

If you believe you receive them you will confess that, "Bless the Lord-I believe I am healed, I believe I have received my healing." Now, once you make a faith confession you are going to get opposite from the enemy. His motive is to move you off your faith confession.

Someone might say...

"Yes, but you don't look like you are healed." I didn't say, "I look like I'm healed," I said, "I believe that I received my healing."

"Yes, but how do you feel?"

"Bless God, I am not going by how I feel-I am going by what I believe-and I believe I am healed, in Jesus' Name."

"Yes, but that doesn't make sense."

"That's right; it is not sense, it's faith."

"Yes, but that's illogical."

"You're right again; it's not logic, it's faith."

"Yes, but I just don't understand that."

"I don't understand how it works either, but I believe it is true because God said it in His Word."

Listen friend, I don't understand how television works, but I believe if I turn it on, I can watch a movie. The fact that I don't understand how it works does not stop me from enjoying the benefits of watching my favorite TV programs in living color.

I don't understand how a gasoline engine works. I don't understand how it works inside without blowing up the whole thing. Instead of blowing up it pushes a piston down that drives a crank-shaft that turns a drive-shaft to the rear wheels that turns the wheels when you put it in gear that moves the car forward. I don't understand it, but I could care less-all I want to know is that when I turn that thing on and put it in gear, it is going and that is all that I'm concerned about. How about you?

I don't know how an airplane stays up in the sky, as big as a 747 is-that thing is gigantic. How does it stay up in the air? The good news is that I don't have to understand it to get on the plane and fly from Los Angeles to Hawaii or somewhere else. All I have to do is believe the plane can fly me there, get on board and go. After all, that is what you want anyway-the results-right?
Praise God! You don't have to do any more than believe that you receive your healing based on the Word of God and you shall have it!

Is healing for all? I believe that it is so. I believe that I can walk in divine health all the days of my life. I believe and confess that I will never be sick and I'm not being presumptuous. The Bible says in Psalm 91:1, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."

I believe I'm right in there under His right wing-right up under that wing. God Himself said in verse 10, "...No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling." Whose dwelling place is God talking about? My dwelling place because I am under His shadow of protection.

What is a plague? Isn't that sickness and disease? God said, ""...No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling." Well, I guess God lied. No, He is not a man that He should lie. He went on to say, in verse 16, "With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation." Praise God! Healing is for all.

Oh, that's not to say I'm not attacked. I'm attacked. The devil just sits like a blood hound-every morning I wake up he's sitting right on the foot of the bed. Sometimes he throws that dart the right way, but it doesn't stop me and it won't stop me because I'm being strong-not in Fred Price-but I'm being "strong in the Lord and in the power of His might."

WITHOUT FAITH

By:Milan Ford

The conversation began around 11:30pm. And it ended around 4:15am. I was sharing with my wife the other night how for the past few weeks, something rather unusual has been going on inside me. While I could not adequately describe to her what it was, I told her that it felt like it was a combination of extreme restlessness and interestingly enough, a sense of peace. And then, after hours of emotional rambling, I said these words to my wife: "I feel like I have gone as far as I can possibly go...WITHOUT FAITH."

I sincerely believe that where many of us are in life today is not actually a testament of our faith in God, but rather a testament of our individual skills and talents. And there (for many of us) lies the problem.

As believers, we tend to exercise our faith only in areas that we have seen God move before.But when it comes to the unknown, our faith remains still. Which as Hebrews 11:6 indicates, is not faith at all. "But without faith it is impossible to Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."

Sometimes I wonder if we find more security in knowing who we are or have been in times past, than we do in believing who God is. As we enter this final stretch of the year, many of us have come to the end of some rather long roads in our lives that now require faith to move forward.

As we examine our hearts and lives today, many of us must come to the realization that the skills and talents we so heavily relied on in the past can no longer move us forward. Neither can the resumes (and perhaps associations) we worked so hard to build.

What lies before many of us now is a faith in what seems to be impossible. A faith that fosters a sense of restlessness, yet at the same time, a sense of peace.

May you and I lean hard into that peace today.

HIS VISION, HIS WAY, IN HIS TIMING

TGIF Today God Is First
Volume 2, by Os Hillman10-27-2009

"Then God said, 'Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about'" (Gen 22:2).

Have you ever wanted something so bad that you would do almost anything to get it? Have you ever gotten so close to fulfilling a dream only to have it disappear right before your eyes? Such was the case for Abraham.

God promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations. He would have a son. However, Abraham panicked when Sarah aged beyond child bearing years and tried to help God by birthing Ishmael through Sarah's servant, who was not the promised son. Eventually, Isaac was born, who was the promised son.

However, God tells Abraham to sacrifice his only son on an altar to demonstrate his obedience to God. Truly, this is one of the hardest instructions given to one of God's people in all of scripture. It compares only to the Heavenly Father sacrificing His own Son. God intervenes and allows a ram to get caught in the bushes nearby, symbolizing the Lamb of God as a prophetic sign of what is to take place in the future.

God often births a vision in our lives only to allow it to die first before the purest version of the vision is manifested. This has happened several times in my own journey. Oswald Chambers observes, "God's method always seems to be vision first, and then reality, but in between the vision and the reality there is often a deep valley of humiliation. How often has a faithful soul been plunged into a like darkness when after the vision comes the test. When God gives a vision and darkness follows, waiting on God will bring you into accordance with the vision He has given if you await His timing. Otherwise, you try to do away with the supernatural in God's undertakings. Never try to help God fulfill His word."*

When God's vision is finally birthed, nothing will stop it. Our job is to allow God to birth His vision through us His way and in His timing.

FANTASY OR FAITH

By; Berni Dymet

Luke 22:42 "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done."

Can I ask you something? When is faith, faith and when is it fantasy? I mean I read my Bible. There's story after story in there about God doing miraculous things. And yet, I've seen people believe God for things and then fall flat on their faces.

I was intrigued by what a real estate agent, John, said to me the other night. He said, "You know, I think that real faith isn't presumptive." And he captured for me in just that one short sentence something that I'd suspected all along.

There's the "name it and claim it" school of faith. Anything I want. Anything. And then, there's the kind of faith that humbly bows down to God in the midst of the mighty storms of life; the faith that perseveres.

The faith that rejoices - believing that God knows what He's doing.The faith that only wants what God wants - not my will but let your will be done. And my hunch is that that's exactly the sort of faith that gets whatever it wants.