Recovery

On August 22, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 35: 26 – 28          NIV

May all who gloat over my distress be put to shame and confusion; may all who exalt themselves over me be clothed with shame and disgrace. May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, “The Lord be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.” My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long.

It has taken three days to share with you the insight and emotional outpouring of David which is found in the 35th Psalm. I wanted to give you this psalm because I know that we all have been in David’s shoes emotionally.

One of the key points we can glean from this passage is that David knew his Bible. In this passage he essentially prayed Genesis 12: 3 which reads, “I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse.” It is always wise to pray the promises God has already given us. Where there is a passage which relates to our circumstance then we already know God’s will. In this case, all we have to do is line up our prayer with the promise God has already given.

The other point which I think is key is to notice how David ends this Psalm. He was certainly in great distress and poured out his heart to God but when he gets to the end he has reached the point of declaring God’s greatness. That is one of the keys to David’s success and to his great relationship with God. There are other psalms wherein David begins with a recitation of his troubles but always at the end he has laid his problem at the throne of God and taken up his instrument to sing praises to the Most High. This is a very valuable lesson. It is acceptable to lament your woes. It is okay to tell God your troubles and your feelings, but do not end your conversation there. Keep communicating with God until you reach the praise and thanksgiving stage. Keep praying until your trust in His saving grace has returned to you. Remember too, that our New Testament instruction from Jesus is to pray for our tormentors. Their actions will return to them because of the bad seed they have sown. However, we now have the power and authority to even save them from themselves because in Jesus we can pray for their healing and a reversal of their fortunes. It certainly is not the easiest thing in the world to do but we have Jesus, and in him all things are possible, even praying for our enemies.

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Dr. Yahweh

On July 19, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Jeremiah 30: 17

For I will restore you to health and I will heal you of your wounds, declares the Lord.

It is never too late to walk in the healing that the Lord has prepared for you. It is certainly never too late to start declaring that your God, your Father, is a God of healing and health. In these times it seems there is some catastrophic illness around every corner. Every winter it seems that there is a new flu that threatens to decimate the human population. In these times, know that our God is a God who heals and who provides health. Even once you have become sick or injured, He is still on the job to heal you. He is a God of restoration. He can take what is broken and mend it. He can restore the diseased and infirm to wholeness. That is the essence of what He has for us, wholeness. He wants to put you into a place where no sickness, disease or lack of any kind is permitted to deprive you. And do not forget that He heals wounds as well as curing sickness. He heals all wounds, even emotional ones. He will remove the scars from you and restore you to the condition that you enjoyed prior to the injury.

For your part, you must first believe that He is a God who heals. Then you invite him to be the Lord over your physical and emotional health. Give to him all the damage in your body and soul. Pray asking Him to heal all of the injured parts of your body and life. If you will let him, he really will meet you at your point of need. He is love and He loves you dearly. He wants to help you with the problems that vex you. Expect Him to do just that and leave the door open for Him to heal you.

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Healed to Help

On June 27, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 5: 44                         (King James Version)

But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. 

These are the words of Jesus from early in his ministry. We see him taking his own advice at the cross when he prayed to his father from the cross to forgive those who crucified him. Jesus knew something that we are hopefully all learning. When people act out, they are really revealing their own brokenness. When we are healed and walking in our office and authority, then these people’s offenses become an opportunity for ministry rather than a time for us to be offended. I am learning that people can do things that are prime stimuli for me to lose my peace but that it is really my decision to allow them to steal my peace or not. The stronger and more complete my healing, the less their stuff gets on me and the less it offends me. You begin to see that the people who strike out at you or attempt to hurt you are really only exhibiting their own emotional damage. As God heals their wounds, they will not feel the need to strike out at others or hurt others. Their language will correct itself and they will be able to become others centered instead of being so selfish and self-centered. We can help these people. First, physician, heal thyself. Allow God to do a work in you so that you are not susceptible to other people’s problems. Then, learn to sincerely pray for these people. Help them. Also, as you grow and people do not so easily offend you, when someone does something that once had the power to upset you, you will find that you can meet them at their point of need right then and there and minister to their need.
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Knowing Truth

On August 28, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 11: 35

Jesus wept.

No, I didn’t leave anything out above. That is the entire thirty-fifth verse of John 11. Is anyone other than me surprised? There is no possibility of misinterpretation of this verse; there is no gray area. It’s simple. Jesus was a man who wept; a man who was comfortable in his skin; a man who knew how to express honest emotion.

If you have not read You Are the Placebo by Dr. Joe Dispenza, let me recommend it to you. Within its pages you will learn about the most revealing and amazing biology and neurobiology discoveries of our times. Scientists are uncovering the hidden secrets of human function. They are also discovering that we can determine these outcomes. Our thoughts and emotions play a key role in this self-determination. In the foreword Dr. Dawson Church writes, “Joe is one of the few science writers to fully grasp the role of emotion in transformation” and that you can “heal yourself by simply translating thought into emotion.”

There is a reason God gave us emotional capacity. The expression of legitimate emotions is a critical, if misunderstood, feature of a healthy body and mind. None the less, we are increasingly becoming people of limited emotional content much less emotional expression. Whole countries have adopted a stoic persona. Men are frequently heard to say they are not supposed to show emotion and women have become victims of the same bad teachings. It has become a universal problem. We are living a lie. Our emotional lives are one big, fat lie.

I remember making a decision at age three that crying was “bad” and that I was not going to do it. Bit by bit I anesthetized my heart so that I wouldn’t feel. If I couldn’t feel, then I couldn’t hurt. If I didn’t hurt, I wouldn’t cry. People actually taught their sons not to cry. Then these sons married and their wives were constantly disappointed in the lack of emotional connection they shared with their husbands. These same emotionally bereft humanoids created the world of commerce. Then when woman began entering the business world they were increasingly trained to check their emotions at the door. We didn’t create robots. We became them.

If we would tell the truth, though, not all emotions are banned. The expression of anger is very much in vogue. So, we channeled all of our emotions into expressions of anger. Are you tired, sad, frustrated, intimidated, worried? Then throw a fiery fit in order to release those pent up emotions. Yell, scream, cuss! That is the only viable way to release all of the energy those emotions are bringing to you. You see, the truth is, it is only the tender emotions that we have banned. We’ve made it all but impossible to express gentleness, kindness, empathy, love, concern, caring and all the rest.

And while we are telling each other the truth, let us consider sports. We confess that we are not emotional and yet, has anyone watched a soccer match or a US pro football game? Are you going to try to convince me that the spectators are unemotional and cannot express emotion? Really? Perhaps, though, the fact that people can go to a sporting event and emote all over the place explains their popularity. The arts are dying in this country but sports are ever on the rise. Why?

For my part, I am tired of hearing people confess that they are unemotional or can’t express their emotions. That is a lie right out of the pit of hell and if that is your confession my advice is to revise your confession. Why would you continue to confess something that is in direct violation to the person of Jesus Christ?

In my studies I learned that each time we cry the biochemical make-up of our tears is different. The chemical make-up of our tears is bioengineered by our bodies to counteract the chemicals being released into our body. So, the release of tears, crying, is good for your body as well as your heart. It is detoxifying. God knew exactly what He was doing when He created us.

Let’s get a revelation folks. We’ve been played. Our emotions are God given and God inspired. And here is one other little insight; you are going to have a real difficult time getting close to the Father without a healthy set of emotions because He is one emotional dude. He wants to live in your heart and emotions. If you turn them off where does He go?  

There is help, though. When you truly and honestly open your entire heart to God and quit holding onto the lie, He moves right in and brings healing with Him. He will touch you in the tenderest of ways. Don’t be afraid. You are completely safe and He will give you such security and comfort. You were never made to be strong. You were made in tenderness. Take some time alone with Dad and let Him remove the calluses and fill you with love. It is a great way to live!

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Fill the Tank

On August 11, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 5: 19

Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.”

Yesterday we read 1 Corinthians 13: 3 – 7 which is commonly known as the love chapter. The Message version certainly brought out some interesting and key highlights. It put the passage into plain language for us which makes the scripture very easy for us to understand and relate to. It also makes it difficult for us to ignore though. We cannot intellectually duck below the radar, avoiding those challenging sections.

In yesterday’s Word of the Day I encouraged you to live according to 1 Corinthians 13. It was a bit unfair of me to implore you to do something without giving you the “How To” instructions so today I am going to give you the secret to living in love exactly the way Jesus did.

Some of you, when you read yesterday’s Word of the Day, made a commitment to live the love walk. You made a decision to adopt 1 Corinthians 13 as your lifestyle. Let me tell you though, this is not something you can accomplish by an act of your will. It is too big and we are not strong enough in ourselves for such a herculean effort but I do admire you greatly for you commitment to the Father.

Truly there is only one way to live the love commandment. So here is the big reveal. If you take this one big secret and integrate it into your life you will have the keys to The Kingdom. Okay – the secret is that you must receive the love of God. God is love (1 John 4: 8). In order to live love you must receive love. How can we say we have received God if we have not received love?  The two are inseparable.

May I be honest with you a moment? I see so many Christians whose life is far from characterized by love. You can see the hurt in them. And subsequently, hurt is all they have to share. Whatever you have within you is what you will communicate to others. We dedicate our lives to God. We do service to Him or for Him but far too few of us ever allow God to actually penetrate our beings; too few bare their hearts to the Father and allow Him to move in and set up house. Even those of us who allow God in don’t let Him arrange the furniture or mend the drapes. We keep Him as a guest and sequester Him to certain rooms. This is not a criticism. It is simply experience. It is the experience of a great number of Christians. So we try to live the love commandment but we don’t have the love to give. We have not received it so we cannot give it.

Look at your life and ask this question, “Would those around me say that I demonstrate the love of God?” Don’t entertain your own opinion because it is likely skewed. Would your children say that above all else you are a lover? What about your spouse? Now, don’t condemn yourself if the honest answer is that you are not expressing the level of love that you imagine God wants for you. I suspect for most of us that will be the response. The solution, though, is not to re-dedicate yourself to the love commandment. The real answer is to humble yourself before the Father and ask Him to fill you with His love. Ask Him to touch the broken places and minister His healing. Then tomorrow, you can do the same thing. This is a journey rather than a onetime experience. We heal in bits, we receive the fullness of God’s love in doses. Fill up as much as you can today and then receive more tomorrow. There is no end to the vastness of the Father’s love.

If you wish to walk in the earth as Jesus did then you must use his formula. He received everything from the Father and then gave it away. We can walk as Jesus walked but only if we have the same power at work within us. That power is the love of the Father. Fill up you tank today.

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The Healing Touch

On November 17, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Jeremiah 30:17

For I will restore you to health and I will heal you of your wounds.

I am sure you have had an itch that you could not reach. Usually it’s right in the middle of your back. If you are lucky you can find someone who will scratch it for you. I want you to imagine that instead of it being an itch though, it is a wound. If it hurts a great deal you may find that you don’t want anyone to touch it, even a healer. This is the way we are with God. Although He has healing in His wings, many times we won’t let Him touch the spot that hurts.

Deep inside us are places that we cannot reach but we refuse to allow anyone else to touch either even if they mean to minister healing to them. We are afraid of receiving more pain. We need to address this dynamic and allow the great healer to touch us.

First of all, if we are afraid then fear is the first obstacle and it is usually the greatest hurdle we must overcome. Fear is not from God. All fear is from the pit of hell. Fear is not the same as wise caution. It you balk at doing something stupid because it may end in injury I would say that is wisdom. Fear of allowing God to minister to you can only be from the devil. That makes sense, right? So we must not allow fear to rule our lives. We are afraid of pain but healing pain is transitory. It is very short lived while leaving the infected area untreated will result in greater and greater sickness and pain. When this wound is in our flesh we ultimately come to these conclusions and seek out help. It is when the pain is in our hearts that we close up like a clam and we do not even allow the light of blessed Jesus to shine in those dark recesses.

Imagine with me again, if you will. Picture an infected wound inside your spirit, inside your heart. Is your instinct to hide it away and pretend it is not there? For many of us that is the first response but God has made us thinking spirits. We do not operate by instinct but by the grace of God. Therefore, we may engage a higher faculty. We have minds that have been anointed by Christ himself who gives us his thoughts and his wisdom. We have glorious spirits where the Holy Spirit himself resides. We can rise above animalistic instinct and engage in holy dialogue with the healer.

Believe me in this, trust me; his touch is tender. I have had doctors root around in physical injuries, I had one doctor hand me a bullet to bite on, I know about pain. I also have been touched by Jesus and it is not the same at all. He is gentle and kind. There are few people walking around without some sort of wound, we are the walking wounded and just because we can function does not mean we are whole. Jesus came to give us the abundant life that he and his father live; he came to give us his life (John 10: 10). He wants to lead us all into a glorious existence where our needs are met, our bodies are healed and we have rewarding relationships. He wants to give you everything you have ever wanted but he needs you to let him in. He can heal all of the broken places even the places you are afraid to look at. His healing is complete but you have to give him access. Won’t you spend some quiet time with Him and talk to Him about this. I know this is a big reason why you have a hard time spending quality quiet time with Him. You are afraid He will begin to talk to you about your brokenness but if you will allow Him He will make it all better. Give Him a chance. Let Him be your healer. It will be okay. I promise.

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Made Strong

On August 19, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 105: 37

Then He brought them out with silver and gold; and among His tribes there was not one who stumbled.

I recently heard Pastor Joseph Prince teaching on communion. It is a brilliant teaching. The part that made the greatest impact on me was when he spoke about the Hebrew children leaving Egypt in the great exodus. He used today’s scripture in his message. The Amplified version says that there was not one feeble among their tribes. Prince ascribed that miracle to the immediate previous actions of the Israelites. They had just partaken of Passover. The people took unblemished lambs; slew them and used the blood to mark the entrance to their homes. Then they ate the meat of the lamb. You can see there the communion message because in our communion we partake of the body of the perfect lamb as represented by the bread. Since Jesus took all disease and physical ailment in his body we are able to live free of sickness and disease. The Passover looked forward to the slaying of the perfect lamb while our communion looks back to the sacrifice of our Lord. In both instances our sickness was born in his stripes (see Isaiah 53: 4 – 5, 1 Peter 2: 24).  

Joseph Prince’s teaching taught about the power in communion when you understand it and it is not merely a ritual. If it is done apart from faith, then it is meaningless. When, however, you mix your faith with the giving and receiving of the body of Christ then the miraculous can truly happen. That is what the bread is. It represents the body of Christ Jesus which was broken for us. Referring back to the fact that no one among the Israelites was feeble, Prince said that the partaking of Jesus makes you strong. If, therefore, you need healing in your body, it can be found in the broken body of Jesus, so receive the communion bread in faith expecting the healing power of Jesus to touch your body.

As I wrote earlier, I think it is a brilliant teaching but I am really trying to arrive at a different message by using Joseph Prince’s message as the foundation. When I heard him say that partaking of Jesus makes you strong my mind left the thoughts of the body of Christ which was broken for our healing and went to inner healing and inner strength. Partaking of the body makes your body strong but also partaking of the Spirit of Jesus and the Words of Jesus makes your inner person strong. 

Most of us have scars and injuries in the inner person and those injuries make us weak. They make us dance to other people’s tunes rather than living in true freedom. They incapacitate us and they steal life from us. However, if we will fill ourselves with Jesus we will be healed in the innermost parts and we will become strong. You can have everything you want if you will receive Jesus’ healing. It takes some courage perhaps. Too many of us are afraid to feel and afraid to make ourselves vulnerable even to the Lord. If you will let him, though, Jesus will make you strong in your body, mind and emotions. Of what are you afraid? Let him touch your heart. Partake of his spirit and his word and you shall be made strong. Of you it will be said, “Not one among them was found to be feeble.”

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