Category: Faith

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Conversation with God Discipleship Faith Hearing God Holy Spirit Prayer

Faith is Easy When

See Jesus, Have Faith in Him

Too often we are tempted and try to make up faith, we try to “have” faith. Without realizing it, that’s sort of like having faith in faith. Which is close, but still misses the mark. When I do this, I experience great frustration because I know at a deep level that this cannot work.

Faith comes from hearing the Word of God. When you pray or minister like Jesus, doing what you are shown or what you hear – good results come easily. Faith comes easily when we are doing what we hear or what we are shown by God.

When you are doing what God says to do, faith is easier.

Faith that is real and effective grows easily out of a revelation you personally receive from our Lord.

When we recognize the goodness and power of God, it’s easy to have faith in God.

When God says something, and you hear this, having faith is wonderfully easier.

Faith is important because of what faith does. What is it that faith does? Faith has the effect of connecting the Anointing with a need. A need for healing, restoration, or to defeat the works of the devil.

Laying hands on someone is not practical when that someone is out of reach, is far away. But faith connects. Even at a distance. Like when Jesus spoke a word for the healing of the centurion’s servant. The centurion’s faith connected the Anointing of Jesus the Anointed with his servant, who needed healing.

Faith connects. Fresh revelation from Jesus transcends time and space. And when faith comes easily from hearing Jesus in a personal and real way, faith connects the Anointing with the need.

This is one reason why faith is so important.

Another reason faith is so important is that it grows out of hearing directly from our Lord, Creator of our universe. Wow….

Dwell on this. Meditate on this. Let this sink in deeply, so that you hear it from Jesus, through Holy Spirit and hear this for yourself.

Then faith is easy.

Dwell…. Meditate…. Ask Jesus to give you a personal revelation.

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Anointing Faith Miracles

Faith Can Connect the Anointing to Needs and Miracles Happen

Faith can Connect Anointing to our Needs

Faith is often how the Anointing comes to touch our needs for restoration and healing.

Like when the hemorrhaging woman touched the hem of the clothes Jesus wore. She was totally determined, single-minded. Jesus said it was her faith that healed her.

When faith contacts the Anointing, miracles occur.

Faith can create a point of contact – a connection – between a need for healing or other restoration – and the Anointing. Prayer cloths, personal touch, contact with the hem of the garments of Jesus, great faith in a word or command with authority for healing – just a few kinds of examples.

Faith can provide a point of contact between a need and the Anointing, and a miracle can occur.

Simple. Do it today for yourself. Do it for another person, group of people or situation. Give thanks for God’s miracle.

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Angels Faith Glory Jesus

Gabriel and an Angel of the Lord Announced

Gabriel and an Angel of the Lord announced the birth of Jesus Christ.

Angels are messengers. Gabriel is an Archangel. An Angel of the Lord is a very special Angel representing God – who some believe actually is God.

Clearly these are very special messengers who announce the birth of Jesus Christ.

Common reactions to angels in scripture include great weakness, fear, and often an inclination to worship.

So to receive such announcements is no small thing. Angels make a strong impression and can even be terrifying to those who experience such messengers.

And to receive such a message from the Archangel Gabriel or an Angel of the Lord — must only multiply and make even much stronger an inclination to worship, to be filled with terror, or both.

Powerful messengers give powerful messages and powerful experiences.

Take a moment and imagine what it may be like to receive such a message. A message actually announcing the birth of Jesus Christ.

We’ve heard or read the story so many times that we probably have forgotten, even if we had some idea, forgotten what it must have been like to receive such a message.

And the message itself, delivered by angels: announcing the birth of the Savior of our world! To people who probably had heard prophecies of this, but who had not lived their whole lives like we have with this birth being an established fact.

Powerful messages, by powerful angels. The experience of a lifetime. Provoking awe, possibly fear, and probably a desire to worship.

The mere idea of this as I consider the importance and value of such an announcement brings tears to my eyes as I write this. No doubt a very weak reaction compared to the people who received such messages.

And only a hint of the glory of the delivery of such messages, as to the birth of Jesus Christ – the Savior or our world.

And for Gabriel, a high honor to give such a message. And for the Angel of the Lord — I cannot begin to understand what it was like for the Angel of the Lord to give such a message.

I do know this: considering what it may have been like to receive such a message, and considering what it may have been like to deliver such a message — deepens my appreciation for such events. And brings to me a bit more awe and a bit more sense of the holy, and the Holy One who is Jesus the Christ.

And I pray the same blessing for you. Take a moment to pause in the Presence of God, of Immanuel, God with us — and give thanks.

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Conversation with God Disciple Making Discipleship Evangelize Faith Friendship Getting Help Gospel Jesus Joy Kingdom of God Ministry Prayer

There are Multiple Biblical Ways to Salvation

John Benitez – Unsplash

Those of us who use even a somewhat Evangelical approach to salvation have a few prayers that we encourage so that someone can experience salvation.

The Bible takes a different approach. So much so that the most frequent method to attain salvation in the bible is one I’ve never seen or heard of being used with a potential convert. By hindsight, this is a bit astounding.

Yet in real life, it makes perfect sense. And the usual prayers are used for several good reasons.

It really is wise and good that we get to know more consciously about Jesus, and Jesus as our Lord. And that this be expressed clearly in our prayer.

So what is this most frequently mentioned method of achieving salvation in scriptures that is so unused for making converts? It’s actually a method frequently used by the rest of us.

A very common prayer, used by many of us when we need help, when we need and want to be saved. Just seldom used to help someone become a convert to Christianity.

What is this frequently used approach for getting help when most needed, but seldom if ever used to help someone become a convert?

It’s simply this: call on the name of the Lord and you will be saved.

Biblical theology is probably wider and more inclusive than our theologies. God is certainly more broad minded than we are.

And this illustrates very well how some things are taught about to us and for us in scripture from many angles, in many ways. And we tend to focus on one way, sometimes proof-texting, yet even so, we tend to focus on one very good way. But God and scriptures offers more options than we often think about and sometimes more options than we even normally trust or believe in.

Thank you, Lord, for being so broad minded, for thinking differently than we do, for being more loving and generous than we yet are able to grasp.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for giving us eternity to continue to get to know you and your love. We need you. And we need eternity to explore and learn about your love and your depth. Thank you, Lord!

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Disciple Making Evangelize Faith Jesus Preaching Kingdom of God Ministry

Jesus Never Said that He Came to Save You

In him was Life, and Life is the Light of men. (See John 1:4.)

Sometimes the assumptions built into our local traditions help us get things wrong.

Jesus repeatedly said that he came to give us Life. The Life of God (in New Testament Greek: Zoe). Nowhere in the New Testament does Jesus say his purpose was to come to get you into heaven.

He repeatedly said that he came to bring you Life, Zoe: the Life of God. Heaven is included.

He came to get Life into you: the Life of God. (Something the first Adam lost.) Relationship restored!

Jesus never said to make converts; he said to make disciples. (Converts are included in making disciples.)

He came so you can start helping to bring heaven to earth – now. Wow! You get to help bring heaven to earth.

Salvation is included, and you will go to heaven. And later in our New Heaven and New Earth, God will literally be our Light that we see by, in the Temple.

Help bring Heaven to earth: preach the Good News of the Kingdom. Heal the sick. Free the bound. Make disciples of all nations, all people groups.

Also, you get to pray for heaven on earth:

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6: 8-10, NKJV

So…my thesis here is that Jesus did not say he came here to get us into heaven, even though he does get us into heaven when we respond with faith. What he repeatedly said was that he came here to give us Life. The Life of God, in us, does result in heaven. And later, into the New Heaven and New Earth.

It’s like that he did not say we were to make converts. He said to make disciples – this should be our focus when evangelizing. Which will result in stronger and more effective Christians than by focusing on making converts. Let’s follow Jesus and do what Jesus said.

Let’s do and minister as Jesus showed, taught, and as he still says to us today in Scripture, with Holy Spirit. Doing as Jesus teaches is better than following local traditions.

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Discipleship, Getting Help Faith Holy Spirit HSP Prayer Spiritual Warfare

Clean & Space = Safe

Shower

You can, by faith, ask for and receive and thoroughly enjoy a Holy Spirit Shower. A shower not of water, but of Holy Spirit. Wonderfully cleansing – of anything that does not belong.

What does not belong might be something like a thought or feeling that you’ve kept too long or something you’ve picked up from something or someone else.

.

Next, take a few moments. Imagine yourself carefully putting on a space suit. Then,

Space Suit

You can, by faith, ask for and receive a Holy Spirit Space Suit. Wonderfully safe, your personal space and boundaries are amazingly and supernaturally protected.

Notice and enjoy how you are doing, how your experience is different. Enjoy, and praise your Lord.

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Conversation with God Discipleship, Getting Help Faith Father Healing Hearing God Holy Spirit Jesus Key Article Learning Prayer Spiritual Warfare Trinity

Praying for A_____ is Difficult, so….

Leap of Faith, K.B. Owen

This is from my Prayer Journal of today. I was having difficulty praying well for someone I know who needs our Lord’s help. And I was having difficulties, probably because a big part of me is aggravated. That’s not pretty, but it’s the truth. So here is what I wrote; I’ll call this person A______.

I find praying for A______ to be difficult.

So I look to Father, who already had a plan before the beginning, and who looks down on A_______ with immense love.

Then I look to Jesus, who as always is ready to heal.

Then I ask Holy Spirit to tell me how to pray for her. I am to pray with Father’s love and planning for good; pray with Jesus, who is always ready to heal and make whole. And I pray as Holy Spirit is leading me, now.

A______ has been restored and has received complete sozo. So this is how I pray.


Pray according to the nature of each Member of the Trinity, my deepest community and my most real family – who teaches me, mercifully, about how to have more and better faith.

And forgiveness, my ability to forgive and to have forgiven, was included as a free extra – pure grace!

The Trinity is my real family of faith. What a gift!

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Faith Hearing God Jesus Key Article Ministry Miracles

Faith is Easy, When —

Faith is easy when we hear and rely on a word from God. Faith comes to us by hearing, and what we hear that gives faith is a Word from God.

We hear the Word. We hear Jesus, the creator of heaven and earth.

So…you understand, in a general way, that God does certain things and wants certain things to happen, like the destruction of the works of the devil. Such as Restoration, Salvo – including healing and freedom from unclean spirits (such things are what Jesus came for).

But without a personal Word from God that you hear personally, it is hard to have faith; likely impossible – otherwise we are trying to have faith in our thoughts or even worse, faith in our faith. Which I can tell you by too much disappointing experience – is not only extremely hard, it does not work.

But faith in what you hear from Jesus, the Word of God that created since the beginning before time and light, such faith works. And as long as you are experientially in touch, in contact, with that Word, faith is relatively easy and God’s inspiration always makes it easier.

So…how do you get such faith when you do not yet have it? Hear from God.

How to hear from God in such a personal way when you have not yet personally heard from God? It’s simple. Even easy. ASK.

Ask Jesus. (you are first having faith in Jesus.)

Pause, listen, receive and hear; and let faith blossom. (You are receiving a Word from Jesus. Have faith in that Word. Act – receive and take action to receive and have or experience what you have asked for. Taking action is not only part of the process Jesus repeatedly promised, it’s an outcome of and a result of your faith.)

So when you know something is wanted or promised in scripture, by God, and you have not heard in a personal way that gives you personal revelation and insight, ASK.

Ask, receive, knock – take appropriate next step action.

If you want a baby, maybe get a crib. At least buy diapers. Start getting ready to have what you have asked for and what Jesus gives you a personal, inspiring, revelatory message for: have faith.

If you want to heal someone, ask Jesus – how do I pray. Notice what you experience next, and pray – doing that. Until healing is completely and thoroughly enforced, the prayer results have shown up. (Ask – Jesus. Receive – guidance about how to pray. Act [action is like knocking on a door] to open up what you are having faith for – open that door for Jesus. Jesus makes it easy.)

Faith is easy. Ask Jesus. Listen – receive. Knock – act on your faith.

Faith is easy when done right. The Word makes such faith possible. Grab onto it!

And do not proceed on your own ideas about how to do something without faith or guidance from God. Sarah tried that, and the results have been not only the birth of a difficult child, but the birth of a people-group that have been in conflict with Israel ever since.

Faith is easy. Ask, Receive, and Act (like knocking on a door) – to be ready to have what you have asked for.

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Create Discipleship Faith Getting Help Hearing God Holy Spirit Intercession Joy Prayer Purpose

Intention & Intuition

Intuition reveals what or how, intention helps you accomplish your target

Here’s an interesting and fun way to look at Intention & Intuition.

From the point of view of how we humans experience things, intention and intuition are the same thing, but going in different directions. Let me explain. And try to put this into words.

Especially when experienced as the Still Small Voice of God, we experience deep intuition as something that comes into us from outside. We receive it on the inside, but it doesn’t really come from us.

We experience intention as something inside us with which we want to use to change the world outside of us.

Intuition comes from outside of us into the deep center of us, often transforming us. Intention goes out through our deep center into the world outside of us, changing the world.

(I’m trying to put into words things that are far deeper than words. Not everyone will describe these experiences the same way.)

Intuition is heard or experienced through our Still Center, a place of stillness that feels like the very center of our being. This is where we experience the Small Still Voice of God. We experience intuition as coming from outside of us into the inside.

Intention is felt or experienced through our Still Center, as something that is already inside of us and with which we intend to affect the universe outside of us. We experience intention ad coming from the inside of us and going out into the world.

It’s an odd and unusual thought, but intuition and intention have far more in common than has been recognized. They might even be the same thing, just coming from and going to opposite directions.

In terms of how humans experience two-way conversation with God, intuition is vital for hearing from God. Praying in the Spirit may be related to intention. I have often prayed with intention, especially after hearing from God.

Hearing from God and praying to God seems very much related to intuition and intention, at least sometimes.

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Discipleship Discipleship, Getting Help Faith Worship

Rest, Resting – Made Easy

Rest in in the Arms of Jesus

The art of resting in Jesus is important and appealing; yet some of us find this harder to do than expected.

We are so used to doing things, being active, being busy – the reality of just resting in Jesus Christ is hard for many of us. Some of us wonder, “What are we supposed to do while resting?”

And it can a jolt when you suddenly shift or transform your way of being.

Yet worship is simple. Awe quiets us down automatically.

And there is a simple solution that Jesus gives us; it’s easy to do and powerfully effective. Based on Matthew 11:29:

NASB: “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.”

Choose: decide to be gentle. Humble of heart. Doing this is wonderfully easy and simple. Very quieting. Don’t let pride get in the way. Give up the burden. And find rest for your soul.

Yoke with Jesus, who is stronger and who can carry more – let him help you carry your burden. This is a relationship, not a problem.

This sounds simple – yet this is powerful and effective. Act on this and do it. If you need help to do this, just sincerely ask Holy Spirit, your Helper, to help you. Please!