Which job should you take?
Should you buy this car or that truck? Should you move? Is it time to open your business? Should you move into full-time ministry? Is it time to step away from something? All of us face decisions on a regular basis—some big, some small. But we all want to make the right decisions! And we can. However, we must guard against trying to find the answers we need through natural means. This often leads to overthinking, which comes from fear—fear of making a wrong decision. That’s why some decisions seem to torment people—fear is tormentor. But 1 Corinthians 14:33 (KJV) tells us that “God is not the author of confusion.” God has given us everything we need to make decisions with confidence. Here, we’re sharing how to know the answer to any question. 1. Seek the Wisdom of God “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” –Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV) Some people say a prayer about their situation and then immediately jump on the internet looking for natural, logical answers to their question or problem. They allow fear of making a wrong decision get in the way of receiving the wisdom of God. This may seem obvious, but when you put yourself into a position where the wisdom of the world is competing with the wisdom of God, you’ll end up in a state of confusion. There are several ways to seek the wisdom of God. One is praying in the spirit, which is God’s way of getting inside information to you. It is an important tool you can use to pray out mysteries and receive divine revelation. Another is reading the Word of God and expecting the Holy Spirit to illuminate scripture relative to your situation. Finally, Proverbs 15:22 (NIV) says, “Plans fail for lack of counsel” and Proverbs 20:18 (NCB) says, “Plans will succeed when good advice is accepted.” God can and will speak through others. It is wise to seek counsel from those who operate in faith and wisdom, and who are not intimately connected with the decision you need to make. 2. Take Time To Fast “Then [when you have fasted] your light will break out like the dawn, and you will be healed quickly.” –Isaiah 58:8 (CEB) Fasting subdues your flesh and clears away the natural thoughts and fears that can cloud your judgment. It opens your spiritual ears to receive. When you fast, expect to hear from God—expect revelation from Him. As you do this, remember that fasting is laying things aside just to be with God. 3. Seek in the Right Places “If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.”—Jeremiah 29:13 Sometimes, Christians expect an answer to come a certain way—so they wait and wait. They want the exact words to drop down into their spirits, like it did the last time, or a door to open in just the same way. But God doesn’t deal with us the same way over and over. That’s why it is so important that we are tuned in to His still, small voice and quick to yield to the inward witness. Bill Johnson once described the way God deals with us in an easily relatable illustration. He recalled how, when it came to Easter-egg hunts, when his children were young, he would hide the eggs in very obvious places—right out in the open so they could find them. But as they got older, he made it much more challenging. He met them at their level of maturity and capability. He expected more. If you’re a mature believer and you’re looking for the answer to your question in the open, you’re missing it. You’ve outgrown the easy answers. Your seeking may need to mature, and the answers may not come as expected, but God isn’t hiding anything from you. You just need to learn to seek in the right places. Our limited thinking when seeking an answer from God can also be likened to the story of the man trapped on a roof during a flood. He had prayed and asked God to rescue him. Soon, a rowboat came by and offered him a ride. But he said, “No, I’m waiting for God to save me.” Then, the Coast Guard came and offered to rescue him. Again, he said, “No, God will save me.” Finally, a helicopter came and lowered a rope to bring him to safety, and again, he declined as he waited for God to show up with his answer. As the story goes, the floodwaters overtook him, and he met God in heaven where he asked, “God, why didn’t You save me?” And God said, “I sent you a rowboat, a rescue boat and a helicopter.” Don’t be so convinced about how God will send the answer that you miss it altogether. 4. Listen To Your Inward Witness “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” –Romans 8:14 (KJV) Your inward witness is one of the most powerful tools you have to find the answer to any question. If you spend regular time in the Word and in prayer, you will hear from God regarding your situation when you are intentional about listening. That’s why Kenneth E. Hagin said, “The No. 1 way that God guides and directs His children is through the inward witness.” The inward witness is what gives you peace in your spirit regarding your decision. It will pull you in one direction or another according to the leading of the Holy Spirit. And it will sometimes go against what you thought, with your natural mind, the answer would be—which is why listening is so important! This is a truth that a man from Texas knew well. Though he had only a fifth grade education and had come from a life of poverty, his ability to listen to the inward witness led him to become a multimillionaire through investments. Here is how he described the process of seeking God for the answer to any question: “When someone comes along with an idea for an investment, I don’t allow myself to think about it mentally. Instead, I go into my closet and pray. I wait as long as it takes until I hear something. Sometimes, it can take as long as three days. I come out for some meals and a little sleep, but mainly, I remain quiet and alone with the Lord until I know by an inward witness what I am to do.” God wants us to be led by His Spirit and know the answer to any question. And, as Kenneth Hagin said, “God has a better way than a hit-and-miss system.” When you learn how to know the answer to any question, you will never fear making the wrong decision again! Whatever answer you need today, God is waiting to get the answer to you. There is an answer for every situation—now go find it! Watch Kenneth Copeland and Greg Stephens talk about how divine direction comes from your covenant connection!
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WEEK 2
Jesus said, “am the GOOD SHEPHERD! Look at Luke 18:19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. Jesus is talking about absolute GOOD. God is absolute Light. In Him is no darkness at all. The Bible is saying about our Father is that He absolutely God. He is absolute truth. In Him there is absolutely no bad. He is absolutely love and He loves you and me absolutely! Psalm 145:8-9 AMPC says, The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works. [the entirety of things created. Look at Psalm 145:16AMPC You open Your hand and satisfy every living thing with favor. Our GOOD GOD is not tightfisted. His hands are always open. He’s the Great Giver! He so loved the world that He gave His very best – JESUS! Verse 19 says, He will fulfill the desires of those who reverently and worshipfully fear Him; He also will hear their cry and will save them. What then does all this mean to you and me as new covenant believers? The message that Peter preached in Acts 10:38 was: How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. Jesus, God manifested in the flesh, went about doing GOOD and healing. FOR GOD (who is GOOD) was with HIM!” GOD (who is GOOD) anointed Jesus. God (who is GOOD) wants you well. The Apostle John said it like this in 3 John 2AMPC Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers. Isn’t that GOOD? WEEK 1
GOD IS A GOOD GOD It doesn’t matter what any one says about God. It’s what the Bible says that counts. In all of Creation: (Genesis 1:3-31) Genesis 1:3-4; Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God SAID IT. He SAW IT. It was GOOD Also in verses 10; 12; 18; 21; 25. Then In Genesis 1:31 And Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. One thing WAS NOT GOOD. Genesis 2:18 And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” Genesis 2:21-22 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. Our Wonderful and Good God has never, ever created anything that was bad. You might ask. “How about the devil?” He wasn’t always bad. The prophet Ezekiel said by the Spirit of God, in Ezekiel 28:15 Let’s read the verses leading up to verse 15. Starting with: 11 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes Was prepared for you on the day you were created. 14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; you were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. 15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created. Till iniquity was found in you. This perfect creation was in EDEN, the Garden of God. His name was not satan. His name was Lucifer, or Day Star. Isaiah saw it all in Isaiah 14:12-15. The Fall of Lucifer 12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! 13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ 15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. Jesus said in John 10:10-11(AMPC) The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows) 11 I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd risks and lays down His [own] life for the sheep. WEEK 4
Truth #4: You must forgive. Because faith works by love, if we don’t obey the command to forgive, verses 22 through 24 won’t work for us. So, before we finish the prayer of faith we must forgive (not two months later after we’ve worked through our emotions, but immediately, while we stand praying). We must do it on purpose as an act of our will, not because we feel like it but because Jesus told us to do it. We don’t need any other reason than that. Then immediately receive your own forgiveness which is included in verse 25. If you have unforgiveness in your life, deal with it! Call it what it is. Don’t tell the Lord you have a problem with some hurt feelings. Acknowledge it as the sin of unforgiveness. Then go to 1 John 1:9, confess it, repent of it, spew it out of your life and get rid of it. Start today putting these truths into practice. Then you can step out in faith with boldness on Mark 11:22-24, say to the mountain that’s been standing in your way, “May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,” and that mountain will respond to you just like it would to Jesus. © 1997 – 2021 Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. Aka Kenneth Copeland Ministries. All Rights Reserved. Category: FaithBuilders WEEK 3
Truth #3: You must speak the Word. According to Jesus, we take thoughts not just by thinking them but by saying them (Matthew 6:31). God’s thoughts are expressed in His Word, so we take His thoughts by putting His faith-generating Word into our mouths, feeding it back into our spirits, then bringing it back out of our mouths again. That’s the process we use to renew our minds. We choose the Word then decide to think it. We think the Word, then say it. Think it, then say it. Think it, then say it…until eventually we’re speaking that Word without even thinking about it. When that happens, the Word is in our hearts in abundance (Luke 6:45) and we’re ready to speak to the mountain. We’re ready to say, “Be removed and cast into the sea!” “Brother Copeland, why do I have to command the mountain to be cast into the sea?” you might ask, “That doesn’t make sense to me.” It doesn’t matter whether it makes sense to you or not. It’s not supposed to make sense—it makes faith. You’re using God’s faith and following Jesus’ example. Those are the words He used, and when you use His words, He backs them with His own power. WEEK 2
Truth #2: Don’t confuse enthusiasm with faith. Don’t just fly off the handle and start shouting scriptures at the mountain in your life as if by sheer volume and repetition you can make those scriptures come to pass. Mountains aren’t impressed by how many times you can holler Bible verses at them. They cannot be blown away by your much speaking. That’s not the way the command of faith works. Jesus spoke to the fig tree in Mark 11 just once and it withered away within 24 hours, because when He spoke to it, He believed what He said would come to pass. Speak to the mountains in your life when you know you can do it with unwavering faith. Take time to meditate on the Word God has quickened to you. Settle in your heart what He has said about the situation. Fellowship with the Lord over the Scriptures and strengthen your spirit and your mind with them. That’s what Jesus did the night before He cursed the fig tree and drove the money-changers out of the temple. He spent the night in the Word and in fellowship with His Father, getting God’s wisdom and strengthening His spirit. As a result, the next day He was ready to operate in faith. Kenneth Copeland WEEK 1 If you’ve been around faith teaching at all, you know what Jesus said in Mark 11:22-24—and you know it well. You’ve read it many times. You’ve heard sermons about it. You may even be able to quote by heart Jesus’ earthshaking, mountain-moving words: Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Those powerful words are foundational to the life of faith. But many believers forget that those verses do not stand alone. Mark 11 doesn’t begin with verse 22 and end with verse 24. All too often, we read verses 22 through 24 as if Jesus just rattled them off out of the blue. But that’s not what happened. He set an example that, if we’ll pay proper attention to it, will enable us to get the same results with our faith that He got with His. Below are four truths we can learn in this passage—the whole passage. These truths can make the difference between our faith working or not. These four truths will make or break our faith. They can make the difference between us getting our financial breakthrough, our manifested healing, our restored relationships and our divine direction Truth #1: We must go to the Word for direction Jesus had to receive direction the same way you and I do. He had to go to the Word of God which says that wisdom is the principal thing (Proverbs 4:7) and believe for it. Then, once He knew what He was supposed to do, He headed back to the Temple to clean house.
If we want to operate in faith like Jesus did, it’s important for us to realize Jesus had to pray and receive the wisdom of God before He operated in faith. And if He had to do that, so do we. We can’t just jump up with no preparation and start commanding mountains to be removed and get results. We can’t just pile up the problems that have been dogging us and, without praying and seeking God’s counsel, blast the whole mess out of our lives at once. Instead, we have to press in to the Lord in prayer and in the Word and say, “Lord, open the eyes of my understanding where this is concerned. Give me Your wisdom.” If you’ll pray that prayer in faith without wavering, James 1:5 says God will give you His wisdom liberally. He’ll deal with you in grace, and great mercy. So as soon as you ask, you can start rejoicing and say, “The wisdom of God is mine! He is revealing to me what I need to know to cast this mountain into the sea!” Many people are facing overwhelming financial and provisional challenges. Most often, they approach their problems from a purely natural standpoint. Here’s how it usually goes:
They look at their paycheck. Then they look at their need. Impossible! They look at their paycheck. And then they look back at their need. Still impossible! The more people engage in that vicious cycle, the more discouraged they become. That exercise in futility is usually followed by a series of questions. How are we ever going to pay for this? Where will the money come from? What are we going to do? Then comes the “bright idea” phase of the cycle: What family member will loan us the money? Where can we get another job? Have we maxed out our credit cards? This madness must stop, right now! We must get our eyes off our limited resources and refocus them on the real Source of our unlimited supply: ALMIGHTY GOD AND HIS WORD. Make these words personal to you as you read them - as if God is speaking directly to you. Don’t look to the government for your supply. Don’t look to other people for your supply. Pastors, don’t look to your congregation for your supply. Jesus is our Source and The Word is our supply. Here is the exciting part: We are not required to meet our own needs because God wants to do that for us! Isn’t that good news? It will take a commitment of time to renew your mind to the fact that GOD is your TOTAL SOURCE OF SUPPLY, but you can do it! We are going to give you your supply, the Word of God, Who is your Source. INSTRUCTIONS for best results; Read them several times a day. SAY THEM and WRITE THEM, until you become fully persuaded that God is your Source in every situation. Read them OUT LOUD to yourself, to your family. Start your own journal and continue to watch God work for you and through you. The more you do it, the stronger your faith will become. Before you begin your challenge, pray this prayer: Father, these Scriptures are alive and active and full of power. I believe the Word of God is renewing my mind and feeding my faith. I see You as THE Source of my supply. I believe that every need I have is completely met, every outstanding bill is paid in full, every debt is totally removed, and I am financially liberated. I have so much left over that I am able to bless others. Thank You for demonstrating provisional miracles in my life. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen, so be it! Many people are facing overwhelming financial and provisional challenges. Most often, they approach their problems from a purely natural standpoint. Here’s how it usually goes:
They look at their paycheck. Then they look at their need. Impossible! They look at their paycheck. And then they look back at their need. Still impossible! The more people engage in that vicious cycle, the more discouraged they become. That exercise in futility is usually followed by a series of questions. How are we ever going to pay for this? Where will the money come from? What are we going to do? Then comes the “bright idea” phase of the cycle: What family member will loan us the money? Where can we get another job? Have we maxed out our credit cards? This madness must stop, right now! We must get our eyes off our limited resources and refocus them on the real Source of our unlimited supply: ALMIGHTY GOD AND HIS WORD. Make these words personal to you as you read them - as if God is speaking directly to you. Don’t look to the government for your supply. Don’t look to other people for your supply. Pastors, don’t look to your congregation for your supply. Jesus is our Source and The Word is our supply. Here is the exciting part: We are not required to meet our own needs because God wants to do that for us! Isn’t that good news? It will take a commitment of time to renew your mind to the fact that GOD is your TOTAL SOURCE OF SUPPLY, but you can do it! We are going to give you your supply, the Word of God, Who is your Source. INSTRUCTIONS for best results; Read them several times a day. SAY THEM and WRITE THEM, until you become fully persuaded that God is your Source in every situation. Read them OUT LOUD to yourself, to your family. Start your own journal and continue to watch God work for you and through you. The more you do it, the stronger your faith will become. Before you begin your challenge, pray this prayer: Father, these Scriptures are alive and active and full of power. I believe the Word of God is renewing my mind and feeding my faith. I see You as THE Source of my supply. I believe that every need I have is completely met, every outstanding bill is paid in full, every debt is totally removed, and I am financially liberated. I have so much left over that I am able to bless others. Thank You for demonstrating provisional miracles in my life. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen, so be it PART 3
'The Earth Is Filled With the Glory!' Prophecy delivered by on March 4, 2006 2006 Branson Victory Campaign “Come up here. Come up to a higher place,” saith The LORD, the God of Heaven and earth. “Come up here with Me. I’ll show you things you know not of. I will reveal not only Myself to you; I will reveal yourself to you. I will reveal to you the way I see you, the way I know you. For you know that My WORD says that ‘when I come you will see me as I am and you will be like me.’ But you’re far more like Me now than you think you are because I look on the heart and not on the mind or the body. Come up here, come up here with Me. Set your affections on things that are above. “Ah, oh the marvel of it all, the wonders of it all. For Heaven is thoroughly and completely prepared. For you see We have been preparing a place for you. I said when I was on the earth to those that followed Me and those that were known as My own, I said to them, ‘I am going to prepare a place for you and you can eventually come there.’ Well that’s what We’ve been doing now for 2,000 years, is preparing the place. We have been preparing for our gathering, We have been preparing,” saith The LORD, “but the house is finished. The place is ready for you. Amen. “Those that have gone before you are longing for our time together. But none of them, none of you, none of them, nobody here is longing for you the way that I am,” saith The LORD. “I long for you to be here. I long for you to see Me. I long for you to look in My eyes. I long for you to hear my voice with your very ears. I long for all of this. And oh, it’s much sooner than you think. Yes, the house is complete. The angels are ready and the biggest work is yet to come. But the biggest work will take the least amount of time. “There are more people in the earth. May I change your way of thinking for a moment? People look at the earth and they say, ‘Oh my there’s only 1 billion or so Christians and there are a few billion of this and a few billion of that.’ And that is not the way I see it,” saith The LORD. “I look on those that know my name and two of them are worth 10,000 of the other. I look on those that know how to pray and only a few years ago there were not very many people that could pray effectively. Ah, but this is a different day. There are those like you that are hungry, that are seeking, that are reaching, that are growing, that are honoring My WORD and honoring My ways and honoring My Name. And he that honors Me, him I will honor. “And there are more on the earth today that know how to pray. Know how to walk in the spirit. Know how to exercise their faith and get somebody saved and get somebody healed and get somebody filled with the Holy Ghost. There’s more than there ever has been in all of the earth’s time put together.” Ha, ha, ha. Yeah. Thank You, LORD. I never had put those two together. “Yes, the earth is filled with the glory! And men shall see it; they’re going to see it on you.” |
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