Growing Your Faith - Myles Munroe

April 5

The only way God’s promises will become a reality in your life is if you act on them—and you can’t act on them without faith. The very word promise requires faith. If I promise you something, then you don’t have it yet; you must believe I will give it to you. God tells us, “I promise to do this for you, but it’s actually already done. I want you to believe that what I promise is real. It is already accomplished.”

Start living by the faith God gave you so that His Word can come to pass in your life. People say, “I need more faith.” Faith is easy to obtain: it comes by hearing the Word of God. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17 NKJV). When you receive the Word, your faith grows. Every time you hear or read the Word and apply it, your spiritual life is strengthened.

You don’t receive the Word of God without being changed for the better. Remember the promise regarding the seed that fell on good soil in Jesus’ parable of the sower: But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. (Matthew 13:23)

Planted in good soil, a seed will grow because the power is in the seed. Let the Word of God be planted in you and “grow” your faith in the love and power of God our Father.

Prayer:

Father, Your Word is the seed of faith in the soil of my heart. Let my heart be “good soil,” watered by Your Holy Spirit, so that I will reap a harvest for You. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Thought: You don’t receive the Word of God without being changed for the better.

Reading: 1 Samuel 1–3; Luke 8:26–56

-Daily Power And Prayer Devotional

Growing Your Faith - Myles Munroe

The Shield Of Faith || Spiritual Warfare Series

Your shield of faith (Hebrews 11:16)

Faith is described as a shield in the Bible.

The Roman Shield, or Scrutum, was made from bonded wood strips and covered with leather. The shield was not flat but semi-circular so that any missiles thrown at the soldier would be deflected to one side. Iron or brass rims fitted along the edges of the shied, and a leather strap fastened to the back. The shield had a metal projection in the center (The boss or umbo) which was used to stun or wind an opponent, easing the soldier’s subsequent strike with his sword. For this reason, the shield was both a defensive tool and an offensive weapon.

Faith brings powerful results, for when faith is joined with the results of the Word in your mind, heart, and life, you can withstand the onslaught of the enemy and render the enemy’s fiery darts ineffective.

What is Faith?

Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

The things hoped for must be God’s will. If they don’t line up with God’s will, then He didn’t place them on our heart.

The substance of things hoped for

5287 hupostasis (hoop-os’-tas-is); a setting under (support),

This is something real that God wants to give us. It has substance. but we presently see it only by faith.

A.W. Tozer said: “Faith is seeing the invisible, but not the nonexistent.”

The evidence of things not seen.

By faith we know that God will give us what He has placed in our hearts.

Faith is a gift of God. He’s given us the desires, the things hoped for, then we begin to pray and wait on Him.

1.We pray fervently, because we have a great desire for the things hoped for. God doesn’t honor lukewarm hearts.

2.We pray with perseverance. We know God wants us to have these things hoped for, and we will not give up.

3.We pray until God floods our hearts with faith. Until He gives us the assurance that the things hoped for are ours.

It is essential to pray through, to receive that assurance from God. It is the proof that God will give the things hoped for. It is the evidence of things not yet seen.

People praying for forgiveness and salvation often stop short of the assurance from God. Then they have doubts about their salvation.

People praying about desires God has given them often stop short of receiving the assurance or “evidence” from God. Then they soon have doubts about the things hoped for. Was it a desire given by God, or just my desire? Did God really call me, or is it just what I want?

When we have the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of the things not seen, then we have what we are hoping for. We are certain it is ours, even though it hasn’t arrived yet. We wait in expectation.

The whole process of faith is greatly enhanced by the Word of God. God often gives us those desires or “things hoped for” through the Word of God. God also often gives us the “evidence” or proof from the Word as well.

Faith pleases God

By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews11:5-6)

Living by Faith

Hebrews 11:6 – Those who please God, (bring joy to His Heart) live by faith.

1 John 5:4 – this is our deliverance, our victory that overcomes the world, our FAITH. Our faith is upon the Word of God, HIS PROMISES to us – Romans 10:17 “faith comes by hearing and the hearing (of faith) by the Word of God.”

“.. . Fear Not, Only Believe. . .” Luke 8:50 “Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” Luke 12:7.

The Shield Of Faith is the weapon by which you take every thought captive and extinguish the fiery darts of Satan’s lies in your mind.

The Shield Of Faith || Spiritual Warfare Series

Striking Testimonies||The God Of Miracles

The huddles of life can be so challenging that as Christians we forget about the God we serve. He is not just the God of the old Testament who by His mighty hand led the children of Israel out of captivity into the land of Canaan, “the promised land.”  And not only is He the God of the New Testament scriptures we read about who gave sight to the blind, and made the lame to walk.

This God is infinite. He is immortal. He is still in the miracle working God. Watch the striking testimonies of these believers to rekindle your faith in the Lord.

https://youtu.be/w69bxotdmyE

Striking Testimonies||The God Of Miracles

The Power of God At Work

Are you feeling hopeless because that long awaited breakthrough has not manifested and for that reason you feel like “throwing in the towel” and try other alternatives? If yes, then you are encouraged not give up. God has not forsaken you. He is still in the miracle business. Hold on a little longer. And before you know it, you will be swimming in the glory of that miracle.

Galatians 6:9 tells us;

“And do not grow weary in well doing; for in dew time you will reap (a harvest) if you do not give”.

And;

“though the vision tarries, it is yet for an appointed time”. – Habakkuk 2:3

To everything there is a season, a time, and a turn. It might be your season this moment, but if it is not your time then surely it is not yet your turn. Wait a little while and it will be your time and your turn.

“the teacher is always quiet during the examination. You don’t get your score until you’re done.” 

Watch the striking testimonies of Christians at the Covenant Day of Healing,  inside the  Living Faith Church “Winners Chapel”, on the 13th of March 2016 to give you hope, assurance and faith that God is still working wonders today. Be blessed.

https://youtu.be/Q4tlLUVqXm0

The Power of God At Work

Your Faith Can Move Mountains By Rick Warren

“Have faith in God! If you have faith in God and don’t doubt, you can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. Everything you ask for in prayer will be yours, if you only have faith.” (Mark 11:22-24 CEV)

Faith opens the door to miracles. If you study the Bible and history, you find that every time God moves on Earth and does a miracle, it’s because somebody believed.

Jesus said in Mark 11:22-24, “Have faith in God! If you have faith in God and don’t doubt, you can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. Everything you ask for in prayer will be yours, if you only have faith” (CEV). Faith can move mountains!

God has set up the universe in a hierarchy of laws, and the law of faith is actually a higher law than the laws of nature. That’s where miracles come in. Because when faith is used, the law of faith goes into practice, and the law of faith can actually do more than the laws of physics.

Does God still perform miracles today? Of course he does. Every time you stretch your faith, God does miracles — every single time. My question for you is this: What’s the mountain in your life that needs to be moved? What’s the thing you’ve already decided will never change? That’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. How do you know it won’t change? Maybe God wants your faith to supersede the law of nature. He has in the past, He is doing it today all around the world. God is in the mountain-moving business. Do not doubt or underestimate what he wants to do in your life.

Matthew 13:58 says, “[Jesus] did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith” (NIV).

You might say, “I don’t see many miracles in my life.” I wonder why! Are you seeing with eyes of fear, or are you seeing with eyes of faith? Faith opens the door to miracles

Talk It Over

What is something in your life that you have given up on or believed would never change?

How do you think God wants you to start praying for that thing?

What does he want you to do in faith?

What does it mean to see with eyes of faith and not eyes of fear?

Your Faith Can Move Mountains By Rick Warren

What Faith Does to Your Dreams By Rick Warren

“Glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of — infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes.” (Ephesians 3:20 TLB)

Faith turns God-given dreams into reality. Nothing happens until somebody starts dreaming!

The Bible is full of people who had God-given dreams. Abraham dreamed of being the father of a great nation. Moses dreamed of setting God’s people free. Joseph dreamed of saving a nation and his own family. Throughout Scripture, there are all kinds of people who were inspiring dreamers, like Daniel and Paul and David.

Ephesians 3:20 says, “Glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of — infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes” (TLB).

Now, if there were ever a “blank check” verse in the Bible, that’s it. God is able to do far more than we would dare to ask. What are you afraid to ask God for? He is able to do far more than we could even dream of.

I don’t know about you, but I’m a pretty big dreamer. I can think of some pretty big dreams I’ve had in my lifetime. God says, “Warren, think of the greatest thing you could ever dream of, the greatest thing you think I could do in your life. Guess what? I can top that.”

If there were tears in Heaven, it would simply be because we would get there and realize all the things that we could have done if we had just believed God a little bit more. To me that would be Hell! Hell for me would be being shown everything I could have accomplished and become as a husband, a father, and a pastor if I had just believed God a little bit more.

But there aren’t any tears in Heaven, and God gives you everything you need right now to accomplish what he has planned for you. I want to challenge you to dream big about your relationships, your marriage, your family, and your career. Your faith can turn those dreams into reality, because God is able to do far more than we would dare to ask or even dream.

Talk It Over

How do you know if your dreams are from God?

What does it mean practically to apply faith to your dreams?

Why don’t all of our dreams turn into reality?

What Faith Does to Your Dreams By Rick Warren