Mary led group in worship…
♪ Be glorified… be glorified… ♪
Pastor Ray shared…
I saw something in Rick Renner’s book entitled, “Say Yes” that I wanted to go over. It goes along with “as long as we have breath,” we’re going to keep pressing and do what He’s called us to do. His book is about saying “yes” to the Lord. The title of this chapter is “What to Do If God Chooses You, But You Feel Like Giving Up.” Rick Renner’s church in Russia has more than 3,000 people. He’s making a difference in Russia. He’s been there for a long while. He has a way with words. He is intense about having the church step up and keep expecting more increase, look for the standard that God has put within the church. And just stand up and contend for it.
When he was here, he shared how he talked about people who have a comb but they won’t comb their hair. They have an iron but they don’t want to iron their clothes. They’re gifted but they’re complacent. He doesn’t feel like God will use them the way God could use them. And He doesn’t really want that type person to be connected in the ministry with him, because he knows they’ll not press.
He said he would show up at staff members’ homes. Hello? He’d go in an check out the house to see how it is. Open up the drawers in the bedrooms and see how it looks. It’s funny but there is a point to it. He’s talking about in the book about people who feel like throwing in the towel. He has quotes in this book that I want to read. One of the saddest things to him is to see believers just throw in the towel and quit when their faith is just about to come to maturity. He said, “God never overlooks what you do for Him.” Here are sayings he has to help you not throw in the towel.
“It’s better to humble yourself and admit you need help than to become so weak that you end up throwing your faith away and quitting.”
“For all the devil has tried to do to you along the way of faith and obedience, He will make it up to you.”
“The Lord sees and remembers when you take a costly stand for faith.”
Maybe things don’t work out the way we think they should have worked out. We take a stand of faith.
In Romans 1:16, Paul wrote, “For I’m not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth.” That’s the key. Believe. Later he reminded the Roman church of his style and method of preaching through mighty signs and wonders by the power of the Spirit of God so that from Jerusalem and roundabout, I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ (Rom. 5:19) backed by the authority of heaven, Paul made proclamations about God’s kingdom in his miracle working life transforming power. The results of this bold, promise-making kid of preaching were fantastic.
Now this word paressia is used in Hebrews 10:35: “Cast not away therefore your confidence….” The word confidence evidently alludes to the bold, brace, fearless, promises, declarations, or confessions these believers had made in connection with the Gospel and God’s call on their lives.
Just as the apostle Paul boldly proclaimed the Gospel and its promises to an unbelieving world, these saints had been professing, declaring, and laying claim to the promises of God’s Word for their personal lives. They had done it boldly. They had done it audibly. What they believed in their hearts is what they had spoken loudly and clearly to anyone who wanted to listen. However, when the results weren’t forthcoming as quickly as they wanted, they were tempted to toss their faith away and count it as nonsense. But the writer of Hebrews urged them not to do it because faith “…hath great recompense of reward.”
The phrase “recompense of reward” is from the Greek word misthapodosia. This word is a compound of two Greek words, mistha and podos. The word mistha is the word for money, a person’s salary, or for a payment that is due. The word podos is the word for foot or feet. It is the root word for a podiatrist, which is a foot doctor.
When these two words are compounded, it presents a picture of money traveling by feet and headed in your direction. This is payment, recompense, a reward headed your way. One man has coined the phrase, “Money cometh.” There is actually no better translation than this for the Greek word misthapodosia.
This word carries the thought of being paid for present labor, reimbursed for past expenses, provided reparations for past injustices, and rewarded at some point in the future. Let’s look at each of these aspects of the word “recompense” and see how they apply to you, your dreams, and to the call of God on your life. …
God pays you by giving you victories in different areas of your life. That pay may be success in your ministry. It may be financial. It may be a greater anointing than you’ve ever had. It may be a phenomenal increase of prosperity. It may be that God pays you by providing a long-term friendship you’ll be able to count on for the years to come.
God has all kinds of ways to recompense us for staying in faith and doing what He called us to do. But one thing is for sure—the word misthapodosia proves that God wants you and me to receive a blessing for the services we have rendered in His kingdom.
Thank God for heaven! You’ll receive a future reward there too. But right now you’re here on planet earth, with physical and material needs that must be met. You need blessings and help right now to live and take care of your personal responsibilities. The devil may try to hinder God’s blessings from arriving at your doorstep, but don’t give up! It’s right for you to expect to receive payment for your labors even now.
God has riches in glory especially reserved to meet your current needs. And there’s no need to be beggarly in how much you expect to be blessed either. These riches in glory are reserved for you, so raise your level of expectation! Throw open your arms. It’s time for you to receive the harvest you earned through a lot of hard work and sowing.
Pastor Ray continued sharing…
All the praying and all the declarations, all the believing and all of our expectations… these things are coming. Don’t quit. A few years ago, there was a prayer leader that she had come to a place where she wanted to quit. But I didn’t know. I had a meeting with her and talked with her about not quitting. She went, “Ahh… I was ready to quit, but now I can’t!”
We can’t quit! If we’re on the road to glory and as much as we know we’re in His plan, if we’re declaring His word and what He’s told us to confess… let’s not quit!
Are you gonna quit? [group responds NO!]
Mary led group in worship…
♪ Lord, we magnify You… we magnify You… and lift up Your wonderful name… ♪
Pastor Ray shared…
I want to lift up our nation. The same things we contend for, for America and keep praying for our President and leaders, there’s a reward for that! The number one reward change. And it is happening. Things are changing. Every day there is change.
Prayer for nation…
Father, we thank You that we live now in this day and hour… in the United States of America… one nation under God… born of Your Spirit… for people to seek and serve You… we apply the blood over this nation… over every part… every facet and detail of this nation… we apply the blood over our President, congress, senate… over the judicial system, Father… the blood cleanses and protects and keeps… we plead the blood over his family and children and grandchildren… no weapon formed against them shall prosper… no lies, no deception, no deceiving spirits, no calamity, no insufficiency, no plot, no conspiracy of the enemy… it will not prosper… we thank You for the anointing of God that is upon your servant the President… it is operative, functioning, working in this nation… bringing about change… restoration… in the under workings… behind the scene stuff that is working… that’s being rearranged… You continue to keep him strong… strengthen him in his inner man… to resist evil and cleave to that which is good… surround him with godly men and women… we loose ministering spirits to assist him… we pray for strength for all those that surround him… continue to pursue the plan and purpose… with a fresh breath of Your Spirit… reenergize every one of them… let them see that which is ahead, Father… we hold the blood to the appointment of that judge Kavanaugh in the name of Jesus… we’re asking You for expedition of that… that You would expedite that in Jesus’ name… we loose angels to work on that situation… we apply the blood to the divine strategy and divine plan… that You turn the heart of our President and fill his mouth… all the naysayers that say “can’t happen” are happening in the name of Jesus… thank You for fruit… for the fruit of the laborers of those who have gone before us and those who continue to pray… we will move and press forward … that we should be embedded, so to speak, in every operational procedure in this nation… on every level… turning this great nation to the right… to righteousness… to the rightness of God… thank You for a great awakening and a great outpouring in this nation… the wind of Your Spirit blowing across this land… the fire of God… You said this would be the year of Holy Spirit and fire… we thank You for it right now… send us… it’s time for ignition… it’s time for recognition… recognizing that we are overcomers in this life… those on the verge of quitting, let them see and know by the spirit the victory that is a breath away… thank You for supernatural strength and energy… we lift up the mid-term elections… the church will take her place and represent You well… stepping up… a great change… more and more to the right… a great exchange in the name of Jesus… thank You for it…
Word came forth for Brandi…
I keep sensing this. There’s something that the Lord wanted to minister to you. It’s about your heart. I want to lay hands on you and I’m going to declare this over you, okay? It’s not just a declaration, it’s a word from heaven concerning some things that you have in your heart.
Father, in Jesus’ name, I declare the things… they’re like steps that you’ve seen in your heart but you’ve not seen them in the natural manifest yet. They are plans in your heart of hearts. Some you haven’t told anyone, including your husband. They’re just between you and heaven. I’m declaring this to you today, this is what I’ve seen in my heart. These things will begin to unfold and some doors that have just not opened, they will be opened. In Jesus’ name. And those things that you have in your heart, they shall begin to unfold because of your faithfulness. Yes, there is a reward to stay steadfast and you’ve stayed steadfast. You’ve used your faith, both you and your husband. You’ve used your faith. Don’t quit. Keep on the road of faith. Keep on the road of increase. Keep on the road of furtherance. For you have just begun the race and there is so much more for you in store.
Father, I thank you for the ministry of Your Holy Spirit right now. For a fresh, refreshing from heaven today that would set you on your way to a greater degree. And I plead the blood of the Lamb out in front of you and declare what He has called you to do, you shall do. No man can stop it. Man’s words can’t stop it. The devil can’t stop it. Because God placed it in you. And He’s saying to you today—faithful servant, My faithful servant. So just receive. Keep your eyes looking out front. Looking up to your heavenly Father. And these things will unfold one right after the other.
We thank You for it, in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
Erika added…
I would just add this. The Holy Spirit has been praying about this… this moment right here that just took place. He’s been praying about that for several weeks, several months actually. Hallelujah. Thank You, Father.
Erika shared…
I’m reading an excerpt from Wesley Duewel’s book, “God’s Power Is for You.”
Our Great Need Of The Holy Spirit
By Wesley L. Duewel“…be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18).
You are constantly in danger of forgetting how utterly dependent you are on the Holy Spirit. It is so easy to forget what a divine, all-comprehensive, and mighty ministry the Holy Spirit desires to have in you and through you. You cannot live for God or work for God without the enabling grace of God as ministered to you through the Spirit.
Yet there is constant danger, even if you are a committed, spiritual Christian, that you will begin to rely on past experiences of the working of God’s grace. There may be the constant temptation to rely too exclusively on essentially human resources, such as the assistance of fellow Christians or Christian organizations, or on your own methods and efforts. There is even the danger of relying on your own Christian experience or maturity. Again and again you need to be reminded of your need of the Holy Spirit.
Constant Ministry
The Holy Spirit is so self-effacing in His ministry that you will often fail to realize the strength and extent of His working. The Holy Spirit does, indeed, perform from time to time such miracles of grace and power that we are amazed, convicted, or overwhelmed by the sense of God’s presence and working; but, contrary to the opinions of many, the major ministry of the Spirit is not in the realm of the amazing and the spectacular. The constant ministry of infilling, cleansing, anointing, empowering, guiding, and making fruitful is of even greater importance. Without this ministry you cannot live the life of the Spirit. If you limit this ministry by the attitudes of your heart and by inadequate responses, you remain weak, ineffectual, and largely fruitless. Pray for, welcome, and submit yourself to the gracious ministry of the Holy Spirit.Victory and Radiance
You need the Holy Spirit to enable you to live a life of victory and radiance. The Spirit-filled life is possible only as He fills you. Only then can He manifest His power within you. Victory over temptation and the strength to be what you ought to be will be natural and normal to you only if He is Lord of your life completely. The lordship of the Spirit is very real and is always manifest in the transformation and empowering of your life. You need this indwelling of the mighty God, this transforming lordship, and this inner endowment.Effective Ministry
You need the Holy Spirit for the effective fulfillment of your ministry. God requires some ministry from those who have been born again. Each of us is called to be a witness. The Holy Spirit is the Great Witness. You will not witness effectively by your life apart from His indwelling witness. You will not witness effectively by your lips without the Spirit’s anointing. Your Spirit-filled life as a child of God can be so Christlike, so beautiful, so holy, and so power filled that others will recognize that you belong to Christ. The infilling fullness of the Holy Spirit must make a distinguishing difference in you as a child of God.Every Christian must witness with his lips; yet even without any verbal witness it is impossible for a Spirit-filled life to be hidden. If you can live and work with others without their realizing that you are different in your inner nature and that you belong to Christ, are you really filled with the Spirit? The Great Witness cannot be hidden when you are filled with Him.
Some will be attracted to the Christian faith through you (even though they may deny this). Others may be angered because they feel convicted by your holy, happy, Spirit-filled life, but they cannot help being impressed by it. The tragedy is that many Christians are not effectively witnessing in this way. Obviously they lack the full ministry of the Spirit. The church and the world are waiting for you and me to be really filled by the transforming Spirit of God.
Help in Prayer
The prayer ministry that God expects from us is also impossible apart from the ministry of the Spirit. Have you realized that on the Judgment Day you will be asked to give an account of how you prayed for others and how much you prayed for others? Be sure of this: You can fulfill this ministry of prayer in the way God desires only when you are under the complete lordship of the Holy Spirit.You need the Spirit to guide you so that you will know for whom to pray. You cannot pray for everyone all the time. Each day you will be selective in your prayers, for the Spirit of God knows who most needs your prayer at any given time. Even when you use prayer lists, the Spirit may draw your attention to a particular name at the time when that person needs special prayer. You need the Spirit to guide you when to pray. You may be engaged in other activities, but the Spirit can guide you at the exact time your prayer is needed if you are Spirit-filled and sensitive to His leading.
You need the Holy Spirit to deepen your love and earnestness so that you can pray with real concern and at times engage in what the Bible calls “wrestling” in prayer, or prayer warfare. You need the Holy Spirit to give birth to true faith within you so that you can pray the kind of prayer that appropriates God’s promise and prevails until God gives the victory.
Above All Other Needs
There isn’t a day that goes by without your need of the Holy Spirit to guide you in what you say, in what you pray, and in what you do. There isn’t a day that passes without your need of the transforming grace, radiant beauty, and mighty power of the Holy Spirit. You and I need Him above all other needs.
We need Him in our personal lives, we need Him in our ministry, we need Him in our homes, in our churches, and in all our organizations. He is the One we need above all else.
Ask, and He will be given to you (Luke 11:13). Welcome Him, and He will work fully and freely within you. Abandon yourself to Him, and He will take the entire responsibility for your life. Obey Him, and He will anoint and use you. He has been promised to you by God the Son; He has been given to you by God the Father. Oh, let Him come in, let Him fill you completely, let Him be your all. He is God the Spirit. He longs to meet all your needs. He is your greatest need.Come, Holy Spirit, fill me more and more.
Mary led group in worship…
