Annie led group in worship…
Pastor Ray…
I got a report telling me that in the last few weeks, there have been an increase of people tuning into Morning Prayer through the Internet. Thank you!
I want to read this scripture to you. Ephesians 3:20–21 (The Message) “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.
Glory to God in the church!
Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus!
Glory down all the generations!
Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes!”
Hallelujah! You know how sometimes folks use the expression “Yeah… in your wildest dreams!” Maybe you have something on your heart that He’s shown you. Maybe you need a better house. A change in your job. More money. Whatever. If you say that desire to the wrong people, that’s what they’ll say: “Yeah… in your wildest dreams!” But this is what He’ll do.
Now I want to share this testimony. We had a meeting last night with the prayer leaders. One of the ladies shared her testimony. She said last year, they opened up their door in the morning and saw an envelope on the ground. So they brought it in and opened it up. It was a really nice note saying how much God loved them. Along with the note was 500 dollars cash! She said, “Don’t ever say, ‘God’s not going to drop money at your front door! He’s not going to just add it to your bank account.’ Oh yeah? Weeks and then months go by and bang! There’s something else at the door. This time, same thing. Beautiful note but it’s not signed. This time it’s a lot more than 500 dollars cash. Then time went by and she decided there was a need they had as a family. “Lord, we need this much money.” She named the specific amount. She didn’t say how much but it was large. Guess what? It showed up at their door again. This time it was a cashier’s check for the exact amount she asked for. There was no name on it. I asked her, “Was it written on the check ‘from heaven’?” And that wasn’t the last time it happened. So she ministered to all the prayer leaders Ephesians 3. He will do above and beyond your wildest dreams, beyond what you can think.
The Word tells us you don’t have what you need because you haven’t even asked. Thank You, Lord. Let’s close our eyes for a minute and thank Him. He knows your name. He knows the number of hairs on your head. Inside of every person, He’s placed a plan for your life. Thank You, Father. Based on what You’ve said in Ephesians 3:20, thank You for meeting our needs. What do you need? What is your heart longing for? We long for more of You, Father. We long for more of the Holy Spirit. We long to be filled and saturated with Your Spirit. We have big things we desire but we have little things that we need in order to fulfill Your plan and purpose in our lives. You said it was Your will that we prosper—spirit, soul, and body. If it’s Your body that has a need, He’s already fulfilled it. ♪ We receive all that You are… we receive and expect ♪ we believe and expect these individual things to come. And we believe the body all over globe is changing, is being lifted up and brought together like never before. I see it! Different streams, calls, and plans for the body… I see it unifying more than before, coming together as one body…
Annie led group in singing …
Pastor Ray…
When Jesus appeared to brother Kenneth Hagin, a devil that looked like a monkey got between the two of them and was jumping around and making a lot of racket. Kenneth Hagin was thinking, “Why doesn’t Jesus do something about that. I can hear what He’s saying to me.” He got so upset that it came out of him, “In Jesus’ name, shut up.” Or something to that effect. That thing shriveled up and was gone. Brother Hagin said a lot of believers think that certain people have more power than others. Like certain people in the church: “If I could get that person to pray for me…” But Jesus said, “No. The least member of the body of Christ has just as much power over the devil as anyone else.” And when we start believing that, that’s when we’re going to get the job done. Yes, we have hand cleaner. Yes, we wash our hands with soap and water. But we have something that the doctors on TV have not spoken about! We have authority in Jesus’ name. We have the name that is above every virus. We have the name that is above every attack of the enemy. Jesus continued, “I’ve done all I’m going to do about the devil until the angel comes down from heaven, takes the chain and binds him and puts him into the bottomless pit.” (Rev. 20) Kenneth Hagin said, “That came as a real shock to me.” Jesus continued, “Now, I’ll give you the four references that prove that. First of all, when I arose from the dead I said, all power, all authority is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” (Matt. 28:28) The word power means authority. “But I immediately delegated My authority on earth to the church and I can work only through the church for I’m the head of the church.” That was number one.
The second Bible reference is Mark 16:15–18, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believes and is baptized shall be saved but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe. In my name, they shall cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues, they shall take up serpents and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not come against them. They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.”
The next reference was James 4:7, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” The understood subject of this sentence is “you.” The believer has to have authority over the devil or the Bible wouldn’t tell him to do something about the devil. This scripture doesn’t say the devil will flee from Jesus. It says he’ll flee from you! Similarly, you don’t pray that Jesus will lay hands on the sick. You do it. Notice too that the hands are not in the head. The hands are in the body. They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. When you lay hands on the sick, you are exercising authority over the devil. That authority is yours whether you feel like you’ve got it or not.
Here is the fourth one. Paul says in Ephesians 4:27, “Neither give place to the devil.” This was the fourth scripture that Jesus gave to me. This means you’re not to give the devil any place in you. He cannot do what he wants to do unless you give him permission.
I want us to pray Psalms 91 with me. You say it after me.
I dwell in the secret place of the most high.
I shall abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say unto the Lord, my hope and my fortress, He is my God.
In Him will I trust.
Surely I will deliver thee from the snare of the hunger and from the noisome pestilence.
He will cover me under His wings.
I shall be under His feathers.
His truth shall be my shield and buckler.
I shall not be afraid of the fear of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day.
Nor the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor the plague that destroys at noon day. The coronavirus is dead.
A thousand shall fall at my side. Ten thousand at my right hand. But it shall not come near me.
My eyes shall behold and see the reward of the wicked.
The Lord is my hope. There shall no evil come against me.
Neither shall any plague come near me.
For He shall give His angels charge over me to keep me in all my ways.
They shall bear me in their hands. I will not hurt my foot against a stone.
I shall walk upon the lion, the young lion, the dragon. I tread under my feet.
Because he has loved me, therefore will I deliver him. I will exalt him.
Because he has known my name.
He shall call upon me and I’ll hear him.
I’ll be with him in trouble. I’ll deliver him.
