Personal Divine Help

For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 2:11).For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful(1 Corinthians 14:14). For one who speaks in an [unknown] tongue speaks not to men but to God, for no one understands or catches his meaning, because in the [Holy] Spirit he utters secret truths and hidden things [not obvious to the understanding] (1 Corinthians 14:2 – Amplified).

Learning to overcome wrong thinking and wrong responses to life is one our greatest challenges as a believer. The New Birth transforms my spirit, but my soul and my body have been so enmeshed into sinful thoughts, motives, emotions, and response patterns that it’s difficult for me to see and understand them all.

So, we know things from the scriptures with our head. We know what we should do, but often end up doing the opposite. Paul said it this way in Romans 7: 15-17:
For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

Here is a key to being freed from wrong thinking and responses in the various areas of life. Take some time to get alone with God in the Word and just read it real slowly. Go to scriptures that deal with relationships, motives, and responses. I suggest Romans 12, Ephesians 4, Colossians 3, and 1 Peter 3 for starters. Read slowly going over each word carefully and asking yourself; Do I do that? Is there something that I need to put into practice here? Is there something that I need to stop? Is there some motive within me that needs to be changed? Is there a promise here that I need to act on? The key is going slowly and taking your time.

Then afterwards, take some time to pray in the spirit, in other tongues. Ask the Lord as you pray to unseat any wrong underlying patterns of thinking in your life that cause hurtful responses to others. Remember that your spirit knows things about your life that your mind doesn’t know. When you’re praying in tongues, you’re often praying out issues in your own life that need changing.

We have the same issues to deal with in life that all people face. But we have a loving Father and a loving Holy Spirit within us that are ready and willing to help us work through the issues and challenges that we face in our personal lives. Give God a chance to work in your personal life by spending time as I mentioned in the Word, and by taking time to pray in other tongues. After a while, thoughts will come up from your spirit person that will reveal areas of needed change. The Lord will then quicken you and enable you to deal with things that may have bothered you for years. We have a Divine helper within us who is longing for us to work with Him to bring in us needed change. Let’s give Him opportunity to work!

Discipline Yourself for the Purpose of Godliness

But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:7-8).

Godliness produces change that impacts life right now! Phillips translation of the latter part of verse 7 above reads: take time and trouble to keep yourselves spiritually fit. The New American Standard Bible of the same verse reads: on the other hand discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.

The Word of God will have an impact on your personal daily habits if you’ll take the time and trouble to get into the Word and let the Word get into you! God gave us the capacity of habit to keep life from being difficult.

A habit is something that is done so frequently that it can be performed without conscious thought. We all have personal daily habits that affect our routines throughout the day. We prepare for our day pretty much the same way each day after day. Many things in our occupation become routine and habitual. And our ways of relating to ourselves and others can become entrenched in habitually patterns of thought and response.

We also develop bad habits that harm us and those around us. These habits can keep us from God’s best. Here are some tips that will help you break a bad habit, be it a habit of thought, word, or action.

Breaking a habit is a three step process. The first step is to catch the habit after the fact. It’s becoming aware that you’re even doing something wrong! That’s where the Word comes into play. Find scriptures that deal with the area of life you’re challenged with, write them down and read them over and over again. That will sensitize you to the need to change that area of life.

The second step to changing a habit is to catch yourself in the middle of it! Once the Word is in you, conviction to change comes. And breaking a habit takes time. Just keep catching yourself after the fact, and eventually you’ll begin to see what you’re doing that’s wrong right while you’re involved in it!

The third and last step to breaking a habit is to catch yourself just before you start to do it. This is all a process that may take weeks of time. Psychologists tell us it takes three to four week to begin forming new habits. So start the process and work yourself through it.

Habits are changed by replacement. Don’t concentrate on the negative, concentrate on filling yourself with the Word, and then making a choice to repent the moment you see that you’re violating God’s Word in your life. This works in any area: thoughts, verbal responses, emotions, or physical habits.

I’ve used this three step principle for years in my own life and can vouch for its effectiveness. I’ve changed colloquial expressions I’ve picked up from others, habits of gossip when I was first saved, mental traits of believing the worst of others, all sorts of wrong patterns of response to others, workaholic tendencies, perfectionist patterns, and all sorts of physical habits by using these three follow through principles.

Catch yourself and repent after the fact. Catch yourself and repent in the middle of a wrong action. Then you’ll catch yourself just before the engrained habit pushes you to action. That’s how the power of the Word can change you from the inside out. Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.

Praying in the Spirit

Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God (Romans 8:26-27).

Praying in the spirit is one of the most effective ways that we can pray. It plugs us directly into the spirit realm where we can be efficient in praying out the purpose and will of God for people and circumstances.

Mental praying is limited to your scope of understanding of a situation. But praying in the spirit takes you into God’s understanding and all-knowing bout things. Then while you’re praying in the spirit words will often float up to your mind from your spirit. Speak those words out and you’ll sometimes receive the interpretation of what you’re praying.

As I’ve mentioned over the last couple of days, we believers are the only people on earth that have a legal, God-given right to exercise authority over Satan and his forces. This authority does no good unless it is put into practice by us. It does not work automatically. Many believers are bound by the enemy because no one told them that they are free from his control and shown them how to take their rightful place in Christ.

Knowing your authority gives you a certain prayer responsibility before the Father. He wants you to take that responsibility and use your authority to command Satan to loose his hold on men and women.

Praying with the spirit and with the understanding combined can make you a tool in the hands of the Father that is dangerous to the kingdom of darkness. Take time today to pray in the spirit.

Here’s some practical instruction. It takes time to get into the flow of prayer when praying in the spirit. John was “in the spirit” on the Lord ’s Day in Revelation 1:10. That means he became more sensitive to spiritual things than mental or natural things. It takes time to get there. For me, it used to take me over an hour of praying in the spirit to get sensitive to the spirit realm and calm my thoughts down. Now it takes me anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes. Once you get to that place, it seems as though there is an easy flow of pray, and you can sense that the Spirit of God is working together with you. And in that place, your mind and spirit begin to work together to ask the Father’s intervention in the lives of people and in their circumstances.

The result for your own life is a deep penetrating peace and exquisite joy that is deep and almost beyond words. The result in others is changed lives. Take your place today and pray in the spirit and allow the Father to work with you to exercise authority over the work of the enemy. You’ll be glad you did.

Prayer Necessity

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.' "For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!'" And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:1-8 – NIV).

Constant prayer in necessary for God’s highest and best to be realized in the home, in the church, and in the world. Because Satan obtained a legal right to rule on earth until the lease that God gave Adam on the earth runs out at the return of Christ, we must labor together with God in prayer. There are no shortcuts. If we refuse to pray, Satan makes inroads into life and circumstance. Our prayers of faith give God a legal right to move into life’s circumstances.

Refuse to yield to the pressure of the busy and necessary at the expense of prayer. To see a need is to have a call to this prayer life. Satan fears committed believers more than anyone else in the whole world. We alone have the authority in the name of Jesus to bind his activity and to command him to desist in his maneuvers against the will and purpose of God worldwide.

The unjust judge in the parable above is the devil. He will not let go of his victims unless we assert constant pressure on him and his kingdom with our prayers, intercession, and faith. Don’t buy the lie that your praying is ineffective and is a waste of time. Don’t allow the busy to take the place of the important. To God, our prayer time is the most important time of out day. Our prayers loose His benevolent hands and allow Him to demonstrate His ability to those in need.

Be a laborer together with God today. Be one of those that the Father can count on to work with as He seeks to save those who are lost. Can He count on you today?

Authority and Prayer

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints (Ephesians 6:18).

Our prayer life is more important than we often realize. John Wesley said: It seems as though God is limited by our prayer life; that He can do nothing for humanity unless someone asks Him to do it.

Adam’s original lease of dominion was transferred to Satan when Adam obeyed him, and Satan became at that time the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). You understand that God gave man authority and dominion over the earth when God created him (Genesis 1: 26-28). Satan gained a legal right to this authority when Adam chose to disobey God’s direct command. Since that time, the earth has been under Satan’s control. Jesus called Satan the prince (ruler) of this world in John 14:30. Satan is called the prince of the power of the air in Ephesians 2. John tells us that the whole world is under Satan’s power and control in 1 John 5:19.

During Jesus’ wilderness temptations, Satan offered Jesus the authority of the kingdoms of the world if Jesus would simply worship him. Satan told Jesus that the authority of the kingdom of the world was delivered to him. Who delivered authority over the earth to Satan? It was automatically transferred to Satan when Adam sinned.

Though God is sovereign overall, for a time limited period God had given some of His authority to Adam to rule over the earth under His providence. Now, Satan has a legal timed limited dominion over the earth since he obtained Adam’s original lease of dominion. This lease of dominion will end at the second coming of Christ.

Until then a thief has been let loose on this planet. He comes to steal, kill, and destroy. His desire is to mar human life and to make the earth a place of rebellion to God instead of a place of peace and tranquility. This is a sobering fact.

The good news is that Jesus Christ conquered Satan when He became our sin, died, and then was raised from physical death. Jesus cancelled the authority Satan has over Christian’s lives! When Jesus was raised from the dead, He spoke to His disciples just before He was taken into heaven and said: All authority has been given to me in heaven and earth (Matthew 28:18). Jesus spoke that as the representative new creation man, the God -Man who is the first-born from the dead (See Colossians 1). Jesus is now head of a brand new race of people, the New Creation folk, the church.

When He said in Matthew 28:19, Go ye, He actually transferred His authority over Satan to the church. Now, the only people who can exercise authority over Satan are Christians who know their rights and privileges in Christ. That’s the reason we must exercise our rights in prayer, binding Satan from hindering people from receiving the gospel, and demanding that He leave us and our loved ones alone.

The Father desires to use us to pray and ask Him to manifest Himself in the earth. God is limited to the prayers of believers because of this lease of dominion being transferred to Satan by Adam when he sinned. Since the church is the only group on earth that can exercise authority over Satan, God must now work through the church for His will to be accomplished.

Our prayers untie God’s hands. Take time every day to pray in the spirit. Praying in the spirit is a way to pray the perfect will of God into manifestation, and a way to pray for things that you’re aren’t aware of that need God’s intervention (see Romans 8:26-27 and 1 Corinthians 14:2). Pray with your understanding about things you know about. The Father has promised answered prayer. Take time to call on His name today, and invite His purposes into your life circumstances and into the earth.

God and Voting

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, The people He has chosen as His own in
heritance (Psalm 33:12).
I conducted a question and answer time during our midweek service this week and one of the questions that were asked was about the next presidential election. The questions was would the Holy Spirit tell every believer to vote for the same person?

My answer was that the Holy Spirit is not going to make the choice for us! He is not a democrat, republican, libertarian, or an independent. In fact, God is not into politics at all! God is not into democracy! His best is Theocracy, rule by God.

We live in a democratic republic with a representative form of government. Our congressmen, senators, representatives, and our President are elected by the will of the people. Their office of government is respected by God, but He is not the one who chooses them. The people choose those who hold governmental offices in our land.

A democracy cannot exist without a foundation of moral law and restraint. We are a fallen, wicked, depraved, and sinful race. The challenge of any democratic form of government is for the citizens to adhere to morality and civil law based on fairness and justice. When a citizenry becomes self-absorbed and self-centered in a democracy, they will begin to vote for that which most benefits their beliefs and lifestyle. Without a moral compass to hold the nature of sin in check, a culture will vote and the will of the people will reflect self-centeredness and lack of morality. The breakdown of law, order, civility, and family values will eventually follow. And without some form of moral restraint, a democratic culture will eventually fail and give in to rule by force. This is the lesson that history teaches us.

So when we go to the polls this fall to elect of governmental representatives, we must personally choose to allow the Lord to deal with us as we look at the facts concerning each person for which we vote. We must ask ourselves, which person most closely follows what I see as the standard for living in the word of God? Which candidate stands most closely for the moral values as taught by the precepts of scripture? When we as a people veer from God’s morals for living as a fallen race as given to Moses in the Ten Commandments, our culture will eventually fail. So we must be careful as Christians to vote from our hearts as we weigh the issues at hand in the balance of the word of God.

Where does the candidate stand on these issues: marriage and family values; personal financial responsibility; the role of government in personal life and choices in general; child training and education; financial matters such as taxes, business, the free market, and international commerce; national defense and military issues; the Middle East conflict and its resolution?

Ask the Lord for wisdom as you make your voting choices this fall. This next election may well make or break our nation. Family values are being challenged. Economic issues are testy and looming problems are on the horizon. Our national security is at risk from terrorism that is increasing in intensity. We must have leaders that respect God and His morals.

We must have leaders that are pro- Israel, for no nation can prosper that hinders God’s plan for this race that gave the world its moral compass, and gave the world the Messiah we know as Jesus the Christ. God made eternal promises to Abraham that He will fulfill in the Jewish race on their soil. Our leaders are wise to take heed this fact.

A wise believer will become involved in educating himself on the facts of what each candidate believes before voting this fall. God cannot honor ignorance, and will not grant wisdom to the uninformed. Take your civic duty to vote seriously this fall. Our future as a nation and the lifestyle we enjoy will rest on the choices we make at the voting booth!

Renew Your Mind

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:1-2).

In the new birth our spirits are transformed from darkness to light. The nature of sin is removed and replaced by the nature and life of God. A new motivation for living rises up from within. The things we once delighted in are replaced by an attraction to right living. And that’s where the challenge begins.

Before Christ we allowed our minds, emotions, wills and bodies to absorb habits that now bring regret if we participate in them. Paul said it to the believers in Rome this way: I am speaking in familiar human terms because of your natural limitations. For as you yielded your bodily members and faculties as servants to impurity and ever increasing lawlessness, so now yield your bodily members and faculties once for all as servants to righteousness (right being and doing) which leads to sanctification (Romans 6:19-Amplified).

Stubbornness, anger, malice (the desire for bad things to happen to people who do you wrong), self-centeredness, habits of fleshly lusts sexual and otherwise, overeating to cover pain, overwork to escape dealing with relational issues, perfectionism; all of these things come from a soul (mind, emotions and will) that must be subdued and brought to obedience to the Word! The mind is renewed and the body submitted to God as a living sacrifice as we daily yielded ourselves to the Lordship of the Word, making a conscious decision to act on the Word when everything in you wants to go the other way!

Make a decision today and everyday to 1) meditate the Word, to let it revolve over and over in your mind. 2) Make a decision to be a doer and not just a hearer only of the Word. 3) Make a decision to put the Word first place in your life. Not last place, but to act on the Word in each situation life brings. Do what God says should be done in that situation. 4) Make a decision daily to obey your conscience, the voice of your human spirit speaking to you. As you train your conscience to obey the Word, the voice of God in your inward man will become clearer and clearer.

Mind renewal is a lifelong process that will only culminate when we get to heaven and are like Him! Work towards that end everyday! He must increase; I must decrease!