Love in Action

Love can be known only by the action it prompts

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.  John 3: 16 God’s love for the world prompted Him to give His only Son.  And because Jesus loved us so much He gave His life to save us.  Love is the greatest force on the earth. 

When a lawyer approached Jesus and asked, what is the greatest commandment? Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intelligence).  This is the great (most important, principal) and first commandment.  And the second is like it you shall love your neighbor as yourself.  All the other books of the law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”  Matthew 22: 37-40 (Amplified Bible)

Every concept, every principle and every commandment, in the entire word of God is dependent on the force of love.  Love is an action word, because God loves us so much He literally put Himself in our place, paid the price for our sins and took the punishment that was due us.  He was mocked, scourged, crucified, and tormented for three days and nights in a devils hell, so that we could be reconciled back to God and have life more abundantly.

Deuteronomy 7:6-9 says,

For you are a holy people to the Lord your God: The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the people on the face of the earth.  The Lord did not set His love upon you nor chose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all people: but because the Lord loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage from the hand of  Pharaoh, king of Egypt.  Therefore know that the Lord your God He is God, the faithful God, who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep his commandments.

You are God’s special treasure

It seems as though God chose you and me because of the special treasure He alone saw in us.

I think about myself, an African American woman raised in the ghetto of Detroit, Michigan, the least in my father’s house.  Nothing to boast about, average, average in appearance, average in intelligence, just average.  But because God loved me He brought me out with His mighty hand, and redeemed not only me but you also, from the house of bondage.  Whatever your bondage may be, poverty, illiteracy, abuse, fear, shame, whatever has a hold on you He redeemed you from it.  Maybe it is  a troubled mind, a bad marriage or low self-esteem,  that has a grip on you. I am telling you that God has already paid the price for your freedom. Why?  Because of love; God became man, His name was called Jesus.  He shed His blood on the cross to buy us back from the confines and bondage of fallen humanity. Because of the blood of Jesus, Satan no longer has a right to bind , torment , or harass us.  

The Message Bible puts it this way;  Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God.  It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in.  He paid with Christ’s sacred blood, you know.  He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb.   (I Peter 2; 19 )

 When Jesus died and arose from the dead He took His blood to the sanctuary of heaven and offered it  as an  appeasement for the punishment of sin.  God saw the sacrifice that it was perfect and He cancelled the punishment that was  written against us.  All Because of love.

Deuteronomy 7:  11-15 says,

          Therefore you shall keep the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which I command you today , to observe them.

         

          Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments and keep and do them, that the Lord your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which he swore to your fathers. 

        And He will love you and bless you and multiply you.  He will also bless the fruit  of your womb and the  fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine, and your oil, the increase of your cattle…

         You shall be blessed above all people; there shall not be a male or female barren among you or among your livestock.  And the Lord shall take away from you all sickness,  and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known…

This is God’s love for His people in action.  He promises that if we only keep  His commandments, which is His word, then He will love, bless and multiply us. Not only that but He promises to bless and multiply our children and our business ventures.  God loves us so much  that He promises to bless those who love Him and keep His word  above all people of the earth.

In John 14: 23 Jesus said;

          If a man love me he will keep my word and my father will love him.

 God loves us with an oath, a  promise, He promises to bless us above all people.  He promises that he will increase us, He promises fertility , no barrenness among us.  He promises to take all sickness from us.  Because He loves us.  His love should prompt us to action, for Jesus said ; if a man loves me he will keep my word.

When we love God we spend time with Him

The first and greatest commandment is to love God, and when we love God we must study His  word, meditate His word, pray His word, and speak or proclaim and declare His word. This causes His word to manifest in our life.  When we love God we spend time with Him in the word.  As we read and  study the word it becomes a part of us and we begin to become infused with the power and presence of God.  We speak the word, we pray the word , we declare the word with boldness and things happen.  Because faith begins to increase and arise and make things happen. 

Let us look at Joshua 1: 8

          This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it .  For then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success.

Notice the last clause  in that verse,  “ then you  will make your way prosperous.”   This is a faith principal, the word infused into your spirit and spoken out of your mouth, brings prosperity  and success in life.  James 2: 17 says,  So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).   Wow that’s a heavy statement.  Faith can only be known by works, and faith cannot work apart from love.  When love and faith unite the result is action, infused with the power of God that produces miracles; Healing miracles, deliverance miracles, money miracles, whatever  you are believing God for according to His promises will manifest.  Faith works by and through love, Galatians 5: 6.

If you are saying the word, praying the word and believing the word and your promise hasn’t manifested yet then check your love walk. Faith cannot work without love.  It’s a Kingdom principal.  If you have checked your love walk and made the necessary adjustments; forgiveness, repentance, showing kindness, doing good to those who have hurt you, just to name a few, then don’t give up on your confession of faith.  It will come to pass because God is faithful to His promises.

Let’s look at Deuteronomy 7: 11-15 again,

Therefore you shall keep the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments which I command you today, to observe them.

Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments and keep and do them, that the Lord your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to .your fathers

And He will love you, and bless you, and multiply you.  He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the off spring of your flock, in the land which He swore to your fathers to give you.

You shall be blessed above all people; there shall not be a male or female barren among you or among your livestock.  And the Lord shall take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay them on all those who hate you.

God promised to take sickness away from among us, multiply, increase, and bless us.  He said in Deut 7: 11-13; you shall keep the commandments, the statutes, and judgments… to observe them. Then it shall come to pass because you listen to these judgments and do and keep them that the LORD your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers. The word keep is "shamar" in the Hebrew It means to guard, protect, attend to, take heed to, observe, preserve, regard, look narrowly, watch (man), (lay) wait (for). (Strong’s concordance)

We see when God says if you keep my statutes, judgments, and commandments He is saying if you guard my word, attend to my word, observe it, watch over it, and lay wait for it; then I, God will keep, watch over, guard, and observe to keep my word, my covenant of mercy, and I will love you and bless you.  Our part is to keep God’s word. His part is to bless us.  Let’s see how we should keep the word.

Joshua 1: 8 says, This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest  observe to do  according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

(Roth)…Thou must talk to thyself therein day and night

(Mof)…This law-book you shall never cease to have on your lips; you must pore over it day and night

(NAB)… recite it by day and by night

(Knox)…The law thou hast in writing must govern every utterance of thine mouth; night and day thou must ponder over it, so as to carry out all the terms of it faithfully; so wilt thou guide thy steps truly and prosper

(Jer)…Have the book of the law always on your lips

(Basic)… Let this book of the law be ever on your lips or in your thoughts day and night, so that you may keep with care everything in it; then blessing will be on your way, and you will do well.

These other versions of the bible help us to understand how important it is to meditate on the word of God.  The word meditate means; to ponder over, talk to thyself, never to cease to have on thy lips, recite day and night.  The word must govern our every thought; we must always have the word on our lips and in our minds, or heart.

Let us look at an example in the word of God, of a woman who spoke the word, prayed the word, and pondered the word. Because of her faith working by love, God caused her to prosper and have good success.

Read II Kings 4; 8-37

In these passages of scripture we find that the prophet Elisha visited the city of Shunem often.  There was a Shunemmite woman who persuaded him to eat at her house whenever he came to town.  This woman, who was called a notable woman, persuaded her husband to build an addition to their house and furnish it with a bed, a lamp stand and a chair for the prophet.  Now the prophet wanted to bless the woman with a prophet’s reward.  When He asked her what he could do for her, she didn’t want anything.  Gehazi , Elisha’s minister told the prophet “ she has no son and her husband is old.”  This is when Elisha spoke a prophetic word to the Shunammite woman.  “About this time next year you shall embrace a son.” The woman conceived and bore a son when the appointed time had come, of which Elisha had prophesied.

Verse 18 says, And the child grew.  Now it happened one day that he went out to his father, to the reapers.  And he said to his father, “My head, my head!”  The child’s father had his servant carry the boy to his mother.  He sat on her lap until noon, and then he died.  This Shunemmite woman took her son, her promise, her miracle, her prophecy and laid him on the prophets bed.  She then told her husband to send her a servant to take her to the prophet.  Now watch what she does, she did not say “my son is dead, my promise is dead.”  She said I’m going to see the prophet.  Her husband asked her “why are you going to see the   man of God, it’s not new moon or Sabbath?”  And she answered him “It is well.” 

When Elisha saw her coming he sent Gehazi to meet her, and ask her “ Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband?  Is it well with the child?”  All these questions could have tempted her to become grieved and negative and say the wrong thing, but she said, “It is well.”  She then reminds the man of God of the prophetic word she had received.  This is what we should do when trouble comes, speak the word, say the word, remind God of his promises.  Isaiah 43:26 says, “put me in remembrance” ,God challenges us to put Him in remembrance of His word.  And the Shunemmite woman does just that, she reminds the prophet of the promise.  Elisha then sends his servant  Gehazi with instructions, “don’t talk to anyone, don’t say anything, put my staff on the boy’s face.”  Elisha didn’t want Gehazi’s words messing up this woman’s miracle! 

Pay close attention to what the Shenmmite woman does next.  She says to the man of God, “As the LORD lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you”, So he arose and followed her (emphasis mine).  She said I will not leave you, then she leaves him, her words are so powerful that the prophet must follow her.  She’s in the zone “the faith zone”. Everything she says must come to pass. She speaks the word with boldness, so much so that the prophet is obeying her word.  He follows her.  Verse 31 says, Now Gehazi went on ahead of them, and laid the staff of the face of the child; but there was neither voice nor hearing.  Therefore he went back to meet him , and told him, saying, “The child has not awakened.”  Verse 32, When Elisha came into the house, there was the child, lying dead on his bed.  He went in therefore, shut the door behind the two of them, and prayed to the LORD. 

 And  the bible says, He went up and lay on the child, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, and his hands on his hands; and he stretched himself out on the child; then the child sneezed seven times, and opened his eyes.  And the Shunemmite woman embraces her miracle again. 

This Shunemmite woman never said anything to nullify the original word spoken to her by the prophet.  “Thou shall embrace a son.”  He spoke life to her, she received the word of life and continued to agree with the word.  Notice she said; “It is well, all is well, it shall be well.”  She had several opportunities to change her confession, but she continued to say, “It is well.”  And she received her manifested miracle. 

This story of the Shuenammite woman is a clear-cut example to us of the powerful force of love.  Because of God’s love for this woman and her husband the prophet gives her a prophetic word, “About this time next year thou shall embrace a son.”  This word is one of the promises in Deuteronomy chapter 7.  When her son died, it was the love of a mother that drove her to visit the prophet, she spoke the word, she prayed the word, she confessed the word, and God did His part as He promises. He gave life to the Shunammite woman’s son. This is love in action!Because love can only be known by the action it prompts.

Divine Timing continued Part 2

Don't Miss Your Moment

It is very important to be able to discern the times in order to make sure you don't miss your moment.

          Ecclesiastes 3: 11 says, He makes all things beautiful in its time.

Now look at Joshua 2: 1

          And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying go view the land, even  Jerico. And they went and came into the harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.

     Now we know that there is nothing beautiful about being a harlot. Harlot, that word doesn't sound so bad but in today's English, she would be called a prostitute, a whore, or in Ebonics, a hoe. Not so pretty. But look at verse 9, Rahab, who had hidden the spies and lied about their whereabouts gives this testimony of faith.

 

          Joshua 2: 9-13

         

          9.  And she said unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.

          10. And we heard of the Lord how the Lord dried up the Red Sea for you, when you came out of Egypt; and what you did unto the two Kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side of Jordan, Shion and Og whom ye utterly destroyed.

    

          11. As soon as we heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God, in heaven above and on earth beneath.

          12. Now therefore, I pray you swear unto me by the Lord, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token.

          13. And that ye will save alive my father and my mother, and brethern and my sisters, and all that they  have, and deliver our lives from death.

     Now the spies gave her a true token, the scarlet cord. they had experienced the divine protection of the blood of the lamb sprinkled on the door posts back in Egypt which saved the lives of the first born, as long as they stayed in the house. And now they reveal to Rahab God's plan to save man by the blood. Because that which is now has already been.

     Rahab, a woman in an ugly profession understood that this was her moment. She discerned what God was doing and by faith she hid the spies and asked them to save her, her father and mother, brothers and sisters, and all they had. It was something about knowing that this was her time that gave her boldness to hide the spies and ask that not only she be saved alive, but her whole family and all their possessions.

     This woman in her ugly profession became beautiful in her time. Hebrews 11: 31 says, By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace. Isn't that beautiful! Rahab got listed in the "hall of faith" because she knew her time. Not only that but she married Salmon and gave birth to Obed, who was the father of Jesse, who was the father of David the King. She is in the liniage of Jesus. He makes all things beautiful in its time.

Moving Ahead of God, to be continued...

         

Sweet Dinner Rolls Recipe

This is Part 1 of my Sweet Dinner Rolls recipe. Part 2 is on the next video

Enjoy these wonderful dinner rolls tonight!

Donna Loiuse

Divine Timing

Divine Timing

In his book, Divine Timing, Bishop Nicholas Duncan Williams says, God in His infinite wisdom has set seasons, which come with their own unique natures, outlooks, demands, and special levels of grace. This setting of seasons makes it easier to understand the activities that help creation fulfill its purpose. Misunderstanding of times and seasons will result in their abuse. The abuse of time impairs the manifestation of purpose and for this reason, the importance of understanding God's timing cannot be under stressed.

Let us examine scriptures that show the importance of divine timing, being in synchrony with God's plan and purpose for one's life.

Ecclesiastes 3: 11 says,

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He also has placed eternity in men's hearts

and minds [a divinely implanted sense of a purpose working through the ages which nothing under the sun but God alone can satisfy, yet so that men cannot find out what God has done from beginning to end.]

Ecclesiastes 3: 14, 15 says,

I know that whatever God does, it endures forever: nothing can be added to it nor anything taken away from it. And God does it so that men will [reverently] fear him [revere and worship Him knowing that He is].

That which is now has already been and that which is to be already has been: and God seeks that which is passed by [so that history repeats itself]. Amplified Bible

When we read the bible prayerfully, learning and studying God's word, we begin to discern that everything about God is purposeful and every purpose is set into God's divine schedule of events. Ecclesiastes 3: 11 says, He has made all things in its time. He has also planted eternity in men's hearts and minds. The Amplified Bible describes this as a divinely planted sense of purpose working through the ages which nothing alone but God can satisfy. This purpose has to do with the destiny of the greatest of all God's creations, mankind.

Take a look at an example of God's timing in the life of David.

I Samuel 16: 1

And the Lord said unto Samuel, how long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite; for I have provided for myself a King among his sons.

Saul's failure as King was no surprise to God. Before Saul or David was ever born God's plan and purpose was set in motion. For in Deuteronomy 18: 15, Moses said, The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee, of thy bretheren, like unto me: unto him ye shall hearken. This scripture was talking about Jesus. The Old Testament is an example in types, of that which was to come. So God chose David a shepherd, and a prophet, to become a King. David was a type of Christ, because it has always been God's plan to point man to God's future. Therefore He uses that which has already been to point us to that which shall be. God chooses David; a shepherd, a prophet, a King as part of His eternal plan.

Samuel then goes to Jesse's house and anoints David, the least likely candidate of all of Jesse's sons, to be King of Israel. Did you ever notice that when Samuel went down to Jesse's house that Jesse never even bothered to call David out of the field to be presented to the prophet as a candidate for King? Jesse called all his sons, except David. When the Lord told Samuel not to look at their appearances because none of Jesse's other sons were God's choice for King. Samuel asked Jesse, are all your sons here? Then Jesse said, Oh yeah, the youngest boy is out tending sheep. He didn't even bother to mention his name.

I want you to know that God knows your name and your address, and at the set time He will bring you out of obscurity into your predestined purpose. In verse 13 of I Samuel chapter 16, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David in the midst of his brothers and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul. God chose David and anointed him king, and rejected Saul and took His Spirit away from him. So God showed David His plan for his life, but it was not his time yet, he has to be tested. God knew what was in David and He allowed him to be tested time and time again for thirteen years. While Saul pursued David to kill him, God was honing his character, building integrity, and instilling perseverance and loyalty. To ensure that when David became King he would not be like Saul. It is interesting to note that Saul was never tested by God before he became King, he received all of his tests after becoming King and he failed every test! David was tested before he became King and he passed every test. (to be continued)

How to Open the Heavens

The Secret Place

　

Psalm 91

1. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most high shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God in Him will I trust.

3. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare and the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

4. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

5. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

6. Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

7. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

8. Only with thy eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

9. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most high, thy habitation;

10. There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

11. For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

12. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13. Thou shat tread upon the lion and the adder, the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

14. Because he has set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known my name.

15. He shall call upon me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.

16. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.

　

　

The Ninety first Psalm speaks of a secret place in God. This secret place is the place of an open heaven. It is in essence the key that opens the heavenly realm to those who access this place by faith. There are many bible examples of those who accessed this secret place of an open heaven, where heaven actually touched the earth. Our first discussion will be concerning angels and how they intervene on man's behalf. Look at verses 11 and 12 of Psalms 91.

The New International Version says, For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. This promise of angelic protection is for the person who is dwelling in the secret place and abiding under the shadow of the Most High, El Shaddai. This person is continually saying; the Lord is my refuge, my fortress, my God in whom I trust. Verse 2 is the condition upon which the ministry of angels is promised. The person who is dwelling and abiding in the presence of God is in continual communion with God. Notice verses 9-12 says;

Because thou hast made the LORD, which is thy refuge, even the most High thy habitation There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. (emphasis mine)

　

When the King James version says He will give His angels charge over you to keep you in all your ways, the word charge according to Strong’s Concordance, means to appoint or command. The word keep, means to guard, to hedge about, as with thorns, to protect, preserve, reserve, save, be circumspect, to watch. The word ways, means journey, or highway side. No matter what path we take in life angels are commanded by God to guard us along the way; because we dwell, continually, occupy and stay permanently fixed in the secret place of the most High God.

Verse 9 is the condition upon which the ministry of angels is promised.

9. If you say the Lord is my refuge and make the most High your dwelling.

10. No harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.

11. For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.

Now carefully consider what is being conveyed here, Moses is the author of this psalm He saw all of the miracles that God performed for the children of Israel from the ten plagues in Egypt to the dividing of the Red Sea, to the drowning of Pharaoh and his entire army in the Red Sea. Before any miracle was performed Moses had to say something. Remember Moses was in constant communion with God so he always said what God said. Because Moses was in constant communion with God he begins this psalm with the secret to unlocking the heavens. He that dwelleth - remains habitually- in the secret place (the place of constant communion) of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. In verse two Moses tells us how to activate the open heavens, by saying something. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress; my God in Him will I trust. The secret to living in the place of miracles is true companionship with God. To live day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment in fellowship with God is to abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

In the book of James chapter 1verse 17 says, Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. God is light. In Him is no darkness at all. Therefore to abide or live habitually under His shadow is to be illuminated continually with light, the light of God. So in my understanding, to be illuminated with the light of God is to be in such fellowship and communion with God that He shares his heart with you, His desires, His secrets, His plans. And you in turn say what He has already said until things start to happen, these things or happenings are miracles.

This is why in Psalm 91 verse 2, Moses says, I will say of the Lord, He is My refuge and my fortress: my God, in him will I trust. Moses had such a tight relationship with the Lord that he was familiar with the attributes of God, he had experienced God. When God spoke to him from the burning bush and told him how He would deliver the Hebrews from the King of Egypt, and how Pharaoh would not let them go immediately but after God performed signs and wonders Pharaoh would indeed let them go. And it happened just the way God said. Moses began to learn the ways of God. The children of Israel knew the acts of God, they saw the many signs and wonders, but Moses had been behind the scenes with God, he had spent time talking to God and hearing the heart of God. Therefore he learned the ways of God, how to unlock the heavens and watch heaven touch the earth on the behalf of man.

Verses 3 and 4 say, Surely he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence: He shall cover you with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thou shield and buckler.

Moses says by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, surely he will deliver you. He says this emphatically, beyond the shadow of a doubt, because he had come to lean on, rely on, and trust God at his word. Moses saw God deliver a whole nation from the strongest kingdom in the world, the Egyptians. He saw God heal all the Israelites in one night and restore health and vitality to an entire nation when they obeyed God, partook of the Passover and remained in the house, the secret place under the blood. Then he lets us in on a secret, one of the ways of God, he sheds some light on how God does these things, remember he is illuminated with the knowledge of God, the ways of God, because he lives with God. In verse 4 the Holy Spirit through Moses says; He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust. According to Strong’s exhaustive concordance the word wing means, extremity: specifically of a bird or army. I believe this winged army is referring to the Lord’s host. God is often referred to as the Lord of Host in Hebrew this means Yahweh of armies (see Joshua 5: 14, 15 in the World English Bible) Pay close attention to what is being said here, the b. clause of verse 4 says, his truth is thy shield and buckler.

Jesus said in John 17: 17 Sanctify them by thy truth, thy word is truth. In this passage of scripture Jesus is interceding for us, you and me. He says the word of God is truth. The word is truth, the word is our shield and buckler, and angels are listening to us to perform the word when we say what God has already said. There must be agreement for two to walk together. Amos 3:3 says, can two walk together, except they agree?  When we agree with what God says then heaven touches the earth and we walk together with God and his angels walk with us to perform His words that we speak.

Psalm 103: 17-22 says,

17. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children;

18. To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

19. The Lord has prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

20. Bless the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.

21. Bless ye the Lord, all his ministers of his, that do his pleasure.

22. Bless the Lord, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the Lord O my soul.

This Psalm speaks of the dominion of the Kingdom of Heaven, which is given to angels and mankind. Because of God’s mercy he has given dominion to us and our children when we understand covenant and keep his commandments. He has also given his angels charge over us to keep us in all our ways according to Psalm 91: 11. Psalm 103 verse 20 tells us how to activate these angels. God has mighty angels who are excellent in strength to do his commandments, they are listening and waiting for us to speak the word of God so that they can exercise heavens dominion in the affairs of man.

Let’s look at Daniel 10: 12, 13, 20

12. Then he said unto me, fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. (emphasis added)

13. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia, withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the prince of Persia.

Notice that the angel said to Daniel, I am come for thy words. Let us now look at the pretext of this passage of scriptures. In verse 2 of chapter 10, Daniel says he was mourning for three whole weeks, this word mourning denotes afflicting ones soul. Isaiah 58: 3 says, Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? Wherefore have we afflicted our soul and thou takest no knowledge. Verse 5 of that same chapter says, Is it such a fast that I have chosen? A day for a man to afflict his soul? So when Daniel says he was mourning three whole weeks , he was on a fast. In the next verse he says, I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all until three whole weeks were fulfilled. Now while Daniel was fasting and praying, remember the angel said he had come because of Daniel’s words, the heavens were opened and Daniel saw a vision. Heaven actually touched the earth because Daniel fasted and prayed. The angel that spoke to Daniel gave him some insight as to what is happening in the heavens. Gabriel, who is God’s special messenger was dispatched to Daniel on the first day that he started praying, but he was detained by the prince of the Kingdom of Persia for twenty-one days. Then Gabriel shares a revelation with Daniel in verse 13b he says, But, lo, Michael one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

There is constant battle in the heavens, we must contend in this battle with fasting and prayer. We are not exempt from fighting, we are soldiers in God’s army, we are on the winning side. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, II Corinthians 10: 4. Principalities and powers set up strong holds, which are patterns of thoughts, in the minds of individuals in their region of domain. That is to say, when a principality has the dominion over a certain region that evil spirit has little ground troops called demons who harass, torment, and influence the thinking of the people who live in that region of his domain. That is why some communities or even countries may have a high rate of violence, or poverty, or racial friction, because these are the demons that are harassing the people of that region under the control of the principality that has set up his throne in the heavenlies above that area. When we dethrone these principalities then their power is broken, and the strongholds must crumble. People will be able to receive the gospel of the kingdom and be conformed to the teachings of Christ by the renewing of their minds. We must use our weapons of prayer and fasting to dethrone principalities and unlock the heavens over nations, communities and our own families. To be continued.

By Donna Louise

　

　

We Need More Champions

Champions

Joshua means Jehovah saves or Jehovah is Salvation. The Greek transliteration of this name is Jesus. (See Hebrews 4: 8). Joshua worked with Moses since the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, He continued to be Moses’ assistant throughout the wilderness wanderings. (Exodus 24: 13) Joshua and Caleb were the only spies who favored conquering the land of Canaan despite the height of the people there. They were the only two of their generation that God permitted to cross the river Jordan. (see Numbers chapter 14 and Deuteronomy chapter 1)
Joshua 1: 1 After the death of Moses the Lord spoke to Joshua.
Moses was God’s set man, God always spoke to Moses, there was one defined leader who received his instructions from God then he delegated his authority. It wasn’t until after Moses’ death that God began to speak to Joshua and give him instructions, he was now God’s set man. So Joshua 1: 1 could read, After the death of Moses then the Lord spoke to Joshua. Joshua was now God’s set man to lead his generation.
Moses can represent the old way, the traditional way. After we allow the old traditional ways in us to die, then we can hear from God to receive His instructions for this generation.

Let’s take a look at Joshua 1: 1-6 Moses is dead and Joshua is instructed to take this generation and cross the Jordan. They are to break out of their boundaries and limits and possess the land God promised to their parents. Because their parents didn’t possess the faith to take the land , the promise still remained for whatever generation would have the faith to rise up and take the promise of God by force at the appointed time.
You see the promise of God was; "Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I have given to them…" God had already given them the land all they had to do to possess it was to rise up in faith and take it! This generation had wandered around in the wilderness and watched their parents, a disobedient and faithless generation, die out. Now it was their time, their day, their moment of destiny. All they had to do was have faith, faith in the God of the whole earth, faith in what He said, He was able to perform! You see God was giving them more than land He was giving them an opportunity to become champions of faith, giant slayers, land owners, history makers, world shakers and all they had to do was believe what God said!


     Joshua 1:1-6





1. After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' minister,
2. Moses My servant is dead. So now arise [take his place], go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, the Israelites.
3. Every place upon which the sole of your foot shall tread, that have I given to you, as I promised Moses.

4. From the wilderness and this Lebanon to the great river Euphrates--all the land of the Hittites [Canaan]--and to the Great [Mediterranean] Sea on the west shall be your country.
5. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you..
6. Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.



Take a look at Hebrews 3: 15, Then while it is [still] called today. If you would hear His voice and when you hear it, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion [in the desert, when the people provoked and irritated and embittered God against them].
16. For who were they who heard and yet were rebellious and provoked [Him]? Was it not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?
17. And with whom was He irritated and provoked and grieved for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dismembered bodies were strewn and left in the desert.
18. And to whom did He swear they would not enter into His rest, but to those who disobeyed [who had not listened to His word and who refused to be compliant or be persuaded]?
19. So we see that they were not able to enter [into His rest], because of their unwillingness to adhere to and trust in and rely on God [unbelief shut them out]. Amplified Bible
　The book of Hebrews helps us to understand that God is in the business of making champions. He had already raised up Moses, a fugitive, a lone shepherd, seemingly a failure, and He sent him to champion a cause. Setting a whole nation free from oppression. And God did this through Moses by showing His signs and wonders to the whole world. When God used Moses all He needed was one man who had faith. When God met Moses in the desert Moses didn’t even have faith in himself, that’s a good place to start. Did you ever notice that as long as Moses thought he was the "big man" in Egypt, God didn’t even speak to him? But when he humbled himself in the desert tending sheep, that’s when God began to commune with him. The secret of a true champion is true humility. (That last statement could change your life forever if you take it to heart). The more He elevates you, the more you humble yourself, the more He lifts you up, the more you humble yourself, the more He enlarges you, the more you humble yourself, the more He increases you the more you humble yourself. And when you are small in your own eyes He’ll make you big in everybody else’s eyes. The bible says that Moses was the most humble man on the face of the earth. How did he get that way? Well, he didn’t start out like that, he was prideful, arrogant, full of himself to the point that he committed murder and expected to get away with it. But God had a destiny for him and had to hide him in the desert for forty years until he was no longer big in his own eyes but small enough for God to use him. So God introduces Himself to this lone shepherd by appearing in a burning bush. And Moses investigates a bush that is burning but not being consumed and recognizes that this must be the finger of God. And it’s at this place of recognizing God that God begins to show Moses that he has called him to be a champion.

Moses was a fugitive, banished from the only home he knew, Pharaoh’s Palace; and here he was alone in the desert, the man who was once in line to be the next Pharaoh, a god to the Egyptian nation, the mightiest empire in the world. Now do you see why God had to allow life to humble Moses? If you don’t humble yourself, I promise you life will humble you. Moses was so unsure of himself that he gave God the lame excuse of not being able to speak the Egyptian language fluently anymore. So God gave him his brother Aaron as his interpreter, his mouth piece.

Hebrews 11: 23-29 says, Prompted by faith Moses, after his birth, was kept concealed for three months by his parents, because they saw how comely the child was; and they were not overawed and terrified by the king’s decree.
When Moses came face to face with his destiny assignment it was faith in God that stood up in him and caused him to go in to the Pharaoh and say the Lord said "let my people go." That’s why the bible says train up a child in the way he/she should go and when he/she is old he/she will not depart from it. Moses was taught faith by his parents.
Moses a man of faith, a champion, had taken the children of Israel as far as he could take them and Joshua, his assistant, who had seen Moses’ faith in action, believes God and rises to do exploits. And he’s bringing a generation with him. Joshua must train a generation of champions. I believe that because this generation, the Joshua generation, saw their disobedient, unbelieving parents die in the wilderness they chose to believe God. Their decision to believe God put them in a zone, "the faith zone", the Hebrew writer called it "entering into God’s rest". Hebrews 3: 18 says, And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? Verse 19. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Hebrews 4: 1-3 says, Therefore since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He said: ‘So I swore in my wrath, "they shall not enter My rest,"’ although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

　
The works that were finished from the foundation of the world are our destiny assignments. When we recognize that God is, humble ourselves, and step into the "faith zone", we move from being ordinary men and women to champions.
Joshua was Moses’ assistant for forty years in the wilderness wandering and he learned his faith lessons well, through Moses his mentor

to be continued
I.    Joshua learns to live in the presence of God
II.   Joshua learns the importance of intercessory prayer
III.  Joshua learns to obey God, even if His commands do not seem to make sense
IV.  Joshua learns to switch when God says switch
V.   Joshua learns that with faith comes courage
VI.  Joshua learns The strategies of God are guaranteed to succeed
VII. Joshua learns to speak the "faith command"
VIII.Caleb inherits his land (he and Joshua are companions of champions)
IX.  Joshua fulfills his purpose
X.   Joshua raises up a nation of Champions who enter into God’s "faith zone" and find rest

Entering the Faith Zone

Forgive

Forgive
 (an excerpt of a dialogue which spans three generations)

Why da peoples always looking down on us?
…. I don know.
We works, we slave for da white mane.
My churen, dey thank I was too hard on dem.
But dats what dey need.
Hard work,
too much fun make um lazy.
How dey gwoin get somewhere in life, if all dey do is play.
So yea, I made mines work , sun up to sun down.
All day.
Dey didn’t like it much, dey didn’t even like me much,
But it was fer dey own good.
I took um to chorch too.
Dey went,
dey sang in da choir.
Dey was ershels on the junior ershal boad.
Den time dey was old ‘nuf to have dey way,
Dey stopped gwoin to chorch.
Dey say, dey don’t wont to be no hypocrite.
….Dey seen too much.
Me and dey Momma
fightin, cussin,
Her sneakin,
My beatin.
Dey don’t wont no parts uh chorch.
But dey knows God….
Dey knows to pray when thangs gets hard.
I likes to think I taught um dat.
Why every body so hard on da Black mane?
Ain’t no other mane ever mess’d up?
What bout all dem slave masta’s, sneakin off to da slave quartas
In da middle of da night?
Wasn’t dey spose ta be home wif dey churen and wife?
Why we got to take all the flack jes cause we’s Black?
What we do to deserve such pain?
What God gat ‘gist the Black mane.
Make me feel like bein born a Black mane,
Is a cryin shame.
I wish I could come back and redeem my name….

Why was you always so hard on us?
All the other kids were in the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts
And you said,
Ain’t nothin to dat stuff.
They were always dressed so nice.
Their mommas gave us their hand me downs.
Momma washed them and ironed them and we wore them
to church.
Their worse clothes were our best clothes.
Why were we so po?
The Preacher’s kids.
I just want to know.
You work’d two , sometimes three jobs.
Ford Motor Company in the afternoons,
shade tree mechanic and a
janitor at night
We had to be quiet as little church mice,
Don’t wake him up,
Shhhh, be quite.
You was like some mystery man who
slept during the day and only came out at night.
If you say, you did it for us
I beg to differ.
We never had nothing.
Momma used to steal from the grocery money
so we could go on our class field trips.
"If you want to go, don’t tell yo Daddy"
She used to say.
Why was you always so tight?
Frugal, stingy?
It just wasn’t right…
I don’t understand it to this day.

I could just keep quiet, but I’m gonna talk.
I did what I saw all da utter mens do.
Dey worked and saved dey money for dem self.
One day yo' wife gone finally leave you
Fo' some utter mane.
Dem kids ain’t never gone be good fo nothin'.
So I sent my money down south.
On some land.
Twenty acres,
going back and recapture my youth…
Dat was my plan.
Why everybody so hard on da Black man?
Nigga gotta do, what a nigga gotta do,
Scuse my French.

See, that's what I’m talking bout.
You could have chose another way, but you perpetuated the curse.
I don’t know what’s worse.
We were po and we didn’t have to be,
Because all you thought about was me, me, me.


to be continued







　

Smothered Chicken Recipe

Hello everyone, in this video I am sharing my Smothered Chicken Recipe. This is my family's favorite recipe. It is very easy to prepare and delicious!

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken cleaned and cut into parts, seasoned, floured and fried
( I season my chicken with onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, Lawreys Seasoning Salt, ginger powder, sage, and paprika)
1 Cup sliced white mushrooms or more
1 Cup sliced onions or more
1 Tablespoon Thyme
1 Tablespoon Rosemary
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 package chicken flavor, or 2 Cups chicken stock for gravy
1 to 2 tablespoons Crushed Red Peppers or season to taste

After frying chicken, pour off all the excess oil and use pan dripping to make gravy. Sprinkle about 1/4th Cup of flour on  pan drippings and brown the flour along with pan drippings then add 2 Cups of chicken stock or water with flavor pack to browned flour. Next, add herbs and salt and pepper, stir until smooth. Add mushrooms and onions cover and simmer for about 45 minutes. Taste and add more seasonings if needed, to taste. Next add your fried chicken parts and cover with lid. Allow to simmer for about an hour. Spoon gravy over chicken and sprinkle on the crushed red peppers enjoy!

Enjoy!

Donna Louise