dickbraswell

Word for Today:  December 31

Use what you have. Begin where you are.

David, the sling shot boy, did not wait until he had something else… he took what he had and trusted God to make it work…  He took his staff… his sling… and five smooth stones.  He did not wait for something better or for more equipment to arrive… He used what he had.

You can take what you have and defeat the devil today.  If you have been waiting for something else you have been waiting in vain.  Some are waiting for more faith…. more strength… more favorable circumstances… more money…  but God wants you to take what you have and use it to overcome the devil.

You are a New Creation in Christ Jesus and you can do all things through Him.  You have more than enough right now to overcome the devil. Remember… the devil’s biggest and best is still no match for the smallest and weakest in the Kingdom.   Jesus said: “He that is least in the Kingdom is greater than John the Baptist…”

David took what he had and partnered with God. And that, friend, will always give you the advantage over the powers of darkness.  Any warfare with the devil is always unfair to the devil…  he always has the short end of the stick and is at the mercy of the weakest Believer.

What you have is enough.

Use it

Word for Today:  December 29

There is only one fool-proof evidence of the New Birth.

Jesus gave this criteria to us in His Word.  This is the one most important characteristic of the Christian Walk.  Nothing is more important than this.  This one demand and one command is basic.  Jesus talked about it more than anything else and He demonstrated it more perfectly than any other message of His earthly ministry.  He longed to see it in His disciples and He knew that it would be the basis for the New Testament Church.  If the Church is to BE what Jesus died for it to be and if the Church is to DO what He died for it to do, then this one thing is absolutely necessary.

I am convinced that this is the greatest need in this hour.  It is a need for the Church and it is a need for all Evangelical Ministries.  It is perhaps the greatest need in your life as a Believer.  It is not impossible.  It is possible.  It is necessary.  It is vital.  It is fundamental to the continuation of the Gospel on earth.

Jesus called this a “new commandment.”  A new commandment I give unto you…  (John 13:34)  He knew that He was soon to depart and He wanted so desperately for His followers to be adequately equipped to continue His Ministry on earth.  He did not emphasize theology.  He did not emphasize education.  He did not emphasize experience or ability.  He brought attention to the one thing that will guarantee the continued success of the Gospel Message.

He also stated that this would be the one qualifying characteristic that would cause the world to know how we stand with God.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples… (John 13:35)   BY THIS….

This is the one thing that will tell the world where you stand with God.  And this is the greatest thing needed in the world today.

That thing is LOVE

Word for Today:  December 28

What God has sown.

What God has planted in me is destined to come out of me.  It may be in seed form now, but it is time for the seed to grow into its fullest manifestation.

It’s there.  It’s time.  It’s happening.   Who will you be?  A King or a Kid?  A Seed or a Tree?

Name your dream.  Declare your intentions.  Speak with your mouth words that make things happen.  Faith words.  Word words.  God Words.  Heaven Words.

You and I will never exceed our declarations.  Our declarations determine our direction. Our declarations determine our destiny.  What we speak out of our hearts will create or destroy.  Words are instruments of creation or destruction.  Words make things.

There are Life Producing Forces (seeds) inside every believer.  These forces are put in us by the Work of the Holy Spirit at the time we are Born Again.  They are seeds destined to grow and produce.  They are forces that need to be released into the world.  Into our families.  Into our relationships.  Into the total experience of our lives.

They are in me.  They are in every Believer.  However, seeds are worthless unless they produce.  One seed is not sufficient to sustain life by itself.  It takes many seeds which are planted in good ground to bring forth a crop that is sufficient to sustain victorious living.

The real challenge is to grow these seeds into maturity.  As God plants these Seeds in us, the enemy plants weeds. The purpose of the weeds is to choke out the seeds.

These seeds are the building blocks of the Kingdom of God.  Jesus prayed for the Kingdom to come and for the Will of God to be done ON EARTH just as it is presently being done in Heaven.  These Seeds will produce God’s Kingdom on earth when and if they are planted in good ground and if proper conditions for growth are present.

Word for Today:  December 27

“I don’t know what to do!”

Have you ever been in a place where you honestly did not know what to do?

The first temptation is the temptation to try to fix it ourselves.  Plans.  Procedures.  Steps to take.  People to see.  We want to “fix things.”  We want to “fix” people.  Instead of throwing our cares and worries and tribulations on Jesus, we think we can fix it ourselves.  We try.  And it does not work.  We try something else, and it does not work either.  We reason.  We consider the problem.  We analyze it, examine it, look at it from every angle and try again.  Another failure.

Finally, we remember to pray.  And seek God.  And ask God.  And turn to God and confess that without His intervention, all our human and natural efforts will not produce any answers.

…God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee. 2Chron 20: 12

The King’s army was outnumbered (2Chron 20). They were defenseless against such overwhelming odds.  They had no escape route…. Nowhere to run.  Nowhere to hide.  Nowhere to seek refuge.  They were in line for defeat.  Humiliation.  And death.  They had exhausted all their resources.  Nothing they had and nothing they could do would be able to deliver them from total disaster and defeat.  The king finally confessed: “I don’t know what to do.  But my eyes are on You, Lord….”

There are some attempts at victory that you need to “give up.”  Because they are your plans, your ideas, your efforts and they are done in your strength.  I remember praying one time:  “Lord, I don’t know what to do.  I’ve tried everything I know to try.  I don’t have any resources left.  I give up.”   In my fit of self-pity and false humility, God responded to my heart:  “Good!  Now that you are through, I can do something.”

Giving up on your efforts does not mean giving in to the devil.  It simply means changing your “trying” into “trusting” and then leaving it all to God.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.  1Pe 5:7

 “Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth…”  Mark 9:23

God is a Miracle God.  He knows all about miracles.  God likes miracles and God performs miracles.  God delights in performing the IMPOSSIBLE for those who love Him.  God wants you to receive your miracle more than you desire to have it…  His desire for you to receive is greater than your desire to get…  Hallelujah…  God’s ways are miraculous ways.  He declares that “My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts…” (Isa 55:9) 

satan hates miracles.  Miracles have done him in in the past and they will overcome him in the present.  Miracles prove God and reveal His power.  Miracles always defeat the devil and prevent him from fulfilling his mission.  Healing is a miracle.  Deliverance is a miracle.  Salvation is a miracle.  The Holy Spirit Baptism is a miracle.  All these defeats the devil and make an open show of his weakness and helplessness. 

The Church needs miracles…  To long we have operated in our own strength and our own ability.  We have manufactured the machine, kept it well oiled and repaired, spent our efforts in lowering empty buckets into empty wells and we have grown tired of bringing nothing up…  The church has, in many cases, become nothing more than a man-made organism functioning in the limitations of man’s strength and human ability.  THE CHURCH NEEDS MIRACLES…  The church needs CHALLENGES that will shake it out of its self-sufficiency and mediocrity…  If we are not doing the MIRACULOUS, we are doing no more than General Motors or Chrysler or Ford or IBM.  Thank God…  The Church is growing to the place to EXPECT MIRACLES because we have reached the limits of our strength and our ability.  Miracles are to be the NORM and not the EXCEPTION…  We are talking MIRACLES TODAY.

You NEED MIRACLES.   There are things you can not accomplish in the natural.  There are goals you cannot reach in the natural.  There are desires in your heart that you cannot attain in the natural.  There are Mountains you cannot move and Oceans you cannot cross and Circumstances and Situations that you cannot change in the natural.  YOU NEED A MIRACLE…  You have needs you are unable to meet and hurts you are unable to heal and bills you are unable to pay…  YOU NEED GOD and YOU NEED A MIRACLE FROM HEAVEN IN 2023…

God spoke to me over 10 years ago and gave me specific instructions regarding MOVING into the MIRACULOUS.  When GOD speaks, I LISTEN…  God does not waste words and He does not waste effort…  He told me what to do and how to do it…  He instructed me to teach you how you can GET YOUR MIRACLE.  Many of you have listened and learned and acted on what I have taught by the anointing of God.  Today, you are living in the MIRACULOUS.  You have received many miracles and God has been honored in your life.  You have begun to walk in great success and prosperity, and you have lived in healing and health.  You have seen God meet your needs and you have become a powerful witness to the Greatness and Power of God.    You are LIVING PROOF that GOD is FAITHFUL to His Word… that He is a COVENANT-KEEPING and a PROMISE-KEEPING God…  I am EXCITED as I consider what God is going to accomplish in your life in 2023.

There are three root causes for failure and defeat in the Christian Life.  All your failures and disappointments and defeats can be traced to these root causes: 

(1) Ignorance of the Word  (2) Disobedience of the Word  and (3) Doubt and Unbelief.  In this study we will consider FAITH which is the opposite of doubt and unbelief. 

FAITH is the Key.  A Kingdom Key.  Faith is Believing.  Faith is Believing when there is no evidence.  Faith is believing when there is no obvious reason to believe.  Faith is reaching out into nothing and holding on until nothing becomes something.  Faith is the “substance” of things hoped for and the “evidence” of things not seen… (Heb 11:1) 

Hebr. 11:1   Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith is the key to SALVATION.  You cannot be saved without it.

Faith is the key to VICTORY  “and this is the victory which overcometh the world even our faith…”  You will never be a winner without it.

Faith is the key to HEALING.  You will stay sick without it.

Faith is the key to PROSPERITY.  You will always be broke without it.

Faith is the key to RECEIVING from God.  You will never receive “anything” from God without it

Faith is the key to PLEASING God.  “For without faith it is impossible to please Him…”  You cannot please God without it.

Faith is a POWERFUL SPIRITUAL FORCE.

Faith is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY For MIRACLES.

Faith will change FACTS.

Faith will MOVE MOUNTAINS.  (At least that is what Jesus said.)

Faith will quench ALL THE FIREY DARTS OF THE enemy.  “Above all take the shield of faith wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the enemy…”  (Eph 6:16)

Faith will BELIEVE God in spite of what it “looks like.”  It never budges or wavers.)

Faith is a WAY OF LIFE  “The just shall live by faith…”

Faith never SEES an IMPOSSIBLE CIRCUMSTANCE or a HELPLESS SITUATION

Faith is ALWAYS POSITIVE and OPTIMISTIC

(Doubt and unbelief are always negative and pessimistic)

Faith elevates the believer into the realm of the SUPERNATURAL

Faith will never BELIEVE ANYTHING that IS CONTRARY TO THE WORD

Faith TALKS. 

Faith SPEAKS…. “Says.”

Faith EXPECTS.

Faith SEES.  “We walk by faith, not by sight…”

Faith HEARS.  “Faith cometh by hearing…”

Faith LOVES.  “Faith worketh by love…”

Faith GIVES.  God is a Faith God and God Gives…

There are some FUNDAMENTALS or PRE-REQUISITES to understanding and operating in Victorious Faith. 

1. KNOW GOD

Our concept of God has been limited and incorrect in the past.  We have been taught that God is mad and mean.  We have often lived in great fear and anxiety because we were told that God was going to GET EVEN…  He has been presented as a GOD of JUDGMENT and a GOD of REVENGE and a GOD of GREAT WRATH.  At the same time, we were told how UNWORTHY we are and how we are nothing but WORMS and under CONSTANT CONDEMNATION.  The main MESSAGE from the pulpit was FEAR ORIENTED and it continually emphasized how HOT HELL IS and how LONG ETERNITY IS.   Thank God, times have changed…  Our level of Revelation has increased, and we have discovered the true nature of God…

God is a GIVER.  God is a GIVER because He is a LOVER.  God us a LOVER because He is a FATHER.  God does not Kill, murder, take away, hinder, hurt, test, try, make sick, give cancer, cause poverty, or “get even”.  God is GOOD and He LOVES, GIVES, MULTIPLIES, HEALS, DELIVERS, SETS FREE, MAKES RICH, FIXES, HELPS, STRENGTHENS, PROVIDES, PROTECTS…

It is the dirty devil that KILLS, STEALS, ROBS, DESTROYS, MAKES SICK, HINDERS, HURTS, BINDS, SUBSTRACTS, BREAKS, TAKES YOUR MONEY, YOUR HAPPINESS, YOUR JOY, and YOUR PEACE.  If it is GOOD, it is GOD if it is BAD, it is the devil…

Keep your MIND RENEWED and RIGHT concerning the NATURE of GOD…

2.  KNOW ABOUT FAITH

There are a lot of FLAKY IDEAS about FAITH.  The reason there are a lot of FLAKY ideas about faith is because we have had a lot of FLAKY FAITH PREACHERS and TEACHERS…  Some have been hindered and hurt and disillusioned and even disgusted by some of the crazy things that have been taught as “faith”.  Some have died and some have backslidden, and some have quit God because of FLAKY TEACHING about FAITH.  “Charismatics” and “Word People” and “Faith Churches” have been slandered and attacked and abused because of the incorrect and unbiblical presentation of “faith”.  (I know we have in the past…) We MUST HAVE an UNDERSTANDING of what FAITH really is ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE…  According to the Bible:

(a) Faith is an ATTRIBUTE of GOD.  God is a faith God.  We are commanded to have “the faith of God” or to have “the God-kind of faith”.  God operates by Faith.  His Kingdom is a Kingdom that operated by Faith.  His New Creation is to live and function by FAITH. 

When you were BORN AGAIN, you received the NATURE and CHARACTER of your HEAVENLY FATHER.  His TRAITS and CHARACTERISTICS and NATURE came inside of you.  Just as you received certain characteristics from your earthly parents, you received GOD CHARACTERISTICS from your HEAVENLY FATHER…  They are in you RIGHT NOW.  They have been in you since you got BORN AGAIN.  God’s FAITH is in you RIGHT NOW…

(b) Faith is a SPIRITUAL FORCE.  It is a POWERFUL and SUPERCEEDING SPRITUAL FORCE.  It was present before there was a World or a Universe or a Human Race.  Faith existed before the natural world existed:  “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God…”  (Heb 11:3)  It is a FORCE that has more POWER than FACTS.  It is a FORCE of the FIRST ORDER…  Because it is, it has more power and more authority and more ability and more strength than anything in the Natural World…  Faith is stronger than disease…   Faith is stronger than poverty…  Faith is stronger than any bondage of the devil…  FAITH is the VICTORY that OVERCOMETH the WORLD (Cosmos)…

(c) Faith is the VICTORY…  (Nike) nee-kay.  “Conquest”… “The means of success”  Every area of weakness and lack is the result of a failure of your faith.  If you are living by and operating in faith, you will live in CONSTANT VICTORY and will always have a “means of success”…

(d) Faith works… but it works by LOVE…   “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love…”  (Galatians 5:6)

3. KNOW THE WORD

Who you are and what you have and what you can do as a Believer, are all clearly revealed in the Word of God.  The Will of God for you is revealed in the Word of God.  Jesus is the Word, and the Word is Jesus.  When you get in the Word you get into Jesus and when you get the Word in you get Jesus in you…   When Jesus is in you, and you KNOW IT you will be able to release your FAITH believe for the impossible…  Do you know why I act like I do?  Because Jesus is in me…  Do you know why this Church does what it does?  Because Jesus is in it…  In order to get FAITH developed and strong and mighty and great, you must get in the Word  “Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God…”   (Rom 10:17)

It is important for you to KNOW WHO YOU ARE, WHAT YOU HAVE and WHAT YOU CAN DO as a BELIEVER.  satan constantly tempts you to DOUBT.  he wants you to doubt who you are (he tried to get Jesus to doubt Who He was.) or to wonder who you are or to be ignorant of who you are.  As long as you are NOT SURE of your POSITION in CHRIST and your AUTHORITY as a BELIEVER your faith will not work.  You cannot receive what you do not know KNOW KNOW KNOW KNOW…  GOD has raised up CHURCHES like this one and PREACHERS like I am in order to instruct HIS PEOPLE of their PRIVILEDGES and POWERS and RIGHTS that are revealed in the WORD.  The POWER of FAITH working in your SPIRIT will change your SOUL and your BODY.  Your Spirit is FULL OF FAITH…  Your faith will fix your MIND and HEAL your BODY.  As you GET the WORD BUILT IN YOU faith is PRODUCED and DEVELOPED.  “Faith cometh by HEARING and hearing by the WORD of GOD….”  We are set in the Body as MASTER CRAFTSMEN to BUILD you up in the WORD.  You are “God’s Building,” and I am a Holy Ghost Craftsman equipped with the Proper Building Materials to make you STRONG in the LORD and in the POWER of His MIGHT…  HALLELUJAH…

4.  ACT

We are not to be “hearers only” but DOERS of the Word…  Acting on what you know in faith RELEASES the POWER Of God…  Doing the Word is making the WORD FLESH.  Burn your bridges…  Leave yourself no “way of escape”…  Forget about “what if” or “just in case” or “plan B”…  Go past the “point of no return.”  COMMIT…  GO FOR IT…  Reckless, bold, and daring FAITH pleases God…  Without faith (this kind) you cannot please Him…  If it is not of faith (this kind) it is sin…  Stand on the Word and Decree the Promises of God…  Grab hold of God and refuse to let go…  Hide His Word in your heart and never let it slip…  DO THE WORD…

 How do you release your faith and get it out where it will work miracles  for you? 

(1) Knowing God

(2) Knowing about Faith

(3) Knowing the Word

(4) Acting… Doing the Word

Word for Today:  December 24

The Word Became Flesh.

Tomorrow, the whole world will recognize and celebrate the Miracle of the Ages.  Nothing in time or eternity can match the significance of what happened on a Judean hillside nearly 2000 years ago.

All of time has been divided into “before” and “after” because of this Divine Visitation.  Jesus came.  Jesus came from heaven.  Jesus was sent by God into the earth.  He came in the form of flesh and was born of a virgin.  This had never happened before and it will never happen again.

This is the Miracle of the Ages.  God became Flesh.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.  John 1:14

The Incarnation is the most significant, awesome and overwhelming work of God since the Creation of all things.It (the Incarnation) is the crowning achievement of the Work of God and is the most complete expression and revelation of His Nature and Character.

This is the Real Christmas

Word for Today:  December 23

Proper Praying

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. John 15:7

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.Matt. 21:22

When we meet the condition of these verses we do not even have to question the possibility of our prayers being answered.  It is ALWAYS God’s will to answer any prayer that is prayed in faith for anything that is covered by the promises of God.

It is the Will of God for you and me to get what we pray for.  And we will  IF we abide in Him and His Words abide in us.  As long as you and I are in harmony with the Word of God we will not ask one thing that the Word forbids.

There are absolutely no limitations to what Believers can receive from God according to His Promises.  It is tragic that many of God’s Children are easily satisfied with falling short of so many good things when they could enjoy  a super abundance.

We have settled to a level far below what God has provided.  We have accepted a “hit or miss” and a “hope so” and “shot-gun” approach to our praying.  We have been satisfied with far less than what God has fully promised.

The Grace of God is frustrated any time we accept less than that which God has freely given us.

I do not frustrate the grace of God…  Gal. 2:21

Word for Today:  December 22

God has restored to the believer that which Adam lost

Notice:

• Righteousness: right standing with God
• The Image of God in complete perfection
• Authority and dominion over the earth and all life forms on earth
• Communion and Fellowship with the Father
• Perfect and perpetual health
• Prosperity: Adam had no needs that were not met
• Protection: Adam never had an accident or suffered a loss

The believer has the same privileges and rights that Adam had and enjoyed before he sinned!  After Jesus conquered death, satan’s legal right to rule over the believer was destroyed.  satan now has no legal right to touch any believer.    Whatever satan succeeds in doing to the believer he does through deception and lies.  If you know your legal rights and privileges, you can always conquer satan.

If you are born again take a look at what is in you:

• The Life of God: Zoe
• The Love of God: Agape
• The Faith of God
• The Holiness of God
• The Creative Power of God
• The Goodness of God
• The Mercy of God
• The Forgiveness of God
• The Generosity of God
• The Patience of God
• The Power – Ability – Authority – Right of God
• The Optimism of God
• The Truth of God
• The Justice of God
• The Honesty and Integrity of God
• The Compassion of God
• The Strength of God
• The Joy and Gladness of God

If you are Saved, you are a New Creation, If you are a New Creation you have all New Creation Privileges… and you have them right now.

They are yours.

And they are yours forever

Word for Today:  December 21

Christ hath…

Christ hath (past tense) redeemed us from the curse of the law… that the blessings of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:13; 29)

• The Believer is redeemed from the curse of the Law.
• The Believer is redeemed from Guilt and Condemnation.
• The Believer is redeemed from Sickness and Disease.
• The Believer is redeemed from Failure and Poverty.
• The Believer is redeemed from satan’s control and dominion.
• The Believer is redeemed from the penalty of sin (hell).
• The Believer no longer lives under the law of sin and death but has been redeemed and empowered to live by the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus. (Rom. 8:2)

“Redeemed” means purchased or ransomed in order to set free.  Therefore, the Believer is a Purchased Possession of the Father.   We are bought with the Precious Blood of His Dear Son Jesus Christ.

And we belong to and are the property of God.  We are literally God’s Possession, God’s Dwelling and God’s Building.

For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.  1 Cor 3:9

Word for Today:  December 20

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:19

How do we get God’s abundant supply to our constant need?

We need to understand the Natural World as it relates to and exists with (alongside of) the Spiritual World.  Most people do not realize that there are literally two worlds existing (in the present) side by side.  One is the Natural World (the world we can see and touch and taste and hear and feel).  The visible, natural, physical world.  This is the world we live in.  The world that our mind (soul) and our body relates to.  This world is easy to perceive because it relates to our reasoning… our senses… our sight.   It can be experienced and understood by the natural faculties of man.

However, the “natural” man cannot receive (understand) the things of the Spirit of God because they are “spiritually discerned…” they relate to the Other World…The Spiritual World.

But the natural man(psuchikos) receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Cor 2:14

But he that is spiritual (pneumatikos)  judgeth (investigates, examines, searches and discerns) all things, (as to whether they are Truth or Fact). 1 Cor 2:15

Believing God begins in the Spirit and manifests in the Natural.  It effects change in the Natural World because it is reality in the Spiritual. World.  What we make as a determined and conscious act of our human will starts things happening.

The Spirit of God and the Truth of His Word are always more Powerful in operation than the natural and physical facts that are happening all around us.

When our Believing explodes as a Revelation coming out of our Spirit, it produces change in the physical, natural world.

His supply will always satisfy our need