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Word for Today:  April 27

 

What God wants.

God wants His Kingdom to come in the earth.  God wants His will to be done in the earth.  God wants the same things that are happening in heaven to happen on earth.  This is the prayer that Jesus prayed in Matthew chapter 6:

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy Kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven…

This is what God wants.

This is why you have a purpose in life.  This is why you can do all things through Christ.  This is the reason for the existence of the Church.  The Church is here to bring God’s Kingdom from heaven to earth.  If we are not bringing God’s Kingdom from heaven to earth we are not doing what we were born again to do.

The Christian Faith is not a salve for the guilty conscience.  The Christian Faith is not a passive religious experience to make people “feel” good.  It is a dynamic declaration of victory to the powers of darkness and a furious fight to take enemy territory.  The Christian Faith… especially the Spirit-Filled Christian faith is Warfare. We are fighting the Good fight of Faith.  The battle is the Lord’s and the Victory is ours.

Any time. Every time.  All the time.

 This is transition time.  This is moving time.  This is a new time.  This is a new place.  This is a new season.  A new challenge.  A new opportunity

The history of Israel reflects God’s Dealings with His People. 

Joshua Chapter 1:1-7     5  Prophetic Principles…

At this time in Israel’s history, several things are apparent:

1. 1. They needed and wanted to get to a better place. They were tired of the desert. They were ready to move.
2. 2. There were formidable obstacles and impossibilities standing in the way. There was a flooded Jordan and a barricaded Jericho.
3. 3. They had to commit to change.   They could (1) go back (2) stay put or (3) move out in total trust…. Total faith.  Willing to Take a Risk that they had never taken before.  And trusting God on a level that was a New Season for them.

And they had some Life Changing reasons to forge ahead in faith:

• They knew they were God’s People
• They had anointed Leaders that could and would hear from God.
• They had experienced miraculous deliverances in the past

There is Prophetic Significance in this Biblical Narrative for you and Orchard Assembly…

• You have a passion to move to the Place God has prepared for you. That’s the purpose of this series of meetings.
• In the past, you have faced formidable obstacles that were in the way of your progress… and will face some as you determine to move into your New Season
• You have experienced miraculous deliverances in the past. You are familiar with the Power of God have seen His deliverance in the past.

  “The Lord Spoke”  (1)

• God always gives direction to His Appointed and Anointed leaders. He has spoken in the past and He is speaking today.  God has many ways of speaking… Church is often where you get to hear what God is saying.  God has put this Church here for YOU.        

   “Moses My servant is dead…”  (2)  DEFINING MOMENT

• This is a defining Moment in the History and Ministry of Orchard Assembly. The “Old” is over and the “New” has arrived.  This is transition time.  A new place.  A new season.  A new direction.     It’s not that the old was “bad” but the NEW will be BETTER.  God has already gone before you and the place is prepared.  The only thing necessary is for you to go on and go in.    The old has passed away and the new is here. This is a New Day.  A new Season
• All that has happened in the past has been preparation for this hour and this time. For you personally and for this church.    Exciting and adventurous times are here.  The fulfillment of the Purpose of this Place is here.    The Time has come.  A new era has begun

Notice the sequence….

1. “Arise and Go Over…” (2)

• Israel was not called to stay on the wrong side of Jordan. And you are not called to stay stuck where you are.
• You are at the very point of pressing in. God is speaking, and His Message is GET UP and GO IN.
• Consider the Purpose God has for you. And this ministry.  A new level of success and victory is at hand.  Waiting time past.  The season of staying put is over.  This is moving time.  Get up and Go.  And don’t be slow.  Time to move out and move on.  A new season is here.  A new time has come.  New opportunities are opening.

In the early 70’s we were at a standstill at Lott Road Baptist Church.  We had been devoured by discouragement.  We were wallowing in weariness.  We were at a defining moment in our history.  Our membership was at an all-time low and our financial base was pathetic.  At that specific time, God sent a Prophet to speak to us.  He told us of things to come.  A dream to be realized.  And he prophesied that our (small insignificant, floundering church), would be used to take the Word to many nations.  Nothing could have been more impossible at the time.  We were instructed to make preparations….  So we expanded.  Lengthened our cords and strengthen our stakes.  We trusted God in the face of every impossibility…. And now, after 50 years… we have seen the vision come to pass.    

2. “Every Place….that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. (3)

• This is God’s Promise. This is God’s provision.  The “New Place” is prepared and has already been given to you and now it’s time possess it.
• It will be as big and as large as you want it to be and as you make it to be. It is YOURS and it is waiting for you to mark it out, walk over it and take it.   I remember the large relief map of the World we hung on the wall of the auditorium. In full color.  8 feet tall and 16 feet wide.  We began to put lights on every city, country and nation we were reaching.  It became the visible focal point in our auditorium.
• Don’t limit God. He does not despise Small Things and Insignificant People.  God likes to make a lot out of a little.  So, don’t minimize His provision for you.  Don’t be afraid to launch out and believe BIG.   Israel came under a Fresh Anointing.  They became aggressive.  They were determined to move into the Place God had Promised.
• What has God Promised His Church? Jesus declared that the very “gates of hell” could not and would not be able to withstand the power of His Church.  (Mat 16:18) That’s us.  That’s you and me.  That’s this church.

3. “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life” (5)

Behold I set before thee an open door and no man can shut it…. Rev 3:8

No man.  No devil.  No demon.  No obstacle.  No circumstance.  No lie.  No threat.  No thing.  God has said this. God has promised this.  God has already defeated every enemy and every foe.   The battle is not yours…. It is God’s and He has already won.

Mat 16: 18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

4. “Be strong and of a good courage…” (6)

This is God’s Personal Word to this body.   And to this pastor.  And to the leadership of this Church.  Being strong and courageous is a decision.  A choice we make.  It is not a progression or a process we go through, it is a decision and a choice.  “Be strong” is what Paul commanded…. Not “get strong.”

When people follow the leadership of those God has anointed and placed in their lives, they inherit the Promises and the Provisions of God.

5. “Wherever you go, I’ll be with you…” (9)

What ever you face… whatever impossibility… Whatever attack of the enemy….  God Will Go With You…

• A New Season is here
• A New Day has come
• A New Dimension of Ministry is before you

 

Your New Season is NOW

 

 

 

 

Word for Today:  April 26

 

God has given us WEAPONS

For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;  2 Cor. 10:4

And they are mighty weapons given to every believer by God for the pulling down of strongholds… they are not carnal and they are not natural… they are Supernatural and they are efficient and they are effective and they work.  They are given to every believer in order that every believer might overcome the attacks of the enemy.  These weapons are for warfare.  They are not for peace.   They are aggressive.  They are for pulling down and destroying.  They are locked, loaded and ready to be used.

The reason we have these weapons is that we might overcome the powers of darkness…. that we might stop the devil.  If we do not used them, they will not work for us, and we will not restrain the devil.  If we do not exercise them, we will not break through and destroy the strategies and strongholds of the enemy.

God gave them.  God gave them to Believers.  God gave them to Believers in order that Believers might confirm what Jesus did to the devil.  Jesus destroyed the works of the devil.  Those works are still destroyed.  The Bible says that

 to as many as received Him to them gave He power to become…  John 1:12.

You have the power and authority to become whatever God has purposed for you to become.  This is why Paul says…

I can do all things though Christ…  Phil 4:13)

If he can, so can you

I what to talk with you today about breaking the limit.

2Kings 7: 3 …Why sit we here until we die?

These unfortunate lepers were left with three options.   (1) Go back (2) Stay stuck or (3) Move out.

Collectively and personally.     Do you plan on staying where you are or are you determined to GO to the place God has prepared for you?

The trouble is most of us have become comfortable and complacent.  We have all our ducks in a row.  Life has become an interstate highway and we are running on cruise control.   Most of what we do is cookie cutter stuff.

It is time for a game changer.   CHANGE.  Not the same.  Not like it used to be.  Not like it is.  But like it is GOING TO BE.  It’s time to break the Limit.

Actually, Life has no limits.  Any legitimate Gospel ministry has no limits.  Opportunity does not have an expiration date.    Every door is open and every light is green.  The time is right and God is waiting on you to seize the moment.

The time to break the Limit is NOW.  Bust out of the status quo.  Get out of your box.  Surge off the page.  Rise to a new level.  Go where you have not gone.  Be who you have never been.  IT’S TIME.

NOW is the accepted time.

Did you know it is never the “right time” as far as the devil is concerned?

If you are only focused staying where you are, you will miss all the excitement of living life with the volume turned wide open.    God designed life and ministry to be exciting.  He is not the Author of dull.  “I’m waiting on God” is nothing more than an excuse for staying stuck where you are.

Here’s how to have an exciting life, here’s how to squeeze the best out of your life:

• Dream impossible dreams
• Stay up a creek in a leaking boat without a paddle
• Climb out on a limb so far you can’t see the tree
• Stay at the end of you rope and hang on for dear life
• Live between a rock and a hard place
• Bust the lid off and break out of your box
• Be radical for God
• Stay on the very edge of total disaster
• Refuse to go with the flow (lest you end up in the septic tank)
• Resist the temptation to be normal
• Never give up and never quit never back down
• Shout.  Dance.  Run.  Yell and scream at the devil.

Where does that put us? We are either sitting at the gate waiting to die (remember the lepers?) or we are up invading the enemies camp and taking back what the devil has stolen.  We are settled in and hunkered down in the doldrums and dullness of a mundane life or we are on the prowl for better stuff.  We are either at rest or on the attack.  We are stuck or we are moving with God.

Here are some things to consider when you want to break the Limit:

Want to…

What is your passion?  What drives you?  What is your dream? Where do you want to go?  Who do you want to be?

Are you tired of the same old same old?    How desperate are you for a change of direction in your life and ministry?   Are you going to be sedate and satisfied with your do-nothing, go-nowhere, same-old-stuff life?  Are you going to fold up and be content to live in your comfort zone?  Are you going to stay locked in, fenced in, shut up, stuck and limited the rest of your life?

God has a bright and exciting future for every one of us.

I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. (The Message)  Jer 29:11 

That’s what God has planned it for us.

Now… What kind of future are you hoping for?  Surely you must have a dream… a goal… a purpose.

Want to, then 

Decide to…  (Every action begins with a decision)

You have already made hundreds of decisions today.  You make them all the time.  You made some today.  You will make some in this meeting.

When the devil begins to lie to me and tell me what I can’t do and where I can’t go and how it’s impossible for me…. I determine to do something RADICAL…   So, when the devil faced off with me and challenged me a while back:

I hopped on my Harley and rode all the way to Key West Florida with my little dog in the passenger seat.   After an exciting, exhilarating 2000-mile road trip came back home.

I go out and hop in my open-cockpit experimental airplane (with no parachute) and soar among the clouds, reach out and touch the Face of God and experience deep worship at 3000 feet as I behold the awesome beauty and expanse of His Creation.

Every day I refuse to act like an old man.

I won’t Talk like an old man

Act  like an old man

Dress like an old man

Do  what old men do

Go  where old men go

Walk  like old men walk

Expect what old men expect

Believe  what old men believe

Why?

There are places to go

Things to do

Messages to be preached

Books to be written

Nations to be changed

A church to be revived

Standards to be set

A God to be honored

A Nation to be awakened

A Calling to be completed

I’m all in… ready to go…  locked and loaded… How about you?

he quality of the life you are living right now is the result of decisions you have made in the past.  Your decisions have defined your life and your ministry.    Where you are going in the future will be determined by decisions you will make today in this service.

Right now you have a challenge facing you.  You have a decision to make.  And you will make it one way or the other.  You can decide to stay like you are and where you are or you can decide to kick it up a notch, pick up your stuff and forge ahead.

Breaking the Limits comes out of a personal decision you and you alone can and will make.    And not deciding is really deciding.  No decision is really a decision.   No response is a response.

Decide to, then

Do it…

When you really want to, and then when you decide to, the only thing left is to just do it.  It will never happen unless you start.  And if you wait until you “have what you need” to start you will stay stuck where you are.

God is a NOW God.  The Word is a NOW Word.  The moment is a NOW moment.  Today is NOW.  The time is NOW.  This meeting is a NOW meeting.

2Co 6:2 ….The day you needed me, I was there to help. Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped.  (The Message)

The devil is the great delayer.  he wants you to stay right where you are and do nothing.  He wants you to “think about it.”  he wants you to just pray about it.  he will tell you that today is not the right time nor is it the best time.  Just wait.

You may ask, “How do I know that NOW is the time and that TODAY is the day for me to do it?”

You know it’s the right time when you “feel it.”     I know you feel it because I feel it too.  TODAY.  NOW.  THIS SERVICE.  It’s time.

Have you considered the scope of the opportunities that are surrounding us?  But you say…” I’m in a no-where town on the side of the no where road in Alabama…”   Remember what they said about Nazareth?  “No good thing can ever come out of this god-forsaken place….”  And then: From the impossibility of a “no-where” place, steps forth: The Son of the Most High God…

Just do it, then

Trust GOD

God will see you through to your destination.

God has been my encouragement and my support and my strength for nearly 60 years of ministry.  When Pat and I did not know what to do or where to go or how to minister, God always had the answer for us.

• God took us safely and successfully through the Charismatic Renewal.
• God delivered us from demonic attacks
• God took us into new depths of understanding and revelation
• God showed us Who He is, what kind of God He is and What His Will for us is.
• God revealed the immeasurable scope of the Redemptive Work of Jesus Christ

God taught us Who the Holy Spirit is and How to be Baptized in His fullness

• God opened the door to the Supernatural Miracle-working power of the Word
• God protected us and led us safely through every attack throughout our life-long ministry
• God fed us and matured us and inspired us and sent us
• God is working right now as I preach, touching the core of your soul and calling you into a New Place.

And God will sustain you in your decision to move out and move on.   What do you need to get started?   Only God.   He is enough and will be more than enough.

Trust God, then

Never Quit

• In 1968 when I received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and spoke in Tongues, two thirds of our Southern Baptist church left.
• We were kicked out of our denomination, lost our Baptist credentials, and thrown under the bus.
• Over the years, we got ripped off, robbed and taken advantage of by crooked contactors.
• We were robbed by criminally convicted bankers.

We were threatened with foreclosure by those we were in debt to.  But we did not quit.

• We got half through building Faith Academy and ran out of money. But we did not quit.
• We faced imminent financial failure with a 4.5 million dollar debt we could not pay. But we did not quit.
• And a few years ago, I signed the check, paid the last mortgage payment and made Life Church debt-free.

If there is any lesson I have learned and learned well, it is the fact that we never quit.

Now, just where does this leave us right now?

What are you going to do?  Go Back? Stay stuck? Move out?

What is God speaking to you right now?

My plea to you is do not wait too long.  Do not hold on to where you are too long.  The opportunity is NOW.  The time for you to let go and move into the miraculous plan God has for you is NOW.

• Step out and give your heart to Jesus…
• Be courageous and surrender everything to God… and receive His Anointing on your Life
• Do that thing that God has challenged you to do…. and find peace and security and rest
• Get involved. Get up and quit being a spectator… and become a game player

Let’s do this and Do it… NOW.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Word for Today:  April 25

 

My most challenging job is to convince people to believe what God says.

Most are so influenced by what is happening in the world they are oblivious to what the potential is within them.  God tells us some awesome stuff.  Stuff that is truly hard to believe.  Since it is easier to disbelieve than to believe, most are held captive by their unbelief.  No faith.  No confidence in God.  Convincing the Body of Christ to REALLY BELIEVE is our greatest challenge.  However, it is the same problem that folks have had throughout the history.  Isaiah said:

Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?   Isa. 53:

We must come to the place of BELIEVEING what the WORD SAYS instead of what the WORLD SAYS.  Some of the things the WORD SAYS are so “unreasonable” and so “radical” and so “impossible” that it is a real chore to believe them.  It is probably not what we have been taught in our Religious Environment.  It is probably not what is considered “traditional” or even “normal” in the Christian Walk.

Vance Havner once said concerning the Church:    “We have been subnormal so long, that once we become normal, folks will think we are abnormal…”

Man’s “religion” will keep you in bondage.  It will put burdens on you that God never intended for you to bear.  It will ultimately kill you.  Likewise, unchanging Religious Tradition will keep you in bondage.  A refusal to change, simply because you have “always” been this way or have “always” done it like this is dangerous.  It limits the ability for one to receive fresh revelation.  Organized, Mechanized, Man-Managed, church programs will sap your strength, wear you out, do you in and leave you empty.

Be unreasonable.   Believe God.

Word for Today:  April 24

 

Life at its BEST.

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. John 10:10 

“Life” in this verse is the word “Zoe,” a Greek term that describes a quality of life, not a quantity, but a quality of life.  It is the word that describes the very same kind of life that God has.  Jesus is saying here, “I have come that you might have life and that life will be the same kind of life that I have and the same kind of life that God has… ”

This is the abundant life that Jesus has given to you and to me.  It is not simply “living and breathing” or “natural, physical” life, but it is the same quality of life that God has.  The same type of Life God has.  It is the “God Kind” of life.

Can you imagine God being worried?  Can you imagine God being afraid?  Can you imagine God being sick?  Can you imagine God being in a bad mood?  Or having a “bad hair day?”  Can you imagine God being poor?   Can you see God being depressed or stressed?  Or sad, or melancholy or “blue?”

God is not saving up for a rainy day.  God is not getting ready to go to the hospital.  God is not tired out or “wore” out… God is not planning on anything bad happening to Him.  He never has and He never will.  God is just fine.

If God is OK then you are OK.

 

Regardless

Word for Today:  April 23

God says you can  

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.  Phil 4:13

Does this do away with all the “I can’t” situations?  Does this negate all “impossibilities” in your life?  Does this erase all excuses for self-pity?  Does this do away with all defeat?  Would God have said this if He did not mean it?

Does this apply to you as well as to others?  Certainly He said it and He certainly meant it.  Then all our problems have no “reason” for remaining in our life.

How much longer do you intend on putting up with all that junk the devil has piled on you and your family?  Is there any reason for not doing that “impossible” thing now?

If we know to “do good” and “doeth it not” the Word says it is sin (James 4:17).  Any Believer who has the Truth and is willing to cast off everything that is contradicting it, can step right out of the impossible and into the possible.  But it requires ACTION.  It requires DOING.  It requires RISKING.  But it will WORK if the Believer will really believe.

Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.   Mr 9:23 

IF we have knowledge of the Truth and apply that knowledge to our circumstances through the God Kind of faith then Victory will be insured.  Every time.  All the time.  Anytime.

No matter what

A Prophetic Message…. From the past

We are all a part of what God is doing.  You were conceived in your mother’s womb and you were brought forth in this hour that you might stand for God today in this crucial time.  You are not  a “nobody” you are a “somebody.”  A Somebody God has planned to occupy a place for Him. He planned this for you before He laid the foundation of the world.  He has ordained that you might be alive and well and a witness to the awesome Move of God that will usher in the Visible Kingdom of God at the end of this Age.

“Who knows but that you are come into the Kingdom for such a time as this?”   This was spoken by Mordicah to Queen Esther regarding her role in approaching the King and asking him to spare the Jews from annihilation.

Es 4:14  For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

And God has seared this phrase in my heart regarding this hour.  Who knows but that you and I have been brought into the Kingdom of God for such a time as this….?  A time when God will send a refreshing and a revival and a renewal that will impact the world with the Gospel of Christ.  Who knows but that this church has been established and kept and raised up to enhance and enlarge this great move of God that is shaking planet earth?

I believe He has.  And I am determined to do what He requires of me in order that the masses might be reached… hallelujah.  If only somehow the scales on our eyes could be lifted so that we might see into the realm of the Spirit… like it was in the days when the prophet Elisha prayed that his servant might see what was really happening around them when they were surrounded by the enemy… listen

17  And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.

Saints, I am telling you the place around us is filled with horses and chariots of fire… angels and ministering spirits… heavenly beings sent to help us and encourage us and protect us so that we might be instrumental in producing the Will of God in earth and especially here on the Gulf Coast… during this great season of Outpouring.  Open your eyes and see.  Behold the armies of God and the chariots of fire…  We are not alone.  You are not alone.   God has sent us helpers and we will not fail in the Call on us and the Commission He has given us.

We will touch the world with the Word… and it will issue forth from this small pea patch place in order that the Greatness of Almighty God might be seen.  There will be no doubt since He is Expert in making a Lot out of a little.

Folks, we don’t have to worry about the sweet by and by… we are living in the sweet now and now.  God is arising and His enemies are being scattered.  Satan’s power has been broken and the captives are being set free.  This is the Holy Ghost Holocaust that will precede the holocaust of the Great Tribulation.  All across this world today, behind the scenes, behind closed doors, in little church buildings, in homes, in prayer groups, in open fields, believers are gathering together as the Body of Christ and they are worshipping and praising God and experiencing Him in fresh new ways and with fresh new power.

God is supernaturally preparing the Church for Something Special.  Some are telling me… “I just don’t understand what is going on… I don’t know what to think or what to do…”  God spoke to us several months back and reminded us that He was going to shake everything that could be shaken and move everything that could be moved and jolt everything that could be jolted.

And He also reminded us that this was being done so that those things remaining could become the bedrock and the foundation upon which He could build His End Time Church.  And I believe “this is that.”  There is a shaking.  But there is also a “coming together.”  Just like Ezekiel saw in his vision about the bones.  Bone is coming to bone.

There is a great connection taking place.  And life is coming out of the graveyard.  Where there has been death, there is now life.    Where there were “dead bodies” (dead churches) now they are living and breathing Holy Ghost air. The tomb has become a womb.  Hallelujah.  Churches that were once weak and anemic are now rising up and taking on new energy and new hope and new power.  Now don’t worry about what’s happening… just trust God.  Don’t try to “figure it out” because you can’t.  Just trust God.  What is happening is good.  It is necessary.   And it is a part of God’s Plan for this place.

Everything we are going through is for the glory of God.  It is designed to exalt Him and Reveal His Nature and His Character.  It is happening to show us that God is good.  That He does not do bad things.  And that He is not the cause of sickness and disease and He does not employ accidents and tragedies and catastrophes in order to “teach us something” or in order to “discipline us” because we have done something bad.

God is showing us new things.  He is revealing new facets of His Glory.  He is opening our understanding and moving us out of dead doctrines and lifeless traditions into a new and glorious place.  A place where we can enjoy church instead of enduring it.  A place where church is fun and exciting and refreshing.  A place where we are not duty bound and judged by our performance…. But where we understand His Grace and His Mercy and His Love.

God told His people through the prophet Joel that He was going to restore that which had been taken away… that  which the enemy had stolen.  He told them that they were going to eat in plenty and be satisfied and that they were going to praise the Name of the Lord.  Then, He said they were never going to be ashamed again.  Folks, this is restoration and it is a part of this Great Outpouring on this generation.

I believe that God is going to restore that which dead religion has taken away and that which lifeless traditions have wasted. He is going to bring His Church into a place where it will never be ashamed again.  We have had a “church” that was magnificent in its structure but powerless in its message.  With its tall steeples and stained glass windows and pipe organs and padded pews…. The robed choirs and orchestrated services… the highly trained but spiritually dead clergy…  these have created a hunger for something real.  Something genuine.  Something meaningful.  Something Supernatural.  And it’s happening in this hour.   And it’s good.  God is restoring life and health and strength to His Body.  We have experienced the “former rain” but now we are in the season for the “latter rain” and the latter rain is watering our soil and germinating the Seed of the Word and we are coming into a time of an abundant harvest.

Saints, knowing who we are and where we are and what God is doing, we must spearhead a crash program to proclaim the Full Gospel Message.  The day is far spent and the night is at hand.  Now with all this being said as a background, I want to us to realize and know what God is telling us to do.  Here is what we are to do as this local Body of Christ…

Isaiah 54

First, we are to sing and rejoice.  

 1 ¶  Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

In the past we have been barren and fruitless. The days of barrenness are ending.   We are going to give birth to myriads of Spiritual Children.    It has been such a burden to see what little we have been able to accomplish regarding expanding the Kingdom of God.  The cry of my heart has been and still is for more “children” … that we might bring forth multitudes of “new babies” into the Kingdom.  That we might reach the lost.  That we might see multitudes brought into the Kingdom of God.  But God is saying to us that it is now time to rejoice and  break forth into singing;  we are to cry aloud because we who have been barren are going to have more “babies” than those who have been “married” a long time.

In other words, God is going to take us into the Delivery Room and we are going to have many children.  The days of reproach and desolation are over.  This day marks the beginning of a New Thing God will perform in our midst.

Hear me carefully.  Murmuring lips will be stopped.  Criticism will cease.  Griping and complaining will be no more.  Those who continuously find fault with what God is doing here (and everywhere else)…. will be left desolate.  They will not succeed if they rise up against what God is doing in this place in this hour.  I know as God speaks to my heart that He is not pleased with those who demean and put down what He is doing here at Lott Road Baptist Church.  And so I issue to you this word of warning…. Stop your criticism…. Refrain your tongue from backbiting… behave yourselves, Christians!   Stop your misbehaving!   Do not argue with what God is doing.

The time is coming, and I speak this prophetically… The time is coming when the Presence of God… and that time is even at the door… when the Overwhelming Presence of God will fall in the midst of His people and those of us who minister will have to stand in silence and refuse to open our mouths because the Presence of God  will be so real and so strong just as it was in the days when Solomon dedicated the Temple….  We will discover that God can and will do His work without a man or a minister or a preacher or a teacher…. He will do it sovereignly…. God can do His work without the arm of flesh.  He can do anything He wants to do because He is God and the devil can’t do anything about it.   God doesn’t need us.  We need God.

Secondly, we are to expand our vision…

2  Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

I know that we are a small congregation.  I realize that we do not have ample assets.  It is true we are limited financially.  But in spite of this, we are being called to expand our vision. It is necessary that we prepare for the increase.  We must look beyond the four walls of this brick building to the needs of a hurting, dying world.  The world is our parish.  The fields are white and ready for harvest.  We are responsible for more than these seven acres on the side of Lott Road… we are commanded to take the Gospel to the Nations of the earth.

We are to “spare not” which means we are to spare nothing in our quest to obey God and fulfill His Call upon us.  Whatever it takes.  Whatever it takes.  Whatever it takes.  No sacrifice is too great or too costly.  No price is too high… God has called and we must go.  Sell our houses if necessary.  Sell our lands if necessary.  Empty our bank accounts if necessary.  Spend all we have if necessary.  No price is too high and no sacrifice is too great.

“But what about my retirement?”  “But what about my old age?”  “What about that house down by the lake I want to have?”  “What about that boat I want buy?”  “What about the new clothes I want to buy…?”  Well, are you planning living on earth forever?  Or do you have some plans for making it to heaven?   Where is your heart?  Jesus said that where your heart is, is where your treasure will be.  Just what is important to you?

Who said we need to retire anyway?  I had rather burn out than rust out, hadn’t you?  I am confessing that when I am  85 I’ll still be taking mountains for God.  How about you?

To expand our vision also means to expand our “tent”…    We are to lengthen our cords and strengthen our stakes.    I am telling you God is telling me to get ready for the increase.  The masses are coming.  I can hear the footsteps of a multitude as they rush in our direction and they will be looking for a place to serve and be served when they get here.

“Lengthen and strengthen” means don’t try to figure out how you are going fulfill God’s Call on your life, but rather launch out in faith and trust God.

Thirdly, we are not to give in to fear.

4  Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

Usually the very first thing anybody will say when a challenge is given to their faith is,  “but I’m afraid…”      “I’m afraid we can’t make it financially…”  “I’m afraid we can’t do it; we don’t have enough people..”  “I’m afraid if we start we will fail…”  “I’m afraid of what people will say about me….”  “I’m afraid….”  Don’t ever tell me you are afraid.  Don’t ever say you are afraid.  Do away with fear.  Understand that God has not given you a spirit of fear but of love and power and a sound mind.  Fear is of the devil.  Fear is faith in reverse.  Fear activates the devil  just as faith activates the Word.  Fear has torment.  Fear will keep you from stepping out and simply trusting God.  Fear will rob you and beat you up and steal from you.  Fear will paralyze you and render you helpless.  Fear will open the door to all kinds of devils and demons.  Fear will hinder the harvest and restrain the move of the Holy Spirit.  Don’t be afraid.

We will never have to be ashamed if we follow God.  We will never be confused if we follow God.  We will never be immature if we sincerely follow God.   And we can forget our reproach if we follow God.  We will never be without a Helpmeet if we follow God.  This is what God is speaking to us.  We will not fail.

We will not be ashamed.

We will not be confused.

We will not be confounded.

We will forget our past failures and press on in faith and believe God.

And God will always be our Helpmeet….we will never be forgotten or forsaken.

If God be for us and with us who can be against us? 

5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

This is God’s Message for this church.   In this awesome day of Great Spiritual Outpouring we must rise up into the fullness of what Jesus has for us in the future.   We have heard from prophets and teachers sent our way… we have heard through the prophetic gifts of the Holy Spirit… God has revealed His Will for this ministry… for this church.   He has spoken His Word to us and NOW we must:

Sing and rejoice…. We are going to have a bunch of babies!

Expand our vision to reach the world and our facilities to reach Mobile…

Resist fear in all its form…

Know that God is with us and for us…. Therefore we cannot fail!

 

From the Preface of my book, A Season of Glory

Every generation should have the blessing of witnessing a Spiritual Awakening.  I believe that I have been privileged to witness just such an awakening…

In the summer of 1962 I assumed the duty as Pastor of Lott Road Baptist Church in Eight Mile, Alabama.  As a fresh graduate of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, it was an exciting time for me, my wife and two children.  It was a time when we sensed that God had something very special for us as we began our ministry in this new field of service.  Lott Road was a small church founded under the leadership of a Blind Preacher nearly 15 years before we came.  As a matter of fact, we were  only the 3^rd pastor in the history of the young church.  The congregation was made up primarily of blue collar workers, local farmers, and retired families and they were all hungry for God and anxious for Revival and Renewal.  It was the most spiritual group of people we had come in contact with in the previous 5 years of our ministry.  And we, too, were ready for God to do something in our lives as well.

A band of men, some were deacons, but others were just great family men, would gather on the grounds of this young church every Saturday Night  and pray for a Move of the Holy Spirit on the congregation and the community.  They had been faithful in doing this several years before we arrived.  They specifically asked God to “pour out His Spirit” on Lott Road Baptist Church.   And when we arrived in 1962 it was evident that God was in the process of doing Something Great on this pea patch plot located eight miles from Eight Mile, Alabama.   When we were considering the call to come there, our very first visit to the church property was marked by an awesome Presence of God.  While we were yet in the car just surveying the grounds and buildings my wife and I were so overwhelmed by the Spirit of God we wept.

The first five years proved to be foundational.  The Lord added to the church and we witnessed many conversions.  There were seasons of great fellowship… there was a great spirit of unity among the Body.  Love among the members was phenomenal.   The ground was being prepared for a great season of Outpouring.  And the hunger for God was growing in the lives of many of the members.  And then….

Things begin to happen in other churches and other denominations in other parts of the country.  There was a Mighty Move of God beginning in some of the major denominations across the United States.  The Presbyterians.  The Episcopalians.  The Methodists.  The Baptists.  And the Catholics.  They were witnessing miraculous physical healings, they were calling home and community meetings for prayer and seeking God, there was a special anointing in preaching and teaching the Word, an exponential increase of people being converted … There were awesome times of deep spiritual worship and heartfelt praise…. and all this was accompanied by Glossilalia… speaking in tongues.  This phenomenon was openly received and welcomed by many ecclesiastical leaders in most major denominations.  It was a fresh breath of the Holy Spirit sweeping across the land.  And it was wonderful.

However, not every denomination was embracing this “new thing” and, invariably, opposition began to rise.  We were among some of the first in the Southern Baptist Convention to be “caught up” in this wonderful move of the Holy Spirit.  But if we were to continue riding this wave of revival, we were asked   by the local Baptist Association to relinquish our membership.  It was the impression of some that this “practice” of “speaking in tongues” was not in keeping with the “faith and practice” of Southern Baptists.  This resulted in a special called meeting of our Lott Road Congregation to determine if we were going to pursue the Charismatic Movement or curtail it and remain in good standing with the SBC.  The unanimous vote of that brave body of believers was that we would forge ahead and see what God had in store for us.  This proved to be The One Major Decision that laid the foundation for the future growth of Lott Road Baptist Church and the later emergence of Life Church Ministries, Inc.

In those formative years, God spoke to us very clearly through His Word and by His Word.  The sermons and messages and teachings that were born in this time of Transition and Transformation are what this book is all about.  The Revelation that God gave to us prophetically, through Tongues and Interpretation, through the spoken Prophetic Word and by His anointed servants that came our way proved to be an unerring direction for us to follow as we forged ahead in those unchartered waters.   God was answering the Baptist Prayers of those Baptist men when we came under the influence of the Holy Spirit Outpouring they had sincerely asked God for.

Many things changed.  And they changed in ways that man could not change them.    A new form of Church Government was set in place.  It was a ground-breaking move from our Congregational Form of Government to an Apostolic Form of Church government.  Our name was changed.  Our Music changed.  Praise became predominant.  Joy was spontaneous and worship became real.   We were enabled to pioneer many new and innovative things in the realm of worship, drama, and media presentations.

Since this demonstration of God’s Power and Presence was so dramatic, I thought it would be profitable to research our archives and find out just what we were preaching at this time of ministry transformation.  Fortunately, our services were tape recorded in those days and there was a spoken record of what God was telling us at the time a ministry was emerging.  The contents of this work are some of the transcribed messages that were preached from 1970 through 1979.  It was during this period that the major direction changes took place in the church.  It was also the period of time when prophetic fulfillment began to manifest as we began to expand the local ministry to other nations and were guided to formulate and develop a world vision.

 

 

GETTING GOD’S POWER

“But ye shall receive Power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you…”  Acts 1:8

INTRODUCTION

God wants you to have POWER in your LIFE.  He has fixed it so that you can have POWER in your LIFE.  He wants you to take His place and Function in His place on this earth every day of your life.  You know that you need GOD’S POWER in your life.  There are some things you want to do and you cannot do them without GOD’S POWER in operating in your LIFE.  You need:

(1) POWER over sin

(2) POWER over being timid

(3) POWER over being sick

(4) POWER over wrong attitudes

(5) POWER over the desires of the flesh and mind

(6) POWER over the curse of poverty

(7) POWER over your thought life

(8) POWER over fear and anxiety

(9) POWER over your hurt feelings and bruised spirit

(10) POWER over depression and worry.

(11) POWER over the devil and demons.

You know where you need POWER and why you need POWER.  You know what GOD’S POWER will do for you and in you.  You know that you can do nothing without His POWER.  You want His POWER and you want His POWER NOW!!  You are tired of waiting and procrastinating… you have tried other things and they have all failed.  You have read books and you have listened to tapes and you have prayed and you have gone to church… but you have never received God’s Power in your life.  It is now TIME for you to RECIEVE GOD’S POWER IN YOUR LIFE and LIVE DAILY IN IT!!

We want to discover: 1. What God’s Power is  2. How to receive God’s Power and 3. What God’s Power will do for you

1. WHAT GOD’S POWER IS

God’s Power is GOD’S ABILITY.  God’s Power is God’s MIGHT.  God’s Power is God’s AUTHORITY.  God’s Power is God’s GLORY.  God’s Power is God’s RIGHTEOUSNESS.  God’s Power is God’s HOLINESS.  God’s Power is God’s NATURE.  God’s Power is GOD-LIFE.

God’s Power is not of this world and does not operate by the laws of this world.  God’s power is a PRIMARY POWER and is more powerful than any other energy or force or power in the kosmos.  All other power is inferior to God’s Power.  Nothing is higher than God’s Power!!  We have great difficulty in comprehending God’s Power because the only frame of reference we have is in the natural world.  God’s Power can be understood only in the context of the Spiritual and the Supernatural.  Notice: (1) God’s CREATIVE POWER.  (2) God’s SUSTAINING POWER  (3) God’s REDEMPTIVE (saving) POWER.

God’s POWER comes out of His Nature.  He is has Power because He is GOD.  One of His attributes is OMNIPOTENCE… or the fact that He has ALL POWER.  He is our ALL-POWERFUL GOD!!  His POWER makes Him SUFFICIENT and ADEQUATE!!  His POWER can do all things… meet all needs (according to His riches in Glory!!)… supply every lack… conquer every foe… defeat every devil!!

God’s POWER is TRANSFERABLE!!  It can be passed on and transferred to others. The awesome thing about being Born Again is that God is willing to TRUST HIS CHILDREN with HIS POWER!!

How is God’s Power received?

2.  HOW TO RECEIVE GOD’S POWER

God’s Power is TRANSFERABLE.  When you were born naturally, you received, biologically, certain characteristics from your earthly parents.  You live with and in these traits every day until the day you die.  You even “favor” or “resemble” your earthly, physical parents because of the genetic structure of the human race.  When you were born naturally, you received everything you needed to function in natural life.  You got lungs to breathe with, legs to walk with, eyes to see with, hands to work with.  Everything you needed to function and live naturally were received biologically at the time you were born.

When you were BORN AGAIN you received, spiritually, the Character and Nature and Attributes of your HEAVENLY FATHER.  That is why Jesus said “Except a man be Born Again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God…” (John 3:3)  The word “see” means to “know” or “have knowledge of”.  It means to “perceive” or to “understand”.  Jesus was NOT talking about HEAVEN in this passage!!  He was talking about living and functioning in God’s Place and in God’s Kingdom on this earth before you go to heaven!!

You have RECEIVED the NATURE OF GOD if you are Born Again and, therefore, you have had GOD’S POWER transferred to you.  You receive God’s Power by getting BORN AGAIN.  If you are not LIVING IN GOD’S POWER it may be because you do not know how to!!  You can have God’s Power and yet not live in God’s Power.  Thousands of Believers are right there… maybe you are one of them!!  You can have God’s Power and yet not activate it and release it!!  This is where the Baptism in the Holy Spirit comes in!!

The Baptism in the Holy Ghost is essential in ACTIVATING and RELEASING God’s Power from within the Believer.  “Have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed?”  (Acts 19:2)  The Baptism in the Holy Spirit or the Infilling of the Holy Spirit is an EXPERIENCE apart from and in addition to being SAVED.  You can be saved and not filled with the Spirit.  You can have God’s Power in you and not have God’s Power working out of you.  This is the very reason for so many defeated and unhappy and unfruitful Christians.  The 2 Essentials for receiving God’s Power:  (1) the New Birth and (2) the Baptism in the Holy Ghost.  (You can know if you have or if you have not received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit!!)  If you do not know you have it, you can lose it and not know you lost it!!

3.   WHAT GOD’S POWER WILL DO FOR YOU

God’s Power will do for you what God will do for you!!  It will bring God on the scene and release His Power at the point of your need!!  God’s Power will:  (1) Deliver you from sin’s control and dominion  (2) Provide you with weapons for effective Spiritual warfare (II Cor. 10:4-5)  (3) Open the door to Revelation Knowledge and Spiritual Understanding  (4) Provide you with opportunities to operate in the Gifts of the Spirit (5) Fill you with Agape Love  (6) Give you power over the devil and demons  (7) Encourage you to operate in Faith and Total Trust  (8) Give you power over sickness and disease  (9) Release you from the curse of poverty and lack  (10) motivate you to Witness and bear Spiritual Fruit  (11) Enhance your Prayer Life and encourage you in Praise and Worship  (12) Cause you to see the world through the eyes of Jesus  (13) Make you a part of the end-time army God is raising up to hasten the return of Jesus!!

HALLELUJAH!!