I recently visited with a relation who had been seriously ill in the recent past months and who is currently in the recovery phase. The person was looking really fresh and strong from the last time we met, when the illness was at it’s worse. So I complimented the person’s appearance noting specifically the apparent vigor and strength being expressed. The person’s response was; ‘I don’t really feel so strong “inside”….

Believe me when I say that I’ve felt same way before and it doesn’t only happen with recovery from an illness.

Do you sometimes feel weak on the inside, uncertain about something, undecided about a next step, troubled, tired, afraid, impatient, agitated or weary? There is a way to stay strengthened in the innerman.

Ephesians 3:14-19 is one of the Pauline prayers and it tells us how to become strengthened “inside”…

“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Ephesians 3:14‭-‬19 NKJV

We can be…… strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man…..yes, it is through His Spirit!

The way I understand it, ‘the innerman’ in Ephesians 3:14-19 is your spirit (being that a person is a tripartite being; a spirit who lives in a body and has a soul).

So our spirit can become strengthened by the Holy Spirit.

How does this happen?

According to First Corinthians 14:4a speaking or praying in tongues strengthens your recreated human spirit..

“A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.”
1 Corinthians 14:4 NLT

“He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.“
I Corinthians 14:4 NKJV

Below is an extract from Kenneth E. Hagin’s ‘Ten Reasons Why Every Believer Should Speak In Tongues’ offering explanations on 1 Corinthians 14:4……

……”In writing to the church at Corinth, Paul encouraged them to continue the PRACTICE of speaking with other tongues in their worship of God and in their prayer lives as a means of spiritual edification. Greek language scholars tell us that we have a word in our modern vernacular which is closer to the meaning of the original than the word “edified.” That word is “charge“—as used in connection with charging a battery. Therefore we could paraphrase this verse, “He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifies, charges, builds himself up like a battery.” And this wonderful, supernatural means of spiritual edification—notice that it is not mental nor physical edification—is for every one of God’s children.”

Speaking in tongues edifies (charges up) your spirit-man, putting you spiritually alert and in control of your feelings. When we pray in tongues as we should, the Holy Spirit charges up our born again spirit (Ephesians 3:16).

Becoming strengthened in the inner man is not the only thing that happens when we pray in tongues, I believe that we also receive a fresh dose of wisdom, understanding, counsel, knowledge because the Spirit of God possesses all these traits/abilities (Isaiah 11:2 NLT). And suddenly we have clarity on how best to handle life’s challenges.

Therefore for discernment; pray in tongues. When at crossroads and in need of direction; pray in tongues. Feeling emotionally disturbed, weary and anxious; pray in tongues. When you don’t know what to do next? Pray in tongues. If you need understanding of a particular portion of scripture? Pray in tongues.

I find that some Christians don’t believe in speaking in tongues. Someone once said to me that it is impossible to be speaking same tongues for different prayer topics. Some others think it’s too monotonous or boring. Well, the taste of the pudding is in the eating. You’ll never really maximize the benefits of praying in tongues until you commit to making it a practice.

So any time you feel weak in spirit, fearful, confused? Charge up your spirit,…. pray in tongues. When you are charged up in the spirit, you are strengthened with might in the inner man, you are more alert in the spirit, you are more sensitive to the Spirit of God and your spirit gains dominance over your body and soul (mind).

Become strengthened in the innerman today; pray in tongues.

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You can find other Benefits of Praying in Tongues in ‘The Whole Armor of God (X)‘.

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Blessings & Love Always!

Some people don’t feel very welcome, accepted or loved in one Church, so they pack up and leave to another Church (in search of love and warmth). Some say they’ve not been able to fit into the ‘cliques’ that exist in their local Church. Others are uncomfortable with a new Church leadership style (usually following a change in Church government).  For some, the Pastor and/or Church members are not ‘nice’ or caring enough (or at all). I heard it been said once, that a couple walked away from a Church because an usher was rude to them.

“For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren”
Hebrews 2:11 NKJV

Hebrews 2:11 is probably not new to you. Jesus is the One who sanctifies and everyone already in Christ Jesus has been sanctified. According to this verse of scripture, the Sanctified and the Sanctifier are ONE.

What is ONE?

ONE is a number, the lowest cardinal number.

ONE is also used to refer to or identify a person.

And ONE also describes something of same quality and make-up, something that is identical. I believe this is the meaning of ONE Hebrews 2:11 is referring to.

We are born of His Spirit. We have the same Father as He. We are one in nature with Him. As He is, so are we in this life (I John 4:17). We are One with Him in spirit.

“But the person who is united to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him.“
1 Corinthians 6:17 AMPC

Colossians 1:18 identifies Jesus Christ as the….head of the Church, the beginning and firstborn from the dead..

“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”
Colossians 1:18 NKJV

According to 1 Corinthians 12:27 and Romans 12:5, the body of believers make up the Body of Christ; each member contributing to the whole…

“Now you [collectively] are Christ’s body and [individually] you are members of it, each part severally and distinct [each with his own place and function].”
1 Corinthians 12:27 AMPC

“so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.”
Romans 12:5 NKJV

Romans 12:5 says that though the Body has composite parts with diversities, yet the Body remains one…..

Imagine if I came to you saying and insisting that; ‘I want only your head to follow me’, you’ll probably look at me in confusion and probably quietly wondering if all was well with me. It is impossible for a head to be active, move on it’s own while separate from the body.

Both the Head and the Body are Christ.

Are you God? No, but you have His Spirit and nature. You have His life.

You are Christ!

“Christ is like a single body, which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts.” 1 Corinthians 12:12. Good News bible

He died, was buried and resurrected, and we were in Him. He conquered principalities and powers, we were in Him. We conquered them as well. The curse was done away with; sickness, poverty and death and we were in Him. He is seated at the right of the Father in Heaven, a position of authority, and we are seated with Him.

You are CHRIST!

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Blessings & Love Always!

It was just like any other day, this is a place I visit quite often. The people, place and atmosphere have all become familiar with my presence. As usual I came in quite early, not wanting to be late. I quickly settled into my regular routine; switch on my PC, check my to-do-list, get updates on outstanding tasks, give necessary feedbacks and ….just generally flow with the day.

Around mid-day I was pulled from my regular seating area into another room…. no, not that ‘other room’. This room was specially designed for sorting out things, task-like things. Apart from me, there were just 2 other persons here. The other people were not exactly at my level, they’ve been around this environment for much longer. We were all supposed to be discussing and dealing with a task, but somehow what was going on here looked more like a tussle, like a spiritual fight. One of the persons in the room seemed to be chanting something, the other was fighting back with some sort of words. They were sitting right opposite each other.

This set-up reminded me of a dream I had a few days earlier which interestingly involved these same persons and in a similar position. As I watched in utter bewilderment, I wondered when this spiritual ‘warfare’ would end so we could get on with the business of the day,…. that didn’t come any time soon. So that was it for me! All this chanting was beginning to have some undesirable spiritual effect on me. Not sure they noticed my entrance and exit.

As I returned to my personal spot and space, all I could think was, ‘how does this kind of thing go on in this environment?‘ The more I thought about it, I realized that fear was gradually spreading across my mind. How do I continue to cope here? How did I get here? What do I do now?

Later that day, I decided to just pray in the spirit. It was as I prayed in tongues that first John 4:4 dropped in my spirit.

“You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”
I John 4:4 NKJV

‘I know that scripture‘, I thought out loud to myself. But what does it even mean? Hmmm..

Before now, my understanding of 1 John 4:4 was this: ‘anyone in Christ Jesus is greater than the one who is yet to come to Him.’

This wasn’t exactly the understanding I was receiving today as I prayed.

Oh, there it is! I get it now. .…….The One in me is greater than the one who is in the world! Wow! Again, wow!!

I know who is in the world;…….the devil.

Who is in me? Jesus Christ! Jesus Christ is IN me? YES!!!

Immediately, all my fears vanished, strength and boldness suddenly rose up from within me. ‘Oh dear, I carry God in the inside of me! And if God (Jesus Christ) is in me, then I am actually bigger than I know! I am bigger than whoever or whatever is in the world. Wow!
So the next time something ‘evilish’, devilish, scary, troubling, confusing, intimidating, or negative comes at you, pause and remember that ‘The Greater One is in You’.

The One who disarmed principalities and powers is in you. You have the light of the world, darkness Never overcomes light.

The One who bore and carried all manner of sicknesses and yet didn’t die from them is in you. No, sickness and disease didn’t kill Him, nothing and no one killed Him. He laid down His life voluntarily.

The One who conquered death is in you.

The One in You is Greater. The One in You is Stronger. The One in You is Bigger. Greater is HE who is in you than he who is in the world.

Halleluyah!

The Greater One is in You (I). You are so much bigger than you appear.

Thank You Jesus !!!

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Do not miss any of our publications, subscribe here to have each article delivered directly to your mailbox free of charge.

You can order the kindle and paperback copies of my book on healing ‘When the Doctor Says No’ from your local Amazon stores, and a subsidized pdf copy here.

Blessings & Love Always!

Have you received Jesus Christ into your heart? You are a son of God! And God leads His sons.

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” Romans 8:14 NKJV

You Have The Spirit Of Christ

That day you confessed Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, that was the day you became a son of God! (John 1:12). On that very day, your old sinful nature was done away with, your spirit was recreated and you became a brand new creature (Ephesians 2:1-10, 2 Corinthians 5:17). You have the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9). Your spirit serves as a lamp or candle to God; He sees your innermost being. He knows your thoughts, concerns, worries and even motives. (Proverbs 20:27).

Our recreated human spirits is the direct link between us and God.

According to Romans 8:14, if you are a son of God, you should never lack direction, never be confused, never be unsure of the will of God for any situation, because God leads His sons.

Are you at crossroads? Do you need to make a critical life decision about where to live, who to marry, what schools to send your kids to, your next steps, your purpose in life? You have the Spirit of Christ. You are God’s son. And God leads His sons.

You Have The Holy Spirit Of Promise

The Holy Spirit of promise was given as a guarantee that we will indeed possess all our inheritance in Christ. He is God’s seal on us (Ephesians 1:13-14). When we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit, a new dimension of power is made available to us to do the work of the kingdom (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit is our Paraclete- Counsellor, Advocate, Helper, Strengthener, Intercessor and Standby (John 14:16). He is in us as our Guide (Isaiah 58:11, John 16:13). He guides us, not only in the truth of God’s Word, He is also available to provide guidance in all our life affairs if we let Him. We should never lack direction.

Two ways to be confidently led by God are; to recognize God’s voice and to know God’s Word (John 10:4‭-‬5). When we train ourselves to recognize God’s voice, just the way a little baby by repeated interactions recognizes the mother’s voice, we will not be misled by the contrary voice of a ‘stranger’. Therefore developing an intimate relationship with God is one sure way of getting familiar with His voice. And like any other relationship, such intimacy is developed by spending time with God; in prayer and in His Word.

Praying in the Holy Ghost is one sure way to gain clarity about God’s leading. When we pray in the Holy Ghost our spirit become charged, strengthened, more alert and sensitive to God’s leading (Jude 20, Ephesians 3:16). The Holy Spirit knows the mind of God and intercedes for us according to the will of God (Romans 8:26-27). So if we engage the Holy Spirit as we should, we should never be out of God’s will, plans and purposes for our lives.

You Have The Word Of Life

God’s leading never contradicts His Word. God will never lead us outside of His Word. The Word also serves as our spiritual compass for the present and future; His Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105).

Never lack direction, because God leads His sons. You have the Spirit of Christ, you have the Holy Spirit and you have the Word of life.

You have probably read Mark 11:23 ten times and over, I have. You may have also probably written out Word-based faith confessions from this scripture, I have. You also may have taken bold faith steps inspired by Mark 11:23, I have.

Question; ‘what’s it again about Mark 11:23 then?’…… ‘Say WHAT You Want‘….

Let’s look at this scripture again…

“For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.”
Mark 11:23 NKJV

Mark 11:23 NKJV

We see the mechanics of faith explained in Mark 11:22-23….Say…..Believe….Receive (have).

Notice also, how Jesus said we are to handle the mountain; we are to SPEAK DIRECTLY to it… “be removed and cast into the sea”..

While this may seem like nothing, it is actually important and can be easily neglected. Christians often prefer to go ’round’ a ‘mountain’ rather than speak directly to it.

For example…: “by His Stripes I am healed” is a Word-based faith confession informed by Isaiah 53:5 and 1 Peter 2:24.  This confession is a foundation on which to declare; ’I declare to you my brain cells that you function perfectly well, I read, understand, retain and remember the things I read in Jesus name, because I believe that surely He bore my griefs, He carried my sorrows, He was wounded for my transgressions and bruised for my iniquities and by His stripes I am healed.”

Jesus said we should Say (talk directly) to the mountain “be removed and be cast into the sea“. If we only keep saying ‘this too shall pass’, ‘God is my healer’ ‘I know that God is faithful’, we have not spoken directly to any mountain (selah).

Let’s see what Jesus did about a ‘mountain’….

John 11:41-44….

“So they took away the stone. Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. Yes, I know You always hear and listen to Me, but I have said this on account of and for the benefit of the people standing around, so that they may believe that You did send Me [that You have made Me Your Messenger]. When He had said this, He shouted with a loud voice, Lazarus, come out! And out walked the man who had been dead, his hands and feet wrapped in burial cloths (linen strips), and with a [burial] napkin bound around his face. Jesus said to them, Free him of the burial wrappings and let him go.“
John 11:41‭-‬44 AMPC

I believe that if Jesus stopped at recognizing and thanking the Father without calling forth Lazarus, dead Lazarus would not have as much as turned in his grave….

Here’s the thing, the authority and confidence to say “be removed and be cast into the sea“ is backed by the Word (which you know already). That’s what the Word does for us- builds our knowledge about our identity, rights and privileges in Christ so that we can boldly claim them. Jesus’s confidence was that the Father ALWAYS heard Him, so surely dead Lazarus came back to life when He called out to him.

So the next time you need say $100 based on your knowledge of II Corinthians 8:9; Christ became poor that I might be rich”, boldly declare in faith that you receive and thank the Father for it. In my experience, one of 2 things will happen to get that money into your hands; 1. God will show you or expose you to an opportunity that will deliver $100 to you. 2. Someone/people will be led to give you exactly $100 gift. We just need to understand how God works with us.

Philippians 4:6 says, ‘do not be anxious, just say what you want‘…

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” Philippians 4:6 NKJV

When we are not specific about what we want or about our declarations, we seem like a young man who goes before his wealthy father, showering him with encomiums.. “daddy, I know that you are very wealthy, you own company ABC, you own a fleet of cars, you are rich, generous and kind, blablabla“. I believe that at some point, this rich, generous and kind father will interrupt his son with a ‘what do you want?, say it’.

Today, based on the Word of God, Say WHAT you want. And do not doubt in your heart, only believe, and you shall have what you Say.

“And WHATever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
Matthew 21:22 NKJV

What if I told you that ‘God already knew about whatever it is you are experiencing right now, whether pleasant or unpleasant? ‘ He knew about them long before they happened, before you were even born.

Below, are 4 different translations of Psalm 139:16..

“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.“
Psalms 139:16 NLT

“Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were appointed for me, When as yet there was not one of them [even taking shape].”
Psalms 139:16 AMP

“Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.’
Psalms 139:16 NKJV

“Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.”
Psalm 139:13‭-‬16 MSG

Anyhow we choose to read this verse of Psalms, there are at least 4 things it tells us…

1. God knew you before you were formed in your mother’s womb.

2. He had a definite plan and Purpose for your Life, before proceeding to forming you in your mother’s womb.

3. There is a Number of days apportioned to you in this life by God. Nobody should tell you how much longer you have to live if they haven’t discussed with God (selah).

4. Your daily experiences (good or bad) do not surprise God because He knew about them long before you were born. He saw your days afar off even before they came to be.

I don’t know how reading this makes you feel, but for me I am reassured that every Stage of my life, every Day of my life and every Moment of my life are continually before God. He knew about them before they came to be. And being that God is Good, and He only has good in Him, then I choose to believe that God’s plans for me are good.

Irrespective of what you are experiencing today, God already planned an expected end for you….in Him.

So, look beyond today, see beyond your unpleasant or bad experiences of today. There’s a tomorrow coming after today and it’s coming with good….in Christ..for you. Your story will end well because God already planned a good end for you, plans of good, not of evil…

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV

Friends, God’s got your back! His thoughts towards you are of peace, they are good, they have no evil in them, they will lead you to the beautiful future He’s planned for you…in Him.

The temptations (and troubles) of life which come to derail you from God’s good plan and purpose will fail if you stay with God, walk with God and trust God, He will make a way of escape for you (1 Corinthians 10:13).

What stage, day or moment of life are you currently at? Pleasant? Praise God! Unpleasant? Praise God, trust God, He’s got you. Your times and seasons are in His hands (Psalms 31:15).

I love John 17:23….

“I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.“
John 17:23 NKJV

If Christ is in Us and the Father is in Christ, then we are kept safe in the Father through Christ.

Halleluyah!

Prayer

Father, I trust your good thoughts, plans and purpose for my life. I will stay with You, walk with You and trust You to lead me to my glorious destiny in You.

Abraham entrusted his life to God and His Word…..when you trust someone, you believe them even when you don’t fully understand…… So even without understanding where God was leading him to, Abraham trusted and obeyed. He didn’t know where God was leading him to, he didn’t fully understand what God was doing, however, he submitted himself and his life to God’s control and leading. He accepted/believed the Word of God as true in his spirit (faith) and he judged God as capable and reliable in his mind and thinking (trust). Abraham had faith in God’s Word and he trusted God to fulfill His promise.

Recognize that thorns come to ultimately frustrate you; to make life difficult for you; to make it seem like you’re not making progress. So first,  carefully tackle any form of frustration attempting to creep into mind by removing the focus from yourself and unto a bigger goal. Second shut down the proponents of your thorns.

Thank You for Your Grace; the display of your love and kindness, the daily manifestation of your glory and power.

Thank You for Your Grace; Your graciousness and Gift of grace freely given to us. Grace bought us, grace keeps us and we glory in Your grace.

Thank You for Your Grace; washing away sins, saving lives, filling to overflow with rivers of living waters.

Thank You for Your Grace; Divine enablement by Your Spirit to do the seemingly impossible even today.

Thank You for Your Grace; Your divine ability, to physically create, build and establish your purpose.

Thank You for Your Grace; Your divine and boundless favour, bringing in overflowing measures of goodness from wherever life exists, extending same from us to wherever life exists.

Thank You for Your Grace; divine strength and sustenance to remain undaunted, unflinching, persuaded and fully committed.

Thank You for Your Grace; The force of Your power, neutralizing every opposition and contrary force.

Thank You for Your Grace; my confidence, my boldness, my assurance.

Lord, thank You for Your Grace today.