RHEMA From Heaven

BELIEVE IN YOUR PRAYERS

Mark 11:24 “Therefore, I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them“

Prayer is key in our walk with God. As a matter of fact, prayer makes available power that changes things. It can change the man or woman that prays and can also change situations. Notwithstanding the power that accompanies prayer, when you just pray without faith it will be void of power.

You must understand that it is one thing to pray and another thing to also believe in your prayers or have faith when you pray. More often than not people master the former to the neglect of the latter. They pray, but that is how far they go.

As a Christian, you don’t just have to pray. You must believe in your prayers- that God has heard you and has answered you, that is how you can get results. Hear what Jesus said on the subject matter in Mark 11:24 “Therefore, I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them” Hear it again, the word says “WHEN YOU PRAY, BELIEVE “

You don’t have to pray and still live in a wonderland. No! That’s not faith. Some people after praying will say, “well I have prayed so let’s see what God will do”. Well, that is still not faith. That is hope. Hope just expects a positive outcome in the future. On the other hand, faith says it is done and moves on to give glory to God.

When it comes to prayer the Bible never said pray and hope. It says when you pray, believe that it is done. This is where many people miss it.

You must engage your faith when you pray to request something from the Lord. God does not want you to expect good things after the prayer of request. No! You must believe its a done deal and start praising God. People who wait to see before they believe will wait forever because those who believe in their prayer- that God has heard them, don’t wait to see a physical manifestation before they thank God and CELEBRATE their miracle. NO! After prayer, their countenance changes. Their faces shine with the JOY of the Lord. They make Glorious confessions. They talk about the victory they have received.

Don’t pray to request something of the Lord if you are not ready to believe in your prayers. See Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”

Read: Mark 11:24

DO THE WILL OF GOD

Hebrews 10:36 “For ye have need of patience, that after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise”

The will of God is God’s ultimate desire and wish. It is what God expects and wants done. So as a Christian your greatest call and duty is to do God’s will. This is what pleases him. Get into the WORD as it reveals the will of God so that you can know what God expects from you.

As a Christian, your blessing and success is living with Gods’ will. For instance, it is God’s will for us to be thankful in everything or to be grateful (1 Thessalonians 5:18). You must know that thanksgiving is one thing God expects from us as believers. Upon healing the ten lepers at the gate of Samaria, Jesus asked of the nine that never returned to give thanks. “So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner” (Luke 17:17-18).

Another will of God that the bible teaches is the sanctification of the believer. It is God’s will that we as believers live a sanctified life and avoid the perverse and immoral standards of this world. (1Thessalonians 4:3). God expects us to conform to His word by presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to him.

God does not want you to live with a dual standard or a worldly ambition as a Christian. He wants us to walk only in His perfect will.

Romans 12:2 says “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will“. The truth is that God’s will is not burdensome. In fact, it is not difficult to pursue the Lord’s will. You just have to yield to the Lord and not to allow the flesh dominate you.

It is in doing God’s will that you will see his wondrous works. Nonetheless, when you do your “own thing” your life will end in suffering and may even cause you to miss Heaven.

Make the will of God your reason for living.

Read: Luke 12:47-48

DON’T HOLD ON TO THE TRADITIONS OF MEN AND IGNORE GOD’S WORD

Hebrews 10:36 “For ye have need of patience, that after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise”

Another will of God that the bible teaches is the sanctification of the believer. It is God’s will that we as believers live a sanctified life and avoid the perverse and immoral standards of this world. (1Thessalonians 4:3). God expects us to conform to His word presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to him.

God does not want you to live with a dual standard or a worldly ambition as a Christian. He wants us to walk only in His perfect will.

It is in doing God’s will that you will see his wondrous works. Nonetheless, when you do your “own thing” your life will end in suffering and may even cause you to miss Heaven.

Make the will of God your reason for living.

Read: Luke 12:47-48

FEAR GOD

Ecclesiastes 12:13 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God, and keep His commandment: for this is the whole duty of man”

To fear God is to have great respect or reverence for God. It involves treating everything that is of God “sacred”. When you live with the fear of God in your heart, you hold in high esteem everything that belongs to God.

Walking in and with the fear of God must be your hallmark as a Christian. Nothing must make you compromise on that. Anyone who claims to be a Christian and does not have deep respect or reverence for the things of God is going nowhere.

Walking in the fear of God was one of the characteristics of the early Church. In fact, the fear they had for God made them wrought wonders. See Acts 9:31: “Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”

You see, if we can walk in the fear of God in this our generation, God’s power will certainly manifest in our Churches. Many Christians have left the “realm of fearing God”. Some treat the things of God with great disrespect to the extent that many people criticize pastors, make bad comments about them and even run into hasty generalization to condemn men of God. Such people simply refuse to accept that it is God who has appointed these servants. (Ephesians 4:11).

People no longer care about how they handle the things of God. They take spiritual meetings or Church services for granted but will show up for social events. Others too abuse the body that God has given them with immorality and lascivious activities forgetting that their body is God’s house. 1 Corinthians 6:19 says “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?”

Not only that, we have people who spend a lot of money on worldly and worthless things like fashion, pleasure and funfairs. But these same people will not give a dime as an offering and justify their “lack of respect or fear for God” with a comment that “the pastor wants their money”.

Fearing God is not an alternative to the Christian. It is a must. Omit it and you will be omitted divinely.

Read: Ecclesiastes 12:13

DON’T JUST PRAY

Ephesians 6:18 “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints”

Any Christian who wants to make progress in this life must learn to pray well. Most people pray to be seen praying, without any purpose. Matthew 6:5 says “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward”.

There are people who take prayer casual. They engage in it with no understanding or spiritual insight. One can say that such people pray traditional prayers but expect supernatural results.

For you not to just pray, you must first and foremost know and understand the situation you are faced with and the kind of prayer to make. You see, if you just pray for praying sake you will not get much result from it. You may rather end up with unbelief and frustration.

Thus you must study and understand God’s word before you can make the most out of your prayer life. It is possible to have your prayer request granted. But you must first engage God’s Word to help you pray. There are times we make declarations in our prayers based on the authority we have as believers. Also, there are times we must also humble ourselves and make requests for God to intervene in matters weightier than us.

So you see, the approach to your prayers matters. Be determined to make your prayers avail much in the realms of the spirit by learning how to pray. Don’t just pray, pray well.

Read: Ephesians 6:18

INFLUENCE YOUR WORLD

Matthew 5:14 “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid”.

As Christians, God has also called us to influence and to impact our world. Your presence as a Christian must be felt everywhere you go and at all times. Being a Christian must make you a pattern to be looked up to. Thus, you must not be in the dark.

The prophecy of Isaiah sounds this clarion call better. See Isaiah 60:1-3 “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising”.

This mandate raises Christianity beyond going to Church, reading the Bible and attending prayer meetings. This is not to say that Church Service, word study and prayer meetings are irrelevant. Rather they are ways by which God equips the believer to make him a burning and a shining light in the world.

Know that God wants you to be a positive influence in the world. Don’t just exist. The power of God in you must affect the lives of other people. It is this power the world is waiting for you to manifest. “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:19). You must manifest in order to take away poverty. You must manifest to cast out demons and evil spirits. You must manifest to demonstrate God’s power and glory. You must manifest it to lead others to the Lord.

Don’t sit and fold your arms for evil to prevail. As light, you must dominate your world.

Read: Matthew 5:13-16

YOU HAVE SUPERIOR POWER

1 John 4:4 “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.”

Every child of God has been endowed with a superior power to combat all satanic and demonic activities. Luke 10:19 says “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you”.

You have been strategically positioned and graced by God to win any spiritual battle or contest. Never look at the contrary forces that want to hinder your progress to give up. You have what it takes to bring down every work of darkness against you.

God has made available the name of Jesus for the believer to use to overcome the power of the enemy. Philippians 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth”.

Another weapon that makes the believer superior is the blood of Jesus. This blood speaks better things for us. The blood does not only cleanse our sins but also puts us in a position of vindication. It speaks of good health, prosperity and favour. “And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel” (Hebrews 12:24).

As a Christian, you must understand and appreciate the fact that your life is not at the mercy of the devil. Isaiah 54:17 emphasizes this truth. It says that “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord .”

Rise up to the occasion and engage your faith in the word for victory on every side. In fact, you are well able to overcome any attack of the enemy. Don’t run from pillar to post when the wicked one shows up, rather pray and stand on the word to undo all his works.

Read: 1 John 4:4

UNFORGIVENESS MAKES PRAYER UNFRUITFUL

Mark 11:25 “And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses“.

Prayer is important and it always produces tremendous results. Nonetheless, you can make your prayers unfruitful by unforgiveness. You have no business praying when you hold things against people in your heart since your prayers won’t be honoured by God. No matter what “justifiable” reasons you may give to keeping an offence, that will not change God’s word.

Anyone who wants to pray and to see things happen afterwards must learn to walk in love, and never keep offences. You must understand that unforgiveness will not put your heart right before God. Mark 11:25 says “And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses”.

The Holy Spirit always operates through mediums like righteousness, peace, joy, love, etc. As choked gutters prevent water from flowing, so does unforgiveness hinders your prayers or better still hinders your fellowship with the Holy Spirit.

Don’t keep offences if you want your prayers to be heard. Don’t miss God’s purpose in this area lest you will pray, spin and whine and still have no results to show for it.

Your prayers can bring awesome things, but first put your heart right before God by forgiving people who wrong you.

Love one another, forgive one another and never hinder your prayers.

Read: Mark 11:25

WORK WHEN THE SEASON COMES

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says “to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven”.

The Bible teaches that there are designated seasons and times for everything in life. Jesus knew about this and thus said in John 9:4 “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work”. Jesus knew that the season he found himself demands that he worked by teaching and preaching.

You see, the time and season you find yourself must inform your actions. There is a season to sow, and there is also a season to harvest.

Discern the season that you are in as an individual and act accordingly. If you do nothing when a particular season comes, you will miss greatly.

Sow or invest when the season comes. Sow holistically. Both in spiritual things and in the natural.

Also, when the time of harvest comes, work to take delivery of your “goodies”. This is the wisdom that makes you live a balanced life.

But in all this, you must allow yourself to be guided by the wisdom in the word of God and the Holy Spirit. It will cause you to function properly in every season. Never miss the good things in your season, it can cost you.

Be a strategic seasonal worker.

Read: Hebrews 12:17

FAITH ACTS ON THE WORD

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”

The Bible says faith is the substance of things hoped, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). When it comes to faith, it is first and foremost “believing” before “seeing”. Meaning that in the exercise of your faith in the word of God you don’t “see” to believe as some people have erroneously subscribed to.

You see, there is no need to have faith after seeing. You have faith for what you don’t see in the natural and not what is right before your eyes. Living by faith involves taking hold of unseen realities before they manifest physically. Thus, anytime you walk by faith, you see the reality of God’s word and you act on it although the physical evidence may be contrary. Abraham’s life reveals this outstanding truth. He was old and also had a wife who was past childbearing or had a dead womb but still believed the word of the Lord that they would have a child.

See Romans 4:19-20 “And without being weakened in faith he considered his own body now as good as dead (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet, looking unto the promise of God, he wavered not through unbelief, but waxed strong through faith, giving glory to God”

The example of Abraham teaches that people who walk by faith do not operate with their natural senses. They allow God’s Word to guide them. The word of God is one major area we can draw our substance of hope from. Daily meditation boosts your belief and confidence that you can do it.

Keep acting on the word by faith and you will see results in every area of your life- health, ministry, marriage, finances, career, etc.

Read: Hebrews 11:1-6