Going from Faith to Faith (Bill Winston)

I had the pleasure of listening to Bill Winston's sermons at Kenneth Copeland's Southwest Believers Convention this past July. It certainly was a blessing to me. Lately, I feel as if my faith is being tested like never before. I began to realize that this testing is not in a vacuum. God is taking me to a higher faith in Him. It started with finding out that my student loans had run out for grad school. This was especially discouraging as I have 4 classes left in order to finish. There was not a doubt (then or now) that I would finish. I've already settled that. But I began to seek God about what all of this really meant. Other financial problems arose which I won't discuss because they are coming to pass (!). It was then that I began to see how my faith has been latent for quite some time. Sometimes we get distracted and our attention leaves God. As a result, our faith suffers. I think my faith had went backward in early 2014. I had some victories here and there, but the toil of life was really beginning to wear me down. Up to mid-2014, I had never been this tired.

Enter Bill Winston.

I can't list everything he preached about but the gist of it all was that God is taking believers to a new level of faith. The biggest thing I got out of it was that we have to get our carnal mind out of the way (Romans 8:7). Sometimes we try to figure it out. That is one of my biggest hangups, well used to be my biggest hangup :). Dr. Winston stressed that we must believe with our heart (Romans 10:10). We must essentially take God at His word.

These were things I knew.

I knew better.

But I wasn't doing them.

I realized while I listened to the sermon, that I had trying to figure it all out in my mind. This was why I was so tired. This was why I had trouble focusing. I am beginning a new journey in faith. One in which I will succeed. This time I'm going to do it right. I'll keep you posted on the victories to come in Jesus' name. Meanwhile, take a listen to Dr. Winston. You won't be disappointed.

Don't Hold Back

Today's mini blog is about holding back.

So many people hold back out of fear that they will run out of energy.

Not understanding that tomorrow is not promised to any of us.

I’ll do it tomorrow is no way to live

Life is meant to be lived to the fullest

Sometimes you may be doing something and it seems it isn't working and no one is paying attention

The worst thing you could ever do is quit.

The best thing you could ever do is give it everything you’ve got.

It may not get the result you seek after but you will feel better about yourself.

You will know that you did your part and that is your duty.

You don’t want to get to the end of your life and say “I wish I tried harder”.

Give life all you have today and let the chips fall where they will.

Expectations (Podcast)

Are you paying attention to the expectations you have in life? This podcast will challenge you to pay attention and expand them!!!

The Mind is Only Creative

The mind is only creative.

Learning this will empower you to the point that you will not be hindered again. Getting stuck is a common theme with people. So many people complain about being stuck at a job, in a relationship or on a project. I think the culprit is a stuck mindset.

The mind will only create what you put in it.

The mind is a factory. The raw materials you give it are in line with what you are producing. If you owned a chair factory, you would only have materials that produced chairs.

The quality of our thoughts are largely influenced by what we intend to produce. People are often trying to change the nature of their thoughts, without changing the nature of their aim. You cannot separate the two. If your aim is negative, then the raw materials (i.e. your thoughts) will resemble (and ultimately assemble) that.

Think and Grow Rich, the best self-help book ever written, lists as one of the principles: having a definite chief aim. You may have more than one definite chief aim in life. You may have a 100 aims. But one definite aim will focus the energy in your mind to producing that end.

Procrastination is largely a function of not having a clear view of what you want to create.

Put your mind to work by giving it something to create.

The Power of Your Tongue

The power of life and death is in the tongue

The power to control your life isn’t in anything else. Too many people underestimate the power of their tongue until it is too late. Your spoken word connects you to the promises of God. God promised you many things, but you could be like so many Christians who never experience those blessings because of the words you speak. James 3 talks about how with the tongue, we can bridle (or control) the whole body. Do you have problems with self-control? Do you have issues with anger management, lust, addictions or overeating? The tongue is the key to your freedom. You have to speak control over your flesh. The flesh is unruly. You have to take control of it from your spirit.

Let’s say you are having trouble eating healthy. The flesh wants soda and chips all day. There isn’t anything wrong with that occasionally, but eating like that everyday eventually can produce disease. You know you need to eat better, but what do you do when the urge to snack hits? The best way to handle it to use words to control your body. You tell your body that you will eat healthy foods this week. You actually talk to yourself. In doing so, you begin to regain the control in your life. If you aren’t finishing your work or assignments, you tell yourself that we will finish it all. The pull of life is always toward laziness and apathy. James said that the tongue is like a rudder that directs us into good or bad. So much depends on the words that we speak.

We have to understand that God gave us the power to overcome our circumstances. That power lies within our tongue.

Needing Patience

Of all of the things that the Bible says we need. It is a surprise what comes up. First of all, God promises to supply all we need. Of course, most people file money, shelter and food under these needs. And that's true.

But the rich man likely doesn't need shelter or money. The well-fed person does not need food. But every person needs patience. Humans have an inherent need of patience. I think this stems from our godly nature. We were made in the image of God. And because we are of godly descent, we tend to want things on our schedule.

We want it done yesterday.

But in a fallen world, dealing with fallen people, this is not always possible. We have our schedule, but the other 6 billion people in the world have their own schedule. So we do we do with that? Do we get all discombobulated when things don't go the way they should. Do we fret or freak out? Certainly this is the response for a lot of people. It isn't healthy. Patience is something you will need for life, and for the rest of your life. Patience allows you to keep it together when life happens. It keeps you focused between  jobs, through a marriage crisis, or issues with your children.

We have need of patience.

One of my favorite Bible scriptures is James 1:4. It was one of the first scriptures I memorized. At the time, I was struggling with impatience. But this scripture helped me to understand that everything does not happen overnight. And even though it does not happen overnight, it doesn't mean it won't happen ever.

But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

This idea of lacking nothing is intriguing. because it is the state that most humans seek to attain. This is done through patience. It is a master lesson that once learned, opens up the world to you. As a business person, patience is a virtue, because it takes time to build a market and a following. Because it isn't just your schedule that has to be taken into consideration, but the schedules of 6 billion people as well. Patience is the great equalizer, because it allows you to wait for things to happen as they should. when you understand that, you truly become complete, lacking nothing.

The Word of God is the most important factor in your success. It is a light to your path (Psalm 119:105), it brings hope and instruction (2 Timothy 3:16). The biggest reason the Word of God is important is that you cannot have sustainable faith without it. You need something to hang your faith upon. Why not place it upon something that will never die? The Word of God will never die. Heaven and Earth will pass away, but God's word will not (Luke 21:33). If there is one thing you must read, it should be the Bible. The Word of God will bring faith into you life (Romans 10:17). And faith is the bridge by which the blessings of God travel from the spiritual to the tangible realm.  The Bible also tells us that our victory is our faith (1 John 5:4). That's interesting, because we usually think of faith giving us the victory, but faith IS the victory. Having a real faith in God makes you a winner. Remember the story of Jesus and the woman with the issue of blood (Luke 8:43-48). Jesus told her that her faith made her whole. Even the Lord admitted He didn't heal her, her faith did. There is nothing more important than faith in your receiving that which God has already given you. 

God Bless! 

Lacked Ye Anything?

And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. (Luke 22:35 KJV)

So many people (even Christians) are afraid of lack. I do believe that we are not supposed to lack anything essential to fulfillment of God's purpose in the earth. I believe that means God does not make us rich for the sake being rich. He does so for the purpose of his covenant. Far too often people lose sight of this (or never gain sight of it in the first place) to the point that fear and torment set in. To fulfill the covenant of God, there is no one limit to resources. But you must wrap your head around the global principle. God's word must be proven true in your life. It's your job to demonstrate the Word of God in your life. Period.

What does the average person do?

The average person tries to provide for his or herself out of limited self-centered mindset. This is how most of us were raised. This is an outdated and erroneous philosophy. I'm not saying that it isn't God's will for you to work, it very much is (2 Thessalonians 3:10). The work you do and who you are working for seems to be the disconnect.

Let me provide a real world example: Let's say you are in need of an income. You may have been laid off or fired. You have bills and needs in the earth. The old mode of Christianity is to beg God for a job, or something to that effect. What this does is put the Christian in a mode of doubt, out of which little if any good can come (James 1:8). The Christian is usually not taught the Bible is the final authority of her life. That if God said her needs were provided, that she is to accept it as so. The Bible not only provides needs, but desires too. The person needs his bills paid so he can meet his obligations. God tells us to pay for what we use. Would God not provide the means to uphold his covenant?

In Proverbs, we are told that above anything to seek wisdom. Wisdom is the principal thing. You may need a job, but get wisdom first. You may need healing but get wisdom first. Because when we think we need "A", we really need "B". God's word must be fulfilled in the earth.

This is all a lead up to my subject. The Bible tells the story of when Jesus sent ministers to preach the gospel. Interestingly enough, Jesus sent them without purse (or wallet), knapsack, shoes or scrip (writing material). He sent them empty handed. or so it seemed. When they came back, Jesus conducted an exit interview of sorts. He asked them did they lack anything? They said no. Even though they were no ATMs, Paypal accounts, Western Union locations or the like. In the very next verse, Jesus then said the next time they went out, not to go empty handed. A secondary point here is that God does not want us to be empty handed always. The primary point was not to trust in anything but God. Not your savings. Not your job or business. Not anything other God.

It's interesting how sometimes we must be brought to nothing to realize we already have everything.