Wonderful Jesus!

Tag: Prayer

• The Medicine Cabinet

  Posted at 7:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 18, 2020

  Proverbs 4:20-22 –

  My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh. NKJV

  Have you ever stopped to really listen to commercials selling pharmaceutical drugs? It can really be laughable if it wasn’t so alarming. A well known drug for allergies can cause severe allergic reactions, severe dizziness and trouble breathing. A medication for high blood pressure can cause a loss of potassium, leg cramps, gout and the need for other medications. Other side effects are depression, cold hands and feet, insomnia, symptoms of asthma, and in some cases, kidney failure. Some times I have to wonder if we are not better off without the medicines since the side effects that accompany these medications are often worst.

  Thanks be to God that there is a medicine that have long lasting, eternal side effects that are not harmful to your physical body! The Word of God! I’ll talk more about that in a minute.

  Now all medications come with instructions. Some require that it be taken four times a day, while others may just be daily! The medicine of God’s word is the same. It comes with instruction! In our verse for today, the writer encourages us to pay attention to His words. Now we understand that we are paying attention to the word of God when we are reading and meditating on it. After paying attention to the word, we are to be willing to learn all that we can from it. If you have never heard this before, be willing to learn what the word teaches about healing. We are to keep the word in our sight and to keep it in the center of our heart. Again, this is not a passive or just for the moment attention to the word. It is a commitment to the word. All of these instructions are for how we are to take the word to get the best results!

  Then he tells us what the results are for taking the word: they are life to those who find them, and health and healing to all of their flesh! Healing means I am getting healed from some attack on my body, and health means that I am kept from a need to be healed. So the word of God produces life, health, and healing to those who find them; both present and future results of allowing the word to be your medicine.

  In God’s medicine cabinet, what we call the Bible, are countless scriptures regarding His promise to heal us. One of the most well-known scriptures on healing is found in Exodus 15:26-“…For I am the Lord who heals you.” Another favorite of mine and well known verse is Isaiah 53:5- “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” In this blog, I can only mention a few of my favorites, but you can do a search for healing scriptures and get an entire list of them. Also, you can probably look up a YouTube video of someone reading them, so I won’t redo what you can find elsewhere.

  I do, however, want to return to the instructions on taking the word. No one told me anything but to get the healing scriptures and to confess them over myself. (I actually own Kenneth Hagin’s “Healing Scriptures” in hard copy and ebook.) But through the years I have developed some “techniques” for taking the medicine of God’s Word that I will share.

  • First, I get a list of healing scriptures. I either grab a book off my shelf or google a list. Sometimes I just go from my memory of the scriptures.

  • Then, I begin to worship Him and thank Him for the validity of His Word, for His faithfulness to His word, for His healing power throughout the years, etc.

  • I then go through the list one verse at a time, making it very personal. For example: “ Lord, you promised in Your Word that if I would obey You and Your word that You wouldn’t allow the sickness and disease that is on the world to come upon me. That You would reveal Yourself and be to me the Lord that heals! I am so thankful for that and I receive that Word as truth. As I have endeavored to obey Your word, I have placed myself in right standing with you to be healed. I receive it for myself, or my family, or my friend right now in Jesus’ Name! And I continue to go through the list of verses in like manner.

  • As I am going through the list, I will come upon a verse that will quicken me. It is at this verse that I will stop and camp. Let’s say that the verse is 1 Peter 2:24 today. Then I will begin to stand with tenacity on that verse. I will remind my body that Jesus hung on the cross and carried this thing in His Body on the cross so that I wouldn’t have to bear it, so I fully resist it! I will remind my body that when He died on the cross it was in order for me to be dead to my sins and therefore dead to sickness and disease! As I live in Him I am the righteousness of God and I live to righteousness. So irrespective to what sin the devil wants to hold charge against me, I plead the Blood and I decree that I am righteous! Now sickness and disease you leave my Body, you are trespassing and I command you to go!

  • If the symptoms don’t leave immediately, I don’t say or think, this isn’t working! I just keep attacking each symptom with God’s word knowing that it will bow to the uncompromising word of God! This medicine is strong! It goes between joints and marrow, it is quick and powerful, it’s sharper than a two-edge sword. There is no defense against the Word of God. Nothing can withstand it when it is wielded properly. So start swinging the sword of the Word at this coronavirus today! I know I am!

  Now back to side effects! The side effects of the word of God is that the more you use it, the more you will want to use it. The more you see it work in your life, the more you will apply it to your life. The more you take it, the stronger your physical and spiritual beings will become. And most importantly, the stronger your trust, and therefore, your relationship with God will become! Then as your faith grows, you will be able to reach out to others who are sick and share your medicine with them because your doctor, the Great Physician won’t mind at all. In fact, He will highly recommend it!

  If I could write a blog that wouldn’t be extremely long, and potentially boring to you, I would go through all of my healing scriptures and tell you some things I have seen, maybe in shorter doses I can. But let me share this quick testimony:

  Our daughter inherited eczema through her dad’s bloodline. And after years of us putting creams on it and praying over it, she had had enough. As a matter of fact, she came to me and said that I didn’t pray over her like I prayed over the people at the church and she wanted to be healed! So the Lord gave me the strategy of us combating it daily with the word. One day I would have a verse, the next day she would, and we would pray that verse over her. Then, one day we prayed and it was a wrap! No more was she tormented in her flesh with that skin rash. Not only that, but her skin cleared up! She was made free! The word works! Don’t let the devil try and convince you that it doesn’t!

  At this time, while we are gearing up in America for more and more cases of the coronavirus, and other countries are dealing with the heart of it, I think we should gear up for our vaccine against it! Get into God’s medicine cabinet today, and get His word working on your behalf! He has carried your sins and diseases and with His stripes, you were HEALED! Wonderful Jesus!

  *

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Healing, Health | 8 Comments | Tagged 1 Peter 2:24, Believer, Christian, encouragement, Faith, Healing, Health, Isaiah 53:5, Prayer, Proverbs 4:20-22, righteousness

• There Is A Name!

  Posted at 1:09 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 17, 2020

  Ephesians 1:21 – “far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.” NKJV

  The News is buzzing every day, all day, on every channel about the coronavirus. I get that we need to be kept informed of all that is happening and am personally watching the news and listening for any changes that are taking place in the world. But there comes a point when we have to shut out all of the negative news and remind ourselves of the truth of God’s word!

  This morning, as I was waking up, a song popped in my head, “There Is a Name” by Byron Cage. (I just finished listening to it for the fourth or fifth time today!) I’ve not been able to shake it from my spirit and so I knew I just had to remind you, as the Lord reminded me today, there is a Name, Jesus!

  Paul wrote in Ephesians regarding Jesus, that He is seated in heavenly places far above all principality, power, might, and dominion, and above every name that is named! Coronavirus is a name, and He is above the name of coronavirus!!

  Today, we have officially began our “at home” stay because of the coronavirus with the expectation of returning to work/school at the end of the month. However, before leaving the school today, the President gave a press conference in which he stated that this may go on til July! That is mind boggling!

  We can accept all that he and the scientists of the world say as truth, or we can accept what God has said is truth. Jesus is the Name above every name. At His Name, every knee must bow! We can become afraid of coronavirus or we can command it to bow to the Name of Jesus! I believe that we can take a stand against this diabolical attack against our world in Jesus’ Name and command this virus to dry up and dissipate!

  You might be asking, “What makes you think that it will be any different for America, then it was for the other nations?” I have an answer! Remember Sennacherib’s messenger to Hezekiah, and how he asked Hezekiah the same thing? Well, I do! He told Hezekiah that things didn’t work out too well for those other countries and so there was no point in him thinking that they would work out differently for Judah. But Hezekiah dared to believe that God was still keeping covenant with His people and cried out to Him. And God delivered him and Judah from Sennacherib!

  I say to you tonight, stop focusing on the bad reports! Should you take precautions? I think you should! Should you honor the quarantine? I plan to because I believe it is the right thing to do. But am I planning on sitting back waiting to be struck down, or waiting for those I know and love to be struck down? I don’t think so!

  We have what the world needs right now! This is our time to show that we are serving the One and True Living God and that we are readily placing our trust in Him! Jesus doesn’t have the answer to the coronavirus, Jesus is the Answer! His Name is above coronavirus, meaning that His Name has greater authority than the name of coronavirus.

  As we were preparing to leave our class today I mentioned the coronavirus to my students. I wanted to make sure they understood why we were leaving school for the next two weeks. One of my students said, we need to pray about this! I wish I could’ve stopped and prayed right there on the spot with him but since he made an observation and not a request, I agreed and kept it moving!

  Church of God….we need to pray! And we need to keep praying and speaking words of life over ourselves, our loved ones, our friends, and our nations! We’ve been given the Name that can counter what coronavirus is doing. Let’s use it in faith, knowing…there is a Name!!! And it hasn’t lost it’s power! Wonderful, wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, coronavirus, Healing | 1 Comment | Tagged Believer, Christian, Ephesians 1, God, hard times, Healing, Hezekiah, Jesus, Prayer, Sennacherib

• Healing of the Nations

  Posted at 2:58 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 10, 2020

  2 Chronicles 7:14 -If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. KJV

  I am finding it hard to conceptualize the far reaching arm of the coronavirus. It almost doesn’t seem real! But God’s word is as relevant today as it was when these words were spoken to Solomon! I am sure many are already praying, but I wanted my followers and readers to know that I am also praying:

  Father God, You are as awesome as You have ever been and for that I say thanks! I give You honor as I lift up the nations in regards to this virus that is spreading worldwide.

  You said that if Your people would humble themselves and pray…So I humble myself tonight Father and I pray against this terrible attack against mankind. It could be that we as a world have sinned terribly and have opened ourselves up for this onslaught against the people. It could be that the enemy is trying to stop the spread of the gospel. It could be a lot of things and unless you tell me, I don’t know.

  But I do know that I can pray. I pray right now, in the Name that is above “coronavirus”, the Name of Jesus that You will bring this to end. I pray that as You give wisdom to those who are working non-stop to deal with this in the natural realm that You will also give us wisdom as we pray to deal with it in the supernatural realm.

  I lift up the nations that have already seen so many become infected, even those nations where people are dying, and I pray that You will step in and bring relief, comfort and healing. I pray that You will protect those who have no way of knowing if they have been exposed to the virus and those who have no way of getting medical help. I ask that You, the Great Physician will step in with Your divine healing and protection.

  I ask Father, that as we pray, that a spirit of peace will replace a spirit of chaos; that a spirit of faith will take the place of the spirit of fear; that You will do a worldwide miracle; and that as we, Your ambassadors are moving in our sphere of influences that we will be that light in the midst of this darkness, assuring others of Your Great Love, praying for the sick, assisting where needed!

  I pray for those in quarantine that this will be a productive time for them of getting to know their families and even You better; that they will allow what is meant to bring them discouragement to bring them great joy and peace in Your Presence. I pray for quick recoveries of those who are ill and protection for those who are not! Let resources begin to pour into cities, villages, towns, and even nations!

  I pray that as You reveal to us, what is going on, that we will hear, repent if need be, and embrace Your grace. And if we don’t get clarity that we will trust that You are working things out for our good! Then I ask that You bring healing not only to the people, but to our lands. Let not the enemy have his way in this situation, I pray, but arise and scatter him and his cohorts.

  And Father, I want You to know that I believe that Your goodness is in full operation, even in the midst of this and if we dare to believe that and trust it, we shall see Your deliverance. In Jesus’ Name I pray! Amen! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in coronavirus, Healing, Prayer, protection | 0 Comments | Tagged 2 Chronicles 7:14, Believer, Christian, Faith, Healing, Jesus, Prayer

• A Matter of the Heart!

  Posted at 1:20 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 8, 2020

  Key Text: Psalm 119:10-With my whole heart I have sought You…

  When was the last time that you were able to say like David that you sought the Lord with your whole heart? I don’t know about you but I can say with a certainty that every prayer that I pray is not prayed with my whole heart. As I am studying, how to pray effectively, I am taking this time to be honest before the Lord about my prayer life. I am allowing the Holy Spirit to shed light on those prayers that have been answered and those prayers that have not been answered so that I have more answered prayers than not. I have decided that the fault of unanswered prayer lie at my door and not at His. It is with that in mind that I write this blog.

  William Penn was an English Quaker best known for founding the colony of Pennsylvania as a place for religious freedom in America. He was a minister, missionary, lawyer, and a journalist. Charles Finney, in his autobiography quoted this saying from William Penn:

  For nothing reaches the heart but what is from the heart or pierces the conscience but what comes from a living conscience.—William Penn

  This quote resonated with me reminding me of the truth of God’s word regarding prayer. If it doesn’t touch my heart, it probably doesn’t touch the heart of God. David’s statement, in the above scripture, is an echo of a truth regarding prayer that is often overlooked: we are to pray with our whole heart! Not our physical organ of a heart, but with our spiritual heart.

  The word “heart” comes from the Hebrew word “lebab ” and is used to depict the inner man. It is also used to refer to the seat of desire, inclination, or will of an individual. When thinking of the heart as the seat of my desires it causes me to think of praying being all in, or fully engaged. When I think of engagement in prayer, I am thinking of things like, is my mind fully engaged in this prayer or am I thinking about other things? Do I care if this prayer is answered or not; how important to me is the answer? Do I truly believe that I am communing with the Father, or am I just going through an exercise? These questions and some others you may think of are important in dealing with praying with our whole heart.

  The psalms are songs, but many of them are also prayers. As I was looking at the subject of heartfelt prayers I came upon this verse written by David:

  Psalm 35:13-14- But I, when they were ill, wore sackcloth; I put myself out and fasted; I can pray that what I prayed for them might also happen to me. I behaved as I would for my friend or my brother; I bent down in sorrow as if mourning my mother. CJB

  David is reminiscing about his times of prayer for others. He recalls how when they were sick, he fasted on their behalf and cried out to the Lord. David said that he prayed for them basically as if he was praying for himself. He wanted God to intervene on their situation as he would have wanted God to do it for him. This is praying with one’s whole heart. Most of us can probably go there when we have a serious situation going on in our lives, but how many of us can do that when something is going on in someone else’s life?

  Through the years I have had the privilege of praying for many who were sick. When I pray for the sick at home, I am all in, asking God for greater anointing to get them healed, for a time when there is no sick amongst us, for miracles to break out amongst His people in a greater way. I recall one of my earlier times when I prayed for someone who was sick. I was in the grocery store when I came upon a woman having a seizure. She looked at me and was able to get that out to me. I caught her as she was falling, knelt beside her and began to pray with an urgency! I took authority over that demonic seizure spirit, bound his activity and commanded him to leave. The crowd was gathering and I heard someone say call 911; but I just kept my focus on her deliverance and kept praying. I remembered when my baby had been diagnosed with abnormal seizure activity and I got mad at the devil! So I prayed. A few minutes later her body calmed, she got up and thanked me and we both continued to shop for our groceries. Glory to God!

  Another time I was at a conference when I passed a group of women praying for a lady who was in great pain; and I heard her say she was considering leaving the conference. I had to go to restroom and since I was just an attendee, I continued on my way. But I said to the Lord that I would go over there and pray if she was still there when I returned, because it looked like they needed help. I began to join my faith with them as I went to the restroom, praying in the Spirit. When I returned, they were still praying so I walked over, asked if I could pray, and they said yes. She was made free because of His faithfulness to His Word! He is the God that Heals! I believe those women were praying with all of their heart for their friend, I just know that sometimes we can all use a little help!

  This isn’t always the results that I get. This is why I am studying prayer. Can I just be honest and say that I study it whenever I begin to feel frustration in my prayer life? I want to be more effective and get greater and more consistent results. Even now when I pray for people I see them get healed, especially of pain, but not all of them get healed. Some have died and gone on to be with the Lord. Some have had miraculous turn arounds! Thank God for that! But my heart is that not a single person live a single day longer in sickness than they have to, and they stop dying of sickness and disease. Just go to sleep and go home after a ripe old age and a fulfilled life! Glory be to God!!

  I get what William Penn said that if prayer doesn’t touch my heart that it won’t touch the Father’s heart. I want to pray every prayer with my whole heart. Most often than not, that will be in my private time or in corporate prayer so that when someone needs me to pray for them, I can boldly stand in faith and decree their victory as if it was my victory! It’s simply a matter of the heart! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Prayer, Psalm 119, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Christian, encouragement, Faith, Healing, heart, Jesus, miraculous, Prayer, Psalm 119, victory

• What Do You Want?

  Posted at 3:30 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 6, 2020

  Matthew 20:32 – So Jesus stood still and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” NKJV

  Jesus was leaving Jericho on this particular day, and of course He was surrounded by people. As He walked along the street there were two blind men sitting on the roadside. When they heard that Jesus was passing they cried out to Him for mercy. Some in the crowd told them to be quiet, but they got louder and cried out again for mercy.

  How many times have you prayed for God’s mercy when what you needed was finances, or healing, or some other thing? God’s mercy is His compassion towards mankind. The Hebrew word for mercy is eleéō, and means “to compassionate (by word or deed, specially, by divine grace) (The Blue Bible). I personally believe that all of God’s responses to us is because of His compassion towards us. But His compassion or mercy is so endless that we need to refine our request for results that matter.

  All too often when we pray we are general and have a tendency of being repetitive and full of religious sayings. We go through life wondering how we can be so faithful in praying and yet we lack results in our prayers being answered. We can get loud and emotional, we clap and stomp and say “Father God! In the Name of Jesus, and other phrases to fill our prayer time, and leave tired from the activity with no assurance of our prayers being answered. Jesus said that when we pray, we are not to use vain repetitions. Matthew 6:7- “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” When I read this verse, it helped me to see that I really did need to listen to make some changes in the way that I was praying.

  In our scripture we have these two men, crying out for mercy. When Jesus stops and asks them what do they want Him to do for them they don’t ask for mercy! Isn’t that surprising that they have been yelling for mercy, but now that they have His attention, they are no longer asking for mercy? No! They ask for their eyes to be opened! And Jesus opened their eyes! He showed them mercy when He opened their eyes, but He could have shown them mercy without ever opening their eyes. They were specific in what they wanted and they got exactly what they wanted.

  Our verse for today, share an important ingredient in praying effectively. That simple truth is this, that we are to be specific in our prayers. In dealing with my children when they were small, I often had to try and figure out what they wanted. My second born was a fast talker when she was a toddler and some times she would talk so fast I couldn’t understand what she was saying. On one occasion she was going at it and I kept asking her what did she want. Finally, her big sister said to me that she wanted some water. I said that she was not asking for water. Then my oldest turned to her and asked, “Didn’t you say you wanted water?” She said yes with her head bobbing enthusiastically. To this day, I still think that she just agreed with her because it was her big sister, but the point is that I couldn’t help her until I knew what she wanted.

  1 John 5:14-15 – Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

  It’s also important to ask. This word for petition is aiteo in the Greek. It means to be adamant in requesting and even demanding assistance in meeting tangible needs. This doesn’t mean being disrespectful to the Lord, but it does mean that you can respectfully ask God for what you want, and when you are specific in your request that is based on the word of God, you can boldly ask and expect that you will receive what you want from the Lord.

  This type of praying is known as petition praying and it’s all about being specific in our request. The Greek word aitema is a form of the word ask, and it means specific, exact, explicit, precise, and detailed request. This request is so thorough that there is no misunderstanding of what is being asked and expected. This picture of prayer is so detailed that it is a bona fide petition that has been submitted to the Father.

  Some in the Body teach that we should write down our prayers and be specific about what we want so that we can recognize when we get the answer. I am really bad at that and am working to get better, but the really important things are hard to forget.

  Over the years I have learned two very important things about praying. The first is to ask! Jesus won’t always ask you what do you want! But He is always available to hear our requests! The second is to be specific. If you want to be healed of something, be specific about that. If you want finances for something, tell Him what you need. You might ask, “Doesn’t He already know what you want or need! Yes, He does. But asking is part of the receiving. Until next time! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Matthew 20:32, Prayer | 0 Comments | Tagged Believer, Christian, God, Jesus, Matthew 20:32, petition, Prayer

• Don’t Count Yourself Out!

  Posted at 3:38 am by wonderfuljesus8, on February 21, 2020

  “2 Chronicles 32:8 -With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah. NKJV

  As I mentioned in my previous post, a lot is going on in this battle. I have already mentioned that Hezekiah was a righteous king, doing all that he could to restore the statutes of the Lord in Israel. He tore down everything that was contrary to the Lord, and rebuilt all that was destroyed in an attempt to stomp Him out.

  I like what verse 1 in this chapter of the Bible let’s us know. “After these deeds of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered Judah…” I wrote about this in my last post, but here we see in the word that the attack came after his righteous stand. Just like it does with us today! And at first he compromises with the enemy to try and get him to back off from the battle, but verse two lets us know that Sennacherib had come with a purpose to make war against Jerusalem.

  Each telling of the battle has some really interesting points, but tonight I want to deal with what happened after the compromise. According to verses 3-8, Hezekiah came up with a plan. That plan was not to give in and let Sennacherib totally destroy all that he had accomplished, but to prepare for battle!

  First, Hezekiah realizes that the Assyrians came to battle and he consults with his leaders and commanders. Can I stop for a moment and say that Hezekiah was wise enough to know that he didn’t know everything, or that he could accomplish far more with his team alongside him? Too many leaders in the church and in the world have a complex about what greatness looks like. For some reason they feel that because they are the leader, they know better than anybody else what to do. They need to go back to the school of feet washing so that they can understand that in His kingdom we are to be servants first. I have known a lot of bad leaders and only a few really good leaders. I tip my hat to them! Can I also point out that he recognized that the Assyrians came to battle. It’s time we recognize that every time the devil shows up, he comes prepared to do so battle. So we need to make sure that we are prepared, also.

  Together they decided three things: to shut off the water supply, to rebuild the walls, and to rebuild and equip their forces. There were springs near Jerusalem and a brook that ran nearby. All of this was stopped up to keep the Assyrians from having an ample water supply. They rebuilt the walls, and even built an extra wall outside of that one. Archaeologists have discovered a portion of wall that they think is from this time frame that was strong enough to withstand the battering rams and enclosed a reservoir of water. And lastly, they made weapons and shields to fight the battle.

  But the most important thing that happened was that Hezekiah took courage and talked to his military commanders. He encouraged them to be strong and courageous; to not be afraid, nor to be discouraged. Then he reminds them that the One who was with them, was greater than the one coming against them, and that He would be with them.

  Now how does this help us in the battles of life? After you compromise with the devil, the enemy wants you to think that it’s over for you. You gave up on God, or trusted in your flesh, or your money, or whatever, and now you are on your own. But Hezekiah realized that he was about to face a serious battle and he needed help from God! And so will you!

  One thing that you can do to get ready for war is to get over yourself. You messed up, now get up, repent and prepare for battle!

  Then, you shut off anything that will aid the enemy’s attack on you. That could be an ungodly relationship, or unforgiveness, or idolatry, hatred or selfish ambitions, or drunkenness to name a few. Just shut the door to those things, that the enemy will not have a place to get comfortable and habitat in your life.

  Rebuild the walls. Fix whatever is broken. Get things in order. Repent and recommit your life to Jesus. Get re-established in your church. Let go of ungodly soul ties. Restore godly relationships! Move in the direction that encourages a healthy life in Christ!

  Lastly, get those weapons ready! You have weapons of warfare that are mighty in God (2 Corinthians 4:10)! Those weapons include praise, the name of Jesus, the Blood of the Lamb, the living word of God, and prayer. You will not win this in the flesh. That’s what Hezekiah said that Sennacherib had, the arm of the flesh, but he and Judah had the Lord! So do you!! So see yourself as a winner, and not as a loser.

  And after you have done all of that, you stand! Stand knowing that greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world! (1 John 4:4) Stand knowing that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it. (Philippians 1:6). Stand because the word said, and having done all, you stand! (Ephesians 6:13). Don’t let the devil ever convince you that it is impossible to regain your place with God. In some cases, things could actually get better because you could actually be more committed than you were before having gone through a bad experience. Keep your head up and don’t count yourself out! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Victorious Living | 2 Comments | Tagged Believer, Christian, encouragement, Faith, God, hard times, Hezekiah, Judah, Prayer, Sennacherib, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living, victory

• The Shout of Victory!

  Posted at 7:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on February 11, 2020

  Joshua 6:16 – And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!

  You would be hard pressed today to find someone who has not heard of the battle of Jericho. Songs and movies have been made about this great victory; but just in case you are one of the few who have not heard, I will give you an abbreviated account.

  The children of Israel had arrived at the Jordan. It was time to go across into the land of Canaan to take possession of their promised land, their inheritance. Joshua sent two spies to check out the land, and while they were doing reconnaissance they met Rahab. She hides the spies, lies to her countrymen, then makes a deal for her life and the lives of her family members (chapter 2).

  Then the children of Israel arrives at the Jordan and again God parts the waters as He did with the Red Sea. Do you think the people of Canaan was oblivious to this parting of the river? I don’t think so! I think this only heightened their fear of Joshua and the children of Israel. Sometimes when we are in a battle, all we see is the obvious; but we have to realize that God is strategically handle the situation on our behalf. The Canaanites were already afraid of the God who parted the Red Sea and now He is parting the Jordan! This was no coincidence!

  After they cross over the Jordan, the manna ceased. The interesting thing to note about the manna is that God had miraculously supplied manna for them while in the wilderness, but in the promised land, provision was waiting and they had no more need of manna. Some say they no longer needed a miracle so it stopped! I think that the possessing of the land was quite miraculous and the miracles didn’t stop, they took on another form!

  The city of Jericho was on lockdown! There was no natural way to get inside the city without assistance. Archaeologists have proven that the city was surrounded by two walls and that houses were built in the walls. They also discovered that the Canaanites could have lasted for years under siege because they had a great water supply and had stored up many provisions. This was probably known to the spies and told to Joshua, Joshua didn’t know how he was going to win this battle, he just knew that he would!

  God gave Joshua some unusual instructions for attacking Jericho! Joshua was told that they were to march around the city once for six days. When they marched, the procession was to be led by the men of war, followed by seven priests playing seven trumpets in front of the ark (continuously), and behind the ark bearing priests there were to be more men of war. Not a sound was to be made otherwise! Then they returned to the camp. I can just imagine the look on the faces of the people of Canaan. They had to be wondering what in the world were the children of Israel doing? What kind of battle strategy was this? Why do they keep blowing that horn? And the sounds of the feet marching was probably magnified to them inciting fear beyond reason! What were they waiting for? What did they hope to accomplish with all of this marching? Simple instructions and frightening at the same time.

  However, on the seventh day the instructions changed. They were to march around the city seven times and when they heard the sound of the trumpet, all the people were to shout with a great shout, then the walls would fall flat! Can I just stop here to say that I wonder what Joshua was feeling at these instructions? Joshua, a mighty warrior, who have fought several battles with the Lord, is being told that his strategy for his first major war as leader of Israel is to march around the city?! Whatever he was feeling, he obeyed God! That’s a lesson all by itself!

  I remember reading a testimony of a person who was told by God to hit someone with a banana and they would be healed. Of course, the person thought that this was pretty ridiculous and couldn’t possibly be from God. Later that day, I think he was at a conference, the speaker said something like, “If God tells you to get a banana and hit someone with it, you need to obey God!” He instantly knew he was being rebuked, but moved to obey God and saw a miracle! Joshua needed no such confirmation! He trusted that this strategy would get the job done! There is no record of a discourse like Moses had with God at the burning bush when he said he couldn’t speak! No, Joshua simply obeyed God and the walls came tumbling down!

  Battles are tough! But they don’t always have to be. One word from God can turn your entire situation around. That’s why I love reading about the battles in the Old Testament. They help me to understand that God’s instructions are as unique as the situations. He is no cookie cutter God and what He told Bertha to do to win her battle, may not be what He tells you! Some battles are won with much fasting and prayer! Some are won with speaking the word! But some are won with a shout! Joshua understood that his sure victory was in hearing from God! And that’s the lesson I take from this battle! If you are facing a battle or in the midst of a battle, your victory will depend on your battle plan! Make sure it’s the one the Lord is backing! Shout,for He has given you the city! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Victorious Living | 1 Comment | Tagged encouragemnt, Joshua, miraculous, Prayer, provision, testimony, trust in God, Victorious Living, victory

• The Battle For Family!

  Posted at 5:58 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on February 8, 2020

  Genesis 14:14 – “Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.” NKJV

  Family creates an interesting dynamic to the lives of believers. Some of our family members keep us on our knees praying, confessing, and believing God for their deliverance. If it wasn’t for the fact that we know worry is a sin, some of us would live in the place of worry. But this is nothing new! And there is some great news ahead!

  Abram had been given a directive from God to leave his country, his family, and his heritage to go to a place chosen by God (Genesis 12). And he did! Kinda sorta! He took his nephew, Lot, with him. It wasn’t that Lot was some little kid that needed Abram to raise him, but when Terah left Ur, he had taken Lot, so maybe Abram felt responsible for Lot. Whatever the reason, whatever the case, they are together.

  Both men are prosperous. Verse 2, of chapter 13 lets us know that Abram was very rich in livestock, silver and gold. And we find that Lot is prosperous when the herdsmen of Abram and Lot begin arguing over the water and the land. Not only do they have to share with each other this land and water, but we are told that they have to share with the Canaanites and the Perizzites as well.

  This causes them to have to separate from each other. Lot was given a choice by Abram in verse 9, “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.” Lot chooses to go to Sodom. Some translations of the Bible states that Lot moved near Sodom, while others refer to him moving into Sodom. Which ever way it really was, he eventually ended up living in Sodom.

  In chapter 14, a battle is gearing up, and Sodom and Gomorrah joins with three other kings to fight, five agains four. During the battle, Sodom and Gomorrah are overtaken, along with Lot and his goods. Someone escapes and tells Abram, and he gears up for battle. If you have not read this in its entirety, you should do so, because I can only give highlights. In our key verse, Abram, with his trained men, go in pursuit of Lot to recover him and his goods.

  It doesn’t matter to Abram that Lot made his own choice to live in Sodom. It doesn’t matter to Abram that five kings lost to four. It doesn’t even matter to Abram that in helping Lot, he will end up helping Sodom and Gomorrah, whom I am sure he understood the nature of their lives. No! The only thing that mattered to Abram was that his beloved nephew was in trouble and needed his help!

  I’ve lived long enough to know that we all have that family member that can get into some situations. Not always of their own making, it just seems that trouble follows him or her. But family is family! And if you are a believer, your heart for your family is to see every one of them delivered from the enemy, as Abram felt. Abram pursued those kings, rescued Lot and his positions, and all the prisoners and possessions. In other words, they went into that battle and recovered all, returning quite victorious!

  I am from a large family. I had seven sisters and two brothers. All with families of their own. So we have seen some things. I also married into a good sized family. My husband had five siblings. So our families combined with siblings, with nieces, nephews and cousins are quite extensive. We’ve fought many battles over the year. We’ve lost some (seemingly in the natural), we’ve won all (in the spirit), and we find that we have become trained warriors. There is no sitting back on our family members saying that they got themselves into that, or it’s their lifestyle, or we are tired of them. We fight for our family!

  My mother died from lupus while in her forties, leaving all of us very young. Many years later when my sister was in her forties, they diagnosed her with lupus. She called me and told me about it, saying that she was going die in her forties like mama. Something rose up on the inside of me, we know it was the Holy Ghost, and I decreed the devil is a liar! I prayed for her on that phone and continued to pray until I felt the victory. She went back to the doctor and they couldn’t find it! Glory!!! She’s in her sixties. Another time, she was about to lose her job (not sure why she keeps coming to mind) because a patient lied on her. I want you to know we got to praying and she never did lose that job! Years later, she is still on it!! God is such a good God! We’ve gone to battle against sickness and diseases, financial attacks, legal battles, setups, and put downs, and we find that there is nothing God won’t do!

  I have friends, church members, acquaintances, with similar victories. As a believer, I have noticed that when the devil really gets messy, he starts attacking our family members when he wants to get at us. But we have to have the same mind Abram had, “not my family” knowing that God will go with us! Abram had no fear of losing his life or the battle. God had made a promise to him about inheriting the land of Canaan. He couldn’t inherit it if he was dead. So he went out sure of his victory. God has made us similar promises. Promises of victory! Promises that greater is He that is with us, then he that is in the world! A promise that we are more than a conqueror! A promise of household salvation! A promise of generational blessings!

  Don’t you quit on your family! Even if you believe or know you are the only one praying, the only one standing on the promises, the only one who believes! God cares about your family, because He loves them more than you do! I believe this is the first physical battle mentioned in the Bible and it’s about family! What does that say? God is aware that family can get into some altercations, but He is for you and your family! Don’t accept drug addiction, alcohol addiction, unemployment, sickness and disease, and no other lying attack the devil comes up with! This is your family! Fight, for you are inked in as the winner! Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Battle plans, Believers, Christian, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living | 4 Comments | Tagged Abraham, Believer, Christian, consequences, encouragement, Family, Genesis 14:14, hard times, Prayer, Spiritual warfare, Victorious Living, victory

• Serious Business!

  Posted at 1:00 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on January 14, 2020

  Ezra 8:22-23 -For I was ashamed to request troops and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy along the way, because we had told the king, “The hand of our God is favorable toward all those who seek Him, but His power and His anger are against all those who abandon (turn away from) Him.” So we fasted and sought [help from] our God concerning this [matter], and He heard our plea.” AMP

  At the beginning of the year, many churches take time to do extended fasting. Our church is right there with them. On yesterday, I had to preach on fasting and prayer, and as I sought the Lord, His word to me was that fasting is “serious business!” Now technically, we all know that already, but in reality we may not fast and pray as if it is serious business.

  Ezra understood the power of fasting and prayer. He was leading a group of Israelites from Babylon back to Jerusalem. The king had given him much favor and many possessions for his travel and the work in Jerusalem. He had also given him the artifacts that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple. So Ezra had a lot of people in his care and much wealth.

  When it was time to leave, Ezra said that he was embarrassed to ask the king for an escort to protect them from bandits along the way. After all, he had told the king that His God knows how to look after His people! That’s why he said that he felt as if he couldn’t ask the king’s help in getting safely to Jerusalem. So he did what he knew to do, he called a fast and they prayed. And God heard.

  This was serious business. After his testimony to the goodness of God, he needed to act on his faith and trust that God would be faithful! I am pretty sure that no one was sneaking off to get food to eat or to socialize during this time. Every one knew the seriousness of the hour and everyone got involved in the fast!

  This reminds me of Nineveh. In the book of Jonah, Jonah was upset that God asked him to go warn the city of Nineveh that He would destroy them in 40 days. So he took off and ended up in the belly of a great fish. (I believe it was last summer that I learned of a whale shark that grows to the size of school bus and doesn’t eat meat. I wondered if that was the offspring of Jonah’s whale). Anyway, when Jonah was free again, he went to Nineveh as instructed. As soon as the people heard the proclamation, they began fasting. And when the king heard, he decreed that not only were the people to fast, but the animals and children as well. These people were not the children of God, but the king thought that if they fasted and repented that maybe God wouldn’t destroy them. That got God’s attention and He abandoned His plans to destroy the city.

  What do you do when you are in a tight place? Do you automatically think it’s time to fast? A lot of the time I do, but sometimes it doesn’t cross my mind. I just react in my flesh. I whine, I complain, and I even become frustrated having to fight discouragement. One would think that if I know the solution that works that I would always apply it. But I don’t! How about you? Do you automatically fast and pray when difficulty arises? Do you think of God coming through or how you can figure this out? Do you cry out to God with your whole heart knowing that the answer you need is in Him? Well, I can assure you that I have missed it to! If the ungodly can fast and pray and see God move, surely His children can!

  This year I plan to do so much better in trusting Him. I plan to spend much more time fasting and praying this year than I have in quite some time. Not only for the difficult times or when I have to preach, but for situations that wont’ change but need to change. For attitudes and thinking that cause His heart to hurt. For people I know who need to be saved, or healed, or set free. Yep, this year will find me seeking God as if I know that things are serious and fasting and praying is serious business! I invite you to do the same. Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Attitude, Believers, Christian, Ezra 8:22-23, Fasting, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Attitude, Christian, Ezra, Ezra 8:22-23, Faith, Fasting, Jonah, Nineveh, Prayer

• Mustard Seed Faith! Repost and Revised!

  Posted at 3:56 am by wonderfuljesus8, on December 14, 2019

  With all of the end of the year things going on, I thought I would repost a blog I enjoyed writing in my early days when no one was reading my blog! LOL! Hope you enjoy this blog!

  What did Jesus mean about mustard seed faith? While I cannot say with certainty what He meant, I can say with certainty, what He didn’t mean. Traditionally, we have been taught that mustard seed faith was having just “a little faith, the size of a mustard seed” to move a great big mountain. Well, I don’t think so!

  Matthew 17:20-“So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “move from here to there’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”NKJV

  In the Young’s Literal Translation, this verse reads, “And Jesus said to them, ‘Through your want of faith; for verily I say to you, if ye may have faith as a grain of mustard, ye shall say to this mount, remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible to you.”

  As I have already mentioned, Jesus is not talking about the size of the seed. In both of the above versions, size isn’t even mentioned  But we have taught faithfully that Jesus is talking about the size of the seed comparing it to the size of our faith. Let’s look at what Jesus thinks about “small” faith:

  Matthew 6:30-Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (This doesn’t read as a compliment!)

  Matthew 8:26- But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great calm.” (In this verse they were both fearful and had little faith, no wonder they couldn’t rebuke the storm!)

  Matthew 14:31- “And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” ” (Peter walked on water, but “little faith” caused him to doubt and sink). How can little faith move a mountain when it couldn’t handle a storm or keep Peter on the surface of the water?

  Matthew 16:8-But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?” (Again, little faith is not being applauded as a wonderful thing by Jesus.) Just the opposite!

  These four scriptures of truth, spoken directly by Jesus, confirms that the size of the mustard seed is not what Jesus was referring to in mountain moving faith. Many Christians have been disappointed in the results of their “little faith” not producing mountain moving results. I believe it is time to get rid of this myth in the Body of Christ and that is why it was my first post and I have chosen to repost it! I thought it was a very valid point and yet it had gone unseen!

  Think about the times you have been disappointed in not seeing faith produce for you what the word promised when you knew that you didn’t have great faith, but you had a little? Well, that’s because little faith didn’t produce anything for the people in Jesus’s day and it won’t produce anything today! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Faith, God’s Blessings, Matthew 17:20 | 0 Comments | Tagged Believer, encouragement, Faith, Jesus, Matthew 17:20, Prayer, testimony

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