Victory Life KY

• Mark 3:13-15,NKJV- “And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. 
• Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons.”

• Acts 1:1-2,NKJV- The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen.

• Jesus is absolutely expecting us to finish what He started. As His body on the planet, our assignment is to continue all He commanded us.

• Matthew 9:38,NLT- “So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into his fields.”

• Workers to do what?

• Remember, “The things Jesus began to do and to teach.”

• We have to remember, faith for any subject comes from hearing the word of God on that subject. 

• So unless we preach and teach healing, there’s no way there can be faith for healing.

• Think about it, if you were one of Jesus’ first disciples, you went everywhere with Him, and you were telling new people about Jesus, how would you describe Him?

• I believe that’s the question we need to ask ourselves, do we honestly believe that Jesus still heals, or are we waiting for a confirmation?

• In other words, are we still walking by sight instead of faith when it comes to healing?

• Remember what Jesus told Jairus?
• And the nobleman’s son?

• Think about this, if Paul told us that the accounts of the OT were written for our admonition and correction, why would the accounts of Jesus be any different?

• John 6:38,NKJV- For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

• So when we follow Jesus through the scriptures and He heals everyone that came to Him for healing, according to Jesus’ own words, healing is the will of God.

• 1 Peter 2:24,NIV- He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”

• Everything Jesus did while He was on the planet in a human body was not only fulfilling the prophetic, but pointing us to what He was about to fulfill at the cross.

• Exodus 15:26, “I am the Lord who heals you.”

• 1 Peter 1:3,NIV- His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.

• Remember what Paul wrote in Corinthians, We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

• Proverbs 4:20-22,NLT- My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. (Medicine to your flesh)

• What if you started applying God’s word to your condition, like you would taking prescribed medication?

• Because we live in a fallen, cursed world, outside the practice of medicine, or a miracle, healing only happens by faith.

• And the closer I walk with Jesus, the more I’m learning that a faith life has to be developed just like a human life.

• When symptoms start dominating our thoughts, act swiftly, taking every thought captive.

• When we don’t see or feel immediate change, this is where believing actually comes into play.

• There has to be a transformation in our thinking in order for us to appropriate the things God has already done for us. For us to finish what He started.

• Deuteronomy 30:19,NLT- Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! 

• God gave us the power to choose. Our lives aren’t just on automatic. We actually have to choose God’s blessing.

• Even though God designed us to live a certain way, until we make a conscious evert to stop resorting to our human reasoning to determine the realities of His word, our faith will remain undeveloped.

• Here’s the thing, follow Jesus’ life through the NT and there’s no way you can honestly say healing isn’t part of His purpose.

• Matthew 28:18-20,MSG- Jesus told His disciples: “God authorized and commanded me to commission you: 
• Go out and train everyone you meet, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 
• Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.”

• What if, we don’t see something like healing operating in our church today simply because we fail to talk about it enough to allow the Holy Spirit to establish faith in us concerning healing?

• Romans 4 gives us very clear steps for being and doer. I call it the blueprint for fighting the good fight of faith.

• Romans 4:16-21,NKJV- Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 
• v.17, (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and CALLS those things which do not exist as though they did; 
• v.18, who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” 
• v. 19, And not being weak in faith, he did not CONSIDER his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 
• v.20, He did not WAVER at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 
• c.21, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

• Abraham gives us 4 faith principles to successfully live by faith.

• 1. v.17, He CALLED himself what God called him, out of things not seen.

• 2. v.19, He refused to CONSIDER his body, his circumstances. 

• He didn’t deny his condition, he simply refused to consider it.

• We can’t make a faith confession in the morning, then spend the rest of the day considering our condition.

• 3. v.20, He would not WAVER on God’s promise.

• So 4. v.21, being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

• Remember, Proverbs tells us that God’s words are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.

• What if you started using Abraham’s method in applying God’s word to your condition, like you would taking prescribed medication?

• There has to be a transformation in our thinking in order for us to appropriate the things God has already done for us.

• Remember, Peter tells us God has givenus everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him, and He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them we may participate in His divine nature.

• Here’s the thing, will we stay with it long enough to let the fruit of His word transform us to the place where we actually participate in His divine nature?

• Keep in mind, the Kingdom of God only operates one way, through God’s ordained system called faith.

• Matthew 10:39, ...He who loses his life for My sake will find it.

• Have you ever entertained the thought of allowing Jesus to disrupt your life for the advancement of His church?

• Offering you life to Him as a living sacrifice.

• Make no mistake, God’s plan from the beginning was to bring His kids together for the advancement of the Kingdom on the planet.

• Jesus said, I will build My church.

• Never underestimate the significance of God orchestrating personalities, giftings and talents in making a local church unique.

• Listen to how Paul describes it, Jesus fits His whole body together perfectly. And as each part does it’s own special work, it cause the whole body to grow.

• The moment we give our lives to Christ, we become part of His body, and we each have a role to play.

• 1 Corinthians 12:27,MSG- You are Christ’s body—that’s who you are! You must never forget this. Only as you accept your part of that body does your “part” mean anything.

• God continually calls believers together to love one another, pray for each other, and serve along side each other reaching our community for Christ.

• It’s import to realize that in this process, at the same time God’s revealing, He’s preparing.

• Finding Your Fit is a life long journey of surrender.

• Ultimately, Christianity isn’t just believing, it’s belonging.

• For example , being a part of Victory simply means that you’re taking the next step in your commitment to being part of His body.

• Ultimately we’re all one body of believers. But God graces each of His churches with a personality, much like He does individuals.

• Romans 12:4-5,NLT- Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

• Finding Your Fit is personally accepting the responsibility of advancing our purpose as part of His body in the earth.

• Which is, Helping people discover and develop a life in Christ.

• I love how God describes His church in Ephesians, “I’m building a home, using all of you, irrespective of how you got here.”

• This is why we’re always encouraging you to get involved, because serving in your church is the most effective way you’re going to discover the gifts God has already graced you with.

• And regardless of where you are in your faith journey, don’t ever entertain the thoughts that you don’t have anything to offer.

• Matthew 14, We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish, they answered. “Bring them here to Me. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 

• As we continue growing as disciples we find ourselves growing past just coming to church, and like the 12, we simply bring Jesus what we have and watch him us it.

• Jesus says, give me your upbringing, your failures, your lack of experience, your fears and insecurities, give me you ideas and creativity, your time and effort and watch what I can do through you.

• This is why we're continually trying to get as many as possible involved in serving in their church.

• It’s one of our greatest acts of worship. It’s where we discover Jesus at new levels.

• This is why being part of a local church has to be about more than just showing up to hear something.

• Hebrews 10:24-25,MSG- Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching. 

• There's something about encouraging and helping out that's a big part of worship.

• Romans 12, So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. It’s one of our greatest acts of worship.

• I promise you, when we make those around us better, it automatically makes us better.

• As a matter of fact, something significant happens in the lives of new believers when someone more mature, another disciple for example, looks out for them, helps them become part of our process called church.

• Remember, we’re all one body, with one Spirit, called to the same glorious future.

• So never underestimate the significance of God orchestrating personalities, giftings and talents in making a local church unique.

• You ever wonder why Jesus set up His church the way He did?

• Think about it, we are these frail, fickle, flawed people. But because He created us to be like Him and left the decision entirely up to us, His grace allows us the privilege of discovering who we can be when we come together.

• This is what happens when we let Jesus disrupt our lives and we embrace His call.

• Ephesians 4, We are all one body, with one Spirit, called to the same glorious future.

• It goes on to say, Jesus fits His whole body together perfectly. And as each part does it’s own special work, it cause the whole body to grow healthy and full of love.

• God continually calls believers together to love one another, pray for each other, and serve along side each other for Christ.

• Ultimately, Christianity isn’t just believing, it’s belonging.

• Finding your fit is you simply taking the next step in your commitment to the body of Christ. Helping advance the vision God has given us as a local church.

• Remember what the Holy Spirit said in Ephesians, “I’m building a home, using all of you, irrespective of how you got here.”

• This is why we’re always encouraging you to get involved, because serving in your church is the most effective way you’re going to discover the gifts God has already graced you with.

• You finding your fit will be one of your greatest acts of worship. It’s where we discover Jesus at new levels.

• Matthew 10:39, ...He who loses his life for My sake will find it.

• At what point does what God say become the standard we use to evaluate our born again lives?

• Here’s the thing, the longer we reason against what God’s word says, the more comfortable we get with that lifestyle.

• So today, as we gather around the Lord’s table, let Jesus’ words settle into your thinking.

• John 14:1,NKJV- Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.
• v.27, Jesus repeats His point, “Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

• There’s no better way to leave whatever’s been harassing you than gathering around the Lord’s table, and walking away with a renewed trust in Jesus.

• Remember last week we talked about how in Christ we are victorious overcomers in this world.

• 1 Corinthians 15:57,AMP- But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory  making us conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ.

• Seriously, if God, my Heavenly Father tells me I’m victorious, forgiven, blessed, prosperous, favored, healed, why wouldn’t I accept what He says as truth? Why shouldn’t I say what my Father says about me?

• Psalm 34:8,AMP- O taste and see that the Lord our God is good; How blessed, fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God is the man who takes refuge in Him.

• Unfortunately, human nature has made it very clear that as long as we can live without more of God, we will.

• Whether you’ve walked with Jesus most of your life, or you’re just starting your journey, 

• Because of human nature, because we have an enemy, there will be times when we question God, our relationship with Him, His promises, our failures, things we don’t understand, etc...

• And it’s in those times that being able to come to the Lord’s table, free of all sin, made completely righteous by His sacrifice, can be an absolute life changer for us.

• Something every Christian needs reminded of from time to time is that communion is one of the most spiritual realities we can participate in.

• It’s a divinely inspired place of revelation from the Father. Allowing us to see that Jesus alone made us worthy to stand in His presence. 

• He actually made us heirs to the Kingdom through what He suffered.

• Today as we gather around the Lords table, let the Holy Spirit help you see His crucifixion, His sacrifice as so much more than just our passage to Heaven.

• May the eyes of our understanding be enlightened, that we can embrace the hope of His calling, so that we can walk in the exceeding greatness of His power.

• John 6:51,NKJV- “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever...”

• John 10:10,(paraphrase), I came from Heaven to give you a rich and satisfying life. A better life than you've ever dreamed of. A life to enjoy in abundance, to the full, till it overflows.

• Communion isn’t just acknowledging Jesus’ sacrifice, it’s embracing and reverencing the fact that Jesus actually restored us to our rightful place with God.

• Today as we honor and reverence our King’s sacrifice, let His Spirit minister to you, embrace what Jesus did, what He said, and embrace who you are because of Him.

• This is why having moments like this, around the Lord’s table allow us the privilege of drawing closer to Him.

• Remember, Jesus has already made us alive together with Him and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Him.

• Understand, we’re not just citizens of Heaven, we’re heirs to the Kingdom, appointed ambassadors of our King, assigned here to establish His kingdom. 

• And there is no better place to be reminded, no better place for fresh perspective, no better place to draw closer to Jesus than around the Lord’s table.

• In Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Corinthians we receive the very same revelation from Jesus concerning communion.

• The bread is His broken body and the cup is the blood of His new covenant.

• Regardless of what you may be facing, let today's communion encourage you that you are made whole in God’s sight by Jesus' sacrifice.

• That His broken body and shed blood are still declaring, "It is finished."

• As we worship Jesus today with communion, as we draw closer to Him, may our spirits see Jesus and all that He accomplished for us clearer than ever before.

• My prayer today is that everyone of us  see Jesus with a fresh perspective as we partake of the cup and the bread.

• 1 Corinthians 10:16,NLT- When we bless the cup at the Lord’s Table, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ? 
• And when we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ?

• Let today’s talk helps us discern in a little more depth that there is a significant difference in the blood and the bread.

• 1 Corinthians 11:30,NKJV- For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
• v.29, For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.

• MSG, If you give no thought (or worse, don’t care) about the broken body of the Master when you eat and drink, you’re running the risk of serious consequences. That’s why so many of you even now are listless and sick, and others have gone to an early grave. 

• By faith, acknowledge Jesus’ body being broken so that yours can be whole.

• Matthew 8:16-17,NLT- That evening many demon-possessed people were brought to Jesus. He cast out the evil spirits with a simple command, and He healed all the sick. 
• This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said, He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases.

• Today, let’s come to the Lord’s table with a fresh understanding that Jesus’ broken body and shed blood provide deliverance for us, spirit, soul, and body.

• 1 Thessalonians 5:23,MSG- May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our Master.

• When Jesus told us in John that He came to gives us live, He literally meant, wholeness to our spirit, soul, and body.

• Let today’s communion help you see Jesus with a fresh perspective as we partake of the cup and the bread.

• Mark 3:13-15,NKJV- “And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. 
• Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons.”

• Matthew 10:7-8,NKJV- And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

• Freely give what? Freely give it to who?

• Acts 1:1-2,NKJV- The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen.

• Jesus is absolutely expecting us to finish what He started. As His body on the planet, our assignment is to continue all He commanded us.

• Matthew 9:35-38 NKJV- “Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

• NLT, v.38, “So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into his fields.”

• Laborers, workers to do what?

• If we honestly believe the Bible is God’s word, that it is the Christians foundation of truth, that God’s word is a lamp unto our feet. A light for our path. 

• If God’s word is forever settled in Heaven, and we’re suppose to pray His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven, if God never changes and His word is truth, 

• At what point did the commission for His first disciples and disciples today change? 

• Remember, “The things Jesus began to do and to teach.”

• Why do we have such a struggle with the subject of healing?

• We have to remember, faith for any subject comes from hearing the word of God on that subject. 

• So unless we preach and teach healing, there’s no way there can be faith for healing.

• Think about it, if you were one of Jesus’ first disciples, you went everywhere with Him, and you were telling new people about Jesus, how would you describe Him?

• A major key here is moving from an informational approach to the word of God, to a transformational approach. To a spiritual, faith driven approach.

• Who’s honestly going to be willing to not only grow stronger in their faith, but stay in it, until?

• Remember, knowing Jesus is the healer and believing He actually heals is not the same thing.

• I believe that’s the question we need to ask ourselves, do we honestly believe that Jesus still heals, or are we waiting for a confirmation?

• In other words, are we still walking by sight instead of faith when it comes to healing?

• Remember what Jesus told Jairus? ONLY BELIEVE 

• Luke 5:17,NIV- One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.

• But only the paralyzed man carried by his friends got healed.
• Think about this, if Paul told us that the accounts of the OT were written for our admonition and correction, why would the accounts of Jesus be any different?

• Maybe the question is, do we honestly believe the Word of God right in the face of symptoms, of the negative report?

• How much of a demand, an expectation, do we actually place on what God tells us in His Word?

• Remember the example we have from the centurion, "it will be done for you just as you believed."

• John 4:46-53,NLT-“As He traveled through Galilee, He came to Cana, where He had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. 
• v.47, When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. 
• v.48, Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” 
• v.49, The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” 
• v.50, Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home.
• v.51, While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. 
• v.52, He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” 
• v.53, Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus.”

• Have you ever found yourself reasoning away something in His Word because of a negative experience?

• Because you haven’t seen the result you’re believing for?

• Seriously, if Jesus is our example, our teacher, then what’s He saying?

• John 6:38,NKJV- For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

• So when we follow Jesus through the scriptures and He heals everyone that came to Him for healing, according to Jesus’ own words, healing is the will of God.

• Matthew 8:17,NLT- This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said, “He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases.”

• 1 Peter 2:24,NIV- He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”

• Everything Jesus did while He was on the planet in a human body was not only fulfilling the prophetic, but pointing us to what He was about to fulfill at the cross.

• Once we get settled on what His will is, then we have to allow it to transform the way we think.

• God speaks to our spirit, we’ve gotta get our mind in agreement with what God says.

• After all, “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.”

• Hey, we’re going to be thinking about something; why not think on the things God says about us?

• Exodus 15:26, “I am the Lord who heals you.”

• There has to be a transformation in our thinking in order for us to appropriate the things God has already done for us.

• 1 Peter 1:3,NIV- His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.

• Remember what Paul wrote in Corinthians, We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

• Proverbs 4:20-22,NLT- My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. (Medicine to your flesh)

• What if you started applying God’s word to your condition, like you would taking prescribed medication?

• Because we live in a fallen, cursed world, outside the practice of medicine, or a miracle, healing only happens by faith.

• And the closer I walk with Jesus, the more I’m learning that a faith life has to be developed just like a human life.

• When symptoms start dominating our thoughts, act swiftly, taking every thought captive.

• When we don’t see or feel immediate change, this is where believing actually comes into play.

• There has to be a transformation in our thinking in order for us to appropriate the things God has already done for us. For us to finish what He started.

 Joshua 6,MSG- GOD spoke to Joshua, “Look sharp. I’ve already given Jericho to you,  

• Here’s what you are to do: March around the city. 
• Repeat this for six days. 
• On the seventh day march around the city seven times.

• What if God's trying to show you the next thing He's got for you, but it's on the other side of a whole lotta go again? 

• Paul gives us some very helpful insight, “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

• The reason Paul could say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” is because he had gotten this revelation; GO AGAIN

• Philippians 4,MSG- I’ve learned by now to be content whatever my circumstances. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether hands full or hands empty. 
• Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. 

• Sometimes we simply need to be reminded to make room in our lives for the Almighty to lead, to speak, to encourage us in our faith. To transform us to be more like Him.

• The thing is, most of the time we don’t get spiritual realities the first time, still confined to our humanity.

• Mark 4:13-20,NLT- “Then Jesus said to them, “If you can’t understand the meaning of this parable, how will you understand all the other parables? 
• v.14, The farmer plants seed by taking God’s word to others. 
• v.15, The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message, only to have Satan come at once and take it away. 
• v.16, The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. 
• v.17, But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. 
• v.18, The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, 
• v.19, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced. 
• v.20, And the seed that fell on good soil represents those who hear and accept God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!””

• We are the people of God. Heirs tho the Kingdom of Heaven, joint heirs with Christ. And as we behold Him we are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory.

• Choose to believe that Jesus meant what He said when He told us all things are possible for him that believes. 

• This means, refusing to allow our old, carnal, human nature, our past, and yes, our current situation to interfere with what God is saying, right in the face of what most are calling questionable circumstances.

• Let the Holy Spirit give you a fresh, yes I can, whole lotta go again, attitude. If God be for us, who can be against us.

• 2 Corinthians 2:14,NKJV- Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

• Triumph is a victorious, successful outcome.

• This was Paul’s mindset as he continually encouraged the church to not give up, but stay in faith. To go again.

• Triumphant, victorious overcomes are regular people who continue trusting Jesus no matter what.

• Keep in mind, triumph is a successful ending to any conflict.

• Solomon said, “The end of a thing is better than the beginning.”

• 1 Corinthians 15:57-58,AMP- But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory, making us conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be firm, steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord...

• This kind of life is an on purpose life. This is how Paul could continually remind us that we can do all things, we can make it through all thinks.

• We actually have to believe the Lord’s words over whatever situation.

• Go walk around the massive city walls, go again, go again.

• Even though Jesus has made us His victorious people, we will never rise above our own understanding of who we are in Him. Overcomers or grasshoppers?

• The majority focused on everything except what God said.

• At what point does what God say become the standard we use to evaluate our born again lives?

• Here’s the thing, the longer we reason against what God’s word says, the more comfortable we get with that lifestyle.

• Keep in mind, God told Elijah in 1 Kings 18:1, “I am sending rain”

• I Kings 18,NKJV- Then Elijah said, “there is the sound of abundance of rain.” Thenhe said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “ There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “GO AGAIN.”

• Joel 2, God says I will cause the rain to come, the former and the latter rain.
• Both Elijah and Joel prophesied out of severe drought. (A dry season)

• Former rain comes in planting season.
• Latter rain before harvest season.

• God tells us thorough Joel that He’ll send both rains as it was at the first.

• Acts 2, Peter is responding to a type of the former rain, this outpouring in a spiritually dry land.

• And in these last days, God is pouring out His rain, His anointing, former and latter for spiritual renewal.

• Amos 9:13,NKJV- “Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “When the plowman shall overtake the reaper, And the treader of grapes him who sows seed; The mountains shall drip with sweet wine, And all the hills shall flow with it.”

• This anointing, this presence of the Lord will be in such a flow that it’ll be difficult to finish one cycle of blessing before the next begins.

• Dare to take a step of faith, step into this season of accelerated overflow, opportunity, restoration and power, right in the middle of challenging times.

• Never assume God’s progressive revelation of the prophetic can’t transcend time and culture.

• We have to keep in mind, when it comes to God flowing through His people, much like Elijah’s servant, sometimes what we’ve got to be willing to hear is GO AGAIN.

• One of Paul’s reoccurring themes throughout his letters is that we are can do, victorious, overcomer in Christ. And many times it is on the other side of a whole lotta go again.

• Matthew 10:1,NKJV- “And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.”

• Mark 3:13-15,NKJV- “And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons.”

• Luke 9:1-2,NKJV- “Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.”

• Acts 1:1-2,NKJV- The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen.

• He’s expecting us to finish what He started. Obviously He’s not referring to His finishing of the covenant with His work at the cross, but our assignment as His body concerning all He commanded us.

• Matthew 9:35-38 NKJV- “Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

• In 1800, world population was 1 billion. 1900 was 1.6 billion. From 1900 to 2000, it jumped to 6 billion, current population 7.8 billion.

• Our current growth average is a little over 80 million a year.

• Approximately 2.5 billion confess to be Christian 

• How many of you think Jesus still needs workers for the harvest?

• Solomon actually tells us, “The end of a thing is better than the beginning.”

• And contrary to popular religious beliefs, if it was just all up to God, why would Jesus tell us to pray to the Lord to send workers. 

• Here’s the thing, to do what?

• We have to keep in mind exactly what Jesus was doing when He told us to pray for more workers.

• Matthew 9, Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease among the people.

• If we honestly believe the Bible is God’s word, that it is the Christians foundation of truth, that God’s word is a lamp unto our feet. A light for our path. 

• If God’s word is forever settled in Heaven, and we’re suppose to pray His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven, if God never changes and His word is truth, 

• At what point did the commission for His first disciples and disciples today change? Especially considering He would know the amount of people that would be on the planet during our time.

• “The things Jesus began to do and to teach.”

• Why is the subject of physical healing not part of the gospel message for a large portion of the church today?

• Why do we have such a struggle with the subject of healing?

• According to Isaiah and Paul, faith for any subject comes from hearing the word of God on that subject. 

• So unless we preach and teach healing, there’s no way there can be faith for healing.

• And I personally believe this is where the change took place within the body of Christ.

• It’s kinda like the law of displacement, basically you can’t have two things in the same place at the same time.

• Matthew 10:1,7-8,NKJV- When He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.
• And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

• v.25, It’s enough that a disciple should be like his teacher.

• In Luke, Jesus said, A disciple, when He is fully trained will be like his teacher.

• Think about this, according to what Jesus said in Mark’s gospel, laying hands on the sick is part of the great commission.

• A major key here is moving from an informational approach to the word of God, to a transformational approach. To a spiritual, faith driven approach.

• Ephesians 4:23-24,NIV- Be made new in the attitude of mind; and put on the new self, CREATED TO BE LIKE GOD in true righteousness and holiness.

• Who’s honestly going to be willing to not only grow stronger in their faith, but stay in it, until?

• Peter said, God shows no partiality, no bias or favoritism 

• Acts 10:34,MSG- Peter fairly exploded with his good news: It’s God’s own truth, nothing could be plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where you’re from—if you want God and are ready to do as he says, the door is open.

• Hebrews makes it very clear, anyone who comes to God MUST BELIEVE that He is.

• And according to Romans, the only way to change what we believe is to change the way we think.

• If healing is according to our faith, according to what we actually believe, then can we believe any way we want?

• Let's look at it from this perspective, can the lost believe anything they want and be saved?

• Not only do they have to believe specific truths, they actually have to do something specific.

• So what has influenced us to think that healing will be different?

• Remember, knowing Jesus is the healer and believing He actually heals is not the same thing.

• I believe that’s the question we need to ask ourselves, do we honestly believe that Jesus still heals, or are we waiting for a confirmation?

• In other words, are we still walking by sight instead of faith when it comes to healing?

• Remember what Jesus told Jairus? ONLY BELIEVE 

• Luke 5:17,NIV- One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.

• But only the paralyzed man carried by his friends got healed.

• According to this passage, I  believe God actually expects us to live according to our faith.

• Maybe the question is, do we honestly believe the Word of God right in the face of symptoms, of the negative report?

• How much of a demand, an expectation, do we actually place on what God tells us in His Word?

• Remember the example we have from the centurion, "it will be done for you just as you believed."

• One thing I've witnessed over the years is that the overwhelming majority of Christians are simply waiting around for God to do a miracle.

• Have you ever found yourself reasoning away something in His Word because of a negative experience?

• You didn't get the result you were believing.

• We have to stay aware of the reality that there is a real spiritual enemy, the god of this world. And he will be relentless at keeping a believer from walking in truth.

• He knows that if he can keep a Christian from embracing their new life, their only option is human nature.

• Acts 1:1-2,NKJV- The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen.

• Joshua 6:1-5,MSG- GOD spoke to Joshua, “Look sharp now. I’ve already given Jericho to you, along with its king and its crack troops.

• Here’s what you are to do: March around the city, all your soldiers. Circle the city once. Repeat this for six days. Have seven priests carry seven ram’s horn trumpets in front of the Chest.

• On the seventh day march around the city seven times, the priests blowing away on the trumpets.

• And then, a long blast on the ram’s horn—when you hear that, all the people are to shout at the top of their lungs.

• The city wall will collapse at once. All the people are to enter, every man straight on in.

• What if God's trying to show you the next thing He's got for you, but it's on the other side of a whole lotta go again?

• I’m sure most of us would be, come on God, why do we have to do it this way?

• Maybe this is why in v.10, God said, tell them not to speak so much as a whisper.

• So day one, they got up, went and obeyed the Lord, then went back to their camp. Then the next, go again.

• The reason Paul could say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” is because he had gotten the revelation of, whole lotta go again.

• Philippians 4:12-13,MSG- Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty.

• Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.

• Think about standing in front of this massive structure, I’m sure most of them have never seen anything like it.

• And their leader tells them we’re going to march around the city 6 days, then on the 7th day we’re going to march around it 7 times.

• Sometimes we just need to be reminded to make room in our thinking, in our lives for the Almighty to lead, to speak, to encourage us in our faith.

• The thing is, most of the time we don’t get spiritual realities the first time, still confined to our humanity.

• I Kings 18:41-43 NKJV- Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.”

• So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees,

• and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “ There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”

• We are the people of God. Jesus meant what He said when He told us all things are possible for him that believes.

• But we actually have to believe Him. Sometimes right in the face of uncertainty, maybe even impossible, but God specializes in impossible.

• Once we make up our mind, it’s time for commitment and determination. And most of the time this means a whole lotta go again.

• Ephesians reminds us that because we’ve heard Him and been taught by Him, we are to put off our former conduct, the old man, and be renewed in the spirit of our mind, so we can put on the new man which was created according to God.

• Isaiah 43, This is what the Lord says,   what I’ve done in the past is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new.

• See, I have already begun! Don’t you see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.

• Romans 8:11,MSG- It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, He’ll do the same thing in you that He did in Jesus, bringing you alive to Himself?

• When God lives and breathes in you and He does, as surely as He did in Jesus, you are delivered from that dead life. With His Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!

• It’s in times like we’re in right now that we actually believe what God tells us; “Go Again”

• At what point do we honestly believe, actually expect truths like this on Romans. Expect Him to do the same thing in us He did in Jesus.

• Let the Holy Spirit give you a fresh, yes I can attitude.

• Something God has helped me see over the years is successful, overcoming people allow challenges to stretch them, not stop them.

• GO AGAIN

• We are the people of God. Heirs to the Kingdom of Heaven, joint heirs with Christ.

• This is Paul’s point in Philippians, regardless of the situation, we can do all things through Christ.

• This means, if you’re saying, “I’m believing God, but,” it’s time for you to stop the double minded talk.

• God said a double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

• James teaches us that our tongue is the rudder of our ship, of our life. So what we’re saying matters.

• Im convinced this is why God told Joshua to tell the people not to say a word while they were walking around the massive city.

• In light of Paul’s challenging situation, he continues encouraging the church to follow his example.

• This means, refusing to allow our old, carnal, human nature, our past, and yes, our current situation to interfere with what God is saying, right in the face of what most are calling questionable circumstances.

• We are the people of God. Jesus meant what He said when He told us all things are possible for him that believes. But that means we actually have to believe Him.

• Remember Romans 8, When God lives and breathes in you and He does, as surely as He did in Jesus, you are delivered from that dead life. With His Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!

• 2 Timothy 1:7,AMP- For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, of cowardice, craven and cringing and fawning fear, but He has given us a spirit of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.

• Let the Holy Spirit give you a fresh, yes I can, whole lotta go again, attitude. If God be for us, who can be against us.

• 2 Corinthians 2:14,NKJV- Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

• Triumph is a victorious, successful outcome.

• This was Paul’s mindset as he continually encouraged the church to not give up, but stay in faith. To go again.

• Triumphant, victorious overcomes are regular people who continue trusting Jesus not matter what.

• Keep in mind, triumph is a successful ending to any conflict.

• Go walk around the massive city walls, go again, go again.

• Go to the sea and look for rain, go again, go again.

• 1 Corinthians 15:57-58,AMP- But thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory, making us conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be firm, steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord...

• This kind of life is an on purpose life. This is how Paul could continually remind us that we can do all things, we can make it through all thinks.

• We actually have to believe the Lord’s words over whatever situation.

• Even though Jesus has made us His victorious people, we will never rise above our own understanding of who we are in Him. Overcomers or grasshoppers?

• A great example is the 12 leaders God sent to spy out the promised land.

• 10 out of the 12 could only talk about the situation they would have to face instead of what God said.

• The majority focused on everything except what God said.

• At what point does what God say become the standard we use to evaluate our born again lives?

• Here’s the thing, the longer we reason against what God’s word says, the more comfortable we get with that lifestyle.

• We are the people of God. Heirs to the Kingdom of Heaven, joint heirs with Christ.

• One of Paul’s reoccurring themes throughout his letters is that we are can do, victorious, overcomer in Christ. And many times it is on the other side of a whole lotta go again.

Proverbs 18:21 NLT tells us “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” 

I don’t see a third option there. Death or life….

James 1:26 NLT If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.

“I didn’t tell you to share your opinions or beliefs, I told you to share Jesus and the Good News.” 

If we are spending more time being right on Social Media, then we are not spending our time right by spreading the Love of Jesus! 

Proverbs 19:19 NLT “ An offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city. Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with bars.”

OUR WORDS MATTER!!!!!

What are we creating with our words? Walls or bridges? Division or unity? Death or life? 

We need to think, talk, and act like citizens of Heaven. Bringing a glimpse of heaven to earth. Let’s live our lives as citizens of heaven and ambassadors on earth – as representatives of God’s kingdom right where we are. Today, Right Here, Out There!  

Matthew 13:54 – 56 NLT  “He returned to Nazareth, his hometown. When he taught there in the synagogue, everyone was amazed and said, “Where does he get this wisdom and the power to do miracles?”55Then they scoffed, “He’s just the carpenter’s son, and we know Mary, his mother, and his brothers—James, Joseph,Simon, and Judas.56All his sisters live right here among us. Where did he learn all these things?”57And they were deeply offended and refused to believe in him.”Then Jesus told them,“A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family.”58And so he did only a few miracles there because of their unbelief.

What you call someone is how you see someone; is how you treat someone. His home town, called him the carpenters son, Since the people seen him this way they, called him by name this way, that’s what they received from Him. They missed out on the gift and blessings that He is, because they could not get past this. 

What you call your wife? What do you call your children? What do you call your Pastor? Your friends? Your Coworkers? Your government leaders? 

What you call someone, is how you see someone; is how you treat someone.

Ask God what He says about them and speak that into their lives. We need to practice building them up and not tearing them down. Our families will never become something we don’t speak into their lives! 

James 3:3-6 NLT “We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth.4 And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong.5 In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire.6 And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself.”

Although so small, the tongue or more importantly the words we choose to use can set those around us on the right path or we can set it all ablaze by the words we choose to use. 

I can only change me and when I change me I change us (Kate)

We have to first understand how God sees us and what He calls us

Names are important to God; otherwise why would he change names? 

Abram – Abraham = Father of many (Didn’t have any kids at the time and was OLD)

Sarai – Sarah = Mother of nations (Didn’t have any kids at the time and was OLD)

Simon – Peter = Rock (Wasn’t a rock he was hot and cold / Denied Jesus 3 times) We will dig into this more later

What is God calling you? What does he say about you? If you don’t know get in the Word! 

Matthew 16:13-14 NLT “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples,“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

Matthew 16:15-16 NLT “Then he asked them,“But who do you say I am?”16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew 16:17-20 “Jesus replied,“You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.18 Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.19 And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.”20 Then he sternly warned the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.”

Peter did thing and will do things that are not very rock or foundation like. But still Jesus calls him not by how the world sees him, but how God sees him. He is a rock, a strong foundation, and Jesus was letting him know to buckle up this is going to be the ride of a life time.

It doesn’t matter what others say about you. It only matters what He says about you. 

Is the name your holding on to your past? Your mistakes? Your weaknesses? Your opportunities? Your hurts?

Don’t let the worlds view of you be your reality, who cares what the crowd says. Just as Jesus asked His second question of Peter, but who do you say I am….. 

Listen to who the Father says you are his plans are way better. He sees what we don’t and calls that out in us. He brings the best out in us if we let him. 

God wants you to pick up your new name. Be the new you. We have been born again. We have been made new. Why are we holding onto things of our past? 

What is God calling you? Close your eyes, Jesus, who do you say I am? 

When we know who we are, we become grounded by it. Our roots grow deep. We have a strong foundation set by the one who created us. It can’t be taken from us. No matter what’s happening around us or the lies we are being told, who we are in His eye is who we are! Stand firm in that! 

Who is God calling you to be. Get in the word and find out? Stand firm in those things He reveals to you. No one can take away what God gives us! When we know what the Father is saying about us, when we do, we can do that for those around us. Watch them flourish!  

We need to think, talk, and act like citizens of Heaven. Bringing a glimpse of heaven to earth. Let’s live our lives as citizens of heaven and ambassadors on earth – as representatives of God’s kingdom right where we are. Today, Right Here, Out There!  

I CAN ONLY CHANGE ME; AND WHEN I CHANGE ME, I CHANGE US!

Genesis 1:26-27 NLT

Then God Said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.  They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals that scurry along the ground. “

So, God created Human beings in his own image.  In the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them.

When God created, he spoke – We are created to be like him – Our words create.  They are containers for power.

2 Cor 10:5 AMP – We are destroying sophisticated arguments and every exalted and proud thing that sets itself up against the true knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ…. 

Eyes and ears are like a portal to your brain, right?  Yes!  What we hear and see helps develop thoughts that we either disregard or keep and meditate on.  But not all that enters our thoughts are from the natural.  We can get thoughts from Satan too.  That is why the Bible tells us to put on the helmet of Salvation so we can protect ourselves and our mind.  It is also why we are told to take every thought captive.  Asking- does this thought line up with the Word of God?  Is this Truth?

Proverbs 23:26 Amp – My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways.  I believe that what we see directly affects our minds and thus our hearts – Same with our ears.

Isaiah 26:3 

You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast ( that is committed and focused on you – in both inclination and character, because he trusts and takes refuge in you with hope and confident expectation.

2 Tim 1:7

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but He has given us a spirit of power and of love and of sound judgement and personal discipline- abilities that result in a calm, well balanced mind and self-control.

Romans 12:2

NLT – Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will learn to know Gods will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

MSG – Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking.  Instead, fix your attention on God.  You will be changed from the inside out.  Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it.  Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well informed maturity in you.

Philippians 4:8 NLT

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing.  Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.  Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Proverbs 4:23

NLT – Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

MSG- Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that is where life starts.

Matt 12:33 A tree is identified by its fruit.  If a tree is good, its fruit will be good.  If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.

This scripture is talking about a heart and mouth connection.  A heart and mouth connection.

If you are thinking about something/ meditating on something it will come out and if you speak it, you can take it on. Your creating….

James 3:1-12 

Don’t be in any rush to become a teacher, my friends.  Teaching is highly responsible work.  Teachers are held to the strictest standards.  And none of us is perfectly qualified.  We get it wrong nearly every time we open our moths. If you could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you’d have a perfect person, in perfect control of like.

A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse.  A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds.  A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything- or destroy it!

It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire.  A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that.  By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.

This is scary: you can tame a tiger, but you can’t tame a tongue- its never been done.  The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer.  With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and woman he made in his image.  Curses and blessings out of the same mouth!

My friends, this can’t go on.  A spring doesn’t gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it?  Apple trees don’t bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don’t bear apples, do they?  You’re not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?

1 Peter 3:10 NLT – If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies.

Ephesians 4:29(-32) NLT – Don’t use foul or abusive language.  Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

Prov 15:28 NLT – The heart of the Godly thinks carefully before speaking; the mouth of the wicked overflows with evil words.

Prov 21:23 NLT – Watch your tongue and keep your moth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.

Psalms 34:13 NLT – Then keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies!  Turn away from evil and do good.  Search for peace, and work to maintain it!

NIV – Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.  Turn from evil and do good.  Seek peace and pursue it!

Isaiah 58:9 – means that if we can control our tongue, we can get a quicker answer to our prayers

James 1:26-27If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.  Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

These last two scriptures from the OLD Testament and NEW are saying that if we are really pleasing God, really living our faith out then two things will come from us:

1 – We watch our words

2 – We are meeting felt needs

Love is seen and felt!

Psalm 57:7-10 (NLT) My heart is confident in you, O God; my heart is confident. No wonder I can sing your praises! Wake up, my heart! Wake up, O lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn with my song. I will thank you, Lord, among all the people. I will sing your praises among the nations. For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Where we hear praise, He hears faith.

Psalm 150 "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord."

The very first thing we have to acknowledge is that; worship was given to us by God as a spiritual avenue to connect on a more authentic level with His presence.

It's really not so much about style and preference. It should never be about what kind of mood we're in, or what we think we might need from Him.

When we worship in those times when we don't feel like it, it's even more treasured - AW Tozer

You see, it's in those times that we take a step of faith and offer our sacrifice of praise. When we hear praise, He hears faith.

It's about us using our voices to exalt our God through a song. It's a place where we get to honor God with our words and our heart. Worship is one of the most spiritual things a Christian can take part in.

John 4:24 (NLT)“For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

Make no mistake about it, although we are not to rely on emotion, worship will absolutely impact us emotionally. After all, we're emotional people. When your spirit connects on a spiritual level with your Creator, there's no avoiding emotion.

Throughout the scriptures we see that God's people are emotional people when it comes to worship. They would worship so loud that surrounding cities would not only hear them, they would feel it.

Psalm 67 Let the peoples praise You, O God; LET ALL THE PEOPLE PRAISE YOU. Then the earth shall yield her increase and the Almighty shall bless us.

And just in case you think it’s not for you, or maybe you struggle engaging in a deeper level of worship, why don't you ask God to help you in your worship. At the end of the day, we’re simply bringing something to God from our hearts, connecting with His presence.

Awake my soul! Be exalted O God above to heavens.

Psalm 100 Come into His presence with singing. Know He made us and we are His people. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

One of the wonderful privileges of gathering for worship is the awesome opportunity to create such an atmosphere that when new people show up they actually feel His presence when they walk into the room.

“There’s a sound I love to hear, it’s the sound of the Savior’s robe as He walks into the room.” Hillsong Worship - Awake My Soul

Revelation 4:11 (NLT)“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”

This is why worship was given to us by God as a spiritual avenue to connect on a more authentic level with His presence.

So often it’s our sacrifice of praise that’s the on ramp to our breakthrough.

I pray our talk inspires a more authentic, intentional heart of worship in all of us. Awake our souls, O God! So that it not only impacts our personal life, but that it becomes so contagious that it changes impacts who we are as a church. Truth is, at the end of the day, worship is a heart thing.

1 Samuel 16 For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.

This may take a minute to sink in, but the reality is, the way we are with people is the way we are with God.

So for those of us that have some understanding of worship, when we come together for worship, let’s be aware that we’re helping others by setting the best example we possibly can. But because today's society has become so spectator driven, it easy for us to attend worship service on Sunday's like we're attending a concert.

A big part of worshipping together is being aware that any Sunday could be someone's first real experience in authentic worship with their Heavenly Father.

I can tell you from experience, the more I practice worship in my private life, the more comfortable I am in public worship. Just like with anything else in life, the more we do something, the better we are at it.

The more worship is a lifestyle for us, not only will our public worship be more influential, but more enjoyable.

Don’t kid yourself, if you’re not enjoying your own worship, what makes you think He is.

Romans 12 (MSG) So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life, your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out.

As we put into practice Paul’s instructions here, our worship goes from just an activity we do on Sunday's to a lifestyle we embrace.

The danger is, when we refuse to make room in our lives for worship, we automatically fill that space with something else.

This is one of David’s points in Ps. 57, Awake my soul, my praise wakes up the morning. I cannot overstate the importance of starting our day with the Lord. Taking those little moments throughout the day to inwardly acknowledge Him.

Psalm 113 Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.