Why is it so hard to believe in miracles?

This something that has been bothering me a lot, especially since I got pregnant. Because believe it or not the way a lot of people, among them Christians, have acted suggested to me that they do not really believe my pregnancy was a miracle. They nod as I tell them my testimony, but only a few sentences later they say something that proves to me that they just think we got lucky or something…

For instance, when we were organizing my mom’s funeral with our minister at church, I gave him a short version of our history, about how long we tried and what treatments we have been through and I ended up by saying, “but at the age of 40 God blessed us with this miracle pregnancy without any treatments or help from any doctor or any medication.” Do you know what he said a few moments later? “It’s not that difficult to get pregnant at 40, my mom had me when she was 40, and I’m the youngest of 5 children…” He could just as well have slapped me in the face, I had the same reaction. I’m sorry but getting pregnant at 40 after already having 4 children is not the same as trying for 11.5 years, doing many IUI’s and IVF’s and then getting pregnant naturally. There was something wrong with us before and we were healed by the grace of God – his mom didn’t need to get healed.

A lot of other people have said that we just had to wait for God’s timing – that eventually our time had come and implying that for some people it takes one month, for others maybe a bit longer, and for us it had to take 11.5 years. Too say this to me is almost the same to me as saying, “why don’t you adopt, then maybe you will get pregnant too.”

This saddens me so much, mostly because I can see that so many Christians just don’t believe in miracles anymore, and that makes me wonder, “what do they actually believe in?” But the fact is that God doesn’t get the glory He deserves, because He has just performed a miracle and people just explain it away with a few words, as if He never did anything…

But the absolute saddest part is when I meet someone who is struggling to get pregnant themselves and they cannot believe that God would do a miracle for them, or someone who is sick, with cancer for example, and they just cannot believe that God will heal them…

I never had any doubt that the miracles that are mentioned in the Bible aren’t true. I always knew I had to believe in the whole Bible, everything that is said there, or I can just as well not bother to believe anything in it, because if I believe some things and not other things, how would I know what to believe and what not? So in the 18 months that we took a break between IVF#1 and starting treatments again in June 2009, I fully believed that God could heal me, but I had a provision attached to it, I thought it was up to God’s will and I didn’t know what God’s will was, I believed He had a different will and plan for everyone. And today I believe that was the main reason why I didn’t get healed and pregnant then.

So when I started to look for messages of hope last year, I concentrated on teachings from people who believe that God still heals today, but I also looked for teachings about miracles. People who believe in miracles, who have witnessed miracles and who have with the help of God, have participated in miracles. One of the books I read then was “The hea.venly ma.n” by Bro.ther Yu.n, and I recently came across another book of his, called “Li.ving Wa.ter” and in there he talks about the many miracles they have seen in the prosecuted house churches in Chi.na and then when he came to the west he was surprised to see that the churches here were dead in comparison, and there were no miracles performed in almost all the churches he visited. He has some ideas about why that is and I want to share some of them with you.

“After I arrived in the West, it didn’t take long for me to realize that something fundamental was missing in the body of Christ. That missing thing was the power and presence of God. I don’t say this to condemn anyone, but rather I point it out in the hope that it will speak to your heart and help the church. Thousands of churches today do not preach the word with the authority and power that Jesus promised to all who follow Him. This is a tragedy as such powerless churches end up relying on human wisdom to see “results”. The fruit of such half-baked gospel invariably produces a harvest of half-baked believers, most of whom will fall away at the first sign of trouble.

Countless churches, missions and families are full of deadness. This is a terrible stain on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the living God. Everything He does produces abundant life. Jesus said that Satan “comes only to steal, kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10) Jesus never attended a funeral where the person remained dead. The same applies today. If He turns up, our homes and churches will be dramatically changed.

The good news is that Jesus has not changed! All our human methods and techniques will result in failure and amount to nothing if God is not with us in His power and glory. When Jesus comes in, He breaks off the shackles and people’s lives are instantly reformed. You never have to look for help from big-name preachers when the glory of God is present! It is all about God, not man. One second in the presence of God’s glory can achieve more than years of human endeavour!

These days there are many preachers who have attended seminary and learned how to speak in public, but if that is all they have, you will do well not to listen to their messages. If the words being preached are empowered by mere human wisdom, they will not benefit the listeners in any spiritual way. The apostle Paul was a very smart, highly educated man. Yet he was careful not to rely on those attributes when he shared God’s Word. Pay careful attention to what he told the Corinthians: ”My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Cor 2:4-5)

Did you know that it is possible for your faith to rest in the wrong place? Paul wanted the Corinthians’ faith to rest on God’s power and not in the wisdom of this world. When this sound advice is followed, it produces strong followers of Christ who will not fall away when tested. In Chi.na most people come to Christ after they see a demonstration of the power of God. Perhaps they are healed from an illness or set free from oppression. After people experience the power and authority of God for themselves, they have no trouble believing the gospel and giving their lives to Christ. Not to do so would be to deny the reality of their experiences.

Do you believe that God can work through you in such a way? Can He use you to do miracles so that Jesus Christ may be glorified and many people experience salvation? The apostle Paul issued a challenge to some of the believers in Corinth: “I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.” (1 Cor 4:19-20)

Satan wants people to think that the sustenance they need to live a successful life can be found inside themselves or in the things surrounding them. They search for substitutes in a bid to procure the true joy and peace that only come by knowing Jesus Christ. The moment people fall for the lie that they can prosper without God, they cut themselves off from His presence and power, for “the mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.” (Rom 8: 6-8)

During the times of strongest revival in Chi.na, miracles were so commonplace that we didn’t even think about them much. They were as natural as breathing the air. They helped thrust millions of people into the kingdom of God and strengthened the faith of all who experienced such miracles. Even young children went out and shared the gospel with other children, and mighty miracles of healing, deliverance and signs and wonders accompanied them wherever they went. This was not considered strange, because the Lord Jesus promised us, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” (Mark 16:16-18)

When you present the gospel to somebody, it needs to come with demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit. This may occur in a variety of different ways, such as through a healing, or a word of knowledge about a person’s life, or the working of another gift. The demonstration of God’s power convinces unbelievers that the message is true and that Jesus is alive today! When the power of the gospel is truly demonstrated, only the most heard-hearted of people are unwilling to respond to the claims of Jesus Christ upon their lives.

Miracles and signs and wonders are not just for within the walls of your church building. No! They are to be demonstrated among the people, in the marketplace, on the bustling city streets, and in the homes of those who are trapped in darkness. This is where Jesus and his disciples did most of their miracles. They knew nothing of scheduled “healing meetings” inside church buildings. The power of God accompanied them wherever they proclaimed the good news that the kingdom of God is available to all who put their trust in Jesus Christ.

Christianity without the power of God is no Christianity at all! Power is a fundamental part of God’s workings with humankind throughout history. On every page of the Bible, you can read about God’s miraculous power in operation, beginning with the very first verse of the Bible, when “God created the heavens and the earth.” It continues throughout the Old and New Testaments, right up to the conclusion of the book of Revelation when Jesus declares, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” (Rev 22:13)

Did you ever wonder that God is so powerful He didn’t even need to create the universe with His hands? He simply spoke, and it came into existence. Our God is not just powerful. He is all-powerful. In speaking of the majesty of our Lord, the Bible records that “earth and sky fled from His presence, and there was no place for them.” (Rev 20:11) His power is beyond compare!

What kind of message does your church preach?

Is your faith based on men’s wisdom or on God’s power?

The Bible warns us that in the last days there will be some people “having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” (2 Tim 3:5)

Many Christians have developed a warped view of God. They think He only works the way they want Him to, according to their own plans. Such thinking is terribly sad and dangerous. God can never be limited. He is God! When we lose a proper perspective on God’s power and love, we harm ourselves and those around us. Such limited thinking becomes like a cancer, devouring our spiritual life and bringing death where God intends there to be life.

If you are a Christian I encourage you to examine your heart and ask God to reveal those areas of your life where you have placed limits on Him.

You may know in your head that God is powerful, but have you allowed Him to use His power to break you free from the prison of sinful habits and attitudes?

You may know in your head that Jesus said, “all authority in heaven and earth has been given to me” (Matt 28:18), but do you ever pray in faith for someone to be healed or to be delivered from demons?

You may know in your head that the historical Jesus is powerful, but do you realize that He wants to share His power with you so that you can be His ambassador to a lost and hurting world?

The time is short and God is looking for people who are serious about His kingdom. He wants to empower you to walk in purity and to proclaim the gospel throughout the earth.

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, it’s time to wake up and stop living in a weak and pale way that denies the power of God. Repent from such a narrow, impoverished view of our Lord, and ask Jesus to reveal His power in your life.”

The main reason I brought this topic up today, is that I learnt about two miraculous pregnancies yesterday, so I want to share them with you, so that you can know it does not happen to a select few, God can, He wants to and He will help you if you just let Him! Both of them were posted on Fertilicare:

First Daryl shared a testimony of friends of hers: “I just heard yesterday that 2 dear friends of mine are finally pregnant after 7 years of prayers. The DH has basically no sperm, but didn’t want any treatment as they believed God would answer their prayers, and He has.”

Then Believe posted her good news: “It is cycle day 36 today. I usually have 28 day cycles with a few 30 day cycles when I have been on meds… So the question that myself and DH was asking, was what is wrong now that my cycle is suddenly a week longer than usual…

Over the weekend we thought about buying a HPT, but due to so many negatives in the past, we decided to leave it a few more days. I am currently on a slimming programme and another treatment was scheduled for today, but I did not want to go should there be a very small possibility that there may be a little miracle growing inside me. Then again, how many months have we been hoping and praying…for our miracle…

Soooooooooooo this morning before work, I decided to go and buy HPT’s. I have never bought HPT’s ever before. DH always does this for me, as I do not have the energy of bumping into someone I know and them then thinking that I am expecting when they see the HPT in my basket.

When I reached work I went to the ladies with two tests. And what do I see after a few seconds…My very very very very first two lines. I decided to test on another test, and jip, there it is…2 lines…Could not believe my eyes and sent DH a photo via BBM of the test results. He was crying when I spoke to him as he is soooooooooo very very very very happy. He will make a fantastic dad.

I went for a blood test during lunch time just to make sure that this is really happening, and yes, we have a healthy beta, and will be testing again later this week, and have our first scan scheduled for the beginning of November…

This is still so unreal. As I am typing here I still cannot believe that there is a miracle growing inside me. And that we finally have our BFP!

God has performed a miracle – Praise him, praise him, praise him.”

Here is her signature, just for in case you thought it might be co-incidence that she got pregnant:
ME: 31(possible egg quality issues) * DH:31(sperm issues)
TTC: 3 1/2 yrs * Married: 6 1/2 yrs * Together: 11+years
2009
4 x Timed cycles – BFN
IVF/ICSI #1 – BFN
ICSI # 2 – BFN
2010
5 x AI – BFN
ICSI #3 – Cancelled – Slow response – resulted in AI
DS ICSI # 4 – BFN
(P)ICSI #5 – BFN
2011
Hysteroscopy – Small septum removed
IMSI/ICSI #6 – BFN
DE IMSI/ICSI #7 – BFN
POA – Praying for a miracle – Taking Royal Jelly and Staminogro
October 2011 – Natural BFP
Aan die kinderlose skenk Hy ‘n huisgesin, sy word ‘n gelukkige moeder van kinders. Prys die Here! – Ps.113:9
Ek is tot alles in staat deur Hom wat my krag gee – Fillipense 4:13”

I hope those ladies don’t mind me sharing their stories, but I just want to prove that it is possible to get pregnant, no matter what is wrong with you. God is good and faithful and nothing is impossible with Him. I’m nothing special that I got my miracle, as a matter of fact I think that is why it’s so difficult to believe for some of those who know me, because I am as ordinary as can be! I think most of you might even be disappointed if you should meet me in real life. I could not do it on my own, never – it was God who did this miracle for us, and for the above mentioned people.

It really warms my heart to read testimonies like this and I hope to hear of a lot more soon!

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Release Your Faith!

If you hear basically the same message more than once in one day, do you think God is trying to tell you something?  Well that happened to me on Monday.  Let me share the messages:

First I read in “Go.d’s Wo.rd He.als” By De.rek Prin.ce about Naaman:  “Do you remember the Old Testament account of Naaman?  (See 2 Kings 5:1-14)  He was the commander of the army of the king of Syria, but he was also a leper.  He heard through this slave girl, an Israelite, that there was this prophet in Israel who could heal him.  Naaman went to the king of Israel with a letter from the king of Syria, which said in effect, “Heal Naaman of his leprosy.”  The king of Israel became quite upset at this and said, “Who does he think I am to heal people?”  Elisha the prophet heard about the king of Israel’s reaction, and he sent a message to the king, saying, “Send him to me.  Let him know there is a prophet in Israel.”

So, Naaman went to Elisha’s door.  Like most wealthy and influential people, he thought he could come to God in a big way that would impress him.  He came with his chariot, with his horses, with silver, with gold, with ten changes of clothing, and many servants.  He had an idea in his mind of what miraculous healing would look like:  Elisha will come out and do something dramatic.  He will wave his hand over me, and I’ll be healed.  But the Holy Spirit knows just how and where to reach people.  And the Holy Spirit instructed Elisha, in essence, Don’t go out and pray for him.  Don’t show yourself too interested in him.  Don’t let him impress you with his wealth and his social position.  Just send a message:  “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and you will be healed.”

Have you ever seen the river Jordan?  Well, I was baptized in it on August 24, 1942.  It’s not a beautiful, romantic river.  It’s a muddy stream.  When I stood in it, I had to do all I could to prevent my feet from slipping on the mud at the bottom. 

Naaman looked at the Jordan and said, “That river?  That muddy stream?  Why, in my country, we have beautiful rivers that flow down from the mountains, pure and clear.  Are not Abanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all rivers of Israel?”  Naaman got angry and was about to stomp away in a rage.  But one of his servants said to him, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, wouldn’t you have done it?  How much more, then, when he says to you, ‘wash and be clean’?”  Fortunately Naaman was wise enough to get the message.  So he stripped.  That also must have been a test of his humility, because he had to display his leprous flesh.  He went down to the river and dipped himself in it seven times. 

It is very clear from this passage in 2 Kings that, after six dips, there was no change whatever in Naaman’s condition.  How easy it would have been to say, “It doesn’t work!”  But he dipped the seventh time and came up healed. 

God demands obedience, and it’s your responsibility to obey.  Certainly it’s God’s responsibility to do His part of the work.  But if you don’t obey you have no claim on God.”

Later in the same book I read this part, which reminded me a bit of the first part I’ve quoted, it’s about the Israelites in the desert when they came to the bitter waters of Marah (Exodus 15:22-27):  “The Israelites began to complain and murmur against Moses.  Think of the noise of all those people complaining and murmuring at once!  Yet in the midst of the murmuring, one man – Moses – had the sense to pray.  And he got the answer.  Let me just say that when you are faced with a difficulty, you can either murmur or pray.  If you murmur, that is your choice, but it won’t help the situation.  If you pray, the Lord will show you the answer.

While the Israelites chose to complain about the bitter waters they encountered at Marah, Moses prayed, and the answer the Lord showed him was a tree.  When he cast it into the bitter waters, the waters were made sweet.  This is the healing tree.

The scriptures do not say that the tree healed the water.  In fact, I don’t believe that was the case.  I believe the supernatural power of God did the healing.  But Moses’ act of faith in casting in the tree unlocked this supernatural power.  This is a great principle in regard to God.  When you want His miracle-working power to operate, you sometimes have to perform a simple act.  The act, in itself, does not generate the power – but it’s the key that unlocks the power.

The prophet Elisha grasped this principle.  He faced a situation similar to what the Israelites had faced at Marah.  The waters in Jericho were bad, and they didn’t produce a fruitful soil.  When the inhabitants asked him to intervene, Elisha took a bowl of salt and cast the bowl of salt into the source of water, and the waters became sweet.  (See 2 Kings 2:19-22)  It wasn’t the salt that made the waters sweet – it was God’s miraculous power. 

Likewise when there were poisonous gourds in a pot of stew, Elisha took some flour and put it into the pot, and the stew was made healthy.  (See 2 Kings 4:38-41)  It wasn’t the flour that made the stew healthy – it was God’s miraculous power.

When Elisha wanted to raise a boy from the dead, he ordered that his staff be put on the child’s face.  (See 2 Kings 4:8-37)  It wasn’t the staff that held back the power of death. But it was God’s miraculous power!”

Later we watched a program from Joy.ce Me.yer and there was the same theme in that program.  Let me quote just a bit from it, the message is about the resurrection of Lazarus:  

“John 11:37-44 (Amp):  “³⁷But some of them said, Could not He Who opened a blind man’s eyes have prevented this man from dying?

 ³⁸Now Jesus, again sighing repeatedly and deeply disquieted, approached the tomb. It was a cave (a hole in the rock), and a boulder lay against [the entrance to close] it.  ³⁹Jesus said, Take away the stone. Martha, the sister of the dead man, exclaimed, But Lord, by this time he [is decaying and] throws off an offensive odor, for he has been dead four days!   ⁴⁰Jesus said to her, Did I not tell you and promise you that if you would believe and rely on Me, you would see the glory of God?  ⁴¹So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.  ⁴²Yes, I know You always hear and listen to Me, but I have said this on account of and for the benefit of the people standing around, so that they may believe that You did send Me [that You have made Me Your Messenger].  ⁴³When He had said this, He shouted with a loud voice, Lazarus, come out!  ⁴⁴And out walked the man who had been dead, his hands and feet wrapped in burial cloths (linen strips), and with a [burial] napkin bound around his face. Jesus said to them, Free him of the burial wrappings and let him go.”

Lazarus happened to be a good friend of Jesus.  Jesus frequently went to Mary, Martha and Lazarus’ house, and ate with them.  They had seen Jesus do many other miracles but he let his good friend Lazarus die. 

Why was Jesus sighing and being deeply disturbed in his Spirit at what they were saying?  Because He wanted to see faith, He didn’t want to hear how they could not understand why He hadn’t done anything.  He wanted them to believe that no matter how bad the situation was that he still could do something.  Somebody in here needs to hear that tonight.  That no matter how bad the situation is…  God justs wants you to believe, because He can very well still do something.  Without faith it is impossible to please God!

We started talking last night that faith needs to be released – to have it is one thing, to use it is another.  If you have a muscle you don’t use it begins to get weak and it shrivels, if you don’t use faith to all intends and purposes it’s going to be no different to you not having it.  Unto every man is given a measure of faith – we all have faith.  Every time you sit in a chair it takes faith, you believe it won’t cave in.  By and large when you sit in a chair, you just go plop down in the chair, you don’t worry if something will happen, if it will break or not…

I just wish that when we have a problem we could just plop into Jesus’ arms like that and say, “I’m asking You to take care of it and I believe You will, I’m releasing my faith through my prayer, I line my mouth up with Your promises and I’m going to do whatever You ask me to do, and You will do the rest!  Let me tell you, I don’t want you to ever forget this, if you do what you can do, God will do what you cannot do!

Releasing you faith requires some kind of action!  When you pray you need to release your faith, when you give you release your faith with your gift and you need to make sure that you are lining what you say up with what you pray.  It doesn’t do one bit of good to say, “O, God! I pray in Jesus name that you will deliver my husband from drinking and you would save him Lord, and you would change him and that our marriage would be healed.  Amen!”  And then go out to lunch with sister Brown the next day and say, “I’m telling you what, that man is never going to change… I mean, I’m sick and tired of the way he acts, drunk all the time, he won’t ever get saved, there is no hope…”  Don’t tell me we don’t do that because we do!  We just get a whole bunch of this religious stuff, sometimes I think we say things to God just to hear ourselves sound spiritual.  Maybe you need to say less and mean every word that you say, and make sure that you are releasing your faith and understanding what that means.  That if you are going to pray in faith you’ve got to stay in faith!

So here Lazarus had died, and they are bothered about the situation that he died, because they had sent a message that he was sick and Jesus waited 2 more days before He went.  He waited to let him die…  “Well if you would have been here!”  And He went, “Arghhh, you just don’t get it!” 

There was a boulder in front of the cave and Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”   Let me just ask you a question, if He was getting ready to raise the guy from the dead, which was an outrageous miracle because you’ll see in a minute, like, “What’s the point in that, he’s been dead four days, he going to really put off an odour…”  But if Jesus was going to raise the guy from the dead, which he already full knew he was going to do, why in the world didn’t He just blow the stone away?  Why did He tell them to move the stone?  See some of you are not getting your miracle because you are not moving your stone. 

There is a wonderful place in the Bible where Mary wanted Jesus to do a miracle, it was actually really an everyday practical thing, they were at a wedding, they ran out of wine and Jesus was going to whip up some more.   She turned to the servants there and said, “Whatever He says to you, do it!”  I love those few words!  Can I say to you, “Whatever He says to you, do it!”  They got the miracle, but they wouldn’t have if they hadn’t done what He said! 

You’ll get your miracle too if you do what He says, but if you’re not doing what He says then you’re not doing what you can do, because He will never give you something to do what you cannot do, it maybe something that you don’t want to do, it may be something you won’t like to do, it may be something that will be a bit of a struggle for you to do, but God will never, ever give you anything you cannot do, so stop telling Him you can’t do it and just do it!

If you do the little bit that you can do, God will always come through and do the part that you cannot do!”

Matthew 7:7-8 (Amp):  “⁷ Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.   ⁸For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened.”

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God is waiting on me!

Wow!  I heard this teaching from An.drew Wom.mack – How to receive a miracle and I got such a revelation on waiting!  I’m not waiting on God – He is waiting on me!  I’m just going to quote a little bit of this teaching for you, just the part that I mentioned now, but I would actually recommend you listen to all of it!

“Many Christians believe there is no certain path to get your miracle.  They believe you wish, you hope, you pray and maybe God will do it, or maybe He won’t.  That there is no way that you can grab hold of something and make it happen, but that is not what the Bible teaches! 

One of the things that the Lord has done in my (An.drew Wom.mack) life is to establish the integrity of His Word.  That God is not hit and miss.  God does not sometimes do this and then sometimes do that.  Sometimes people say that you never know what God is going to do, you can’t put God into a box – basically what that is, is an excuse so that if you pray and it doesn’t work you can say, “well it wasn’t God’s will.” 

No that is not so!  I guarantee you God is predictable.   God is the one who created everything physical around us, and you know this physical world is so orderly.  It just amazes me the precision of everything God made – the heavens and the earth.  You know when they shoot these rockets to other planets; I mean everything is so predictable!  You can tell 10 years, 20 years, 30 years from now where a planet is going to be, because God set up a system.  Everything works perfectly – we’ve got these 10 year calendars, you can show things 10 years in advance…  How can you do this?  Because God made an orderly world, and it’s crazy to think that someone who created something so orderly is Himself disorganized. 

“You never know what God’s going to do.  God will do it this way one time and that way the next time.”  God is not like that!  God is not schizophrenic!  God is predictable.  God is the same yesterday, today and forever!  One of the things that has blessed me tremendously in my walk with the Lord is just knowing that, “God you are forever faithful, God you will never fail me.”  I don’t have to hope and wish and pray that God will answer my prayers.

There are laws that govern the things of God.   Romans 3:27 (KJV):  “²⁷Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.”  There is a law of faith.  Faith is governed by law – law is something that is unchangeable.  That means it doesn’t just work sometimes.  Did you know the Kingdom of God operates under law?  It’s consistent. 

You know if someone is killed by gravity – do we sometimes wonder why God did that?  God didn’t do it!  God just put down laws – if you jump off a 15 storey building gravity is going to kill you.  God didn’t look at you and say, “O!  I’m going to teach you!”  There is a law that is in effect and you learn how to co-operate with it.  It can work for you – like you are sitting on a chair, there is no problem, you don’t have to hold on to it, it’s not a struggle, because gravity is there for your own benefit – you learn how to co-operate with it.  But if you ignore those laws and you begin to go contrary to it you will get killed by the same law that intended to be for your own good.  

It’s the same thing with God.  There are laws that govern the operation of God.  I’m saying all this to give you an introduction to how do you receive a miracle from God.  One of the first things to recognize is that miracles are not just hit and miss, that it’s not, “you never know whether they will work or not, you can’t tap into a miracle.”  You learn the laws of God, you learn how things work, you do them and you can receive your miracle from God.  You can see God move into your life! 

Somebody is thinking, “Now are you saying that you can just push a button and make God turn out, You can turn God on or off, you can make Him do whatever you want to.”  No!  What I’m saying is God is on all the time.  Every time you get turned on you can see the power of God operate, Amen?  God always wants to move on your behalf!  It’s not you controlling God, God is always for you!  God is a good God.  God desires for you to prosper.  God’s will is for you to be healthy.  God’s will is for you to be above and not beneath and if you are not in one of those categories it’s not God that you’re waiting on to perform a miracle, God is waiting on us to learn and to reach out and to flip that switch and to turn on the power of God to release His ability in our life!  You are the one that controls God’s ability in your life!  Not God!  Now it is God’s power, it is His ability, but it is up to you!

Ephesians 3:20 (KJV):  “²⁰Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,”

If you leave out the phrase, “according to the power that works in us,” you do not have the truth.  God is not able to do abundantly, exceedingly, whatever we ask or think period, because if there isn’t any power working in you, if you aren’t believing God, if there is no positive force on the inside of you, you can stop God’s intervention in your life. 

See a lot of people think, “Now, wait a minute, God is God!  Nobody controls God!  Nobody can tell God what to do!”   It’s not the fact that God is limited by you, it’s not having more authority in power in God, God can do whatever he wants to, but God has chosen to never violate your will.  God has chosen to flow through you, that is what this scripture says – according to the power that works in you, so if you turn the power off in you then you turn off God’s power in your life.  You can stop God’s power, Satan can’t stop God, but you can!   Satan can’t stop God from doing anything!  But you can stop God in your life and brothers and sisters many of us, without knowing it, are stopping God from moving in our life.

There are a lot of things, I can’t tell you everything I know in three sessions, but we’re going to be hitting on some highlights of things.  I want to get some things across to you – that praise God, God wants you to prosper, God has a miracle for you.  God can supernaturally intervene in your life, but you are going to get off your spiritual duff and begin to believe God.  We are going to get off dead centre and quit waiting on God, and saying, “God, I’m waiting on you,” and recognize that God is waiting on us!  Amen?”

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