Why Some Sons Find It Difficult To Honour

1. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they are not following Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was preceded by John the Baptist. John the Baptist was in the ministry before Jesus came along. The Lord honoured him greatly, submitting Himself to him for baptism. This is exactly what many ministers cannot do. They do not honour the people that are ahead of them, especially if they live in the same city.

Seven Reasons Why Jesus Could Have Despised

John the Baptist

1. Jesus had good reasons not to honour John the Baptist. Jesus Christ was the Son of God. Jesus Christ was in the beginning and all things were made by Him and through Him. John the Baptist was just another of God’s creatures. How could Jesus Christ the creator bow down or submit himself to a mere human?

2. John the Baptist was not worthy to even untie the shoelaces of Jesus, much less to baptise Him. And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not; John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but he chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable. Luke 3:15-17

3. John’s lifestyle was questionable. He wore skimpy panties to preach and lived in the desert.

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1-6

4. John the Baptist seemed to be delving into politics and was in direct confrontation with the government of the day.

5. John the Baptist’s ministry had ended abruptly with him being executed like a common criminal.

But Jesus respected John the Baptist. He acknowledged him and went to his church. Jesus submitted Himself to the ministry of John the Baptist.

Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

Matthew 3:13-15

6. John the Baptist did not have a miracle ministry. Jesus spoke highly of John the Baptist even though He did miracles which John the Baptist didn’t do.

And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

Matthew 11:7-10

7. John the Baptist did not have powerful teachings like Jesus.

Jesus preached a different kind of message from John but acknowledged the greatness and relevance of John the Baptist.

Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Matthew 11: 11

After Jesus had submitted Himself to the ministry of John the Baptist, a voice from Heaven said, “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” Jesus had not won any souls when He received this appellation –“this is my beloved son”! All He did was to submit Himself to someone ahead of Him in ministry. This is an important point for those who love to fight anything older or bigger than they are. 2. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they do not follow the example of King David. King David acknowledged Saul as being the anointed king before him. Even though Saul had many problems, David did not attack him. He called him “father”. David did not call Saul “the mad man of Jerusalem”. He called him the Lord’s anointed. He did not call him the “demonized king”or “demonized daddy”. That is why his throne of David will be established forever.

He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

Luke 1:32

There are four things about Saul that would have driven any normal son to rebel against his father. But not David, he knew better. He knew the verse in Exodus 20:12; that his longevity depended on how he related to the fathers.

David Had Four Reasons Not to Honour Saul 1. Saul was rejected by God through the prophet Samuel. ...Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

1 Samuel 15:23b

2. Saul was demon-possessed. He came under the influence of evil spirits and David knew it.

And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.

1 Samuel 18:10

3. Saul killed pastors. He had become a murderer and his victims were none other than God’s priests.

And Abiathar shewed David that Saul had slain the LORD’s priests.

1 Samuel 22:21 4. Saul was into witchcraft. His last night on earth was spent in a witch’s house.

Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.

1 Samuel 28:7

In spite of great provocation, David maintained his stance toward Saul. He refused to see him as anything other than a father. There are many ignoramuses who launch furious attacks against fathers because of the faults they see in them. Why not learn from David whose throne is established forever? Surely you do not have more good reasons than David did, to rebel against a father!

Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand: for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine hand, and I have not sinned against thee; yet thou huntest my soul to take it.

1 Samuel 24:11

3. People find it difficult to honour fathers because their hearts are TURNED AWAY from their fathers.

And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. Malachi 4:6

There is a time when sons are not interested in what their fathers do. These sons are interested in the exact opposite of whatever their fathers desire. This is a condition that leads to a curse. There are many examples of this. For instance, if a father is a university lecturer, the son may say in his heart, “I do not want to be a university lecturer.” If the father is a politician and the heart of the son is turned away from his father, the son may grow up secretly deciding never to have anything to do with politics. Similarly, the father may be a pastor in the ministry and the son will say things like, “I want to be a lawyer or an astronaut but not a pastor.” All these are as a result of the hearts of the children being turned away from the father.

It is important to pray for your child so that his heart will be turned to his father. When children’s’ hearts are turned away from their fathers, they become independent and rebellious.

The Pastor’s Daughter

Once, I was with a pastor’s family and I got to talking with his daughter. As I chatted with her, she related how she was studying for her law degree. Her plans were for a corporate job in the corporate world. Meanwhile, her father was pastoring a great church with thousands of people but she had no interest in what he was doing.

A couple of years later, I came back to that city and was chauffeured around by this same pastor’s daughter. This time all she talked about was the ministry. I wondered where her legal dreams had disappeared to. There was no more talk of the corporate world. It was just God and His work.

So I told her, “You have changed! I think a real change has come over you in relation to God and the ministry.” So I asked again, “Have you changed?” She responded, “Yes, I have.” I told her, “I noticed it the moment I interacted with you. The last time I was here, you were very different from what you are now.” She nodded, “That’s true.” Then she confessed to me, “I have always wanted to stay away from ministry life. Our family suffered so much because of the ministry and I never wanted to be in it. I can’t even understand why I have changed so much.” She added, “I am scared of my new interest in ministry. All I want to do is to travel with my father and help him in the ministry.”

But I understood what had happened to her. God had turned the heart of the child towards the father to avoid a curse. The turning of the heart is a spiritual thing and only God can do it. It is important for parents to pray for their children otherwise their hearts will be turned away from all that is good and recommended by parents.

Turning the Father’s Heart

There are also times when the father loses interest in his sons. This usually happens when the father is hurt or disillusioned with his children. It brings a curse on the children because they are left without any fatherly input. One day, one of my lay pastors who had been out of the country for some years came home. Before he left the country, he confided in another pastor. He said, “I think the Bishop has lost interest in some of us.” I just feel that he is not as interested in us as he used to be.” I was surprised that he was able to quickly pick that up because he was right. I had been so disillusioned and disappointed in some of the pastors that I had lost interest in them. I wouldn’t call them for meetings and I wouldn’t say much to them. I would just smile to everyone and say, “You are blessed!” But I wouldn’t engage in a deep and substantial discussion with any of them. You see, my heart had turned away from these pastors. But God began to turn my heart back to them. He made me pray for them and gradually, I regained the love and interest for these pastors. I then understood first-hand what it meant for the heart of the father to be turned away from his children. It is indeed a dangerous thing and it does bring a curse. Pray that your father’s heart will not be turned away from you. 4. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they feel a father must earn their honour by being honourable. Unfortunately, many sons and daughters are disappointed in the lives of their fathers and mothers. They are often disappointed at the marriages of their parents.

Many sons think they will do better than their parents have done with money, relationships and other opportunities of life. Some children even think they will look after their own children better than their parents looked after them. It is true that most parents fall short of the ideal father and mother. Every parent is a phantom of what he could be. Parents are just human beings. Fathers are easy to criticize because their lives are out in the open.

It is also true that an “imperfect” father may bring a “perfect” man into the world and a good person may bring an evil person into the world. For instance, Hitler and Stalin had mothers who took them to church. Both Hitler and Stalin were members of the choirs in their churches.

Stalin even attended a bible school for a period. Obviously, the parents of these mass murderers were Christians and churchgoers. Somehow they brought forth men who would cause the deaths of millions of people.

God knows that many of the parents of “good” people are not “good”. And yet, He gave a blanket instruction that fathers and mothers should be honoured. This scripture presents itself as a hurdle or a stumbling block to many who would have excelled in life and ministry.

The obvious moral, financial and marital failings of fathers have nothing to do with the honour that God has commanded us to give to them. If God wants to punish the fathers for their financial, moral and marital sins, He will. That has nothing to do with the honour a child is expected to give to his father.

Remember the words of Jesus when He said, “Give unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar and unto God the things that are God’s”. Every father, no matter who he is, is due the honour commanded by God for him. God does not lose anything when Caesar receives the taxes that belong to him. That is why Jesus said that people should go ahead and give Caesar his taxes.

God’s kingdom does not lose anything when fathers receive the honour that belong to them. The morals, the holiness and the righteousness of the kingdom of God will not be compromised when a father is honoured.

Many people are “over righteous”, self righteous and judgmental when it comes to the sins of their fathers. They use the errors, the flaws and the obvious sins of their fathers as excuses to withhold the honour that is due them.

Like Pharisees, they see the commandments of God as mutually exclusive. In other words, you cannot maintain the moral standards and at the same time give honour to a father if he has committed any such sins.

If it were the case that only perfect fathers were to be honoured, then there would be no need of the fifth commandment (Honour thy father...) because there is no perfect father on this earth!

5. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they add to the fifth commandment.

If you meditate on the fifth commandment, you will discover that it does not describe the type of mother or father you are supposed to honour. It simply says you are to honour your father and a mother. By adding to the scripture, they make it impossible to obey. Here are some examples of how people add to the fifth commandment: a. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who is perfect that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” b. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who is rich that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’

But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” c. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was a good husband to your mother that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” d. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who paid your school fees that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ... that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” e. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who did not divorce your mother that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” f. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was married to only one wife that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.”

g. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who had children with only one woman that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” h. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who did not fall into sin that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” i. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was always at home that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” j. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who built a house for the family that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” k. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who left you an inheritance that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’

But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” l. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who related well with all his children that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” m. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who had no weaknesses that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” n. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who had a lot of money that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” o. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who achieved a lot in his life that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.”

p. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was a great man that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” q. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who played a great role in your life that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” r. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who accepted you as his son that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” s. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who you lived with that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” t. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who did not shout at you and rebuke you that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.”

But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” u. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who gave you a lot of money that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” v. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was a born-again Christian that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” w. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was not an illiterate that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” x. People find it difficult to honour fathers because they think the scripture says: ‘Honour thy father who was not into the occult that it may be well with thee and thou mayest live long on the earth.’ But the Bible actually says: “Honour thy father and mother; ...that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.”

Indeed, honouring fathers and relating to fathers is truly a spiritual exercise. It may not make sense to the natural man but it is one of the greatest biblical principles of the Word of God. Upon this fifth commandment, the entire human race rises and falls. Upon this fifth commandment to honour your father and mother entire ministries rise and fall. May you not struggle with the concept of honouring fathers! May you be a good son so that one day you will be a good father! May you honour others so that one day you will also receive honour!

by Dag Heward-Mills

Principles of Finance in Marriage

Introduction

There are many references in the Bible regarding the importance of money. However, the Bible also warns us about coveting after money, which is the root of all evil.

For wisdom is a defence, and money is a defence: but the excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it.

Ecclesiastes 7:12

A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things.

Ecclesiastes 10:19

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

1 Timothy 6:10

The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.

Haggai 2:8

1. The Importance of Money in Every Venture

(a) Money is the medium of exchange for everything.

(b) As long as we live in this world, it is indispensable.

2. Attitude to Money in the Home

(a) Discuss money openly. Aim at transparency/openness in everything, especially in money matters.

(b) Avoid selfishness.

(c) Note that you (both) are only stewards of God’s money.

i. Spend it according to God’s wishes and God’s Word.

ii. You are accountable to Him.

(d) Manage your finances properly by budgeting.1These areas can guide you:

i. God first (first and best fruits (tithes), offerings).

ii. Savings or some investment.

iii. Addressing your NEEDS, not your wants.

iv. Liabilities/obligations (debts, bills, remittances, blessing others).

v. Extra (miscellaneous) to afford for flexibility.2

vi. Buying food in bulk saves money and reduces financial stress.

3. Understand the Realities of Housekeeping Money (Chop Money)

(a) The mode of its operation must be discussed and mutually agreed upon.

(b) The husband must not be detached from realities while the wife must also not be prodigal in her spending.

4. Understand Financial Headship

(a) Headship of the home extends to finances as well. Therefore, no matter who earns more, the man must rule the finances of the home with wisdom and fairness.3He must have a clear vision or foresight for the home to better the lot of the family,

e.g. plans to own a house someday.

(b) As a financial head, he must avoid stinginess, meanness, and irresponsibility.

5. Avoid Lack of Money

Lack of money must not be a permanent situation in the home. It is important to be mindful of the potential problems associated with lack of money, such as tension, quarrels, misunderstanding, mistrust, suspicion. etc These should not necessarily occur in your home.

6. Know the Dangers of Covetousness

This condition normally arises when wives/husbands compare their property or children with those of others. It leads to:

i. Dissatisfaction in the wife/husband.

ii. Unreasonable demands being made.

iii. Murmuring.

iv. Misspending.

v. Borrowing to maintain a certain lifestyle

7. Know the Dangers of Comparison

(a) Don’t compare yourself with any other family.

...but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

2 Corinthians 10:12

(b) Accept realities.4

Notes

1. Larry Burkett, What Husbands Wish Their Wives Knew about Money (Wheaton, Illinois: Victor Books, 1977), 83 - 111.

2. Connie R. Sasse, Families Today (Peoria, Illinois: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 1977), 573 - 4.

3. Robert O. Blood, Marriage (New York: The Free Press, 1969), 241 - 4.

4. Bobbie Reed, How To Enjoy a Healthy Family Even in Stressful Times (Saint Louis, Minnesota: Concordia Publishing House, 1995), 91 - 97.

by Dag Heward-Mills

Installation of Student Leaders

1. OPENING PRAYER

2. INCOMING AND OUTGOING STUDENT LEADERS TO COME TO THE FRONT

3. PRAYER FOR ALL STUDENT LEADERS

4. DECLARATION BY INCOMING STUDENT LEADERS (Incoming leaders repeat after Officiating Minister). • Thank you for the opportunity to work for God. • Thank you for the trust you have bestowed on us. • Thank you for the responsibility to do God’s work. • Pray for us that we will not fail you. • Pray for us that we will not fail the Lord.

5. DECLARATION TO OUTGOING STUDENT LEADERS (By Officiating Minister) • We are praying for you that you will not backslide as you leave the school. • May you become a minister of the Gospel. • May you be great in God’s kingdom in Jesus’ name. 6. PRAYER 7. SYMBOLIC TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY THROUGH HANDSHAKE BETWEEN OUTGOING LEADERS AND INCOMING LEADERS 8. PLEDGE BY INCOMING STUDENT LEADERS 1. According to John 10:11 which says “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” I WILL PRAY for my sheep and watch over their souls.

2. According to John 21:15 which says “So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.” I PROMISE TO FEED my sheep with the Word in a way that they will understand and receive. 3. According to Jeremiah 23:2 which says “Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD.” I WILL VISIT my sheep lest the Lord visit my iniquities and my sins with His wrath. 4. According to John 21:16 which says “He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.” I PROMISE TO TEND my sheep showing them the love and concern of the good shepherd. 5. According to 1Samuel 17:20 which says “And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle.” I WILL NOT LEAVE OR ABANDON my post and duty without providing a keeper for my sheep. 6. According to Revelation 3:19 which says “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” I WILL BE ZEALOUS. 7. According to John 17:12 which says “While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfiled.” I WILL NOT LOSE any of the sheep that the Lord has given to me.

8. According to 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 which says “And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.” I WILL HONOUR MY PASTORS AND TEACHERS who have taught me from the beginning. I make these promises in the presence of Almighty God and before His servants solemnly freely and may God have mercy on my soul. 9. EXHORTATION 10. SONG: It’s Our Time Chorus To everything there is a season It’s our time to believe To every purpose there is a time It’s our time to love and live The Lord who made the whole world There was a time we received Has everything in his time Now it’s time for us to give He wants the world to know Him Standing hand in hand In all his righteousness together He has called us Let’s reach out and into his kingdom touch our world For such a time as this Can you hear the spirit calling? It’s our time By Myles Munroe

11. SPECIAL SONG / OFFERING 12. COMMUNION 13. SONG: Take My Life and Let It Be Take my life and let it be, Take my hands, and let them move, Consecrated Lord to thee, At the impulse of Thy love, Take my moments and my days, Take my feet, and let them be, Let them flow in ceaseless praise. Swift and beautiful for Thee. By Frances Ridley Havergal

Handbook of Ceremonies

14. CLOSING PRAYER 15. RECESSIONAL SONG: When We Walk With the Lord When we walk with the Lord Chorus In the light of His word Trust and obey What a glory He sheds on our way! For there’s no other way While we do His good will To be happy in Jesus He abides with us still Than to trust and obey And with all who will trust and obey

By John H. Sammis

by Dag Heward-Mills

Overcome in Marriage by Separation

And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace. James 3:18

This chapter reveals that “separation”is the ancient wisdom that many have used to achieve peace. You must know and believe that peace is essential for fruitfulness. As a spiritual person, you must understand the importance of peace. The wisdom of apostle James is clear. No peace, no fruit!

No one has borne fruit without peace. The scripture is very clear on how important peace is for fruitfulness. Because David was fighting all the time, he could not build the temple of God. God did not want him to touch the temple because of his continuous conflicts.

If you want God to use you to build His church, you must achieve peace at all costs. A large percentage of conflicts in ministry are actually marital conflicts. Do not be upset because you have to fight for peace! You are just like many other ministers! Do not believe the “perfect marriage picture” that most ministers put out. They look all smiley and beautiful but there are many conflicts beneath the waters.

Be a spiritual person and accept the reality that peace is something you have to fight for in order to bear fruit.

It is sad to say that you may have to separate from your spouse in order to live peacefully. I hope this never happens to you but it is a reality that we have to talk about.

There are times that separation from your spouse is the only way for you to achieve peace, so that you can work for God. In this kind of separation, you do not divorce or legally dissolve the marriage. You just separate your lives so that you can have peace and exist on earth.

In the separation I am speaking about, you part company with your spouse and live separately. In this separation, you do not formally divorce your spouse. In this separation, you do not marry anyone else nor have sexual relations with any other person. In this separation, you live apart in different houses, cities or countries and endure a life of loneliness in order to bear fruit for the Lord. In this kind of separation, you may visit each other when you feel like it or simply pay a courtesy call. In this kind of separation, you do not live in hatred of each other but in peace. In this kind of separation, you have more time to fellowship with the Lord. Please be aware that there are temptations associated with this kind of “separation arrangement”. However, this “separation arrangement” may be better than living together and killing each other in the process.

1. Separate from your spouse like Abraham separated from Lot and experienced peace.

And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren.

Is not the whole land before thee? SEPARATE THYSELF, I PRAY THEE, FROM ME: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left.

Genesis 13:8-9

There are times a marriage can be compared to the partnership that existed between Abraham and Lot. The wisdom of Abraham for your marriage is the wisdom of separating yourself from someone who brings conflict into your life. Abraham separated his life from the life of Lot because he knew that living with Lot was bringing too much conflict and strife. He knew that strife would not help him to become the father of many nations. God had promised to multiply Abraham exceedingly. God has also promised to multiply your ministry exceedingly.

You must accept that you cannot live peacefully with everyone. Sometimes, you have to go your separate ways and love each other from afar. Many married couples are actually happier when they do not live together. Knowing each other from afar, calling each other often and missing each other may make you a happier person. Abraham’s reason for having conflict with Lot was because the land could no longer contain the two of them.

Abraham separated from his nephew because the land could no longer carry them or keep them together.

“And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together” (Genesis 13:6). One of the meanings in Hebrew of the phrase, “The land could no longer bear them” is “the land could no longer marrythem”.

Sometimes, couples are unable to live together in a single room. There are times they will do better in two separate rooms. There are times they will do better in two separate houses. There are times they will do better in two separate countries.

After Abraham separated from Lot, he became more fruitfuland still had great love for Lot. “And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered” (Genesis 13:14-16).

When Lot got into trouble, Abraham gathered together an army and fought for Lot.

If continuous strife is destroying you, your marriage is comparable to the situation of Abraham and Lot. The wisdom that Abraham had then was to love his nephew from afar. The wisdom of Abraham in this matter is to love each other by moving away from dwelling together in the same space. Abraham’s wisdom for peace was to live separate lives contentedly and happily.

2. Separate from your spouse like Isaac separated fromAbimelech and experienced peace.

And Abimelech said unto Isaac, GO FROM US; for thou art much mightier than we.

Genesis 26:16

Isaac followed the wisdom of his father, Abraham. He knew that he had been called to be fruitful. Every time he dug a well, there was conflict. He knew that he could not bear fruit and fulfil the will of God with that amount of conflict. Isaac kept moving away from those who brought him conflict. Perhaps your marriage is giving you a lot of conflict and you will never be able to bear fruit because of it.

Isaac dug a well and he thought he was going to have a great time enjoying the well he had laboured for. But to his amazement there was only conflict. He called that well Esek.

And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well ESEK; because they strove with him.

Genesis 26:19-20

Then he dug another well. There again, he thought he was going to have the time of his life. But it was not to be so. There was only conflict. He called that well Sitnahand moved on.

And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it SITNAH.

Genesis 26:21

On his third try, there was no conflict. There, he found peace and he called the place Rehoboth. He said, God was going to make him fruitful because there was now room for fruitfulness.

And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it REHOBOTH; and he said, For now the Lord hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

Genesis 26:22

Dear friend, you need room and peace so that you can be fruitful. You cannot be fruitful with the kind of conflict that you are experiencing everyday. Spouses have to learn to leave each other to do their own thing so that they can have peace in their lives.

3. Separate from your spouse like John Wesley separated from his wife and experienced peace.

The great founder, John Wesley, separated from his quarrelsome wife and never attempted to marry anyone else. Through the separation, he achieved the peace he needed to have for the work of God.

If ever the founder John Wesley had grounds for depression, one at least was the unfortunate breakdown of his marriage to Molly. She stole or burned his papers and constantly criticized him in conversation to others. But in 1771, she left without warning and went to live in Newcastle for three years.

John Wesley, the founder, tried to humour her and took her on his travels but never understood her troubled spirit. He assumed that her lies about his actions and character were an attempt to vindicate her own. He believed her to be a woman of true faith but of poor judgment. Sometimes, he wondered whether she had married him for his money derived from his books, only to find out that his fortunes were not for his own use.

John Wesley and his wife were separated for good, at a point. She left him finally and set up a home with her son. In 1777, John Wesley accidentally met his wife, Molly, who said she was willing to return home. John Wesley agreed, provided that she restored his documents and took no more.

On reflection, he wrote to withdraw his offer for them to be reunited because it would seem to be an admission that he had been guilty of all her accusations. He wrote to her and said, “For instance, you have said over and over that I have lived in adultery for the past twenty years.” She had lied to others that he had had an affair with Sarah Ryan, the housekeeper at Bristol. She had also claimed that Sally, Charles Wesley’s happy and devoted wife was his mistress (girlfriend).

John Wesley wrote to his wife, “Do you believe this or do you not? If you do, how can you think of living with such a monster?”

It seems that she made another approach to come back and live together with John Wesley. But in 1778, John Wesley wrote an uncompromising letter to her and said, “You have laid innumerable stumbling blocks in the way of the wise and the unwise. You have served the cause and increased the number of rebels and atheists. You have weakened the hands of those that love and fear God.

If you were to live to a thousand years twice told, you could not undo the mischief which you have done. And until you have done all you can towards it, I BID YOU FAREWELL.”

As you can see from John Wesley’s words, he was quite resolute about not being together with his wife. He was implementing the wisdom of separation to its uttermost. John Wesley never met his wife again. When John Wesley’s wife died in 1781, he was not told of her death for several days, nor the place and hour of her funeral.

4. Separate from your spouse like KathrynKhulman separated from her husband and experienced peace.

It was after Kathryn Khulman separated from her husband that her ministry developed into the worldwide healing ministry she is known for. She never attempted to marry again.

There are many couples that should be separated for their own good. They should live apart and not live in the same house. Sometimes they should not even live in the same city or the same state for their own sake.

Certain men of God will have a greater peace of mind if they are separated from a brawling woman or a contentious woman.

This separation I am speaking of, involves separation without having another woman on the side or creating another family but returning to the former level of loneliness you were in before you got married. John Wesley is the best example of this kind of separation. He separated from his wife and carried on with ministry till the very end of his life.

This kind of separation is a very positive thing for the purpose of accomplishing great things in ministry. Kathryn Khulman is another example of someone who separated from her spouse in order to accomplish great things with her life. She did not marry anyone else, nor did she have any affair with anyone.

by Dag Heward-Mills

What it Means to be Married to a Perfect Pretender

Let love be WITHOUT DISSIMULATION. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.

Romans 12:9

Many people are truly artificial. There is no way to know who they really are or what they are really like. A newly married man once sent a message from his honeymoon chamber. It was short, but revealing. The message said, “It seems I got the wrong one!” Many people are shocked at who they really married.

Love without dissimulation is loving someone without any pretence! Marriage to the perfect pretender is a journey of discovery. Today, many ladies have false hair, false eyebrows, false nails, false eye lashes, false hips, false breasts and false body shapes. The skin of the perfect pretender is not as smooth as it looks. All these false things create a large pool of perfect pretenders in every church.

The pretending beauty is an inviting, charming, sweet, delightful, enjoyable, agreeable and exotic beauty that draws and excites. The pretending version that is perfectly charming, delicious, exotic, appealing, charismatic and pleasant is presented to the public.

The new husband, on the other hand, will have to discover the “reality version” at home. He will be made to discover the real temperament and disposition of his beautiful bride. The unsuspecting young man will find out that many things about this person are not real.

It is not easy to pretend for long

I want to be myself! Let me be free!” No one can maintain an artificial presentation of beauty, perfection and gentleness for long. Many decide in their hearts to “become themselves” at home. “Let me be myself!”

The natural self is not propped up, is not bathed, is not polite, does not always act sweet and gentle. Many women are not naturally perfect, beautiful or gentle. In “being themselves”, these ladies go through a rapid deterioration from the picture they presented.

The Temperament is Uncovered

Perfect pretenders do not easily reveal their true temperament. However, the one who marries her will discover everything for himself.

He may discover that his perfect pretender is a choleric woman. Choleric women are quick to take decisions, so they quickly recognise the power they have over their husbands. Soon, you may have a sharp, angry, strict, decision-taker in charge of affairs at home.

He may discover that his perfect pretender is a phlegmatic woman. Phlegmatic temperaments will descend into laziness, placidity and lack of expression.

He may discover that his perfect pretender is a sanguineous woman. The sanguineous wives will allow their homes to turn into a chaotic, completely mixed up, jumbled up and topsy-turvy environment. These very sanguineous women will appear beautiful, charming, jolly, friendly and huggable when they step out of the home.

He may discover that his perfect pretender is a melancholic woman. The beautiful melancholic that you married will turn into a silent, moody, keep-to-myself personality. There will be no sound in the house as she arranges and re-arranges the same things over and over again. One brother lamented, “My wife sweeps behind me as I walk through the house.”

The Spirituality is Uncovered

You may now discover that the spirituality of the wife is not as deep as it seemed. Most pastors are far more spiritual than their wives. People assume that anyone who lives in the pastor’s house must be spiritual. But this is not always the case. The perfect pretender was simply looking for a man to marry. She was not looking for ministry. She would have been equally happy marrying a bank manager if he had been available.

The Lack of Submission is Uncovered

Perhaps the greatest discovery will be when he finds out that his wife is not as submissive as she looks. All beautiful women look so submissive. But submission can vanish within a few weeks of marriage. When pastors’ wives no longer submit to their husbands, they lose their spiritual covering. Because they are no longer under a covering they are spiritually naked and evil spirits have direct access to them.

Some wives of pastors are seriously afflicted by demons because of their pride and refusal to submit. Evil spirits love to take on women directly, avoiding their covering. When women are not humble, they do not acknowledge that they need a covering. They proceed without a real spiritual covering and experience direct fellowship with evil spirits and entities.

These evil spirits then make the women more hardened and unyielding. Soon, the beauty is turned into a real beast in the hand of evil spirits. The beauty may then be used to accuse, oppose and fight the man of God.

There are many men of God who would tell you that their greatest problem in ministry is their wives. Their wives are not the sweet, soft and gentle ladies that they first seemed to be.

Laziness is Uncovered

Many pastors are amazed when they discover the laziness hidden within their perfect pretender. Because marriage involves so much hard work, the perfect pretender is unprepared to work hard for the marriage to be a success. Once she has her wedding ring, her marital name and the prestige of being married to the man of God, she becomes very lazy and refuses to do the hard work that is necessary to make a marriage happy.

All her energy and efforts are directed at dressing nicely to show off and continue her life of pretence. At home, her husband is on a journey of discovery of the real person. He discovers that she has no energy to bath once she arrives home in the evening!

There is no energy to brush her teeth in time to be kissed! There is no energy to wash herself clean of sweat, urine and other dirt. On the outside, everyone praises her beautiful hairstyle and her nice perfume. The unfortunate brother who married this perfect pretender is on his journey to discover many unpleasant smells.

Demons are Uncovered

A perfect pretender is always a candidate for demon infestations. Demons love to hide under the cloak of pretence. All kinds of evil spirits are uncovered in a marriage to a perfect pretender. Sometimes, it is difficult to imagine the demons that exist behind a beautiful face.

Hurts and Wounds are Uncovered

A jolly and smiling girl may now reveal that she is actually easily hurt and easily upset. Unforgiveness and bitterness reveal a hard, unyielding and strict headmistress personality. This uncaring, hard and unyielding woman is a far cry from the soft, caring and sensitive bride she seemed to be. Indeed, our young “A1” husband is completely taken aback by what he has discovered after marrying a perfect pretender.

by Dag Heward-Mills

Daughter, Is There a Curse Somewhere?

…so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Hebrews 11:3

Everything you see in the physical or natural world is a reflection of a spiritual reality. It is the spiritual that gives rise to the physical.

To understand the way forward you need to know where you are spiritually. If you do not know where you are, you don’t even know whether to turn left or right. Perhaps you are in the north or the south.

Which way do you turn? You will only know which way to turn by knowing where you are. In order to understand the state of women, you have to understand where women are, spiritually speaking.

The main thing that defines the spiritual state of women is the curse that took place in the Garden of Eden.

Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

Genesis 3:16

Every woman falls squarely under the influence of this curse. When you study this curse thoughtfully, you will realize that no woman is exempted.

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

Genesis 3:15, 16

If for instance you lived in a place that was prone to earthquakes and severe thunderstorms, you would build your house a little differently. If women understood these curses properly, they would build their houses with a little more wisdom and thereby save themselves.

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman…

Genesis 3:15

by Dag Heward-Mills

Confessions for Your Healing

Surely He has borne my griefs, my sicknesses and my weakness. He has carried my sorrow. Christ Jesus has taken away my pain!

We considered Him smitten and afflicted by God, but He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was on Him and by His stripes we are healed! I see myself healed by the stripes of Jesus. The price has been paid. I shall not carry this disease any longer! I am not afraid. The Lord will strengthen me and protect me. He will heal me from every strange disease! The Word of God is pleasant to me. It is sweet to my soul and health to all my bones! I shall attend to the Word of God. I shall not let them depart from my eyes. I shall keep the Word of God in the midst of my heart! For the Word of God is life to me and health to all my flesh! Abraham prayed for Abimelech, his wife and his maidservants and they bore children. The God of Abraham is alive today! I shall also bear children! According to Exodus 15:26, none of the diseases of the Egyptians have any power over me. He is the Lord that healeth me! I am serving the Lord my God and He shall bless my bread and my water! Sickness has been taken away from my family! Sickness has been taken from my home. I don't see sickness any more, I don't see tragedy any more! I will not have a miscarriage. I will not be barren. I am fertile. I have as many children as I want! I will not die before my time, I will fulfil my days. I shall not die in this hospital. I shall be discharged in the name of Jesus! My days are prolonged. My life has been extended. The blood of Jesus protects me from evil diseases! Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. I see the Lord delivering me out of my afflictions right now! No evil shall befall me. No plague or calamity can happen to me. I declare it to be so, in the name of Jesus! I bless the Lord for all His benefits, He has healed me! He sent His Word and healed me. I have been rescued from the grave in the name of Jesus! My broken heart is healed because He is a healer of broken hearts! I see myself renewing my strength. I see myself rising up right now. I see the darkness clearing away. Joy cometh in the morning. I see joy coming right now! Like the woman with the issue of blood, I am healed today. Years of sorrow are no more. I shall no longer spend money on doctors! I shall no longer suffer in hospitals. I am healthy. I am whole! I have touched the hem of His garment and I have been made whole! Every evil spirit of cancer, every incurable disease is broken in Jesus' name! The Kingdom of God is at hand. Kingdom blessings are happening to me every day! Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils, freely ye have received, freely give. These commands are happening practically in my life today! I see a miracle ministry. I see healings taking place all around me! The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear! The dead are raised up in my ministry and the poor have the Gospel preached to them! I am not afraid of death. I believe that God will heal me and raise me up. I will believe in God until the very end! These signs are following me every day; healing the sick and casting out demons! Demons are no problem to me. All that are vexed with unclean spirits are healed. I have overcome the spirit of mental illness! God is doing special miracles in my life. Handkerchiefs and aprons are taken from my body and they drive out evil spirits! There is an anointing to break curses right now! I am free from fever, inflammation and burning sensations! God has healed me from acute leukaemia and strange blood diseases! I am healed of iron deficiency anaemia and megaloblastic anaemia! African trypanosomiasis and schistosomiasis have no access to my life! In the name of Jesus Christ, I terminate every life threatening disease in my body! Acute severe asthma, sickle cell crisis and Grand mal epileptic attacks have ceased! I am free from madness, blindness and astonishment of heart! I dissolve every form of stone formation in my kidneys, bile ducts or salivary glands. Kidney stones, gall stones and salivary stones are being dissolved right now! I absolutely reject every form of cancer within my body. I totally refuse entry to any malignant cells. I completely abort any form of strange growth within my body! I command the following cancers to die immediately: prostate cancer, cancer of the uterus, cancer of the cervix, cancer of the lungs, cancer of the bone and cancer of the brain. I shall not die from cancer! I cancel every form of cancerous growth in my life. I terminate all and every kind of malignant cancer in my life. I speak death unto breast cancer, stomach cancer, liver cancer, kidney cancer, intestinal cancer and cancer of the pancreas! Every form of epilepsy, be it Temporal lobe epilepsy, Grand mal epilepsy, Petit mal epilepsy or Jacksonian epilepsy is cured instantly in the name of Jesus! I predict and pronounce freedom from every psychiatric condition. I am completely cured of schizophrenia, severe depression and mania! I declare that every suicidal tendency in my life is permanently cured. Hallucinations, delusions and illusions are things of the past. Psychotic illnesses and neurotic symptoms have disappeared from my life. My mind is clear, I am healed and I am normal! I am free from anti-anxiety drugs, mood stabilizing drugs, anti-depressant drugs, and anti-psychotic medication! I am delivered from acute confusional states, memory disturbances, difficulty in thinking, psychomotor changes and emotional disturbances! Alzheimer's disease and every other form of dementia is completely abolished in my life! I boldly declare that I am healed of alcoholism and the power of cannabis sativa (marijuana). Every toxic confusional state of drug abuse is permanently cured in my life! Cocaine, amphetamines, morphine and heroin and every hallucinogenic drug has no attraction to me from this hour! I am not afraid of anything. I am free from every kind of phobia, anorexia nervosa, and every stress related disease! I have a perfectly healthy personality. I overrule, override and cancel every anti-social personality, paranoid personality, dependent personality, histrionic or hysterical personality, schizoid personality and obsessional personality in my life. I have the personality of Christ! I am not overweight. I am not underweight. I eat normally. I do not have a problem of over-eating! Every pain in my body is healed instantly; neck pain, shoulder pain, elbow pain, hand and wrist pain , hip pain, back pain, waist pain, knee pain, foot and ankle pain are healed at this moment. It happens right now in the name of Jesus! I terminate every form of malaria parasite in my body. I sentence the following malaria parasites to instantaneous death: Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium malariae! Every form of chloroquine-resistant malaria is abolished right now. I declare that typhoid fever is cured right now. No form of fever can attack me in the name of Jesus! I am cured by the power of the stripes of Jesus. Every form of arthritis disappears from my body at this moment. I command rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and chronic osteo-arthritis to disappear in the name of Jesus! I pronounce my healing from strange and incurable diseases. Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Progressive Systemic Sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis, Poly-arteritis nodosa are cursed from my life in the name of Jesus! I am free from heart diseases. My heart beats normally. Chest pain, heart attacks, myocardial infaction, angina pectoris are all healed in the name of Jesus! I am cured of atrial fibrillation, cardiac arrest and heart block in the name of Jesus Christ! My lungs are perfect. I am cured of tuberculosis, pneumonia and asthma! I am cured of every kind of worm. No worm can survive within my body from this moment. I terminate the life of tape worms and round worms in the name of Jesus! The following worms have been sentenced to death within my body: Taenia saginata, Taenia solium, Enterobius vermicularis, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, Necator americanus, Ancylostoma duodenale, Strongyloides stercoralis, Capillaria philippinensis, Wucherena bancrofti, Brugia malayi, Loa loa, Onchocerca volvulus, Dracunculus medinensis (guinea worm), Toxocara canis, Ancylostoma brasiliensis, Oesophagostomum specis, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, Trichinella spiralis, Gnathostoma spinigerum, Anisakis marina! I have a normal pregnancy and the baby within is growing normally. It is not suffering from retardation of growth or any other abnormality! I predict and declare that I shall have an easy and swift labour. My baby shall be delivered with great ease. I cancel every mal-position and mal-presentation of the baby! I shall not suffer from face presentation, brow presentation or breech presentation of the baby! I shall not die during labour. I shall live to look after my child. I shall not bleed to death after delivery! I am free from Pregnancy-induced hypertension, Renal disease, Eclampsia, Anaemia, excessive blood loss, abnormal labour or abortion! I shall give birth to an intelligent and healthy child. My child is healed of congenital heart disease and rare inherited illnesses! I refuse to suffer from diabetes mellitus, thyrotoxicosis, hypertension, heart disease, asthma or mental disease! I thank God that I enjoy the full benefits of divine health and long life! I enjoy miracles of healing everyday!

by Dag Heward-Mills

Confessions for Experiencing Prosperity

I believe in fantastic prosperity!

From now, God will have pleasure in my prosperity. I believe and confess that God is happy when I prosper. Because of this, I am prospering all the time. I am prospering everyday! I have discovered that prosperity is not an evil thing! I embrace the concept of prosperity wholeheartedly! I recognize that God wants me to flourish. Because of this, I am stable, planted and expecting to prosper! I decree prosperity and increase in all the work of my hands! I am a house owner. I am a builder of houses! I see myself acquiring land and building a house. It is a good thing to build a house. God's Word tells me to build houses and to plant gardens. Therefore, I am building houses and planting gardens! God has given me the wisdom to build a house free of debts and curses! My house is a beautiful mansion. The finishing of my house is exquisitely appealing. People admire my house everyday! All the rooms in my house are filled with good and precious gifts according to the book of Proverbs! I have garages in my house. In my house, the garages are filled with the latest and best types of cars in the world! I am a car owner. Prosperity is coming into my life. The days of walking are over. I see myself driving a good car! God has promoted me and the impossible has become possible! I believe and confess that I have a car, and that I have more than one car. I even give away cars as gifts! God has prospered me so much that a car means nothing to me anymore! I believe in hard work. I have the spirit of diligence. I am not a lazy person, I work very hard. And I reap what I sow! I am free from the curse of working for nothing. I break the curse of laboring in vain. My sweat is not in vain. I reject every thought of poverty and lack. I refuse every projection and prediction of poverty by my family! I will not become what people think I should be. I will become what God says I am! God has made me the head and not the tail! I am plenteous in goods! I am plenteous in increase and in profits! Supernatural doors are opening. When God opens the door, no human being can shut it!

I am not struggling to prosper. I am enjoying God's prosperity! My prosperity is real. I owe no man anything! I make genuine profit and I am debt free! I own buildings. I have real estates! I have moved into fantastic prosperity! I confess that God supplies all my needs according to His riches in glory! I have nice clothes to wear! I eat good food everyday! I have a good job. My job is getting better everyday! The impossibility is becoming possible! Prosperity does not make me backslide! In spite of the fact that I am blessed, I go to church regularly. I attend prayer meetings and fasting sessions! I am not stingy. I give freely. Even when I do not have I give willingly! I am always scattering, yet I am always increasing. Men are giving back to me good measure pressed down, shaken together and running over! I am reaping a hundredfold. I am enjoying abundance. It is happening practically in my life! My future is clear and bright. I have bright eyes for the future! The windows of heaven are open over my life! I command supernatural abundance over my life! I declare that I am flourishing like a palm tree! I am content with what the Lord has done for me. I have a Spirit of contentment. I do not have greed in my life! I am like a tree that is planted by the rivers of water. I am bringing forth fruit in the right season! I declare that I have the right contacts, supplies and opportunities. They are mine from today! Whatever I start, I will finish. All my projects are completed. I am a finisher!

by Dag Heward-Mills

How Tithers Activate the Laws of Sowing and Reaping

The farmers of this world have long known the laws of sowing and reaping. They have consistently activated these laws for their own benefit and have learnt not to violate them. Those who understand and deploy the laws of sowing and reaping are wealthy.

In the beginning, God created the seed in living things giving them the mysterious power to reproduce themselves. Seeds are mysterious things. They have a plan and they have life hidden deep within them. They are small but are the reason for all that we see. Every animal you see today is the result of a seed. On the average, lions live for about eight years in the wild and about twenty years in the zoo. Obviously, the lions you see around have not been there since the Creation. The miracle of Creation happened a long time ago. But it is the miracle of the seed that has sustained the Creation and produced every living thing around you. It is important to understand the way seeds work because seeds contain the miracle power of growth and reproduction.

We all know about the seeds of plants and trees. But the bible teaches us about many other seeds, including our money and our gifts. Even though money is a lifeless inanimate object, it contains the mysterious power of a seed. Notice this passage in which Paul continuously refers to our gifts, contributions and money as seeds. “Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, ‘He scattered abroad, He gave to the poor, His righteousness endures forever.’ Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness” (2 Corinthians 9:6-10, NASB).

Every time you give your tithes, you are sowing a seed into the house of God. Paying tithes activates the laws of sowing seeds and reaping harvests! Tithing Christians therefore fulfil several important laws of sowing and reaping and inadvertently create wealth for themselves. Let us now discuss the laws of sowing and reaping which are set in motion by tithing.

The Fifteen Laws of Sowing and Reaping

1. You must PLANT SOMETHING.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, EXCEPT A CORN OF WHEAT FALL INTO THE GROUND and die, IT ABIDETH ALONE: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

John 12:24

The first law of the sowing and reaping teaches that you must plant something. You must actually have a seed that you have sown. If you have not sown anything you cannot expect anything. The less spiritual you are, the less you will correlate things that happen to you with seeds you have planted in the past. The more spiritual you are, the more you will expect a harvest of seeds you have planted.

One day, I was on the golf course with some friends. A friend of mine was teeing off and someone standing by began to mock and laugh at him. My friend felt embarrassed and was barely able to hit his ball. We continued to play and walked down the golf course to the next hole. I noticed that my friend had become quiet. As we walked along, he suddenly left us and walked towards another group that was playing on another hole. I realized that he was walking towards the person that had jeered at him. We continued playing and soon enough he joined us again.

I asked him, “What happened? Did you go to talk to those people?”

“Yes,” he answered. “I went to sort them out.”

“What did you tell them,” I asked.

He answered, “I told him we were all gentlemen on the course and I did not expect to be mocked at in public. Everybody has a time that he learns how to play! I don’t need to come to the golf course to be mocked at.”

“Wow,” I said. “That’s powerful. How did they feel?”

He said, “I don’t know but he had no right to mock at me in that way.”

Then he made a remarkable statement.

He said, “I have not sown that seed to reap it. I have not sown such seeds.”

What he meant was that he had not planted such seeds of public mockery and he did not expect to reap the experience of being mocked at in public.

You see, my friend was a spiritual person and he saw things in the light of sowing and reaping. He did not see why he should experience a harvest of public ridicule when he had not ridiculed others in the past.

You must begin to see things in the light of sowing and reaping. Every farmer does. Whether you like it or not many things you deal with are actually results of seeds you have sown. Many things you do are actually seeds that you are sowing. You can expect a harvest when you have planted a seed. Paying your tithes is the planting of a seed. Paying your tithes opens the door for you to reap financially in the future.

2. You must PLANT IN GOOD GROUND.

But other fell into GOOD GROUND, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

Matthew 13:8

The second important law of sowing and reaping is that you must plant in good ground. Seeds do not grow everywhere. Apple trees do not grow in tropical Africa. Their seeds simply do not flourish in the dry red West African soil. However, they are able to flourish in temperate climates.

Your seed will flourish when you plant it into a good church. If you plant your seed into a dead ministry that has departed from the Scriptures, do not expect any harvest.

3. You must plant LARGE AMOUNTS OF SEED!

Another important principle of seed sowing is the fact that large amounts of seed must be sown. Large amounts of seed are needed because many seeds are lost in the process of being planted. Very few seeds end up in the right place. Because of this fact, large amounts of seed must be sown. Every business makes its projections with this in mind. Most businesses calculate their profits, expecting to suffer losses, stealing, accidents and unfortunate events. Large amounts of seed must always be sown because of the inevitable losses.

But remember this-if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds WILL GET ONLY A SMALL CROP, but if he plants much, HE WILL REAP MUCH

2 Corinthians 9:6 (TLB)

4. Some of your SEEDS WILL BE LOST.

Another important truth about sowing seeds is that many of them will be lost. The reason why a man has millions of sperms is because most of them are simply lost on the way to the good ground. I was shocked to find that when a man has less than forty million sperms he will have difficulty in achieving a pregnancy.

This truth means that some of the offerings you give will be lost as seed that falls by the wayside. There is no way to determine which one will be lost and which one will fall onto good ground. That is why you just have to keep on sowing because some of your seeds will be lost anyway. Coming to church many times and being given many opportunities to give your tithes and offerings will definitely increase your chances of reaping a harvest.

Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:

And it came to pass, as he sowed, SOME FELL BY THE WAY SIDE, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.

And SOME FELL ON STONY GROUND, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:

Mark 4:3-5

5. Some of your SEEDS WILL NEVER DEVELOP.

And some fell among thorns; and the THORNS sprung up, and choked them:

Matthew 13:7

Another reality about seeds is the fact that some of the seeds will never develop.

A farmer once told me of how he spent his savings to purchase some day-old chicks for his chicken farm. These day-old chicks were the seeds of investment for his chicken farm. But the farmer had a sad story to tell.

He told me, “After I purchased these day-old chicks I fed them earnestly and waited for them to grow, but they simply didn’t grow.”

He told me, “I tried everything I could. I got the vet to come. I gave them extra food. I gave them vitamins. I spent so much money on these chickens but they simply did not grow!”

What this poor farmer did not know was that there was something inherently wrong with the chicks. He had purchased chicks that did not have the ability to grow.

I found out from a more experienced chicken farmer that this was a problem with many day-old chicks. Some of the stock simply did not grow no matter what was done for them. There are seeds like that. They simply lack the ability to develop.

I once planted a mango tree in my house. After eight years, I was still taller than the mango tree. I decided that there was no point in keeping that mango tree because there was something essentially wrong with it. I had planted the wrong seed and it simply was not working.

These are the reasons why farmers do not plant only a single seed. They know too well that many seeds will not grow.

But there is good news. The one seed which does grow will be worth all the ones that did not grow. The few seeds that land on good ground will be worth all the wasted millions of seeds that you have sown.

6. You must plant the TYPE OF SEEDS you expect.

If you want coconuts you must plant a coconut. If you want mango fruits you must plant mangoes. If you want money you must plant money. You can only expect a fruit that corresponds with what you have sown.

And the earth brought forth grass, and HERB YIELDING SEED AFTER HIS KIND, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:12

7. Your SEED MUST DIE.

Every seed must die. It undergoes decomposition and virtually melts away. This is what happens when you plant your seed in the house of God. It enters the offering basket and melts away. You are forced to forget about it. You can no longer identify it as a traceable object. It has disappeared. It belongs to the church and it’s all mixed up with everything else. Some people want to follow their money and watch its every movement. But you must allow it to melt away and disappear.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and DIE, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

John 12:24

8. Your seed must be given TIME TO DIE.

Your seed also needs time to die. A watched pot never boils. If you keep watching the seed, it will seem to you that it never dies and never germinates. You must forget about it and decide never to remember the seed you have sown. When you do that, you would have given your seed enough time to go through the processes it must go through.

Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.

Ecclesiastes 11:1

9. Your seed will grow by GOD’S MIRACLE POWER.

I have planted, Apollos watered; but GOD GAVE THE INCREASE.

1 Corinthians 3:6

And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; and should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, HE KNOWETH NOT HOW.

Mark 4:26-27

No one really knows how a seed grows into a mighty tree. Scientists have tried to analyse what exactly happens to the seed. Ultimately, it is a miracle that a seed can grow into a mighty tree. Think about it; somebody as big as you, who has a heart, kidney, stomach and brains grew out of an invisible seed. It is all a miracle.

We often ask ourselves the question, “How will my five dollar seed turn into thousands of dollars.” It is impossible, says the natural mind. But through the miracle power of God, your five dollar seed can actually become a million dollars. Don’t ask me why because I do not know. I just accept it as a fact of faith. I know it happens. I believe it happens because I am a believer.

If you believe in this reality, you will be happy to pay your tithes. You will know that it is not a waste of ten percent of your income. You will know that it is the investment of a seed into the good ground of a church. You will know that it is the investment of a seed into the miracle power of God.

10. You must RECOGNIZE YOUR HARVEST when it comes.

There are people who are good givers but poor receivers. To successfully activate the laws of sowing and reaping, you must be a good giver as well as a good receiver. To receive, you must recognize the day of the harvest. You must see when God is blessing you and you must recognize the different ways in which He allows you to reap the seeds you have sown. If you were to count your blessings, perhaps you would see how good the Lord has been to you.

Many times, the Lord returns your harvest in a way you never expected. Ask God to open your eyes so that you appreciate His blessings and the harvest of your seeds.

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to HIRE LABOURERS into his vineyard.

Matthew 20:1

11. You must become a HUMBLE RECEIVER.

It takes humility to receive gifts from people. Many givers are too proud to receive gifts from others. They say to themselves, “I don’t want anyone to think that I need anything. I don’t want anyone to think that I lack something.”

It is that pride which keeps people away from the priesthood. People are kept away from the priesthood because pastors need humility to receive gifts from people. Without humility you cannot receive. Pride cries out from within, “I have need of no one. I need nothing. I am independent.”

Be careful, because we all need one another.

12. Do not refrain from sowing UNLIKELY SEEDS.

There are many seeds that look unlikely to prosper. One day, I held the hand of a brother who was sowing a seed of five dollars. I said to him, “This is a car.” The next day someone called him and gave him a car. How could that be? It was an unlikely five dollar seed but it turned out to be a great blessing. This is why the Bible says, “In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good” (Ecclesiastes 11:6).

For many years, the economy of Ghana has depended on cocoa. A cocoa seed was brought to Ghana by a gentleman called Tetteh-Quarshie. He carried this seed in his bag from Fernando Po. What an unlikely seed! But that seed carried the future economy of an entire nation. In Tetteh-Quarshie’s bag were all the buildings of the nation Ghana; all its military equipment of its future army, the salaries of all the government workers and the future industries of the country. What a miracle he was carrying in his bag and what an unlikely seed!

This is why you must never withhold your hand when it is time to give an offering or pay your tithes. Perhaps the tithes you pay in June will become a seed to pay your children’s school fees in future. Perhaps the tithes you pay this month will be the seeds for your personal home.

13.USE SOME of your harvest AS A SEED.

For God, who gives seed to the farmer TO PLANT, and later on good crops to harvest and eat, will give you more and more SEED TO PLANT and will make it grow so that you can give away more and more fruit from your harvest.

2 Corinthians 9:10 (TLB)

When the blessings come, remember to pay your tithes and honour God. Honouring God is the first thing you must do when you are blessed. Unfortunately, people forget the Lord in the day of their blessing. They begin to say things like, “I earn too much to pay tithes. Ten percent is too much for the church.”

If you do not use part of your harvest as a seed, poverty will come upon you in the future. Do not set your eyes on money and feel secure. “…for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven” (Proverbs 23:5).

Money is deceptive. The Bible calls it the deceitfulness of riches. Money deceives! It tells you: “you will be rich forever!”

But that is not true. You need to put your trust in God. Don’t let your harvest lead you to the common delusions of rich people.

14. Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt.

Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years.

And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities.

And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine.

Genesis 41:33-36

You must also learn to save some of the harvest and blessings that God brings to you. Life is in seasons. A good season is often followed by a bad season. Different seasons are not the result of a curse somewhere. God has determined that the earth will have different seasons. “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, And summer and winter, And day and night Shall not cease." (Genesis 8:22, NASB).

Expect the seasons to come and go. Joseph advised Pharaoh to keep a fifth of his harvest. If you are to truly benefit from the harvest God has given you, you will need to keep part of it as savings for the season of lean cows. You will need to build houses. You will need to invest. You will need to live in such a way as to expect a season of lean cows. Because people fail to use their harvest in this way, it seems as though they never had a harvest.

Dear friend, the season of lean cows is so severe that it will eat up the season of fat cows in such a way that you will not remember that you were once blessed with a mighty harvest. “Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all THE PLENTY SHALL BE FORGOTTEN in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; and THE PLENTY SHALL NOT BE KNOWN in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous (Genesis 41:29-31).

I have seen people reap blessed harvests from the Lord and end up borrowing money. It is so sad to watch people go down because they refused to follow the principle of saving some of their harvest.

15. You must ENJOY SOME your harvest.

Finally, you must enjoy the harvest that God gives you. It looks as though we have the problem of either one extreme or the other. Some people are unable to enjoy the blessings that God gives. It is an evil disease to work hard and sow seeds but be unable to enjoy the fruit of your labour. Make sure you do not have this evil disease spoken of in the book of Ecclesiastes.

A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease.

Ecclesiastes 6:2

 by Dag Heward-Mills

Six Dimensions of Divine Healing

The Source of All Sickness

God put man in the Garden of Eden but things went the wrong way.   Adam sinned and God had to apply His divine rules against Adam.  This is because He is a just God who applies rules fairly and equally to all.  

This is unlike the justice of men that is often hypocritical and partial.  Primitive governments apply the rules, laws and institutions of justice only to their enemies.

There are prisoners in jails everywhere who are praying for a change of government.  They know that a new government will apply the laws differently and free them from prison.  This is why many developing nations have little confidence in the courts of law.

God, however, is a just God who applied the rules evenly to His own creation.  He said to them, “Now that you have crossed the line you can’t stay here; you have to go out.”  That is why Adam had to leave the beautiful garden that God had made for him.  As a result of the sin of disobedience, much of the Earth was destroyed and is still being destroyed.  This Earth will eventually be totally destroyed and be replaced with a new Heaven and a new Earth!

When sin entered into the lives of Adam and Eve, many changes took place.  Adam was forced out of the garden and found himself at the mercy of the elements.

With sin now in their lives, death was at work in their bodies.  People, who would never have grown old, began to grow old.  Eyes, which would never have faded, began to fade.  People, who would never have died, had to die. We would have lived forever!  Adam and Eve then decided to make some clothes to protect themselves.  

When the Lord came along, He saw the “leaf clothes” Adam had made and knew that these clothes would not last long.   He helped them to make some clothes out of skin.  This was God’s first step to helping fallen mankind help themselves.  God has been helping ever since.  The wisdom to invent medicines is part of God’s grace to help mankind.  Every medical discovery is part of God’s plan to rescue man from his own ways.

God then prepared a plan to redeem and rescue his creation.  This rescue plan was to be executed through Christ the Redeemer.  There were many predictions in the Old Testament about the coming Messiah who would heal and deliver.  The coming of Christ to this Earth was predicted for years.  This is one thing that separates Jesus from other leaders of all other religions.  His coming, His purpose, His life and His death were predicted and described long before He came to earth.

Isaiah predicted that there would be someone who would take up our sorrows, our grief and the chastisement of our peace.  He foretold that someone would come to take away the things that disturb our peace of mind in this life.  This person would take up our sicknesses and bring us healing through His stripes.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

Isaiah 53:4

God has expressed in His Word over and over again, His heart’s desire to heal His creation.  He is very concerned with the repairing of His creation, which is lost to the devil.

Six Dimensions of Divine Healing

Divine healing is therefore healing that comes from God.  This is in contrast to the healing that man engineers for himself.  With our limited minds, we can see only sections of the problems of the human race.  Many people do not appreciate the complex problems of the human race.  There are several situations in our lives that need the touch of God.  What is God trying to do through the healing ministry?  What is He repairing and fixing?  Divine healing covers all the aspects of healing.  The following is a short list of some of the aspects of divine healing.

1.  Divine healing affects birth defects and genetic disorders.

And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.  And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

John 9:1-2

There are many illnesses we fight which are simply inherited from our fathers.  For instance, diseases like hypertension, diabetes, asthma, sickle cell disease, mental disorders, mental retardation etc. are received effortlessly by children from their fathers and mothers.  Through no fault of theirs, people wake up to the realities that they have inherited conditions and illnesses that they did not contribute to.  In the ministry of Jesus, you find healings of conditions that existed from birth.

God’s power of healing can save you from inherited illnesses.

2. Divine healing affects emotional illnesses.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Luke 4:18

Surprisingly, Jesus’ reference to healing in this Scripture is not about healing heart failure (congestive cardiac failure) or heart attacks (cardiac arrest).  Jesus’ healing ministry specifically mentioned the healing of the broken-hearted.  The broken-hearted are people with emotional and psychological setbacks.  To have a broken heart is to suffer from deep disappointment.  To have a broken heart is to have a devastating experience that leaves a person without hope, faith or love.  The Greek word for broken heart is “syntribo” and it means “to be shattered”.

Our lives are full of shattered dreams and hopes.  Christ came into the world to save men from their shattered dreams and aspirations.

He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

Psalm 147:3

What does it mean to have a broken heart?  Broken hearts result from disappointments.  Sometimes a man promises to marry a lady but disappoints her.  This man may end up marrying someone else.

What you hoped would never happen is what has happened.  But God can heal any disappointment and repair your heart.

God heals all our diseases and now He is saying that He is going to heal your soul.   He’s going to heal your inner man.  Many people are emotionally disturbed, and suffer from the disappointment and  disillusionments of this life.  That is why we need the Healing Jesus!

Did you know that the psychiatrist is the doctor with fewest answers?  Almost every mental patient is given something to make him calm down and sleep.  The psychiatrists know very little about why mental conditions develop.  But God knows everything.   He reaches to the innermost parts of our being and heals the broken hearted.  “He restoreth my soul…” (Psalm 23:3).

I remember meeting a man who said, “I’ll never trust another woman.”  He told me, “One day, I went out and came home unexpectedly in the middle of the night.”

He said to me, “I found my wife in my bed with another man.  Both of them were completely naked.”  He told me, “I exercised self-control, but I could have killed them both.  I drove them out of the house without their clothes and called the police.”

As I talked to this man, I realized that his heart was very disturbed.  He described how he could not relate normally to women anymore.  He hated all women and had decided never to get married.  There are many men and women like this man.  Totally discouraged, disappointed and disillusioned by what they have experienced in this life.

But God can give you healing and change you on the inside.  The medicines that psychiatrists give often only sedate the patient or improve their mood.  There is no real healing for the psychological and emotional problem.  God can heal what man cannot heal!

He said, “I am the Lord your doctor, the Lord your healer, the Lord your physician.”  I am Jehovah Rophe!

3.  Divine healing affects our behaviour.

And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains:

Mark 5:2-3

A psychiatry lecturer once said that most people have some amount of abnormal behaviour.   Many people do not have full-blown mental illness but they do show some odd behaviour.  Today, a whole range of words and definitions have been developed in order to adequately describe the varied levels of behavioural dysfunction.  Some people are said to be eccentric, which is a polite description of an odd, queer, off-centre, erratic and strange person.

One of the commonest problems is fear or paranoia.  Many fearful people live abnormal lives because of various fears they constantly entertain.  Others are depressed to varying degrees at different times.  Some people suffer from rage disorders, sexual disorders, personality disorders, delusions, hallucinations, mania, and ultimately schizophrenia, which is full-blown madness.    Most of us live between the ranges of normalcy and full-blown madness.

Divine healing tackles the full range of problems that afflict us.  Through the Word of God, we are saved from behavioural patterns that were useless and self-destructive.

4. Divine healing cures us from the effects of death.

…but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

2 Corinthians 7:10

When tragedy strikes, there is a sense of uneasiness and fear that is difficult to shake off.  There is a sinking feeling that is difficult to get rid of.  The heart is sick and broken when a loved one is suddenly and tragically plucked away.  Only God can heal the futility, depression and heartache that are associated with death.  Many people do not recover from the death of a loved one.  Some live in constant bitterness and depression for the rest of their lives.  Indeed, only God can heal such feelings of hopelessness and uselessness.

5. Divine healing cures us from the effects of futility.

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.

Ecclesiastes 1:2

The uselessness of life is something that God takes away by His power and His anointing.  Sometimes you look at life and ask what it’s all about.  You find yourself struggling and unhappy.  We often think that when you get certain things like cars, marriage etc. everything will be okay.  However, every man will come to the same conclusion that Solomon did:  vanity of vanities, all is vanity.  Indeed all is vanity.  Life on this Earth can be defined as building a series of sandcastles that are soon washed away.  Have you ever wondered why rich western nations have the highest suicide rates?  The emptiness and hollowness of riches stares them in the face and they know that Solomon was right.  All is vanity.  Many kill themselves because there is no meaning to this life.

God’s power heals us of the futility of this life.  God’s power heals us from the sense of uselessness in our lives.

6.  He will permanently heal the nations of the world.

And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were FOR THE HEALING OF THE NATIONS.

Revelation 22:1-2

Many nations need healing.  Rwanda needs healing and so does Burundi.  Sierra Leone needs healing.  During the civil war in Sierra Leone, rebels cut off the hands of many civilians.   Many nations do not have electricity and running water.  It is not only poor African countries that need healing.  The nations of Israel and Palestine also need healing.  America is divided along racial lines.  Europe is plagued with disillusioned citizens who no longer believe in God.  India and Pakistan fight constantly whilst many nations live with poverty, war and famine.  North and South Korea live in constant tension.  Egypt, Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq are bleeding every day with suicide bombs and constant instability.  Thank God that He has leaves that will heal these devastated nations.  It is clear that no political, economic or military remedy can ever heal the nations of the world.

The leaves of the tree will be used to bring about a permanent healing for the nations.

by Dag Heward-Mills

The Four Lepers “Did Well” Because they Remembered “OTHERS”

And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, why sit we here until we die? If we say, we will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die.

And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there. For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us.

Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it.

Then they said one to another, WE DO NOT WELL: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household.

2 Kings 7:3-9

The story above tells us about the most famous lepers in Israel. How did they become the most famous team of lepers in the Bible?

These four lepers are famous because they thought of “others”. If they had not thought of “others”, they would have passed away from this world without us ever having known about them.

The four lepers were having a good time eating all the food they had not had for weeks. Suddenly it occurred to them that there were “others”in the city, who were hungry too.

The four lepers had experienced the great blessings of abundance. The four lepers were no longer poor. They had it all! They were no longer waiting for a miracle. They had their miracle in their hands. They were no longer suffering or dying. They were walking in unbelievable blessings. But they were about to make the mistake of forgetting about “others”. To forget about “others”is to make the biggest mistake of your life! They aptly said, “We do not well” if we do not remember “others”.

Can’t you think of many people who are not “doing well”in their businesses, their lives and their jobs? The four lepers realized that they were about to descend into that state of “not doing well”. There is no need to descend into that state of not“doing well’. There is no need to fall back! You can do well in life, in business and in ministry! These four lepers in the scripture had the key to “doing well”. Their key to “doing well”was to remember “others”.

Many pastors are not doing well in the ministry, because they do not remember “others”. Many pastors simply live for themselves and their little community church. They cannot lift up their eyes to see the waiting harvest fields that have been neglected because of their selfishness.

False religions are taking over entire regions as the church concentrates on itself. Churches no longer have salvation altar calls, crusades, breakfast meetings, outreaches, concerts, door-to-door evangelism, person-to-person evangelism or soul-to-soul evangelism. Many prayer meetings are packed with Christians fasting and praying for their personal needs.

You will hear Christians crying and wailing to the Lord at prayer meetings. If you go a little closer, you will hear the topics for yourself. You will find out that almost everyone is praying for himself.

“O God, help this marriage of mine. O God, give me this contract. O God, I want to marry this year. O God, I claim a set of twins before December. O God, I declare that the wealth of the sinner is transferred into my hands. O God, send the angel of wealth into my family. O God, destroy my landlord’s evil intention of raising the rent.”

In spite of these packed prayer meetings the blessings are not flowing, as they ought. Why is that? God does not bless us so that we will multiply silver and gold to ourselves. He blesses us so that we will be a blessing to “others”.

He blessed the four lepers so that they would tell the others that there was lots of food. He blessed the four lepers so that they would transmit the news to “others”. Even those four lepers knew that they would not “do well”if they did not tell the news.

How can we expect to do well if we do not tell the good news of Jesus Christ to the whole world?How can we expect the wealth of the world to come into our hands if we do not transmit the message that has been entrusted to us?

Many churches are not doing well because they do not remember “others”. The key to doing well is to remember“others”. The key to doing well is the key of remembering “others”. Remembering “others”opens the door to prosperity.

Thinking about “others”is the key to having a fulfilled life. Your life will be far richer because you think about others. The four lepers did well because they remembered “others”! You will begin to do well when you remember “others”.

by Dag Heward-Mills

Develop the Four Essential Skills of a Lay Pastor

A lay pastor must develop four essential skills. Just as there are four engines that power a jumbo jet, there are four engines that power up a lay pastor’s life and ministry. In this chapter, I want you to think about these four essential skills that make a lay pastor complete.

1.Pastoral skills

A lay pastor must develop himself as a good pastor. He must be a good shepherd and lead the flock of God as though he were in full-time ministry. People under his care must experience the love of God and enjoy the richness of the Word of God that he preaches.

2.Business and professional skills

If the lay pastor is a businessman, he must develop very good business skills. These business skills will cause him to prosper and be successful in his business. It is dangerous to have a lay pastor who is a failure in his business. It will make him desperate and begin to have an evil eye towards the ministry.

Such people blame the ministry for their failures in business. If you are a professional such as a lawyer or a doctor, you must excel in your chosen profession. You must get to the highest possible rank that you can and become an example to other laymen. Once again, when you do not prosper in your profession, you begin to have an evil eye towards the ministry. Lay pastors who became corrupt were often failures in their chosen professions or business. In their poverty and desperation they turned on the church for financial relief.

3.Flourishing skills

A lay pastor must also develop himself in the art of flourishing. This is the art of becoming rich and prosperous. There are many people who develop themselves in their businesses or professions but are unable to convert it into real prosperity. It is important to use the art of leadership and the art of strategic thinking to help yourself to flourish. We all know many doctors and lawyers who don’t have much money. They are professionals alright, but they have not flourished and do not have much money to spend. We all know many lecturers who live from hand to mouth. They are professors alright and they did earn their PhD’s from famous universities. But many of these highly educated men have simply not learnt the art of flourishing.

A lay pastor must flourish; otherwise, in his midlife he will turn against the ministry he has loved and blame the church for his difficulties. Midlife crisis that begins from around the age of forty, causes men to re-evaluate all they have been involved in. Unfortunately, many laymen begin to blame the ministry for their poor performance at work and their poor flourishing skills.

A flourishing lay pastor must have an income that is far more than his expenses. A flourishing lay pastor must be able to give larger and larger amounts to the ministry.

4.Early retirement skills

A lay pastor must have early retirement skills. Perhaps the most important of these four is the early retirement skills. These skills are important to a lay pastor because as he goes forward, he is likely to want to give himself more to the work of the Lord. However, if he has not developed early retirement skills, he will be unable to retire from his secular work. He will need to go to the clinic every day and earn his living.

If a lay pastor cannot take long periods off from work, to give himself to God’s work he will not be able to retire soon from his secular work. If, however, he has been successful in investing in real estate or other income-generating projects, he will be able to retire early from secular work and give himself to ministry. A lay pastor with early retirement skills will have ensured that he is genuinely free from debts and lives in his own house. Indeed, a lay pastor with early retirement skills is able to stay away from work longer and longer until one day he never has to return!

by Dag Heward-Mills

What It Means To Be Puffed Up Like Pharaoh

Now SOME ARE PUFFED UP, as though I would not come to you. But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, NOT THE SPEECH OF THEM WHICH ARE PUFFED UP, but the power.

1 Corinthians 4:18-19

Pharaoh was puffed up! Pharaoh was full of himself! Pharaoh is the quintessential arrogant authority figure who does not know that his power comes from the Lord. Pharaoh made a series of mistakes that are repeated today by people who are in authority. Let us go through the series.

1. You are puffed up like Pharaoh when you are overconfident.

Your over confidence will make you refuse to consider other options for your future. Pharaoh had no doubts in his mind that he could deal with the Israelites. Pharaoh did not recognize a change in season and or a change in his strength.

Many heads of state in Africa were offered options of leaving their countries and living in wealth and peace for the rest of their days. They arrogantly refused to accept these offers and ended up either in prison or killed. Read your history. You will see that nations have been led by men who refused to consider the option of not being in power. Numerous delegations would be sent to advice and even beg a head of state to leave office but he would not. Just like Pharaoh, negotiations and meetings with these stubborn heads of state often fail to have any effect. It is amazing how the pride of Pharaoh has been repeated in the lives of modern day heads of state.

2. You are puffed up like Pharaoh when you are full of delusions.

Pharaoh refused to have a new and different relationship with the Israelites. Are you refusing a new relationship that God is bringing your way? Pharaoh fought against the will of God and kept fighting till the very end. Are you fighting the will of God? Are you still fighting what you should not fight? Pharaoh had confidence in his armies. Do you have confidence in things that cannot save  you?

Pharaoh assumed that he was strong enough to win this battle. Is your pride making you think that you are strong enough to fight even against God? Pharaoh thought that the victories he had won in the past guaranteed his victory today. Are you relying on the past? Has your pride deluded you?

Pharaoh never admitted that he was wrong. In spite of contrary evidence and in spite of all that had happened he never said he was sorry and he never admitted his mistakes. Is that how you are? If that is how you are, you are just like Pharaoh! You are full of delusions of grandeur! Pride-filled delusions will be your downfall.

3. We know Pharaoh was puffed up because he fell from his position as the ruler of a powerful country to become the ruler of a destroyed and powerless nation.

Pharaoh’s fall was dramatic and complete in its destruction of Pharaoh. By the time the pride of Pharaoh had run its full course there was no economy, no agriculture and no army in Egypt. He had also lost the nation’s building and labour force. He stood in his chariot, staring at the Red Sea as the bodies of his entire army came floating to the shore.

Dear friend, watch out and be careful! Your hardness, your arrogance and your unyieldedness will bring you into a very bad and difficult place. Ask Pharaoh and he will tell you what it is like to lead a nation from the heights of power into the ashes of destruction.

Pharaoh was blinded by his hatred as he pursued the Israelites. The proud king could not believe that anyone could have his way. Arrogant Pharaoh actually believed that he was a god and no one would ever be able to defy him. “And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the Lord looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians,

And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians. And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; THERE REMAINED NOT SO MUCH AS ONE OF THEM”

(Exodus 14:23-28).

by Dag Heward-Mills

Principles for Church Growth

The following are principles that I have discovered for building successful and large churches. I advise you to carefully consider them and allow the Lord to give you a deeper understanding of what I am teaching in this chapter.

14 Principles for Church Growth

1.The principle of the multiplied senior pastor

I have discovered that if you could multiply the senior pastor by twelve, it would mean that you had twelve pastors at work. Logically, you could do twelve times as much work. I taught my assistant pastors to do whatever I do. If I meet people after church, they should also meet people after church. If I am able to counsel ten people and twelve other pastors are able to counsel ten people, that makes it one hundred and thirty people who are being attended to.

There are some churches in which the senior pastor is a “superman”. He is the only one who does anything important – and that is a sure recipe to keep your church small. One person can only attend to a certain number of people. If you try to visit, counsel and help everybody, you will go crazy! There is a limit to what you can do. That is why I have many branches and many pastors. I believe that many of the people I preach to can also preach. I believe that many of the people who are receiving the Word now, are capable of rising up into the ministry.

Do not be an insecure senior pastor. Don’t be afraid to trust people. It is true that many people will betray your trust, but if you live in fear, Satan will have access to your life and ministry. I have been hurt by some people, but I have decided to still trust others to help me. If they betray me one day, I will take it in stride and keep on trusting some others.

One of the reasons why some people cannot trust is because they do not believe that people can do a good enough job. In the medical field, young doctors are being trained all the time. Some people are always attended to by inexperienced student doctors under supervision. As the young doctors are allowed to have a go, they learn and soon they are just as good. It is the same thing in the ministry. People must be trusted with responsibilities under supervision. They must be allowed to do important things. This will multiply the number of capable pastors in the ministry.

2. The principle of maximized Sunday usage

This principle has been stretched to its fullest at the Lighthouse Cathedral in Accra. The principle of using Sunday to its fullest is effective because traditionally, people have dedicated Sunday to both resting and going to church. Since so many of the church members are available on Sunday, it is only wise to use Sunday to its fullest. Sunday is a full working day for me. Jesus worked on Sundays and I would like to follow His example.

And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day. But Jesus answered them, My father worketh hitherto, and I work.

John 5:16, 17

Sunday is a full working day for all lay pastors in our church. We work hard from Sunday morning until late Sunday evening. We are able to accomplish a lot of counselling because people are free on Sundays. Visitation is also very effective on Sundays because many people are at home on Sunday afternoons. We conduct Bible schools for lay people on Sunday afternoons. Many people are able to attend because they don’t have much to do on Sundays.

Decide to utilize your Sundays. I don’t know what pastors are doing in their homes at two o’clock on Sunday afternoon when most of the church members are available to be ministered to. Take advantage of this opportunity. Lay pastors and shepherds will be able to do more work for the Lord.

Although some people find it difficult to accept, I emphasize to all the people I work with, that Sunday is a full working day for me and my church. I am not an accountant or a computer programmer. My working hours are not Monday to Friday from nine to five. I work on Sundays and I rest on Mondays. We do not start work at eight o’clock in the morning. I see no reason to go to work at eight o’clock in the morning. We stay late in the evenings because that is when many lay people are available for us to minister to them.

Our office is usually closed on Mondays, and all of our staff, except the security officers, have a day off. Pastors and churches must not allow the world to impose its schedule on us. When airplane pilots go to work at odd hours no one complains. Everyone accepts that their work demands a different type of work schedule. Pastors and non-pastoral people must realize that the work of the ministry is peculiar and goes with its own special working hours.

Begin to consider what you can do with your Sundays. Think of how many more people you can attend to if your Sundays are used for ministry instead of being used for sleeping and having lunches in the afternoon.

3.The principle of smaller sub-divisions

Smaller sub-divisions within the church allow for better pastoral care, which eventually leads to church growth. Questions that cannot be asked in a large Sunday service can be addressed in the small groups. The small groups become the family units to which church members belong.

I have several smaller groups within the church. I have always believed that every Christian can and should actively serve the Lord. These smaller groups allow for all Christians to get involved.

As your church becomes mega, it will remain small enough to meet the needs of all the people. As it is said, “Large enough to include you, and small enough to know you.”

Some people’s churches are like large convention centres. People come in, hear the Word, and go away. No human being likes to feel that he is not known. People are not numbers they are human beings. Nobody wants to be reduced to a numbered article or a countable commodity. People want to feel important. People want to feel necessary. People want to feel loved. You may preach a powerful sermon but, they still need to belong to a little family.

Your church can be broken into cells, divisions or departments. Our church has chapels, ministries and fellowships. I am always encouraging my members to get involved in one ministry or the other. How can I know all the people who come to church? How can I know what they think or feel? How can I know their problems and how can I help them?

If you think that God is going to give you a word of knowledge about these people everyday, you are making a mistake. God expects you to break up your church into smaller divisions so that the people can receive adequate pastoral care.

4.The principle of the Person X oriented church

What on earth is a “person x” oriented church? I define “person x” as a new convert or a new member. Most churches are oriented towards established members. A “person x” oriented church is very concerned about new people and visitors.

Treat your visitors well. We make song sheets so that the new people can get involved during the praise and worship. After the service, we host a reception to allow our new members to feel at home. We also give gifts to new converts.

Recently, the Lord directed me to direct my most senior associates to handle all new converts. God told me that if new converts were important to me, then I should allow senior ministers to take care of them rather than junior leaders. This has helped tremendously to establish many new people in the church. When a church is “person x” oriented, it is on the road towards increase because, growth will come through new members and converts.

And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour…

1 Corinthians 12:23

Most people think that growth comes because more people visit the church. This is not necessarily the case. Some people also think that growth takes place because more converts are won. History has shown that the population of this world has increased because people are being kept alive and not because more people are being born. If we want our churches to grow, we have to sustain and maintain our new members and converts.

5.The principle of catering for group A and group B members

Every church can be divided into group A and group B members. Group A members are the more reliable people; they attend church twice or more a week. They are often involved in other small group activities in the church life. Thank God for Group A members. We really appreciate their input.

Group B members on the other hand, are the once-a-weekers, non-small group members, early service lovers, short sermon lovers, mind drifters, day dreamers, Bible forgetters, non note-takers, non tithe payers, clock-watchers and the church-near-me attendees.

These group B members will form an important segment of your church, as it becomes a larger entity. You will have to accept them as part of the family. You can choose your friends, but you cannot choose your brothers. Not everybody is going to be a prayer warrior.

In fact, in a large church many of the people fall into group B. Love them anyway. Preach sermons that they can also appreciate. Pray for them. The Spirit of the Lord will work on them. Sometimes when you organize a social event like a beach party, the group B members will flood the place. Use such opportunities to minister to them.

If you try to filter out your group B members, you may be left with nothing at the end of the day. Jesus said that the harvest is plenteous but the laborers are few. Jesus didn’t say that there were few members, He said that there were few labourers (Group A members).

6.The principle of multiple services

Nobody ever told me that multiple services lead to church growth. I discovered it almost by accident. Well, now I am telling you that multiple services lead to church growth.

We have seven different services every Sunday morning. It is very tiring and draining, but our church attendance is better because of these multiple services. As the church grows, people with all sorts of needs come into the church.

Some pastors give the impression that they conduct multiple services because they have such a large crowd. This is true to some extent. But I do not have multiple services because the building can be filled four times over. Not all the services are full. Each service has a different level of attendance. I have never seen multiple services where all the services have the same attendance. I conduct multiple services primarily to make a variety of convenient services available to my members.

I am always amazed at why people will want to come to church at 6 o’clock in the morning. I always ask myself, “Can’t they come to church a little later?” Human beings are so varied. Once you are dealing with a large number of people you are dealing with variety. If you don’t make variety available, you will lose those for whom you have nothing to offer.

Accept the reality of variety and flow with it. You will notice that different types of people come to each service. Some of the services are more formal whilst others are more relaxed. The type of people who attend each service determines the type of atmosphere you get. We have services for the youth and for the children. We have services for different languages. We have several services for English speaking members. Each of these services is different and there are people to fit into all of these services. God will bless your church as you provide variety for more people.

7.The principle of dynamic church services

You must have a goal for each service you conduct. When determining the goal of the service, you must ask yourself, “What am I trying to achieve with this service?” Are you planning to raise the dead, to heal the sick, or to preach and teach? In the Lighthouse Cathedral, our Sunday morning services are teaching and worship services. We do not usually pray for the sick on Sunday mornings. We pray for the sick on other days.

How much time have you allotted for each service? How long should the service be? Our services are one and a half hours and two hours each. Within two hours, you can do everything that you need to do for a church service.

Many years ago, I attended a church whose services began around eight o’clock in the morning and ended at about three o’clock in the afternoon. After attending twice, I decided that the service was too long. Today, that church is non-existent. When your Sunday services are too long, you will drive away all of your members. You cannot achieve everything on a Sunday morning. We conduct miracle services which can last for several hours. We have camp meetings at which I can preach for more than twelve hours in a day. At the last Shepherd’s Camp Meeting of my church. I preached from 6:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. on one of the days with only two short breaks. I know how to have long meetings, but I’d advise you not to use your Sunday services for such things.

What type of meeting place do you have? Man looks on the outward appearance, so it is important to decorate your church nicely. Even if you do not own a church building, let your place of meeting attain a certain standard. Remember that you have only one chance to give a first impression. Make use of flowers, baskets, curtains or anything that would improve the physical appearance.

Sometimes the pastor does not have very good taste. How can you know if you do not have good taste? He would have to rely on others in the church to help in enhancing and brightening his corner.

It is important that every church tries to acquire its own place of meeting. Owning your own facility introduces more stability to the church.

How do you present yourself? God looks on the heart, but man looks on the outward appearance. Man cannot see your heart. Man can only see your outward appearance. That is why your outward appearance is also important. We must seek to put up a good outward appearance in addition to preparing the right heart for the Lord. Everyone who plays a part in the service must be well dressed. Male pastors must be formally dressed and neatly shaved. Female pastors must be properly dressed and must not wear suggestive or indecent clothing.

In some churches the musicians look like agents from the world who have been temporarily contracted to help God. These instrumentalists often come in with the attitude and culture of secular pop groups. That is why I insist on all my musicians dressing like pastors. If they cannot afford it, we buy clothes for them!

Altar calls should be made at every service. This important and good habit must be maintained at all costs. New converts and visitors must receive a warm welcome. Remember these are the “person x” members. The assisting pastor should take over and briefly emphasize the message of the senior pastor. He should also encourage the congregation to buy tapes.

Pastors must not run off after church. They must stay and mingle with the congregation for some time after the service. I question the call of someone who says he’s a pastor but does not want to mingle with his congregation after the service. The shepherd’s place is in the field amongst the sheep. A true shepherd smells of sheep. I remember meeting a frustrated congregant in a church. This man had travelled many miles to attend a conference. He wanted to have a chance to say hello to the great man of God. He was so frustrated that he became bitter. I met him in a lift and he said to me bitterly, “Is this man a prime minister or a pastor?”

But I have been to other conferences where the men of God made the effort to stay around and mingle with the sheep. Some people just want to shake your hand. Give them the opportunity to get near if you can. A pastor’s wife must help with the interaction and must be seen to be a warm and friendly person. All these things contribute to building the mega church we all desire.

8. The principle of using technology and research

As the number of passengers on different airlines has increased, their efficiency has improved. This is because air line industries have used technology to help them in their work. Whilst the membership of most churches has increased over the past few years, the pastor’s ability for handling larger crowds has not been developed.

In our church, we try to keep an accurate data and statistics department. We maintain accurate counts and figures of everything. We have developed our own pastoral care monitoring system which we call the “Pastoshep”.

In spite of the limitations due to limited addresses and telephone numbers in Ghana, our Pastoshep has become a reliable and technological method of assessing the work of all pastors and shepherds alike. Without being there to physically see what people are doing, my computer tells me what everybody is doing. I decided long ago to allow technology to help me to do the work of God.

Too many pastors say things like, “The whole of the outside was full.” They say things like, “Thousands of people were here today.” Whereas in reality, just a few hundred were present. Let’s have real numbers!

We sometimes do surveys in the church to find out different interesting things. For instance, we did a survey to find out how many members of the church had ever been visited by a pastor. The results of that study were certainly revealing!

9.The 80-20 principle

This rule teaches us that eighty percent of your increase comes from twenty percent of the people. This means that eighty percent of church growth is as a direct result of the work of twenty percent of your members. Therefore, it is important for every pastor to spend more time with the twenty percent who will bring church growth.

Often the leaders, teachers and pastors make up this twenty-percent. They are the most important people in the church. More time, personal interaction and prayer with this twenty percent will give you amazing results that you never expected. Some pastors spend most of their time with the rich and influential. They do not know that they are spending time with the wrong group. Spending time with rich people does not make your church grow. It rather makes the rich people more important than they really are. It can make the rich people stubborn and difficult to pastor!

A church with a future will identify potential leaders and put them to work. When you do

this, you are looking out for the twenty percent who can bring about sustained church development.

When I visit our churches outside the headquarters, I spend more time with the leaders and pastors than with the rest of the church. Often I just minister in one service. Afterwards, I have various meetings, spending several hours with the pastors and shepherds. This style of activity does not come naturally. It is born out of the knowledge of the 80-20 Principle.

When you implement the 80-20 Principle, you may initially think that you are doing the wrong thing, but that is not the case. You will soon discover that this simple principle is a secret of church growth.

10. The principle of the scholarly pastor

By this, I simply mean that pastors should develop themselves academically. I have never been to Bible school; I only attended medical school. Yet, I have learnt so much about the ministry by reading.

I always have several books that I am reading at the same time. I believe in reading, studying and acquiring knowledge. How could I rise above the handicap of having no formal pastoral training? Only by reading!

There is a difference between ministers who read books and those who do not. Those who do not read are no better than those who cannot read! Those who do not read are doomed to be ruled by those who do read. Paul the apostle was a reader of books and parchments. He deemed his books so important that he asked Timothy to bring them to him.

…when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.

2 Timothy 4:13

Prophet Daniel read the books that Jeremiah wrote

In the first year of his reign, I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

Daniel 9:2

People like Daniel and Paul read books. It is no surprise that they went far in ministry. There are many ministers who also need some secular education. They would do well to educate themselves in important subjects like administration, law, medicine and history. Administration is important in a church because many aspects of the church have to be run in a secular way. Things have to be managed properly. Accounts have to be prepared. Salaries have to be determined and paid. People have to be employed and dismissed. Things simply have to be done properly. A good study of administration and management will do the church of God a lot of good.

The study of law is also important for pastors and churches. Churches enter into contracts and the law of contract becomes important. There are laws that affect property acquisition. The law of property then becomes important to the pastor. There are laws that concern marriage. Pastors have to be well versed in the laws that exist. God does not want His ministers to be ignoramuses. I am not a lawyer, but I know quite a bit about law because I have taken an interest in it for my own sake.

A good understanding of medicine is also important. A pastor, like a doctor, often deals with terminally ill people. There is no use in a pastor not appreciating the conditions of their members. It is important to have a basic understanding of what is going on around you. I have seen pastors declaring healing based on ridiculous and presumptuous premises. How absurd we sometimes look to the professionals of this world! They know we are completely unlearned in certain areas.

Another area that pastors need a bit of education in is history and politics. History shows the rise and the fall of tyrants. It shows trends which keep repeating themselves. The Bible says that there is nothing new under the sun. In fact, the Bible predicts that the past will repeat itself over and over again. For those of you who want to know the future – it is basically the past repeated.

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there anything whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.

Ecclesiastes 1:9, 10

11.The principle of having a power ministry

If you cut out all the Scriptures on healing and miracles from your Bible, you will discover that your Bible is totally destroyed! You will be destroying the Word of God. When you take out the Scriptures concerning the power of God, you are left with a book on philosophy.

 It is not only the teaching and preaching which helps God’s people. God’s children also want to receive a touch of His power. It is important to add on the power dimension of miracles, healings and deliverance. The Holy Spirit wants to manifest Himself and bless the people of God. You will discover that your people love to be prayed for. It is important for you to pray for your sheep and minister God’s power to them.

12.The principle of pastoral individuality: fulfil your call.

It is very important for every pastor to fulfil his individual call. Don’t look to the crowd. Don’t think about what others are doing.

Many years ago when I started out in ministry, many people laughed at me. One pastor ridiculed me as I encouraged my members to go out and witness door-to-door. He sneered at me and said, “What is witnessing? What is door-to-door witnessing? We have moved on into higher realms of ministry!”

I answered, “It is an important Christian activity.”

I stressed, “No matter how big you become in the ministry, it is important to preach the gospel from house-to-house.”

Today, that pastor who scoffed at me is struggling at the bottom of the ministerial ladder. Please do not allow anyone to drown your convictions. Be a man of conviction. Follow the plan that God has given to you. Comparison is one of the dangerous practices of certain ministers. Please do not compare yourself with anyone else, it is too dangerous.

For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

2 Corinthians 10:12

God told me not to compare myself with anybody. He showed me how certain ministers were uneducated and that His expectations of different people varied. He also showed me that my background of prolonged education made Him give me a different standard. He told me that I would be wrong to compare myself with anyone else. The Lord also showed me that if I used other ministers as a standard, I may do far less for Him than I am supposed to. The Lord showed me that I would mistakenly think that I had “arrived” because I had used certain low standards that had been set by others. It is indeed a dangerous thing to compare yourselves with others. Paul said that he dared not compare himself with others

13.The principle of massive organized prayer

Massive organized prayer involves gathering all of your leaders and/or members for intensive prayer. I do massive organized prayer on three levels. At the highest level, I frequently organize the senior ministers away from the city to pray for a few days.

At the level of cell leaders, we often decree what we call prayer sentences. Sometimes we “sentence” the shepherds to twenty hours of prayer within a three-week period. This means that they have to meet as a group and pray for twenty hours spread over three weeks. This is massive organized prayer – organizing prayer on a massive scale.

Finally, we involve the whole church in prayer. There are times we have all-night prayer and fasting meetings everyday for an entire week. I am always surprised when on a weekday the church is full at 2 a.m. Working people gather to pray intensively for church growth and breakthroughs.

There is no other way to make any progress in the ministry than to work in the realm of the spirit. The Bible says, “Epaphras was always labouring in prayer.” The principle of massive organized prayer is what you need to bring about a breakthrough in your ministry.

Epaphras…always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

Colossians 4:12

There are some people who see me as an administrator and a strategist. Anyone who knows me closely knows that as I write this book, I do not even have a desk or an office. But I do have a study where I pray and I do have places where I spend time praying. There is no shortcut in the ministry. There is no other way than that which has been set by the Lord. There is no other example than that which has been set by Jesus. Peter said that he wanted to give himself to prayer and the Word. Prayer and the Word are more important than administration and strategies!

But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.

Acts 6:4

14.The principle of using lay people to do the work

One of the great secrets of a large church is in the use of lay people or voluntary church workers. These volunteer workers can do most of the church work.

I have several pastors who are not paid a dime for all of their hard work. The Lord pays them Himself. They work very hard on Sundays and other evenings. They make huge sacrifices in their private lives in order to be pastors and shepherds. Many very big churches use this principle and are succeeding. May the Lord give you understanding and revelation concerning this vital principle.

I am always saddened when I see a small church of one hundred people employing seven full-time pastors. I often ask myself, “How much will one pastor be paid? Do the wives of these pastors work? Do they make enough money to survive?” Such environments are the breeding grounds for discontent and rebellious elements! Many church rebellions are related to money. When money is left out of the ministry, people are able to concentrate on the work of the Lord because they love God.

Many pastors in my church are doing well as lay pastors. If some of them were to come into full-time ministry, things may change. The church may be able to pay them enough money, but they may not be at the stage where they are ready for full-time ministry. New problems relating to salaries and income levels may arise. These problems have the potential to disrupt the work of ministry.

I suggest this to every senior pastor: analyze the church conflicts you have ever had. Aren’t most of them related to money? Make use of unpaid people. They are the key to a peaceful and stable church environment!

I see a ministry growing! I see your ministry growing! I see you rising up in the Kingdom of God! I see you taking your place! I know the Lord is going to use you! He has determined to use you! The mega church is for you! The anointing is yours! Rise up with wisdom and possess what the Lord has placed before you!

by Dag Heward-Mills

Where the Anointing is Honoured it Works Wonders

And BY A PROPHET the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, and BY A PROPHET was he preserved.

Hosea 12:13

Where the anointing is honoured, the anointed man becomes an agent for many great blessings for God’s people. “By a prophet” means through the agency of

a prophet! Through God’s prophet acting as an agent, you will experience many great and unbelievable things. Most people see their jobs as the agents of their blessing. Some people see their parents as the agent of their blessing. Others see their marriage as the agent of their blessing. This Scripture shows us that the prophet was the agent through which Israel was delivered from Egypt. This great Scripture also shows us that a prophet was the agent through which Israel was protected and preserved. Through many dangers, toils and snares, Israel was preserved and kept by the agency of a prophet.

Anointed people are strange people who are used by God to accomplish wonderful things. It is important to recognize the anointed person amongst you. Through anointed people God has brought deliverance, healing, promotion and advancement to many lives. The human race is plagued with evil spirits that suck away the lives of the carriers thereof.

All through the Bible, you can learn how God uses anointed people as agents of change and deliverance. It is your turn to be advanced in this life through one of God’s agents of change and blessing. These agents of blessing and change are those we call “anointed”. They are anointed because God has filled them with His power and His Spirit. It is not everyone who has the Holy Spirit on him or in him. Some people are specially given the Holy Spirit in a large measure. Usually, the larger the measure of the Holy Spirit on a person, the more power and gifts he displays in his ministry.

In the next few paragraphs, I want you to see the kind of blessing and change that come through these powerful and anointed agents of God. You will discover that an anointed person is an agent of many good things that God has for His children.

Elisha was probably the most anointed person in the Old Testament because he carried a double portion of the anointing of Elijah. It is important to see Elisha more as an anointed person than even a prophet.

1.The anointed is an agent of deliverance from armed men.

Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down.

And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, if I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

2 Kings 1:9-10

Elijah, the anointed person, was the agent of deliverance from an army of armed men. The prophet was about to be killed by a captain of fifty with his fifty. Through the words of the anointed person, fifty armed men with their captain were removed from this earth. You will be set free from those who think they can destroy you by force. Today is the last day that anyone will ever think of attacking you with physical force. I curse the activities of armed robbers in your life from today!

2. The anointed is an agent of the anointing.

And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.

And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

2 Kings 2:9-10

Anointed people are agents for you to receive the anointing. Through an anointed person, you can receive the power of God and the gift that will promote you and lift you up to the place you are called to be. The power you lack is found in the anointing. The anointing is found in the anointed. As you get closer to the anointed, you will receive the anointing.

Elisha received the anointing through Elijah. He asked Elijah for the anointing because he realised that Elijah was an agent through whom he could receive the anointing. Elijah’s answer was simple, “I know I am an agent of the anointing. You have asked a hard thing but if you see me going you will receive the anointing”. Indeed, Elisha witnessed the departure of Elijah and received the mantle of his father Elijah. Elisha would never have received twice as much of the anointing if he had not met with Elijah. It was through Elijah’s words that Elisha became anointed.

3. The anointed is an agent of improvement.

And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is naught, and the ground barren.

And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.

And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the LORD, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake.

2 Kings 2:19-22

Through the anointing on Elisha, the city received good drinking water. The men of the city informed Elisha that the city was pleasant and nice to stay in, but they simply did not have good drinking water. Elisha performed a miracle by putting salt into the water and it was immediately purified. From that time onwards, the city had good drinking water.

4. The anointed is an agent of the will of God.

God had decided to end the life of KingAhaziah. KingAhaziah was a rebellious man who was consulting Baalzebub, the god of Ekron about whether he would recover from his illness. These messengers encountered Elijah on the way to consult this idol.

...Is it because there is no god in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? Now therefore, thus says the LORD, You shall not come down from the bed where you have gone up but you shall surely die.

2 Kings 1:3

The will of God and the judgment of God was that King Ahaziah should die. Elijah, the anointed one, delivered the will and the mind of God plainly and fearlessly to the king. There was no playing about. There was no politics and there was no bottom licking as you find in men of God today.

A truly anointed person is an agent of the will of God. And sometimes the will of God is judgment.

5.The anointed is an agent of victory for every battle in your life.

And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the Lord hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.

And Elisha said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.

But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him. And he said, Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches. For thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.

And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand. And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.

2 Kings 3:13-19

Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, wrought a great victory over the king of Moab through the anointed words of Elisha the prophet. Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah and Jehoram, the king of Israel were terrified by the king of Moab. “Then the king of Israel said, Alas! For the Lord has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab. But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not a prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of the LORD by him?” (2 Kings 3:10-11).

In other words, is there not an anointed person through whom we may achieve the victory in this battle and gain the upper hand in this situation? Indeed, there was! One of the king’s servants reminded them that Elisha, the son of Shaphat was in town. Elisha was carrying a double portion of the anointing that Elijah had. It was not just because Elisha was a prophet. It was because of the anointing on his life. It is the anointing that makes someone into a prophet. The anointing is the key element that is working. It is the anointing that enables the anointed person to be an agent for your victory.

6. The anointed is an agent for your prosperity.

Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen.

And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.

Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.

And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full.

So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.

And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.

Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest.

2 Kings 4:1-7

Through the anointed man, a widow suffering from an overwhelming desolation was delivered and released into her prosperity. Your prosperity will come when you start to respect the anointed and his God-given power to be an agent for your prosperity.

Many people do not respect the anointed and his anointing and therefore do not benefit from it. There were many widows in the days of Elijah the prophet, but he was not sent to any of them save the widow of Sarepta. There are always a lot of people in need of prosperity. It is those whose hearts are touched to received from the anointed who benefit from the anointed. You must be very careful when dealing with the anointed. Even your dislike and your hatred for an anointed person is a dangerous feeling to have.

Notice this Scripture: “But I shall crush his adversaries before him and strike those who hate him” (Psalm 89:23). Another version says, “I will beat down his foes before his face and plague them that hate him.”

7. The anointed is an agent for your healing.

And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.

Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.

And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.

And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people.

And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old.

And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.

And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.

And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

2 Kings 4:9-17

Through the anointed, you will receive healing from every plague and every kind of disease in this world. The Shunammite woman received a child because she believed in the anointed and honoured him. She showed her respect for the anointed by furnishing a room permanently for the man of God. This provoked the man of God to ask what she needed. Indeed, every rich and apparently successful person has a need. She needed a child and she needed one desperately Elisha’s words were simple: “At this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” It is noteworthy that Gehazi pointed out to Elisha that the woman’s husband was old. This old husband would hardly ever have sex with his wife, the Shunammite woman. The old man was probably suffering from low sperm count, impotence and erectile dysfunction. All these problems were overcome through the anointing. Through the anointed and his anointing, all the complicated problems of your life will be dissolved.

8. The anointed is an agent for your greatest miracle.

Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? Did I not say, Do not deceive me?

Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.

And the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her. And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, the child is not awaked.

And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.

And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, take up thy son.

Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

2 Kings 4:28-37

The Shunammite woman’s son grew up and died suddenly. He woke up one day and exclaimed, “My head, my head!” He was carried to his mother and sat on her lap till midday when he died. This woman was experienced in getting miracles out of the anointed. She knew where to go to solve the unsolvable and break the unbreakable. Instead of sending someone, she went herself on a donkey all the way to Mount Carmel. The prophet Elisha saw her at a distance and sent Gehazi to find out what was happening. When he got to know that the son had died, he knew that his anointing was being called upon again.

Sometimes, one person receives more than one blessing from an anointed person. He that hath shall have more and he that hath not shall lose even that which he has.

9. The anointed is an agent that delivers you from death.

And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.

And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not. So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.

But he said, then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.

2 Kings 4:38-41

One day, there was an accident in which some young prophets went into the field to gather herbs to make some stew.

Unfortunately, someone found a wild vine and sliced it into the pot of stew. As they began to eat this food they realised that it was poisoned. Death was about to strike a whole group of prophets who were enjoying a meal. The anointed simply performed a miracle in which he threw in some flour. Then he said, “There is no harm in the pot. You can eat the stew.” The poisonous stew of death was turned into a healthy pot of stew. They enjoyed a balanced diet with a lot of vegetables because of the anointed with his anointing.

10. The anointed is an agent for your abundance.

And there came a man from Baalshalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he said, give unto the people, that they may eat.

And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith the Lord, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.

So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the Lord.

2 Kings 4:42-44

There was an occasion where an offering was brought to Elisha. This offering consisted of twenty loaves of bread and some fresh corn. Elisha asked that it be given to the people. Everyone thought the food would not be enough. Elisha declared, ‘There will be more than enough.’ Indeed, they ate and they had some over according to the word of the anointed person.

And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver.

And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.

And he said, If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? Out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress?

And the king said unto her, what aileth thee? And she answered, this woman said unto me, give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow.

So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her

on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son.

And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh.

2 Kings 6:24-30

Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.

Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

2 Kings 7:1-2

Our whole lives are made up of the struggle to have enough for our lives. God is the key to your abundance. He has his agents, the anointed ones, through whom God’s abundance will come to you. You must open up yourself to these agents of abundance. Your anointed man is your agent of abundance. God will give you more than you carry, more that you can use and more than you will ever need through the anointed person and his anointing. The anointing breaks the yoke and it will break the yoke of lack in your life.

In the day of famine when there was so much hunger that people were eating their own children, Elisha prophesied great abundance. As usual, there were mockers who said, “How can this be possible?” The anointed man, Elisha (carrying the double portion of anointing) said to him, “You will see but you will not enjoy it.” It was a prophecy of this officer’s death. Because the royal officer mocked at Elisha’s predictions, he was trampled upon by the people as they rushed to partake of the abundance that had been released through the anointing of the anointed.

All these stories you have read are the exploits of the anointed. The anointed person is carrying a precious heavenly substance called the anointing. He himself is weak and powerless. It is the anointing in him that works. Anointed people are a strange combination of weakness, humanity and power. This combination must not confuse you. You must grow up quickly to respect the anointed and his anointing. If you do so in time, you will experience the blessing that comes from the anointing.

The anointed is an agent for your prosperity, your healing, your deliverance, your abundance and your miracle. Open yourself to the anointed and his anointing. Be wiser than the royal officer of the king who doubted and ridiculed the word of the Lord that came from the anointed. It is your day to advance quickly into the next level of your calling and ministry. Next year by this time, you will never be found at the same spot again, in Jesus’ name. Amen!

by Dag Heward-Mills

Availability: The Key to Association, Friendship and Environment

Association, friendship and environment expose you to men of the Holy Spirit.  Through your association with these people, the influence of the Holy Spirit will increase in your life.  

Being available is the master key to association, friendship and environment.  Without being available, you will not have the opportunity for certain key associations, friendships and environments. People who come and go quickly, and have no time to linger around, will never develop certain associations and friendships. They will never come under the appropriate influence and never benefit from the environment.

Someone who is available is not busy.   He is free to talk to you and relate with you. Most people will not pay the price to relate with an anointed person.  

Availability allows you to learn, to imbibe and to assimilate the vital lessons of ministry.  

Thirty Things That You Will Learn by Being Available

1.  You will see the hidden and inner workings of ministry that the public does not see.  

And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.

Mark 1:35

2. You will learn how to be a travelling minister.

And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples,

He said unto them, have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, we have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.

Acts 19:1-2

3.  You will learn how failure happens in ministry.  

And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.

Matthew 17:14-16

4. You will learn how to overcome failure in ministry.  

Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faithas a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Matthew 17:19-20

5. You will learn how to survive difficult seasons of ministry.

Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own country men, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

2 Corinthians 11:25-27

6. You will learn how to handle desertion in the ministry.

For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.

2 Timothy 4:10-11

At my first answer no man stood with me, but all menforsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.

Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and thatall the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.

2 Timothy 4:16-17

7. You will learn how to deal with wicked people in the ministry.

The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, butespecially the parchments.

Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works:

Of whom be thou ware also; for he hath greatly withstood our words.

2 Timothy 4:13-15

8. You will learn about hunger and fasting.

In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often,in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

2 Corinthians 11:27

9.  You will learn about how to conduct outreaches in resistant communities.

And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God.

But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus.

Acts 19:8-9

10.  You will learn about different types of prayer.

Then they took away the stone from the placewhere the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up hiseyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.

And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.

John 11:41-42

11. You will learn how to apologise.

And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth.

Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite thee, thouwhited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?

And they that stood by said, Revilest thou God’s high priest?

Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren,that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.

Acts 23:2-5

12.  You will learn how to do menial jobs.

When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, gather up the fragmentsthat remain, that nothing be lost.

Therefore they gathered themtogether, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.

John 6:12-13

13.  You will receive the anointing.

Then said Jesus to them again, Peace beunto you: as myFather hath sent me, even so send I you.

And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost

John 20:21-22

14. You will assimilate the spirit of the ministry.

And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.

And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.

And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?

But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, YE KNOW NOT WHAT MANNER OF SPIRIT YE ARE OF.

Luke 9:52-55

15. You will learn how to counsel people.

There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her,give me to drink.

(For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)

Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, how is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.

Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.

John 4:7-10

16. You will learn how to handle difficult cases.

And he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.

And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought.

And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking.

After that he put hishands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.

Mark 8:22-25

17. You will learn to be focused in the ministry.

And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, that he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore himfourfold.

And Jesus said unto him, this day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.

For the SON OF MAN IS COME TO SEEK AND TO SAVEthat which was lost.

Luke 19:7-10

18. You will learn about safety procedures in ministry.

Take heed unto thyself,and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

1 Timothy 4:16

19. You will learn how to see the evil ahead.

And said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurtand much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives.

Acts 27:10

20. You will learn about the risks of ministry.

But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy.

Luke 8:23

21. You will develop close relationships.

And it was told him by certain which said, Thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to see thee.  And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are thesewhich hear the word of God, and do it.

Luke 8:20-21

22.  You will hear about great secrets and listen to mystical things.

Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.

Luke 18:31-34

23.  You will learn about how to be a servant.

But Jehoshaphat said, is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may enquire of the Lord by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.

2 Kings 3:11

24. You will learn about how to hear the voice of God.  

Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak,Lord; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

1 Samuel 3:9-10

25.  You will learn how to work for long hours.

And upon the first dayof the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

Acts 20:7

26. You will learn about how to wait patiently for your leader.

And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?

Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed iswilling, but the flesh is weak.

He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

Matthew 26:40-44

27.  You will have spiritual experiences that are important for your total spiritual development.

And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.

Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.

While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.

Matthew 17:1-6

28.  You will learn how and when to minister the Spirit.

And he said unto them, unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John’s baptism.

Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.

When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

And when Paul had laid hishands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

Acts 19:3-6

29. You will learn how and when to minister healing.

And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple from his mother’s womb, who never had walked:

The same heard Paul speak: who stedfastly beholding him, and perceiving that he had faith to be healed,

Said with a loud voice, stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked.

Acts 14:8-10

30. You will learn how to relate to those who were in the ministry before you.

Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days.

Galatians 1:18

by Dag Heward-Mills

The Sweet Influences of the Holy Spirit on Your Words

In the Christian world, we call inspired speeches “prophetic words��.  Prophecy is when a person speaks under inspiration.  

Without the influence of the Holy Spirit you will be dull and uninteresting.  Your boring lectures will put everyone to sleep and your listeners will pray earnestly for the end of your sermon.  They will long to be away from your presence because you are neither inspired nor exciting.    

It is only the Holy Spirit that can give you the inspiration you need.   Under the sweet influences of the Holy Spirit, you will be inspired to teach, to preach and to live in the will of God.

How we need the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit!  Without the sweet influences of the Holy Spirit, our speech will be under the inspiration of earthly ideas.

Ask for the Holy Spirit. Pray for the Holy Spirit.  You will be inspired. Your words will not be rejected.  People will not sleep when you are speaking.  Men will change when they listen to your inspired words.    

Most people speak under the inspiration of other spirits.  They may speak from an earthly, sensual or devilish inspiration.  But you need to be under the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit.

Without the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit, you may be in danger of speaking under the devilish inspiration of bitterness, jealousy or hatred.

Many politicians speak under a demonic influence and inspiration.  They incite war, revenge and hatred through their demonic and dark speeches.  Read about Rwanda and you will discover how the demonic influences on leaders inspired the mass murder.   If you listen to the speeches of Hitler, you hear the voice of Satan over and over again.  Hitler’s henchmen were equally filled with the spirit of Satan.  You see and sense evil, wickedness, deception, cruelty, mercilessness, retaliation and murder in their very words.  Which spirit is inspiring your messages?  

1. When servants and handmaidens came under the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit, they began to prophesy and speak under inspiration.

And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

Acts 2:17-18

2. When the disciples in Ephesus came under the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit they became inspired and prophesied.

And when Paul had laid hishands upon them, the Holy Ghost cameon them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesieD.

And all the men were about twelve.

Acts 19:6-7

3. When Zacharias came under the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit he began to prophesy and speak wonderful words that have been written down for thousands of years.

And his father ZACHARIAS WAS FILLED WITH THE HOLY GHOST, AND PROPHESIED,saying,

Blessed bethe Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;

Luke 1:67-69

4. When Jahaziel, son of Zechariah, came under the sweet influence of the Holy Spirit, he spoke words that inspired the Israelites to rise up and fight for God.  

Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the LORD in the midst of the congregation;

And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle isnot yours, but God’s.

To morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel.

Ye shall not needto fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will bewith you.

2 Chronicles 20:14-17

 by Dag Heward-Mills