Tuesday, January 10, 2012

No Deal. The Price is Set 

"So Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, “Go, serve the Lord your God. Who  are  the ones that are going?” 
 
And Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old; with our sons and our daughters, with our flocks and our herds we will go, for we must hold a feast to the Lord.”  Then he said to them, “The Lord had better be with you when I let you and your little ones go! Beware, for evil is ahead of you.  Not so! Go now, you  who are  men, and serve the Lord, for that is what you desired.” And they were driven out from Pharaoh’s presence.  
 
Then Pharaoh called to Moses and said, “Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be kept back. Let your little ones also go with you.”  But Moses said, “You must also give us sacrifices and burnt offerings, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.  Our livestock also shall go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind. For we must take some of them to serve the Lord our God, and even we do not know with what we must serve the Lord until we arrive there.”
 
But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not let them go.  Then Pharaoh said to him, “Get away from me! Take heed to yourself and see my face no more! For in the day you see my face you shall die!”  So Moses said, “You have spoken well. I will never see your face again.”
(Exodus 10:8-11, 24-29 NKJV) 

 
If you are familiar with business negotiations, for example when buying a car,  you know how it goes. The salesperson gives the highest price, the sticker price, which is most to his own advantage, hoping the buyer would take it without negotiating. An unseasoned buyer would immediately  take the offer without negotiating, but the experienced ones would start beating the price down lower and lower until they get the best deal. In some cases however, where the good is priced appropriately, the seller must remain resolute on the set price, rejecting any further negotiations.

In our text today, we see Pharaoh, who is a type of the enemy occupying the role of the negotiator. Moses had come and presented the demand of God which was to let God's people go, everyone of them, with all their possessions and more. That was the non-negotiable demand.

Pharaoh however tried all he could to have things his way. At first, he was totally unwilling to let Israel go. After a number of severe plagues on Egypt, he seemed ready to let only the men go, leaving their children, wives and possessions behind. After a while, he was ready to let them go if only they would leave their livestock behind.  He was negotiating for a deal that would serve his end of keeping Israel in slavery even if it meant letting a portion go. 

Moses, however knew what God has said. He refused to negotiate, maintaining his stance that all God's people and their possessions must go. His stance was a no-deal, no-negotiating one regarding what God has said.

What an example for us. In our dealing with the enemy, he will fight tooth and nail to hold on to a part of our lives. He may let you have your family, but he will try to hold on to your health or money. He may relinquish you to your ministry but try to hold down your family. He fights tooth and nail, going about like a roaring lion to see what he can devour. If he can't have all, he will make do with a portion. He knows that the little ground he has- the small foothold could eventually lead to complete do domination again.

This is why the scripture says, we should give no place to the devil (Ephesians 4:27). You must not negotiate with him. Refuse to have less than what the word has promised. Don't capitulate or waver. Settle for nothing less than the promise of God. Resist the enemy steadfastly in  faith. Stand on the full promise of God. As you refuse to make a deal with the enemy, he has no choice but to release all the grounds he had taken in your life. Victory is yours. 
 
Decision of the day

I understand that the enemy wants to claim grounds in my life. If he can't get all, he will try to retain some. I will not negotiate the word of God. I stand on what God has said, refusing to waver. I will settle for nothing less.  

Monday, January 9, 2012

Expectancy- The Switch of Faith

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt—on man, on beast, and on every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt.” ... So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and spread out his hands to the Lord; then the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth. (Exodus 9:22, 33 NKJV)

Rom 1: 20 says that the invisible things of God can be understood by looking at the visible. You must have observed that every source of power in the natural has a point where they are turned on. Electric power has the switch. The water faucet has the tap. There is always a point where contact is made with power to release its flow. This is also true about the power of God. A point of contact is something you do to release your faith to God for a manifestation of his power. It is an action motivated by a word from God. This is what Moses was doing when he stretched out his hands. In obedience to God's word, he acted and switched on the power of God.

Several years ago, God spoke a word into my heart that really set me thinking. He said, “There’s too much unused faith in the house. It is time to turn your faith loose. By virtue of my words that you hear, the books you read, you are loaded with faith. It is time to turn on the switch that releases the power.”
These words made me do an extensive study on turning your faith in scriptures. That was when I came in contact with the truth I am about to share with you.

There is power in expectancy. Miracles and supernatural manifestations in life are not coincidences or chance occurrences. They are conceived and worked out by humans cooperating with God. Expectancy is being in a miracle mood. It has a starting point and must be sustained until the miracles begin to flow. The point of contact is the way expectancy is triggered leading to miracles. Here are some examples from the scriptures:

Abraham counts the stars(Gen 15: 5)
Jacob anointed a pillar, praying for God’s presence and success making a vow(Gen 28: 10-22)
Israel laid hands knowingly on his children to impart blessings (Gen 48: 11-19)
Moses stretches the rod(Exo 8: 5,6,16-19, Exo 9: 22,23, Exo 14: 13-16, 21-22)
Moses scatters ashes to heaven(Exo 9: 8-11)
Stretching out the hand(Exo 10: 19,21)
The blood line (Exo 12: 7,12-14)
Moses held up his hand until victory came in war (Exo 17: 8-13)
Samson’s lock of hair(Judges 16: 17-31)
Walking round Jericho and shouting(Joshua 6: 1-16)
Hannah’s vow(1Sam 1: 11)
David’s offering stops the plague(1 Sam 24: 15-25)
Elijah stretches himself over widow’s son (1 Kings 17: 20-22)
Elijah’s mantle split the river(2 Kings 2: 8)
Naaman’s cured by dipping in Jordan(2 Kings 5: 10,14)
Hezekiah stretches forth a letter before God (Isa 37: 14-21)
Jesus touches the leper(Matt 8: 3)
Jesus speaks a word to the sick(Matt 8: 6,13)
Woman touches the hem of Jesus’ garment(Mark 5: 24-34)
Jesus spat (Mark 7: 32-35)
Jesus spits on the blind man(Mark 8: 22-25)
Jesus anoints with clay and tells to go wash in a pool(John 9: 1-6)
The shadow of Peter heals(Acts 5: 14)
Ananais laid hands on Saul(Act 9: 17)
Special miracles through aprons/ handkerchiefs(Acts 19: 11,12)
Anointing with oil(James 5: 14)

You can also release the power of faith expectancy using a point of contact. Below are ways you can use points of contact to release your faith as you are led by the Spirit.

Calling names of people and places in prayer
Laying hands on mails and correspondence to be a blessing to the receivers
Sowing a financial seed and trusting God for his blessings on your life.
Laying hand on pictures of people, places and things as you pray
The communion: Breaking bread and trusting God for his promises.
Anointing people and things with oil in prayer like James
A faith march around areas to establish the will of God
Prayer walks over desired territories for the kingdom of God
Praying over maps and locations for God's will to be done
Speaking words
Physical objects like prayer clothes etc.
People laying hands on one another in prayer
Stretching forth the hand in prayer

These are just some few ways God can lead you to release your faith through points of contact. As you start yielding to the Holy Ghost in this area in your prayer life, you will find yourself in a constant state of expectancy and miracles will flow in your life, family and ministry. Keep the switch of faith turned on

Decision of the Day

Expectancy is powerful. I will stay expectant for God's manifestation in my life. I will act in faith in response to God's word, turning on the switch of my faith and keeping it turned on using a point of contact.