The Power Of Creative Faith
THE POWER OF CREATIVE FAITH
Expectation: Speaking Change Into A Dead Situation
Main Text: 1 Sam. 1:-2:10
Support Texts: St. Mark 5:25-34; St. Matthew 15:21-28.
Lesson Aim: To cause the hearer to expand their faith borders to include walking out of the faith-by-way-of-the-Word into a walking into the dimension of the manifestation of prophetic utterances prompted by the Holy Spirit.
Main Divisions:
MDI: 1 Sam. 1:-2:10 The Source and Power of Creative Faith
MDII: St. Mark 5:25-34 The Stretch of Creative Faith
MDIII: St. Matthew 15:21-28 The Sound of Creative Faith
Scriptural Readings for Today:
Leader & Congregation to read responsively: I Sam. 1:1-12
Minister to now read I Sam. 1:13-19; 2:1-2, 5, 11.
Have congregation repeat the title aloud: “The Power of Creative Faith”
Introduction:
• The book of I Samuel, is the 8th in the Jewish order of the books of the Holy Scriptures. It is also the 3rd book in the section entitled ‘The Prophets”.
• In the Jewish synagogue, it was a well established norm and custom to hear specific passages of the Old Testament being read during certain parts of the Jewish service. These passages were called and selected from what was termed as ‘The Table of Scriptural Readings’.
• Of the 94 various times in which Scriptural Readings were to be read, this passage (I Samuel 1:1-2:10) was only to be read on the first Day of the Jewish New Year (Haftarah Rosh Hashanah). This passage was preceded by the reading aloud of two earlier passages, in this specific order: Genesis 21:1-34, and Numbers 29:1-6. After these came I Sam. 1:1-2:10.
• Gen. 21:1-34
God remembers Sarah, once barren, now conceives a son named Isaac, who is circumcised on the 8th day, by his 100 year-old father Abraham. A great feast is made on the day Isaac is weaned from his mother’s breast, but Hagar the concubine is caught speaking injurious words and using unsupportive actions towards the child of promise. Hagar and son Ishmael are cast out into the wilderness, where God provides substance and a promise to them. Finally we see Abraham sojourning and striving in a land not promised.
• Numbers 29:1-6
God commands a holy convocation for the nation Israel to meet with Him. This celebration is to be observed on the 1st day of the 7th month. No servile work could be done on that day, but they were to be occupied in the ministry of serving the Lord. This included the blowing of the horn, along with a burnt offering sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord.
• Finally I Sam. 1:-2:10
This passage introduces us to Elkanah the Ephraimite (Elkanah- God has obtained; Ephraim- Double-Fruited One[-s]), a man of goodly lineage. Elkanah has two wives: Hannah and Peninnah. Hannah, barren, but well-loved; Peninnah, productive as a birther, but bitter on the inside and acidic on the outside.
• Hannah, Favor graciously bestowed. Hannah maintained a lifestyle that caused others to favor her.
• Peninnah, A Pearl from the coral. Peninnah was found to be a frustrated jewel out of place.
When we reach 1 Sam. 1:17-18a, we find the elderly priest Eli pronouncing a blessing upon this woman Hannah. She wastes little precious time, but returns home with her husband Elkanah, who, upon receiving the report of this, quickly renews his covenant love for his wife. She is then found with child.
How did all of this happen?
1. Was this a miracle of divine proportion, or a normal and expected event in the life of a simple woman? Was God up to something, or was this woman ready for anything?
After all, wasn’t it enough for this woman Hannah to simply hear the word of the priest, and believe for something wonderful? Shouldn’t that make it all better in our lives? Or, is there something more revelatory in this passage for us today?
T.S. I would like to ask you all to come along with me as we explore this event in the life of one of our sisters of faith! But before we do that, I want each of you to do a little experiment with me:
1. Everyone check your pulse, then lay your hands over your stomach and heart..
2. Now, everyone stretch your bodies… go ahead, get the kinks out!
3. Lastly, I need everyone to round their mouths out in the form of an “O”.
4. Now, before you take your seats, I want you to shout these words:
“I Am Going To Release The Power Of Creative Faith Today!”
Today, I would like to talk about three women in the Bible, and perhaps how we can all participate in experiencing the manifestation of what happens when you step out in faith and speak forth what God has already shown in His Word for you to have in life and in the life to come!
MDI: The Source and Power of Creative Faith 1 Sam. 1:-2:10
As you know, we have been pouring in the oil of God’s Word concerning faith and your seat of position of authority in the Kingdom.
• You cannot allow present circumstance to dictate what you say about your future!
• You are a child of the Most High God, and you have an eternal inheritance that can manifest both in the natural and in the realm of the spiritual!
• God has custom-designed you to be a blessing to others, whether the enemy likes it or not!
• Your DNA (Divinely Natural Affinity) houses the Dominion Principle, the Authority Imperative, and the Favor Activator!
Somebody say: “I can’t help but be blessed!”
MDIa: Understanding The Source and Power of Your Creative Faith:
In volume two of his book entitled, “The Fourth Dimension’, Dr. David Yonggi Cho sheds light on this subject in chapter Four, entitled, “The Creative Ability Of Your Words”. Allow me to give you some excerpts from his book:
“Did you know that your words were creative? They are either creative in a positive or negative way. They can produce life or death. Words have a power much greater than most of us can understand today. Psychologists, medical doctors and philosophers are just starting to understand what the Bible has been telling us for thousands of years: “For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body: (James 3:2, NKJV).
James gives us three basic facts about the power of our words:
1. Words can be uncontrollable.
How many times have you said something only to later regret having said it? So often our emotions have more control over our words than our logic. We have a tendency to react to someone who has gotten us upset and we say something back later we feel terrible about.
• Our words also can be motivated by our insecurity. Many of us are guilty of exaggeration. By embellishing a story, fact or fiction, we stand to gain even greater approval from the crowd.
• Our words can be greatly influenced by our associations. If we associate with negative people, we will find our words becoming more negative than normal.
• Our words can be controlled by our circumstance. When we allow our external factors to disrupt the peace of our inner dimension, we will undoubtedly experience
• Our words can be controlled by our imagination. Whatever we dwell upon in thought, we will speak.
2. What indicates a perfect, or, more accurately stated, a mature man?
A mature person is one who is able to control his words. James tells us that if someone is so disciplined that he is able to control his speech, he is then mature.
The Greek word teleos (perfect) means mature or fully tested.
But the word translated man is not the more common anthropos, but the word aner. Kittel states that in classical Greek, this particular use of the word signifies man as opposed to woman.1 He also states that in the New Testament the word signifies husband.2 Robertson agrees with Kittel and translates the verse as “perfect husband.”3
3. The way to control your body and to avoid its misuse is to control your words.
James likens the proper use of the tongue to the control of a horse. He uses the word “bridle”. In a well-trained horse, a bridle can serve to start, stop, or change a horse’s direction when it is used to exert a small amount of pressure in the horse’s mouth.
• The part of the bridle that is doing the work is not easily visible, but it can dramatically affect the horse’s behavior.
• So too our words. They seem so insignificantly uttered, but they have such great consequences upon us physically, emotionally and spiritually.
“Poverty is a curse from satan. God desires that all His people prosper and be healthy as their soul prospers (3 John 1:2). Yet much of the world has not really seen poverty as I have seen it. Especially in the Third World, people live their lives in despair, struggling to survive for one more day. I am from the Third World. I know first-hand what it is not to have anything to eat. My country was ravaged by the Japanese for many years; then we suffered through two wars. Korea is just now rising up economically. Why?
• “One of the reasons we are succeeding and prospering materially is because we are changing our self-image as a nation. We have to believe that the blessing of God is part of His redemptive provision.
“I then started to see the importance of teaching my people the power and substance of their confession. If we confessed we were poor and created a poor self-image by our confession, we would always be poor and in need of material help and handouts from the West.
But by trusting in God and working very hard, our people were able to lift themselves from the depths of poverty into a place where they could bless the work of God in our country and throughout the world. They had to realize that God is their source, not America not Europe.
• “The main way a people can change their self-image is by carefully using words which are positive and which produce dignity within both the speaker and the hearer.
“Solomon said: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Prov. 18:21)
In surgery, the will of the patient to pull through the operation will have as much to do with the success of the operation as any other external factor. The will of the patient will not only give the patient the ability to stay alive during the operation, but will actually aid in the healing process. That will is affected by what the patient confesses.
• “Age is more than chronology; it is a state of mind. That mind is influenced by the words which are spoken.
• “If words are to convey a mental picture, then we should learn how to visualize the Word of God and try to understand what He (God, the Originator of all things, spoken or realized) sees.
• “Our understanding comes in the area of our imagination. When we picture something in our mind we understand it. That, in essence, is the definition of that thing. The word sound which is uttered may not be able to fully communicate that picture, but the purpose of communication is to convey the picture to someone else as completely as possible.
• “Therefore, we understand that words begin in the mind. We visualize something and we associate a phoneme with it. Words are described by John William Miller as ‘symbols to grasp understanding’. Words therefore reproduce the picture that the speaker is conveying in the mind of the hearer.
• “The word exists in our mind before it is ever spoken. Within the past hundred years many people have been challenged to understand exactly what words are. On of the fathers of modern linguistics, F. de Saussure (a French-Swiss) stated, “The function of language builds upon the complex interplay between objective (physical) and subjective (mental) elements. Sounds, such as physical activities, are employed as symbols of meaning which is what ultimately establishes language as a mental rather than a physical phenomenon.”4 Saussure continues, “Everything in language is basically psychological.”5
• “What Saussure is basically saying is that words are more than what we say. They begin in the mind as thoughts. This is why people who are mutes can use words in sign language. Although they cannot speak, they can communicate ideas by using physical actions which signify understandable words.
• “When we speak, there is a dynamic added to the concept we visualize, for the sound of the word may also add meaning to the word spoken [therefore, we actually compare pre-textual images already imbedded within us with sounds that are coming to us from our outside world - AEM]. In Chinese the same word can have different meanings, depending on the way the word is spoken. The tone that is used and the inflection of the voice lend an added dimension to what is said.
• “But whatever is in control of your words is in control of you! (In James 3:4) James uses the metaphor of a ship’s rudder. Winds, current and sails do not ultimately determine the direction that sailing vessel will go. The direction will be determined by a small rudder which is not seen but which nonetheless exercises great influence. The point that James is making by using these two powerful examples is that whatever is in control of your words will control you.
If you do not bring your words under your control, your life will be lived as a stumbling horse, [powerful, but – AEM] directionless and accomplishing very little. Yet a mature man will make sure that his words are positive and creative. He will not allow himself to be controlled by circumstances, but will control his circumstances because he knows where he is going. He will use his words wisely.”
• “So I have learned to watch my words carefully for I know that other people are listening to me intently.
• The speaker’s importance is an additional factor in his word because of the dimension of the speaker’s authority. The masses in Israel listened to Christ by the hillside and by the lake and they also listened to the priests in the temple. The comparison that they made was that Christ’s words were different, for He spoke as one having authority.
• When someone says something, the authority of the individual will determine the degree to which what he says will be obeyed and remembered. The Roman centurion told Jesus that he understood military principles. He was not worthy that Christ should come under his roof, knowing that a Jew could not defile himself by going into the home of a Gentile. But he said that he was under authority and therefore he exercised authority. Taking for granted the spiritual kingdom of Christ functioned under the same principle as Rome, he then told Christ to simply speak the word and his servant would be healed (Mt. 8:8). Jesus marveled at the Roman’s understanding of spiritual reality, for He had offered to go to his home and had promised the healing. What greater honor could be bestowed on anyone. Yet the centurion knew that only a word (logos [a catalogue of meanings from which to choose – AEM]) was needed for the miracle to take place. He recognized the authority with which Jesus spoke. But when someone has authority, that authority is transmitted by the way in which he speaks [not always by the volume one produces while speaking forth – AEM]
• Those who hear one who is speaking is such a manner [of spiritual authority – AEM] will comprehend the weight of what is spoken, although language may not be used.
I Samuel 2:1 states these words: “And the Lord remembered Hannah”!
Sounds familiar to what was written of another woman named Sarah in Gen.21:1, amen?
Now, why is this phrase so important for you to hear this day?
Because God wants you to know a number of things right now:
• You are about to receive a Divine Visitation!
• Your Days of Internal Frustration by Outside Interference are about to change – Today!
• What you’ve been carrying in faith for years is about to manifest – after this release!
• If God ‘remembered’ Noah and Sarah and Hannah, well now – what about you?
• Your Season Is About To Change – You’re Due For This One!
And God remembered (2142 – zakar, a prim. Root mng. ‘to mark out (so as to be recognized); to be mindful of; to record or recount; also to mention.’ [seen 4x in OT: Gen4:1- Noah; Gen19:29- Abraham; Gen30:22- Rachel].
• When God remembers you, it is a good thing!
• To be remembered by the Lord means that He has chosen to include you in His plans for the future!
• Judges 8:34 states that the children of Israel remembered not the Lord.
• Psalm 45:17 says that the name of the Lord is to be remembered in all generations.
• Psalm 98:3, along with Psalm105:8 and 42 declares God has remembered a number of things: He has remembered His mercy, His Truth, His Covenant and His promises forever!
• God remembers those who never forget Him!
• Israel Houghton and New Breed sang the song: I Am Not Forgotten! But do you believe that for yourself?
This young Samuel was a by-product of his mother’s creative faith!
• His prophetic proclivity came from his mother, not his father.
• She prayed while he was in the womb; therefore, he was released into our world as an intercessor.
• Mother Hannah was a woman of the oral tradition; therefore, young Samuel was raised learning both the oral and written traditions of the Word!
• Hannah found a faith-extending passage for her situation (Gen. 20-21); therefore, Samuel grew up learning how to rightly divide the Word for every situation he encountered!
• Hannah was married to Elkanah and remained with him despite outside interference; Samuel remained a prophet of God in spite of the nation Israel failing God and His commandments!
Lessons To Be Learned From Hannah:
1. Learn to believe God for the impossible – especially when He placed it within your heart!
2. Don’t allow those satanic cluster spirits of oppression, loneliness, manic isolation, vice, retaliation, resentment or suicide to control your life!
3. Find your way into the presence of Almighty God! Make your petition before Him!
4. Determine to focus on the glory and the wonders of His love!
5. Learn to renew covenant with those of like precious faith!
6. Seal your petition with acts of deep love!
MDII: The Stretch of Creative Faith St. Mark 5:25-34
This woman heard of Jesus, took the posture of humility, reached out and touched what her faith challenged her to touch – and she not only received healing, but wholeness and recognition for her stretch of faith!
• How many of us will follow the principles of God’s Word and the prompting of the Holy Spirit – believing Him for greater than whatever you initially starting out believing Him for?
• You see, faith moves, not on the heart of religious folk, but upon the hearts of folks full of faith towards God!
• Fourth-Dimensional folk know how to tap the presence of God! Fourth-Dimensional folk simply believe what God is saying – without complication, without debate, and without excuse!
Faith, in and of itself, has the capacity to conform within whatever environment you dare to place it!
And yet, though your faith is a motivating, occupational transforming force, it yet needs you to release it!
To Stretch means:
• OT [5186] ‘To Prolong, To Cause To Yield by Bending’.
• NT [1614] ‘Ekteino’- ‘To Extend Beyond’.
• The Lord stretched out His hand in the OT; Moses and Aaron did the with the rod of power. In the NT, the man with the withered hand ‘stretched forth his hand “toward Jesus” and received restoration!
• Q: Just how far are we willing to stretch our faith today?
• Q: In what new areas are you willing to believe God for?
Church, It’s Life Application Time!
If you will take the example of Hannah, you will begin to experience transformational shifting in your life!
• Hannah did not wait for her husband to do all of the praying and hoping and expecting and dreaming for her. She took the initiative to investigate the presence of God herself, and found God to all that and more!
• Hannah went far beyond the extent of her expectation – to the very point of making a vow to God to give him something that even she had longed for!
• Hannah made a vow to give to God what she had a desire and a need for:
• Hannah vowed to give to God what should have brought increase to her life!
MDIII: The Sound of Creative Faith St. Matthew 15:21-28
• What sound are you making right now?
• Is everything excellent in your life?
• Do you have all of the desires of your heart right now?
• Is there an area in life that needs God’s immediate attention?
• Then, someone needs to begin crying out the more!
• In I Samuel, the priest attempted to decipher what Hannah spoke privately to God; in St. Matthew, everyone around this mother knew exactly what she came to Jesus for!
• Again, I ask you… What sound are you making right now?
To cry out the more means a number of things:
• My situation is presently greater than my capacity to handle it!
• My struggle to get here qualifies me for an audience with the Master!
• My house is losing future gain due to a present temporary setback!
• The attention gained by crying out is the least of my worries today – I’ve got a generation to save!
• I don’t have anything to lose!
• If I call on Jesus, the least He can do is send a Kingdom Representative to investigate! An ambassador or military captain or somebody!
Altar Ministry:
Oh, if the saints of the Most High God would only lift their voices right now, and cry out unto the God of their salvation, to the God of more than enough.. He would not only hear from heaven, but He will heal their lands!
The sound of creative faith is unique in its utterance, its destination, in its distinction!
• To cry out the more does not mean that you have lost it all, that your circumstance has now become a crisis in your mind.
• No, crying out the more unto God means that something on the inside just clicked; the Holy Ghost just gave you a strategy for getting God’s attention; and, now all you can do is exactly what He is requiring of you – right now!
Expectation: Speaking Change Into A Dead Situation
Main Text: 1 Sam. 1:-2:10
Support Texts: St. Mark 5:25-34; St. Matthew 15:21-28.
Lesson Aim: To cause the hearer to expand their faith borders to include walking out of the faith-by-way-of-the-Word into a walking into the dimension of the manifestation of prophetic utterances prompted by the Holy Spirit.
Main Divisions:
MDI: 1 Sam. 1:-2:10 The Source and Power of Creative Faith
MDII: St. Mark 5:25-34 The Stretch of Creative Faith
MDIII: St. Matthew 15:21-28 The Sound of Creative Faith
Scriptural Readings for Today:
Leader & Congregation to read responsively: I Sam. 1:1-12
Minister to now read I Sam. 1:13-19; 2:1-2, 5, 11.
Have congregation repeat the title aloud: “The Power of Creative Faith”
Introduction:
• The book of I Samuel, is the 8th in the Jewish order of the books of the Holy Scriptures. It is also the 3rd book in the section entitled ‘The Prophets”.
• In the Jewish synagogue, it was a well established norm and custom to hear specific passages of the Old Testament being read during certain parts of the Jewish service. These passages were called and selected from what was termed as ‘The Table of Scriptural Readings’.
• Of the 94 various times in which Scriptural Readings were to be read, this passage (I Samuel 1:1-2:10) was only to be read on the first Day of the Jewish New Year (Haftarah Rosh Hashanah). This passage was preceded by the reading aloud of two earlier passages, in this specific order: Genesis 21:1-34, and Numbers 29:1-6. After these came I Sam. 1:1-2:10.
• Gen. 21:1-34
God remembers Sarah, once barren, now conceives a son named Isaac, who is circumcised on the 8th day, by his 100 year-old father Abraham. A great feast is made on the day Isaac is weaned from his mother’s breast, but Hagar the concubine is caught speaking injurious words and using unsupportive actions towards the child of promise. Hagar and son Ishmael are cast out into the wilderness, where God provides substance and a promise to them. Finally we see Abraham sojourning and striving in a land not promised.
• Numbers 29:1-6
God commands a holy convocation for the nation Israel to meet with Him. This celebration is to be observed on the 1st day of the 7th month. No servile work could be done on that day, but they were to be occupied in the ministry of serving the Lord. This included the blowing of the horn, along with a burnt offering sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord.
• Finally I Sam. 1:-2:10
This passage introduces us to Elkanah the Ephraimite (Elkanah- God has obtained; Ephraim- Double-Fruited One[-s]), a man of goodly lineage. Elkanah has two wives: Hannah and Peninnah. Hannah, barren, but well-loved; Peninnah, productive as a birther, but bitter on the inside and acidic on the outside.
• Hannah, Favor graciously bestowed. Hannah maintained a lifestyle that caused others to favor her.
• Peninnah, A Pearl from the coral. Peninnah was found to be a frustrated jewel out of place.
When we reach 1 Sam. 1:17-18a, we find the elderly priest Eli pronouncing a blessing upon this woman Hannah. She wastes little precious time, but returns home with her husband Elkanah, who, upon receiving the report of this, quickly renews his covenant love for his wife. She is then found with child.
How did all of this happen?
1. Was this a miracle of divine proportion, or a normal and expected event in the life of a simple woman? Was God up to something, or was this woman ready for anything?
After all, wasn’t it enough for this woman Hannah to simply hear the word of the priest, and believe for something wonderful? Shouldn’t that make it all better in our lives? Or, is there something more revelatory in this passage for us today?
T.S. I would like to ask you all to come along with me as we explore this event in the life of one of our sisters of faith! But before we do that, I want each of you to do a little experiment with me:
1. Everyone check your pulse, then lay your hands over your stomach and heart..
2. Now, everyone stretch your bodies… go ahead, get the kinks out!
3. Lastly, I need everyone to round their mouths out in the form of an “O”.
4. Now, before you take your seats, I want you to shout these words:
“I Am Going To Release The Power Of Creative Faith Today!”
Today, I would like to talk about three women in the Bible, and perhaps how we can all participate in experiencing the manifestation of what happens when you step out in faith and speak forth what God has already shown in His Word for you to have in life and in the life to come!
MDI: The Source and Power of Creative Faith 1 Sam. 1:-2:10
As you know, we have been pouring in the oil of God’s Word concerning faith and your seat of position of authority in the Kingdom.
• You cannot allow present circumstance to dictate what you say about your future!
• You are a child of the Most High God, and you have an eternal inheritance that can manifest both in the natural and in the realm of the spiritual!
• God has custom-designed you to be a blessing to others, whether the enemy likes it or not!
• Your DNA (Divinely Natural Affinity) houses the Dominion Principle, the Authority Imperative, and the Favor Activator!
Somebody say: “I can’t help but be blessed!”
MDIa: Understanding The Source and Power of Your Creative Faith:
In volume two of his book entitled, “The Fourth Dimension’, Dr. David Yonggi Cho sheds light on this subject in chapter Four, entitled, “The Creative Ability Of Your Words”. Allow me to give you some excerpts from his book:
“Did you know that your words were creative? They are either creative in a positive or negative way. They can produce life or death. Words have a power much greater than most of us can understand today. Psychologists, medical doctors and philosophers are just starting to understand what the Bible has been telling us for thousands of years: “For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body: (James 3:2, NKJV).
James gives us three basic facts about the power of our words:
1. Words can be uncontrollable.
How many times have you said something only to later regret having said it? So often our emotions have more control over our words than our logic. We have a tendency to react to someone who has gotten us upset and we say something back later we feel terrible about.
• Our words also can be motivated by our insecurity. Many of us are guilty of exaggeration. By embellishing a story, fact or fiction, we stand to gain even greater approval from the crowd.
• Our words can be greatly influenced by our associations. If we associate with negative people, we will find our words becoming more negative than normal.
• Our words can be controlled by our circumstance. When we allow our external factors to disrupt the peace of our inner dimension, we will undoubtedly experience
• Our words can be controlled by our imagination. Whatever we dwell upon in thought, we will speak.
2. What indicates a perfect, or, more accurately stated, a mature man?
A mature person is one who is able to control his words. James tells us that if someone is so disciplined that he is able to control his speech, he is then mature.
The Greek word teleos (perfect) means mature or fully tested.
But the word translated man is not the more common anthropos, but the word aner. Kittel states that in classical Greek, this particular use of the word signifies man as opposed to woman.1 He also states that in the New Testament the word signifies husband.2 Robertson agrees with Kittel and translates the verse as “perfect husband.”3
3. The way to control your body and to avoid its misuse is to control your words.
James likens the proper use of the tongue to the control of a horse. He uses the word “bridle”. In a well-trained horse, a bridle can serve to start, stop, or change a horse’s direction when it is used to exert a small amount of pressure in the horse’s mouth.
• The part of the bridle that is doing the work is not easily visible, but it can dramatically affect the horse’s behavior.
• So too our words. They seem so insignificantly uttered, but they have such great consequences upon us physically, emotionally and spiritually.
“Poverty is a curse from satan. God desires that all His people prosper and be healthy as their soul prospers (3 John 1:2). Yet much of the world has not really seen poverty as I have seen it. Especially in the Third World, people live their lives in despair, struggling to survive for one more day. I am from the Third World. I know first-hand what it is not to have anything to eat. My country was ravaged by the Japanese for many years; then we suffered through two wars. Korea is just now rising up economically. Why?
• “One of the reasons we are succeeding and prospering materially is because we are changing our self-image as a nation. We have to believe that the blessing of God is part of His redemptive provision.
“I then started to see the importance of teaching my people the power and substance of their confession. If we confessed we were poor and created a poor self-image by our confession, we would always be poor and in need of material help and handouts from the West.
But by trusting in God and working very hard, our people were able to lift themselves from the depths of poverty into a place where they could bless the work of God in our country and throughout the world. They had to realize that God is their source, not America not Europe.
• “The main way a people can change their self-image is by carefully using words which are positive and which produce dignity within both the speaker and the hearer.
“Solomon said: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Prov. 18:21)
In surgery, the will of the patient to pull through the operation will have as much to do with the success of the operation as any other external factor. The will of the patient will not only give the patient the ability to stay alive during the operation, but will actually aid in the healing process. That will is affected by what the patient confesses.
• “Age is more than chronology; it is a state of mind. That mind is influenced by the words which are spoken.
• “If words are to convey a mental picture, then we should learn how to visualize the Word of God and try to understand what He (God, the Originator of all things, spoken or realized) sees.
• “Our understanding comes in the area of our imagination. When we picture something in our mind we understand it. That, in essence, is the definition of that thing. The word sound which is uttered may not be able to fully communicate that picture, but the purpose of communication is to convey the picture to someone else as completely as possible.
• “Therefore, we understand that words begin in the mind. We visualize something and we associate a phoneme with it. Words are described by John William Miller as ‘symbols to grasp understanding’. Words therefore reproduce the picture that the speaker is conveying in the mind of the hearer.
• “The word exists in our mind before it is ever spoken. Within the past hundred years many people have been challenged to understand exactly what words are. On of the fathers of modern linguistics, F. de Saussure (a French-Swiss) stated, “The function of language builds upon the complex interplay between objective (physical) and subjective (mental) elements. Sounds, such as physical activities, are employed as symbols of meaning which is what ultimately establishes language as a mental rather than a physical phenomenon.”4 Saussure continues, “Everything in language is basically psychological.”5
• “What Saussure is basically saying is that words are more than what we say. They begin in the mind as thoughts. This is why people who are mutes can use words in sign language. Although they cannot speak, they can communicate ideas by using physical actions which signify understandable words.
• “When we speak, there is a dynamic added to the concept we visualize, for the sound of the word may also add meaning to the word spoken [therefore, we actually compare pre-textual images already imbedded within us with sounds that are coming to us from our outside world - AEM]. In Chinese the same word can have different meanings, depending on the way the word is spoken. The tone that is used and the inflection of the voice lend an added dimension to what is said.
• “But whatever is in control of your words is in control of you! (In James 3:4) James uses the metaphor of a ship’s rudder. Winds, current and sails do not ultimately determine the direction that sailing vessel will go. The direction will be determined by a small rudder which is not seen but which nonetheless exercises great influence. The point that James is making by using these two powerful examples is that whatever is in control of your words will control you.
If you do not bring your words under your control, your life will be lived as a stumbling horse, [powerful, but – AEM] directionless and accomplishing very little. Yet a mature man will make sure that his words are positive and creative. He will not allow himself to be controlled by circumstances, but will control his circumstances because he knows where he is going. He will use his words wisely.”
• “So I have learned to watch my words carefully for I know that other people are listening to me intently.
• The speaker’s importance is an additional factor in his word because of the dimension of the speaker’s authority. The masses in Israel listened to Christ by the hillside and by the lake and they also listened to the priests in the temple. The comparison that they made was that Christ’s words were different, for He spoke as one having authority.
• When someone says something, the authority of the individual will determine the degree to which what he says will be obeyed and remembered. The Roman centurion told Jesus that he understood military principles. He was not worthy that Christ should come under his roof, knowing that a Jew could not defile himself by going into the home of a Gentile. But he said that he was under authority and therefore he exercised authority. Taking for granted the spiritual kingdom of Christ functioned under the same principle as Rome, he then told Christ to simply speak the word and his servant would be healed (Mt. 8:8). Jesus marveled at the Roman’s understanding of spiritual reality, for He had offered to go to his home and had promised the healing. What greater honor could be bestowed on anyone. Yet the centurion knew that only a word (logos [a catalogue of meanings from which to choose – AEM]) was needed for the miracle to take place. He recognized the authority with which Jesus spoke. But when someone has authority, that authority is transmitted by the way in which he speaks [not always by the volume one produces while speaking forth – AEM]
• Those who hear one who is speaking is such a manner [of spiritual authority – AEM] will comprehend the weight of what is spoken, although language may not be used.
I Samuel 2:1 states these words: “And the Lord remembered Hannah”!
Sounds familiar to what was written of another woman named Sarah in Gen.21:1, amen?
Now, why is this phrase so important for you to hear this day?
Because God wants you to know a number of things right now:
• You are about to receive a Divine Visitation!
• Your Days of Internal Frustration by Outside Interference are about to change – Today!
• What you’ve been carrying in faith for years is about to manifest – after this release!
• If God ‘remembered’ Noah and Sarah and Hannah, well now – what about you?
• Your Season Is About To Change – You’re Due For This One!
And God remembered (2142 – zakar, a prim. Root mng. ‘to mark out (so as to be recognized); to be mindful of; to record or recount; also to mention.’ [seen 4x in OT: Gen4:1- Noah; Gen19:29- Abraham; Gen30:22- Rachel].
• When God remembers you, it is a good thing!
• To be remembered by the Lord means that He has chosen to include you in His plans for the future!
• Judges 8:34 states that the children of Israel remembered not the Lord.
• Psalm 45:17 says that the name of the Lord is to be remembered in all generations.
• Psalm 98:3, along with Psalm105:8 and 42 declares God has remembered a number of things: He has remembered His mercy, His Truth, His Covenant and His promises forever!
• God remembers those who never forget Him!
• Israel Houghton and New Breed sang the song: I Am Not Forgotten! But do you believe that for yourself?
This young Samuel was a by-product of his mother’s creative faith!
• His prophetic proclivity came from his mother, not his father.
• She prayed while he was in the womb; therefore, he was released into our world as an intercessor.
• Mother Hannah was a woman of the oral tradition; therefore, young Samuel was raised learning both the oral and written traditions of the Word!
• Hannah found a faith-extending passage for her situation (Gen. 20-21); therefore, Samuel grew up learning how to rightly divide the Word for every situation he encountered!
• Hannah was married to Elkanah and remained with him despite outside interference; Samuel remained a prophet of God in spite of the nation Israel failing God and His commandments!
Lessons To Be Learned From Hannah:
1. Learn to believe God for the impossible – especially when He placed it within your heart!
2. Don’t allow those satanic cluster spirits of oppression, loneliness, manic isolation, vice, retaliation, resentment or suicide to control your life!
3. Find your way into the presence of Almighty God! Make your petition before Him!
4. Determine to focus on the glory and the wonders of His love!
5. Learn to renew covenant with those of like precious faith!
6. Seal your petition with acts of deep love!
MDII: The Stretch of Creative Faith St. Mark 5:25-34
This woman heard of Jesus, took the posture of humility, reached out and touched what her faith challenged her to touch – and she not only received healing, but wholeness and recognition for her stretch of faith!
• How many of us will follow the principles of God’s Word and the prompting of the Holy Spirit – believing Him for greater than whatever you initially starting out believing Him for?
• You see, faith moves, not on the heart of religious folk, but upon the hearts of folks full of faith towards God!
• Fourth-Dimensional folk know how to tap the presence of God! Fourth-Dimensional folk simply believe what God is saying – without complication, without debate, and without excuse!
Faith, in and of itself, has the capacity to conform within whatever environment you dare to place it!
And yet, though your faith is a motivating, occupational transforming force, it yet needs you to release it!
To Stretch means:
• OT [5186] ‘To Prolong, To Cause To Yield by Bending’.
• NT [1614] ‘Ekteino’- ‘To Extend Beyond’.
• The Lord stretched out His hand in the OT; Moses and Aaron did the with the rod of power. In the NT, the man with the withered hand ‘stretched forth his hand “toward Jesus” and received restoration!
• Q: Just how far are we willing to stretch our faith today?
• Q: In what new areas are you willing to believe God for?
Church, It’s Life Application Time!
If you will take the example of Hannah, you will begin to experience transformational shifting in your life!
• Hannah did not wait for her husband to do all of the praying and hoping and expecting and dreaming for her. She took the initiative to investigate the presence of God herself, and found God to all that and more!
• Hannah went far beyond the extent of her expectation – to the very point of making a vow to God to give him something that even she had longed for!
• Hannah made a vow to give to God what she had a desire and a need for:
• Hannah vowed to give to God what should have brought increase to her life!
MDIII: The Sound of Creative Faith St. Matthew 15:21-28
• What sound are you making right now?
• Is everything excellent in your life?
• Do you have all of the desires of your heart right now?
• Is there an area in life that needs God’s immediate attention?
• Then, someone needs to begin crying out the more!
• In I Samuel, the priest attempted to decipher what Hannah spoke privately to God; in St. Matthew, everyone around this mother knew exactly what she came to Jesus for!
• Again, I ask you… What sound are you making right now?
To cry out the more means a number of things:
• My situation is presently greater than my capacity to handle it!
• My struggle to get here qualifies me for an audience with the Master!
• My house is losing future gain due to a present temporary setback!
• The attention gained by crying out is the least of my worries today – I’ve got a generation to save!
• I don’t have anything to lose!
• If I call on Jesus, the least He can do is send a Kingdom Representative to investigate! An ambassador or military captain or somebody!
Altar Ministry:
Oh, if the saints of the Most High God would only lift their voices right now, and cry out unto the God of their salvation, to the God of more than enough.. He would not only hear from heaven, but He will heal their lands!
The sound of creative faith is unique in its utterance, its destination, in its distinction!
• To cry out the more does not mean that you have lost it all, that your circumstance has now become a crisis in your mind.
• No, crying out the more unto God means that something on the inside just clicked; the Holy Ghost just gave you a strategy for getting God’s attention; and, now all you can do is exactly what He is requiring of you – right now!
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