Tag Archives: praise

How to Position Your Life in the Greatness of God

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13339549_1187097144686724_6693058996771599785_n“The LORD reigns, he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed in majesty and is armed with strength. The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved. Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity. The seas have lifted up, O LORD, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea – the LORD on high is mighty” (Psalm 93:1-4).

God promises us an abundant life, but we can’t have abundance unless we position ourself in the greatness of God. The Bible says that without a vision the people perish (Proverbs 29:18). We must have a vision of the greatness of God and pray to be God-focused rather than self-focused. If we are God-focused we can walk in true freedom. Then we can walk every day with a greater vision of what God is like, what He is saying, and what He can do.

The truth is that we are a desperate people. I became a Christian when I was 18 years old. Before that time God seemed so far away and out of reach, but I was hungry to find truth. I knew there was a purpose to life and that I would find it someday. I searched for three long years and became quite desperate to find the answer to life. Finally through reading a Bible given to me, I found the truth that set me free. Jesus was my answer. The end of myself was the beginning of God. This is true of each one of us who know God personally. This is where we started and where we must live every day. We don’t have it all together but God does.

God loves to answer desperate prayers. Psalm 60:3 says, “You have shown your people desperate times.” Have you noticed in your personal life that when you pray desperate prayers, the answer often comes quickly? We read in Psalm 79:8, “May your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need.” God wants us to live in that place of dependence. We can’t live a day without Him. When we were first saved we came to Him weak and vulnerable, and it’s still the same today. We all struggle with life. I heard it said that we are either entering a trial or coming out of one. But right in the midst of our trials, He wants to give us an abundant life.

God wants to position you in the greatness of God. He wants to give you a new belief and expression of the power of prayer in your own life. He wants to give you a new freedom in your walk with Him. God is preparing you. He wants to impart to you new life. His training is supernatural training. You and I are in the process of becoming. We are changed from glory to glory as we grow into a Christ-like person.

In 1994 my husband Norman and I came back from the mission field, and God put us on the backside of the desert for several years. I said to God, “Lord, if you don’t pull us through, we are bankrupt. We have no second plan. We left and burned all our bridges behind us when we went on the mission field.” But in the dark night as we desperately sought Him, we found God. I came out of that desert leaning on God. In that quiet place I received a greater vision of Who He is and a stronger belief in the power of prayer. God brought me into a new dimension of victory.

Are you desperate today in some area of your life? Do you have questions where there are no answers but God? He uses ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances to show His mighty power. When you are desperate, you are in the prime place to shift into the greatness of God. Your impossibility opens the way for the possibilities of God – the very God who is greater than the universe and greater than every obstacle you may be facing. Desperation opens the way for the greatness of God.

You may have lost your hope and think that there is no one who understands your situation. God understands. The Bible is full of hope. Here are just a few verses:

  • Psalm 25:3  – “No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame.”
  • Psalm 130:5 – “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.”
  • Isaiah 40:31 – “but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
  • Jeremiah 29:11 – “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
  • Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
  • Proverbs 23:18 – “There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.”
  • Lamentations 3:21-22 – “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.”

Norman collects tools to fix things broken in our house in order to help us live in our home with greater ease. Today I want to give you some tools to help you to walk in a greater position of victory. These are tools to teach you how to face life in difficult days. There is incredible freedom available for us in spite of all that we are facing in our changing world. These tools will help change your outlook on your life challenges. God is in the process of training us for reigning through the very difficulties that we face every day.

Positioning Yourself in God’s Greatness

“God is big enough to take care of your smallest need.” 

How are you looking at life? Do you see the greatness of God in the midst of it all? Open your heart to the great God who is with you and can take care of your smallest need. May these practical steps help unlock the treasure chest of God inside of you. Apply these tools wholeheartedly and with all diligence in your life:

  • Speak life words over your circumstances – There is power in the tongue. Break the power of hopelessness by speaking life words rather than death words. Pray the above verses of hope over your life. Put your name in the verses.
  • Ask God for a great vision of who He is – Ask Him to help you walk in a new level of trust. Study and meditate on verses in the Bible about the greatness of God. Pray verse by verse Psalm 145 back to Him in your own words. It’s a Psalm of praise by King David about the greatness of God.
  • Praise God for His greatness and splendor – Do it even if you don’t feel like it. There is enormous power in a thankful heart. Rise to a new dimension of praise and thankfulness to God. Praise the attributes of God from A to Z (i.e. “I praise and glorify you because You are Almighty,” “You are Beautiful,” “You are the Creator of the Universe,” “You are my Deliverer,” etc.).
  • Position yourself for victory – There is a new way of looking at life. We have been shifting into the end-time season. We have to choose to align with God, to step out of our comfort zone, and make his presence our central theme. Consciously think of God during the day. Talk to Him in the midst of your activities.
  • Start a prayer journal – Let God speak to you and write down what He says. Write crafted prayers to Him that you can pray over and over again. Use Scripture in your prayers that proclaim God’s greatness; Psalm 93, 96, and 98 to name a few.

In your daily life pray against hopelessness, lack of vision, and dampened dreams. Pray that the Church rises up with a new vision of Who God is and what He can do. Rise up to an abundant life, to a greater vision of God, and a new perspective of being the victorious end-time Church.

Position yourself for victory – Position yourself in worship and thankfulness to God – Position yourself in positive speech.

Right now thank God for the most difficult thing in your life. Thank Him that he will use it for your good. When you get down about a situation in your life, think deeply about the God who lives inside of you. Is anything too hard for God? Is He not your conquering King, the Great I Am? In your desperate situation, is not your hand in the hand of the Almighty One who is on your side and who can do all things on your behalf?

 “I will extol You, my God, O King; and I will bless Your name forever and ever… Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts. I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on Your wondrous works. Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts, and I will declare Your greatness…

All Your works shall praise You, O Lord, and Your saints shall bless You. They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom, and talk of Your power, to make known to the sons of men His mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of His kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures throughout all generations… The Lord is righteous in all His ways, gracious in all His works. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth… My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord, and all flesh shall bless His holy name forever and ever” (Psalm 145:1, 3-6, 10-13, 17-18, 21).

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
International House of Prayer Kansas City (IHOPKC)
deb@intercessorsarise.org

The Power of Encouragement

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12392004_1073333009396472_8317351932599636537_n“Let no foul or polluting language, nor evil word nor unwholesome or worthless talk (ever) come out of your mouth, but only such (speech) as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others, as is fitting to the need and the occasion, that it may be a blessing and give grace (God’s favor) to those who hear it” (Ephesians 4:29, Amplified).

Someone has once said, “Be kind to everyone for everyone is going through some kind of battle.” This is so true because we all are going through various battles in life. If we are not in a present battle, we are either entering one or coming out of one. The days are getting more difficult in the world, and we must do everything we can to support and encouragement one another along the way. We read in Hebrews 10:25, “but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” A positive word of encouragement can make a huge difference. There have been times of difficulty when a simple word of encouragement changed my whole perspective on my situation.

We all know how deeply we long for others to encourage us. But let us be the ones to lift the burdens of another through a simple word of encouragement. The word “encourage” in Webster’s Dictionary means: “to give or increase confidence of success; to inspire with courage, spirit, or strength of mind, to embolden, to incite, to inspirit.” We need to represent Jesus Christ to others by increasing the confidence and courage in them to do great things for God. Just as He is our refuge and our tower of strength, we need to be a safe and encouraging place for others.

In looking at the whole need of encouragement, we first need to realize the power there is in the tongue. Proverbs 18:21 says, “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.” We all have problems with the tongue. We often are not tongue conscious, and instead of inspiring others with courage, we may bring great discourage with our words. It takes a baby 2 years to learn to talk and 60 years to learn to keep his mouth shut! If you filled a library with a lifetime of your words, what would be the titles of the books in it? Our tongues have potential to build up or cause destruction.

The Bible speaks much about the tongue. The book of Proverbs speaks of both the evil and good side of the tongue. Tongue, lips, mouth and words appear 150 times in Proverbs. James 3:1-12 speaks with greatest authority and impact on the subject of the evil side of the tongue. James compares the tongue with the rudder on a ship. It has a powerful influence. A rudder on a ship, though small, steers a ship to its destiny. We lived on a ship for years, and I am amazed at how that small rudder steered our ship all over the world. James also speaks of the tongue as like a fire’s spark which can set a whole forest on fire!

“Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark” (James 3:4-5).

God wants us to stimulate others to love and good deeds. He wants us to use our tongue to edify and build up, to encourage and set free. The purpose of our life is to be a blessing to others. Most people are afraid, especially now with the threat of terrorism and the increase in natural disasters. We live in a fallen world. Those who are serving God in the nations know that the spiritual battle is not easy. Instead of pulling one another down, let us help each other to really live for Christ in a greater way. We can do this in a number of ways – wise counsel and advise, spiritual exhortation, encouragement, comfort, etc. We need to learn to tame our tongue, so that blessing can flow to others freely and unhindered.

How can we tame our tongue?

“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Proverbs 25:11).

  • Acknowledge your dependence on God – You cannot control your tongue yourself. You need to ask God for help. Even David had difficulty in controlling his tongue. See Psalm 39:1-3.
  • Admit and confess sins of the tongue – We need to admit the sins of the tongue. We need to come into the presence of God, and ask Him to reveal any sin areas in our speech. God promises to forgive us. See I John 1:9.
  • Be sensitive in your speech towards others – Think before you speak. Ask God to give you sensitivity towards others and alert you to negative speech even before you say it. The tongue is the showcase of the heart. See Ephesians 4:29.
  • Fill your mind with Scripture on a daily basis – What we feed into our spirit, comes out of our mouths. If we fill our minds with God’s Word, we can better help and encourage one another. God’s Word can judge the thoughts and attitudes of our heart. See Hebrews 4:12.
  • Don’t listen to negative speech or gossip – It will only bring you down and tempt you to sin in your speech as well. Gossip hurts deeply and is a snare. See Proverbs 18:7-8.
  • Cultivate the art of listening to others – Many of us are good talkers but not good listeners. We need to cultivate the art of listening carefully to others. The Bible says that we should be quick to listen and slow to speak. See James 1:19.
  • Spend time in praise and thanksgiving to God – Spending lots of time in praise and thanksgiving puts us into the atmosphere of encouragement. We then become more heavenly minded with a greater ability to bless others in our speech. See Psalm 50:23.
  • Think of ways you can build others up with words of life – We must consider and give attention to how we can stimulate others to love and good deeds. By nature we are self-focused, but God wants to make us other-focused. See Hebrews 10:25.

“An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up” (Proverbs 10:25)

I exhort you to make it a point to encourage others through your speech this month. Whether it is through a telephone call, writing a note or e-mail, or through verbal words, make a conscious effort to put courage into others. Consider and give attention to how you will do this. It does not come naturally for most of us. Some of you may need a breakthrough in your life regarding your future. Taming your tongue and using it to bless and encourage others could open the way for God to bring you to the next level in your walk with Him and your future ministry. Study how you will stir up and stimulate others to love and good deeds. You may be surprised, because often when we encourage others, we ourselves are encouraged.

“And let and give attention, continuous care to watching over one another, studying how we may stir up (stimulate and incite) to love and helpful deeds and noble activities” (Hebrews 10:25).

By Debbie Przybylski
Intercessors Arise International
IHOPKC