FASTING - REND YOUR HEART

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Joel 2:12-13 (AMP)

“Even now,” says the Lord, “Turn and come to Me with all your heart [in genuine repentance], with fasting and weeping and mourning [until every barrier is removed and the broken fellowship is restored]; 13 Rip your heart to pieces [in sorrow and contrition] and not your garments.” Now return [in repentance] to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving-kindness [faithful to His covenant with His people]; and He relents [His sentence of] evil [when His people genuinely repent].”     

Fasting is very beneficial to Christians but many are not aware of this. During spiritual fasting, the believer's focus is removed from the physical things of this world and intensely concentrated on God. Great men of faith such as Moses, Elijah, Daniel, Paul and Jesus Himself fasted (Daniel 9:3, Mathew 4:2, Exodus 34:28, 1 Kings 19) so that they might draw closer to God. 

Fasting is an exceptional measure designed to express your desire for God and discontent in a fallen world - its a hunger and yearning for God. It is for those not satisfied with the status quo; for those who want more of God's presence; for those who feel truly desperate for God. Fasting, like all other pillars of Christianity isn’t for the self-sufficient and those who feel they have it all together, no, it’s for the poor in spirit, for the meek and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and God's presence.   

Christian fasting means privately and occasionally choosing to go without food for some special period of time, whether a day or three or thirty in view of some specific spiritual purpose. However, there is a problem of how we view fasting today. If the perspective is on abstinence of food, then fasting is some mere duty to perform and only the iron-willed among us can put this discipline into practice, but if we are awakened to see fasting for the joy it can bring, as a means of God’s grace to strengthen and sharpen Godly affections and draw us close to Him, then we will find ourselves holding a powerful pillar for enriching our enjoyment of Jesus. 

The Scriptures include many forms of fasting; personal and communal, public and private, regular and occasional, partial and absolute. Typically, fasting is a Christian’s voluntary abstinence from food for spiritual purposes and these may include;

- Expressing repentance and returning to God (1 Samuel 7:6; Joel 2:13; Jonah 3:5–8)

- Seeking God’s guidance (Judges 20:26; Acts 14:23, Acts 13:1-3)

- Expressing grief (1 Samuel 31:13, 2 Samuel 1:11-12)

- Seeking deliverance or protection (2 Chronicles 20:3-4; Ezra 8:21–23)

- Humbling oneself before God (1 Kings 21:27–29, Psalm 35:13)

- Expressing concern for the work of God (Nehemiah 1:3-4; Daniel 9:1-3)

- Expressing love and worship to God (Luke 2:36-37)

Initiated By The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is in charge of fasting and will usher you into the same just as He led Jesus into the wilderness to fast. Mathew 4:1-2 (NASB) says; 
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.” 

The Holy Spirit is therefore the one to guide you if you are going to fast – when and how many days to do so; thus take note that not every problem is accompanied by fasting. What makes fasting such a core pillar of Christianity is its ability, with the help of the Holy Spirit to focus our feelings and their expression toward God. That is why fasting walks arm in arm with prayer because fasting without prayer is likened to hunger strike. 

If you are going into fasting, the Holy Spirit will guide you and will write the duration of the fast on your heart, because our heart is like a writing board. In the Old Testament, God wrote the Ten Commandments on stone tablets and gave them to Moses, however, Moses had anger issues and when he came down from the mountain, and saw what people had done, he was enraged and threw down the stone tablets smashing them at the foot of the mountain (Exodus 32:19). But prophet Jeremiah prophesied of a new covenant where God will write His laws on our hearts. Jeremiah 31:33 (GNT) says; 

“The new covenant that I will make with the people of Israel will be this: I will put my law within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” 

Your heart is a board where the Holy Spirit writes His instructions and you can sense it once He does so by way of conviction.

Heart vs. Mind

If God is to work through you, He does not communicate to your mind but your heart; that is why when God puts a message on your heart and you start to consult people or your mind, you end up making excuses which results in disobedience. Giving excuses is the first step to disobedience and disobedience gives birth to rebellion which is likened to a sin of witchcraft (1 Samuel 15:23). 

The mind is always doubtful of God’s word, however, we should remember that God’s ways are not our ways and His plans are not our plans; which is why you should not let your mind lead you astray: So because of the corruptness of the mind, God chose to dwell in the heart and not the mind (Ephesians 3:17). When God ministers to you it is through the heart and you should make no mistake to consult the mind. The mind only supplements after you already know what you need to do; it is not the planner but it helps you during execution. 

Whenever God speaks and you simply obey, you will eat the good of the land – obedience unlocks blessings. The bible says in Isaiah 1:18-19 (NIV) that; 

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord.“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
 19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land.”  

If you want to eat the good of the land, you have got to be obedient by heeding the conviction of the Holy Spirit in your heart because whenever God plans to speak to you, he will use your heart not mind. The devil however, is in the world and whenever he wants to confuse you, he uses the eyes and the ears; he causes you to focus on facts - either your history or current situation; you tend to only see tough situations, discouraging delays, impossibilities, gigantic challenges and, past failures and you end up afraid and terrified. For the devil also uses fear to distract and enslave people, but with faith in God and His word we know we can have a victorious and purposeful future, but where the devil uses fear and facts, God counters with faith and truth respectively

Fasting Changes You, It Doesn't Change God!

When we announce a period of fasting, the focus should be on realigning our lives to God, and to practice the other pillars of Christianity which include; prayer, reading the bible, fellowship, praise, worship and giving. Fasting does not change God; it changes you, because God changes not; for He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6). Fasting is not the price for what you want. What you want was already paid for at Calvary. Jesus paid it all, but it prepares you for a blessing - it puts you in the right position to see God. 

That burn in your throat; that rolling fire in your belly demanding that you feed it more food, signals fasting as a means of grace. Not until we voluntarily embrace the pain of an empty stomach do we see how much our bellies have become idols; but in that gnawing ache of growing hunger is the engine of fasting, generating the reminder to bend our craving for food towards God and enhance a thirst for Jesus - its saying, this much, I need you God. 

Rend Your Heart

Joel 2:13 (NLT)  
“Don't tear your clothing in grief, but tear your heart instead……..”

Tearing of clothes was a sign of fasting done by the Israelites in those days. They would tear their linen robes and put on sackcloth made of goatskin as a constant reminder of their fasting. The prophet urged them to rend or tear their hearts not clothing because the custom of tearing clothes had been turned into a religious affair; they would tear their clothes, but their hearts were not repentant. In the period of fasting God expects you to examine your heart – ways, thoughts, character and motive and repent of anything that He hates.

Some religions tend to observe righteous acts during their fasting period; they endeavor to lead a life of good acts during that period as if it’s the way to heaven but immediately after that period, they turn back to their wicked ways. Jesus said in John 14:6 (NKJV) that; 
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  

We are not saved by good acts, we are saved for good acts – to do the will of God; we are saved by accepting Jesus as our Lord and personal Saviour and He only is our one way ticket to heaven. For heaven is not the default afterlife destination of every human being except those that become born-again. Jesus taught us in Matthew 5:20 (AMP) that; 

“For I say to you that unless your righteousness (uprightness, moral essence) is more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  

Your righteousness – right standing with God, should not be periodical but thorough all your life. You should not be standing right with God only during the fasting period but this period should help you to grower spiritually, stand firm and strong in your salvation and draw closer to God.

Examine Yourself

2 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV)  
“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?”

During fasting, you must change, but how do you change? No one knows you better than yourself and no one can look into your heart apart from God. You will change not if you don’t examine self and that is why during this period one must desire to change – tear your heart and repent of your sins and transgressions. In knowing yourself, God desires for you to fully surrender all that which is not upright so that He can give you the strength and grace to stand in Salvation; fasting helps you to streamline your spiritual life.

As we fast, we not only repent of our sins but put in place everything else that is distorted spiritually because when the devil comes to steal, he doesn’t steal all at once, but one thing at a time; he may steal your faith and prayer life and leave you with other pillars like fellowship, fasting and giving; therefore your life must be all balanced, you must check your and ensure that devil has no foothold in your life.

The pillar of fasting requires us to repent of our sins, and re-examine that which has put you away from the first love (Isaiah 58:3-8). What had deteriorated within you? Was it reading the bible? Was it praying? Or was it giving? Jesus told the Jews in Matthew 15:8-9 (NIV) that; 
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules” 

God honours heart service not lip service, thus tear your heart and remove all that is unrighteous; repent of whatever had chased away the Holy Spirit so that you can have the presence of God back in your life, and as you do so with a repentant heart, you will draw close to God. James 4:8 (AMP) says; 
“Come close to God [with a contrite heart] and He will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; and purify your [unfaithful] hearts, you double-minded [people].”  

When you have given your life to Christ and, He demands of any pillars such as; fasting for a particular number of days and when he does, you should be able to do so without grumbling. The Salvation life is a life of obedience not convenience; we do as instructed by the Holy Spirit even when it’s not convenient for us. It’s about dedicating and fully surrendering your life to Jesus – for when you give your life, that’s when you find it and, when you stop obsessing over what you want, that’s when you can find what you purposefully need.   

In this period of fasting, tear your heart, fully surrender your life to God (not parts of your life) and seek him wholeheartedly because when we draw close to Him, He will also draw close to you (James 4:8-10).

CONQUERING ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

1 Peter 5:7 (AMP)

 “Casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully].”

Anxiety and depression are some of the core mental conditions or vices that are increasingly eating up this generation. They are part of the new deadly weapons that the devil is using to sidetrack Christians. While the two conditions are different, their symptoms and causes often overlap. This is because many people with anxiety often slip into depression and vice versa.

Anxiety is the intense, excessive, persistent worry and fear about everyday life. It is often characterized by an unpleasant state of mental uneasiness, hopelessness, nervousness, apprehension and concern about some uncertain event. Depression on the other hand is a mental health disorder; it is characterized by a state of the mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life, inability to visualize a happy future, feeling severe discouragement, despair, loss of interest in activities and hopelessness. 

When we worry, it leads to a state of anxiety or depression. In the bible days, people used to worry about food, drinks and clothing, but in this era, people often worry about; - basic needs, family and career - all summed up by social status and way of livelihood, and this opens a door to anxiety and depression.

Root Cause of Anxiety

In Matthew 6:25-34 (ESV), Jesus urges us not to be anxious:

“Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?............”

What is the root cause of anxiety? To answer that we go to our scripture in Matthew 6 above. Four times Jesus urges us that we should not be anxious.

Matthew 6:25 (ESV) “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life.”

Matthew 6:27 (ESV) “And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life?”

Matthew 6:31 (ESV) “Therefore do not be anxious saying, ‘What shall we eat?”

Matthew 6:34 (ESV) “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.”

The verse that tells us about the root cause of anxiety is Mathew 6:30 – “O you of little faith”. In other words, Jesus says that the root of anxiety is lack of faith in our heavenly Father. When unbelief gets the upper hand in our hearts and minds, the outcome is anxiety.

So, when Hebrews 3:12 (KJV) says; “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” This can be translated: 'Take heed lest there be in you an anxious heart of unbelief.' Anxiety is one of the evil conditions of the heart that comes from unbelief. Anxiety comes from lack faith - the root cause of anxiety is unbelief in the living God and His word.

There are number of sinful actions and attitudes that are born by anxiety. For example, anxiety about finances can give rise to greed and thieving; anxiety about succeeding at some task can make you irritable and corrupt; anxiety about relationships can make you withdrawn, indifferent and uncaring about other people; anxiety about seeking people's approval can make you cover the truth and lie about things. When you conquer anxiety, you overcome a lot of sins as well.

God however commands us not to worry about anything. The birds of the air have no bank accounts (barns) or savings set aside for unpredictable circumstances yet our heavenly Father feeds them. Jesus says in Matthew 10:29-31 (NIV) that;

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."

You are of more great value than the birds; God will not permit you to see shame and lack, (Psalm 34:10), so worry not because God who started a good work in you will see it to completion

Spirit and Truth

Psalm 56:3 (AMP) says, “When I am afraid, I will put my trust and faith in you.”

The Psalmist does not say, ‘I never struggle with fear or anxiety.’ Anxiety, depression and fear will seldom strike, so the bible does not say that believers will have no anxieties, but instead it teaches us how to fight when they raid.

1 Peter 5:7 above does not say, you will never feel any anxieties. It says when you have them, cast them upon the Lord. For example, when a running vehicle passes you by on a rainy murram road like our current Kasangati-Matugga road and splashes dirty muddy water on your windscreen, you momentarily lose visual sight ahead. This brings about anxiety and you even slowdown, however, you don’t stop but you turn on the wipers and clean your windscreen till you gain clear sight ahead. The same happens with anxiety, it blinds the eyes of your understanding, chokes your faith and prevents you from remembering God’s word, promises and good plans He has for you ahead

So, the response to a Christian who is dealing with anxiety or depression is that, don’t give up but fight a good fight (2 Tim 4:7). How? We fight anxieties by fighting against unbelief and fighting for faith in Grace and promises (1 Tim 6:12); and the way you fight this good fight is by meditating on God’s Word - assurances and promises, and asking for guidance of the Holy Spirit. The windscreen wipers are the promises of God (Rhema Word) that clear away the blinding dirt of anxiety and unbelief and; the windscreen washing liquid is the revelation and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The fight to be freed from anxiety and depression is fought by dwelling in the presence of Holy Spirit and having faith in the truth - Word of God: For the word of God is the truth (John 17:17) and when you know it and cling onto it, it sets you free from the prison of anxiety (John 8:32). 2 Thessalonians 2:13 (NIV) says;

“God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.”

The work of the Holy Spirit and faith in the truth are fundamental in conquering anxiety. And without the revelation and guidance of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26, John 16:13), the wipers – promises of God will just rub over the blinding dirt of fear and anxiety on the windscreen.

Both the Spirit and the word are necessary in the quest to overcome anxiety; and as we read or meditate on the word of God, we also pray for the guidance of the Spirit; and as the windscreen clears, only then can we see the good plans that God has for us (Jeremiah29:11), and as a result, our faith grows stronger and the blinding dirt of anxiety is washed away.

Why is the Spirit essential? The bible says in 2 Corinthians 3:6 (NIV) that: “For the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.” For you need revelation behind the truth or word of God. There is a difference between information, memorizing and revelation. Revelation is from the Holy Spirit and comes with deeper understanding of the word of God. 

And assuredly anxiety is conquered by the truth - word of God because when you know the truth (John 8:32), it sets you free from the bondage of anxiety and depression. Additionally, if the Holy Spirit dwells within, there is no room for anxiety because where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17)

How to Deal with Anxiety and Depression

- Attend Church regularly. Every time you attend church or fellowship, you are serviced. The word of God shared comforts and counsels you. The miracles that happen and testimonies that we hear in church lift us and propel us to the next level without fainting (Isaiah40:3)

- Have hope and maintain a positive attitude. Your tomorrow will be better than today. There is a solution to every problem. No problem or condition is permanent, so no matter what you are facing today, it will come to an end tomorrow. Replace negative thoughts with positive ones - count your blessings not your problems

- Develop your hobbies: Visit new places, take a holiday trip with your favorite people.

- Seek help and counsel from your pastors, family, friends and medical personnel. Talk to them about your worries and things that have overwhelmed you. Don't isolate, lest you will be consumed by worry

- Get involved. Volunteer or find another way to be active in your community or church which creates a support network and gives you a break from everyday stress.

- Exercise daily to help you clear your mind and maintain your health. For example, take long walks, jog or workout. Depression takes a toll on your body but exercise helps to relieve a lot of it

- Accept that you can’t control everything but rather cast your burden on the Lord (Psalms 55:22). Don't try to fix the unfixable or do the undoable. Let go and let God take charge

- Lastly but most importantly, pray and pray. If you call upon the Lord in prayer (Romans 10:13, Lamentations3:58), He will rescue you from the pits of anxiety and depression. Prayer is the key to escaping the snare of sinful anxiety. Don’t listen to your anxieties, and don’t talk back to them, but direct your talk to God and cast all your anxieties and worries unto Him because only he can take care of them. Philippians 4:6-7 (AMP) says;

"Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything [every circumstance and situation] by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your [specific] requests known to God. 7 And the peace of God [that peace which reassures the heart, that peace] which transcends all understanding, [that peace which] stands guard over your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus [is yours]."

Jesus stepped into this troubled world, where man’s utmost efforts to ensure safety are decidedly defeated by death but with His authority, He commands everyone who believes in him that; "do not be anxious about your life” - Luke 12:22 (ESV). 
In Jesus we are assured of victory and establishment because; - “For all of God's promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding "Yes!" And through Christ, our "Amen" (which means "Yes") ascends to God for his glory” - 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NLT); and this assurance is the antidote to all the looming anxiety.

What Jesus accomplished for us and promises us is the ultimate triumph over all anxiety, depression and concerns. Remember God does not promise us escape from anxiety in this world, but He promises that He will redeem every bit of it (Romans 8:28), and that in Him we will overcome the tribulations of the world (John 16:33; Romans 8:35–39).

2019 - A YEAR OF REMEMBRANCE AND REWARD

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Malachi 3:14 -17 (AMP)

“You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God. What profit is it if we keep His ordinances, and walk around like mourners before the Lord of hosts? 15 So now we call the arrogant happy and blessed. Evildoers are exalted and prosper; and when they test God, they escape [unpunished].’”16 Then those who feared the Lord [with awe-filled reverence] spoke to one another; and the Lord paid attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him of those who fear the Lord [with an attitude of reverence and respect] and who esteem His name. 17 “They will be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts, “on that day when I publicly recognize them and openly declare them to be My own possession [that is, My very special treasure]. And I will have compassion on them and spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.” 

At the end of every year I stand before you to deliver the Rhema Word for the New Year and when I speak, I do not speak from my wisdom or understanding but from what God tells me.

Apart from rejoicing for the New Year and enjoying fireworks scenery, there is something God is going to do. God is a God of seasons and when the right time is due, he reveals his plans to his servants (Amos 3:7) who then proclaim what they have been told. Our God changes not (Malachi 3:6) and he does not slumber (Ps 121:2-4); and because God is for you, you will not die but live and tell of His works (Ps 118:17)

2019 is a year of remembrance and reward! God has heard our prayers, seen our tears and received our sacrifice. He is going to reward people because of their works and, show others that serving God is not in vain. This is the year that God is going to remember and reward all those that have been faithfully seeking and serving him. You will see God at work in your life and you will testify of his goodness and faithfulness.

From the scripture above we can see that believers served the Lord but their lives were in shambles to the effect that they complained harshly to the Lord; sometimes when we evaluate ourselves in relation to those who do not seek or serve the Lord, we see that they are far off better off than us. Such questions run through our minds, like: Do we minister in vain? Do we fast in vain? Do we sacrifice in vain? Do we spend nights seeking the Lord in vain? Is our rightful walk with the Lord a waste?

The Lord of Salvation heard their complaints and a book of remembrance was written before him. There are various books in heaven like the book of life (Rev 20:15). As believers, we have a duty to continuously remind God (Isaiah62:6), because when you remind God, you put him in remembrance of his promises.

God has timelines and when the right time comes, he sermons the book of remembrance, and that time is now. So for everyone who served God wholeheartedly; everyone who prayed faithfully; everyone who sought him diligently and relentlessly, the book of remembrance is going to be opened and you are going to be rewarded.

If you are a person with faith, be expectant, prepare and get ready for your reward – there is no seed sown that died; there is no prayer that was not heard; there is no service that was in vain. There are a couple of things we have done for a long  time like helping the poor, preaching the gospel, serving and ministering in all ways; for the time has come for you to harvest and be rewarded because God never forgets His people. The faith you kept and the trust you have was not a waste

God is also going to heal people greatly this year - there is healing anointing and its already evident in this ministry; many people have been healed and more are going to come and God is going to heal them of incurable diseases. 

God is going to distinguish between those who serve Him and those that do not. You might have thought that God forgot all about you but that’s not the case; God forgets not his people, but he works at the right time. The bible says in 1 Peter 5:6 (NLT) that; “So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honour”. 
At the right time not your desired time is when God descends to deal with you; at the right time God will lift you up in honour. That's why your heart should endure and hands be strong until the time when God deals with you. 

Your time of harvest and reward has come, for the Lord has remembered his people. May you standstill to enjoy the goodness of the Lord in the year 2019. 
Happy New Year!!!

SPEAK TO THE SITUATION

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Psalms 8:4-6 (NJKV) 

”What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? [5] For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honour. [6] You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet. ”

Created to Reign
After God created man in His own image or likeness, He gave him dominion (supreme authority) to reign over all other creatures (Genesis 1:26). You can therefore speak to any situation or creature as long as you speak in Jesus’ name. You can command your sterile hens to lay eggs, that barren tree to bear fruit, your bank account to appreciate or your brittle hair to grow. When you do that, it means you have discovered yourself in the Lord. You have to discover your position in God - who you are and what you can do; for God is the creator and He placed you on this planet to reign. We reign together with Christ. God didn’t just create you to govern your home but to have dominion over creatures and the surrounding. How do you do it? You use your mouth. There is authority in your mouth that can transform a situation (Prov 18:21). 

Power of Declaration
Apart from praying to God, take another leap of faith and speak to the surrounding or situation in your life, command it to be what you want it to be. Sometime back, I had a mini fridge which could no longer absorb my increasing family, so whenever I passed-by it in the house, I commanded it to vacate and be replaced by a bigger one. I had no money but I kept on declaring a better fridge (Job 22:28). One evening as I was coming from church, someone gave me a call informing me that he had dropped something for me at home. On getting home, I was greeted by a large double-door bottom freezer on my porch. I never prayed, but only spoke and commanded the fridge to vacate and be replaced by a better one; same thing I did with my previous barren avocado tree, I spoke to it and it flowered.

You can use your mouth to have dominion over the world around you. There is power in confession and declaring. The mouth can bind and bless you at the same time. God created this world by speaking (Genesis 1), its only man that was molded by God. Genesis 1:26 – “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 

The material used to manufacture something is the same material used to revamp it. The raw material used to manufacture the world is the word of God. That is why you need to store the word of God in your heart so that it becomes part of your life. The bible says in Proverbs 119:11 (ESV) that; “I have stored up your word in my heart…….” 

When you see something not going right in your life or around you, speak to it. From the time you became born-again, creatures obey you when you speak, but you must be speak recurrently because things of God require diligence. We must be diligent in praying, fellowshipping, reading the word and also speaking to negative situations. We reign with words - by declaring what we want to see; words have power and they create. If you confess negatively, you create negativity and vice versa.

In the bible, Jesus spoke to; 

1.      Demons. Mathew 8:28-32 – “When He had come to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two demon-possessed men, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one could pass that way. 29 And suddenly they cried out, saying, “What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time …....32 And He said to them, “Go.” So when they had come out, they went into the herd of swine. And suddenly the whole herd of swine ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and perished in the water.”

2.      His Father. Luke 6:12 – “Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God”

3.      Situations. Mark 4:39 – “Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said, ‘peace, be still’ and the wind ceased and there was a great calm.”

4.      Nature. Mathew 21:18-19 - ”Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.”

Terms and Conditions
There is authority in your mouth. Everything beneath you means you reign over it. All things mentioned during creation (Genesis 1:26-30), are under our feet and we have dominion over them. Everything you desire can happen if you believe and declare to see it forth. You can speak to God, satan, situations and nature just like Jesus did. Who can speak or command and it happens? You, who is in the image of God - born-again. The sign that shows one is born-again is the Holy Spirit; that’s how God can uniquely identify His children. 

How can you know that you have the Holy Spirit?

• When you have peace in your heart. The peace Jesus gives isn’t concerned with the surrounding situation. Jesus said in John 14:27 - “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”  His peace is unconditional. You may be highly in debt or in lack but with a full measure of peace in your heart which yields joy. 2 Corinthians 3:17 says; “Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
• You sin, and peace within your heart departs. When you sin and feel peace has departed, and you feel the conviction to repent, know that you still possess the Holy Spirit. However, when you sin and feel no conviction, just know he is no longer in you. Such people become comfortable with sin; they no longer fear God but fear people seeing them in disgraceful situations.
• When you feel a soft-still voice talking to you, especially in your daily life. That voice is always opposed by your reasoning. For example, you might be about to take breakfast and the voice tells you to fast. It always speaks once and from the heart; but at times your mind tries to contradict it by giving excuses. The more you delay to execute that command, peace and joy departs until you obey. That’s the Holy Spirit at work not your conscience.

When you have the Holy Spirit, you don’t do things (give, pray or minister) as you desire but as you are instructed. When you obey, you pay the price for what you want. The price is not fasting 40 days and nights. For God to grant you the desires of your heart, you have to be obedient. When He tells you something, He isn’t suggesting, but commanding – a king’s request is a command. When the Holy Spirit tells you to fast or give something, He isn’t requesting but commanding, and when you obey, you are paying a price.  The bible says in Isaiah 1:19 “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land” 

You want to transform the surrounding environment and situations in your life, speak to them. But who is going to speak with authority for things to change? A child of God. Who is a child of God? One who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour and then filled with the Holy Spirit