Are you addicted to Christ?

Summary

Picture courtesy of Aaron Burden. You can find his work on the Unsplash website .

Are you addicted to Christ? (Identification Part 2)

Can you get addicted to Christ? It is possible. When we hear the word addictions, we tend to think of the worse, but addiction can be healthy. Webster’s dictionary defines it as a solid inclination to repeatedly do, use or indulge in something (whether good or bad). The Bible mentions the word addiction.

Look at the following verse below–

I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,) (I Cor 16:15 KJV)

Addiction will make you a prisoner of whatever you give yourself (Good or bad). The Apostle Paul was a prime example. We see him mentioned as a prisoner of the Lord three different times. ( Philemon 1:1,9, Eph 3:1) Locked up in a dungeon, he commanded his disciples to rejoice. He did not allow the circumstances in his life to dictate his joy.

You and I need to be a prisoner of the Lord. Where does it start? With our mindset, when we start arresting our thoughts. Did you know that we can have upwards of 6200 thoughts in our minds? That is a tall order, but it can be done with the help of the Holy Spirit. When you begin to monitor your mind, your soul will start to prosper, and a whole world of blessings awaits you. Let’s pray the following prayer—

Father, thank you for speaking to me. Forgive me when my thoughts have grieved you, Holy Spirit. Please help me to monitor my thoughts. Give me the mind of Christ today. I have the mind of Christ. I love righteousness and hate iniquity. My mind is the mind of Christ. The joy of the Lord is upon me, and I receive his strength. Thank you for giving me the victory today. Thank you for giving me wisdom for every problem that I may encounter. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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Identification–Part 1

Greetings. Today we are starting our series on praying the word series. We are going to read, study and meditate on some verses. Let’s start with the following verse below—


Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16)

As you read and study this verse above, check out the different translations on Bible Gateway. Eating the word spiritually is so important. It serves a two-fold purpose. First, your mind is purified. The mind is the filter that is connected to your spirit. How do we eat the word? By confessing God’s word and letting our ears hear it. Words are important. They help form images that can benefit or hurt our spirit.

Second, it helps builds our faith. As we hear the word, it will build our faith. It will help create an image that will help us get powerful answers to prayers. Having this in mind, let’s look at the following verse below. We are going to pray the word today, so pay attention—


But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: (I Cor 1:30)

Ready to pray? Let’s go–Father, I thank you for your words. They are a delight and joy to me. I am your sheep, and I hear your voice. Christ lives in me. The Holy Spirit is inside of me. I have a genius inside of me, and I will not fear. No problem is bigger than the one who lives in me. I will not let life’s problems get me down because I was born to be a problem solver. I have the greater one inside of me who gives me the answer. I am destined to win. Thank you, in advance, for the victory…In Jesus’s name.

Join us as we pray for you…https://bit.ly/3Lsyd7y

The Prayer Zone

Summary

[We do not own the rights nor copyright of the worship song in the podcast.]

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. (Ps 100:4) The gates of heaven open when we pray with thanksgiving. It is time to enter the Prayer Zone!

How would you like to have a piece of heaven on Earth? As you look at this picture, I want you to picture yourself under an open heaven. Did you know that when you pray, you are entering heaven? Heaven’s gates will open to you as you give the Lord thanks for what he has done to you. As you do this, you will enter the Prayer Zone!

When I was a kid growing up in New York, my family would watch the Twilight zone. A series of stories that were filled with mysteries. At the end of the program, I would get scared at seeing how these episodes ended. Now, I am in a far better dimension- A dimension of prayer. A dimension of signs and wonders. A dimension where wisdom is found. My next stop is the Prayer zone.

As I grew older and accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I discovered that I could change my destiny. I was destined for a burning hell, but my decision to accept Christ changed everything. Now, I am a citizen of God’s kingdom. No longer do I have to worry about life’s most challenging problems, because I have the mind of Christ.

These are perilous times. The body of Christ cannot allow the luxury of distractions to sidetrack its purpose. With today’s technology and entertainment, it is easy to be distracted. These obstacles can make us comfortable and lose sight of God’s purpose in our lives. Let’s look at the following verse–

Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came! (Amos 6:1)

Amid the coming judgment, Israel was at ease. The mountains of Samaria were fortified and well built for battle. The people had drawn away from God, being swayed by their prosperity and safety. We are no different. God is calling his church to prepare. To prepare to examine their hearts and get right with God.

Many in the body need to find their calling. Others need to shake off the ease and comfort to start getting busy for the Lord. God is starting to bring America under judgment, and we must prepare. Judgment starts in the house of the Lord.

Many Christians want to know their future. I find it amusing that Christians seek Facebook to know their future. When I was backslidden, I used to begin my day reading the Horoscope. I was interested in the psychic phenomenon. I used to read people’s palms and tell them about their future. Looking back at my life, there was a spirit of divination that was guiding me.

Now, God guides me with the spirit of Truth. The word says that he will show us things to come. Do you want to know your future? Stop going to places like Facebook and other nonsense and allow the Spirit to reveal what’s in store for you. Praying in tongues is an excellent way to enter into the dimension of God’s mysteries. I like the testimony of Pastor Kenneth Hagin. Pastor Kenneth Hagin, while praying in tongues, saw his future wife’s face.

The apostle Paul was given a preview of his future ministry. He was struck blind by the light of God’s power but entered into another dimension. He went into a forced fast, having nothing to eat or drink. Fasting is barely mentioned in TV ministries, but it is a necessary tool for us to see our future.

In his forced fast, he saw Ananias coming in to lay his hands and pray for his sight. God, purposely, took him from the natural into the spiritual realm. Our eyes need to be enlightened, and amid the middle of bad news, we cannot allow ourselves to lose our joy. We may be going thru hard times, but God will give us victory in the end.

For more on this, please listen to our podcast listed above. It is time to prepare. God is calling his body to pray. Times are not getting any better, and it is up to us to seek the Lord like never before. Jesus is coming soon, and we need to be about the Lord’s business, so the word for today is—Prepare!  

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The visitations of God.

For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation. ( Luke 19:43-44)

Did you know that God visits mankind? We understand that all Born-again believers have the Holy Ghost by faith. He lives inside of us, but the manifested glory and presence of the Lord is another thing. It can either bless or curse us.

The above link shows Jesus’ concern over Jerusalem. He wept and interceded for Jerusalem (Luke 19:41). A word was given by the Holy Spirit. A prophetic utterance that pronounced doom and destruction for Jerusalem. Why? The Jews did not recognize the time of God’s visitation, which was Jesus coming to bless his people.

Salvation and grace are so important in this day and time. We hear many teachings about grace, and I praise God for it. The other ingredient that we overlook is Judgment. Failure to receive God’s grace can have dire consequences. (Rev 2:21) The church of Thyatira was an example. It was given a warning and a space to repent. Judgment always follows grace when it is rejected.

How is your garden? 

Did you know that your life is a garden? What you do with it will determine your blessings or curses. Adam was given a garden. God gave specific instructions on how to tend to it. Unfortunately, we know the end of the story–Adam and Eve disobeyed God and lost their blessing. Our life is filled with choices and decisions that we must make. The wrong decision can affect us and our loved ones for generations to come.

As a believer, you have to make a choice. Am I going to sow to the flesh or to the spirit? My advice to be is to put on Christ. (Romans 13:14) When you get up, you comb your hair, wash up, and put on your clothes to start the day. Now, add to that the mind of Christ. Don’t leave home without it.

The word of God tells us that we have the mind of Christ. Christ is the anointing power of the Holy Spirit. Now, you may ask—How, do I put on Christ? The word says to call those things that are not as though they were. ( Rom 4:17) You have a miracle in your mouth. Think about this–There are two trees. One is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and the other is a tree of life.

The first tree is good, but why is it forbidden? Because you can do good works and not have God involved. The word says that our righteousness is as filthy rags. (Isa 64:6) I thank God for many governments and social programs that help the less fortunate, but if God is not involved, it is in vain. You can feel the calling to go to Africa to help the less fortunate, but If God has not called you, it is like filthy rags in his sight.

When you speak the mind of Christ into being and receive it by faith, you are eating the fruit of the tree of life. (Proverbs 15:4) It will give you the wisdom to solve complicated problems. You will be in control of your thoughts and have his peace flowing. A renewed mind will help you love righteousness and hate iniquity.

God visits his garden. 

God will visit your garden whether you are aware of it or not. God visited Israel’s garden. (Luke 20:10-16) He sent his prophets to call them to repentance. They mistreated and killed some of them. Finally, he sent his son Jesus. The religious leaders felt threatened and killed Him. They were losing their people and their influence was diminishing. They thought that they could kill Jesus and solve their problem.

Alas, they complicated their lives even more. God’s blessing of Salvation went to the Gentiles and Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 AD. Jesus came as a lamb to visit his people and returned as a lion in judgement. It is no wonder that Jesus prophesied to his female followers not to cry for him but to cry for their children. (Luke 23:28)

Let’s learn from Israel’s example. Take care of your garden. Years ago, God spoke to me saying — I would rather show my people my blessings instead of judgment. God is a good God. Put on the mind of Christ and start eating of the fruit of the tree of life. It will bless you and your family for years to come. Shalom!

Healing in the communion elements


Give us this day our daily bread. (Matt 6:11)

What comes to mind when you think of the word bread? Nourishment? A way to satisfy a craving with hot bread, butter, and coffee? In the natural, we can find ways to use bread, mainly as an addition to our food needs. Now, as we look at Matt 6:11, we see that Jesus mentioned bread for a spiritual need. Like in the natural, we can find many ways for our spiritual bread to feed us, but we are going to focus on one thing— Healing.

Healing is the children’s bread

Jesus mentioned this fact in Matt 15:22-28. In this passage of scripture, There was a woman from Canaan who came to Jesus to ask him to heal her daughter. Her daughter’s sickness was not an ordinary one. This was demonic oppression, yet Jesus refused to lift a finger to help her. Why? She had no covenant with God. Yet, this woman was persistent even though Jesus called her a dog.

What led to her daughter’s breakthrough? She recognized her condition. Jesus saw her persistent faith and humble heart, and delivered her daughter. When you partake of the communion elements, you must examine yourself. You got to make sure you are right. The taking of communion is a solemn occasion in which the manifested presence of the Holy Spirit will show up at the communion table.

At the communion table, we can expect a visitation of God through the Holy Spirit. We fail to understand the visitations of God. When the manifested cloud of Glory of God visits his people, there will be blessings or curses. As you study I Cor 11:28-30, It warns us of the consequences of not taking its elements correctly. The good news is that when your heart is right, Healing can be released thru the communion elements. It can heal you in your body and your soul—Praise God!

I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. (Ps 37:25)

What would you think of a father who failed to provide for their children? The word says that he is worst than an infidel. (I Tim 5:8) Our God is a provider of Healing. Our minds should be renewed to believe that it is our covenant right. It is his duty to provide Healing. We need to have true revelation knowledge of our covenant with God. Tradition and religion will rob us of his power to heal us.

Suffering for Christ

I Peter 4:13 tells us about the sufferings of Christ. Many compare it to being sick, but they are missing the whole picture. Christ, during his time of ministry, was never ill. The things that he suffered were being used as training to help him please the Father. One such training was in the area of obedience. ( Heb 5:8)

Another was in the area of Persecution and misunderstandings. Did you know that Jesus was called crazy by his friends and family? They were about ready to have him committed!(Mark 3:20-21, 32) When you serve God, you are going to be misunderstood and persecuted.

Let’s get one thing straight. I am not in denial. I recognize that Christians can and do get sick. These are called afflictions. As long as we are in this world, we will go through afflictions, including sickness. The good news is that you don’t have to stay sick. You can partake of the communion elements on your own and take your Healing.

Now, I want you to practice communion by yourself. There are at least 14 covenant promises in the communion elements. If you are sick or have an old injury, take the bread and juice (Grape juice is preferred). Do a self-examination and get right with the Lord. Expect his manifested presence and receive his Healing right now. You can say the following prayer below.

Prayer– Lord, as I partake of your communion elements, I ask you to forgive me of any sins that stand between you and me. If I have been bitter, I let it go. I chose to forgive those who have offended me. Now, as I invite your presence to your communion table, I receive the Healing that is contained in your bread. I am your child, and Healing is the children’s bread. Let your anointing fall on me and remove any pain, symptoms, or sickness. I receive Healing, and it is mine. In Jesus’ name, amen.  Editors note–We are on Facebook. Check out our page-The Christian corner community church 56.

Love your enemies?


But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you ( Matt 5:44)

Greetings. I purposely added a question mark at the end of my title message. Yes, the word of God commands us to love our enemies, but the flesh in us screams no. We all have found it hard to do at a certain point in our lives. Some people would say–You don’t know what they did to me. Others would say–I tried, but I can’t. These are strong arguments against loving your enemies, but let’s look at the following verse below—


I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (John 15:5)


Guess what? You cannot forgive, and that is a true statement. The hurts might have been profound. Maybe, you suffered significant financial loss. Another reason can be that you lost a beloved family member who got killed in cold blood. I could go on with a series of reasons why you should hate your enemy, but believe it or not, the way to forgive is to admit that you cannot do it on your own.


I worked with a dear Saint who fled Cuba due to the repressive tyranny of Communism. She had lived in the United States for years, and life was good for her. One day while conversing during a break in my job with me, she said that she could not forgive Fidel Castro. She blamed him for having lost some of her family members. Memories like these are hard to forget, much less forgive.


Whether you believe it or not, God’s love has no limits. Think of the meanest person you have ever met, and you will see that God still loves them. (Ezekiel 33:11) We all know that Fidel Castro passed away many years ago. Yes, he ruled with an iron hand, but if he had repented during the last few minutes before drawing his last breath, he would have made heaven his home. Yes, this is hard to imagine, but God’s mercy has no limits.


The secret to forgiving others is to abide in the vine. Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches. Remember his words–Without me, we can do nothing. Our abiding and identity with Christ are essential to being able to forget and forgive. God’s word says that we have the mind of Christ. Christ is not Jesus’ last name.


The word Christ is the Greek word for anointing. Isaiah 10:27 describes that anointing. It removes the burden (load) from your shoulders. We have burdens (The cares of life, stress, and anxieties). The anointing in the mind of Christ carries that power to give you peace amid the wild raging storms of life.


That anointing will also give you the power to destroy the yoke of the enemy, the world, and the flesh. There are two yokes in the Bible. One is made out of wood and the other Iron. Wood symbolizes the flesh and the world. Iron represents Demonic oppression.

An Iron yoke is meant to be destroyed, not broken. My main point for this reasoning is that Iron can be welded back. The anointing will rot that Iron, just like the effects of water rending it of no good use.


If you are a Christian, you can have the mind of Christ. It’s there for the taking. Use it for your battle of unforgiveness. Learn to abide in the vine. Then, you can do all things thru Christ, who strengthened you.


Prayer–Father, forgive me for being bitter against those who have wronged me. Heal those hurts and pains in my heart and mind. I take the mind of Christ. I will forgive by faith those who have wronged me. I have the mind of Christ. I will abide in the vine. Christ is in me, and I am in him. As of this moment in my life, I will walk in the love of Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Guess who’s coming to dinner?

Does that title sound familiar? If you were born in the fifties, it should. Back in 1967, there was a movie made with that title. It was groundbreaking because it addressed a sensitive subject—Interracial dating. It had a good plot with comedy mixed in with some drama.

It was a good plot. The story begins when Joanna “Joey” Drayton (Katharine Houghton) comes from a vacation in Hawaii to visit her parents in San Francisco. She brings along her fiance Dr. John Prentice (Sidney Poitier). There is only one problem—She is white, and he is African-American, and they are engaged to be married.

What does that have to do with our message? Simple. My question to you is–Guess who’s coming to dinner? Let’s look at the verse below–

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. (Rev 3:20)

Jesus wants to come in and sup with you on this day. Yes, many ministries have used this verse to win souls, and there is nothing wrong with that, but as you read the full content, it is talking to the church. The Lord called the church of Laodicea to the carpet due to an issue in their worship. The believers in that time were in the habit of taking communion daily. (Acts 2:46) They would take it in the temple, and other times, they would go from house to house.

We fail to understand the power of communion. Notice Acts 2:42 says that they were breaking bread and having prayers simultaneously. Communion was a powerful tool in spiritual warfare(Breaking of bread). Another factor was prayer followed by fellowship with the believers.

The Laodicean church was in the practice of taking communion, but something happened. They became Lukewarm. Why? Scripture does not tell us what factors contributed to that condition, but the enemy slipped in there with distractions and caused them to disregard the communion elements. Our Lord Jesus is a God of second chances. He was knocking at the doors of their hearts to remind them that he wanted to break bread with his people.

What about you? Have you been so distracted with the cares of life that you have forsaken your time with God? God is knocking at the door of your heart to let him in. He wants to fellowship with you and bring answers to your most pressing needs. Today, make it a habit to learn about the power of communion and what it can do for you.

Do you want to know how you can unleash the power of communion and experience God on a new level? Take some time to read and study this link. It will make a difference in your life, and you will never be the same…https://wordandgrace.blogspot.com/2022/01/in-remembrance-of-me.html

Watch and pray.


But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. (Gen 6:8)

Greetings. In this lesson, I want to direct your attention to learning how to listen to God in prayer. In order to have God speak to you, Grace has to be a factor. The Hebrew word Grace means to have favor or be pleasing to God. Noah sought the Lord’s face constantly and loved the Lord. Because of this, he found grace before the Lord, and God spoke to him.

When God spoke to Noah, he showed him his calling. He was to warn the people of impending judgment. For years, his message was to repent. People mocked and laughed at him. The only ones who listened were his family. What does that tell us? In these last days, it is very important that we take time to listen to God. When we listen to God, he shows us our calling. His direction and guidance can even save our lives and our loved ones.

Sometimes, God uses tragedies to wake us up and fulfill our calling. I saw a docudrama on the life of Sis Helen (1). She was an alcoholic. Her wake-up call came when she lost her husband and son. Her son was, brutally, stabbed in the streets, and that incident brought her to God. She became a nun, got into a run-down tenement in the Bronx, New York, and helped the drug addicts and alcoholics.

She had people from the streets who looked mean, but this little Irish Nun was not intimidated. She would show tough love and get in their faces if they got out of line. It was amazing how they respected her. To many, she was like a mother. Granted, we can be critical and say that she lived in poverty in a rat-infested home. Her methods might have been unorthodox as far as the church was concerned, but she impacted those men’s lives.

She took a negative, which was losing a son in the streets to gain some spiritual sons from the street. God can give you grace with the meanest people in your neighborhood and open the doors to saving souls. Mean people need love. When they see the glory of God on you in a real way, they will start to open their hearts. I want to encourage you to seek God and ask the Holy Spirit to help you listen to his voice. It might save your life. God bless.

(1) For a look at Sis Helen, click on this link. You can watch it on the Tubi channel network…https://youtu.be/QOPnTMCagw0

Friday night service.

We had a great time together. Brother Danny shared the message of Salvation. We know that people watching us on Facebook live got exposed to the good news. My wife, Co-Pastor Terry, shared a word of encouragement. I shared about the importance of communion for the body. God is a covenant God, and there is power when you stand on his promises.


One good example was when the children of Israel were under Egyptian bondage for 400 years. During much suffering and turmoil, some remembered their covenant with the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. (Exodus 2:24) Scripture teaches us that God delivered them with supplied them with silver and gold. We also saw that there was no feeble among them. The word feeble in the Hebrew text means sick. (Ps 105:37)


God has delivered us from spiritual Egypt. On the one hand, Egypt symbolizes the world, flesh, and the devil. The other side is that God has given us a covenant with better and greater promises. Covenant is a powerful tool to have in prayer. Taking communion is beyond remembering the death of Jesus on the cross for us. It releases the promises of God for our lives.


So, as you take time to watch our teaching on communion, your eyes will be open to new revelations of God. You will notice how this special ceremony has been perverted in the past by man’s tradition and religion. Another nugget is discovering how its power can free you from your struggles. One last thing, have your bread and juice ready. As you take this in faith, watch and see how God’s power will move in your life.

The Grace of God

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? (Romans 2:4)

While studying Rev 9, The Holy Spirit brought an exciting thing to my attention. Even during the tribulation times, he gives men the opportunity to repent. The only time when he doesn’t bother with men is when they have taken the mark of the Beast. Scripture teaches us that they have forsaken God and his gift of salvation ( Rev 13:8). They made a choice and sealed their fate.

Upon reading Rev 9:4, we see a plague of locusts that has been sent forth to torment those who have not the seal of God in their foreheads. This agony lasts five months, is very painful and death even flees from them—a sad state of affairs. After five months, some will die a painful death. Pay attention to the number five. Five is the biblical number of grace.

Habakkuk 3:2 is a prayer in which is mentioned mercy in wrath. God is giving these people a chance to repent in Rev 9:20-21. Why? I believe these are secular people who have refused to take the mark of the Beast. They live a sinful lifestyle but still have a chance to repent. Sadly, their hearts have become hardened, and they reject Jesus.

Brethren, I want to encourage you to take advantage of the goodness and grace of God. When you stumble, don’t turn from him. Run to Him and confess your sins. God can give you a fresh start and a new beginning. Let us not harden our hearts by turning away from him. He loves us and wants us to taste and see that the Lord is good.