Dave Williams's Blog, page 12

Dreams in the Night Season

It is extremely rare to hear teaching from the pulpit on dreams or visions. In studying the Bible, dreams and visions were a common occurrence. Let’s look at the Scripture in Acts 2:17 where Peter was quoting the prophet, Joel. Peter changed only one word. Peter replaced “afterward” with the words “in the last days.” Dreams, visions, and prophecy are revelatory gifts that Peter was saying were to be signs of the last days:

Acts 2:17

And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.

Joel 2:28

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

Free Ebook: Dreaming Dreams in the Night Seasons

Get Ebook

Learn More












Is It A Dream Or A Vision?

When we talk about dreams, we are talking about those things that happen in the night season while we sleep. We aren’t talking about the kind of dreams or desires you might have to build a house or to be a concert pianist. Dreams occur when you are sleeping with your eyes closed. A vision is when you see something with your mind’s eye, while you are wide-awake. In 2 Kings 6:17 when Elisha’s servant looked out and saw God’s army of angels sent to protect them from the Syrian king’s army, he had a vision.

Throughout history, God has spoken through dreams and visions. We can read various accounts of this from Genesis through Revelation. In fact, the entire book of Revelation is a dream God gave to the apostle John.

Joseph—the Dreamer

In the Old Testament Joseph is one of the most memorable dreamers. If you want to read his story, it begins in Genesis 37. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he had two dreams that showed his brothers and parents bowing down to him. In his immaturity, he shared the dreams with his brothers, who hated him for it. His father also rebuked him but thought about what Joseph had said and wondered what it meant.

Joseph’s brothers became so jealous of him they sold him as a slave, and Joseph ended up in Egypt. He continued to be a dreamer and was able to interpret dreams for others. By the Lord’s grace, he was placed in positions of responsibility and shown favor wherever he was: first in Potiphar’s house, then in prison and finally as second-in-command in Pharaoh’s kingdom. Years later, his early dreams came true when his brothers came to Egypt in search of food. They didn’t recognize Joseph, who was the governor over the land when they bowed before him as we can read here:

Genesis 42:6

Now Joseph was the governor of the land, the one who sold grain to all its people. So when Joseph’s brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground.

Joseph was able to save the lives of his father, mother, and brothers during the famine. God used Joseph to protect the lineage of Abraham, Jacob, and Isaac, which included future kings and priests such as King David and eventually Jesus Christ, our King and High Priest.

Dreams Have Gotten a Bad Rap

It is quite unusual to find a solid Christian today who pays any attention to dreams because dreams are regarded as psychological, emotional, stress-related activities of the mind during sleep. This skepticism is mainly due to the twisted, false writings of Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud.

Some psychologists say dreams are just a reaction of the nervous system to physical stimuli or a rehashing of yesterday’s experiences. Others say dreams are meaningless, inconsequential occurrences. Then there are those who say dreams are from the occult and are just the devil’s way of unlocking the hidden secrets of the spirit world.

Don’t Turn Off the Channel

A dream in the night season may or may not be from God. I’ll admit that some dreams are senseless and should be disregarded. And I realize there are New Age occult-like books about dreams that give Jesus Christ no honor or preeminence. However, I don’t believe we should ignore the biblical teaching about dreams only because some of the modern teaching is false or misleading. Some of the erroneous teachings about dreams are probably designed by Satan himself with the cunning strategy to shut God’s people down to this biblical avenue of His voice. Some dreams do come from God, and if we don’t believe it, we may be turning off the very channel on which God is trying to broadcast an important message or warning.

Many contemporary experiences are recorded of God’s people having world-changing dreams. Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusades for Christ, had a dream about reaching the world for Christ and built a powerful ministry. What if he hadn’t believed the dream was from God and ignored what God was showing him to do? How many college students might never have heard the message of the Gospel?

A woman attended a Benny Thomas meeting and heard him teach about God speaking through dreams. She went home that night and prayed that God would give her a dream to help her son. She dreamed about her teenage son who was having some severe behavioral and disciplinary problems. In that dream, she was given clear instructions on how to discipline her son and correct his behavioral problems. When she awoke the next morning, she said, “Lord, was that dream from You?” That’s a great question to ask after experiencing a possibly prophetic dream. After praying, peace settled in her heart, and she wrote down the detailed instructions she had received in the dream. As she applied these instructions and changed the way she was dealing with her son, his behavior problems were corrected, and there was peace in their home.

Believe and Ask for Dreams

God can give you dreams about your business, your schoolwork, your family or any other area of life. However, He doesn’t seem to give dreams to those who don’t believe He speaks in dreams, and often He doesn’t give dreams to those who don’t bother to ask Him for dreams.

God works in partnership with us here on earth. He has chosen to work through prayer, but it must be guided. Many times I have dreamed about individuals in our church, and I knew it was a message from God for me to pray in a specific way for these people. Prayer must be like a guided missile, not like a shotgun. It must be focused and specific. That is why God often gives us specific instructions in our dreams.

Faith is only activated by something specific. General prayers that say, “God bless me or God help me” are not targeted enough to receive an answer. Dr. David Yonggi Cho, pastor of the largest church in the world in Seoul, Korea tells a story about the early days of his ministry when he asked the Lord for a desk, a chair, and a bicycle. He believed and praised the Lord but month after month passed with no answer to his prayer. The work he was doing was very hard, and one day he cried out to the Lord. You can read about it in his book, The Fourth Dimension:

Faith goes after something specific. As you pray a specifically targeted prayer, God will hear and answer your prayer, and there will be no question it came from him.

The woman who attended Benny Thomas’ meeting prayed specifically for a dream to help her son, and God gave her a dream that instructed her how to help him. She knew she had heard from God when she saw the changes taking place in her son.

God will speak to you in dreams if you believe He will and if you ask Him for dreams. Often God warns us of danger in dreams and gives us specific instructions how to pray.

Free Ebook: Dreaming Dreams in the Night Seasons

In this Ebook, learn the difference between a dream and a vision, why God speaks in dreams, and how to receive a dream from God.

Get Ebook

Discover the keys to prophetic evangelism. Activate your dreams, visions, and spiritual eyes and ears.

Do you want your current spiritual perspective to be stretched?
Do you want to learn how to access the supernatural realm of God’s invisible kingdom?
Do you want to encounter the supernatural realm?
Do you want to enjoy spiritual encounters with the Lord?

The Father is calling YOU into a fresh dimension of intimacy. YOU can see into the spiritual realm! Learn more here.

Learn More

The post Dreams in the Night Season appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

Strong Delusion

We see a huge escalation of what can only be labeled as “strong delusion.” For example, some scholars are saying hell is a pagan religious concept that Christians have stolen as a doctrine.

Another group of so-called “biblical scholars” presented “the covert Messiah” conference to advertise their “new discovery” about Jesus. They suggest that Christianity is actually an invention of Roman aristocrats created as “psychological warfare” to control the Jews. You can believe that if you want, but the consequences eternally will be severe.

Some professing Christians are saying, “Islam is good and peaceful,” even though they know what the Islamic religion does to women and so-called “infidels.”

Others assert that guns are the problem, and they recommend making guns illegal, even for good citizens. Some political candidates have asserted that climate change is more dangerous than apocalyptic jihadists.

Delusion is deepening as we approach the coming of Christ—and this is a major sign of the times.

The Apostle Paul grieved over those who placed pleasure and self-will over God’s truth.  In Second Thessalonians, he issued the terrible truth of what will happen to those who reject the Truth of God’s Word.

First, they will come under a strong delusion and believe the lie of the coming world leader—the antichrist (2 Thessalonians 2:11).

Second, they will be condemned to face the world’s greatest hour of agony—the “Final Shabua” or what Jesus called the “Great Tribulation” (Daniel 12:1; Matthew 24:21; Revelation 6-19).

Third, they will have no hope of escaping the horrors of the place prepared for Satan and his followers called “hell” or the garbage dump of all creation. (Matthew 23:33; Matthew 25:41; Luke 16:23; 2 Peter 2:1-10; Revelation 19:20; 20:10).

But Paul rejoices and thanks God for those who believe the truth and have been called by the Spirit of God to salvation and sanctification.

Christianity is exclusive.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

The apostle Peter warned, “There is no salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

And Paul wrote of a God “who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all” (1Timothy 2:4-6).

Deception, fake news, and delusions are striking from every angle today. Stay close to God, put your faith in Jesus Christ, and read your Bible. You’ll develop the discernment necessary to survive and thrive in these last days.

The post Strong Delusion appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

The Giant Slayer

Let me share a few CRITICAL updates with you regarding the disciples being equipped through The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course which you have helped me to provide to colleges, Teen Challenges, and other venues.

Our flagship course, The Art of Pacesetting Leadership , is now in 32 states, on over 180 college and university campuses, Teen Challenges, and pacesetting churches.
The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course is part of the master’s program at Destiny College, along with John Maxwell courses.
Also, The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course is being presented in Russian to Assemblies of God pastors in the former Soviet Union (with a huge impact particularly in Siberia).
The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course is also part of the curriculum in Indonesia (the largest Muslim nation in the world) at Jakarta Harvest Theological Seminary.
Further news:  The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course is being taught in India to thousands of hungry believers who are becoming real pacesetters for Jesus.

1 Samuel 17:43-47

43 The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” Then the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

44 The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the heavens and to the beasts of the field.”

45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a shield, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have reviled.

46 This day will the LORD deliver you into my hand. And I will strike you down and cut off your head. Then I will give the corpses of the Philistine camp this day to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the earth so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

47 And then all this assembly will know that it is not by sword and spear that the LORD saves. For the battle belongs to the LORD, and He will give you into our hands.”

… And you know the rest of the story!

Why I am so passionate about this course:

Stop and think. Where is the biggest “Goliath” in America today?

The answer is on our college and university campuses, where liberal, anti-biblical thought is spread like venom to our students. Judeo-Christian values are mocked, both subtly and overtly—just the way Goliath mocked the armies of Israel.

A large percentage of college students now think nothing of couples living together without marriage.

They adhere to the belief that killing babies through abortion is acceptable.
A great percentage of these young people voted for a presidential candidate who openly declared to be a socialist.

Did these young people not do any research to find out what this Marxist doctrine had done to bring down nations and put masses of souls into abject poverty?

Think about Cuba (Remember, Castro was a “democratic socialist” who took a beautiful, prosperous country and turned it into a city dump and the people became poorer and poorer).
Think about Venezuela (once a modern country, now look at the starvation and poverty due to just 20 years of socialism).
Think about China (60 million executed or starved to death because of socialist government policies).

And we hear about North Korea in the news almost daily (today the common working people are subjected to unbelievable poverty, hunger, and living conditions). I look at the former Soviet states, and I could go on and on.

In spite of godless socialism’s terrible track record globally, more young people voted for Bernie Sanders than for Trump and Clinton combined, according to the Washington Post. Based on Bernie’s past comments about faith and religion, many Christians wondered if he was an atheist, although he claimed not to be.

Goliath is Mocking God on Our Campuses

What are they learning in our colleges? “Goliath” is mocking God on our campuses.

Gerald J. Furnkranz reported in the Star Gazette (part of the USA Today Network), “Education is all about socialist indoctrination.” He went on, “Indoctrinated college students are demonstrating violently against freedom of speech and the Constitution … It creates a lazy, lethargic needy population depending upon a lazy, lethargic leadership that enjoys grazing on the people’s bones.”

But thank God, there is an anointed “David” to slay this “Goliath.”

That “David” is The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course (which is really a course about how to become a genuine disciple of Jesus Christ).  And you are helping me get this “David” wherever there is a “Goliath” challenging the principles of God and the person of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

1.5 Million Pacesetting Disciples Trained in Just a Few Years

Our closest estimates (based upon 15-100 enrolled in each course) now are that we are training approximately 10,000 leaders a year through the outlets in America and other nations you’ve helped us provide. (This does not include the master’s course with Destiny College since we do not have those figures yet).

Now think, when those 10,000 each lead one person to Jesus and disciple them, the next year it’s 30,000 (The original 10,000 trained, the 10,000 they won, and the next 10,000 going through the course, plus the next group of 10,000 taking the training.) The next year, it’s 70,000 trained disciples, then 150,000, then 310,000, then 620,000, then…1.5 million Pacesetting Disciples Trained.

And this is only when we use the outlets we now have in place (Chi Alphas, Teen Challenges, campuses, seminaries and Bible colleges.) As outlets grow, the trainees multiply more.

No wonder this is the most inexpensive form of evangelism.

And it is helping to “slay the giant(s).” Can you imagine America with millions of Pacesetting Leaders who are following Jesus? Not to mention the overseas impact.

I don’t know exactly what it is that makes The Art of Pacesetting Leadership courses so dramatically successful for both young and older alike…except it is the anointing of the Lord.

Remember, it’s always FREE to Teen Challenges and College Campuses, but it still costs us thousands upon thousands of dollars from people like you who see the vision and care about properly training young people, pastors, missionaries, college students, and disciples in Teen Challenge.

It costs us about $300 to provide the entire course with student manuals and teacher manuals, DVDs, CDs, etc. to a college campus. The course is now also available in an online format for even greater outreach.

Just $25 a month for one year helps us provide another course for a campus in America. The Art of Pacesetting Leadership course is like a “David” with a slingshot against the “Goliath” on our campuses.

Thank you so much for your partnership with Mary Jo and me to “make disciples in all nations,” beginning here in the United States.

Please…help me continue providing “David” to bring down the “Goliaths” on our college campuses and beyond. Your monthly gifts, letters, and prayers are so encouraging. You are a giant-slayer with me, in the Name of Jesus!

Impact of the Pacesetting Leadership Course












































Partner with Us

The post The Giant Slayer appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

The Blessing of the Lord

Have you ever gotten down on your knees and prayed, “God, I need a thousand dollars, send it to me, just send it to me.” And then you expected money to rain out of the sky. You may have heard stories of unmarked envelopes full of cash showing up in mailboxes. That does happen occasionally, but I’ve never seen a single dollar rain out of the sky in all my life.

Have you ever been digging in your backyard and found a treasure chest full of hundred dollar bills? Does a cash envelope show up every month to cover your bills? Of course not, because that’s not how God’s system works.

Christians bear the blame for not planning for wealth, for not discovering the principles that lead to the wealthy place. They don’t realize God put the power in us to get and create wealth.

Proverbs 10:22

The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

In other words, it should be fun for followers of Jesus to obtain wealth! There’s not going to be sorrow, struggle, overwork, and alienation from family. No gimmicks. No precarious schemes. Just sound management with a proper amount of risk.

I believe Christians ought to run the major television networks, grocery stores, and banks. It has always appalled me to see a church crawling to the bank and begging them for money.

I fully expect that someday, as the ministry of wealth grows within the church, banks will come to the church to borrow money! I’m looking forward to the day when bankers can’t find the money to loan to housing developers, and they come to the church to borrow from us. We’ll get to say, “Let me check your records here. Fill out this form and that form.”

Deuteronomy 15:6

For the LORD your God blesses you, as he promised you: and you shall lend unto many nations, but you shall not borrow, and you shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you.

The Bible talks so much about money and wealth, prosperity, abundance, and overflow that we can’t afford to overlook it if we hope to be all God has called us to be.

Sure, there are many things more important than money, but money is important. If it wasn’t, God wouldn’t have talked about it so much and made so many promises relating to wealth.

Don’t you want to send your children to the best schools?
Don’t you want a church facility you’re not ashamed to bring friends to?
Don’t you want to help the orphanage and widow facilities?
Don’t you want to help significantly those affected by floods and hurricanes?
Don’t you want to drive a nice, dependable car?
Don’t you want to take great family vacations?

It takes money

The Queen of Sheba saw the massive wealth Solomon had accumulated, and her breath was taken away.

She then declared God was the true God, and she decided to invest in Solomon, so she gave him over $80 million in gold, not counting the spices and everything else she brought with her.

Have you ever thought what would it be like to have $80 million? What would you do with it? You might say, “That was Solomon. That’s not for me.” But the new covenant didn’t erase the blessings of the old one!

You were meant to be like Solomon! How do I know this? In Matthew 6:29-30 Jesus said:

“And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?”

Why do people worry? They don’t have money. Only when you don’t have money, do you worry about what to wear, where to live, what to drive, how to fix the water heater and the roof.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.”  (Matthew 6:33)

Seek to do things God’s way.

What things will be added to you? The same things Solomon had! But it’s not by direct pursuit. You don’t get wealthy by going after $80 million. Instead, as you go after the things of God, the $80 million comes after you!

This may sound like hocus pocus, but it’s not. And it’s not just theory. I’ve lived this way for many years now. I believed in prosperity when I was broke. I knew there was a wealthy place, a concierge level of life.

It shouldn’t be a secret to anyone. But the temptations to get off track are appealing and subtler than you may think.

In my experience, 96% of people fall for a trap and lose the key to the concierge level of living.  You could become a millionaire overnight. The children of Israel were in bondage one day, and the next they were wealthy and leaving Egypt. It happened in one day with the favor of the Lord.

But typically, if you’ll simply obey the scriptures and the voice of the Holy Spirit, and get practical knowledge, in twenty years, it’s very easy to be a millionaire regardless of what your annual salary is, how much you earn, or where you work.

So get your mind on living on the concierge level, enjoying the view, the clean air up there. On the top floor, you can see more than anyone else, you can relax.

It’s where you belong, and you have within you the power to get there!

The post The Blessing of the Lord appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

For God So Loved the World That He Gave

One of the most recognized verses in the entire Bible is John 3:16:

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” KJV

This is Holy Week, the week leading up to Easter when we celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus the Christ, God’s Son.

We are assured of forgiveness of our sins and peace with God because of His death on the cross and his resurrection. When we make Jesus Lord of our lives, we receive eternal life. That’s why we celebrate Easter and what the promise of John 3:16 is all about.

I love how this verse begins: “For God so loved that he gave…” God gave the most valuable gift, his son. But why did he do it? Because he loves us. See, when you love someone, you give your best.

In just a few days Christians around the world will gather to celebrate the love God showed and continues to show. It’s an opportunity to worship God and express our gratitude for all that He has done for us. It’s a joyful and thankful time.

Isaac Watts’ hymn, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, is an excellent example of what our mindset should be. Here are the lyrics:

When I survey the wondrous cross,

On which the Prince of glory died,

My richest gain I count but loss,

And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,

Save in the death of Christ my God!

All the vain things that charm me most,

I sacrifice them to His blood.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,

Sorrow and love flow mingled down!

Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,

Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine,

That were a present far too small;

Love so amazing, so divine,

Demands my soul, my life, my all.

You can hear an excellent version of this hymn performed by Mercy Me.

This week as we celebrate Easter, I encourage you to give in the spirit of this hymn. For God so loved that he gave His very best! Let’s give our very best as well. Give to your home church, and give to fruit-bearing ministries like Dave Williams Ministries.

Your generosity allows us to provide grants to inner-city children’s ministries that target at-risk children, provide scholarships for aspiring pastors, and train pastors.

If you’re not one of our monthly partners, please prayerfully consider becoming one. Partnership levels begin at just $25 a month. Read more about the special benefits we offer to partners here.

Partner with Us

The post For God So Loved the World That He Gave appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

“It’s Time” with Herman and Sharron

Dr. Dave Wiliams on the set of “It’s Time” with Herman and Sharon Bailey at Christian Television Network (CTN) talking about his latest book Hope in the Last Days.

America’s Role in Bible Prophecy (CD Set)
$19.97


America’s Role in Bible Prophecy (MP3 Download)
$5.99



Sale!
Bible Prophecy Intensive Bundle
$409.41 $150.00



Sale!
Bible Prophecy Toolkit
$216.26 $99.00

The post “It’s Time” with Herman and Sharron appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

It’s Time with Herman and Sharron

Dr. Dave Wiliams on the set of “It’s Time” with Herman and Sharon Bailey at Christian Television Network (CTN) talking about his latest book Hope in the Last Days.

America’s Role in Bible Prophecy (CD Set)
$19.97


America’s Role in Bible Prophecy (MP3 Download)
$5.99



Sale!
Bible Prophecy Intensive Bundle
$409.41 $150.00



Sale!
Bible Prophecy Toolkit
$216.26 $99.00

The post It’s Time with Herman and Sharron appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

Tips for Goal Setting Success

These rules for goal-setting can be absolutely transformational for you and your leadership. Also, check out my book the Miracle of Faith Goals for further study.

Faith goals are always specific and concrete

“My goal is just to be used of God,” you emote, but that is not specific. What does that statement mean in a concrete, practical way? What would you have to do, learn, or become in order for God to use you? It’s almost impossible to go after an ethereal, formless idea or concept. In what specific way do you want to be used of God?

If your God-given vision is to become a preacher, then you should set some specific faith goals. Goals to read books by successful ministers, undertake an intensive Bible study, take classes on preaching and public speaking, talk to a preacher about the traits you should be developing in your life and personality, and then set goals that will enable you to go to school to earn credentials to become a pastor.
If you want to be a business owner, your faith goals should be to find a mentor who can help you, read business books, and perhaps enroll in a business college.
If your vision is to get married, one faith goal might be to make a list of who you would consider marrying or the qualities and characteristics you want in a spouse. Or a list of the qualities and personality traits you would need to develop in yourself that would attract a spouse to you. For instance, improve my table manners, dress attractively, have my teeth whitened, etc.

Prayerfully set your own goals

Don’t let somebody else set your goals for you. Unless the goals are your own, your heart will not be in them. When you set your own faith goals, your enthusiasm is sustained. The goals burn within you. You won’t need someone else to keep encouraging you. Like David in the Bible, you learn how to encourage yourself. Your faith goals should be specific and personal to your vision.

A faith goal should always move you closer to fulfilling your vision

Once I heard a man say, “I am called to the ministry, but I’m working at General Motors and they’re providing free education for those who want to study chemistry. So I’ll take the chemistry classes because they’re free.”

The chemistry class may be free, but how is it taking you closer to your vision? My advice: Ruthlessly reject opportunities that point away from your vision. Otherwise, you may spend your life on activities that move you away from the call God has placed on your life.

Goals help you organize your life.

When you have vision and faith goals, life is a lot less work because you have a way of screening everything. You simply ask yourself when an opportunity comes along, “Does this idea or opportunity fit within my vision? Does it match up with my faith goals?” If not, you can confidently say, “No, I’m sorry, that’s not part of the plan.” This explains why New Year’s resolutions never work.

A goal casually set and lightly taken will be freely abandoned at the first obstacle. ~Zig Ziglar

Every opportunity you take should somehow bring you closer to fulfilling your vision.

A faith goal should be written down

Some people keep everything in their heads, but I have found that the palest ink is stronger than the sharpest memory. Get it down on paper. When you do, you’ll achieve a hundred times more in your lifetime.

1 Chronicles 28:19 NLT

“Every part of this plan,” David told Solomon, “was given to me in writing from the hand of the Lord.”

The Lord guided David as he set faith goals and put them in writing. He wrote, “Every part of this plan….” meaning the plan was detailed. I love that!

A faith goal must be challenging

Mark 16:15 KJV

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Jesus did not tell his disciples, “I’ll be satisfied with 200 followers. Go into all the world and when you’ve got 200 more disciples, that should be enough.” No, he gave a challenging vision that seemed impossible—except that God was in it.

Our faith goals should challenge and stimulate us like that. Don’t be wimpy when setting a faith goal. Make it interesting and challenging enough to keep your attention and motivation going. Don’t make it impossible, like creating a new planet, but do make it something that will draw out your best talents, planning, perseverance, and creativity.

A faith goal has to have a deadline

If you got engaged to someone but never set a wedding date, chances are you would never get married. You would drift from month-to-month, year-to-year waiting for the right moment to strike. Faith goals always have deadlines. A great Bible example is the story of the woman with the issue of blood. She came to Jesus with a vision and faith goals—including a deadline. She said, “If I just touch the hem of his robe, I know I will be healed.” So she pressed in through the crowd and touched his robe. She got her miracle. (Luke 8:43–48 MSG)

God modeled this process for us, too. He had a wonderful vision of redemption for mankind. He knew that man was going to sin, and so God’s plan to restore us proceeded from one deadline to another. Step-by-step, he made faith announcements down the centuries through people we call prophets. He told them, “The Messiah is coming. He’s going to be born in Bethlehem. He’s going to be crucified and raised from the dead. He’s going to ascend to heaven and the Church will begin and grow in this period of time.” God set faith goals and deadlines for his plan of redemption. He does this for everything.

Romans 5:6 NLT

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.

Notice the phrase “at just the right time.” God knew all along when Jesus would be born, when he would die, when he would rise again. He has a time for everything!

God works by goals

He has faith goals for your life and a faith goal for the day and the hour when Jesus comes back. We should have deadlines with our goals, too. Remember that work expands to fill the time allotted. That is called Parkinson’s Law. So make deadlines that are not too soon and not too far away. Try to fit the deadline to the goal.

Faith goals will change you on the inside. They will shape the way you think. Ultimately, setting faith goals is not about what you get but about what you become. Let’s commit as leaders to have a great, big, God-given vision for our lives and then to set and reach faith goals for our leadership at home, in ministry, and in the workplace. Sign up and get a free session on Faith Goals from the Art of Pacesetting Leadership course or check out my book the Miracle of Faith Goals.

The post Tips for Goal Setting Success appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

Antagonists in the Church

I have been traveling a lot in the past couple years, doing conferences, minister’s conventions, and other large and smaller venues. I’ve had the wonderful experience of meeting great, servant-hearted, Spirit-filled ministers in many of our states.

Unfortunately, a theme keeps resurfacing. Pastors are asking, “Why do antagonists block me from achieving the vision God put on my heart?” “Why do I have so much resistance from people I thought were spiritual?” “Why does it feel like I’m spinning my wheels to appease the few, at the expense of the many?”

Many pastors are becoming disheartened by the conflict antagonists bring

At a General Presbyter meeting in Springfield, we heard the shocking statistics during a devotional time: 37 out of 40 ministers are not finishing out their ministerial calling. Only three out of 40 are going the distance.

It seems more challenging to lead a church or a group than ever. Why is that?

One major reason is the number of antagonists who present themselves as “God’s Watchdogs” over the leader. They question the leader’s motives, sincerity, and capabilities. They invent ways of bogging down the leader’s vision, tying his (or her) hands. They are thieves of the leader’s time.

They see themselves as wiser than anyone else and feel a certain “call” to antagonize and micromanage the leader. They say they’re doing it for the sake of the church, the fellowship, the district, the denomination, or any number of altruistic “causes.”

Unfortunately, in over 30 years of ministry, I’ve observed that their “causes” are rarely what they profess. Instead, with a hidden agenda, they seek to infect the body with a spiritual bacterium of sorts. And some types of bacteria cause far more damage to a body than others.

Spiritual Bacteria

You’ve probably heard of MRSA, the drug-resistant flesh-eating bacteria. I’ve known three people exposed to MRSA. It’s not pretty.

Now there is another threat on the scene. It’s called “C-difficile.” Its symptoms range from annoyances, like diarrhea, fever, cramps, nausea to more severe troubles: blood poisoning, sepsis, kidney failure, and death. Interestingly enough, Jesus Himself prophesied “pestilences” like these just before His coming.

This toxin-producing bacterium has now morphed into a violent epidemic strain.

It is a genuine physical threat.

But there are similar and even more dangerous threats in the spirit realm.

The Church is a Body

Paul likened the Church to a body. We are the “body of Christ.”

On this earth, we find microcosms of Christ’s body. We call them local churches, fellowships, denominations, or groups.

If a church member is infected, and he’s not dealt with swiftly, that person can infect many innocent believers, bringing sickness to the body.

Just as doctors can diagnose a dangerous infection, we, as Christian leaders must be able to discern when a dangerous spiritual germ has infected someone. Spiritual germs go from person-to-person, the same way the C-difficile or MRSA bacteria are passed.

I know a man who physically lost a leg to the flesh-eating bacteria, MRSA. Some churches and districts are losing “parts” because the spiritual bacteria had not been dealt with quickly enough.

Before you can properly deal with something, you must identify what it is. You cannot treat a viral infection with an antibiotic. It won’t work. Similarly, you cannot treat a spiritual infection with a treatment designed for another condition.

Identify Antagonists

The infected antagonist typically begins his comments with “disclaimers.” For example:

“I don’t want to be misunderstood, but I’m concerned about …”
“I don’t mean to complain, and I’m only one voice, but …”
“I don’t mean to sound critical, but …”
“I love you pastor, but …”
“I’m only saying this because I’m concerned about you.”

The Assemblies of God Theological Seminary added a course, which, among other issues, covers dealing with antagonists in the Church.

An infected person who is trying to infect you knows he has to convince you of four things:

His own personal wisdom or authority
His superior knowledge or “insider information”
His concern for you (even though it’s disingenuous)
His exaggerated picture that “things” are far worse than they really are (he’ll often use exaggerated or skewed statistics and half-truths)

Next time on the Pastor’s Coach, I want to show you fourteen ways to recognize a spiritually infected antagonist and check out my book The Spirit of Antagonism, or The Spirit of Antagonism audio set (also available for instant download) for further study.

The post Antagonists in the Church appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.

It’s Launch Time!

Earlier this year I shared with you a prophetic word about how 2018 is going to be a year of “bountiful harvest!”

Well, I believe our first online course, The Art of Pacesetting Leadership, is just one of the ways God is going to bring this to pass. Imagine the bountiful harvest of souls we’ll see as a result of discipling more followers of Christ through this online method of teaching. Access the online course here!

It’s now in an easy to use, online format that leaders, business owners, pastors, and aspiring leaders can take wherever they are at, and as their schedule allows.

Quick Links

Pacesetting Leadership Online!
Dave Williams Itinerary
Notes We Love


Partner with Us

My team has worked hard at this, and it’s one of the biggest projects we’ve ever unveiled. Anyone, anywhere in the world can now take this course online. Through March 31 you can take the course for just $19. Click here to start today!

We’ll still provide the course on DVD to Chi Alpha ministries, Teen/Life Challenge centers, and other campus ministries so they can conduct the course in a classroom environment. Look for more online courses coming soon!

Wealthy Place Seminar at EMU

Just a couple weekends ago we had a wonderful time at the Wealthy Place Seminar at Eastern Michigan University with Revs. Daniel and Sarah Jackson.

We made several new friends at this event. Even a few from London, England. Dr. Ola Cole read one of my books. Then, she learned about the Wealthy Place Seminar and believed God wanted her to attend and bring two friends. The three of them registered, not knowing where the money for travel expenses would come from. Just a couple days before the event God provided. Dr. Cole said,

“We cannot thank the Lord enough for how He orchestrated the never to be forgotten, destiny defining moment for all of us. We were completely lost for words to express our sincere appreciation to the Lord and your ministry.”

Will the prophesied Antichrist be a Muslim?

Larry Spargimino moderated a three-hour debate with my friend and author Bill Salus and author Joel Richardson. While Bill and Joel have differing eschatological views, the debate was loving, respectful, and enormously informative. For those who wonder if the coming Antichrist may be an Arab Muslim or A Western leader, you will love this video DVD. It’s available at Prophecy Depot Ministries.

Discerning the Times

Rev. Pace is an eschatology (End Times Prophecy) expert who conducts “Discerning the Times” conferences and is the author of a powerful book, Apocalert!: Prophecies, Omens, Cosmic Wonders. Robert showed up at Suncoast Cathedral when I was ministering. What a joy for Mary Jo and me to share some time with Robert (“Chip”) and his wife, Annette. You can watch my friend on Daystar Network.

This June we’ll be conducting a one-day seminar for Today’s Prophets and Seers in Lansing, Michigan. Once we have the location and other details figured out, sign up here for updates.

Thank you again, dear friend, for your love and support. If you’re not currently a partner with Dave Williams Ministries, please prayerfully consider becoming one. Partnership levels begin at just $25 a month. Read more about the special benefits we offer to partners here.

Partner with Us!

The post It’s Launch Time! appeared first on Dave Williams Ministries.