Andrew Wommack's Blog, page 19

The Recent Shooting in Texas: A Response

Amidst the tragedy of the shooting this last Sunday in Sutherland Springs, Texas, there has been much finger pointing. People want to know who is to blame and how to prevent tragedies like this. Although some good may still come out of this, I think most people’s analyses are missing the mark.

This act was pure evil. Plain and simple. It was sin inspired directly by the devil. Jesus is the only antidote for sin, and the power of God is the only thing that will stop the devil.

Psalm 36:1 says, “ The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes .” Those who fear the Lord don’t commit acts of evil like this.

Our society has thrown God out the window. Many of the politicians and movie stars who have decried this act are actually contributing to the culture that brought this to pass. They have opposed God in the values they promote and have created this godless culture that has been crammed down
our throats.

Guns are not the problem. Guns don’t kill people any more than forks make people fat. Before prayer was taken out of schools in the U.S., before all types of sin were promoted and even celebrated, before Christians were vilified and marginalized, we still had guns, but we didn’t have all this senseless violence.

Yet, in the past, even among those who didn’t actively worship the Lord, there used to be an acknowledgement of God’s existence. There was even a fear of having to stand before Him someday and give an account of our actions. That fear restrained sin (Prov. 16:6). But now people have committed mass murders and then followed up with suicide, thinking they are escaping judgment, when the truth is, they are ushered into a Christless eternity and now await damnation.

God didn’t “let” this happen. We let this happen. Adam and Eve chose sin, and we, their descendants, have confirmed and amplified their decision billions of times over. The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, the changed hearts it produces, and the fear or reverence it creates, even in unbelievers, is the only solution for this crisis.

The fault for this current godless culture lies with the church. We have not been the salt and light that Jesus commanded us to be (Matt. 5:13-14). Those who don’t speak out against the moral issues of our day are like soldiers who have abandoned their posts in battle. They may justify these things in any number of ways, but the bottom line is, Christians have been AWOL: Absolute Wusses On Love. It’s love to tell a person the truth (Lev. 19:17). Paul told us to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15), but we must still tell people the truth. It’s only the truth we know that sets us free (John 8:32). Most Christians love themselves too much to take a stand and run the possible rejection that might come their way. That’s self-love, not the love that Jesus modeled for us.

There will be many proposals and adjustments that come as a result of this tragedy, but none of them will actually cure the problem. The only cure is for us who believe to once again become the salt and light God called us to be.

I encourage you to talk to your family, friends, and coworkers about the Lord. That person next to you might be the very person Satan is trying to turn into the next mass murderer. And take a stand on social issues by getting involved in the political process. There are many ways to do that, so pray about what direction you should take. But every one of us needs to renew our efforts.

I join my prayers with you for the wounded and the families of those who lost love ones. I also pray for all who have been traumatized by this and are now living in fear of what might come next. The perfect love we have received in Jesus casts out our fear (1 John 4:18). I pray, too, that the Lord will give us new opportunities to share that love and faith with those who
are struggling.

Together we can turn this nation back to God. Certainly we can’t do it without God, but He can’t do it without us (Eph. 3:20). I know He is willing, and I pray all of us are also willing. Let’s take a stand for truth and against ungodliness. Let’s do this!

Andrew Wommack

It’s Time to Grow Up

A few years back, I bought a movie about the life of Esther. In the movie, there’s a scene where the beautiful Esther weds the powerful King Xerxes of Susa. Esther walks down the aisle of a grand banquet hall and ascends ornate steps to stand before her soon-to-be husband. Having a desire for greater intimacy with the Lord, I watched that scene over and over, teary-eyed, as I envisioned myself walking down that aisle and up those steps toward
my King.

One day as I played that scene over yet again in my mind, I got to the part where I ascended the steps in my beautiful dress. I looked up and, in the spirit, I saw Jesus there before me. I immediately noticed something I hadn’t before: my elegant ascent up those grand banquet steps was being hampered by a heavy, awkward suitcase—contents unknown—that I was trying to drag up with me.

I looked down at the suitcase and back up at Jesus, and He spoke these words to me: “It’s time to grow up.”

Suddenly, I knew what was in that suitcase. It contained the baggage of my past—all the pain and rejection, all the hurtful words that had been said, all the wounds I’d been nursing.

In Andrew’s new teaching, Discipleship: The Path to Freedom, he talks about the fact that we attach too much value to people and to the words that are spoken over us. The value we place on them determines how much power and influence they exert over us.

Andrew says, “You’re the one who places value on everything that comes against you. You may not think about this, but every time somebody says something, you place a value on this. [You] value their opinion, or you devalue their opinion. And if somebody has criticized you, and it’s just cut you to the core, it’s because of the value that you placed on them”
(brackets added).

Valuing others’ opinions over God’s had caused me years of pain and heartache. It had also come at the expense of my spiritual growth.

Years before, I’d perceived that my immaturity and failure to be governed by the Spirit were keeping me from God’s best. I was desperate to grow up, but I didn’t know how. I didn’t know what was holding me back. I had no idea that it was a wrong focus. I was valuing the opinions of man rather than God and His opinion.

As I stood there with my suitcase, I knew the Lord was giving me a choice: Would I value my destiny in Him or the words of rejection and pain of my past? Whatever I chose, I knew I would have to forfeit one for the other.

So, I made my choice. And I chose Jesus. Instantly the suitcase full of rejection and pain melted away. Those things just weren’t important anymore compared to the infinite value of the King who stood before me.

Has the Lord set you free in an area of your life? Share with us below. We would love to hear from you! And to find out more about the path to freedom and maturity, watch Andrew’s new teaching, Discipleship: The Path to Freedom, on the Gospel Truth the rest of this week. You can also check out the television archives to view any missed episodes.

Written by Sylvia F. Wells

For resources and products or to partner in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

2 + 2 ≠ 5

Two plus two does not equal five. Of course not; two and two make four.

George Orwell’s 1984 was assigned reading when I was a sophomore in high school. Some of you may recall the main character, Winston Smith, writing “2 + 2 = 5” in the dust on the table at the end of the novel. Others of you may not have read it. But don’t worry—I’ll keep you clued in.

I love to read. But when I was a sixteen, I didn’t love to read the Bible. God was flexible with me, though, and He spoke to me often through secular books, especially 1984. For those unfamiliar with that work, 1984 is no fairy tale. The main character struggles to maintain safety and sanity in a dystopian society where free thought is outlawed.

Through the book, Orwell coined the term doublethink, which he defines as “the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.”* Doublethink is very much like double-mindedness. And the “power” it entails is extremely dangerous.

James 1:8 says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” And James is right. Sixteen-year-old me roamed the school halls, unstable. I professed Jesus as my Savior, and I believed He was, but somehow, I lived out other “truths,” simultaneously believing that I was alone and hopeless. I lived powerless, bitter, and miserable. I was practicing doublethink, and it was keeping me from living free.

In his Discipleship: The Path to Freedom teaching, Andrew explains the mess that doublethink can lead people into. He says that “there are reasons why we aren’t experiencing the abundance and the quality of life that God wants us to . . . we cry out, we beg, we plead . . . but we don’t renew our minds. We don’t know the truth. We don’t continue in it until we get free, and we wonder why things aren’t working.”

Andrew goes on to say, “The greatest thing you will ever do is renew your mind by the Word of God, and that’s what the Bible calls being a disciple.” In John 8:31-32, Jesus defines discipleship. He says, “ [32] And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Sixteen-year-old me needed to renew her mind. Instead, I was brimming with anxiety and fear. But while reading 1984, I came across the lines, “There was truth and there was untruth, and if you clung to the truth even against the whole world, you were not mad.”*

When I read those words, Jesus confronted me in my spirit, as if to say, How long will you practice doublethink? You say I am your Savior, but you live like you don’t know Me. There is truth and there is untruth; whatever is separate from the truth must be a lie. Will you defend the Truth with Me?

What was so complicated before became simple. I said yes—a whole-hearted, single-minded yes. I embraced the truth and forsook the lie. I began dismantling the doublethink I had become so familiar with. I began living free. Jesus calls us to discipleship. He calls us to defend the Truth, and that starts with renewing our minds to know the Truth. Andrew says, “It’s not easy to be a disciple. It’s simple, but it’s not easy.” So, how do we do it?

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:5, English Standard Version

In other words, we remind ourselves that 2 + 2 ≠ 5.

Don’t miss Discipleship: The Path to Freedom, airing on the Gospel Truth. Andrew will teach you how to be a disciple of Christ and live the free, abundant life Christ came to give to us (John 10:10).

Written by Katie Scruggs

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*Quotes from George Orwell’s 1984 are from www.goodreads.com.

Back from a Dead End

“An excellent spirit is faithful and consistent. It has a moral foundation that doesn’t fluctuate or compromise. It does what
is right.”

Andrew Wommack

There is a wooden chair displayed at the Andrew Wommack Ministries headquarters in Colorado Springs. This keepsake was used during Kathryn Kuhlman’s crusades decades ago. Andrew talks of his experience attending Ms. Kuhlman’s meetings as something that helped him break out of his religious background. He says, “I remember serving as an usher in her meetings. I saw some of the most astounding miracles I’ve ever witnessed in my life. Her message encouraged me to see beyond my limitations and to pursue the call of God on my life.”

Ms. Kuhlman had a tremendous impact on Andrew and countless others. But even a champion of faith like Ms. Kuhlman is only such because of God’s forgiveness and amazing grace. The following tells the story of how God brought her back from the brink and how He can do the same for us.

“The sun was flickering through the great limbs that stretched out overhead. At the end of the block I saw a street sign. It said simply, ‘Dead End.’ There was heartache, heartache so great it cannot be put into words.” 1

Kathryn Kuhlman

How did Kathryn, a mighty woman of God, get here? She compromised her convictions. When Kathryn met Burroughs A. Waltrip, an evangelist from Austin, Texas, he was already married with two sons. However, she fell in love with him anyway. Opening her heart to a friend, Kathryn said, “I loved him more than I loved life itself.”2 Waltrip eventually divorced his wife, and on October 18, 1938, he and Kathryn were married at Radio Chapel in
Mason City.3

It wasn’t long after when Kathryn began to realize the marriage was a mistake. She had to face the truth: she had compromised her integrity and her ministry. She was trying to get something but lost everything.

It’s not hard to identify with her regret. As we go through life, the cares of this world and our desire for things can take us down a wrong road. James 4:3 says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (English Standard Version). Our desires battle with our convictions, and if we are not careful, we start going down a path of compromise—a path that leads to a dead end.

In his teaching Excellence: How to Pursue an Excellent Spirit, Andrew explains, “Whatever you compromise to get or to keep . . . you’ll eventually lose.”

He also says, “God wants to help us in every area of our lives. He desires for each of us to experience the good things He has for us. But the only way to do that is to ‘seek first His kingdom,’ like Luke 12:31 says. We have to choose to do things God’s way.”

In a heartfelt confession, Kathryn said, “I had come to the place in my life where I was ready to give up everything.”4 Finally Kathryn cried, “Dear Jesus, I surrender all, I give it all to You.”5

Her life became like a grain of wheat that fell into the earth and died. But God resurrected her ministry, giving her a new beginning. Her ministry grew, and God performed countless miracles through her. She helped the body of Christ to understand the importance of a more intimate relationship with the
Holy Spirit.

Like Kathryn did, we need to receive God’s forgiveness and grace. If you find yourself at a dead end in some area of your life, there is hope! It doesn’t matter how you got there. You can become the kind of person who is humble and faithful, one who has an excellent spirit. As you learn to depend on God, you won’t go down the road of compromise, and you will find the way out of any dead-end road.

Order Andrew’s Excellence teaching or watch the Gospel Truth to learn more about having an excellent spirit and living without compromise.

Written by Citlalli Macy

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

1 Benny Hinn, Kathryn Kuhlman: Her Spiritual Legacy and Its Impact on My Life (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1998), 103.
2 Hinn, Kathryn Kuhlman, 102.
3 Hinn, Kathryn Kuhlman, 97-98.
4 Hinn, Kathryn Kuhlman, 103.
5 Hinn, Kathryn Kuhlman, 103.

Bold Not Cold

Something Andrew said this morning on the Gospel Truth really hit home
with me:

“You’re always going to turn out better if you stand on your convictions rather than compromise.”

Lately, I’ve found myself in situations with people who—just like Andrew describes—are people who “don’t let the Bible get in the way of what they believe.” Through the course of discussion and fellowship with them, I discovered that they read what they believe in the Bible, instead of believe what they read.

In each of these situations, I had a choice. I could share the truth with them as the Word says it or soften it and take some of the edges off, so as to not turn them off. But do you know what that’s called? It’s called man-pleasing; i.e., compromising. And Andrew says bluntly, “Compromise is a language of the devil.”

Yowch! While hearing that may not make me feel good, I want to be wise and receive truth (Prov. 9:8) the same way I want others to receive it when I speak to them. Paul probably went through the same struggles when he wrote, “If I wanted to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10, Easy-to-Read Version).

Well, I want to be a servant of Christ. But I don’t enjoy confronting people. Challenging what someone believes is offensive. Now, I don’t think I get a pass to be offensive just for the sake of being offensive. But the Scripture talks about speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). That’s another way of saying be bold but not cold. So, if I’m going to be a servant of Christ, I can’t be afraid to be offensive. I’m only relaying what He told me to say and do.

It’s like being a messenger. A good messenger delivers the entirety of a message in the way, or manner, the sender instructed. In a world where standing up for truth invites persecution, rejection, and hatred, something in me still desires to be a good messenger.

However, being a messenger is about much more than just challenging someone’s beliefs. Andrew explains that “you just do not compromise who you are and what God has made you to be, what God has called you to be; you don’t compromise.”

Wow, when I compromise, I’m not embracing my identity. I’m actually quashing it! I don’t like the sound of that. I want to step up and be who God made me to be, without apology. Andrew explains what this looked like for Daniel and his friends in the Bible:

“The Babylonians were trying to separate Daniel and his three friends from their core beliefs and tried to make them in the image of the Babylonians, but Daniel and Hananiah and Mishael and Azariah—they wouldn’t compromise, they wouldn’t change, and that was the beginning of the spirit of excellence.”

The purpose for walking in an excellent spirit is not so you can say, “I’m awesome!” Andrew says, “If you truly have your identity in Christ and what He’s done in you, it will lead to humility.”

So, in the case of being bold but not cold, it’s a matter of me humbling myself and embracing how God made me. It’s just me being me.

To learn more about what it means to have an excellent spirit, watch Andrew Monday through Friday on the Gospel Truth. His Excellence: How to Pursue an Excellent Spirit series will be airing all this month.

Written by David Moore II

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Oneness

“It’s not what you are that holds you back; it’s what you think you are not.”

Writer and speaker, Denis Waitley

What’s holding you back? Are you being kept from achieving your full potential because you think you are not something? If so, then it’s probably because you don’t really know who you are.

As Christians, we must think of ourselves in accordance with the truth of God’s Word. We must know our true identity—who we really are in Christ. Second Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (New King James Version ). The moment we accepted Jesus as our Lord, we each became a brand-new person, a new creation.

But what does it mean to be a “new creation”? We need an easy-to-understand description of who we are.

One of the greatest revelations I ever received from the Word regarding the new nature is found in 1 Corinthians 6:17. The English Standard Version puts it like this: “But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.” When you accepted Christ, or joined yourself to the Lord, a powerful change took place. This verse says that you became one spirit with Him. In other words, God fused His Spirit with your spirit and you became one. This is an amazing truth! There aren’t two spirits living in your body. There is only one spirit—you and God as one!

This one truth is so transforming, liberating, and empowering! It can radically change the way you think about yourself and, therefore, the way you live.

In Andrew’s broadcast this month, he’s teaching on Excellence: How to Pursue an Excellent Spirit. There, he explains that in order to have an excellent spirit, we’ve got to know who we are in Christ. He says, “It is impossible for you to release your true identity, who you are in Christ, if you don’t know what [your identity] is.”

He shares from Philemon when Paul prays for his friend. Verse 6 says, “ that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus” (NKJV, emphasis added).

Andrew explains, “The way your faith begins to work is when you start acknowledging. The word acknowledge, it doesn’t mean . . . you petition God, you intercede, you beg, and then God gives you something. No, you’ve already got it. You just need to acknowledge what has already happened to you when you got born again .”

For instance, some people struggle with the belief that they are close to God when they “feel” His presence, but far from Him when they don’t. If they fail because of a sin, that too makes them feel far from God. They think He has withdrawn His Spirit from them. But nothing could be further from the truth!

Andrew goes on to say, “I don’t care how much you’ve failed. You’ve got to find out your identity and once you discover that identity, you can’t compromise it. You can’t let your failures in the physical realm change your attitude about who you are in the spirit.”

Regardless of your feelings, you and He are one and will always be one. You are close to God. You can’t get any closer than one. And that is the way you must see yourself. Knowing your oneness with Him is the key to unlocking your full potential!

Are you one with Him? If you’re not sure you’re born again, don’t wait another minute. Call our Helpline today: 719-635-1111. This could be the best day of your life! Know who you are truly meant to be, once and for all.

And watch Andrew all this month on the Gospel Truth, as he continues to share what it takes to push past the obstacles holding you back from walking in the blessing of God.

Written by W. Kent Smith and Jill M. Smith

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Today, Not Tomorrow

Living in a fallen world, it’s just a matter of time before we face a challenge. Even if we’re doing our best to live holy, challenges will come. That’s exactly what happened to David when Goliath—like Andrew might say—“double-dog dared” him.

You know the story: Boy accepts challenge to fight a giant. (This is timeless stuff here.) Goliath yells at young David, “Come over here and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and wild animals” (1 Sam. 17:44, The Living Bible).

What would you do if someone or something challenged you like that? What if a cancer, a big financial crisis, or an anxiety attack “double-dog dared” you?

David’s reaction to this challenge placed him in the faith hall of fame (Heb. 11). He didn’t buck the challenge; instead, he accepted it and yelled back at his enemy:

“Today [not tomorrow] the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head; and then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel!”

1 Samuel 17:46, The Living Bible, brackets added

What gave David such boldness? He looked at what he already had: a sling, five stones, a shepherd’s bag . . . and a covenant with the God of Israel. He knew that covenant alone was enough to give him the victory.

In his book You’ve Already Got It!, Andrew explains how in Christ we have everything we will ever need to face any threat from the Enemy. He says:

“There’s still a fight. But the fight is to stand in the victory that God has already purchased for you—not to go out and win one. There’s a big difference! . . . You need to believe that you’re already blessed. (Eph. 1:3.) God has already given you healing, wisdom, revelation, prosperity, joy, peace—everything that you’ll ever need! . . . You are—right now in your spirit—identical to Jesus. (1 John 4:17; 1 Cor. 6:17.) The same power that raised Christ from the dead now lives inside of you. (Eph. 1:19, 20.) It’s infinitely easier to release something you know and believe you already have than it is to try and go get something you don’t.” (pp. 14-16)

Maybe you already know these truths. But if you feel stuck in some area of your life, it could be that you have heard the threats of the Enemy for so long that you are running and not standing. If that’s the case, stop! Don’t let the threats intimidate you any longer. Reach into your shepherd’s bag and recognize what you already have. You have a covenant with Almighty God (Lev. 26:9), you have the spirit of Christ in you (1 John 4:17), you have the Word of God (Eph. 6:17), and you have seed to sow (Eccl. 11:6).

Don’t be discouraged. Turn back the double-dog dare on your Enemy and yell at him. Say, “Today—not tomorrow—the Lord will conquer you. I will destroy you. I will be free from you, and the whole world will know that my God
is alive!”

When you take your stand, God can take care of the rest. Remember that you are not alone. Jesus is with you, and this ministry is praying for you. Today is a good day to know that you’ve already got it!

Written by Citlalli Macy

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Rest Assured

A man who is sort of a mentor to me told me I needed to learn to rest, to let go. “You can’t receive with a hand that’s full,” he said. It was hard at first to understand what I was holding on to. Thinker that I am, I spent quite a bit of time thinking about it. The problem with thinkers is they tend to, well, overthink, which then tends toward a lack of peace, the very opposite of rest.

Needless to say, I got rest issues.

Teaching from his You’ve Already Got It! series on the Gospel Truth, Andrew speaks about rest:

“It’s not a matter of getting God to do something; it’s a matter of resting in what He’s already done. . . . The Sabbath was a picture of this rest that we have in the Lord. . . . When God commanded the Old Testament Sabbath—that man take a rest on the seventh day—it was [a] picture that everything was really from God. God had already provided.” (brackets added)

In other words, when I’m in a position of rest, it’s because I understand that God’s got this. It’s because I’m trusting in the Lord.

In Matthew 6:25-26, Jesus said it another way:

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry 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, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

New King James Version

I can see how what Jesus said here applies to many areas of the Christian life. Take finances, for example. I’ve not heard many preachers go to the above passage in Matthew when they talk about sowing and reaping. They usually reference only 2 Corinthians 9:6-10 and put the emphasis on sowing in order to reap. The problem with that is, when this passage in 2 Corinthians is not taught in balance with the one in Matthew, people tend to trust in their sowing rather than trust in God. Where’s the rest in that? When I’m focused on what I must do, there isn’t any room for rest.

I’m learning that a better way to prosper is to put the emphasis on trusting God, which is all about the heart.

During the same broadcast, Andrew shares this about the Sabbath rest:

“When God first gave the Jews this command about the Sabbath, did you know that there was nobody on the face of the planet that took one day out of seven off? Man, they were working seven out of seven days, fifteen-hour days, laboring and bringing forth fruit by the sweat of their brow. And yet here come God’s people, and they take one out of seven days off. . . . They would have had less. But actually, it was just the opposite. Because they were trusting in God and relying upon Him and following His command, the Jews prospered more with just six days of labor than all of the other nations did with seven days of labor.”

That’s awesome! Andrew goes on to say that the Sabbath “was a picture to them that God was their source, and all of their effort was just a response to God. It was a cooperation with God.”

My excessive thinking was getting in the way of cooperating with God. And I was only getting what I could come up with on my own, which wasn’t very much. But when I co-labor with the Lord, putting the emphasis on trust in Him and His plan, I cease from fretting. I rest assured, “for we who have believed do enter that rest” (Heb. 4:3, NKJV ).

Have you entered into that rest? Share your story with us in the comments below. Also, don’t forget to watch Andrew’s You’ve Already Got It! teaching, airing all this month on the Gospel Truth, or watch missed episodes online or on Roku.

Written by David Moore II

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Dual Impact

Armed with God’s Word and His love, second-year Charis Bible College students carry out Jesus’s command to “go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15). Students go on missions trips that take them to areas all over the world, places like Russia, India, and Germany; and for international students, to various places in the U.S. From a front-row seat, Charis students watch blatant displays of God’s relentless love as people are born again, baptized in the Spirit, healed, and set free. 

Charis student Tim Nee witnessed one such display when he went on his missions trip to Belize earlier this year: 

“God showed up in so many ways during our trip. On the last day, we were at a public pool. We noticed a waitress there who was limping badly, and one team member asked if he could pray for her. As she sat on a bench, it was obvious that one of her legs was shorter than the other. When he prayed, her short leg grew out beyond the other and then the other leg grew out to meet that one! When she stood up, she realized the pain in her back and hip resulting from her body being off was completely gone, and she started to cry. One of her fellow workers saw the whole thing happen. What an awesome way to end our trip!” 

But displays of God’s love during these trips aren’t limited to the obvious external ones. In fact, Charis students find that with the simple act of going, God displays the power of His love in their own hearts; classroom theory about His love becomes revelation. 

That’s what Martin Alargent, an international Charis student from France, experienced on his 2017 missions trip to California. After putting boots on the ground in California, the reality of God’s love exploded in his heart: 

“It is by going that we learn what mercy and compassion means. Sitting in a class gave us a glimpse of what love is. It gave us an idea, a concept. Going to California gave us the revelation of what love is. Here is what love is: Jesus gave His life for us, and we ought to give our lives for the brethren also (1 John 3:16). We went on our missions trip focusing on one goal: being a walking Jesus. That means being ministers of reconciliation and proof of God’s love for humanity. This trip showed me how powerful and effective a like-minded and like-hearted group can be. The love we had for each other splashed on everybody around us. It is by loving each other that we prove we are real disciples of Jesus Christ (John 13:35), and people could see it! I realized that what we experience in life really comes out of what we focus on. Going on our missions trip, we were prepared and fully focused on God’s love and on ministry, and we were expecting miracles, healings, signs, and wonders. Therefore, as an answer to our expectations and our faith, we saw all these things! It was a life-changing, mind-renewing,
heart-transforming trip.”

Help create testimonies like these by giving toward Charis missions trips. In blessing others, you’ll be blessed! 

Written by Sylvia F. Wells 

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No Bullying Zone

“You’re not running your race to obtain the victory. The victory has already been won. It was delivered to you at the starting block. You’re coming from the victory. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to not become distracted by things that try to tell you that you’re without the victory, that you’re in lack. Don’t be deceived. You’re not operating from a deficit. You have what it takes. Keep running!”

The Lord surprised me one evening when He spoke those words to my heart, seemingly out of the blue. Always a big Mission Impossible fan, I didn’t miss the challenge He issued. He challenged me to not be distracted. I had no idea at the time just how lack-minded I was. Lies I’d believed about myself were so well-rooted and familiar that I didn’t realize how much they stole my focus and robbed me of victory in so many areas.

Somewhere along the way, I had adopted a mentality of being without. Without identity, without authority, without value, without enough. Without. Living in fear became a way of life because, at the basement level of my being, I was convinced I didn’t have what it took to succeed—whatever “it” was. Like Eve, I’d been deceived into thinking I was missing something.

In his book You’ve Already Got It!, Andrew relates Adam and Eve’s experience to us today.

“If you could convince perfect people living in paradise with no physical problems whatsoever to think they didn’t have it all, to doubt God’s Word, and to question His goodness, then I guarantee you can convince people living in a fallen world, who can look in any direction and see pain, tragedy, lack, and need, that they don’t have it all.” (p. 119)

But not having it all wasn’t true for Adam and Eve before the Fall, and it isn’t true for born-again believers now.

“The truth is, if you’ve been born again, you do have everything. You are complete in Christ. (Col. 2:10.) Everything you’ll ever need has already been given to you. . . . All you’re doing is combating [Satan’s] lies and deceptions.” (p. 119, emphasis mine)

My oldest son, always friendly and outgoing, came home one day in tears. Eleven years old at the time, he had a black eye and scrapes on his face. When I asked him what had happened, he told me that two older boys lured him into the woods, beat him up, and stole his bike. They were
obviously bullies.

Recently, in a flash of revelation, the Lord showed me that I was being bullied too. Satan had intimidated me into accepting symptoms in my body that weren’t mine and that I didn’t want. When God opened my eyes to what was happening, I could actually see how the Enemy was trying to steal my health.

Like I did when my son got bullied, I got angry. Really angry. I wanted to fight. But a believer’s battle is not with flesh and blood and isn’t waged with fists. So, where is the battle? Andrew explains:

“The battle against the devil is waged in your thoughts. That’s why God’s Word is so essential! Satan’s only power is deception. He lies and represents himself as more powerful than he is. But truth is the antidote to deception. . . . Apart from the power you give him through believing his lies, Satan can’t steal anything from you.” (pp. 119-120, italics mine)

Since the Lord gave me that revelation, I’ve decided that my days of being bullied are over. I may not know every adjustment that needs to be made in my thinking, but I know one thing for sure: it’s too late for defeat, because the victory has already been won.

Find out more about your victory and Satan’s defeat by watching You’ve Already Got It! on Andrew’s Gospel Truth broadcast. You can also listen to the You’ve Already Got It! series through our website or order the book. Don’t be bullied by the Enemy. Learn what’s already yours through Jesus.

Written by Sylvia F. Wells

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.