Andrew Wommack's Blog, page 20

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

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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

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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

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Believe All Things

When you’re a kid, everything is easier to believe. Then comes the day when you wipe childhood from your eyes and begin to see the world for what it really is. Somewhere along the way, you lose the ability to just believe the best about people or situations. While part of that is just growing up, when it comes to walking with God, seeing things “realistically” doesn’t always help.

First Corinthians 13:7 says that love “beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things” (emphasis mine).

First of all, we need to believe God. When He says that we are “the righteousness of God” in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21) and that we’re already healed by His stripes (Is. 53:5), He wants us to just believe it and release that righteousness and healing. No questions. No doubts. No wavering. Like children, we must trust that He means what He says. We’ll never attribute the loss of a loved one, a failed business pursuit, or physical sickness to Him when we know that His intentions toward us are always good. We can believe Him when He says that He’s already given us everything we need for “life and godliness” (2 Pet. 1:3).

Andrew explains what this everything for life and godliness is in his You’ve Already Got It! teaching. “Everything that you will ever need in the spiritual realm, the physical realm, the emotional realm, the financial realm, has already been done, and He placed this supernatural, raising-from-the-dead [power] on the inside of everyone.” He goes on to explain, “It’s a matter of releasing whatever it is that you need instead of trying to get God to do what you need done.”

When it comes to believing all things in regard to other people, it does not mean being a dupe and accepting everything people say without discernment. It means to assume the best. It is hope.

Do you believe the best of others, of yourself, of God? Galatians 5:6 says, “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.” Doubt and faith don’t mix. When we doubt, when we don’t assume the best of others, we’re not walking in love, and this messes with our faith.

Andrew describes our stance of faith as “our receiver”: “Whatever it is that you need, God has already done it. His supply is already there. God has already done everything through Jesus, and if you don’t see it, . . . the first thing you ought to do is check your receiver.”

Contrary to what the world tells us, believing all things, or assuming the best, is not childish. After detailing what the love of God is, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away
childish things.”

This verse implies that walking in the kind of love that believes all things is a mark of maturity. It’s essential to manifesting what’s already in your spirit. Start believing the best and develop a faith that works by love! This is the faith that releases what God has already put inside of you.

First John 4:19 says, “We love him, because he first loved us.” Get consumed with His love for you, and you’ll find that it’s difficult to see bad in others. Become captivated by His goodness, and you will never doubt His plans for you. When all you can see is the best in people, in situations, and in God, you cannot help but release what’s in your spirit. With Andrew’s teaching You’ve Already Got It!, you’ll learn more about God’s goodness and build your faith to what is already in you. It’s available as a CD, DVD, book, and study guide. Check it out today!

Written by Aria Fischer

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Grace + Faith = 1 Powerful Event

Did you know that Andrew’s biggest annual meeting doesn’t even take place in the States? It’s true. The Grace and Faith Conference, held in Great Britain, has drawn Andrew’s largest crowds for years now. The event this past May was no different, with around 3,500 people in attendance. Representing nearly thirty countries, folks traveled from as near as Portugal and as far away as Brazil to be part of the conference. Why do they come? It’s simple: they know they will be healed, set free, and taught how to live victoriously through Christ (Rom. 5:17).

Attendees at the four-day event gained a deeper understanding of God’s heart for them as they heard the Word—raw and uncut—taught by not just Andrew but by seasoned ministers Duane Sheriff and Wendell Parr. The topics covered were discipleship, being dead to self, and dealing with discouragement. As expected, God confirmed His Word with signs following.

Derek came to the Grace and Faith Conference quite reluctantly, having been persuaded by his wife. He had recently fallen a considerable height from a ladder and landed on his side, breaking four ribs and putting his hip through his pelvis. He was taken to the hospital immediately and, after surgery, was put in a wheelchair. By the time of the conference, he had been on crutches for a couple of weeks. After one of the sessions, he went forward for prayer. A Charis Bible College student began praying for him, and he thought, Actually, the stiffness is going, and the pain has eased off. Then he went for a walk outside the building and thought, Wow, this is going well! He walked back into the conference and waved his crutches at his wife. “I don’t need my crutches anymore,” he shouted. As he shared his story during testimony time, he said, “Thank You, God, and thank you, Andrew Wommack Ministries!”

Another testimony came from Pam. Back in the 1980s, she started to get pain throughout her body and was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. She had suffered pain in her body off and on since then. In the three to four weeks leading up to the conference, the pain flared very badly. In particular, the pain in her hands had become so severe that she couldn’t use them properly. But during the conference, the pain left her hands. On another day of the event, the pain started to return, but Pam decided to put into action what she’d been learning over the weekend. She rebuked the pain, told it to leave, and claimed her victory through Jesus. After that, her hands were pain free, and she left the conference feeling well.

These are just two of the amazing stories that took place during the weekend. Besides these and other testimonies of God’s power, there were salvations and baptisms in the Holy Spirit by the hundreds during the nine sessions. In addition, attendees were treated to a taste of Charis’s production God with Us, with a special live performance from Jamie Wommack and Adam Stone.

It’s no wonder the Grace and Faith Conference is such a powerful event year after year. Make plans to join us in 2018, and experience the power
for yourself!

The friends and partners of Andrew Wommack Ministries make this conference possible. If you have not yet partnered with us, consider doing so today. Lives are being changed!

Written by David Moore II

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Faith Sees

Who hasn’t heard of the expression “blind faith”? People use it to explain trust in something or someone they can’t be sure is trustworthy. That’s how I thought faith in God was. Stepping out and trusting God was like taking a leap of faith. I mean, you can’t see God. You can’t perceive Him with any of the five senses. You have to believe the Bible without fully knowing it’s
true, right?

Then Andrew comes along and says, “You have an ability to know things by your spirit that you don’t know in just the natural realm.”

If you didn’t hear Andrew say this on the Gospel Truth last week, you might be wondering how blind faith fits into that. (That’s what I would
have wondered.)

“I’m not talking about blind faith where you just hear what I say or [what] somebody else says, and you just base your whole life on it.” Andrew continues, “But I’m saying you go to the Word of God. You take the truths of the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit will bear witness and confirm to you and say, ‘Yes, this is true.’ It’s an inspired Word of God, and it will inspire you.”

Excuse me, Andrew, but . . . whaaaaat?

Second Corinthians 4:17-18 says, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; [18] While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” After sharing these words of Paul, Andrew asks, “Did you know, to only a person who’s going by their sight, by their physical senses, this just doesn’t make a lick of sense right here. . . . If they can’t be seen, then how do you look at them?”

Yeah, how does that work, Andrew?

“Faith is how you look into the spiritual realm through the truths revealed in the Word of God, quickened to you by the Holy Spirit, and you can perceive things in the spirit.”

Ah, so it’s a revelation.

“Faith is something that is based on seeing things that can’t be seen.”

Fascinating! That sounds a lot like what Philemon 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.

New King James Version

I did some study on the word “acknowledgement” in this verse. It means “discernment” and is a derivative of a Greek word translated “perceive” (Strong’s Concordance). Basically, this is saying that for my faith to work, I have to see—present tense—something.

Well, that explains why, at times, I struggled to receive from God. I would believe what the Bible says concerning healing or finances, confessing and standing on a promise. But while those things are good and even needful, those promises hadn’t been quickened, enlivened, or made real to me. I didn’t see them, really see them. I found myself dealing with a long, drawn-out battle. Sometimes, I received. Sometimes, I didn’t.

It was when I really began to see with my spirit, and I allowed God’s promises to become real to me, that I received from God more quickly and easily. True biblical faith isn’t blind. Do you see?

If you have a testimony of how this truth has worked for you, please share it in the comment section below. Also, if this is totally new to you, but you “see” what Andrew is talking about in his teaching Faith Builders, we would love to hear your thoughts as well.

Written by David Moore II

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By Faith You . . .

You’ve probably heard the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” While that can refer to people, you could very well apply that to life. All throughout the Bible, God teaches us not to accept circumstances at face value. As Andrew says in his teaching Faith Builders, “Faith isn’t denying that this physical realm exists. Faith is just acknowledging that there’s something beyond just the physical. There’s also a spiritual world out there.” Faith is all about not judging your circumstances by how they appear. You judge them by the Word of God.

Hebrews 11 lists several people in the Bible who did not judge their circumstances by how they appeared. “By faith Noah” built an ark to prepare for a flood God forewarned him about (Heb. 11:7). No one at that point in history had ever even seen rainfall before! But Noah knew the words God spoke to him and believed that His words superseded his current reality.

“By faith Abraham” offered up his long-awaited child Isaac as a sacrifice at God’s request (Heb. 11:17). The circumstances made it look like Isaac, Abraham’s promised son, would be gone forever. But Abraham’s faith in God’s promise helped him trust Him, and God responded to Abraham’s faith by having him sacrifice a ram instead of his son.

“By faith Moses” chose not to identify with Pharaoh’s household (Heb. 11:24) but rather to suffer with God’s people, “for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:27). Andrew says in his teaching:

“One of the things that has helped me to operate in faith is to recognize that when I am believing God for something, I’m not believing in something that doesn’t exist. I’m believing in things that are already realities in the spiritual world. They may not be able to be seen, but they do exist. . . . If you can understand that faith is just reaching over into the unseen realm and bringing into reality things that do exist—they’re just spiritual realities—it’ll change the way you see God.”

Paul admits in Hebrews 11 that he didn’t have time to go into the stories of all the others who lived by faith. Some of those people were Gideon, Barak, Samson, David, and Samuel “who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of the lions” (Heb. 11:33). Like Andrew says in Faith Builders, “Faith is what separates a person who’s walking in victory from a person who’s walking in defeat.”

In other words, the life of a believer should be marked by believing!

First John 5:4 declares:

“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”

“It is not your natural talents and ability,” Andrew continues. “It’s not your great wisdom; it’s not all of these things. It’s God and it’s our trust and adherence to Him that causes everything to work. . . . God’s plans for you are good, and if your life is not good, it’s not because God hasn’t blessed you and had a perfect plan for you. But we have to cooperate, and faith is how we cooperate with God. It takes effort on our part. The things of God do not automatically come to pass.”

What promises in the Bible don’t appear to be a reality in your life? God hasn’t changed His mind. Order Andrew’s Faith Builders teaching and build your faith to live in overcoming victory. It is the key to everything.

Now it’s your turn! By faith you . . .

Written by Aria Fischer

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Where Self-Dependence Ends

“You pray as much as you depend on God.”

When I heard the speaker say that, I was brought up short. A quick mental inventory of my prayer life yielded a dismal level of dependence on God. Perhaps that’s why I was getting some of the results I was getting. And maybe it’s the reason God brought it to my attention.

We serve a God who has Genesis 1 on his resumé, yet how often do we still try to do things in our own strength? It would be comical if it wasn’t so tragic. Self-dependence is an enemy of God, but many believers still struggle with it.

Before the Fall, Adam was completely God-centered. Everything he needed was supplied through relationship with his Creator. He was aware of no lack because there wasn’t any. But when Adam sinned, he immediately became aware of what he had lost and of what he was not (Gen. 3:7). He recognized his separation from God. He and Eve had become independent of God.

The results of their independence, both sweeping and devastating, are obvious in the world around us. Lack, chaos, and fear dominate the hearts of people. That’s because self-dependence, or independence, is the mindset of fallen man, and it prevents us from accessing the abilities, assets, and resources of an infinite God.

In Andrew’s Faith Builders series, he talks about the importance of coming to the end of self:

“Paul said, ‘When I am weak, then am I strong’ [2 Cor. 12:10] . . . You could turn it around and say, ‘When I’m strong in myself, when I am trusting in myself, then I’m weak. But when I am not trusting in myself, when my trust is 100 percent in the Lord, then I’m strong.’ We have to come to a place where we quit putting confidence in ourselves.”

As the oldest girl in my family and, later, a single parent for fifteen years, I’d learned a little too well how to rely on my own strength to get things done. I had gone to college, been self-employed, had homeschooled my children, and bought my own home. My self-reliant mindset continued to thrive even after my children were grown and out on their own.

But just like God had to bring Moses to the end of himself, He had to do the same with me. So, in the summer between my first and second years at Charis, the Lord orchestrated my own personal “burning bush” experience. Though I didn’t travel any farther than my comfortable bedroom rocker, the impact of the encounter left its mark on my life. Speaking directly into my heart, God let me know in no uncertain terms exactly what He thought about my ability to accomplish His will in my own strength:

“The only way this is going to work is when it stops being about you and it starts being about Me. Get yourself off your mind and get Me on it. If I don’t show up, you’re toast anyway, so why make it about you?”

Wow!

Thankfully, God is both loving and patient. It has been a process, but for the first time in my life, I am actually learning how to lean on Him. And He’s revealing to me that, no matter what, He’ll never let me fall.

Build your faith in a loving God by catching the full teaching of Faith Builders on Andrew’s Gospel Truth broadcast. If you miss any of the programs, you can watch them free or listen to the Faith Builders series on our website.

Written by Sylvia F. Wells

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