Can You Believe It!
In the previous posts in this series, I introduced the biblical process of Activation. Activation makes what God has appropriated active and operational in your life. What’s true about the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life does not automatically become active and operational in you; these truths, graces, and gifts must be activated.
We learned that the four steps of activation are: HEAR the Word, BELIEVE the Word, SPEAK/CONFESS the Word, and finally TAKE ACTION – fully activating the Word. The first three steps are the preparation and foundation, and the fourth is the real act of activation.
In this post, let’s look at the second step of Activation: BELIEVING in the heart.
It may be surprising to learn that faith does not operate out of your head but from your heart. When faith is produced, it will operate only from your heart. After hearing the truth of the Word, faith is born or formed in your heart and becomes alive and active.
Romans 10:10 declares that “with the heart one believes.”
. . .out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Matt. 12:34 NKJV
If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. Mark 9:23 NKJV
Faith comes into being when your spirit hears and believes the Word of God on the matter. Romans 10:8a says, “The word [of faith] is. . .in your heart.”
Faith only functions within your heart.
Let us be one who says, “Lord, I believe You and Your word with all my heart!”
In part two of this series, we learned that each word the Lord gives us has an assignment on it that we are to embrace and carry to completion – to full activation. When God gives you a word, write it down!
When God gives you a rhema word, a prophetic word, a prophetic dream, or a vision, He seldom gives you thetimeline. Recall that when God gave a promise to the patriarchs in the Old Testament, He seldom gave them a timeline. Abraham believed for 25 years for the promised son Isaac, David waited 20 years to be fully installed as Israel’s king, and Joseph waited 22 years to see the fulfillment of his promises.
And some of the promises to patriarchs were fulfilled after they died. For example, Abraham’s descendants did not take possession of the land promised to Abraham until over 400 years after the promise was made to him (Gen. 15:13).
So what do we do between the conception phase and the completion or activation phase of the word of the Lord to you?
For you have need of endurance [to remain under the promise] so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. Heb. 10:36 (bracket and underline added)
Be. . .imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Heb. 6:12 (bracket and underline added)
With respect to the promise of God, he [Abraham] did not waver [stagger, vacillate, go back-and-forth] in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God. Rom. 4:20 (bracket added)
Since God typically does not give us a timeline, our response is to by “faith and patience inherit the promises.” I know, this is easier said than done because we are an impatient people. But wait in faith we must.
Once you begin to believe and “own” the word of the Lord to you, you must realize that God is working behind the scenes to bring the promised word to pass. Today, as in Scriptural times, God works to change situations, change or replace people, move you or others to a new location, change relationships, change entire groups of people to accomplish His word. You must realize that it takes the passage of time (a gestation period or seasons) to get everything and everyone in proper place.
God’s promises and prophetic and rhema words are conditional upon your response of faith in your heart. That word must be stood for, believed, contended for (I Tim. 1:18) and prayed into – from conception to completion. So stay in faith and patience, and God will get everything and everyone in proper place in His time!
Be reminded: When God gives you a word – a rhema, a prophetic word, a prophetic dream, or a vision – it means He trusts you to receive and faithfully carry that promise or word to full activation. If the Holy Spirit does not trust you to receive and carry the word or promise, then He would not give it to you. So spend time with the Lord and be receptive to the word He wants to plant in your heart today and carry it with faith and patience!
Prayer
Lord, thank You for the privilege of receiving a word from you that is personal to me. I choose to be faithful to that word and carry it to completion. I know Your word to me is conditional and I will not let it “fall to the ground.” Thank you for trusting me to receive and faithfully carry that promise or word to full activation. I will stand for that word, believe that word, contend for that word, and pray into that word from conception to completion. I choose to endure in faith with the needed patience. In Jesus Name, Amen!
From my new book, Activating the Present-Day Ministry of the Holy Spirit. Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Xulon Press.