If you want your faith to grow, you’ve got to nurture it, practice it, act on it – and it will grow! That’s what has happened in my life. How did I have the boldness in the prison to pray, “Lord, 2000 years ago when Paul and Silas were in prison, You worked a miracle, broke down the prison walls and set them free. If You could do it for them, You can do it for me, get me out!”?!! I prayed like this, not just because I knew the Scripture, but because, in the back of my mind, it was only 8 years after my throat cancer had been miraculously healed! Because of this I could say, “Lord, You delivered Paul and Silas, You healed my throat cancer – and You can get me out of prison!” You see, my faith grew – experimentally!
The Lord will do great things!
We are living in the age when God is going to fulfil every single promise! That’s why I’m not looking at the negative, I’m looking at the positive. We’re living in a time, a generation, and an age, when God is going to pour out His Spirit upon all flesh, and the whole earth will be filled with the Glory of God!
Prayer changes you and changes your nation
I want to show you how you can have a direct relationship with God. This relationship will change you, and it will change your nation! ‘Those who know their God will be strong and do exploits!’ - When YOU know God, you will literally be able to do what no one else can do. Nothing is impossible for those who believe.
Put your hand into the Hand of God
Prepare the Way of the Lord
Delivered and chosen by God
God has delivered and chosen you so that you will receive an inheritance through Christ! You are not an accident, God made a choice, a decision, He saw you and wants you to be His own! 'The Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be His people, an inheritance, as you are this day' (Deuteronomy 4.20, KJV).
A God of Miracles
I believe in a God of Miracles! When I think of the number of troubles I have had – being in a communist prison for a year; having cancer twice – God uses every circumstance to His glory! But you have got to WANT the miracle! Why do I see miracles? I WANT miracles, I LIVE for miracles. I live to see the Glory and the Power of God! Often it’s difficult, but I won’t give up, I won’t let go of God until He works the miracles, because God cannot fail.
The challenge of repentance and relationship
The challenge today is to repent. If there is no repentance, no transformation you don’t have Christ. That’s why we have believers’ water baptism by full immersion – you are buried with Christ through baptism, and you are born again into the Kingdom of God! In Acts 17, Paul and Silas continue their missionary journey and come to Thessalonica, where Paul begins discussing and debating with the Jews in the synagogue. He’s preaching Christ, who suffered, died – and rose from the dead. The teaching of the New Testament is centred on the resurrection and our need of repentance! - ‘Repent and be baptised for the remission of sins.’
The Church alive with the Fire of God
We need a Church on Fire! Filled with the Power of God! We need another Pentecost! We need another outpouring of the Holy Spirit! We must declare the Glory, the Majesty and the Power of God – and through this will come salvation! In Acts 2 verse 21, Peter says, 'Whosoever shall call on the Name of the Lord, shall be saved!' If we call on the Name of the Lord we shall be delivered from sickness, from sin, from fear… The Church today needs that kind of salvation! The Church is constrained by fear. The Church needs to see the Power of God. Because, whosoever – in the Church – will really call upon the Name of the Lord, they will see the Power of God revealed! O God, open our eyes, give us a vision – and let us see Your Glory, in Jesus’ Name! Amen!