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The Fullness of Our Inheritance in Christ Jesus

Feb 032012

A New Year should motivate us to seek God in new and fresh ways that would be pleasing to Him. Prayer is always the first and foremost way of seeking God as the Psalmist in 63:1 says, ‘O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You’. However, do we ever stop and consider we are able to seek Him because ‘We have obtained an inheritance according to His purpose to work all things according to the counsel of His will’ (Ephesians 1:11). This inheritance involves the greater gift of the Holy Spirit which is the ‘Spirit of Truth’ which Jesus assured His followers (John 14:17) would be in them always and would allow Him to manifest himself to them. It is through prayer that we can receive the richness of the ‘spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him’ (Ephesians 1:17). It is never anything of ourselves, but according to our adoption into the family of God, we receive the privilege to participate in the ‘good pleasure of His will’. (Ephesians 1:5). God desires ‘good things’ for all of us with an abundance of His presence which is all motivated by His love for us. How do we begin to understand this mystery?

The richness of this inheritance should bring us to our knees in prayer! We are strengthened in ‘the inner person by His Spirit and Christ dwells in our hearts through faith…to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge ; that we may be filled with all the fullness of God’ (Ephesians 3: 16-19). The fullness is the Holy Spirit which through Christ is ‘able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever’. (Ephesians 3:20) What a rich inheritance that can be passed on through prayer. The old saying, “Never under estimate the power of prayer (or a praying wife or mother)” is so true.

Recently, an old family bible was acquired which revealed references of a praying great grandmother and grandmother. The bible is a tangible reminder of an inheritance; however, there is little doubt that my faith is an inheritance from the fullness of the Holy Spirit working in their lives.

Take heed to the power in prayer that we have through the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Reflect upon the beauty of the fullness of our inheritance through Christ. “O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a beautiful inheritance”. (Psalm 16: 5-6)

Submitted by: Rhonda Mixon

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Created to Praise

Prayer Points

Jan 282012

Psalm 150:6 says, “Let every thing that has breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.

We are created to praise God. Some people do not realize that. When the praise service starts, they sit back and say, “I’m not comfortable with all that singing and dancing. I guess praise is just not my thing.”

Yes it is! According to God’s Word, if you breathe, you are meant to praise. And don’t try to slip by with saying, “Well, I have praise in my heart.” That is not enough. God’s Word says that you need to have it in your mouth as well (Psalm 34:1)! Psalm 132:9 says, “Let thy saints shout for joy.” You can’t shout and be quiet at the same time.

When you first begin to truly praise, it may seem awkward to you, but if you will keep it up, it will become a way of life. Why? Because praise causes the Glory of God to manifest itself in your life. It causes you to walk in the light of His countenance (Psalm 89:15). It will start a revival inside of you.

Did you know that every revival in history was started by people the world considered absolute fanatics? God does things differently than the world. So when you set aside your inhibitions and start letting God’s Holy Spirit to operate through you, you may look strange to some people but you will look wonderful to God.

By the way, don’t just think of praising Him in church. Praise Him in your own private prayer time and throughout your day. Learn to maintain an attitude of praise and thanksgiving. When praise comes natural to you in your own private life, it won’t be difficult to praise Him in the midst of the congregation.

It is time we opened our mouths and our hearts and do what God has created us to do. Praise!

Father, Teach us to be obedient to you. Teach us your ways to sing praises and to dance before you in that heavenly throne room of Grace. We will raise our banners high and know that we can reverse what Satan meant to keep Silent. Thank you Jesus, for allowing us to see that it is the enemy that does not want us to Praise you. For Satan knows that Praise is a powerful weapon. A weapon, he once used until he chose to leave your kingdom, through his pride. In Jesus name, Amen

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Heading to the Front Lines

Prayer Points

Jan 212012

Listen to me, all you men of Israel! Do not be afraid as you go out to fight your enemies today! Do not lose heart, or panic, or tremble before them”, Deuteronomy 20:3.

Warrior of the King, you are not called to follow others. Rather, Christ has appointed you to lead others to Him. We need to step out to the front lines and fight for those that are too weak to fight for themselves. Don’t look back at what you have lost, but look forward to the great victories that the Lord has laid in front of you. Don’t hide behind your fears and insecurities. God can and will turn your insecurities into a passion to change the world around you. As you move to the front lines, hide his word and truth in your heart. It is not just for you but for the ones you are helping to fight.

Zechariah10:5 says, Together they will be like mighty warriors in battle trampling their enemy into the mud of the streets. They will fight because the Lord is with them, and they will put the enemy horsemen to shame. You are a chosen leader of the Lord! May fear never keep you from stepping out to the front line. I pray that the Lord will be your strength as you fight the good fight of faith. I pray in Jesus’ name, that you will have great peace as you prepare for battle. May your life be filled with Joy in the midst of every trial you face. May the Lord strengthen you and surround you with His angels in any and all of life challenges that you face. May your courage to step out in faith bring revival to your family and friends in Jesus name, A-men.

Warriors of the king, come on lets all prepare for the battle by putting on our armor and lets lock arms with one another. We will then press on for the victory that the Lord has in store for us. Greater is He that is in me (us) than he that is in the World. We are a conqueror. We have the victory. Praise the Lord, for the victory is one, A-men. (So be it)

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Philippians 1:6

Prayer Points

Jan 162012

Being confident of this that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

What an awesome promise this is! We can be confident that Jesus will complete what He has started. Many times I have begun a project and have completed about half of that project and then decide to take a break for a while. That project may or may not ever be completed. (I’m almost certain I’m not alone in the “get –to- it- later” projects.

I have even begun the great thoughts for doing a wonderful project, but those thoughts and ideas never made it from my brain to my hands!

One project I recall was when a dear friend of mind and I decided to do a beautiful “American Flag” quilt together. Since she was a quilter and I was not, she would be my coach. Our children were about the same age, so they’d have a play-date and we would quilt. My friend finished her quilt long before I did. She even offered to finish mine for me! Eventually I finished before we moved. That project did get done and I was blessed by doing it.

I started that quilt hanging and set it aside for a while. I am so thankful that our Lord who began a good work in us does not set us aside for a while like we sometimes do our projects. He doesn’t just leave us to walk alone! He is always with us through each day, every step of the way, through the good and the bad. We can rest assure He has a plan for us. Jeremiah 29:11 says that He knows the plan He has for us. He will carry it out to completion!

Our Father in Heaven,

How mighty are your works! Thank you for the promise of your words and that you will not “quit” on us. Help us to walk with you each day and become more and more like you. Lord, may we be encouraged that you will finish what you began in us to the very end! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Submitted by Kathy Walls

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No Fear

Prayer Points

Jan 152012

In Psalms 91:5-7, it says, “Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you”.

Wow! What a promise to stand on. That no matter what happens in life, as long as we are walking in the kingdom of light and in His presence, no evil of darkness can touch us. Amazing! We need that promise manifested in our lives these days with everything negative around us. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind. Therefore we can claim to be a fearless princess. Gideon was a valiant warrior. God gave Gideon the strength to win his battle with the enemy and He will do the same for us. The only time something will overtake our hearts is when we take our eyes off of Jesus. He does not desire for us to be bound up in fear. He desires us to be at peace, to have power over the enemy and to walk in love and a sound mind. As long as we walk in His word and in His power we have nothing to be afraid of. No matter what things look like now, victory will always be ours. We are over comers in Christ Jesus.

I pray that you walk in the love of Christ, in which there is no fear. In His presence we walk as a daughter of the king. May you find confidence in your heavenly Father and your peace in His Son. I pray that you will fearlessly face and overcome any enemy in the name of Jesus. I pray that you will hold fast to this truth: nothing can come against you when you are safely in His arms. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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A Daughter Of The King

Prayer Points

Jan 122012

You are a daughter of the King!

Did you know that our Heavenly Father is the King of Kings and that we are royalty? 1Peter 2:9 says we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood. Meaning you are a Daughter of the King. We are also the Bride of Christ, and He is the true lover of our souls. Now that we know we are royalty and that we are loved, then it is time to look at the next level and finish what we were sent to do. Fight the good fight and leave a legacy for the next generation to follow. Every one of God’s princesses has a fight inside of her. Feel Him cover you with His glorious armor. I pray that you will keep yourself protected under His love, that you will be victorious over every attack that the enemy tries to tear you down with, and that you will not back down until the battle is won. May you find joy in knowing that you are in God’s army and that you have every reason to celebrate because victory is yours! All darkness will flee as you walk in the light of the Lord. He is for you; therefore no one can stand against you! Go in the power of the spirit and walk in Him to victory! Isaiah 59:17 Says, “He put on righteousness as his body armor and placed the helmet of salvation on his head. He clothed himself with a robe of vengeance and wrapped himself in a cloak of divine passion. “ This armor is also referenced in Ephesians 6:10-18. It is your offense and defensive weapons. Use them for the battle will be won by the Lord Jesus as we walk in our authority and righteousness.

Blessings My Friends!

Jane Ahl

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Merry Christmas

Prayer Points

Dec 302011

I pray that you are all having a great Holiday season.

Isaiah 9:6 says, “For unto us a child is born, to us a child is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Nighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call Him, Emmanuel.”

These are words of promise out of the Old Testament. How much of that promise do we really hear and pay attention to? At Christmas we seem to concentrate on the child, the baby, the promise of a son and king who will take charge and run the world the way it should be run. This we see as the promise of the Messiah.

I think the more important part of the prophecy is the verse from Isaiah 7, that Matthew takes up as he introduces the Messiah. Matthew 1:22 says, “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet; ‘the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Ennanuel, which means, God with us.’”

The key word in all this is “Emmanuel.” God WITH us! Not just for the little while that Jesus was alive, but it is there in the promise and in the birth of the child, the Son of God. The promise is there at the crufifixion. The promise is there at the resurrection and a Pentecost. Most importantly the promise is here today with each and every one of us. It is the greatest promise we could ever imagine. God is with us in good and bad times, trials and tribulations, pain and pleasure, in everything that happens. GOD IS WITH US!

In prayer, we need to always remember that we are stretched at times to stand on faith to remember that God is with us no matter what is happening around us. He says that we are to seek Him and we shall find Him. He came to us in the flesh so that we could have His presence with us at all times. This Christmas season, I pray that you will know and remember that Christ our Lord is with us and He will never leave us nor forsake us.

I pray that the Lord will shine upon you during this Season of Joy in knowing His love for you and that He will always be with you.

Merry Christmas!
Jane Ahl

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Prayers for the Nonaka family

Prayer Points

Dec 242011

”And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” Ephesians 6:18

On Friday, December 16th, Evan Nonaka was in a bad car accident after leaving a Christmas party near Fort Bragg, NC. Evan is the husband of Erin Nonaka, the PWOC International Blog Manager. As we are the body of Christ, and as we look at anticipation to the celebration of his birth, we want to hold up Erin and her family during this time. As Paul wrote to the church in Corinth concerning the body of Christ, he encouraged that “if one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” I Cor. 12:26-27

Let us lift up the Nonaka family during this time as Evan faces more surgery in the coming days. Let us praise God for his hand of protection on Evan and his life. Let us rejoice that although it is by a hospital bedside, Christmas will be celebrated for the Nonaka family and the Lord will be praised for His hand of mercy on that Friday night.

The following is from Erin about the accident:

“Evan was in a 3 car accident just outside of post at about 10:30 pm on Friday evening. He was not at fault and was severely injured. His injuries consist of: broken left wrist and clavical (colar bone), a partial pnumo (colapsed lung), right and left broken ribs, broken right hip, broken femer, knee cap, as well as a variety of crushed and broken bone throughout the rest of his right leg and right ankle. (I figure that is easier to say other than trying to spell out all the different bones that have been damaged – it is just so much.) He has NO brain or neck injury – praise the Lord. We don’t know much about the incident or how it happened, but are praying for the other drivers. Some of that may become more clear as we enter next week. He has no memory of the accident itself or being admitted to the hospital. His first memory is the room that he is staying at the hospital in between surgeries. He has now just finished 2 surgeries. The first was to get the bone fragments and debris cleaned out of his wounds, set his wrist, put pins in his leg with external stabilizing bars, and put screws in his hip. The second was to put a plate and srews in his left wrist and a screw in his left clavical. He will need to undergo a series of surgeries to help fix his right leg. The doctor is going see how much he can do at a time, without too much swelling. Tuesday will be his next scheduled surgery and he will work on the femur and part of the knee and cap. After that we will wait and see. They are watching carefully right now for infection – as that would be a deterrent to the healing of the bone and surrounding tissues.

Words can not fully express the thanks we already feel for the rapid response of help, support and love that has been given. We very much appreciate your prayers and helps. It is going to be a long recovery. The doctors are saying it will be a long year for him (us). His spirits are up when he is awake. We are grateful for God’s protection of his life and God’s faithfulness. Please continue to pray for healing, strength and endurance among other things that are too numerous to mention at this time. We trust the Lord will show you how to pray for us at this time.”

Our prayers are with you, Erin, Evan and the boys!

Let us continue to pray for other families who are walking through a hospitalization, deployment, separation or another difficult situation that will make the celebration of Christmas a bit challenging. Let our prayers hold them up and strengthen them during this time.

“But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head. I cried to the LORD with my voice, And He heard me from His holy hill.” Psalm 3:3-4

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Christmas Prayer

Prayer Points

Dec 232011

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord Is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:26-33 NIV)

Nazareth was a quiet town where men attended to their daily work and women their households. If you were looking for excitement you would have to travel on down the road. No one really boasted about being from Nazareth. Remember Nathanael saying, ”Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Of course later Nathanael was a follower. Mary being from Nazareth did live a quiet life in a quiet town. Little did she know all of that was about to change. God had a plan, a perfect plan, and she was chosen to play a vital role in fulfilling God’s plan for our salvation.

Why Mary? Mary herself must have wondered, Why am I a “favored woman”? Why me? Of course the reasons she was chosen are known only to God, but it is clear that she was no random selection. Mary was an ordinary, small-town girl, obedient and courageous. From her song recorded in Luke 1:46-55, we know that she was a woman of Scripture, definitely a woman of faith. She was a virgin so that the glory of God might be miraculously demonstrated. Mary was also a peasant girl, in keeping with the humble nature of the Lord’s birth.

Yes, Mary was all these things. She honored and obeyed the will of her Father, providing his only Son a home from which he would grow up to become the savior of the world. The Child toddled behind her in his infancy. Then, in time, she followed behind him all the way to the cross and the tomb.

God sent the ultimate Christmas gift not just to Mary but to all of us and it was Mary who delivered the package.

Dear Lord,

We praise you for your gift of love, your Son Jesus Christ, who came to us as a baby many years ago. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

Prayer Points

Nov 252011

Oh I rejoice in the Lord. The Lord is mighty and He is Good! It is Thanksgiving. A time to Praise and give thanks to the almighty God for All that He has done. William Bradford proclaimed a day of Thanksgiving for the colonists. George Washington declare the Holiday in 1789. During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, looking for ways to unite the nation, Thanksgiving Day was proclaimed the last Thursday in November in 1863.

I thank my God that we to this day have a right to stand and thank and praise and give honor to the one and only true God. Who loves us intimately and created us to praise Him. So many Psalms talk about praise and giving thanks. My favorite is Psalm 100:

Make a Joyful noise to the Lord all you lands! Serve the Lord with Gladness! come before his presence with singing! Know(perceive, recognize, and understand with approval) that the Lord is God! It is He who has made us, not we ourselves (and we are His)! We are his people and the sheep of His pasture, (Eph2:10) Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and a thank offering and into His courts with praise! Be thankful and say so to Him, bless and affectionately praise His name! For the Lord is good; His mercy and loving-kindness and truth endure to all generations.

Friends, I pray that today you all will take time to worship our Lord and King. It says to not only come into the gate but come into the courts. Go to the inner court of your being and spring up that well that so desires to say “Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and all that is within Me!” We all have things to be thankful for. Even if you are going through a trial, He says to count is all Joy. Meaning that even if we are going through a valley, there is still reason to praise Him. Job did not give up. He continued to have faith in God. Continue to be thankful this season. Don’t allow the enemy to kill steel and destroy. Rise up and say, “I will praise and be thankful today!” So let’s rise up as a nation and give thanks to our God for all the things He has done and things that He will be doing for us in our lives. We serve a faithful God, a God that will never leave us nor forsake us. Yet how many times have we not been faithful to him or obeyed his ways. He is there saying, come on home. He loves to be intimate with you. Take time to worship with your loved ones.

Tomorrow we will start a new tradition in our Home. We are going to say things that we are thankful for every hour on the hour. To remember the things that the Lord has done in our lives. To have a continual attitude of praise throughout our day as we hang Christmas lights. Make a new tradition this year to come up higher to put our Lord First place in all things. May your day be filled with the Lord and all the blessings of our Heavenly Father that He has bestowed on you in your life time. Blessings my friends! Remember, Jesus is Lord. Always will be. Rejoice and be Glad!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Jane Ahl

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Older Entries

PWOC International Blog

The Fullness of Our Inheritance in Christ Jesus

Created to Praise

Heading to the Front Lines

Philippians 1:6

No Fear

A Daughter Of The King

Merry Christmas

Prayers for the Nonaka family

Christmas Prayer

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

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