David O.Oyedepo, affectionately called Papa by his followers (born September 27, 1954) is a Nigerian Christian author, Preacher and the founder and Presiding Bishop of Living Faith Church World Wide also known as Winners Chapel and its affiliated International churches known as Winners Chapel International, with headquarters in Ogun State, Nigeria. He is also the senior pastor of the acclaimed Faith Tabernacle,a 50,000 seat church auditorium reputed to be the largest church auditorium in the world by the Guinness Book of RecordsThe Winners Chapel network of churches is present in over 300 cities in all states of Nigeria, as well as in over 63 cities in 32 African Nations, Dubai, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.Oyedepo has been seen as one of pioneers of the Christian charismatic movement in Africa and has been referred to as one of the most powerful preachers in Nigeria.[4] He was named in 2011 by Forbes magazine as being the richest pastor in Nigeria, worth around $150 million, and it has been hinted that he exploits his followers.
Early life and history
On September 27, 1954 David Olaniyi Oyedepo was born in Osogbo but is a native Omu Aran, Kwara into a religiously mixed family: his father,Ibrahim,was a Muslim healer and his mother,Dorcas,was a member of the Eternal Order of the Cherubim and Seraphim Movement (C&S), a branch of the Aladura movement in Nigeria. he was raised by his grandmother in Osogbo, who inculcated into him the virtues of Christian life via the early morning prayers which she do attend with him. She taught him the importance of tithing. David was “born again” in 1969 through the influence of his teacher, one Ms. Betty Lasher, who took special interest in him during his high school days. He studied architecture at Kwara State Polytechnic and worked briefly with the Federal Ministry of Housing in Ilorin before resigning to concentrate on missionary work. Oyedepo also gained a Ph.D in Human Development from Honolulu University, Hawaii, United States of America.[7]
According to him, he received a mandate from God through an 18 hour long vision in May 1981 to 'liberate the world from all oppression of the devil through the preaching of the word of faith'.[8] This is the inaugural vision that led to the founding of the LFCWW, first called Liberation Faith Hour Ministries, in 1981. Two years after, on 17 September 1983, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, ordained David and his wife, Florence Abiola Akano (now known as Faith Abiola Oyedepo) to become pastors also officially commissioned the newly started church of Oyedepo. Five years after, Oyedepo was ordained a Bishop.
Oyedepo's church started in Kaduna, but moved to Lagos, the former capital of Nigeria in September 1989 to start a new branch of His Church, after receiving an instruction from God to reach out to the population in Lagos.This Church has gone on to become the International head quarters of His Church.Due to the increasing flow of people into His Church with crowds spilling over to adjacent roads, and on decks of uncompleted buildings nearby and people standing for hours to listen to His teachings, it became necessary to search for a larger place.This led to the building of the renowned Faith Tabernacle.
Oyedepo is the wealthiest preacher in Nigeria with a net worth of USD $150 million. Oyedepo owns four private jets and has homes in London and the United States. Oyedepo is an acclaimed author and publisher who has written over 60 titles apart from periodicals. He is also Chairman/Publisher of Dominion Publishing House (DPH), a publishing arm of his ministry. DPH has over 4 million prints in circulation to date. Through him, Covenant University, Landmark University, Faith Academy and Kingdom Heritage Schools have been established to equip the youth for impact.
Place of worship
In 1998,Oyedepo set forth to build a new building to accommodate the increasing number of worshippers. This resulted in his Church's acquisition of the initial 530-acre (2.1 km2) facility, known as Canaanland, which serves as the headquarters of His Church.It is the home of the 50,000-seat capacity auditorium, the 'Faith Tabernacle', which is reputed to be the largest Church auditorium in the world.[11] This was a feat also recorded by the Guinness Book of Records.[12][13][14]
World largest church auditorium, Faith Tabernacle,December,2005
The speed of the construction of Faith Tabernacle was breath-taking, considering the size of the building. Construction of this gigantic project was completed within 12 months, which experts claim could only have been a miracle, because such a project should normally take a minimum of three years to complete. Reports also claimed that this building was built debt free.This 50,000-seat edifice was dedicated on September 18, 1999 under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Canaanland is in Ota, a suburb of Lagos and is the 5,000-acre (20 km2) estate and campus, that houses The 50,000 church building, the church secretariat, the church's youth chapel, a primary school called Kingdom heritage model school, a full boarding mission secondary school called Faith Academy, with over 1,500 students and the its University facilities which accommodates over 7,000 students, fully resident in ultra-modern hostel facilities, with fully equipped faculty buildings and numerous staff housing facilities.Canaanland campus also has for profit establishments operated by the church such as a bakery, a bottled water processing plant, a petrol station, various restaurants and shopping stores, several residential houses that provide for the over 2,000 church employees, and guest houses.Four banks are also present on this Estate, three of which are branches of external commercial banks and one which is a community and micro-finance Bank and operated by the Church.[19][20]
[edit] Christian ministry
The teachings of Oyedepo has put him in the category of what is commonly called the Word of Faith Movement.He has referred to principal exponents of the Faith Movement such as Kenneth Copeland, Gloria Copeland,the late Kenneth Hagin, T.L Osborn, Smith WigglesWorth as well as renowned Nigerian preachers Enoch Adeboye and the late Benson Idahosa as mentors.
The teachings of Oyedepo are grouped under a range of topics called '12 pillars of faith', which include: Faith, The Word, Prosperity, the Holy Spirit, Praise, Consecration, the Supernatural, Wisdom, Prayer, Success, Vision and Healing.[24] The Overall focus of His teachings centre around Faith in God's, Prosperity and Miracles.He teaches that faith in the word of God is the key to a life of God's blessings and security of the works of the devil.His teachings on prosperity are aimed at empowering people to live free from poverty, particularly the African continent. He describes his own teaching on prosperity as “covenant software for programming yourself into victories and triumphs." His Church (Winners Chapel) also operates a Bible training programme known as Word of Faith Bible Institute for members and non-members alike to develop knowledge of Christian principles and to develop leaders and future pastors.This institute is run in major branches of the Church.
Oyedepo who operates like the “Chief Executive Officer” of a conglomerate,is the President of David Oyedepo Ministries International (DOMI).DOMI is the umbrella organisation comprising Living Faith Church World Wide (a global network of churches), World Mission Agency (WMA); the global missionary arm of the church's operations, Dominion Publishing House; the publishing arm of the church, Covenant University, and the Social Development Missions projects (made up of hospitals, maternity homes, schools, etc.
Oyedepo is also a strong critic of corruption in Africa as a whole and poor leadership in government.
Criticisms and controversy
Oyedepo has received much criticism from many in the Christian community as focusing on prosperity. This is largely based on the biblical passage "Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:23-24, Mark 10:24-25, Luke 18:24-25). The rich young ruler in the parable had many riches. Although Jesus had said in Matthew 19:21 that he would have treasure in heaven if he followed Him, the young ruler had relied more so on his own earthly riches than as to what Jesus would provide. Many who criticize the prosperity gospel often fail to recognize that greater treasure was promised and that there is no mention of being poor if one follows Jesus. Furthermore, in Deuteronomy 28, poverty is a curse from which many Christians believe they have been redeemed from. Oyedepo is rated as one the world richest pastors based on all his debt free self owned assets as well as those of the church he leads. Oyedepo believes that because he is blessed, he is therefore a blessing to others. By 1998, he was already one of the 10 richest pastors in the world according to him. According to Oyedepo himself, the richest pastor in the world presently is Kenneth Copeland who has given out 27 jets to different pastors as at 10th April 2011. Bishop Oyedepo is arguably among the top three richest pastors in the world especially considering his mentor 'Enoch Adeboye'.
Educational endeavours
Oyedepo's socio-economic endeavours include founding educational institutions based on Christian principles for primary, secondary and tertiary stages of formal Education to empower the young generation,develop the human capacity and improve the educational system in Nigeria and Africa. This has led to the establishment of kingdom heritage model schools in different cities in Nigeria for primary education, Faith Academy; a missionary full boarding secondary school was opened to students on October 25, 1999 and Covenant University.Covenant University was opened to students on October 21, 2002 and was adjudged to be the best private university in Nigeria as of 2005. On March 21st 2011, Landmark University, Omuaran Kwara State (another educational institution founded by the Ministry) officially opened the doors to her pioneer students.
Book publishing
Oyedepo's church also operates its own publishing house,called Dominion Publishing House(DPH), commissioned on December 5, 1992 which has published over 60 Christian, inspirational and motivational books, mini books, magazines and other resources.
Some of His Best Selling books include:
* Pillars of Destiny
* Exploits in Ministry
* Walking in Dominion
* Possessing your possession
* Exploits of Faith
* Anointing for exploits
* Walking in the Newness of life
* Maximise destiny
* Commanding the supernatural
* Winning invisible battles
* Success Strategies
* Success systems
* Towards Excellency in life and Ministry
* Excellency of Wisdom
* Breaking Financial Hardship
* The Release of Power
* Excellency of Wisdom
* Born to Win
* The Miracle Meal
* The Healing Balm
* The Blood Triumph
* Keys to Divine Health
* Fulfilling Your Days
* Breaking the Curses of Life
* All You Need to Have All Your Needs Met
* Emergence Of The Glorious Church
Family life
In 1982 he married Florence Abiola Akano (now known as Faith). They have four children together (David Jr, Isaac, Love and Joys). David Jr and Isaac Oyedepo were ordained as Pastors in May 2007 by Kenneth Copeland.David Jr pastors the London Branch of His Church with His wife, Kemi while Isaac Oyedepo is the present Resident Pastor of Winners' Chapel International ,New York,USA.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Don’t waste your resources! -By Bishop David Oyedepo
A renowned author once said, "Money without financial intelligence is money soon gone ... If you want to be rich, then you need to become financially literate."
God empowers us for financial fortune through the release of divine ideas. If you want to be rich and sustain it, you need to guide your ideas with discretion.
Many people in the society have lost sight of these facts, taking things for granted, living a wasteful life and thereby living in poverty, lack and want. That is why this week, I will be showing you one of the important things you need to do, if you must enjoy financial fortune in your family this year. It is avoiding waste!
The American Heritage Dictionary
defines waste as using, consuming, spending, or expending thoughtlessly or carelessly. In God’s own economy, waste is the worst enemy of wealth. Waste is an economic cancer that eats up one’s financial wealth. Therefore, your financial expenditure needs to be focused and done with a sense of purpose, especially in these days of economic meltdown.
The Bible tells us a story about the prodigal son, who wasted his substance on riotous living in a far country. When famine broke out there, he began to be in want and started eating the food meant for the swine (Luke 15:11-24). By implication therefore, when you are a victim of waste, you automatically become a victim of want.
There is no doubt that financial waste has been the undoing of many people in their various homes. For instance, many do not know how much is expended on telephone bills, car maintenance, house-keeping, and so on. They just keep spending until they find themselves in lack and want.
Nobody keeps a treasure under a leaking roof. If you live a leaking life, God can’t entrust His riches in your home. If you live an extravagant life, one day you will end up in penury! Every waster of financial resources is destined to end up a failure in life.
You can’t be earning N40,000 and using N30,000 for hosting visitors; that is waste! You are not prudent with your financial resources. Some put their children in schools whose fees are not affordable.
Many people are living above their levels. Why must you impress others and depress yourself? Many put on 10 bangles, trinkets and chains and can’t afford to maintain their families. This is bad! This is not the way to cater for your family.
God gave you brain so that you can give Him rest. Live within your means. Don’t put your children in schools charging outrageous fees. My wife and I never needed prayer to pay our children’s school fees. We put them in schools that we could afford.
In my house, we have a home budget and my wife is the General Manager. She applies prudence in its management. If you are a guest in my house, for instance, and you need to make a phone call, I will be consulted so as to know the purpose for such a call. This is because where purpose is not defined, abuse is inevitable.
For you to qualify for sustained financial resources, you must be a good manager of your resources. The blessings from God will stop flowing in your direction, when you start wasting them. So, don’t be a waster! Learn to order your priorities right, and live within your means per time. When you waste your resources, you suffer lack and want and this may lead to begging and borrowing. This may eventually lead you into stealing, especially, when you fail to get what you want. If you want to enjoy financial fortune, avoid waste. Be prudent in your spending.
I want you to know that God, Himself hates waste. The Bible tells us a story about how Jesus Christ fed 5,000 men, beside women and children, with five loaves and two fishes. After feeding them, the remnants that were gathered filled 12 baskets (Matthew 14:19-21).
From this, we can see that waste is not allowed in the kingdom of God. A waster does not go too far in life! Therefore, stop wasting your electricity so you don’t suffer financial pressure, especially when you are not able to cope with the bills! If you are fond of doing this in the past, please refrain from it as from today.
Apart from that, you can adopt the policy of budgeting, in order to avoid wasteful spending. For instance, in my house, we have household maintenance budget. We’ve been doing that for years. Although this budget is increasing annually somehow, we have always been able to live within the maintenance budget. That way, I avoid wasteful spending!
Are you a waster of resources? There is still hope for you if you come to God who is Omniscient. When you come to Him, He will give you the wisdom needed to be prudent with your resources.
Coming to God entails confessing your sins and accepting Jesus your Lord and Saviour. That is how to be born again. If you are not yet born again, you can do so now, as you say this prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Deliver me from sin and Satan, to serve the Living God. Today, I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You Jesus for saving me! Now I know I am born again!
Friend, God is set to do a new thing which will make a difference in your life, at SHILOH 2009. Tagged, Hour Of Restoration, the event will hold at Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Idiroko Road, Ota from December 8-12, 2009. Come and enjoy full divine restoration and transformation! Jesus Is Lord! Remain blessed as you come!
Every exploit in life is a product of knowledge. For further reading, please get my books — Towards Excellence In Life And Ministry, Winning Prayer and Success In Marriage.
I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: BISHOP DAVID OYEDEPO, Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 7747546-8; or E-mail: bishop@davidoyedepoministries.org
God empowers us for financial fortune through the release of divine ideas. If you want to be rich and sustain it, you need to guide your ideas with discretion.
Many people in the society have lost sight of these facts, taking things for granted, living a wasteful life and thereby living in poverty, lack and want. That is why this week, I will be showing you one of the important things you need to do, if you must enjoy financial fortune in your family this year. It is avoiding waste!
The American Heritage Dictionary
defines waste as using, consuming, spending, or expending thoughtlessly or carelessly. In God’s own economy, waste is the worst enemy of wealth. Waste is an economic cancer that eats up one’s financial wealth. Therefore, your financial expenditure needs to be focused and done with a sense of purpose, especially in these days of economic meltdown.
The Bible tells us a story about the prodigal son, who wasted his substance on riotous living in a far country. When famine broke out there, he began to be in want and started eating the food meant for the swine (Luke 15:11-24). By implication therefore, when you are a victim of waste, you automatically become a victim of want.
There is no doubt that financial waste has been the undoing of many people in their various homes. For instance, many do not know how much is expended on telephone bills, car maintenance, house-keeping, and so on. They just keep spending until they find themselves in lack and want.
Nobody keeps a treasure under a leaking roof. If you live a leaking life, God can’t entrust His riches in your home. If you live an extravagant life, one day you will end up in penury! Every waster of financial resources is destined to end up a failure in life.
You can’t be earning N40,000 and using N30,000 for hosting visitors; that is waste! You are not prudent with your financial resources. Some put their children in schools whose fees are not affordable.
Many people are living above their levels. Why must you impress others and depress yourself? Many put on 10 bangles, trinkets and chains and can’t afford to maintain their families. This is bad! This is not the way to cater for your family.
God gave you brain so that you can give Him rest. Live within your means. Don’t put your children in schools charging outrageous fees. My wife and I never needed prayer to pay our children’s school fees. We put them in schools that we could afford.
In my house, we have a home budget and my wife is the General Manager. She applies prudence in its management. If you are a guest in my house, for instance, and you need to make a phone call, I will be consulted so as to know the purpose for such a call. This is because where purpose is not defined, abuse is inevitable.
For you to qualify for sustained financial resources, you must be a good manager of your resources. The blessings from God will stop flowing in your direction, when you start wasting them. So, don’t be a waster! Learn to order your priorities right, and live within your means per time. When you waste your resources, you suffer lack and want and this may lead to begging and borrowing. This may eventually lead you into stealing, especially, when you fail to get what you want. If you want to enjoy financial fortune, avoid waste. Be prudent in your spending.
I want you to know that God, Himself hates waste. The Bible tells us a story about how Jesus Christ fed 5,000 men, beside women and children, with five loaves and two fishes. After feeding them, the remnants that were gathered filled 12 baskets (Matthew 14:19-21).
From this, we can see that waste is not allowed in the kingdom of God. A waster does not go too far in life! Therefore, stop wasting your electricity so you don’t suffer financial pressure, especially when you are not able to cope with the bills! If you are fond of doing this in the past, please refrain from it as from today.
Apart from that, you can adopt the policy of budgeting, in order to avoid wasteful spending. For instance, in my house, we have household maintenance budget. We’ve been doing that for years. Although this budget is increasing annually somehow, we have always been able to live within the maintenance budget. That way, I avoid wasteful spending!
Are you a waster of resources? There is still hope for you if you come to God who is Omniscient. When you come to Him, He will give you the wisdom needed to be prudent with your resources.
Coming to God entails confessing your sins and accepting Jesus your Lord and Saviour. That is how to be born again. If you are not yet born again, you can do so now, as you say this prayer: Lord Jesus, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Deliver me from sin and Satan, to serve the Living God. Today, I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You Jesus for saving me! Now I know I am born again!
Friend, God is set to do a new thing which will make a difference in your life, at SHILOH 2009. Tagged, Hour Of Restoration, the event will hold at Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Idiroko Road, Ota from December 8-12, 2009. Come and enjoy full divine restoration and transformation! Jesus Is Lord! Remain blessed as you come!
Every exploit in life is a product of knowledge. For further reading, please get my books — Towards Excellence In Life And Ministry, Winning Prayer and Success In Marriage.
I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: BISHOP DAVID OYEDEPO, Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 7747546-8; or E-mail: bishop@davidoyedepoministries.org
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Eight Steps to Destination: Prosperity Overflow by Creflo Dollar
God wants us to prosper spirit, soul and body in every area of our lives. Follow these eight steps to the fullness of what God intended for your relationships, ministry, job and finances. Start planting the Word of God in your heart and watch as your harvest overflows!
God has a place He wants us to go: Destination: Prosperity Overflow. I believe with all my heart that God wants us to prosper. In fact, I believe that prosperity is an expression of God’s love to us. Now please understand, I’m not just talking about money. Prosperity includes money, but it is more than money. God wants you to prosper in your spirit, soul, emotions and physical body. He wants you to prosper in your anointing, relationships, marriage and job. He wants you to excel toward the promises of God.
God has already done His part. He’s already made lots of things available to us, but if we don’t understand the process that we need to take to arrive at our destination, we could live the rest of our lives without ever coming into what God fully intended for us.
There are eight steps in this process. If your destination is Prosperity Overflow, you’re going to have to understand and respect this process. So let’s look at it carefully and see how each step impacts your life.
Step 1: The Word of God
The Word of God. This is where everything in the process starts. If you’re going to end up at Destination: Prosperity Overflow, you’re going to have to start with the Word. “In the beginning was the Word” (John 1:1).
The Word is the incorruptible seed, the seed that will always produce, the seed that will never fail. It is the origin for all prosperity—the gateway to the blessings of God. We can’t achieve prosperity without it.
Prosperity is Word-determined, not money-determined. No matter what we give, our money won’t have a future if it’s not backed up by a “Word seed,” that is, a revelation from the Word of God. It’s the Word seed that causes that money seed to increase. So many of us want to give a money seed, but we don’t have a Word seed. And so we release the money seed without any force behind it.
For instance, imagine a preacher who has never experienced a financial breakthrough. When the offering comes, he always puts something in, but things never get better for him. Why? Because even though he gave a money seed, he never received a revelation from the Word concerning his financial breakthrough. He planted the money seed, but it had no future without the Word seed.
It’s the Word of God, the Word seed, which determines prosperity in every area of life. Word seed will prosper you when the doctor tells you you’re sick. Word seed will prosper you when you feel like you’re about to lose your mind. Word seed will prosper your marriage when things seem down and out.
The process to Destination: Prosperity Overflow starts with the Word.
Step 2: Your Thinking
If you ask people why they read the Bible, they’ll give you all kinds of answers. But the reason you should read your Bible is because it governs your thinking. It shows you what type of mind-set you should have. And that’s the second step in this process: Word thinking, or prosperous thinking.
Third John 2 states, “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” The prosperity of your life is based on the prosperity of your soul—that is, your mind, will and emotions.
You will be as you think. Proverbs 23:7 says, “As [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he.” If you think you’re going to be poor all your life, you probably will be. If you think you’re going to break out of this financial situation, then you’ll break out of it.
Consider how you think. Do you have a lack mentality? A poverty mentality? A sickness mentality? A mentality of defeat? You’ve got to look at your thinking and what influences your thinking, because everything that’s going on in your life can be traced back to how you think.
Step 3: Your Emotions
The Word of God will lead you to start thinking thoughts that are in line with the Word. And thinking that lines up with the Word will produce emotions that line up with the Word.
God gave us emotions. They are a gift. Jesus had emotions. The Bible says He was touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Hebrews 4:15). It is fine to have emotions…but we must make sure that emotions never have us.
Emotions are feelings caused by pain or pleasure that will direct you or move you in a direction. God has given you emotions. If you don’t learn how to control them, they will move you to places you don’t need to go.
If the devil’s going to move you out of the will of God where prosperity is concerned, then he’s going to do it by enticing your emotions. He tried to do that with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus was sweating blood because He was “deeply distressed” (Mark 14:33, New International Version). He was resisting, not allowing His emotions to take charge.
As Jesus resisted, the King James Version says He “went forward” (verse 35) and kept praying. When your emotions try to move you out of God’s will, do like Jesus and keep moving forward. Keep doing God’s will, regardless of how you feel.You have authority over your emotions.
Step 4: Your Decisions
It’s extremely important that we understand how to govern ourselves and take charge of our emotions because how we feel will determine the next step in this process: the decisions we make.
Life is a series of decisions. Every day you wake up, you make a decision. According to Deuteronomy 30:19, you’re a free moral agent. You can choose life or death, blessing or cursing. And when you make decisions in line with the will of God, heaven will back you up.
Look what happened when Jairus made a decision and interrupted Jesus’ plans in Mark 5:21-23: “When Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side.… Behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, and besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.”
Now, look at what Jesus did in verse 24: “Jesus went with him.”
Did you get that? Jesus stepped off the boat, ready to accomplish the will of God for His life. But when Jairus interrupted Him, Jesus turned and went with him.
Then in verse 28, right in the middle of this situation, a woman with an issue of blood arrived. She had made a decision, too: “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” Jesus stopped and healed her right there on the spot. Shortly after that, Jairus’ daughter was healed, too.
In both circumstances, Jesus was doing one thing when He was directed elsewhere. There’s a powerful principle here: Jesus has put His ministry and His Anointing into the hands of people who will make decisions that line up with His will. When you make a decision that lines up with His will, He will stop, turn and show up at your house to remove burdens and destroye yokes. That’s how powerful a decision is!
Step 5: Your Actions
Your decisions will determine your actions. And your actions cause the increase. Faith without works is dead (James 2:17). So start acting like what you just decided. Start talking like what you just decided. You may not be able to buy a $500 suit right now, but get yourself a good suit and have it dry cleaned. Get yourself a nice tie and a little handkerchief. Start walking like you’re already in the overflow. God weighs your actions (1 Samuel 2:3), so start doing what you can. Let your actions show what you believe.
Step 6: Your Habits
Your actions will determine your habits. You will develop in whatever you are doing on a daily basis. So you’ve got to check what you’re doing and saying every day, because what you do and say determines your potential.
If you lie, you have a potential to become a developed liar. If you sneak around looking at pornography every day, you only have the potential to develop in that. So make sure you look at your actions because your actions will determine your habits, and you don’t want habits in your life that are out of line with the Word of God.
Step 7: Your Character
Your habits will produce Step 7: your character. Character is what people have come to expect from you. Understand this: You will never rise above the limitations of your character.
Over the years, Brother Kenneth Copeland has defined character as doing what’s right because it’s right and then doing it right. The character we should desire is, of course, the character of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What was His character? Love. We should begin to develop in the character of agape love so we can learn how to love people with agape love.
Step 8 : Your Destiny
Finally, the type of character you develop will determine your destination in life.
What’s your destiny? In John 10:10, Jesus says it succinctly: “I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)” (The Amplified Bible). There’s your destiny. Enjoy life! That’s where you’re headed. Amen!
The Word produces your thinking; your thinking produces your emotions; your emotions produce your decisions; your decisions produce your actions; your actions produce your habits; your habits produce your character; and your character produces your destiny. Where you end up in life will be based on how you handle that progression.
You’re destined to live an overflowing life. You’re destined to be healed, to be at peace, to be wealthy. You’re destined to be happy. You’re destined to be sound. That’s what you were born to enter into. Life in the overflow! That’s your Destination: Prosperity Overflow.
God has a place He wants us to go: Destination: Prosperity Overflow. I believe with all my heart that God wants us to prosper. In fact, I believe that prosperity is an expression of God’s love to us. Now please understand, I’m not just talking about money. Prosperity includes money, but it is more than money. God wants you to prosper in your spirit, soul, emotions and physical body. He wants you to prosper in your anointing, relationships, marriage and job. He wants you to excel toward the promises of God.
God has already done His part. He’s already made lots of things available to us, but if we don’t understand the process that we need to take to arrive at our destination, we could live the rest of our lives without ever coming into what God fully intended for us.
There are eight steps in this process. If your destination is Prosperity Overflow, you’re going to have to understand and respect this process. So let’s look at it carefully and see how each step impacts your life.
Step 1: The Word of God
The Word of God. This is where everything in the process starts. If you’re going to end up at Destination: Prosperity Overflow, you’re going to have to start with the Word. “In the beginning was the Word” (John 1:1).
The Word is the incorruptible seed, the seed that will always produce, the seed that will never fail. It is the origin for all prosperity—the gateway to the blessings of God. We can’t achieve prosperity without it.
Prosperity is Word-determined, not money-determined. No matter what we give, our money won’t have a future if it’s not backed up by a “Word seed,” that is, a revelation from the Word of God. It’s the Word seed that causes that money seed to increase. So many of us want to give a money seed, but we don’t have a Word seed. And so we release the money seed without any force behind it.
For instance, imagine a preacher who has never experienced a financial breakthrough. When the offering comes, he always puts something in, but things never get better for him. Why? Because even though he gave a money seed, he never received a revelation from the Word concerning his financial breakthrough. He planted the money seed, but it had no future without the Word seed.
It’s the Word of God, the Word seed, which determines prosperity in every area of life. Word seed will prosper you when the doctor tells you you’re sick. Word seed will prosper you when you feel like you’re about to lose your mind. Word seed will prosper your marriage when things seem down and out.
The process to Destination: Prosperity Overflow starts with the Word.
Step 2: Your Thinking
If you ask people why they read the Bible, they’ll give you all kinds of answers. But the reason you should read your Bible is because it governs your thinking. It shows you what type of mind-set you should have. And that’s the second step in this process: Word thinking, or prosperous thinking.
Third John 2 states, “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” The prosperity of your life is based on the prosperity of your soul—that is, your mind, will and emotions.
You will be as you think. Proverbs 23:7 says, “As [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he.” If you think you’re going to be poor all your life, you probably will be. If you think you’re going to break out of this financial situation, then you’ll break out of it.
Consider how you think. Do you have a lack mentality? A poverty mentality? A sickness mentality? A mentality of defeat? You’ve got to look at your thinking and what influences your thinking, because everything that’s going on in your life can be traced back to how you think.
Step 3: Your Emotions
The Word of God will lead you to start thinking thoughts that are in line with the Word. And thinking that lines up with the Word will produce emotions that line up with the Word.
God gave us emotions. They are a gift. Jesus had emotions. The Bible says He was touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Hebrews 4:15). It is fine to have emotions…but we must make sure that emotions never have us.
Emotions are feelings caused by pain or pleasure that will direct you or move you in a direction. God has given you emotions. If you don’t learn how to control them, they will move you to places you don’t need to go.
If the devil’s going to move you out of the will of God where prosperity is concerned, then he’s going to do it by enticing your emotions. He tried to do that with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus was sweating blood because He was “deeply distressed” (Mark 14:33, New International Version). He was resisting, not allowing His emotions to take charge.
As Jesus resisted, the King James Version says He “went forward” (verse 35) and kept praying. When your emotions try to move you out of God’s will, do like Jesus and keep moving forward. Keep doing God’s will, regardless of how you feel.You have authority over your emotions.
Step 4: Your Decisions
It’s extremely important that we understand how to govern ourselves and take charge of our emotions because how we feel will determine the next step in this process: the decisions we make.
Life is a series of decisions. Every day you wake up, you make a decision. According to Deuteronomy 30:19, you’re a free moral agent. You can choose life or death, blessing or cursing. And when you make decisions in line with the will of God, heaven will back you up.
Look what happened when Jairus made a decision and interrupted Jesus’ plans in Mark 5:21-23: “When Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side.… Behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, and besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.”
Now, look at what Jesus did in verse 24: “Jesus went with him.”
Did you get that? Jesus stepped off the boat, ready to accomplish the will of God for His life. But when Jairus interrupted Him, Jesus turned and went with him.
Then in verse 28, right in the middle of this situation, a woman with an issue of blood arrived. She had made a decision, too: “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” Jesus stopped and healed her right there on the spot. Shortly after that, Jairus’ daughter was healed, too.
In both circumstances, Jesus was doing one thing when He was directed elsewhere. There’s a powerful principle here: Jesus has put His ministry and His Anointing into the hands of people who will make decisions that line up with His will. When you make a decision that lines up with His will, He will stop, turn and show up at your house to remove burdens and destroye yokes. That’s how powerful a decision is!
Step 5: Your Actions
Your decisions will determine your actions. And your actions cause the increase. Faith without works is dead (James 2:17). So start acting like what you just decided. Start talking like what you just decided. You may not be able to buy a $500 suit right now, but get yourself a good suit and have it dry cleaned. Get yourself a nice tie and a little handkerchief. Start walking like you’re already in the overflow. God weighs your actions (1 Samuel 2:3), so start doing what you can. Let your actions show what you believe.
Step 6: Your Habits
Your actions will determine your habits. You will develop in whatever you are doing on a daily basis. So you’ve got to check what you’re doing and saying every day, because what you do and say determines your potential.
If you lie, you have a potential to become a developed liar. If you sneak around looking at pornography every day, you only have the potential to develop in that. So make sure you look at your actions because your actions will determine your habits, and you don’t want habits in your life that are out of line with the Word of God.
Step 7: Your Character
Your habits will produce Step 7: your character. Character is what people have come to expect from you. Understand this: You will never rise above the limitations of your character.
Over the years, Brother Kenneth Copeland has defined character as doing what’s right because it’s right and then doing it right. The character we should desire is, of course, the character of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What was His character? Love. We should begin to develop in the character of agape love so we can learn how to love people with agape love.
Step 8 : Your Destiny
Finally, the type of character you develop will determine your destination in life.
What’s your destiny? In John 10:10, Jesus says it succinctly: “I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)” (The Amplified Bible). There’s your destiny. Enjoy life! That’s where you’re headed. Amen!
The Word produces your thinking; your thinking produces your emotions; your emotions produce your decisions; your decisions produce your actions; your actions produce your habits; your habits produce your character; and your character produces your destiny. Where you end up in life will be based on how you handle that progression.
You’re destined to live an overflowing life. You’re destined to be healed, to be at peace, to be wealthy. You’re destined to be happy. You’re destined to be sound. That’s what you were born to enter into. Life in the overflow! That’s your Destination: Prosperity Overflow.
HOW TO BE DEBT FREE-BY KENNETH COPELAND
How to Become Debt Free
Becoming debt free is something every Christian can—and should—accomplish. The Bible tells us in Romans 13:8 to “keep out of debt and owe no man anything, except to love on anther…” (The Amplified Bible). In fact, as believers, we should be the lender, not the borrower (Deuteronomy 28:12).
What’s the big deal over borrowing money when all the world seems to be in debt? The problem is just that—debt is part of the world’s system of finance. It’s a system devised by the devil to keep us in bondage to the world (see Deuteronomy 28:15, 43-44; Proverbs 22:7). Jesus, however, has redeemed us from the curse of the law, and we are free to walk in all the blessing of Abraham (Galatians 3:13-14).
You may be thinking: I understand that the Scriptures tell us to get out of debt. But how realistic is it for me to even think about owning a car or a house, or any of the other nice things I want, if I’m not willing to borrow the money to get them?
That’s a good question, and we want to share with you the following powerful truths that we have discovered—and experienced—in God’s Word.
Decide to get out of debt and live debt free.
Start by giving the Word first place in your life, and by making it your final authority. With that, you must decide to obey Romans 13:8 and believe God to be your source for all your needs and desires. Determine to be single-minded (James 1:8, 22-25), and then meditate on the Word (Psalm 1:1-3; Joshua 1:8).
Put God first in your financial affairs.
Decide that no matter what comes your way, you will obey God’s Word and tithe, as well as be a giver (Malachi 3:8-12; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15). Tithing lays the foundation for your financial success. (See the confession about giving below.)
Believe God for your daily bread (Matthew 6:11).
This is the money you need for your household to function every day. Your tithes and giving should be included in this, but don’t cheat yourself. Make sure you also include in this “daily bread” amount some “padding” for other things—such as debt payments, etc.—above your tithes, giving and necessities.
And remember, do not write “hot” checks—checks which your bank balance will not cover. This is fraud.
Get in agreement (Matthew 18:19).
Have your spouse agree with you, and if you are not married, find a strong believer who will agree with you.
Lay hold of it by faith.
Follow the principles set out in Mark 11:23-24. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that your needs are met, that you are out of debt, that the windows of heaven are opened to you, that the hundredfold return is yours in this lifetime and that you operate financially according to the wisdom of God. (See Proverbs 2:1-10, 3:13-18.)
Bind the devil in the Name of Jesus (Matthew 18:18; Mark 16:17; James 4:7; Ephesians 6:10-18).
In Jesus’ Name, order Satan and all his forces out of your financial affairs. When you are dealing with a financial matter involving the family, it is important that the husband and/or father—who is responsible as the spiritual head of the home—take the lead in this resistance of the devil’s attacks.
Loose the forces of heaven into your financial affairs (Hebrews 1:14; Psalm 103:20).
The angels of God are your ministering spirits and they too will assist you.
Praise God for the manifestation of His power in your financial affairs (Psalm 9:1-4, 67:5-6, 68:19).
Praise keeps the door to abundance wide open. When the channel between you and God is clear, you can receive His promises.
Finally, it is important to realize—and decide—that you are living to give (Ephesians 4:28). Live on the increase from your giving, that is, reach for the place in your financial life where the income from your job or business becomes your seed for giving.
And as you sow, believe for a hundredfold harvest. You will be a blessing to others and be out of debt. God will bless you and “make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).
Becoming debt free is something every Christian can—and should—accomplish. The Bible tells us in Romans 13:8 to “keep out of debt and owe no man anything, except to love on anther…” (The Amplified Bible). In fact, as believers, we should be the lender, not the borrower (Deuteronomy 28:12).
What’s the big deal over borrowing money when all the world seems to be in debt? The problem is just that—debt is part of the world’s system of finance. It’s a system devised by the devil to keep us in bondage to the world (see Deuteronomy 28:15, 43-44; Proverbs 22:7). Jesus, however, has redeemed us from the curse of the law, and we are free to walk in all the blessing of Abraham (Galatians 3:13-14).
You may be thinking: I understand that the Scriptures tell us to get out of debt. But how realistic is it for me to even think about owning a car or a house, or any of the other nice things I want, if I’m not willing to borrow the money to get them?
That’s a good question, and we want to share with you the following powerful truths that we have discovered—and experienced—in God’s Word.
Decide to get out of debt and live debt free.
Start by giving the Word first place in your life, and by making it your final authority. With that, you must decide to obey Romans 13:8 and believe God to be your source for all your needs and desires. Determine to be single-minded (James 1:8, 22-25), and then meditate on the Word (Psalm 1:1-3; Joshua 1:8).
Put God first in your financial affairs.
Decide that no matter what comes your way, you will obey God’s Word and tithe, as well as be a giver (Malachi 3:8-12; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15). Tithing lays the foundation for your financial success. (See the confession about giving below.)
Believe God for your daily bread (Matthew 6:11).
This is the money you need for your household to function every day. Your tithes and giving should be included in this, but don’t cheat yourself. Make sure you also include in this “daily bread” amount some “padding” for other things—such as debt payments, etc.—above your tithes, giving and necessities.
And remember, do not write “hot” checks—checks which your bank balance will not cover. This is fraud.
Get in agreement (Matthew 18:19).
Have your spouse agree with you, and if you are not married, find a strong believer who will agree with you.
Lay hold of it by faith.
Follow the principles set out in Mark 11:23-24. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that your needs are met, that you are out of debt, that the windows of heaven are opened to you, that the hundredfold return is yours in this lifetime and that you operate financially according to the wisdom of God. (See Proverbs 2:1-10, 3:13-18.)
Bind the devil in the Name of Jesus (Matthew 18:18; Mark 16:17; James 4:7; Ephesians 6:10-18).
In Jesus’ Name, order Satan and all his forces out of your financial affairs. When you are dealing with a financial matter involving the family, it is important that the husband and/or father—who is responsible as the spiritual head of the home—take the lead in this resistance of the devil’s attacks.
Loose the forces of heaven into your financial affairs (Hebrews 1:14; Psalm 103:20).
The angels of God are your ministering spirits and they too will assist you.
Praise God for the manifestation of His power in your financial affairs (Psalm 9:1-4, 67:5-6, 68:19).
Praise keeps the door to abundance wide open. When the channel between you and God is clear, you can receive His promises.
Finally, it is important to realize—and decide—that you are living to give (Ephesians 4:28). Live on the increase from your giving, that is, reach for the place in your financial life where the income from your job or business becomes your seed for giving.
And as you sow, believe for a hundredfold harvest. You will be a blessing to others and be out of debt. God will bless you and “make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
LIVING A SUCCESSFULL LIFE
Joshua 1:8- : King James Version
8. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous , and then thou shalt have good success.
Joshua 1:8: Amplified Version
This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.
• The book of the law (which is the word of God) is to be constantly in our mouths.Thus, we are to speak it at all times. The believer is to study the word and make sure it’s rooted in their heart, for with the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
• The proclamation of God’s word (rhema) is proof of having it in you.
• The believer is to meditate (thus think, imagine and speak the word of God under a low voice) day and night. This implies that the word of God ought to come out of us, even when we are sleeping. Thus all that is contrary to the word of God is not worthy taking thought in.
• The word of God clearly specifies that if we meditate on it at all times we will surely observe to do as it instructs us. That implies that if we mediate on the word of God we will automatically do as it says.
• How you handle the situations or circumstances surrounding you is an expression of the quantity and quality of the word of God in you.
• The word makes it clear that you will make thy way prosperous. Coupled with this, you cannot engage the word of God and live a defeated life. Living a defeated life is proof of failing to engage the word of God effectively and efficiently in line with the demands of the situations we find ourselves in.
• The word clearly shows us that study plus meditation equals good success. Thus a believer is responsible of whether they get good success or bad success.
• Having a lot of money and be sick in the body is bad success nor being healthy and broke, this is because either way you cannot function effectively in the body of Christ.
NB: One’s level of commitment to the word of God determines the extent and quality of life they will lead in spite of the fact that God has already blessed us. Every believer is positional blessed by reason of being in Christ Jesus, but it is up to an individual to ensure that they are experientially (thus, they walk in the blessing of God conferred upon their life at new birth) blessed. There is need for every believer to activate the spiritual blessings so that they are manifest in the physical realm.
8. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous , and then thou shalt have good success.
Joshua 1:8: Amplified Version
This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success.
• The book of the law (which is the word of God) is to be constantly in our mouths.Thus, we are to speak it at all times. The believer is to study the word and make sure it’s rooted in their heart, for with the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
• The proclamation of God’s word (rhema) is proof of having it in you.
• The believer is to meditate (thus think, imagine and speak the word of God under a low voice) day and night. This implies that the word of God ought to come out of us, even when we are sleeping. Thus all that is contrary to the word of God is not worthy taking thought in.
• The word of God clearly specifies that if we meditate on it at all times we will surely observe to do as it instructs us. That implies that if we mediate on the word of God we will automatically do as it says.
• How you handle the situations or circumstances surrounding you is an expression of the quantity and quality of the word of God in you.
• The word makes it clear that you will make thy way prosperous. Coupled with this, you cannot engage the word of God and live a defeated life. Living a defeated life is proof of failing to engage the word of God effectively and efficiently in line with the demands of the situations we find ourselves in.
• The word clearly shows us that study plus meditation equals good success. Thus a believer is responsible of whether they get good success or bad success.
• Having a lot of money and be sick in the body is bad success nor being healthy and broke, this is because either way you cannot function effectively in the body of Christ.
NB: One’s level of commitment to the word of God determines the extent and quality of life they will lead in spite of the fact that God has already blessed us. Every believer is positional blessed by reason of being in Christ Jesus, but it is up to an individual to ensure that they are experientially (thus, they walk in the blessing of God conferred upon their life at new birth) blessed. There is need for every believer to activate the spiritual blessings so that they are manifest in the physical realm.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Prosperity is God's Will
3 John 1:2 (Amplified Bible)
2Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers.
2Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
3. Prophet Offering.
(St Mathews 10:41-King James Version)
41. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of the prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.
(Mathew 10:41-New Living Translation)
41. If you welcome a prophet as one who speaks for God, you will receive the same reward a prophet gets. And if you welcome good and godly people because of their godliness, you will be given a reward like theirs.
A Prophet-is one that speaks for God.
-is God’s anointed messenger, sent to be a blessing to us.
-is a spiritual father.
·All the gifts given to the prophet attracts prophetic rewards, as it provokes prophetic utterances from him or her.
·A gift pleasing to their hearts gurantees a release of blessings from them. Thus one way of provoking a release of blessings from your spiritual father is to give unto them. For example in Genesis 27, Isaac released such a blessing to his sons.
·When we give to the prophets in our lives it is for our own prosperity. Never come under the shallow thinking that when you give to a prophet you are enriching them remember their prosperity is a function of their giving.
·To begin with when they declare God’s word upon your life they are releasing a blessing which is entitled to rewards which you in turn partake in.
·The two examples of those who benefited from the prophet offering are: 1.the widow of Zerephath (1Kings 17:9-16) and the Shunamite woman (2Kings4:8-17).
·Committing to take care of the prophets provokes God to take care of your own cares.
·One has to make a deliberate choice to embrace the ministry of caring for the prophets in their midst.
·To give with liberty, always know that you do not give to the prophets because they have needs. Remember you are not the one who called them neither did God say if you don’t give to them they starve. Let’s have a healthy mentality when we engage this covenant practice and above all keep watch to observe every covenant detail.On the contrary prophets are sent to service the needs of humanity.
·They are God’s messengers sent to humanity hence trying to manipulate them because of what you have given to them is against the word nor does it provoke a blessing.
41. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of the prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.
(Mathew 10:41-New Living Translation)
41. If you welcome a prophet as one who speaks for God, you will receive the same reward a prophet gets. And if you welcome good and godly people because of their godliness, you will be given a reward like theirs.
A Prophet-is one that speaks for God.
-is God’s anointed messenger, sent to be a blessing to us.
-is a spiritual father.
·All the gifts given to the prophet attracts prophetic rewards, as it provokes prophetic utterances from him or her.
·A gift pleasing to their hearts gurantees a release of blessings from them. Thus one way of provoking a release of blessings from your spiritual father is to give unto them. For example in Genesis 27, Isaac released such a blessing to his sons.
·When we give to the prophets in our lives it is for our own prosperity. Never come under the shallow thinking that when you give to a prophet you are enriching them remember their prosperity is a function of their giving.
·To begin with when they declare God’s word upon your life they are releasing a blessing which is entitled to rewards which you in turn partake in.
·The two examples of those who benefited from the prophet offering are: 1.the widow of Zerephath (1Kings 17:9-16) and the Shunamite woman (2Kings4:8-17).
·Committing to take care of the prophets provokes God to take care of your own cares.
·One has to make a deliberate choice to embrace the ministry of caring for the prophets in their midst.
·To give with liberty, always know that you do not give to the prophets because they have needs. Remember you are not the one who called them neither did God say if you don’t give to them they starve. Let’s have a healthy mentality when we engage this covenant practice and above all keep watch to observe every covenant detail.On the contrary prophets are sent to service the needs of humanity.
·They are God’s messengers sent to humanity hence trying to manipulate them because of what you have given to them is against the word nor does it provoke a blessing.
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