November 2020 - Pass the Breaking Point
CHARGED UP
While traveling through the airport, I looked high and low for a place to charge my cell phone. I noticed a group of people gathered around a station where you could plug in any model of phone for a quick energy charge. Even though my phone had 100,000 different sources of information on it, none of them were useful if my phone ran out of power. So, I pressed in to get my phone plugged in!
It is the same with a Christian. We have limitless possibilities in Christ, but none work if our spirits are not charged up. There is a gauge on cell phones that shows how much power the battery has. Wouldn’t it be great if Christians had a power gauge on their foreheads? When the power is low, faith, love and joy begin to get weak. Cell phones usually need to be charged up daily. God is the only self-energizing Being and we have to be charged continuously with the power that comes from Him. I love Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21. This is a post-resurrection prayer every Christian should pray daily.
For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height; and to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Recognize the Power on the Inside
Most prayers we pray have to do with the things outside us, but this prayer in Ephesians 3 has to do with the inner man. “...even though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day,” 2 Corinthians 4:16. When I was in San Diego, I noticed many buildings had cables running along the outside from the top to the bottom, corner to corner. When I asked why, I found out that these buildings had been built without proper reinforcements to preserve them from damage during an earthquake. They had gone back with the cables to strengthen these structures so they wouldn’t collapse.
The first thing Paul prays in Ephesians 3 is for our spirits to be strengthened. There must be a reinforcing of the Holy Spirit to keep us from collapsing during difficult times. The Philips translation puts Ephesians 3:16 this way, “…and I pray then that out of the glorious richness of his resources he will enable you to know the strength of the Spirit’s inner reinforcement….”
Passing the Breaking Point
The Greek word “Parakletos” is translated Comforter and gives a wonderful description one of the functions of the Holy Spirit. His activity is to comfort (parakalein in the Greek). It means to exhort or urge and the example given is a general who exhorts his troops who are about to go into battle. He rallies and cheers them to fight, to accept the risk of battle. He will give a speech to urge others on and put courage into the faint-hearted. He is one who makes a very ordinary man cope gallantly with a perilous and dangerous situation. It is the kind of comfort and consolation in distress which keeps a man on his feet, when, left to himself, he would collapse. It is the comfort which enables a man or woman to pass the breaking point and not to break. (William Barclay)
There are four ways we can strengthen or charge our spirits. (1) PRAY IN THE SPIRIT. When we pray in the Spirit, we are speaking to God and are edified, built up, or charged (Jude 20; 1 Corinthians 14:2). (2) FEED ON THE WORD. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Matthew 4:4; Romans 10:17). (3) SPEAK THE WORD AND PRAISE GOD. “Out of the mouths of babes and infants, you have established strength,” “perfected praise.” (Psalm 8:2; Matt. 21:16; Jeremiah 1:12, Joshua 1:8; Revelation 12:11) (4) SUPERNATURAL RELATIONSHIPS. God has designed the body of Christ with “joints” and “ligaments” knit together for the supply of nourishment (Colossians 2:19; Hebrews 10:24,25)
Because of supernatural relationships and partnerships in Jesus’ ministry and in the early church great things were accomplished. Likewise, we thank God for you, our partners! Because of your financial and prayer support, lives are daily transformed by the Word received through books, television, the internet, social media and our MHM app. Check out our new products on the insert included in this letter! Ground is about to be broken for the new MHM Conference Center, which will host conferences and prayer. Many who have been blessed from the Word distributed by MHM are contributing, and construction will soon begin! Many are giving $1,000 or any amount to help meet our remaining goal of $400,000. “And those who are taught the Word must share all good things with their teacher; a sharing of wealth takes place between them.” Galatians 6:6 (TPT). This is our promise from Philippians 4:19: “My God shall supply all YOUR needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
In Christ,
Mark and Trina