In a Crisis? Put Your Faith in God by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

Trusting God in Crisis

"You want me to do what?" Janelle was confused, but trusting, as she heard the Holy Spirit speak. He told her to lay down her six-figure paying job and a promising career at an energy company to just stay home. In the natural, this didn't make sense at all. Her husband's business income had been sporadic and they just had their first child. The Holy Spirit then warned her to not make decisions out of fear over her finances. "I'm preparing you and your husband for future ministry, but your marriage is in the balance."

Janelle didn't know why her marriage was in the balance. She had a great marriage! And, both her and her husband faithfully attended, served, and tithed to their local church. She knew His voice, however, and knew to trust Him even when she didn't understand.

Janelle left her job and, two months later, her husband's business failed. She also discovered her husband's addiction to painkillers, something that took hold that previous year following a painful shoulder surgery. They chose to pick up odd jobs between the two of them and continued to serve and give to their church despite their problems. It seemed as though they never had enough, but God had promised Janelle that He would provide as long as she trusted Him.

"Then everything went from bad to worse," Janelle said. One thing led to the other and Janelle's husband fell into heroin addiction. On the outside, it looked like she was losing everything. On the inside, however, Janelle was comforted. She knew the Lord had gone ahead of her and prepared her for crisis. She then gathered her pastor, mentors, and friends to conduct an intervention for her husband. In response, he agreed to get help and soon entered into a Christian rehabilitation program. (Photo via Pixabay)

"I learned to trust God in my crisis," Janelle said. "He definitely proved Himself to be faithful." By the time this was all over, Janelle and her husband ended up with a new home, a new agricultural business, a new church, and a revitalized marriage. Janelle also shared that her and her husband's testimony has been a powerful ministry all in itself. Janelle's journey and subsequent victory began when she heard and obeyed a specific word from the Lord.

If you've heard His Word and obeyed His Word, then rest assured that nothing will stop you from getting to your destination.

He Never Wastes a Word

Jesus stood in a boat off the shore of Galilee and taught the multitudes until evening. He then told His disciples, "Let's cross to the other side," and they got in their boat(s) and left (Mark 4:35). You probably know the story, but a terrific storm emerged along the way, making it appear as if they would capsize. The disciples panicked while Jesus slept peacefully in the stern of the boat. When they finally woke Him up, He commanded the storm to stop and then rebuked them for their lack of faith.

How did Jesus so easily muzzle the storm? And why did Jesus rebuke His disciples instead of comforting them in their panic? It's because Jesus never wastes a word. When He said, "Let's cross to the other side," that was not just a casual statement. That was a prophetic word! He prophesied to their destination because there was a divine appointment waiting for them on the other side of the sea. They were actually on course to deliver the demonized man of the Gadarenes, which would explain the demonic source behind the storm.

Storms in life will come and they will come in the form of a crisis. One crisis comes because you've obeyed the Lord and the thing that's buffeting you in the natural has a demonic source behind it. The way through this crisis is to prophesy to your God-ordained destination. You also command demonic obstacles and hindrances to be removed (see Mark 11:23) and remain steady and persevering until you arrive where He said you would be going. (Photo via Pixabay)

Another crisis comes because we've disobeyed the Lord. This is what happened to the prophet Jonah after he ran from his God-assignment to confront the Ninevites. He too entered a storm on the sea, was tossed out of his boat, and then swallowed up by the whale. The spiritual source behind this storm was God Himself and the way out of this crisis is through repentance. Jonah did that and was spit out by the whale onto the shore having been humbled under the mighty hand of God.

My point is that we will not avoid life's storms. If your crisis came because of obedience, remember who your God is. He makes roads through rivers and He will make a way for you.

Don't Know What to Do? Get on Your Face!

Moses was having a crisis in his leadership. Korah, a Levite, had just led 250 leaders to challenge Moses' God-given authority before the entire assembly of Israelites. Korah then accused Moses and Aaron by saying, "You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?" (Numbers 16:3).

It was a classic case of the guilty accusing the innocent of his own misdeed, but a hostile takeover looked imminent. Moses, a man more humble than any other man, reacted in an unusual way. He fell down on his face and sought the Lord.

In a crisis, don't just stand there and cry. Cry out to God! He does not ignore you. He is with you and will answer you!(Photo via Freeimages)

While on his face before the assembly, Moses heard the wisdom of God. He then spoke to Korah and his company of rebels saying,"Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is His and who is holy..." (Numbers 16:5). Here we see how far God is willing to go to protect His faithful and humble leaders. In a tremendous display of power, the Lord removed every single one of Moses' dissenters. Not one was spared! Moses didn't have to solve his big problem that day. When facing a crisis, he simply got on his face.

Your Crisis Will Reveal Your Heart Toward God

My husband stood before our congregation one Sunday conspicuously holding a tube of toothpaste. As he looked through the crowd, he proceeded to squeeze the tube until its contents oozed out. He then said quite humorously, "When life begins to s-q-u-e-e-z-e you, we will know exactly what's in you."

Isn't that the truth!

Jesus gave us the keys on how to live through any crisis that comes our way.He said the person who hears and does His Word is a wise person who will remain standing in the fiercest of storms (see Matthew 7:24-27). On the other hand, a person who ignores His word will fall – they will not remain standing – and it will be a "great" fall (verse 27).

A crisis reveals our heart commitment to God. Do you remember Job's wife? When crisis hit, she angrily challenged Job to "curse God and die" because of all their calamities (Job 2:9). Job refused to deny the Lord in the worst of circumstances and his fame has remained to this day. His wife, however, has been nearly forgotten. We don't even know her name!

When crisis hits you and life turns upside down, put your trust in God! He will reward the faithful. He doesn't forget those whose hearts have remained steadfast toward Him.

Your Crisis Will Catapult You

A catapult is an ancient weapon of warfare designed to launch projectiles at great distances. What makes a catapult effective is that works through tension. It is the tensionthat creates the force to launch a weapon effectively. (Photo via Pixabay)

Are you in a crisis? Are you feeling a lot of tension? Know this: There is a divine purpose in your tension because you're going to be catapulted! You are getting launched as a finely tuned weapon into something greater than where you are at right now. Don't break down under tension, but rise up in worship to God. The Holy Spirit is reminding you that those who overcome will lead the nations (see Revelation 2:26). There is a message in your mess and you will rise up to tell your message to the masses.

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com
Blog: www.jennifereivazblog.com

Don't Just Pray. Fast and Pray by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

The Fasting Struggle

The late Dr. Myles Munroe was ministering on "The Power of Fasting" when he opened his suit jacket to the audience. He wanted the crowd to view his physical frame. Keep in mind he was finely dressed for that meeting wearing a dark colored suit, a classy maroon colored tie against a light pink shirt, with gold cuff links that slightly peeked under his coat sleeves. Once he opened his jacket, however, you could see his clothes hanging quite loosely on him. He explained saying, "My church, my wife, and myself have been on a 21-day fast." He added, "This is what you look like after 21 days of no food. I'm here to tell you that YOU WON'T DIE!"

Stories like this are inspiring and intimidating all at the same time. I love the idea of going on an extended fast, but I'm pretty sure that I will die if I do! Fasting is something I struggle with. I just happen to be one of those kind, loving individuals who turns into a monster if they do not eat regularly. Hopefully you hear my humor in that statement, but to a certain extent it's true. People with a sensitive physiology and low-blood sugar problems can take on a certain form of crazy when they haven't eaten on time.

Even so, I still fast on a regular basis. I just don't fast nearly as long as others, or I do partial fasts meaning that I skip a meal or two each day for a set period of time. Even so, people who did long and extended fasts used to challenge my confidence. That is, until I understood the heart of God concerning this discipline.

In the Bible, we find a story about a widow who dropped her last two pennies into the offering box. She did this in front of the wealthier givers and was observed by Jesus in doing so. In response, Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything..." (Mark 12:43-44).(Photo via Pixabay)

If you struggle with fasting, too, I want to assure you that Jesus sees the little you do and counts it as being a lot. We do what we can do instead of what we cannot do. Our confidence then rests in knowing the heart of Jesus toward us, rather than in comparing ourselves to others.

We are Meant to FAST

When Jesus introduced the Lord's Prayer to His disciples, He began by saying,"When you pray..." (Matthew 6:6). Notice that prayer is not an if but a whenmatter. The same is true of fasting, as Jesus said in that same teaching, "When you fast..." (v. 16). Jesus taught prayer with fasting, and this was a regular practice of the early Church. It ought to be the same for us.

Accordingly, our church enters each year with either a 21- or 40-day fast. We encourage congregants to fast from food as God leads them to do so. Some fast a few days each week. Some fast a meal each day. Others fast the entire time.

Our church also gathers to pray during that time for specific ministry targets for the next year. In addition, individuals are encouraged to pray for their personal goals and needs. We have discovered that fasting contains a real turnaround element. We've seen turnarounds in regards to those with serious health and financial issues, salvations of difficult family members, and much, much more.(Photo via Pixabay)

The truth is, fasting is a game changer when it comes to unanswered prayer. Add fasting to your prayers, and your answers will come speedily (see Isaiah 58:8). Fasting purifies our bodies, yes, but it also purifies our hearts. It empties us of unbelief and aligns our faith in such a way that we gain triumph over our enemies. We are expected to fast! Fasting is a when, not an if, matter.

There is a Reward to Fasting

In 2011, during our annual forty days of prayer and fasting, I began having terrible nightmares of death that made modern-day horror films look like children's play. I would wake up with a clear sense of death around me, and it would not lift.

One night, I woke up again with a strong feeling of death and began feeling desperate. I decided to go to our church's prayer chapel and stay there until I was free of it. As I prayed, the Lord spoke clearly to my heart, saying, "This battle is about life."

It was a powerful word to my heart. I messaged my husband and shared what the Lord had spoken to me. As I was texting, he was emailing me a message he had received from one of our intercessors. The intercessor had emailed him the details of a dream she had the night before.

"I saw all the dead bodies," she wrote. "You and Jen were arranging them in such a way that the life of God was being poured into their mouths. They were resurrecting!" (Photo by Donna Smallenberg "Out of the Darkness" via elijahshopper.com)

That same year, we were miraculously given a second church campus. It was a five-acre parcel of land with a church sanctuary, a sports field, and a gymnasium that belonged to a church whose ministry had died. The pastor decided we were the church that should have it. We received the campus, remodeled it in cash, and then turned it into a place of life and healing. This was what the dream was all about. We were given a corporate breakthrough in response to our fasting and prayers.

Pastor Sunday Adelaja from the Ukraine shares a similar experience. He led his people to fast and pray up to three weeks at a time because they needed the power of God to overcome persecution they faced from their government. As a result of their fasting and prayers, the Ukraine government gave them land to build a church – something unheard of in their country.

Recognize that it is one thing to fast for a personal breakthrough but another thing to fast for a corporate breakthrough. A corporate breakthrough is one that is needed by many people at one time. For example, the Israelites needed a corporate breakthrough from the bondage of Egypt. Today, whole cities, regions, and nations need a corporate breakthrough from different kinds of demonic enslavement.

To achieve a corporate breakthrough, a God-fearing leader must call and gather the people to fast and pray. For example, when King Jehoshaphat heard a large army was coming against him, he did not move out in his own strength. He called the people to fast and pray until they heard the word of the Lord. Then the Lord spoke through Jahaziel, saying, "Do not be afraid or discouraged... For the battle is not yours, but God's" (2 Chronicles 20:15). If you are a pastor or God-fearing leader, one of your responsibilities will be to spearhead corporate breakthrough by gathering the people to fast and pray.

The Anointing is Released Through Fasting

Jesus received the Holy Spirit when He was baptized by John the Baptist. His ministry of power, however, was not birthed until after a time of fasting (see Luke 4:1-19). Jesus then began His ministry of power, casting out demons, and healing people of diseases. (Photo via Wikipedia)

The anointing was not just reserved for Jesus. It is also reserved for us who believe in His name. Jesus said we would do greater works than He did (see John 14:12). He also said the servant is not above his master (see Matthew 10:24). But we can only do greater works than Jesus to the measure that we've been anointed by the same Holy Spirit.

This anointing is weighty. When the anointing for ministry comes to rest upon you, you may feel it rest like a weighted garment upon your person. The Bible references this as an"ever-increasing glory" (2 Corinthians 3:18) and "eternal glory that far outweighs them all" (2 Corinthians 4:17).

This weighty anointing rests upon our flesh. Since the Bible describes the Spirit being at war with our flesh and our flesh being at war with the Spirit (see Galatians 5:17), this means that in order to sustain the anointing on our flesh, we have to put our flesh down through fasting and prayer. Through fasting, we present our bodies to Jesus as a living sacrifice and prepare our flesh to be made into new wineskins, capable of receiving the outpouring of the Spirit (see Romans 12:1; Mark 2:22).

Fasting and prayer is that which prepares our hearts to carry more of what we were made for. The Kingdom of God is always increasing (see Isaiah 9:7). That means we, too, should always be increasing. We do this through the power of fasting and prayer.

What is God saying to His Church in this hour? He's saying, "Don't just pray. Fast and pray."

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com

"Healing the Land Means Owning the Land" (2016 Prophetic Word About Land, Double Honor, and the Oil of Joy) by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

An Inheritance of LAND

Prophets don't just give a message, but they often are the message. For that reason, the life of the prophet will take some unusual twists and turns in order to bring forth a prophetic word that's not just spoken, but a word that has been lived out. The Prophet Ezekiel, for example, spent a set number of days lying on his left side and then on his right as a sign to the people of Israel. He did this at God's specific command, as no normal person would ever do this!

Prior to Ezekiel, we see how the prophet Jonah found himself in the belly of a whale for three days. This happened primarily because he rebelled against his God-assignment to prophesy to the Ninevites. Much later, however, Jonah's deep-sea detour was the sign that Jesus used to communicate that He would spend three days in the belly of the earth before His resurrection.

With that said, as a prophet I've learned to pay attention to life. I've learned to pay attention to the big happenings as well as the small details. God will shout His word just as readily as He will hide it in something mundane and obscure. Or, He will take you on a journey over a period of time and His word will be revealed piece by piece, therefore, we have to pay attention and be on alert for His voice. He is the Word and by nature He is always speaking. (Photo via Pexels)

While traveling in Chengdu, China this past October, I sat in my hotel room frustrated that I couldn't get a Wi-Fi signal. Technologically speaking, it was not an "open heaven" and I couldn't send or receive. I discovered through trial and error, however, that there was a small corner on my bed where I could get a near perfect signal.

The Holy Spirit chose to use that experience to speak to me. He said, "There are some places that you will hear My voice better." Then He reminded me of a field in my residing city, Turlock, CA, and told me to "go back to the field." I have an intercessory history with that field, but haven't been there in several years. It was the place of one of my biggest spiritual battles and also my biggest victory as the Holy Spirit had led me to intercede for that location until a territorial stronghold had been broken.

After my return from China, it was about six weeks before I went to that field. I finally went there just to pray and see what the Lord would say. The whole area surrounding that field was beautiful and green with commercial real estate signs posted throughout. I had also noticed during those six weeks, the reappearance of a number that held meaning to my life – it's the number 17.

Confirmation with the Land

Does the Lord ever speak to you through numbers? He does with me often and this number began to appear to me in a variety of ways and places. In short, my first encounter with this number began in a dream several years back and then ended up with a church building being given to us. Would you believe that the two final, totally miraculous, donations for our new church building both had variations of the number 17 in their amounts? God is awesome! (Photo via imaginarycorner)

As I sat in front of the field observing all the available land, I felt His voice. He impressed my heart with a thought, "My people need to own land again!" That was challenging to me personally, but I felt the breath of God on it. A few days later, I heard Him again. "People have sought My face in prayer and I've heard them. I'm healing the land and healing the land involves My people owning the land" (see 2 Chronicles 7:14).

That same week, I felt impressed to read the book of Jeremiah from beginning to end. While reading, I came across a passage that I had never seen before in chapter 32. Here, Jeremiah is instructed by the Lord to purchase a field. He did so and paid seventeen shekels for it (verse 9). Wow! There's that number again! The Lord spoke again to Jeremiah that his purchase was a sign to the displaced Israelites that "Houses and fields and vineyards shall be possessed again in this land" (verse 15). What a powerful confirmation! I've always known the Lord to confirm His prophetic word with the written Word.

Finally, I remembered His timeless promises in the written Word that 1) If we are in Christ, then we are blessed with believing Abraham (Galatians 3:9); and 2) God will give to the natural and spiritual descendants of Abraham all of these lands (Genesis 26:4). As long as we are on the earth, we have a spiritual inheritance from our Heavenly Father of spiritual sons and daughters through soul-winning and evangelism. At the same time, we are promised a natural inheritance, which involves owning land.  

In all honesty, this word challenges me. Owning more than my present home really stretches my faith. I also refuse to acquire some type of loan to "make things happen" either. It does plant the seed in me, however. I've decided to respond by planting seeds for this word. I will plant financial seeds as offerings to the Lord over and above my tithes, trusting Him to supply what is needed. I will trust Him to lead me into a sure promise of owning more land. He is healing the land, which means I am to own more land.

Are you ready to start this journey with me? Like Abraham, we take it by faith and posture ourselves in our giving and generosity to be the kind of people God can entrust with double inheritance.

He is Still Saying, "DOUBLE"

We heard the prophetic word in 2015 that God was giving us double, namely double restoration and double for our trouble. The year has ended, but the prophetic word "DOUBLE" is still active and taking on force as we head into 2016.

Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours. Isaiah 61:7 (NIV)

If you've been shamed or disgraced, God is saying He will double your honor and double your inheritance. It excites me to see how the blessing of double in this passage is connected to the blessing of owning land. In God's economy, it's emphasized that we would all be possessors of physical land.(Photo via Wikimedia)

If you're like me, however, the blessing of DOUBLE challenges me in this season of my life. Many of us feel like we can barely handle what we already have. How can we possibly handle anything more, even if it's a blessing from the Lord? With the blessing of double, however, He is also giving us His everlasting joy. This is not just any joy, but a supernatural joy that comes from Heaven.

He is Elevating You with JOY

Without giving details, I was surprised recently to be challenged to compromise something I had a deep conviction about. I held to my convictions of course, but it cost me to do so. Almost immediately, the Lord began to speak – NO, HE BEGAN TO SHOUT – "You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy" (Hebrews 1:9 NIV).

Over the next few weeks, God began to pour the oil of joy upon my life, upon my church, and upon others connected to us. There exists a joy from Heaven that is unspeakable and full of glory (1 Peter 1:8). When the joy of Heaven comes upon you, it can appear like you've been drinking and you'll laugh and act silly like a child without a care in the world (Acts 2:13).

This manifestation of joy appears foolish, but it's a prophetic sign of God's elevation in your life. This joy appears so foolish that the prideful won't enter in because it's too undignified. You actually humble yourself to experience it, but He promises to exalt the humble (Matthew 23:12).

It's also a joy that helps you to manage irritations and the stresses that would beset you. Your mind becomes greased with supernatural oil and what normally would bother you just slides right off of you. When this joy is manifest in your world, there is no fear or worry about tomorrow. You sleep well and you wake up smiling and even laughing, no matter what is going on. (Photo by Jennifer Page "His Joy" via elijahshopper.com)

He is releasing His fresh oil of joy in 2016 and determined to elevate us above the fear, terror, and worry that had burdened so many. You will begin to laugh instead of fret. You'll laugh at your enemies without worry for the future. This is His joy entering your world and it will strengthen you.

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com Blog: www.jennifereivazblog.com

What Do You Do When Your Clear Prophetic Word Doesn't Come to Pass? by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

Purposes For Prophetic Words

It felt like it came out of nowhere. I suddenly heard His voice resonate inside my spirit with perfect clarity. He said, "In June, your church will experience a financial breakthrough." I was filled with expectancy at the news. We were about three years past the 2007-2008 recession, but were still recovering as a church and getting our financial confidence back. June came, but instead of a financial breakthrough it seemed like we went in reverse! It ended up being a difficult summer financially. That breakthrough did finally arrive, but not until the fall of that year. What happened? Did I miss the voice of God?

The Bible describes some purposes for prophetic words. Prophetic words comfort and build us up in a revelatory way (1 Corinthians 14:3). Prophetic words can unveil our hidden desires as well as reveal our future (Acts 11:28, 1 Corinthians 14:24-25). A prophetic word is also a sure weapon when experiencing spiritual warfare. The Apostle Paul instructed his spiritual son Timothy to wage war and "fight well" using his personal prophecies (1 Timothy 1:18).

Paul said that because he understood what was really behind Timothy's conflicts. Demons had been sent to oppose him and hinder his spiritual assignment using human beings to carry out their wishes. Spiritual problems need spiritual weapons and Timothy needed to use his prophetic words to overcome and stand strong. (Photo via Wikimedia)

Prophetic words act as sharp swords in the spirit realm when we speak them out boldly and with authority (Hebrews 4:12, Mark 11:23). They will cut through anything that stands in the way spiritually and cause the natural realm to reorganize. The Lord had spoken specifically to me about our finances, even telling me the month of breakthrough in order to hedge us from a well-timed satanic attack.

I've learned to not be shocked when a prophetic word is the exact opposite of our present experience as God confidently calls things that are not as though they were (Romans 4:17). An "eater" had come to devour us, but the Spirit of God had come with a well-timed word strong enough to force a turnaround.

What's Eating You?

The Holy Spirit has been raising a phrase in my heart over and over again. He's been speaking that ancient riddle to me, "Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet" (Judges 14:14). In addition, He's been speaking to me about divine turnarounds.

The riddle, "Out of the eater..." in Judges 14:14, was the riddle posed by Samson to his Philistine wedding attendants and crafted from his personal experience. Samson had been traveling by the vineyards of Timnah when suddenly a young lion came out ROARING in an attempt to devour him. Just as suddenly, the Spirit of God fell upon Samson in superhuman strength and he tore the lion apart! By the Spirit of God, he destroyed what had tried to destroy him.(Photo via Wikimedia)

After some time, Samson traveled that path again and found the lion's carcass. The carcass was now host to a swarm of bees with more than enough honey to satisfy Samson and to feed his parents. What had tried to eat him was now feeding him and feeding his family too!

We've all encountered an "eater" before, but "eaters" have triumphed in our lives far too many times. The "eater" has eaten our close relationships, our finances, our health and our confidence, having picked too many of us clean with barely anything left over!

The Christian life, however, is all about overcoming. The Bible describes how we will overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony (Revelation 12:11). We are also given a powerful promise to rule nations if we overcome and follow Christ well (Revelation 2:26). If we have such promises, there has to be a way in God to consistently overcome the things that have come to "eat" us.

The Spirit of God Came Upon Him

Peter warns us by saying, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). We know what it means to be sober, and to be vigilant means we "carefully notice problems or signs of danger (Webster's)." In other words, be a man or woman of God that is so alert and so well prepared that you become hard for satan to devour in the first place.

Samson appeared to have lived a prepared life up until that point. And when the "eater" came, the Holy Spirit fell upon Samson with a breakthrough anointing. By the Spirit of God, he tore the lion apart. We can expect the Holy Spirit to do the same for us. He will fall upon us with new strength and we will finally deal a spiritual deathblow to our devourers.

Surprised by His Sweetness

When Samson returned to Timnah, he detoured off the road to inspect the lion's carcass. Here I believe Samson was waking up to his God-assignment and needing to reflect on what had happened. Instead of bones and a few bits of flesh, Samson found honey inside the carcass and ate his fill of sweetness. To the Israelite, honey was a promise of future blessing and later it became a symbol announcing a sweet year to come. Either way, the eater was now the feeder signaling the pattern of conflict and turnarounds that would follow Samson until his death.

In addition to the phrase, "Out of the eater..." I've also been hearing a word about "sweetness." The Holy Spirit is announcing that we too will be surprised by the Lord's sweetness this coming year. In a (Jewish) year that began with prophecies of disaster and economic downturn, we can instead expect His sweetness to be expressed in divine turnarounds by the power of the Holy Spirit. It's going to be a sweet year. (Photo via pixabay)

Do You Have an Orphan or Poverty Spirit (Mentality)?

"...but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits." Daniel 11:32

Samson grew up with loyal and devoted parents. He was their only son and consecrated to the Lord as a Nazirite from birth. Samson also knew from the youngest age what he was born to do. Although he struggled with his passions, his foundations kept him on course to protect and begin rescuing Israel from the evil Philistines.

Kris Vallotton from Bethel, Redding once said, "We need to know who we are and Whose we are!" This again is about our foundations, namely knowing the heart and nature of our God and knowing what we were born to do. As I mentioned earlier, this Jewish year started off with the wet blanket of foreboding prophecies. Understand that because of the Blood of Jesus, God is not angry with us and neither is He holding our sins against us (2 Corinthians 5:9). We are commanded to be reconcilers to Christ and these types of prophecies do not accomplish that.

Regardless, there were two spirits (mentalities) exposed in the American Church during September's rumors of economic crisis "in the name of God."They were the orphan mentality and the poverty mentality. These mentalities almost empowered an "eater" in the guise of the prophetic.A scared church becomes a withholding church, which binds the Gospel from being preached. When you know that you know He is your Dad, you can't believe for one minute that He would not provide generously for you!

When you know why you were born such as Samson did, you can't stomach messages that appear to take away your future.

Kingdom Finances for the Harvest

"The eater," says the Spirit, "will now become the feeder."

The Holy Spirit is reintroducing the message of Kingdom prosperity to the Body of Christ. The purpose is to finance the end-time harvest.

My prayer is that we would be healed of the orphan and poverty mentalities and no longer fear economic crisis. There is no lack in the Kingdom of God. (Photo via Wikipedia)

My other prayer is that greed and excess mentalities won't choke out a real Biblical truth and that this would go in the direction the Holy Spirit intends it to go. Our Father desires to be generous to us so He can be generous through us to see His work finished in the earth.

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com Blog: www.jennifereivazblog.com

Right and Wrong Praying – Can Christians Be Praying the Wrong Prayers? by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

A Renovation Challenge

My husband had initiated a large remodeling project in 2003 to update our church building. It was desperately needed as our facility had received little attention since the 1950s. We had terrible dim-lighting, gold-colored theater style chairs (that smelled!), old musty green carpet, a huge pipe organ system, metallic gold wallpaper on the sanctuary's largest wall, and other memorabilia from that long gone era.

Also worth mentioning was the cracked exterior paint, the slippery cement lobby floor, the stair wells that led to nowhere, and the missing foundations on parts of the building. It all had to go! As a church, we managed to successfully complete our renovation to a more functional, high-tech, and visually esthetic facility with many families making deep sacrifices to make this happen.

Our biggest issue during the remodel was our city's building department. They approved our construction plans and then reneged on their approval AFTER we began construction. Our entire sanctuary had been gutted and now they wanted more safety features to the tune of several hundred thousand dollars. If we didn't comply, they threatened to inspect our extensive building for even more code violations. It felt like extortion and put us in a terrible financial bind. By the grace of God we got through it, but as a new prayer community we began to pray a simple prayer not realizing the ramifications. (Photo via Wikimedia)

All we asked the Lord to do was to "change the building department". We were not their first victims and so we felt justified in this prayer. For myself personally, I was in a state of unforgiveness, angry, and wanted some type of justice. We kept that prayer before the Lord continuously and didn't let it go. About a year later, we heard the news: the entire building department, including tenured members, had been laid off. That seemed totally impossible given the culture of our city government.

Think About What You Pray

I learned a very valuable lesson during that season. We need to think about what we pray before we pray it. We actually prayed a prayer out of our own heart without bothering to seek the Lord's heart, and yet that prayer still materialized.

Is it possible to pray a prayer that doesn't align to the heart of God and still have it come to pass? The answer is yes! We are more powerful than we think and we've been authorized by God Himself to govern the affairs of earth through our prayers (Isaiah 56:7; Matthew 6:10).

Does God personally answer our prayers if they don't originate in Him? He does! Many things we pray for really have to do with our own preferences, but don't necessarily cause a negative chain reaction. For example, you might pray for a closer parking spot at the local mall for safety reasons or you simply don't want to walk the distance. Or, you might pray for better weather on a day you have something important going on such as a ministry outreach or an outdoor wedding. These are prayers that we ask based on personal preferences and God graciously answers many of these with His favor.

Then there are prayers that we ask out of our own "selfishness, anger, or trying to bend the will of another". For example, the Israelites began to complain and weep for meat to eat saying, "We remember...we ate freely in Egypt" (Numbers 11:5). The Lord was very displeased with their complaining, but still answered them with 30 straight days of meat raining in their camps.

With the endless supply of meat, the Bible says He also sent them "leanness of soul" (Psalm 106:15). In other words, their souls diminished in the knowledge of God instead of growing in knowledge of Him because they prayed with a despising heart. This tells us the importance of having a right heart in prayer. Our "reasons" for asking things are just as important as what we are asking for.

Don't Command the Wrong Kingdom

I heard someone pray one time, "Lord, if this person keeps drinking, just make them sick!" There was a day I wouldn't have thought much about that, but my experience with the building department taught me better.

What does "sick" look like? If that person takes a drink, do they get cancer or something? Do they throw up? Get ulcers? Does God answer a prayer like that? Or, does it bargain unaware with the demonic kingdom to try and manipulate someone's behavior? Jesus did something quite unusual in John 13. Satan had just taken possession of Judas and then Jesus says to him, "What you do, do quickly" (John 13:27).

In other words, Jesus commands satan to now proceed with the plan of the Cross knowing satan couldn't execute Him unless He permitted it. Jesus only did that once, but scenes like this instruct us about the spiritual realm. When we don't know the written Word, when we don't carry our Father's heart, we can slip into prayers of anger and manipulation. These prayers have the potential to move the wrong kingdom into motion.

Jesus' disciples experienced rejection by a certain Samaritan village and reported it to Jesus. They asked if they should command fire to come and consume the village like Elijah did (see Luke 9:51-54). I'm amazed at their level of faith – they believed they could actually command fire, but instead of praise they got a swift rebuke: "You don't know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them" (Luke 9:55-56). Notice that Jesus didn't say their "command" couldn't happen. What He addressed, however, was their wrong heart and their wicked desire to kill off an entire village. (Photo via Wikimedia)

Have you ever felt like the disciples did after being rejected by someone? Did you even suggest to God they should be punished for what they did to you? These are normal feelings, and we've all experienced them. We struggle to balance our feelings with the redemptive heart of Christ when we are mad, disgusted, appalled, or experience injustice.

Regardless we are exhorted to pray and intercede "for all people" (1 Timothy 2:1). Praying "for all people" is not praying just for the people you like. It's praying for the people you don't like, believing they will turn from darkness to light and live victoriously for Jesus Christ.

Become Agents of Redemption

I sat in a conference one day next to a middle-aged woman who began to share her story with me. She had been a children's pastor at a church and felt she had discerned her pastor's wife as operating in a Jezebel spirit. It's a very involved teaching, but in short, a Jezebel spirit can be characterized by manipulation, control, sexual sin, and a counterfeit prophetic gifting. It's a very serious accusation.

This children's pastor began to pray and ask others to pray with her about the Jezebel spirit controlling her pastor's wife. She believed that she had also found proof that her pastor's wife had this evil spirit and gave her evidence to the church board and a denominational oversight committee. Sadly, the board and the denominational committee agreed and removed the pastor and the pastor's wife from their pulpit.

My mouth fell open as she described this, because it was obvious what had really happened. She had become offended at her pastor and his wife. She chose to use prayer, accusation, and even "prophetic" words to remove them from their pulpit. How did she succeed? In anger and ignorance, she commanded the wrong kingdom and actually succeeded in getting her will accomplished.

Hearts that are aligned with Jesus and His unfailing love will not pray to wound, sicken, or destroy another person ever.Remember that there is no justifiable offense in the Kingdom of God. This doesn't mean we don't exercise wisdom in our natural relationships and have good boundaries with evil people. (Photo via flickr)

When it comes to prayer, however, we consider the spirit of the matter and become agents of redemption instead. We pray for resurrection life to flow into their dead places. We pray for the Blood of Jesus to cleanse their hearts of every evil tendency. We bind demonic spirits from using them as hosts for evil. We ask Holy Spirit to hover over them and birth His Kingdom into their hearts. We pray passionately, but we pray wisely. We bless and do not curse.

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com Blog: www.jennifereivazblog.com

Love Requires Discernment by Jennifer Eivaz

Turlock, CA

I had just booked my flight online and was waiting for my Email confirmation. I received it immediately and then checked my card for the charges. Strangely, there were no charges, even after a few days. I went back online and searched the airplane company. Their website and logo appeared with a phone number at the top of the screen. I remembered this airline used an overseas call center and was not surprised by the accent of the customer service representative.

"Hi. I have a flight reservation, but the charges never made it to my card," I said.

"Let me check that for you...(typing sounds)...Hmm, I see, hmm. I see that flight, but there are no more seats. Can I put you on another?"

"Sure, go for it," I agreed.

"It will cost more and leave from a different airport," the representative said.

"OK, OK I need the flight either way," I remarked.

The Email confirmation came immediately. It wasn't the best flight and it cost more, but at least I was going. I then checked the charges on my card and everything looked in order. I also noticed some charges from a company I didn't recognize. It was almost the cost of my flight, but I thought the charges belonged to my husband.

The next day, I was bothered by the transaction. Something didn't seem right. I called the same number, only to be put on hold for 30 minutes, which was unusual. I found a different number on the original Email reservation and called that instead. It rang through and someone with the same foreign accent answered, "Hello, may I help you?" (Photo via Pixabay)

I asked them if they could honor the original flight. The representative checked my record asking what travel agent I had used. I explained I had never used a travel agent. She insisted that I did, and then it dawned on me.

Apparently I had made my reservation through a website that looked like the airline, but wasn't the airline. It was actually a high priced travel agency and you couldn't tell at all. This explained the mystery charges on my card. I disputed it with my credit card company and had the charges dropped, but I was frustrated for being deceived.

We've all met a deceptive person. They acted one way, or they said one thing, but it turned out they weren't what they said they were. Or they had an agenda, but didn't tell you that up front. Every one of us has experienced a person or a group of people just like that.

Typically, we are left scratching our head wondering why we didn't see it until it was too late. What's more frustrating is when we realize we ignored a trail of clues that should have been red flags to us.

There is a gift, a supernatural ability, from the Holy Spirit that will unmask these situations. It's called the gift of discerning of spirits and it reveals the spirit of the matter: human, demonic, or divine. It's mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:10 alongside other gifts of the Holy Spirit.

This is not the same as having an evil eye toward others or being suspicious, which are heart issues. It's a divine ability from God to see past the surface and know the spirit and heart-motive behind people and situations.

You Will Discern Spirits

Keep in mind this is a spiritual ability that exposes you to...spirits. This can be absolutely disturbing, as it can seem like demonic spirits are at work nearly everywhere.

One Sunday several years ago, I felt impressed to teach our congregation about the gift of discerning of spirits. I was very perplexed about its operation, however. I saw and discerned a lot of demonic activity and so did most of the people I associated with. The burning question on my heart was, "Why do we discern so many demons and hardly any angels?" It just seemed out of balance.

I couldn't answer this question, and it was almost time for the church service. I was sitting in our pastor's lounge when a strange thing happened. I looked up just in time to "see" a friend of mine, who is a prophet, walk through the wall and into the lounge. I was actually having a vision, but it was as real as anything I could see naturally.

He greeted me and asked, "What are you teaching?"

I responded by saying, "I'm teaching on the gift of discerning of spirits."

He replied very matter-of-fact, saying, "Be sure to tell them this:

1. The gifts of the Spirit are an operation of faith;
2. You will see what you believe God to see;
3. You will see according to who you are." (Photo via Pixabay)

I did what he said to do in the vision. I taught these exact points during the service. By the end of the teaching and ministry time, I was receiving reports that people were seeing and discerning angels for the first time. Now we were balanced because we had lifted our faith to discern more completely. It also gave us more credibility in times that we truly did discern deceptive people and demonic spirits at work.

Leading Well Requires that You Discern Well

King Solomon connected discernment to good leadership. He could lead and judge difficult situations and get to the truth because he had discernment from God.

He prayed like this, "So give Your servant a discerning heart to govern Your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of Yours?" (1 Kings 3:9).

My greatest mistakes as a leader happened when I ignored what I discerned. I didn't want to see what I was discerning, or I didn't understand it, or I couldn't believe that someone had a wrong heart.My husband, on the other hand, would miss points of discernment when it wasn't rational enough.

The gift of discerning of spirits is highly misunderstood in its operation. You won't discern things with your mind. It's not an ability to rationalize something through your intellect. You actually discern through your senses (sight, taste, touch, etc.), and you experience spiritual information before you have any rational evidence for it (see Hebrews 5:14). If you are not aware, you will miss these clues. For example, I will taste metal in my mouth when I'm near a person who has a spirit of violence on them. I can also "smell" lust, "sense" fear on my skin, or "feel" a religious spirit through a headache. I didn't know these were connected until I asked the Lord to explain my random feelings. My husband discerns differently, however. He discerns things as a general feeling inside of him and, in his words, he just "knows what he knows." (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)

What Do I Do With Negative Information?

The gift of discerning of spirits is a truth-telling gift and a gate-keeping gift. You will supernaturally discern both good and evil. We usually know what to do with the good, but what do we do when we discern evil in people?

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment... Philippians 1:9

This verse instructs us that love needs to be balanced with discernment, and discernment needs to be balanced with love. This is where we experience true tension. When a deceptive or possessed person comes into your life or into your church, what then does love look like?

1. Pray: Most of the time you will pray about it and just leave it there. Prayer is powerful enough to handle it.

2. Address it with the whole picture in mind: Love has to consider the individual and the impact of the individual on others. If you are a leader of an organization or church, you will work that out depending on the strength and maturity of those you lead. If you are not the leader, but you have relationship with the leader, you can bring it to their attention. If they don't agree with you, then let it drop to be proved out one way or the other. (Photo by Elizabeth Ashley Jerman via Flickr)

3. Discern the difference between a broken person and a devil: The Bible says that angels can appear in the likeness of men, which means devils can too (see Hebrews 13:2). Most people, like 99 percent, who are possessed or deceptive, do so because they are broken. There is that small percent, however, that are actually devils. This gift will reveal it. I speak from experience to say that we don't try to love devils into change. We cast them out.

4. Learn from your mistakes: "But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil"(Hebrews 5:14 NASB). There is a connection between maturity and discerning well. We learn to discern through practice, which implies learning by trial and error and a heavy dose of humility.

We need to love well and to discern well. Somewhere in the tension of these two areas we learn to handle the truth and discover great leadership as a result.

Jennifer Eivaz, Executive Pastor
Harvest Christian Center, Turlock, CA
Email: Asst2jeneivaz@harvestturlock.org
Website: www.jennifereivaz.com Blog: www.jennifereivazblog.com