Hi Friends!
I am full of joy and excitement as I write this to you! I have had such a blessed several weeks as the Lord has been releasing me into a new season in my walk and in ministry.
I have never felt a calling for women's ministry before and maybe that's not really correct - because this blog has been a type of women's ministry. But in the last few weeks, my heart has just exploded with ideas and inspiration from the Holy Spirit regarding women and the season that God is bringing us into. So...
I have obeyed God - twice! - and have started making youtube videos. I intend (God willing) to continue to do this and share with you all the things on my heart. I hope you will hear exactly what you need to hear from God through this blog.
love and blessings~
Lynda @ Gates of Crystal
Tag Archives: renewing your mind
YouTube videos and Women’s Ministry
Hi Friends!
I am full of joy and excitement as I write this to you! I have had such a blessed several weeks as the Lord has been releasing me into a new season in my walk and in ministry.
I have never felt a calling for women's ministry before and maybe that's not really correct - because this blog has been a type of women's ministry. But in the last few weeks, my heart has just exploded with ideas and inspiration from the Holy Spirit regarding women and the season that God is bringing us into. So...
I have obeyed God - twice! - and have started making youtube videos. I intend (God willing) to continue to do this and share with you all the things on my heart. I hope you will hear exactly what you need to hear from God through this blog.
love and blessings~
Lynda @ Gates of Crystal
Standard
I am full of joy and excitement as I write this to you! I have had such a blessed several weeks as the Lord has been releasing me into a new season in my walk and in ministry.
I have never felt a calling for women's ministry before and maybe that's not really correct - because this blog has been a type of women's ministry. But in the last few weeks, my heart has just exploded with ideas and inspiration from the Holy Spirit regarding women and the season that God is bringing us into. So...
I have obeyed God - twice! - and have started making youtube videos. I intend (God willing) to continue to do this and share with you all the things on my heart. I hope you will hear exactly what you need to hear from God through this blog.
love and blessings~
Lynda @ Gates of Crystal
Increasing Your Faith (Part One)
Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Faith is the substance that God created the universe from. Faith is a substance that goes out from us and changes the world. Our faith, based in God's truth, changes our environment for righteousness.
So, how do we increase our faith? The Word says that 'Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.' Romans 10:17
The first step is to renew your mind in the Word of God. This takes an act of your will.
When I rededicated my life to Christ in my 20's and was filled with the Holy Spirit, I spent every available minute in the Word of God. I worked full-time and commuted on the bus a half hour into Denver. I would read my Bible on the way to work and on the way home every day. I carried my Bible everywhere I went. I spent my evenings reading the Word and praying.
I spent my lunch hours reading if I didn't have other plans. I formed a Bible study with a small group at work so that we could talk about God. I was in love with Jesus. And when you're in love with someone, you want to spend every minute getting to know 'your love.' God/Jesus/Holy Spirit is a being and I wanted to KNOW Him!
I ended every day with 'Prayers That Avail Much', meditating and speaking scripture over myself. I began to think like God. I began to get an image of God and to establish a 'boundary' of Who He is. I began to see myself in the light of His Word.
I attacked every doubt and worry, every thought that I had that was contrary to the truth of God's Word, with His Word - the Sword of His Word. Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." This means that the Word of God will show us clearly the difference between our perfect spirit of God that lives in us and our soul/thought life, which is imperfect. We want our soul (our mind, will, and emotions) to line up with our spirit (the Holy Spirit which lives in us).
2 Corinthians 10 says that we are to take captive every thought to the obedience of Christ. We examine every thought against the plumb line of God's Word and destroy every thought that is in opposition with the Word of God. You have to work at it. You have to set your will to think like God. And you can't think like God if you don't know His Word. He and His Word are one.
When outside ideas and philosophies come to you, you begin to recognize that they disagree with God and you reject them. You give them no place. Again, this is an act of your will. You set your heart to think like God.
There is a principle in God's Kingdom that says 'to get something into your heart, first you have to speak it.' In other words, to get faith on the inside, you need to meditate on the Word of God by speaking it out loud. When I read the Word, I will often pause and turn it around to first person and speak it over myself.
For example, 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "He made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." I speak out loud, "Thank You, God, that you made Jesus, who knew no sin, to become sin for me, so that I might become the righteousness of God!" Then I spend a while saying, "I am the righteousness of God, through Christ Jesus!" A mind-boggling thought! But that's what the Word says. And as you do this, you begin to see yourself differently.
And the Word gets down inside of you, to your inner-man, and faith is born!
You can't fake faith. True faith quiets your soul. It gives you confidence. It can't be shaken. Once faith is born, it takes no effort to believe God for something. As you begin to know the character of God, it's easy to believe that He wants to bless you and strengthen you and heal you.
When lies from the world and the enemy come to you, they never touch you. Your shield of faith causes them to bounce off. They are never even considered.
I believe it slanders the Name of God to say that He would ever want someone to be sick or hurting. It's not His character. He is good, all the time!
If you had good parents, you trusted them to always love you, always receive you, always help you, always want the best for you. As you get to know the character of God, you know that He always wants you to have 'LIFE and LIFE more abundant!' Your faith rests in that knowledge.
God wants us to know Him intimately. He does not want us to have faith that He is real. He wants us to be established and fixed in Him and His Word and to use our faith to change the things around us for His glory.
Next post - Increasing Your Faith (Part Two)
love and blessings~
Increasing Your Faith (Part One)
Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Faith is the substance that God created the universe from. Faith is a substance that goes out from us and changes the world. Our faith, based in God's truth, changes our environment for righteousness.
So, how do we increase our faith? The Word says that 'Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.' Romans 10:17
The first step is to renew your mind in the Word of God. This takes an act of your will.
When I rededicated my life to Christ in my 20's and was filled with the Holy Spirit, I spent every available minute in the Word of God. I worked full-time and commuted on the bus a half hour into Denver. I would read my Bible on the way to work and on the way home every day. I carried my Bible everywhere I went. I spent my evenings reading the Word and praying.
I spent my lunch hours reading if I didn't have other plans. I formed a Bible study with a small group at work so that we could talk about God. I was in love with Jesus. And when you're in love with someone, you want to spend every minute getting to know 'your love.' God/Jesus/Holy Spirit is a being and I wanted to KNOW Him!
I ended every day with 'Prayers That Avail Much', meditating and speaking scripture over myself. I began to think like God. I began to get an image of God and to establish a 'boundary' of Who He is. I began to see myself in the light of His Word.
I attacked every doubt and worry, every thought that I had that was contrary to the truth of God's Word, with His Word - the Sword of His Word. Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." This means that the Word of God will show us clearly the difference between our perfect spirit of God that lives in us and our soul/thought life, which is imperfect. We want our soul (our mind, will, and emotions) to line up with our spirit (the Holy Spirit which lives in us).
2 Corinthians 10 says that we are to take captive every thought to the obedience of Christ. We examine every thought against the plumb line of God's Word and destroy every thought that is in opposition with the Word of God. You have to work at it. You have to set your will to think like God. And you can't think like God if you don't know His Word. He and His Word are one.
When outside ideas and philosophies come to you, you begin to recognize that they disagree with God and you reject them. You give them no place. Again, this is an act of your will. You set your heart to think like God.
There is a principle in God's Kingdom that says 'to get something into your heart, first you have to speak it.' In other words, to get faith on the inside, you need to meditate on the Word of God by speaking it out loud. When I read the Word, I will often pause and turn it around to first person and speak it over myself.
For example, 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "He made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." I speak out loud, "Thank You, God, that you made Jesus, who knew no sin, to become sin for me, so that I might become the righteousness of God!" Then I spend a while saying, "I am the righteousness of God, through Christ Jesus!" A mind-boggling thought! But that's what the Word says. And as you do this, you begin to see yourself differently.
And the Word gets down inside of you, to your inner-man, and faith is born!
You can't fake faith. True faith quiets your soul. It gives you confidence. It can't be shaken. Once faith is born, it takes no effort to believe God for something. As you begin to know the character of God, it's easy to believe that He wants to bless you and strengthen you and heal you.
When lies from the world and the enemy come to you, they never touch you. Your shield of faith causes them to bounce off. They are never even considered.
I believe it slanders the Name of God to say that He would ever want someone to be sick or hurting. It's not His character. He is good, all the time!
If you had good parents, you trusted them to always love you, always receive you, always help you, always want the best for you. As you get to know the character of God, you know that He always wants you to have 'LIFE and LIFE more abundant!' Your faith rests in that knowledge.
God wants us to know Him intimately. He does not want us to have faith that He is real. He wants us to be established and fixed in Him and His Word and to use our faith to change the things around us for His glory.
Next post - Increasing Your Faith (Part Two)
love and blessings~
Mindsets
The Lord first spoke the word “mindset” to me several years ago. (I wrote this ‘note’ in 2012)
A friend had died of sickness. We had gone to the hospital to pray for her and I had seen the light of Jesus shine on her and bring wholeness. I had spoken the things I saw in the Spirit over her. She felt heat. Others had come and prayed for her, spending hours worshipping in her room. She was recovering.
Then I got a call two days later that she’d gone home to be with the Lord. I asked God, “Why?” And He said, “mindsets.”
In the last few years, God’s been talking to me about this a lot. The free online dictionary defines a mindset as:
1. A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person’s responses to and interpretations of situations.
2. An inclination or a habit.
I googled “mindsets” and found out that there’s a book out called, “Mindset” by psychologist Carol Dweck.
· · · → Mindsets
The Lord first spoke the word “mindset” to me several years ago. (I wrote this 'note' in 2012)
A friend had died of sickness. We had gone to the hospital to pray for her and I had seen the light of Jesus shine on her and bring wholeness. I had spoken the things I saw in the Spirit over her. She felt heat. Others had come and prayed for her, spending hours worshiping in her room. She was recovering.
Then I got a call two days later that she’d gone home to be with the Lord. I asked God, “Why?” And He said, “mindsets.”
In the last few years, God’s been talking to me about this a lot. The free online dictionary defines a mindset as:
1. A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person's responses to and interpretations of situations.
2. An inclination or a habit.
I googled “mindsets” and found out that there’s a book out called, “Mindset” by psychologist Carol Dweck. Here’s an excerpt from it.
“For twenty years, my research has shown that the view you adopt for yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your life. It can determine whether you become the person you want to be and whether you commit to and accomplish the things you value. How does this happen? How can a simple belief have the power to transform your psychology and, as a result, your life?“
Now I don’t like psychology for a very simple reason. It does not acknowledge that man is a spiritual being that needs salvation. It is ‘humanism’ at its worse; man trying to fix himself without Jesus. And once again, I’m sure this book will tell us how to fix our thinking through positive affirmations. But this understanding of our thinking is profound.
The online dictionary also talks about “collective mindsets.” A story is told that in 1974, psychologists were trying to reorient the American Indians to have ”correct goals” such as a house and a full bank account. But their historical viewpoint of success was so different that it was impossible to get them to think ‘correctly.’
The term ‘apostle’, which we see in scripture, is a secular term that was first used in Roman/Greek culture. The Romans were conquering vast territories and claiming them as part of the Roman Empire. But when the conquerors would return to these regions, they found that the culture of the original country had not changed. The people were not becoming “Romans.” So they left ‘apostles’ in the area to change the culture! These people were to be an influence and infiltrate the culture with Roman/Greek thinking! http://www.impactnetwork.net/pdf/apostle.pdf They were sent out to these regions to transform the culture!
This is the reference point that Paul would have been using when writing. He was charging us to be apostles to this world. We have been ‘sent out’ by Christ to affect our culture, to change men’s thinking, to tell the world that there is access to God through Jesus Christ. But instead, many of us have been indoctrinated into the world’s thinking. We are salt that has lost its ‘saltiness.’ Salt is a natural preservative that people used to keep their meat from spoiling. Jesus wants us to be salt and light to this world.
We say more with our actions than we say with our words. Especially when we are parents, we have a huge influence on the mindsets of our children. If we eat dinner together every night and then spend time as a family in God’s Word and in prayer, we are establishing a truth in our children; that we cannot go a day without the Word of God; that we value the principles of God’s Word; that God is our first priority.
If our children see us up every morning before they are, praying and seeking God, it sends a message. If our Bible is always open and we know what it says, and we quote it, it sends a message. If the first thing we do when our children are sick is to lay hands on them and pray, we establish that we believe God’s Word regarding healing. It becomes established in them that God heals. They begin to experience healing through faith and when they are sick again, they do what works; pray, repent of sin and receive healing.
Our culture and society has an understood "truth." When you are sick, you go to a doctor. Medicine heals you. Some things cannot be healed; they are chronic or worse yet, terminal. Some pharmaceuticals will help the symptoms but you will always be sick. When medication causes negative side effects, you can take another medication to get rid of that side effect. Everyone needs health insurance. Getting sick without health insurance might mean that you could be refused medical care. If you are given medical care without insurance, your bills could destroy your finances. Doctors have the final authority on your health.
This becomes a deep routed fear in people. It becomes a mindset.
Many times believers in Christ believe that they have right thinking based on truth because they believe Jesus is the Son of God Who died for their sins never realizing that they are still believing lies from the enemy in every area of their lives. They have deep routed mindsets well established from their childhood.
Then consider the ‘collective mindset.’ Nothing reassures us that we are ‘right’ better than having a group that agrees with us. We find comfort in that; that everyone thinks like we do. We pass this thinking down from generation to generation; from church to church.
Jesus talks about mankind as ‘sheep that need a shepherd.’ Without a shepherd, sheep don’t know where to go or what to think. They are known for flocking together and not separating from their flock. It is very hard for us to think independently and risk the rejection of others. We are much more comfortable getting into the center of a group of like believers and hiding there; approved of and accepted.
When Jesus was on the earth, He spoke the most harshly to the religious of that day: the Pharisees. The Pharisees religiously observed the Sabbath, they tithed and fasted and prayed. But Jesus condemned them saying that unless we become more righteous than they, we will not see the Kingdom of Heaven. He called them hypocrites and told them that they invalidated the Word of God by their traditions; teaching their own traditions as the doctrines of God. (Matthew 15)
A few years ago, I heard about Heidi and Rolland Baker’s ministry in Mozambique, Africa. www.irisministries.com At that time, it was reported that they had raised over 70 people from the dead. Heidi was going into the villages there and calling the people to come and hear about Jesus. She was especially having success in the deaf receiving hearing and I always think it’s so wonderful that the first thing these people heard was the Name of Jesus!
When I first heard about this, my mind sort of did a little overload –“ What?! Over 70 people raised from the dead?!” I could not comprehend this! As the years have progressed, I’ve listened to her on line. In one session, she was speaking to a large group of pastors in Africa. She asked them how many of them had raised people from the dead and every single one of them raised their hand!
One pastor told the story of a woman who was the people’s leader in witchcraft. She died and the Lord told him to go raise her from the dead. He didn’t want to -LOL. When he obeyed, the woman came to life praising Jesus and now serves Him with all her heart. Many of the villagers have committed their lives to Christ because of her testimony and the transformation God has done in her life!
Bill Johnson, pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, CA, and the author of, “When Heaven Invades Earth” says that when we share testimonies of the wonderful things that God has done, it creates an atmosphere for miracles. People need to hear the wonderful things that God is doing. It expands their thinking and they begin to think outside their mindsets.
Pastor Johnson’s church has been experiencing miracles for years. They are pressing into God that their territory, Redding, California, be a cancer-free zone. They are seeing tumors fall off, deformities from birth corrected, cancer healed and many other healings and miracles. They are breaking the mindset that God does not operate today the way He operated in the New Testament.
God’s mercies are new every day. He will help us today. But, He tells ‘US’ to renew our minds in His Truth. He tells us not to be conformed to this world in our thinking. He’s not going to do it for us. He has given us His Word and His Spirit and it is our choice to renew our mind and seek Him or to continue to believe things contrary to His Word, just because we’ve found a group that will agree with us.
We like to tell ourselves that if Jesus had come to the earth today, we would have recognized Him. We would have followed Him and honored Him. But He’s on this earth today. He’s omnipresent in the form of the Holy Spirit and many ‘believers’ have not recognized Him.
God gave us free will. We can choose. We can decide to follow God with our whole hearts or we can stay where we are. There is always more. He is infinite love; infinite mercy; infinite truth.
Jesus’ last commission to us was this: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel (The Good News!) to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. THESE SIGNS WILL ACCOMPANY THOSE WHO BELIEVE: In My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; THEY WILL LAY HANDS ON THE SICK AND THEY WILL RECOVER.”
We have to start with a new mindset. We have to start by believing.
Mindset – A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person's responses to and interpretations of situations. 2. An inclination or a habit.
blessings and love~
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12:2