Dare To Be Bold

I watched the show "It's Supernatural" with Sid Roth this morning. His guest was a man I'd never heard of before named Jim Hockaday.

Jim spoke about how he had learned to be bold when it comes to praying for healing. I was so moved by this because I have such a heart to pray for people. Yet it never fails, when I'm praying for healing, I battle with the voice in my head that says "what if it doesn't happen?"

How do we overcome this nagging voice of doubt?

First of all, recognize that it's obviously the voice of the enemy trying to discourage you from praying.

Secondly, I've come to realize something...I used to think it was just a matter of asking for more faith. But now I believe it is more about a deeper revelation of God's love for me. The opposite of faith is fear. Fear is what keeps us from being bold when we pray. Fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of looking stupid if what we pray doesn't happen. The Bible says that "perfect love casts out fear". Therefore, knowing God's perfect love for me, keeps me from being afraid of stepping out and taking Him at His Word.

A while back I asked the Lord why so many Christians, myself included, didn't see the radical tranformation like Peter had, after I was filled with the Spirit. I asked, what made the difference for the Disciples, and what am I lacking today?

I remember hearing, "They walked with the Word (Jesus) for 3 years, and then were filled with My Spirit. You have to marry the two together and stop treating them separately." Imagine my surprise this morning as I heard something very similar from Jim Hockaday. He talked about how there used to be a movement of intimacy with the Holy Spirit, and then it switched to an emphasis on the Word only. He went on to say how there needed to be a joining together of the two.

Jim pointed out that we have the Spirit of God dwelling in us, but we also have the capicity to "reveal" God. He said as we begin to pray in the Spirit, and develop our prayer life, we will begin to focus on His presence being in us, and around us at all times. Then he made this statement that really stood out to me:

"The greater you recognize Him in your life, the easier it will be to see the supernatural take place".

The only way to do that is to spend time with God and pray in the Holy Spirit, as well as letting the Word of God become your foundation for the miracles (joining together of the Word & the Spirit).

Jim prayed in such a bold way that he told a lady with a cancerous tumor to take someone else with her to the restroom and rub water on it, and the tumor would disappear. Sid Roth was amazed by this and asked if he had heard the Spirit tell him to pray this, or if it was his own words. Jim answered it was his own words, but that he had learned to think like God (we are called to have the mind of Christ). He felt comfortable enough in his relationship with the Lord, as well as in the power of the Holy Spirit who dwelled within him, that he could make such claims. That, matched with the faith and obedience of the women who went to the restroom and did as he had said, resulted in the women being instantly healed of the tumor.

Whether or not you or I ever have this kind of experience, one thing I know for sure - we need a deeper revelation of God's love for us (Eph.1:17-20 AND Eph. 3:16-19) as well as the experiential knowledge that the Holy Spirit abides in us!

"To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Col. 1:27

My Bible (NKJ Spirit Filled Bible) has this statement following this verse: "Understand that all hope of real "glory" is in discovering Christ's very life in you."

Matthew 28:18-20 "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make diciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obseve all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

He established His authority and then gave them a job to do. Knowing they would probably be afraid of the "commision" that had just been handed down, He encouraged them with the promise that He would always be with them. This is the same encouragement that we should draw from when we go to pray for people - He has all authority and He is with us (in us)

So, let us pray for others, free from doubt & fear, and most importantly, dare to be bold!