2015 is just a little more than four days from being consigned to the history books. I don’t know about you but this year has been a blur for the Elkins family. The famous Italian racecar driver Mario Andretti once said, “If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough”. Reflecting upon the past year, you may feel as I do, that at times, life is moving way to fast and even seemed to be out of control. Moving twice in the same year, ministry and vocational transitions, and increasing demands upon my time all felt overwhelming in the natural at times. But through it all, 2015 was a great year and I will declare to you that Jesus is Glorious and He is good all the time! He alone is our rock and the only sure foundation especially in these times of uncertainty and change. A proper perspective is critical for every believer in every season of life but its especially true in this season. Nothing takes God by surprise. He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end therefore He knew and saw every event of our lives unfold in 2015 before we ever experienced it. If that were not enough, He is also Emanuel, the God who was there with us all through every trial and every victory this past year. He has given you a covenant promise “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” I know that many of you are still in the middle of a sizable trial and it does not appear that there is going to be a breakthrough before the end of this year. In the reality of the battle you have become weary and I want to encourage you if you will allow me. Take your eyes off of the battle, off the battlefield and off of the enemy and focus on the Lord of Hosts, the Captain of Angel Armies, Jesus Christ. Begin to praise and worship Him because your praise and worship are two of the most powerful weapons you have been given to break the yoke of the enemy.
I love a great comeback story especially when the odds are defined in the impossible category like Super Bowl XLIX. The Patriots trailed the Seahawks 24-14 as they headed into the fourth quarter. The win factor for the Seahawks was now calculated to be 96.5 % and defeat seemed but just a few minutes away for the Patriots. I want to share a spiritual principal using this fourth quarter Super Bowl comeback as an illustration so stay with me. Tom Brady was in the middle of deflate-gate with personal accusations swirling all around him. His character had been targeted and maligned all week with accusations from every venue of the media and press. With the odds of loosing better than 96 percent he could have gone into the fourth quarter with the mindset of just closing out the season, accepting a loss and looking forward to next years season. Who could blame him, after all everyone had written them off. No team had ever overcome a double-digit second-half deficit to win a Super Bowl before. But in the last 12 minutes of the game, Tom Brady and the Patriots had gone from a win probability of 3.5 percent to a win probability of 94.1 percent. Against all odds Brady and the Patriots fought back and won, making theirs the biggest second-half comeback in Super Bowl history.
Whether you are a Tom Brady fan or a NFL Super Bowl fan matters little. What truly matters is that you understand your position in Christ! I want to declare over you that God is for you and not against you - WITH GOD NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!
It is time to turn the adversity and destroy the strategies of the enemy that have hindered and even kept you from advancing in your purpose and destiny in Christ. We cannot ignore the evil and darkness around us as if it did not exist and we certainly cannot expect to live our lives free from spiritual warfare, trials and sufferings. BUT… I want to challenge and encourage you to take ground and advance in these last few days of 2015. I don’t know of anyone who has not had to deal with stuff this year. A very appropriate line from the book, The Fellowship of the Ring, “I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo. "So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” J.R.R. Tolkien
What will you do with the time you have remaining in 2015? Below are seven proactive practical truths to activate in 2015.
7 PROACTIVE PRACTICAL TRUTHS TO ACTIVATE IN 2016
1. Don’t focus on the impossible odds of your circumstances in the natural. Fix your eyes on a supernatural God who still does miracles today.
2. Refuse to listen to the voice of the accuser he was a liar from the beginning.
3. Stand and declare the promises of the Lord over your life. Declare the Word of the Lord audibly!
4. Believe, speak and act in faith with great expectation for your breakthrough.
5. Begin to worship and praise the God of your breakthrough.
6. Come into agreement with heavens anthem, “Worthy is the Lamb –The Lamb has overcome”.
7. You are more than a conqueror in Christ and you will overcome this battle and realize your breakthrough as you rise up with a violent Love and release a radical Faith in a Supernatural God.
I want encourage you to be proactive and aggressively pursue your breakthrough as I leave you with this one thought. Several times in scripture we see this little phrase “BY THIS TIME TOMORROW”. This is a now Word for someone who has grown weary in the battle. The Lord told Joshua to instruct the people to “FEAR NOT”, because by THIS TIME TOMORROW your enemy will be destroyed. (Joshua 11:6) If this Word is for you – you will know it! Declare it in faith and expect it. Respond in Faith!
Please send me your testimonies of breakthrough so that others may be encouraged in their faith.
Praying with you for your last minute 2015 Breakthrough. Remember, there’s a cloud of witnesses cheering you on from the Glory realm and there are Angels assigned to perform the Word of God released from your mouth.
Blessings,
Tom