Rodney Howard Browne Louisville

God Grants Us Strength

We all know who our Enemy is, and we are dressed for battle. But we don’t feel prepared. Our weaknesses appear big and our strength tiny. For us to stand firm in this life, we must have the power of our living Lord operating inside us. To have His divine power released in us needs heavy, sustained prayer. ( Ephesians 6:18 ) When we communicate with the Father, he’ll give us a discerning mind so we can recognize truths about religious warfare.

The Holy Spirit will also help us gain understanding of our Adversary’s strategies ( one Corinthians 2:14 ) - attentiveness to the Spirit enables us to gain divine viewpoint on our circumstances and to get cautions about forthcoming attacks. Beginning each morning with the Lord lets Him reinforce us to stand resolutely for Christ, regardless of what is in store that day. Prayer is an essential part of our defense against the Demon . If we are prayerless - failing to find God’s guidance, and neglecting to put on His armor by religion each day - then we’re going to be defeated.

Our vision and understanding aside from God are too limited and our Enemy is too robust for us to stand alone. With God we’re going to be more than conquerors. ( Romans 8:37 ) he’ll make us prepared if we draw close to Him thru prayer, listen to His instructions, and follow thru with obedience. The Enemy despises requests offered thru religion in Jesus Christ as he has no shield against them. Persevering prayer fortifies us, crushes Devil’s might, and sends him running. ( James 4:7 ) fall to your knees and watch what occurs.

Living By Faith

God engineers circumstances to humble us and show us how much we need Him to live a winning life. This is how He loses the idol of self-effort from our pursuit of holiness. It’s also his technique of attaining other purposes in our lives. The Lord has more in mind than simply exposing the weakness of our flesh - that is only a must have to something else.

He will put us on display for all eternity as examples of His grace and goodness. He wants the angels to see the body of Christ and stand in shock before this dazzling demonstration of His work.

Are we able to most likely understand the full scope of His designs for our lives? What must be done in order for us to reach all that He has in mind for us? We don’t have answers to these questions. Hence, we’ve got a lot of difficulty knowing why God permits us to fail.

If we could only see the fabulous end product He has to mind, we’d gladly desert our self-effort and give way to His transforming power. But instead we insist on doing it our way. And so long as we remain in this style of thinking, God will insist on letting us to fail.

There’s an easier way. It is just living by faith, trusting in the Holy Spirit inside us moment-by-moment and day-by-day to conform us to the likeness of God’s Son.

MY FATHER’S WORD AND WAYS by Rodney Howard Browne

John 1:1-4 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Rodney Howard Browne teaches that we know God’s thoughts and ways through His Word.

• Many have little understanding of the Father.
• John 14:9 - Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?
• Seventy percent of Jesus’ ministry was healing the sick and casting out devils.
• Daniel 11:32 - And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.
• Mark 16:15-18 - And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

• People attend the same church with the same Bible. One understands and one doesn’t.
• You cannot receive God with the natural mind; you have to receive Him with the heart.
• John 4:23-24 - But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

• God needs to be the final authority in our lives: God’s WORD is to be final authority in our lives. Isaiah 40:8 - The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
• The fire burns up the chaff, religion, and tradition. (Jeremiah 23:29 - Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? )
• Press into Him by studying His Word and following His promptings, the promptings of the Holy Spirit—be willing and obedient. (Isaiah 1:19 - If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.)

• Quote: Smith Wigglesworth while preaching the message Power of the Word of God:
• “Believers are strong only as the Word of God abides in them. The Word of God is spirit and life to those who receive it in simple faith, and it is a verifier of all who own its sway.
• Know your Book, live it, believe it, and obey it. Hide God’s word in your heart. It will save your soul, quicken your body, illumine your mind. The Word of God is full and final, infallible, reliable, and up-to-date, and our attitude towards it must be one of unquestioned obedience.
• If a thing is in the Bible, it is so; it is not even to be prayed about; it is to be received and acted upon. Inactivity of faith is a robber, which steals blessing. Increase comes by action, by using what we have and what we know. Your life must be one of going from faith to faith.”
• “Great faith is the product of great fights.”
• “Great testimonies are the outcome of great tests.”
• “Great triumphs can only come out of great trials.”

• Psalms 18:30-32 - As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him. 31 For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God? 32 It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect.

• Natural persons’ ways and God’s ways are a world apart. God wants to lift us into heavenly places.
• Mark 7:13 - Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
• Hosea 4:6 - My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
• Prayer: Show me Your ways not through the eyes of religion and tradition.  Show me Your plan and purpose for me. I will do Your purpose. I will do Your plan.  I am expecting to hear, “Well done thy good and faithful servant…”
• Jer 29:11-13 NIV - For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Jesus shows Mercy by Rodney Howard Browne

Pastor Rodney Howard Browne shows us that Jesus shows

mercy to sinners. Luke 19:2-9 tells the story of Jesus

meeting a sinner. As He walked along a road, He saw a

man named Zacchaeus sitting up in a tree. He said, “Come down,

Zacchaeus. Let’s go to your house.” You might feel stuck way up

in a tree right now, but I want you to know that Jesus will show

up and say, “Come on down; let’s go to your house.” And believe

me, when you experience Jesus’ unconditional love and compassion,

you will do what Zacchaeus did — drop everything and go

with Jesus!

Jesus will raise us from the dead. In Mark 5:22-24 and 35-

43, Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue, fell down in the

dusty road at Jesus’ feet and said, “My daughter is sick at home.”

Jesus went with Jairus to his home, but before they got there, they

heard that she had died. Jesus told Jairus to continue believing,

and because He walked into that house, the young girl was raised

from the dead. When Jesus shows up, Me brings new life!

Look at Luke 7:11-15. Jesus found a funeral procession

outside the city of Nain. He called the boy right up out of the coffin

and gave him back to his mother. When Jesus shows up, He’ll

raise the dead!

He came to the tomb where His dear friend Lazarus had

been dead for four days. Lazarus’ sisters were grieving. “Master,”

they said, “if You’d come earlier, this would not have happened.

He’s dead now and stinketh.” But what happened when Jesus

showed up? He said, “Roll away the stone.” And then He said,

“Lazarus, come forth!” And he did!

You might be right in the middle of a situation where you

have no hope, where things you’ve been believing and trusting

God for look dead. They look like they’re buried in the tomb,

stinking. But I want you to know that the same Jesus who walked

the shores of Galilee two thousand years ago comes to you and

says, “Roll away the stone and come forth!” Hallelujah! He

brings life!

It doesn’t matter what your circumstances are. When Jesus

comes on the scene, impossible situations can be turned around.

It doesn’t matter what the devil says. It doesn’t matter what other

people say. When Jesus walks in the door, everything changes.

When Jesus walks in the door, there’s no more argument. There’s

no more question, for He is the Answer How can there be a question

remaining when He is the Answer?

When Jesus walks in the door, there’s no more loss of

direction. How can there be a loss of direction when He is the

way? When He walks in the door, there are no more lies. How can

there be lies when He is the truth? When He walks in the door,

there’s no more death. How can there be death when He is the

life? (See John 14:6.)

What happens when you’ve been in your boat all night

fishing, but have caught nothing? You’ve fished and you’ve

fished — and you know how to fish because you’re a fisherman

by trade — but you’ve caught absolutely nothing. Then Jesus

shows up and gives you clear direction: “Cast your nets on the

other side.” (See John 21:1-6.)

You might be a minister of the Gospel and you’ve been

fishing for souls all your life. You’ve been fishing for years in

Podunk Hollow but you’ve caught no fish. Jesus comes to you

now and says, “Cast your nets on the other side.” Watch in wonder

as hundreds of fish jump into your net!

Doing the Work of a Donkey by Rodney Howard Browne

Pastor Rodney Howard Browne explains to us that

when the anointing is not there, you go one more

time around the mill. Your life becomes a grind and you

are doing the work of a donkey. It becomes repetitious.

There’s no excitement, no joy, no strength. “I’m going

round and round and round. I can’t see like I used to. I

don’t have freedom like I used to.”

to mock at you and they’re mocking at the Church

right now. They’re mocking at the house of God. They

mock at men and women of God.

Anoint Me One More Time

Now the Philistines were having a feast. The

world is having a feast right now. But at their time of

reveling, at their time of feasting, will come their time of

greatest defeat.

Guess what the Philistines did? They held a feast

and said, “Bring this bald, blind man here. Let’s mock

him.”

And in that moment of weakness, Samson

remembered what was once upon his life and he prayed a

prayer that would ultimately fulfill his ministry. But what

a terrible way to fulfill your ministry. As he bowed

himself there in that pagan temple, he pulled down its

pillars. The whole place came down. In his death, he

killed more than he did in his life.

Samson ultimately fulfilled his ministry. The

anointing came back to him. But what a terrible way to

find the ultimate fulfillment of God’s call on your life.

Let’s fulfill it with our eyes. Let’s keep our hair on. And

let’s not put ourselves in the place of compromise.

Your “Delilah” could be your friends. Maybe you

hang around with ungodly friends. Your “Delilah” could

be something else. For everyone it is different. You must

locate it and deal with it in your life before it kills you.

Never let the devil steal the anointing from you. Do

whatever it takes to keep the touch of God upon your life.