Word at Work Ministries

SUNDAY, AUGUST 23 Scripture: Luke 19:20-21 Luke 19:20-21 says,... Then another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief. For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ Here we have one individual that does nothing. He does not use his gift to make a difference. He doesn’t take action. He does not use any of the tools with which his master empowered him. He does nothing. He was passive with his authority and said, O God bless everyone. That passive approach does not pay off. Asking for nothing but blessings on people and refusing to ask God to judge evil is a form of passivity. Do we not realize that consistently and without fail, blessing everyone at all times hinders God’s Kingdom by enabling evil?! Jesus assessed the passive servant as wicked. Jesus said to him, You wicked servant. Is it possible that we could be so nice that we are nicer than God? Are we so steeped in unsanctified mercy that our failure to take action or pray collapse on those who bring destruction may earn an eternal rebuke? If that is the case we have 90% of the church in wickedness because they don’t know how to pray somebody into judgment even though Luke 18:1-8 clearly expresses it! Is it possible when we pray blessings on those who are steeped in evil, God looks on us as participating in their evil? We only have a small percentage of the Body of Christ that is looking circumspectly and recognizing that unsanctified mercy is not helpful! Saints, it is time we launch out of our comfort zone and into the prayers of the mighty!

SATURDAY, AUGUST 22 Scripture: Luke 19:16-19 In verses 16-19 we find,... Then came the first saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten minas.’ And he said to him,‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned five minas.’ Likewise he said to him, ‘You also be over five cities.’ Oh, boy! We were chosen for a particular purpose for this specific time in history! How can we gain by ‘trading’ if we are unsure of God’s eternal purpose? Paul teaches us in Ephesians that as we pray in the Spirit and wait that the Holy Spirit will be faithful to apply His purpose through us. We were each chosen to make a difference by what we do and what we pray in just such a season as this. Our personal contribution may very well tip the scales toward God’s purposes. The Greek word for ‘trading’ in this passage means, choose the most productive action that initiates it. The most believable action that always produces gain and eternal fruit is praying in the Spirit. As in the parable of the ten minas if we want to hear, ‘Well done good and faithful servant,’ then the most valuable action to produce Kingdom gain is praying in the Spirit! When we pray in the Spirit, we are repairing the house, calling forth divine will, exposing mysteries and charging the batteries of faith and wisdom for exploits! Max trading and anointed productivity comes from praying in the Spirit!

THURSDAY, AUGUST 20 Scripture: Luke 18:15-17 Luke 18:15-17 says,... Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to Him and said, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.’ Here again we find in Scripture the very same exhortation. If we want to receive this, and this is what we were chosen for then let’s go after it! Let’s receive it like we were five years old and our loving Father brought us a birthday gift. We tear it open, find out what is in it and go ‘play’ with it! That is the full measure of what God is trying to bring us into and we can receive it just as we would a birthday present!

FRIDAY, AUGUST 21 Scripture: Luke 19:11-15 Luke 19:11-15 tells us,... Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. Therefore He said: ‘A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’ But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us.’ And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. This is the Kingdom that you and I are to receive. We have to receive a Kingdom. There is no doubt about it. We have to receive it like children. Then the question becomes, what are we doing with the Kingdom we have received? Now all authority is given to us in heaven and in earth and why can we not pray the enemy into submission? Can we not close his mouth and shut him up? Can we not demonstrate to principalities and powers they don’t rule by praying termination on those who are currently destroying the nation? God went into a far country and received a kingdom and then returned but the citizens did not like His leadership. What a surprise! How many citizens are there today that do not like who God set on top nationally? With one move God revealed hearts on both sides of the political aisle! Every leader has to prove whose Kingdom he is building. It is true of both pastors and presidents! Building God’s Kingdom should be our first priority. Those who are more interested in building their personal kingdom and enriching themselves are now more apparent than ever. National leader’s hearts have been revealed, those in both parties, by God setting one outsider in place. God commented on our national condition when He intervened dramatically in the presidential election. Job 9:12 says of God, If He takes away, who can hinder Him? Who can say to Him what are you doing? The real issue for the church is, are we going to embrace God’s purpose? Or will we choose to stand against it? Yielding to the Lord is not always easy but it pays eternal dividends!

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19 Scripture: Mark 10:13-16 Mark 10:13-16 says,... Then they brought young children to Him that He might touch them but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it He was greatly displeased and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly I say to you whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it’. And he took them up in his arms and put his hands on them and blessed them. This passage signals exactly how we are to receive the Kingdom. How do we receive the Kingdom? We accept that we are chosen and that we are chosen for a purpose and the purpose is to receive the Kingdom. We have to receive it like a gift, like a gift that a child gets. Children don’t question gifts, but instead say, ‘Thanks dad, appreciate it!’ They receive the gift. And that is what Jesus is saying. Kids have no problem receiving gifts. They don’t complain. They say, ‘thanks,’ tear it open and away they go. They receive it and run with it! That is precisely what God is looking for in us, to receive it and run with it. He wants us to fully embrace the fact that we are chosen and then run with what He has provided! This is the time for a supernatural surge!