Our words are so important that God keeps track of them.  Careless words spoken today will have a negative effect tomorrow.  Our lives today are the sum total of the words that we have been speaking.  This should give us a note of caution as we engage in conversations that are negative like gossip, slander, backbiting, etc.

If we want the creative power of Words to make a difference in our lives, it will mean that our heart are established in faith!  One of the underlying truths of the Maximized Life is what is going on in our hearts!  Our hearts must be full of faith.  And we already learned how faith comes: through hearing!

Under pressure, what is in our hearts will come out!  Have you ever been around someone and they stubbed their toe or slammed their finger in a door?  After this experience, they let out an expletive or something else negative.  What is in the heart will come out under painful or pressured situations.  For instance, when you get bad financial news which suggests that your finances will not turn around, do you exclaim: “I’ll always be broke?”  Or, do you say, “My God shall supply all my needs!”

Only when we can declare God’s Word is the force of faith released to change our situation.  Today, we must resolve to fill our hearts with the Word of God to the degree that we are saturated with it.  And, when situations and circumstances arise, we will release faith and not fear into our situations!

Your Words have more power than you give yourself credit for!  Use this power to make a difference in your life!

Our words are spiritual containers that have enormous impact.  Because we were created in God’s image, we have the same ability to release power by the words of our mouths–especially when we repeat God’s Words!  Natural environments must change in response to God’s Word.

Words are powerful.  In Genesis the world was created by Words.  And faith-filled words will have the same effect to create in our lives.  Our words first work in the realm that we cannot see and then they will cause things to change in the realm that we can see.  If we speak words of faith, we will see positive results.  However, if we speak words of doubt and fear, we will manifest negative results in our lives.

When we say that we can’t, we won’t!  If we say “It’s too hard”, it will be!  No matter how our situation looks, we cannot stop speaking God’s Word.  If we start speaking what we see, we will miss the supernatural results that faith-filled Words can produce.  Our words really matter!

Start confessing God’s Word over your life and see the positive results!

Offerings are what we give over and above our tithe as an act of our love and appreciation to God.  And, when we do this, God makes promises as it relates to our harvest on the seed that we have sown.  Whenever God gets involved, it’s supernatural.

When we give (sow) our offerings, we position ourselves to reap a harvest based on what we expect to receive.  This of it this way: every seed that is planted in the natural is preprogrammed genetically to produce a specific harvest.  So, apple seeds produce apple trees.  Mustard seeds produce mustard plants.  The same is true spiritually when we give to the kingdom of God.

We can attach a specific harvest to our seed to meet a current or future need or a desire we have.  At the point of giving (sowing), we can designate it for one of these things!  For dedicated farmers, a seed that they plant will always meet their need.  If they know they need wheat, they will plant wheat.  If they need corn, they will plant corn, etc.

A seed will meet your need as well!  Once you have sown the seed, you stand on what you will receive.  You now need to stand in faith for the harvest on that seed.  We have already learned the faith process but now that you have seed in the ground concerning those things, you continue to thank God for the manifestation and keep your confession in line with what you are believing.  God is able to take your seed and produce a lasting harvest to meet every need in your life.

A Seed will meet your need!

Beyond what we have heard in church or from naysayers (usually people who are trying to justify their own disobedience), we should see what the Bible says about this important principle.  Tithing is easily defined: it is 10% of one’s increase which is dedicated to advance the place where we are taught the Word.  It provides the support necessary to advance God’s work in the earth.

Tithing connects us with a spiritual force that produces God’s favor and blessings in our lives.  Why?  Because tithing is an act of honoring God!  When we receive financial increase, from whom does it come?  If we believe it is from God, then is God asking too much for us to give 10% of it to support His work?  If we think that we are the producers of the blessings in our lives, then it makes sense that we would not want to give to God a portion of what we produced for ourselves.

But, the Maximizer understands that “But me—who am I, and who are these my people, that we should presume to be giving something to you? Everything comes from you; all we’re doing is giving back what we’ve been given from your generous hand.“ 1 Chronicles 29:15 (MSG)

Tithing is an investment in God’s work that pays off in favor and blessings in our lives.  God will give to tithers an abundance of opportunities which if maximized, will produce economic abundance in our lives. Tithing is not swapping money with God: “I give Him $100 and He gives me $1000.”   This is part of the misconception of tithing.  Tithing opens up windows of blessings on our lives so that we walk in abundance.

When we honor God with the tithe, God showers blessings on us!

What is the trigger to the quality of life–the Maximized Life?

The answer: Living Generously!  One of the foundational spiritual laws that the Bible teaches is the Law of Identical Harvest (Sowing and Reaping).  We have often heard this said as a cliché but it is a Law.  Whatever we send out, it will come back to us!

When we live generously, we position ourselves to always be on the receiving end of what we have given.  So, if we want to receive more, it will require that we give more in every area of life.  When we spend our lives being takers, we violate the law of sowing and reaping!  And, that is why quality of life has not been achieved by so many.  If we want to receive something for nothing, we will be sorely disappointed in the Bible and the God of the Bible because He always links our actions with His response.

Examples:

Ever remember when you were a kid and someone dared you to do something? You were more than eager to accept the challenge because there was not a dare that you did not want to pass up!

Well, I have a DARE for you today. As we have talked about meditation and how to awaken our minds to the plans and purposes of God, it will be important for you to associate a great amount of discomfort with your current situation and a great amount of pleasure with your desired end-state. Four easy steps will enable you to do this:

The first is Decide. Have you noticed how all things that we need to do start with our minds?! As we have seen, life is choice driven! As a result, the choices we make today will make a difference for our futures. The decision that we need to make is has to do with our desire to change and be directed by the Word of God in that change.

The second is Associate. Where you currently are and the poor decisions that caused you to be there have to be associated with pain and discomfort so that you are no longer desiring to stay where you are. Even if you have grown accustomed to where you are. Take the current trajectory of your to its logical conclusion. Associate pain and misery with this end result and it will serve as a motivator to change the course of your life. Then, based upon your plan that you created yesterday, associate the joy and fulfillment that you will have once that picture becomes reality.

The third is Recollect. You must recall the experiences that have hindered your decisions in the past to follow-through. This reflection stage will enable you to identify past destructive behaviors and allow you to see that change is possible for your life.

The last step is Envision. Can you see yourself as a totally new person? Can you believe that you can become the person that God wants you to become? If you can see yourself in a new light, you will soon walk in that new light!

Take the DARE today and make lasting change in your life!! ]]> http://agapeone.org/2010/05/12/maximized-life-journey-day-39/feed/ 0 http://agapeone.org/2010/05/11/maximized-life-day-38/ http://agapeone.org/2010/05/11/maximized-life-day-38/#comments Tue, 11 May 2010 14:31:10 +0000 Calvin http://agapeone.org/?p=369 Today, we will see the 12 practical steps to meditation. If you will follow these, you will begin the internal change process to realign your beliefs and values to conform to Biblical values. Step 1: Decide what the end result look like. It should always be based on the Bible and supported by Scripture. Step 2: Envision [...]]]> Today, we will see the 12 practical steps to meditation. If you will follow these, you will begin the internal change process to realign your beliefs and values to conform to Biblical values.

Step 1: Decide what the end result look like. It should always be based on the Bible and supported by Scripture.

Step 2: Envision yourself with the end result. Remember that if you cannot envision it, you will not see it.

Step 3: Set some timeframes as it relates to how long it should take to accomplish Step 1. Be realistic about timeframe but also do not drag out it out.

Step 4: Identify people who can help you reach your desired state in Step 1. You should also assess what resources you have available to you. This could be books, articles, etc.

Step 5:: Asses how you will use the resources available to you, including the people who you identified in Step 4.

Step 6: Get a picture of all the people who will benefit from your life once you achieve Step 1.

Step 7: Think of those you know who have accomplished what you have listed in Step 1.

Step 8: Draft a step by step plan on how you can accomplish this goal in Step 1. Be specific and realistic.

Step 9: Reflect on when you had a significant accomplishment. Thank God for this.

Step 10: Just like you praised God for the past accomplishment and praise God for accomplishing Step 1.

Step 11: Repeat Steps 9-11 as much as possible.

Step 12: Incorporate new wisdom and insight into your plan in Step 8 as new information becomes available.

These steps will bless your life and renew your mind to see life in a whole new way! Start today and continue tomorrow and forever!

There is another part of our mental complex that we cannot ignore: the subconscious mind. Once we have repeatedly performed a task, it gets locked into the subconscious and it becomes like an autopilot. This is actually a good thing because it allows us to have a stable personality. However, just like with the conscience, if it is improperly formed, we will continue to perform acts that are contrary to where we want to go in life!

God can require us to be faithful because he designed us to be consistent through the functioning of our subconscious (autopilot). If we can get our subconscious to lock onto the proper behaviors and habits, then we will propel ourselves forward towards our destiny!

Our autopilot will bring whatever is in our conscience to pass! Even if it means passing over what is good and right! Because we have experienced bad relationships, we will continue to find bad relationships or turn good relationships bad. We learned bad employment habits and though we have been through several jobs, we keep jeopardizing them because of our pre-programmed bad behavior. We were raised in families that glorified financial struggle and now you do likewise in your life and are repeating behavior that you learned. Instinctively, you continue a cycle that you really want to break.

This is where our constant hearing of God’s Word and meditation will begin to dislodge all the garbage that we have learned and produce goodness and truth. If we can put good into our conscience, good will come out!

All experiences are composed of words, emotions and images.  These same features will guide our meditation process and produce lasting results.  The first aspect of meditation is Verbalization.  We have already learned that Maximizers have as their foundation, the Word of God.  Thus, when we speak, we must speak God’s Word because it releases faith into our situations and activates heavenly assistance.

The next component is Visualization.  This is painting a picture on the canvas of your imagination.  You must be able to see your desired endpoint today!  God showed Abraham his future.  Abraham had no reference point for multitudes of children!  So, God showed him how to see what it looks like to have many children.  He used stars in the sky and sand by the sea.  You will have to gain a picture of your future.  And, keep that before your eyes.

The last component is Internalization.  At this stage of meditation, we praise God and establish the next steps that we should take to bring your future to pass.  You will ignite such a passion that what you have imagined will be real to you and every ounce of your being will pursue it!!

Begin today to paint a picture of your future and keep it before your eyes every day (many times a day) and soon you will see it in reality!