CREATE THE RIGHT ATMOSPHERE FOR MIRACLES!

Today, we want to look at the ninth step to receiving your miracle - “CREATE THE RIGHT ATMOSPHERE FOR MIRACLES!” 

A seed can only germinate under the right conditions – temperature, oxygen, moisture. If you plant the seed so superficially, it will either be scorched by the sun or eaten up by birds. If you plant it so deep in the ground, it will die because of lack of appropriate quantity of oxygen. If the other conditions are alright but the soil is not moist, the seed will also not germinate.

Similarly, miracles require the right atmosphere to take place. Miracles take place only in His Presence. The God of miracles dwells in Heaven, and Heaven is the realm of the miraculous. In Heaven praise and worship go on unceasingly. The closer you get to the throne of God the louder the praise and worship become. This is the natural atmosphere of God.

Therefore, for miracles to take place in the physical realm, we need to create the atmosphere of Heaven here on earth. Praise and worship create the atmosphere for miracles by ushering in the Presence of God because God indwells the praises of His people (Ps. 22:3).

In His Presence you MUST receive your miracle. In His Presence there is fullness of joy and at His right hand there are pleasures for ever more (Ps. 16:11).

In Psalm 34:1 David said, “I will bless the Lord at all times: His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”

As a child of God, you are chosen to praise God continually. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should SHEW FORTH THE PRAISES OF HIM who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.”

Therefore, the main purpose of praise and worship is to create an environment for the presence of God to be manifested.

God’s purpose for creating man in His image and after His likeness is to have someone to fellowship with. But after Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, God needed to provide a way to have fellowship and communion with His most precious and greatest creation - man.

God created the Garden of Eden and placed man in it. It was the perfect environment for God to have fellowship with these created beings. But when Adam sinned, he broke fellowship with God, and he could no longer stay in the Garden of Eden. Adam contaminated himself with sin and was no longer fit to live in this Garden of perfection and Holiness.

Man needed a vehicle that would bring him back into the Presence of his Creator. God created that vehicle by instituting the ministry of Worship. This ministry was constituted by obedience, sacrifices, pure motives, and the shedding of blood. From the days of Adam and his sons, Cain and Abel, to the days of Moses and Aaron, the Bible gives us accounts of several glimpses of worship experiences that God honoured or dishonored.

When God brought the Children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt, He gave a detailed pattern of how to attract and maintain His Presence. The construction of the Ark of the Covenant and the worship rituals performed in the Tabernacle give us a true picture of how serious God is about protecting His Presence.

The combination of thanksgiving, praise, sanctification and worship allowed the High Priest to go from the outer courts, to the inner courts, to the Holy place and finally to the Worship that is the vehicle that transports us into the very presence of the Almighty God.

Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter into (1) His gates with thanksgiving, and into (2) His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.”

Realize that not every kind of song ushers in His Presence. The praise and worship that usher in His Presence are those that specifically minister to the LORD.

Acts 13:1-2 says, “Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; …2 As they MINISTERED TO THE LORD, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.”

What does it mean to minister to the Lord? Ministering to the Lord is the prayer of praise and worship. In this type of prayer we just minister to God so as to have fellowship with Him. As you minister to our Father God, you are effectively interacting with Him.

When we come to minister to the Lord in praise and worship, we should expect to wait at least for an hour, perhaps longer, ministering to the Lord. We are just going to tell Him how much we love Him, praise Him and thank Him for His goodness and mercy. That is what ministering to the Lord is.

When we minister to the Lord, we don’t just ask Him for anything. We need to do this as individuals and as a Church.

In Acts 13:1-4, the people were not petitioning God to do anything for them. Rather they just ministered to Him and fasted.

It is in this kind of atmosphere of praise and worship that God does more for people. As they ministered to the Lord in Acts 13, the Holy Ghost manifested Himself and said something. I am convinced that God will speak to Christians more as He did concerning Saul and Barnabas in Acts 13, if Christians would take more time to minister to Him.

When we express our love to God we are worshiping Him. The Bible also commands us to celebrate His presence. How? By magnifying the Lord and exalting His name.

Psalm 34:3 says, “O magnify the LORD and let us exalt His name together.”

To magnify means to celebrate God’s presence in worship.

When Paul and Silas ushered in the presence of the Lord, they received a miracle – they were delivered from their bondage (Acts 16). When Joshua and the children of Israel ushered in the presence of the Lord, they received a miracle – the wall of Jericho sank into the ground (Joshua 6). When King Jehoshaphat and the children of Israel ushered in the presence of God, they received a miracle – their enemies devoured themselves (2 Chron 20:1, 22-23).

Usually, when we come together as a local church, we minister to one another. Most of the songs we sing minister to us. For instance, we sing songs like (1) Oh when the saints, go marching in….; (2) Pass me not O gentle Saviour, (3) Draw me nearer, nearer blessed Lord, (4) Unom di na Enigwe marama, etc.

We come to church, not necessarily to minister to the Lord, but to pray and to seek God on our own behalf, praying that certain needs will be met, and then we minister to certain needs of each other.

Coming to church to seek God on our own behalf and to minister to the needs of others is not wrong. But most of that kind of praying is the prayer of petition – not the prayer of worship or ministering to the Lord.

Very few of the songs we sing in church minister to the Lord. Songs that minister to the Lord include: (1) Our Father, in Heaven, we glorify Your Name…, (2) Our Father, our Father who art in Heaven, Amen, Hallowed be thy Name, (3) Hallowed be, Your Name, (4) Jehovah is Your Name, (5) El-Shaddai, (6) O Lord my God, when I’m in awesome wonder; (7) All Heavens declare, the glory of the risen Lord, (8) You deserve the glory, and the honour; (9) And we will say, that You are good, All the miracles You’ve done have brought us joy, And we saved, And all the hope we have we place in You right now. Father, we declare, Father we declare that we love You, we declare our everlasting love for You, (10) You are awesome in this place, mighty God, (11) Lord You are awesome, (12) Awesome God, how great thou art, (13) You are high and lifted up, (14) Thou art worthy, (15) There is none holy as the Lord, (16) Ancient of Days, as old… (17) For who is like unto thee, O Lord? (18) You are the Pillar that holds my life, (19) Father in Heaven, how we love You, (20) Blessed be the name of the Lord, etc.

For you to effectively minister to the LORD, you must do so in spirit and in truth (Jn. 4:24).

What does it mean to worship God in spirit? This means to worship God with your spirit-man and your whole soul – your emotions, your desire, your will and your mind. Worship is an activity of the spirit-man (Jn. 4:24). You exercise your spirit-man whenever you pray and worship God. Such spiritual exercise strengthens your spirit-man, that is to say that worship strengthens your spirit-man.

Since worship involves delighting in God, it engages your emotions. God gave you emotions so you could worship Him with deep feelings – but those emotions must be genuine, not faked. God hates hypocrisy. He doesn’t want showmanship or pretense in worship at all. He wants your honest, real love.

Worship must be in spirit and in truth. The Bible says that true worship consists of worshipping God (1) in spirit and (2) in truth.

In John 4:23 Jesus said, “But the hour cometh and now is, when THE TRUE WORSHIPPERS shall worship the Father (1) in spirit and (2) in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

Why does the Father seek such to worship Him? This is because God is Spirit. Therefore, you can reach [contact] Him through your spirit-man only. This is the reason why you must worship Him in spirit.

When Jesus says you must “worship in spirit,” He wasn’t referring to the Holy Spirit, but to your spirit-man. Made in the image of God, you are a spirit, you have a soul and you reside in a house called the body (1 Thess 5:23). God designed your spirit-man to communicate with Him. New Testament worship must be in spirit and in truth. Since “God is Spirit,” He must be worshipped in spirit.

Human beings possess a human spirit, the nature of which corresponds to God’s nature, which is Spirit. Therefore, people can have fellowship with God and worship God in the same sphere that God exists in by doing so with their spirit-man.

During worship, your spirit-man responds to the Spirit of God. Worship is the bridge through which you pass from the physical to the spiritual realm.

In worship, there is a joining of your spirit-man to the Spirit of God. Do you want to enjoy a divine romance with God? Then worship Him in spirit and in truth.

In 1 Corinthians 6:16-17 the Bible says, “Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For "the two," He says, "shall become one flesh."  17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.”

Worship not only ushers in the glory of God [His Presence] but also helps you to enter into His Presence.

Listen, after the creation of man, God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden. Eden means the place of His Presence. His Presence talks of the place of His glory, the miraculous.

In Psalm 16:11 the Bible says, “…IN THY PRESENCE is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Do you know why there is fullness of joy? Because in His Presence there is no sickness, there is no lack, there are no problems, the yokes upon your life are broken and burdens are lifted.

His Presence is ushered into a service through worship. When we worship God we not only invite the King of Glory into our midst, but we also move deeper into His Presence. When God’s Glory is made manifest, He can touch and heal thousands of people in an instant. Miracles and healings will take place without the laying on of human hands. As the worship of the saints grow purer, more intense and sustained longer, the manifestation and experience of God’s glory will increase in intensity.

In His Presence the power of God is released to destroy every yoke. Example is the case of Paul and Silas (Acts 16:16-40).

In His Presence, you are fully protected. His Presence is the secret place of the Most High!  Psalms 91:1-12 says, “He that dwelleth in THE SECRET PLACE OF THE MOST HIGH shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty…”

In Isaiah 54:17 God said, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of Me.”

His glory comes down when we worship Him in one accord [in unity; with one mind]. In 2 Chronicles 5:11-14 the Bible says, “…13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers WERE AS ONE, TO MAKE ONE SOUND to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; 14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of THE CLOUD: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.”

Prayer and worship fill the air and saturate the atmosphere with the anointing of God. They spread a spiritual canopy over God’s people. The power of God prevails in strong worshipping churches. If you want a miracle in your life, you must break forth into praising and worshipping the Lord. Break forth into dancing, into joy, into praise, into prayer, and into worship. Begin by letting your voice break forth. It will help you to breakthrough spiritually.

Why must one take time to truly worship God? This is because where there is no worship:

1. There will be little or no manifestation of God’s glory;

2. There will be little or no manifestation of the miraculous;

3. The corporate anointing will not be released;

4. The rivers of the Spirit will not be able to flow freely;

5. There will be spiritual drought [famine] and barrenness.

In summary, true worship will:

Ø  Make God to deliver you from trouble [SALVATION] (Acts 4:12).

Ø  Cause God to set you on high, because you have His name. [EXALTATION/ PROMOTION].

Ø  Make God to give speedy answers to your prayers [SPEEDY ANSWERS TO PRAYERS].

Ø  Make God to be with you in trouble [Isa. 43:1-2; Heb. 13:5-6].

Ø  Make God to honour you [HONOUR].

Ø  Make God to satisfy you with long life, and show you His salvation [LONGEVITY].

Ø  His glory comes down when we worship Him in one accord (2 Chron. 5:11-14).

Ø  Inspire one to have faith in God and reverence for God.

Ø  Create in you a greater consciousness of God’s presence.

Ø  Help to transform and conform you into the image of God, the very image we were made in.

Ø  Prepare the atmosphere and your heart for the ministration of the Word of God.

Ø  Prayer, praise and worship fill the air and saturate the atmosphere with the anointing and the presence of God (Rev. 12:10) and silence the devil (Ps. 8:2).

Ø  Worship counters darkness with light, death with life, defeat with victory, and bondage with liberty.

Ø  True worship helps you to enter into His presence. Worship ushers in the glory of God – His Presence.

• In His Presence your mind is on things above (Col. 3:1-2).
• In His Presence the power of God is released to break every yoke.
• In His Presence there is no danger; you are fully protected (Ps. 91:1-12).
• In His Presence there is no fear (2 Tim. 1:7).

As we minister to the Lord in this manner, the earth will yield her increase for us and the Lord will richly bless us.

Psalm 67:5-6 says, “Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. 6 THEN SHALL THE EARTH YIELD HER INCREASE; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.”

Do you want the yokes in your life to be destroyed? Do you want to be an all-round overcomer? Do you want a manifestation of God’s glory? Do you want a manifestation of the miraculous? Do you want to be truly anointed? Do you want rivers of the Spirit to be flowing freely in your life? Do you want to escape spiritual drought and barrenness? Do you want to see mountains crumble before you? Do you want to see the Red Sea part before you? Do you want to see demons bow before you? Do you want to have joy, power, and guidance? Then spend quality time ministering to the LORD. And I guarantee that if you do that, it will not only transform your life, but situations and circumstances will crumble before you.

Watch out for the next edition of Good News from the Pulpit! 

• Your friend, I. I. MADUBUNYI (Senior Pastor, HOG).                    31.03.2019

Promise of God for the week: “There shall be showers of blessings” (Ezek. 34:26), and “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise God with joyful lips” (Ps. 63:5).