PREPARATION TO BE A CHANNEL OF GOD’S GRACE by Don Rogers
(Thirty plus years ago God put Don Rogers in my life. He trained and mentored me in spiritual ministry. When he was no longer able to minister, I had the privilege of taking over his “Spiritual Warfare Ministries.” He wrote many fine articles about spiritual warfare. I have edited and printed one below.)
There are two foundational pillars that should be in every Christian life in order to live victoriously. These two pillars are essential when we are called to administer God’s grace through deliverance and healing.
- KNOWING GOD’S CHARACTER It may surprise you to know that many Christians have a flawed image of God’s character, because they have projected on God the human shortcomings of their parents, especially the fathers. If there was not much love demonstrated, not much communication, and there was a critical atmosphere, God will be viewed as One who is far off, very stern and ready to bring judgment if we do not please Him.
So if we are to minister in faith to others, it is extremely important that we have resolved the above issues and we have no doubts concerning (1) God’s love toward everyone, (2) His grace that is extended to us in spite of our failures, (3) His mercy that He will show us when we are in trouble, (4) His forgiveness whenever we fall, (5) His faithfulness to always be there for us even though we may not always be aware of His presence, (6) His provision for our personal needs, and (7) His equipping so that we may serve Him effectively.
- KNOWING WHO WE ARE IN CHRIST Knowing how God sees us will give us great freedom to approach Him and make requests. It also gives us tremendous confidence to represent Him and minister to others.
These two pillars are firmly built on the foundation of constant study of God’s word and praying without ceasing. The scriptures are God’s self-revelation of truth concerning Himself and His great plan for mankind. Their author is the Holy Spirit who inspired certain men to put in writing these precious truths. This marvelous revelation of God enables us to know and understand our God and also discover our relationship to Him through Jesus Christ.
A relationship has to be nurtured. The more we learn about someone, the more comfortable and confident we become around them. With a good friend, we want to be around them as much as possible. This is where prayer comes in. Through prayer we are able to come into God’s presence constantly and develop an intimacy with Him.
I have found that the greatest battles I have is to find the time to study the Word and to pray. The enemy will try to distract, keep us busy by reminding us of all the things that have to be done. There will be times we will feel too tired either physically or emotionally. Circumstances constantly arise to command our attention. We have to make up our minds that we cannot afford to allow these two essentials to cease to be top priorities in our everyday lives.
With the two pillars firmly in place, we will discover the freedom we have to be effective for our God each day.
© Copyright 1998 Spiritual Warfare Ministries, Inc., © 2013 Christian Training Organization. For more information contact Christian Training Organization (https://www.christiantrainingonline.org/our-ministries/spiritual-warfare/)