For example, once Peter stepped out from the boat onto the water, he could not change course because he was not doing the work. Jesus was. Walking on water is not a rational act. It appears very foolish, especially if the sea is choppy and everyone in your boat is screaming, “We are about to die!” However, after Peter’s first step, it was too late to change his mind.

Let’s say that you are in Peter’s shoes. Your friends believe you will drown if you leave the vessel. However, you decide to do it anyway. You step out on what Jesus said, not on someone else’s fear or negative words, such as, “I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.”

“Well, I noticed that you are not doing it,” you might reply. “Obviously you’re not me, and you don’t see it the way I do. I heard a Word from Jesus, and I see Him doing it. Nothing will stop me now—not even your fear.”

Remember that when you commit to obeying God’s plan for your life, your only need is to know God’s instructions each step of the way. If you recognize what God is telling you to do, and you do it, then surrounding circumstances mean nothing to you. No longer can you choose what to do or ask yourself, What should I do? Should I do this or that? Instead, you simply seek God for direction, and then obey His voice.

An illustration here should clarify this point. Let’s say a man takes his young daughter to an amusement park. There, he tells her that he wants to ride a roller coaster with her. She thinks about the offer and agrees to go. The father then helps his little girl into a roller-coaster car, makes sure she’s safely locked in place, and prepares her for what’s ahead. Now, she has made her choice. She will ride this roller coaster. From here to the end of the ride, she has no more choices about what to do. She is strapped into her seat for the duration. All the twists and turns, inclines and descents, rolls and loops, and screams and cries of the other riders might scare her. However, these circumstances cannot influence her choice to be on that ride. Standing up to cry in fear, “Please, let me get off this roller coaster,” is no longer an option for her. Her best course of action is to stay in her seat, hold on to her father, rest in his power and judgment, and finish the course.

When you commit to fulfilling God’s purpose for your life, that’s the extent of your choice. God makes all your choices from there. You choose to go along for the ride—wherever it takes you— obeying and trusting in Him each step of the way.

For example, once Peter stepped out from the boat onto the water, he could not change course because he was not doing the work. Jesus was. Walking on water is not a rational act. It appears very foolish, especially if the sea is choppy and everyone in your boat is screaming, “We are about to die!” However, after Peter’s first step, it was too late to change his mind.

Let’s say that you are in Peter’s shoes. Your friends believe you will drown if you leave the vessel. However, you decide to do it anyway. You step out on what Jesus said, not on someone else’s fear or negative words, such as, “I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.”

“Well, I noticed that you are not doing it,” you might reply. “Obviously you’re not me, and you don’t see it the way I do. I heard a Word from Jesus, and I see Him doing it. Nothing will stop me now—not even your fear.”

Remember that when you commit to obeying God’s plan for your life, your only need is to know God’s instructions each step of the way. If you recognize what God is telling you to do, and you do it, then surrounding circumstances mean nothing to you. No longer can you choose what to do or ask yourself, What should I do? Should I do this or that? Instead, you simply seek God for direction, and then obey His voice.

An illustration here should clarify this point. Let’s say a man takes his young daughter to an amusement park. There, he tells her that he wants to ride a roller coaster with her. She thinks about the offer and agrees to go. The father then helps his little girl into a roller-coaster car, makes sure she’s safely locked in place, and prepares her for what’s ahead. Now, she has made her choice. She will ride this roller coaster. From here to the end of the ride, she has no more choices about what to do. She is strapped into her seat for the duration. All the twists and turns, inclines and descents, rolls and loops, and screams and cries of the other riders might scare her. However, these circumstances cannot influence her choice to be on that ride. Standing up to cry in fear, “Please, let me get off this roller coaster,” is no longer an option for her. Her best course of action is to stay in her seat, hold on to her father, rest in his power and judgment, and finish the course.

When you commit to fulfilling God’s purpose for your life, that’s the extent of your choice. God makes all your choices from there. You choose to go along for the ride—wherever it takes you— obeying and trusting in Him each step of the way.

When Peter recognized and heard Jesus, this disciple was able to do what Jesus had told him to do. The power to fulfill Christ’s commands is contained in His words because He is the Word. For example, let’s say Jesus was two hundred yards away from Peter and He commanded, “Jump into My arms.” Peter would have been able to jump and land in Jesus‘ arms simply because Jesus had spoken the command.

In this case, Jesus said, “Come”! That was enough for Peter. He did not sit there wondering, How do I get there? Where’s a little boat? How do I make this work? No, all he needed was to verify that this was Jesus, and then he could do what his Lord had said.

The Bible records that Jesus said, “Whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say” (John 12:50 NIV). If this truly was Jesus, then what Jesus had said was the Father’s words, and they simply would be done. Peter knew that if Jesus walked on water and commanded him to do likewise, then Peter could do it, too.

Champion, you must discover what God is saying to you personally. If it is from Him, then you can do it! One step of faith will bring the invisible dream to a visible reality. Overcoming your fear and stepping out obediently in faith as God directs will cause you to fulfill your divine purpose. The believer’s decision path for life is fully obeying God’s instructions each step of the way.

That’s what Jesus did, and He wants us to do the same! Remember, Jesus said, “But the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me” (John 14:31 Niv). He also said, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does” (John 5:19 Niv).

What Jesus heard and saw in His Father’s presence, He therefore did. The Father was Jesus‘ example, and Jesus was Peter’s example. Peter knew the power of God rested within Jesus, enabling Him to fulfill God’s plan. Therefore, as Peter followed Jesus‘ example, God’s power enabled Peter to perform the Word. Today, as you follow this example of obeying the Word of the Lord, God’s power also will surge through your life, enabling you to fulfill your divine destiny!

Israelites Crossing the Jordan River

The book of Joshua records an exciting story that further illustrates this truth: One step of faith can bring the invisible dream to a visible reality.

As the nation of Israel prepared to enter the land that God had promised them, they came upon a great barrier: the overflowing Jordan River. Joshua, Israel’s leader, heard a Word from God about how to overcome this obstacle:

And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap. (Joshua 3:13)

Notice that the waters would part only after the priests stepped out in faith. When the Israelites obeyed the Word from God, they received their breakthrough and crossed over the riverbed onto dry ground. With one step of faith, their invisible dream became their visible reality, and they entered the Promised Land.

Remember, though, that if after learning this truth you don’t engage in it, this principle will become useless to you. Continue to use this system throughout your life for divine direction, for the power to change, and to release the authority of truth into your life. Then, you will not have to settle for living less than God’s best.

The Bible school course contains more details, but here we will summarize this truth. This principle states:

* Meditation produces revelation

* Revelation produces motivation

* Motivation produces action

* Action produces fruit

Meditation Produces Revelation

The Bible commands us to meditate on the Word of God. We find the biblical standard for the principle of meditation in the book of Joshua:

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. (Joshua 1:8)

The last part of this verse promises that biblical meditation will work for you. However, you must do it as God directs in this passage. Here, the Bible instructs that you must meditate on God’s Word continually so you can obey it.

In applying this principle to changing courses in your life, you need to meditate on the Word of God until He reveals His truth to you for the particular area in which you need direction. Meditate until you have the revelation of truth, which means that the cover is removed and you can see the matter as He does.

How do you meditate? The word meditate means to mutter and speak His Word over and over again. Therefore, you are to read the Bible and listen to yourself speak portions of it over and over and over and over again until it affects you. If you continue this process, you will capture the insight, understanding, wisdom, and revelation of God. Why? It is because He desires to show you how to obey His Word and fulfill His plan for your life.

If, after examining your life today, you find some areas that do not line up with God’s Word and purpose, determine what is causing these negative results. Remember that for every effect, there is a cause. The way to change a result or effect is to change the cause. In other words, you need to find the root of the error and remove it. Until you do this, it is useless to cut off the bad fruit in your life. The negative root will continue to poison your life until you destroy that bad root.

Now is the time to prepare yourself so that you are in the position to receive from God. First, you must determine whether you are in the proper position.

I have been able to discover purpose. You can, too. Here’s how: First, read the Bible to identify the areas of purpose that you do not understand. As you do, ask God to reveal these to you. Then, when He enlightens you, study the Scriptures in those specific areas to gain the revelation of purpose that you lack.

For example, early in my marriage, I spent seven years studying God’s Word and praying to identify and clarify the areas of purpose that I did not understand. During that time, the Holy Spirit showed me that I did not know God’s purpose for a man, a husband, a father, marriage, work, providing for my family, or even money. I realized that I needed to know why God’s purposes existed, so that I would no longer abuse the reason God had them in my life. That is when I learned that once purpose is known, nothing can stop it.

Second, during your Bible-study pursuit, it is critical to pray in line with the Bible. We are to pray God’s Word back to Him. In doing this, we pray His will and purposes, not ours. Remember that David said, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1). Instead of being dominated by human need and want, we should be praying the very Word of God. Thus, we will become dominated by His will and purposes. Here is an example of how to pray the Scriptures in order to reveal your specific divine purpose.

Pray the first chapter of Ephesians. Thank God, in verses four and five, that He has chosen “us in Him [Christ Jesus] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,” being “predestined…to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.”

Then, in verse six, also thank Him that “He made us accepted in the Beloved,” so that all rejection is gone from you.

Tell God that you receive His promise of knowing His will and purposes, according to verse nine. It says He has “made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself.”

Again thank God, in verse 11, because, “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will.”

Pray for God to enlighten you, so that you don’t simply exist or act without clear purpose. According to verse 17, ask Him to open the eyes of your understanding and “give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.”

Ephesians 1:15-23 contains the apostle Paul’s personal prayer for the New Testament church. Use it as your roadmap for daily prayer. In the School of Biblical Studies, we instruct our students to pray this passage ten times each day for the Holy Spirit to unveil the person of Jesus and His purpose for their lives. The power of the Word in these verses has revolutionized countless lives. Pray it. Read it. It’s yours!

Next, as you pray, remember that God did not speak your purpose after you were born. No, He spoke it before He created the entire world. Pray 2 Timothy 1:9, thanking God that He “has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.” Realize that your purpose operates by grace, which He gave to you before the world began. Pray, “Father, I thank You that the divine purpose for my existence originated in You before Creation. You decided that I was to live in this era and generation, be from this family in this nation, be of this race with this sex at this time and in this posture of life. Thank You that I will accomplish Your purpose for my life.”

Also pray Romans 8:28, thanking God that all creation obeys His purpose: “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

Let God Accomplish His Purpose through You

Are you beginning to grasp the awesome reality of these truths? You are in right relationship with God by His design—not yours. The purpose of your life is not simply to eke out an existence and have a few nice things to make you feel significant. No, Champion, you are here to carry out a dream that has been locked up in the very heart and mind of God since before Creation! This is the reason that you exist.

Your purpose is not to be a mystery. You are to know what God has purposed you for in the earth—the why preceding the what. Then, you are to walk in that purpose by awakening to the reality that God mandates all creation to complete and bring into manifestation His purpose for you.

I encourage you to pursue the preordained call of God that has sent you into this generation to fulfill His purpose. Don’t ever think that your purpose is insignificant. No, no, no! It is the most powerful truth to know other than your position in Christ. Once you discover your purpose, you will be a force to be reckoned with. Creation will bow to obey, and the enemy must remove his hands from God’s purpose in you. When you know your purpose, you can radically transform your entire environment.

Champion, when you act upon your purpose with God—not just for Him—you have the ability to break barriers, remove restraints, do the impossible, see the unseen, speak what creates, pray what manifests, and receive God’s will.

God guides us by supernatural leadership—not by opportunity! His leadership is contrary to man’s promotion. When someone perceives or recognizes a special gift, calling, or anointing in your life and wants to bring you into the limelight, it does not necessarily mean that God is directing you. His direction must come from within you as the Holy Spirit reveals the will of God to your heart. Even if many doors open at once, and opportunities seem to overtake you, first check to be sure that these doors are in line with your God-designed purpose and His will for your life.

Never forget the passage in Acts, which says about God and man,

And He…has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being. (Acts 17:26-28)

As a Christian, you should never allow external circumstances to lead you. Do not let the “door of opportunity” or “human promotion” guide you. Instead, you can know the voice of the Lord. He is the Door. Let Him lead you. Speaking of Himself as the Door and the Good Shepherd, Jesus said,

The sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers…. Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep….If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. (John 10:3-5, 7, 9)

It pays to obey the Lord “from the inside out” instead of responding to opportunity, which appears “from the outside in.” Your life will be blessed when you have His witness—the absolute assurance in your spirit that you are following the Lord’s purpose. Hear His voice and follow it, regardless of any circumstances. Don’t ask your checkbook if you can obey God’s will! Following your purpose and obeying God do not require permission from anyone or anything—including money!

Good opportunities—which may even appear to be in alignment with your purpose—will come, but you need to take only God’s divine appointments. However, the Lord revealed to me that this was not His timing for me to walk in that aspect of my purpose. These opportunities were not His divine appointments. Therefore, I turned down the contracts.

The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed. (Luke 4:18)

Jesus came to heal those who have been abused and liberate them from their prisons of purposelessness. However, until they allow Him to heal their broken hearts, they will continue to question, Will my life amount to anything? Without Jesus, they will search for significance and strive for fulfillment in other venues. However, they will never find it, because significance and fulfillment can be found only by recognizing who they are in Christ (position) and that God has created them for a reason (purpose).

My friend, do you have a broken heart? Or have you thought that knowing your purpose is impossible? It’s time to realize that the One who inhabits eternity has set your destiny before you were ever created. God did not put you here by mistake. No! He appointed you to be on the earth now, and He knows what He’s doing.

Don’t ever think that you are an accident. Even if your birth into this world was unplanned by your earthly parents—possibly out of wedlock or because of rape—you have a God-ordained purpose. The enemy may have tried to keep you from getting here, but you made it! Your existence is proof that you are not a mistake, because all human beings are created by God. Even in the midst of destruction, the Bible promises: “The LORD will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, 0 LORD, endures forever” (Psalm 138:8). Therefore, you can be “confident…that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it” (Philippians 1:6). Remember that God, who has purposed it, will do it.

In the past you may not have known God’s purpose for your life, but your future does not have to be purposeless. Your history is not relevant to your future. It does not matter once you discover your purpose. Regardless of all the failures, faults, and frustrations in your life, you are God’s champion. Start rejoicing! All the earth is eagerly awaiting the revealing of His purpose in your life.

Please pray for your wife that:

1. She will remember to put God first.

2. She will take time for you.

3. She will balance her time with the children.

4. She will take needed time for herself.

5. She will be able to create a warm and inviting home.

6. She will always use her time wisely.

7. She will understand what her priorities are.

H E SAYS…

I know how debilitating life can be when it has no order or priority. Our tasks as men may seem complicated, but I believe they are relatively simple compared to what our wives take on. I spend a lot of my prayer time for Stormie asking God to bring an order to her life so that she may experience joy and peace in the midst of all she has to do. The absence of joy and peace in either one of us directly affects our marriage.

Each of us needs to encourage his wife. “Thank you for doing such a great job,” “Thank you for taking good care of the kids,” “Thank you for being my wife,” are words that cannot be spoken enough. In addition, we must each pray for our wife to seek God and hear from Him what He has given her to do. If we don’t pray, we can short-circuit the path and the priorities the Lord has for her. Praying and supporting God’s purposes in my wife helps clear a pathway for her to be effective.

I always used to believe that stress was chiefly the domain of us guys. Yeah, right! /was sitting in the golf cart, waiting at the eleventh tee, telling my golf partner how happy and relieved I was to be able to take a few hours off to play a round of golf. Stormie was all the while home-schooling our daughter, taking care of the house, juggling speaking engagements, and taking time for her always-complaining husband.

Our wives probably have more to deal with than we do. Men tend to handle fewer decisions—the larger, more obvious ones. A wife has to make decisions about many details, both small and large. I have asked God to help Stormie set clear priorities so that she isn’t drained of life and energy. And God has answered that prayer countless times.

The delicate Pink Ray of Archangel Chamuel ignites happiness and prepares you to receive the Christ-consciousness.

Archangel Chamuel

• Colour Pink
• Focus Relationships
• Chakra Heart (anahata) — element of air — developing the higher emotions

The balanced Pink Ray is the union of Heaven and Earth made manifest within the human heart. It is the product of the marriage of the physical Red Ray with the White Ray of spiritual awakening and fullness.

Archangel Chamuel helps renew and improve your loving, caring relationships with others by helping to develop the Heart Chakra. This is accomplished through the beautiful Pink Ray that represents our ability to love and nurture others, to be able to give and receive love, unconditionally free from all self-interest. It is a love that transcends and transforms the self and moves us through compassion towards the divine state of emotional maturity. Many people are afraid of opening their Heart Chakra. Those who have been able to overcome this fear have charismatic warmth that others find reassuring, soothing and uplifting.

Archangel Chamuel assists us in all of our relationships, and especially through life-changing relationship situations such as conflict, divorce, bereavement or even job loss. Archangel Chamuel helps us to appreciate the existing loving relationships we already have in our lives. His message is: ‘It is only the love energy within any given purpose that gives lasting value and benefit to all creation.’

Physical associations

Parts of the body: heart, shoulders, lungs, arms, hands and skin.

Heals any part of your body you have rejected or judge unlovely or unlovable. Eases physical tension and psychosomatic illness. Also useful where disease has been diagnosed and fear is blocking physical recovery.

Emotional and mental associations

The Pink Ray is concerned with building confidence and self-esteem. It quickly dissolves the negative emotions of self- condemnation, low self-worth, self- loathing and selfishness. It ignites ‘inner’ happiness by showing you your unique talents and abilities and helps you nurture these attributes and value yourself. Stops depression, compulsive behaviour and destructive tendencies.

Spiritual associations

Opens the Heart Chakra to develop healing gifts. Attracts soulmates, those with whom you can share your innermost thoughts and feelings. Prepares you to receive the Christ-consciousness, the Holy Spirit.