CONSIDER This
Feeling grateful is grounded in faith life to the dead and calls into being the things that do not exist. Our Living Loving Lord did not only hope and wish light would appear, He spoke those words of During this Thanksgiving and Christmas Spirit and Life in Genesis 1:3: Let there be light and there season I want to share my story about feeling was light. grateful in every moment of every day all year What we say in the context of our culture many long. That’s right. All day every day. times is: “I really don’t like this darkness. I wish light Please don’t misunderstand me. I am grateful would come.” And then we wonder why we feel for this time of year, but I believe our Living frustrated and upset. Loving Lord deeply desires for us to feel grateUnless we speak words “out loud” that produce ful all the time. Spirit and Life, nothing will happen. “When” we Let me explain my story. I believe it will speak words of Spirit and Life, those words will beencourage and strengthen you and transform come reality just like light became reality “when” our you to be all you were created to be. A few Gracious God spoke those words. years ago as I was praying, I began to intensely We are created in the image of our Gracious Givseek our Living Loving Lord about the power Dan Woodworth ing God. He deeply desires for us to live the way of our words that we speak. I discovered that He created us. He created us to speak and then feel our subconscious minds believe everything our rather than speaking what we feel. mouths speak. The culture of our country has crept into much of the Church The Living Word of God reveals the power of our words in in America. I remember Demos Shakarian, the founder of Full Proverbs 18:21 in the Hebrew text: Death and life are in the power of Gospel Businessmen, always saying that Christians should be the the tongue and those who have affection for it will eat its fruit. happiest people on earth! Dr. Christine Leif has validated that this verse is true in her Many believers are distressed and depressed because of the research of the human brain. She has proven that healing words words of death that they speak. I often hear, “I am really burned will heal our brains by creating new brain cells and new healing out with all these trials. I wish I had a different life. I hate my job. I pathways. She also discovered that hurting words will hurt our wish I could have this or that. Then I would be happy.” brains. If we repeat healing words over and over, those words will Think of Abraham. He could have said, “I will never have a actually become flesh. A few years ago, I decided to try an experiment. I thought that if child. Every day and every year that goes by reduces my chances said, “I feel grateful!” every time someone asked how I was doing, I of having a child. I am so discouraged. I’m too old. It will never would be transformed and feel grateful all the time. When I started happen.” Instead: Hoping against hope, Abraham believed that he would become saying these words, many times I felt awkward and hypocritical the father of many nations according to what had been spoken “So will your because I did not feel grateful. descendents be.” Not being weak in faith, he considered his own body as dead I kept saying these transforming words for about three months every time someone asked me how I was doing. Notice I responded (since he was about a hundred years old), and the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver in unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthwith the word “feeling” instead of “doing.” We are feeling beings ened in faith, giving glory to God, fully convinced that what God had promised, who do, not doing beings who feel. He was also able to do. (Romans 4:18-21 – Greek) Then one day I realized I felt grateful every time someone asked Many times a day I can hear Abraham speaking, “I will be the fahow I was doing. I was amazed at the miracle transformation that ther of many nations.” Over and over and over for 25 years. It looked had happened in my life. impossible. It looked hopeless. He could have easily given up. But I You see, before that time, I felt ungrateful most of the time. can hear him speaking, “I feel grateful all the time!” Because of many traumas I had experienced, I had developed a How was he strengthened in faith? By speaking, “I feel grateful!” “stinkin thinkin” attitude. My typical response was “I feel down or How do I know? Because our Living Loving Lord is not a discouraged or sick or….” In other words, I was speaking words of respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). If He fulfilled His promise to death because most of time I felt that way. Abraham, He will fulfill His promises to us. Through this transformation, our Living Loving Lord revealed What is His promise? this truth to me. Our culture in our country, and in most of our Rejoice at all times! Pray without ceasing! Give thanks in everything! For this churches, believes and practices that we say what we feel based is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus! upon circumstances and not on Christ. For example, if we experiHAPPY THANKSGIVING AND MERRY CHRISTMAS ALL DAY ence a negative feeling of a circumstance, we speak what we feel. Our perception may be, “I don’t feel grateful and I can hardly wait EVERY DAY ALL YEAR LONG! n to get off work so I can feel grateful.” That is not true gratefulness. Dr. Dan Woodworth earned his Doctor of Ministry (DMin) degree In other words, I will feel grateful “when” or “if.” I have heard from the King’s University in Los Angeles in 2009. His passion is to checkers at stores respond to my response of “I feel grateful” with encourage and empower people with the transforming power of hope and their “I’ll feel grateful in 15 minutes when I can go home.” healing to become all they are created to be. He and his beautiful bride, Truly feeling grateful does not depend and cannot depend on Irene, have planted three churches. They are in the process of creating a circumstances. It is dependent on faith in Christ! Listen to His healing words of Spirit and Life in Romans 4:17 in cross/cultural, cross/generational healing community solving pressing problems in Boise and beyond. He may be reached at dan@danwoodthe Greek: As it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations.” He is our father, in the presence of God in whom he believed, the God who gives worth.org. By Dan Woodworth
November / December 2016 | Christian Living
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