Bold As A Lion

                              "The [uncompromisingly] righteous are as bold as a lion."
                                                              Proverbs 28:1




Lions are commonly depicted as "king of the jungle" or "king of beasts" throughout cultures around the world. They often depict royalty, power, kingship, and bravery. In Africa, it is one of the greatest compliments you can ever receive to be compared to a lion. In fact, many of their most powerful rulers incorporated the word "lion" into their nicknames.

Both beauty and strength are the attributes of a lion. Grace and power are intertwined and embodied within this exquisite animal that God created. Never do lions doubt what or who they were created to be; neither do they concern themselves with what the other animals think of them.

When God created us, He created us to be as bold as a lion. He created us to know with certainty who He is and who we are in relation to Him. It is our relationship with Him that allows us to walk in boldness and confidence, knowing that our lives are created to be a part of His master plan.

Boldness is behavior born out of belief. When we really understand that God's Word dominates all else and that He has given us authority and dominion in the earth, it will change everything. Our doubts will be conquered and we will see a God within us that is infinitely bolder than we are.

Hiding God's Word in our heart and building our most holy faith is our number one priority if we want to effect change in our world.  If we are really going to make a difference, we must possess total confidence of who God is and what His Word counsels us to do in each circumstance. This requires courage and confidence to rely on God's power and to speak His Word with conviction and compassion.

We possess the hope for which this world is searching. And if we have it, we are definitely called to share it. We are told that, "since we have such a hope, we are very bold" (2 Corinthians 3:12). We need God to strengthen our hearts and minds so that we can boldly share His truths. When God's boldness pours through us that "He crowns the humble with victory " (Psalm 149:4).

Godly boldness is all about God. It is not a personality trait that only some were given- it is an attribute of the Holy Spirit. Granted, our styles and techniques will undoubtedly differ but the end result will not. We will bear a harvest in our lives when God leads and we care more about serving God than pleasing people.

If, however, we misconstrue boldness for rudeness, we have missed the mark. In our own strength, boldness will appear demanding and controlling. It will insist upon its own way, implementing a steamroller approach. It is always our job to lift others up, not to crush their spirits or flatten them.

When things are difficult in our lives and trouble comes knocking, we often begin our prayer strategy by praying for deliverance. However, often God is wanting us to pray for boldness to walk through our difficulties in faithfulness. This is how Christ's power is displayed through our lives so that others can see Him more clearly. This is how we are old in our brokenness!

When God showed Ezekiel the vision of the valley of dry bones, all Ezekiel could see was death, destruction, and decay (Ezekiel, 37). God told Ezekiel to  prophesy to those dead bones and say, "Thus says the Lord God to these bones: 'Behold, I will cause breath and spirit to enter you, and you shall live; And I will lay sinews upon you and bring up flesh upon you and cover you with skin, and I will put breath and spirit in you, and you [dry bones] shall live; and you shall know, understand, and realize that I am the Lord [the Sovereign Ruler, who calls forth loyalty and obedient service]'" (Ezekiel 37:5-6).

Ezekiel spoke what God said as though he were the voice of God. Similarly, we have been given the Bible to show us what God says about our circumstances so that we can prophesy too. We need to call the Spirit of God down into our circumstances by declaring His Word. This is how we are bold in our speech!

Our declarations of faith have to be bolder than we are. David was one of the least likely candidates to take down Goliath, but he overflowed in confidence of who God is and what God would do through him. He said, "Your servant killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the Living God!" (1 Samuel 17:36). This is how we are bold in our faith!

The apostle, Peter, was bold in his prayers. When the disciples saw that one of their women, named Tabitha, had died, they sent two men to get Peter to pray. When Peter got there, the widows were crying and grieving her death. Peter sent them out of the room and "knelt down and prayed; then turning to the body, he said, 'Tabitha, get up!' And she opened her eyes; and when she saw Peter, she raised herself and sat upright" (Acts 9:40). This is how we are bold in our prayers!

Peter was also bold in his witnessing. After he and John had been arrested and put in jail for their boldness in witnessing, they prayed to God for more boldness. Despite additional threats, they prayed, "And now, Lord, observe their threats and grant to your bondservants [full freedom] to declare Your message fearlessly, while You stretch out Your hand to cure and to perform signs and wonders through the authority and by the power of the name of Your holy child and Servant, Jesus" (Acts 4:29-30). Peter understood that it is the boldness of the Holy Spirit that does signs and wonders. This is how we are bold in our witnessing!

It is time for the Church to walk in the full power and authority that have been given to us by Jesus. There are soo many people who need to see God and experience His love and mercy in a personal way. Allowing God to be bold through us is the only way the world will catch a glimpse of the majesty and power of our Savior. Like so many who have journeyed the walk of faith with Jesus before us, we can be a people who are bold and strong and do not waver in the face of adversity!


"Do not strive in your own strength; cast yourself at the feet of the Lord Jesus, and wait upon Him in the sure confidence that He is with you, and works in you. Strive in prayer; let faith fill your heart- so you will be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might."
                                                                                                                              Andrew Murray

The Power Of Testimony

"And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony; and they loved not their lives so much as to shrink from death."
                                                                                                                                 Revelation 12:11




In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, we find eyewitnesses to the life and ministry of Jesus. Not all of the details match one another exactly because each one of these men had a different vantage and a different perspective of the life and ministry of Christ. Likewise, because God has created each one of us to be unique, we, also, have a very distinct perspective of our walk with God. This is very important because of the nuances of our stories and the audience of peoples that our testimonies will influence and touch.

Genuine testimonies are extremely powerful. We are told that "Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for life or for death]" (Proverbs 18:21). When we use our testimonies to speak truth and life, there will be a harvest in our lives that reflects this. God will add His power to them to bring about transformation and the extension of His kingdom.

Our testimony also helps us to overcome the attacks of the enemy. His attacks are nothing new, as they started right after Adam and Eve sinned (Genesis 3:15). Even now, Satan has access to heaven where he goes night and day to accuse God's people (Job 1-2).

His strategy is to persecute God's people and to destroy them, if possible (1 Peter 5:8). Therefore, our lives as believers will always involve a degree of conflict. The apostle, Paul, tells us, "Be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides]. Put on God's whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and deceits of the devil" (Ephesians 6:10-11).

The name devil means "accuser" and Satan means "adversary". Even though he stands before the throne of God and fights us through accusations (Zechariah 3), Jesus is our "heavenly Advocate" (1 John 2:1-2) who represents us and makes our defense. Because of His death and resurrection, we ca overcome Satan "by the blood of the Lamb" (Revelation 12:11). We can rest in knowing that our salvation is secure, not because of our works, but because of the finished work of Christ on Calvary.

The same serpent who accuses God's people in heaven also deceives the nations of the earth (Revelation 12:9). One of his biggest strategies is to lie about the church. He convinces the world that Christians are dangerous, deluded, and destructive. It is because of this deception that the leaders of nations come together against Christ and His people.

It is our union with Jesus that gives us peace in the midst of hostility and victory over every scheme of the enemy. Jesus' blood gives us perfect standing before God and the confidence to boldly share our testimony. Satan's power must fail when God's people trust in the power of the blood and in God's Word.

Our testimony provides an unique perspective of what Jesus has done in our lives. Because "our warfare is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of the wicked one" (Ephesians 6:10), we can rejoice in knowing that these forces have already been defeated. This is what enables us to share about God's power, sovereignty, and faithfulness in the midst of the storms in our lives.

The storms we encounter have great purpose. Despite the howling winds and the tempest that rages around us, Jesus is the "I" of the storm, if we allow Him to be. The author of the book of Hebrews wrote, "we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul" (Hebrews 6:18-19).

Not only can the storms rage around us, but they can also rage within our hearts. This usually emanates from fear of the potential outcome. When the disciples experienced the storm out on the sea of Galilee, they began to plead with Jesus to help them, which, of course, He did (Luke 8:24)!

After Jesus calmed the storm, He directed to them a simple question. He asked, "Where is your faith?" (Luke 8:25). This question always requires a simple assessment of where our trust lies?

Faith is the cord that ties us to our union with Jesus. It is what provides the assurance of Jesus' love, goodness, and power. Our faith is what gives us the confidence that He still speaks to our storms and command them to be still. No matter how ugly or messy they may be, God will use our testimonies for good. It is also what reassures us that His promises will carry us through into an eternity spent with Him.

Jesus is our refuge. He is firm and unchanging and will safely carry us through every storm. Truly, this is where we see His power. This is where we come to know Him more intimately. This is where He heals and comforts our aching hearts. This is the place where testimonies are made, and where He also infuses them with His power. God's pan is to reach a dying world through a living, breathing example of His grace- you.

Our testimony should be a natural expression of who we are and our daily walk with Jesus. God wants other people to see how Jesus lives through us. He wants other people to see faithfulness and sincerity as He displays Himself through our lives. He also wants them to see that His grace and power are sufficient in our weaknesses.

Satan will do everything in his power to destroy our testimonies. He will bring temptations, false accusations, sickness, discouragement, opportunities to compromise, etc. Knowing his intentions should never make us afraid, but they should keep us alert. God promises us that, "Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world" (1 John 4:4).

God is well able to keep us and preserve our testimonies. When we walk in humility, knowing that we need His grace every second, it will thwart Satan's plans. We flee temptation and never allow sin to grow deep roots in our hearts. We walk in forgiveness and pray continually. These are the parameters that allow us to live in freedom and see the fruit that comes from the power of our testimony!


"The most obscene symbol in human history is the Cross; yet in its ugliness it remains the most eloquent testimony to human dignity."
                                                            R.C. Sproul

Liberty In Our Land

"He who looks carefully into the faultless law, the [law] of liberty, and is faithful to it and perseveres in looking into it, being not a heedless listener who forgets but an active doer [who obeys], he shall be blessed in his doing (his life of obedience)."
                                                                                                                                  James 1:25




In the Old Testament, when the nation of Israel sinned and rebelled against God, they often ended up either in captivity or were exiled from their land. During the Babylonian captivity, God used Babylon as His instrument of judgment for Israel's idolatry, sin, and rebellion. King Nebuchadnezzar lead his armies against Judah until most of Jerusalem was destroyed, including the Jewish temple.

Ironically, it is always the people and the nations that declare themselves to be "free" from God and His ways that end up in servitude or captivity. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of captivity is "the state of being kept in a place (such as a prison or a cage) and not being able to leave or be free: the state or condition of being captive". Freedom becomes obsolete, as does the ability to make free choices. Interestingly, captivity provides the illusion that there is independence when, in actuality, there are tight boundaries.

Whether we acknowledge it or not, The United States grows more in captivity everyday. According to a study done by Columbia University, there are currently 40 million Americans that meet the criteria for addiction to nicotine, alcohol, and drugs. In addition to this number, there are another 80 million who are deemed "risky substance users" which threaten public health and safety.

It would be bad enough if the statistics for bondage ended here. However, they do not. There are another 40 million people who visit internet pornography sites on a regular basis. Approximately one out of every five internet searches on mobile devices are for pornography. Studies have shown that as addiction to pornography increases, so does desensitization and acting out sexually, which also causes public health and safety issues in our nation.

Still, there is more. There are also addictions to: gambling (8 million people), shopping (18 million people), work (47 million people), food (17 million people), sex (12 million people), and video games (28 million people). Anytime people cannot control their actions or make rational decisions there is a bondage, especially in the face of negative consequences. When there is a bondage there is likely a deception that accompanies it that denies its very existence.

These are just the documented addictions of our society. But, what about social media? Cell phones? T.V.? Entertainment? Comfort? Selfishness? The truth is, anytime we are compelled to do something we don't want to do or we do not do something that we want to do, there is a form of bondage (Romans 7:15).

Jesus died not only for us to be set free from bondages, but also for us to be free to do what He has called us to do. The apostle, Paul, said this, "I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me" (Philippians 3:12). We let go of the hindrances and sin that holds us back so that we can take hold of all that Jesus died for us to have.

This requires that our spirit be stronger than our flesh or our soul. Only this will stop the downward spiral of bondage and captivity that we see in our nation today. Henry Ward Beecher said, "The real democratic American idea is, not that every man shall be on a level with every other man, but that every man shall have liberty to be what God made him, without hindrance."

Even within the churches in America, there are still two overreaching problems that hold us back. The first problem is that we are not connected enough to God and the second problem is that we are too connected to the world. If this were not true we would not have statistics within the church that emulate the statistics within our society.

We must be determined to get more God into our lives and less of the world. If we are committed to doing this we can boldly declare what Paul did, "For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:19).

God wants to refresh and restore our nation, just as He did for the nation of Israel. As was prophesied, after 70 years of exile, the Jews returned to Israel and began building the temple. People returned to God and a revival broke out in the land. The Israelites rejoiced because they had been delivered from the hands of their enemies!

This Thursday, on our National Day of Prayer, would you join me in recommitting your life, your family, and our nation back to God? Would you be willing to fast and pray and declare freedom for the captives? If, in unity, we would pour our hearts out to our loving Heavenly Father and believe Him for a mighty move, I believe we would see the same results the Israelites saw. We would, once again, see God's faithfulness to His people, His judgment of sin, and the absolute certainty of His promises. Perhaps, we could once again hear the bell ringing of Liberty in our Land


   "God grants liberty only to those who love it, and are always ready to guard it and defend it."
                                                           Daniel Webster