BVOV March 2005

BELIEVER'S VOICE OF

March 2005

A

Partnership is designed by God

to dramatically increase the abilities, resources and rewards of every believer. If you will believe and act on the principles of partnership, you’ll tap into a spiritual gold mine that's so deep and so rich, you’ll never be able to plumb the depths of it.

–Kenneth Copeland

This is what partnership is all about:

Dear Partner, As most of you know, back in August 2000, I took a stand against the devil’s attack on my lower back. Since then, by the Holy Spirit’s anointing power, I have been able to minister pain-free for long periods of time. But recently, right after the Great Lakes Believers’ Convention, my back had an explosion of pain caused by a ruptured disk.

Immediately, the showdown began! With the agreement of my family, friends and Partners like you, I stood in faith against this pain. It was a fight of faith. And praise God, I am healed!

Yes, because of your stand with me, I’m back in the saddle again! You, Partner, have helped put me over the top. And now I’m standing pain-free, in complete healing, and I’ll be allowing my body the rest it needs to stay in perfect health.

Thank you for responding in such a tremendous way to our request for prayer. We received thousands of emails and letters from around the world! Your response was overwhelming—I’m so grateful for your love, your faith…and your partnership!

This is what partnership is all about: I stand for you and you stand for me. We stand shoulder to shoulder and our anointings work together as we minister up one side of the world and down the other.

Together, we are changing the face of this earth. Partners, we’re getting ready for Jesus’ return. And it won’t be long!

JESUS IS LORD!

We invite you to be part of the biggest Holy Ghost gang on earth—to know that you are never without prayer as my Partner!

I stand for you and you stand for me!

Partnership Package Includes: The Anointing in Partnership cassette & CD will teach you God’s plan for the success of the Church in the last days, and how partnership releases the flow of His anointing power.

All titles conveniently packaged in one boxed set!

Understanding the Covenant of Partnership study guide will provide you insight into the principles of partnership as you enter into a covenant connection with Kenneth Copeland Ministries.

Covenant Promises: Prayers and Scriptures for My Partners cassette & CD contains the faith-filled prayers of protection,

If you’d like to become a Partner with

joy, prosperity and healing Kenneth and Gloria pray over their

Kenneth Copeland Ministries, or would like to

Partners every day. As you confess them you will build your faith,

find out more about partnership, just...

reap the harvest God promises in His Word, and overcome life’s challenges with supernatural success!

call 1-877-480-3388 or visit www.kcmcanada.ca

Your Covenant Partner Card acknowledges you as a KCM Partner and gives you a 10 percent discount on items purchased from our book tables at any of our meetings.

We’ll send you a Partnership Package right away.

Become a Partner today and get into the overflow!

theProphet’s

by Kenneth Copeland

I

f you’ve been needing greater faith, more anointing or increase in some area of your life, I’d like you to study very closely what I’m about to tell you.

Don’t just read it lightly and take my word that it’s true—get out your Bible and let the Holy Spirit reveal it to you personally.

Here’s why. If you will believe and act on the principles you’re about to see, you will tap into a spiritual gold mine. It is a mine so deep, so rich, you will never be able to plumb the depths of it in this lifetime. Obviously, I can only scratch the surface of it here. But if you’ll spend some time on your own digging around in it, you’ll realize as I have that the power of partnership is greater than anything you’d ever imagined.

“Partnership?” you ask.

Yes, partnership!

Partnership is designed by God to dramatically increase the abilities, resources and rewards of every believer.

Reward You see, contrary to what many people have thought, partnership is not a new idea some fund-raiser cooked up.

It is an ordinance of God that began in the Old Testament and continued in the New. It is a system designed by God to dramatically increase the abilities, resources and rewards of every believer.

That system was officially established and recognized as an ordinance of God in 1 Samuel 30. There we find David and the men who fought under his command in hot pursuit of the Amalekites who had plundered their homes and taken their families captive.

In order to overtake their enemy, David’s men had embarked on a grueling military maneuver known as a forced march. That’s a march under pressure which involves moving the most men and equipment as far and as fast as possible, while remaining battle ready at all times. It’s a tough assignment, and by the time David’s men reached the brook Besor, 200 of them were too exhausted to go on.

David instructed the weary ones to remain behind and guard the supplies. Then he and the rest of the men went on across, found the Amalekites, and—by the power of God—jerked the slack out of them! They not only defeated the army and recovered all their own possessions, they took what belonged to the Amalekites as well. So when they came back across the Besor, they brought with them great spoil!

When the fighting men rejoined the 200 others, however, some of them didn’t want to share the rewards of that war with those who had stayed behind. “Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered,” they said.

It was at that moment that David, a man after God’s own heart, officially established the principle of partnership.

He said:

Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the Lord hath given us...but as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff: they shall part alike. And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day (1 Samuel 30:23-25).

What Can I Do for You, Partner? | You may think that ordinance doesn’t mean much for you. But it does. After all, you’re a soldier just like David’s men were. You are a part of the army of Jesus, the Anointed One. You’re on a mission to occupy this earth and enforce the devil’s defeat until Jesus returns.

You may not be on the front lines of the fivefold ministry. You may not hold the office of an apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor or teacher. But if you’re in partnership with a minister who is doing the work of God, fighting alongside him or her through prayer or through giving, you’ll receive an eternal reward for every person who is born again, and every believer who is strengthened or healed or delivered as a result of that minister’s endeavors.

This year alone, for example, millions of people made Jesus the Lord of their lives through the outreaches of Kenneth Copeland Ministries and, as a Partner, God is giving you credit for every one of them. Why is that? It’s because, just like the soldiers who stayed and guarded the stuff, you did your part. You prayed. You gave. You helped us by joining your faith with ours.

So as far as God is concerned, you deserve to be rewarded just as much as Gloria and I do because your part is just as important as ours!

“Well, I’d like to believe that, Brother Copeland, but that was an Old Testament ordinance. Are you sure it’s still in effect today?”

Yes! Jesus taught the first 12 disciples about it.

He reaffirmed to them that principle of partnership by saying: He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall

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If you’re in partnership with a minister,

you’ll receive an eternal reward for every person who is born again, strengthened, healed or delivered.

receive a righteous man’s reward. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward (Matthew 10:41-42).

It would be sufficiently exciting if the reward we received from our partnership in God’s work was strictly a heavenly reward. But praise God, it’s not!

There’s also an earthly aspect to this reward system.

Partnership is one of God’s ways of providing for us, here and now, blessings so great we could never muster up enough faith to receive them on our own.

You can see what I mean if you’ll read 2 Kings 4. There you’ll find the account of a Shunammite woman who decided to support the ministry of the prophet Elisha.

She was so determined to be a partner in his work that one day when he was passing by she “constrained him to eat bread.” She just wouldn’t take no for an answer. She insisted that he stay for dinner.

She didn’t stop with that, either. She and her husband built a special room onto their house so Elisha would have a place to stay whenever he was in town.

Do you know what Elisha did in return? He called in his servant, Gehazi, and said, “Go find out what I can do for this woman. Find out what she desires.”

So Gehazi went, checked out the situation, then came back and told Elisha: Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. And [Elisha] said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid (verses 14-16).

Obviously, this woman didn’t have the faith to believe God for a child because when Elisha told her she would 6 |

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bear a son, she said, “No way! You may be a prophet, but you’re lying to me now!” That was out there beyond what she could ask or think.

But Elisha didn’t have any trouble believing for it, and since she was due a reward and they were in partnership with one another, he just released his faith on her behalf.

Sure enough, by the next year that Shunammite woman had a baby.

Take Advantage of the Privileges | That same principle will operate for you today just like it did for her. If you’re a Partner with Gloria and me, for example, you’ve joined up with our faith.

Now when we started out, we just had enough faith to keep our old car running so we could get from one meeting to the next. But over the years, as this ministry has grown, we’ve learned how to believe for the millions of dollars it takes to pay television bills and salaries, buy equipment and such.

If you’re newer to this faith life than we are, or if you haven’t had the opportunities to grow in it that we have, you may have some needs that are out beyond your faith range right now. For example, you might have $50,000 worth of debt you’d like to pay. You know God can do it, but at this point in your life, it may be hard for you to believe He will do it for you.

Well, take advantage of the privileges of partnership.

Believing for $50,000 worth of debt reduction isn’t hard for Gloria and me.

As I said, we have to believe for millions every month.

So write that $50,000 debt reduction prayer request on the sheet I send you every month with my letter, and send it back. Use it as a way to release your faith in the Godordained power of partnership.

That’s why I provide that sheet. I don’t do it just because it’s the traditional thing to do. I’m energizing you to take part in the prophet’s reward! We have a prayer staff that prays over those requests. Plus, Gloria and I pray

partner with the ministries of Oral Roberts, Kenneth Hagin, Jerry Savelle, Jesse Duplantis and many others—to be a partaker of their grace!

“But I don’t need those kinds of anointings!” you may say.

“I’m not a preacher. I’m just a mechanic...or a housewife... or a salesman.”

Increase Your Anointing | Realize those blessings That may be your profession, but aren’t you called to aren’t limited to this natural, material realm. Through witness to people, pray for them and minister to them as partnership, the anointings God has given Gloria and me you go about your daily affairs? Of course you are! And for ministry are also available to you. the more of the Anointing of God you have available to The Apostle Paul understood that principle. That’s you, the better you’ll be able to do it. why in the letter to his Philippian partners he had the What’s more, when you partner up with a ministry, boldness to say: whatever anointing is on you—the mechanic anointing, the real estate anointing, etc.—becomes I thank my God upon every rememSalvation Prayer available to that ministry. When you brance of you, always in every prayer of understand that, you can see as we mine for you all making request with joy, If you do not know follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit for your fellowship [or Partnership] in and come together in partnership as He the gospel from the first day until now; as your directs, we’ll all be fully supplied. None being confident of this very thing, that & of us will lack anything. he which hath begun a good work in simply pray the following prayer in Spiritually, we’ll have the full scope you will perform it until the day of Jesus faith, and Jesus will be your Lord! of the Anointing of God. And maChrist: Even as it is meet for me to think Heavenly Father, I come to You terially we’ll enjoy the prophet’s this of you all, because I have you in my in the Name of Jesus. Your Word says, reward—by joining in faith together, heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved” and “If thou we receive exceeding, abundantly above and in the defence and confirmation shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord what we can ask or think! of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart I’m convinced it was that reward grace (Philippians 1:3-7). that God hath raised him from the dead, Paul had in mind when, in closing his thou shalt be saved” (Acts 2:21; Romans 10:9). You said my salvation would be partner letter to the Philippians, he told Notice in that last phrase he said, the result of Your Holy Spirit giving me them, “My God shall supply all your ye are partakers of my grace. Not God’s new birth by coming to live in me (John need according to his riches in glory by grace. My grace! In other words, Paul 3:5-6, 15-16; Romans 8:9-11) and that Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19)! was saying, “As my partners, you share if I would ask, You would fill me with Your Spirit and give me the ability to No matter how you look at it, that in the grace God has given me to carry speak with other tongues (Luke 11:13; deal is just too good to pass up. out my ministry.”

Acts 2:4).

So don’t! Make up your mind right If you’d like to see how significant I take You at Your Word. I connow to seek God and find out with that really is, just read through some of fess that Jesus is Lord. And I believe in whom He’d have you become a partner.

Paul’s letters and see the statements he my heart that You raised Him from the dead.

Thank You for coming into my Then be like that Shunammite woman makes about grace. Statements such as, heart, for giving me Your Holy Spirit as and start looking for ways to bless “By the grace of God I am what I am...I You have promised, and for being Lord your partner. laboured more abundantly than they all: over my life. Amen.

You’ll have so much fun at it, you’ll yet not I, but the grace of God which If you have just prayed this prayer, please contact us and let us know be tempted to forget all about the was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10). of your decision. We have a free reward. But God won’t. If you’ll stay Paul was literally telling the Philippians Salvation Package that we would like connected in faith, He’ll see to it that that as his partners, the same anointings to send you to help you begin your you’re blessed with more of everything that were on him as an apostle had benew life in Jesus! Simply write and ask for offer #60801, visit our webstore than you ever dreamed possible. He’ll come available to them! at http://shop.kcmcanada.ca, or call see to it that you receive the prophet’s I don’t know about you, but I desire 1-877-480-3388. reward. V ICTOR Y all the anointing I can get. That’s why I every day for our Partners just like we pray for our own family. We’re exercising our faith on your behalf, so reach out and receive some of the blessings you have coming to you!

Jesus Savior Lord,

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Prophetic & Practical

Insight Gained at the D.C. Victory Campaign

WASHINGTON, D.C.—There’s nothing like a fresh word from God!

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That’s true whether the message

addresses current events and the power of God’s end-time glory or it involves instruction and direction for the days ahead.

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The 2004 Washington, D.C. Victory Campaign was filled with both. Just days

after the 2004 U.S. presidential election, Partners and Friends attending this annual meeting were eager to receive insight the secular media could only wonder about, such as: the role believers and faith played in the election’s outcome, our role going forward, and where the United States is headed.

“We finally woke up and did what we should have been doing 40 years ago,” Brother Copeland said of the recent elections. Then he exhorted believers to stay in prayer and faith for the appointment of righteous judges “who have a heart for God, a heart for truth, a heart for the law and a heart for the Constitution of the United States—the way God wrote it to begin with.”

He explained the election was the continuation of a move of God that was prophesied during the April 2004 Detroit Victory Campaign, when the Lord came to him three times saying: There’s coming this summer an unprecedented move of God. “It’s still going, and 2005 will be known as The Year of Overflow,” he said.

Brother Copeland exhorted the Body of Christ to stay in the overflow of God’s blessings by walking in repentance and committing to His command to love.

He explained that overflow has two sides. It is judgment on the seeds of righteousness men have sown, which results in the abundance of God’s prosperity in every area of life. It is also judgment on the seeds of sin sown, which will manifest in every dimension of death and darkness.

Repentance and commitment to keep the greatest commandment—the commandment to love—is the way to stay on the right side of overflow.

Gloria ministered on living long and strong. Leading those in attendance to review what the Bible really says about length of life, she challenged them to live long, satisfied lives, complete the work God has given them to do on earth, and then leave only when they are ready. “We 8 |

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have nothing to fear in death. The reason we want to live long and strong is to finish our work.”

She challenged believers to line up their expectations for longevity with the Bible promise of 120 years or more.

“It makes a difference where we set our sights,” she said.

“Fighters live longer.”

For every session, believers nearly filled the 4,000-seat Hylton Memorial Chapel, a facility in Woodbridge, Va., dedicated to Christian conferences and concerts. An atmosphere of faith and love permeated the meetings. There was a corporate anointing present. And attendees were refreshed and strengthened by the Word that was preached.

The 2005 Washington, D.C. Victory Campaign, held Nov. 17-19, will again be the final major meeting of the 2005 meeting season which begins Feb. 24-26 with the Singapore Victory Campaign. See the meeting itinerary on Page 6 for additional meeting information.

In 2005, the weeklong Believers’ Conventions take on a new name. These meetings have been renamed Prosperity Conventions.

The West Coast Prosperity Convention will be July 4-9 and the Southwest Prosperity Convention will be held Aug. 1-6. Dates for the Great Lakes Prosperity Convention, meeting for the first time at the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee, Wis., are Aug. 22-27.

Make plans now to get away to these dynamic meetings and get into the overflow! There’s nothing like a fresh word from God. In fact, one word from God can change your life forever! V ICTOR Y

March 10 2005 Women’s Convention World Changers Church International 2500 Burdett Road College Park, GA 30349 (770) 210-5700

March 13-14 25th Anniversary Celebration Calvary Christian Center 2665 Del Paso Blvd.

Sacramento, CA 95851 (916) 929-1383

May 14-15 20th Anniversary Celebration Living Faith Christian Center 2323 Route 73 Pennsauken, NJ 08110 (856) 661-8110

Get Away to Receive

June 17

at These 2005 Meetings

Annual Word of Faith Conference Word of Faith International Christian Center 20000 W. Nine Mile Road Southfield, MI 48075-5597 (248) 353-3476

Singapore Victory Campaign*

Great Lakes Prosperity Convention

Singapore Indoor Stadium

U.S. Cellular Arena | 400 W. Kilbourn Ave. Milwaukee, WI 53203 (414) 908-6000

February 24-26

Branson Victory Campaign March 17-19

August 22-27

Faith Life Church 3220 Falls Parkway | Branson, MO 65616 www.moorelife.org | (417) 334-9233

Days of Refreshing

West Coast Prosperity Convention

Eagle Mountain International Church Kenneth Copeland Ministries Headquarters 14355 Morris-Dido Road | Newark, TX 76071 (not a mailing address) (817) 252-2868 www.kcm.org

July 4-9

Anaheim Convention Center 800 W. Katella Ave. | Anaheim, CA 92802 (714) 765-8950

Southwest Prosperity Convention August 1-6

Fort Worth Convention Center 1201 Houston St. | Fort Worth, TX 76102 (817) 570-2222 Singles Celebration*

September 18-24

Washington, D.C. Victory Campaign November 17-19 Hylton Memorial Chapel 14640 Potomac Mills Road Woodbridge, VA 22192 (703) 590-0076

*Watch our Web site for more information to come!

Healing School Intercessory prayer Powerful speakers

September 2-4 Thunder Over Texas Motorcycle Rally Texas Motor Speedway Jerry Savelle Ministries International P.O. Box 748 Crowley, TX 76036 (817) 297-3155 www.thunderovertexas.com

October 2

Faith-charged atmosphere

and one Word from God… that will change your life forever!

October 27-31

Belfast Victory Campaign*

Brighton Centre | King’s Road Brighton, England

Waterfront Hall | Lanyon Place Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K.

Frankfurt Victory Campaign*

Ukraine Victory Campaign*

Jahrhunderthalle | Hoechst Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Ledovi Dvorets | Bolshestskay St. #1 Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine

April 14-16

National Pentecostal Church of God Convention* (417) 825-0177

Grace Fellowship P.O. Box 55236 Tulsa, OK 74155 (918) 252-1611

Fresh, prophetic ministry

Brighton Victory Campaign* April 7-9

June 27

April 21-23

April 28-30

2005—Your Year of Overflow!

Meetings are subject to change without notice.

For updated information, please log on to www.kcm.org/meetings.

Partners and Friends within Canada call 1-877-480-3388.

Prayer Mountain in the Ozarks Billye Brim Ministries P.O. Box 40 Branson, MO 65615 (417) 336-4877 www.billyebrim.org

November 6-7 Living Word Bible Church 3520 E. Brown Road Mesa, AZ 85213 (480) 964-4463

by Melanie Hemry

M

arynelle Robinson’s blue eyes danced with amusement. “I’m going to name it Matilda,” she announced. Her mother smiled, realizing Marynelle was talking about the back brace she would soon be wearing. “Why Matilda?” she asked.

“I’m naming her Matilda in honor of the song ‘Waltzing Matilda,’” Marynelle explained. “Because waltzing is the last thing anyone would want to do in a back brace.”

Marynelle’s mom laughed out loud and continued smiling as her daughter fidgeted with the scab on her skinned knee. At 14 Marynelle was still a tomboy, always involved in some outdoor adventure that left her blond hair tousled. A happy child, she always had a song on her lips. She had no idea how drastically her life was about to change.

It had been Marynelle’s aunt, a nurse, who first noticed the telltale curve in Marynelle’s back when she bent over to tie her shoe. Two doctors had confirmed their suspicions: Marynelle suffered from scoliosis—a snake-like curve in the spine.

As Marynelle took a step, she heard a loud Pop! A few steps later, she heard another. The popping sounds were coming from her back!

“Hopefully, we caught it early enough to avoid surgery,” the specialist had explained. “We’ll fit Marynelle with a back brace made from a mold of her body. She’ll have to wear it 23 hours a day until she stops growing—probably around age 18.”

Now Marynelle was ushered into a room where the brace would be fitted. Her blue eyes widened at the sight. It was the scariest thing she’d ever seen. Skeleton-like, its bones were built of metal, leather and plastic.

The name Matilda didn’t fit—Frankenstein described it better.

Marynelle held out her arms as the contraption was tightened around her. She’d never dreamed it would be so rigid. A pad in the middle of her back pushed inward with mind-numbing force. Opposing it, another pad pressed into her chest, forcing her back into a straight line. Something pressed against the back of her head at the base of her skull forcing her head up. Her chin rested on a brace in front that overextended her neck. A leather girdle pressed down onto her hipbones, stretching her body like a medieval rack.

She’d never imagined wearing such a device.

She’d never imagined the pain.

Tears streamed down her face. It never occurred to her to worry about how she was going to wear the brace for four years. She didn’t know how she’d be able to stand it for four minutes.

“Mom, I can’t do this!” Marynelle sobbed as she tried to find a way to sit in the car. Every movement brought a new wave of pain, as her entire upper body moved as one unit.

“We’ve talked about this,” her mother said quietly.

“Sometimes we do hard things for the end result.” Her mother had told her stories about how difficult it had been to live through the economic collapse of the Great Depression.

Somehow that didn’t help the blisters that seemed to be springing up on her chin, chest and back.

“I need to take this off,” Marynelle sobbed when she got home.

“You can’t take it off, Honey,” her mother said, wiping the sweaty hair off her daughter’s forehead. “Remember what the doctor said? You only get to take it off for an hour each morning when you shower.”

Her mother padded the sofa with a couple of hard pillows, and Marynelle sat on the edge and swiveled as she drew her legs up onto the cushions. Her choices were to sit

upright like a toy soldier or to tilt back at a 45-degree angle.

Every muscle in her body ached, and there was no way to get comfortable.

By bedtime, Marynelle wanted nothing more than to slide into her bed, bury her head into the pillow face first, and fall into an exhausted sleep. But she couldn’t. No more sleeping on her tummy. No more curling into a ball like a kitten. No more going to sleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

She couldn’t lie on her side because her head would have no support. She had to prop herself against hard pillows and lie at a miserable angle all night. She listened to the clock tick beside her bed and prayed for morning.

Trying to Measure Up | “I got Matilda in 1973,” Marynelle recalls, “and for a shy teenager embarrassed about her own body, it was a miserable fate. I didn’t want to be noticed, and everyone noticed that brace. My family was just learning about the word of faith. My mother scheduled family vacations so we could attend Full Gospel Businessmen’s meetings where we heard Brother Kenneth Hagin, Charles Capps and even Kathryn Kuhlman. We knew miracles existed but it never occurred to us that God might heal me.

We didn’t have faith for a miracle and had no idea how to believe God for one.

“I’d been born again as a child and I loved God. Although it was my mother’s spiritual hunger that was the driving force behind our taking vacations to attend spiritual meetings, I loved being in God’s presence. Even as a child I enjoyed going to church. Because I was a Christian, kids at school made fun of me, so home and church were my places of refuge.”

The Goodness of God | Every eye focused on Marynelle as she tried to slide gracefully into her desk with Matilda. It simply wasn’t possible. Metal clanked against metal, and she had to sit rigid and upright through every miserable class.

She wasn’t sure what hurt most, the pain or the snickers.

Her face a flaming red, she tried to disappear inside the hot, sweaty, miserable Matilda. By the end of the day, Marynelle was exhausted from wearing the 10-pound brace.

Day by day she saw herself becoming a different person.

Before, she would have been playing ball, riding bicycles or skating. Now she sat for hours in one position trying not to move. Besides, when Matilda’s metal got hot it burned.

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without Matilda. Every day her mother refused. Halfway through the school year Marynelle transferred to a private Christian school her cousins attended. At the new school each student was weighed and measured every nine weeks.

In the winter of 1975, even with the curve in her spine, Marynelle stood 5 feet 6 inches tall.

As a 15-year-old sophomore in high school, Marynelle had been in the brace for one year and still faced three more agonizingly painful years. As a special treat, her mother arranged for the two of them to attend a weekend meeting at a resort at Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri, where Kenneth Copeland was one of the speakers.

“I was so excited to have Mom to myself all weekend,” Marynelle remembers. “We attended every meeting and rested between sessions. But even after a year I was still in so much pain that I couldn’t get comfortable for long. During one of the evening sessions I was so miserable that I got up and stood at the back of the room. I was too distracted to pay much attention to the sermon, and when Brother Copeland called out words of knowledge about people being healed I hardly listened.”

When the service was over Marynelle and her mother walked back to their room in comfortable silence. As Marynelle took a step she heard a loud Pop! A few steps later she heard another. The popping sounds were coming from her back!

“Mom, do you think God could be healing my back?”

“Why do you ask?” her mother replied.

“Well, do you hear that popping sound? It’s coming from my back!”

Marynelle’s mother’s eyes widened. “Brother Copeland said that God was straightening someone’s back!” she gasped.

“I didn’t hear that,” Marynelle admitted, “but I don’t believe I’m going to have to wear this brace anymore.”

“I don’t either,” her mother agreed.

Growing in God | Back in their room, Marynelle started to pull her nightgown over Matilda, and then paused.

She looked at the bed, and then she looked at the brace.

Quietly, without asking permission, she removed Matilda and put on her nightgown. Sliding into bed she felt the cool sheets against her skin. Sighing with delight, she rolled over and pressed her face into the pillow. Sometime during the night she curled up like a kitten and slept long and deep.

The next morning Marynelle stretched luxuriously in the bed before getting up. She kicked Matilda to the side and dressed. Her clothes were baggy now without the brace.

During the morning meeting she leaned back in her chair and relaxed.

Back at school the next day Marynelle’s friends and teachers

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said, “Hey, you’re not wearing your brace!”

“Yeah, God healed me,” Marynelle explained.

Several weeks later it was time for the students to be weighed and measured again. In only nine weeks most of the students had grown a half inch to an inch.

“Oh my, you’ve grown 2 full inches!”

“God healed me,” Marynelle said simply. “Remember?”

Surprise registered on the teacher’s face. “Well look at that!” she exclaimed.

“My mother called and canceled all my doctor’s appointments,” Marynelle recalls. “I never wore the brace again except to model it for a few friends. But when I tried it on, my body was so changed it no longer fit me.”

A Lasting Legacy | It’s been 30 years since God straightened Marynelle Robinson’s spine. Since then she hasn’t needed another miracle because she has lived in vibrant good health. Last year she had occasion to have her back X-rayed again. She filled out a medical history and explained that she’d been diagnosed with scoliosis and had worn a brace for one year.

“You must have been misdiagnosed,” the doctor explained, “because you have one of the straightest spines I’ve ever seen.”

“God healed me in a Kenneth Copeland meeting and I grew 2 inches instantly,” Marynelle said.

“Well…that’s the only explanation for what I see,” the doctor said.

The simple truth is that Marynelle Robinson didn’t have faith for a miracle. Although her parents have since gone home to be with the Lord, she doesn’t remember a time when even the possibility of her being healed was discussed.

Nor does she recall anyone praying the prayer of faith on her behalf.

“I wasn’t even paying attention in that service,” Marynelle admits. “I don’t think I was healed by my mother’s faith but I do believe my mother was paying attention. Brother Copeland had been teaching about standing on faith and I think she knew enough to realize that I made a faith statement when I said that I didn’t believe I’d have to wear the brace anymore.

She knew enough to get in agreement with me and she never changed her stance. She never tried to make me wear that brace again.”

If Marynelle Robinson wasn’t healed through her own faith or her mother’s faith, how did she receive her miracle?

She might explain to you that the corporate faith of the congregation was high, or she might tell you about the gift of miracles.

But the bottom line is that God is good.

And in the power of His presence, good things happen.

V ICTOR Y

Is It Always God’s Will to Heal?

You Better Believe It!

“If you’ve got something in your body that’s not functioning, the Lord will make you whole. The power of God is present right where you are—it’s in His Word!” ~ Gloria Copeland Get the most in-depth, comprehensive teaching on healing ever presented

by Kenneth Copeland. This scriptural foundation will help teach you how to receive your healing (and keep it).

In Healing—It Is Always God’s Will, you’ll learn the origin of sickness and disease, the truth about Paul’s thorn in the flesh, that there are three types of healing, and how to begin your healing process today.

Don’t wait another day. Every believer has the right and authority for complete healing. Believe it!

Healing—It Is Always God’s Will with FREE Study Guide 8-tape series CDN $ #B050305

35

8-message series on 9 CDs

35 #B050306

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The devil may say you can’t live through it. The doctors may offer little hope. But God says you’re going to live a long life! He wants you to Be Made Whole and live healthy every day!

This powerful teaching by Gloria Copeland will lead you through the Scriptures and explain: • you’ve been redeemed completely from the curse of the law, • you don’t have to struggle to receive healing from Jesus, and • how to walk in wholeness.

With your purchase of Be Made Whole, receive Gloria’s book God’s Will for Your Healing FREE. Dispel myths and misconceptions and receive the healing power of God. Be Made Whole with FREE God’s Will for Your Healing book 3-tape series 3-CD series To order in Canada call toll free 1-877-480-3388. To place an order by mail, please use the address on the back page of this magazine. Order online at shop.kcmcanada.ca. We accept Visa, Master Card and American Express.

CDN $15

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3-video series

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by Gloria Copeland

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“

y son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee” (Proverbs 4:20-24).

your time to the Word. Give thought and meditation to the Word. Give action to the Word. Continually give the Word first place in your life.

Isaiah 26:3 says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”

Your mind will be free from doubt when you keep your attention on God’s Word. When you are trusting in His Word, you are trusting in Him. God’s Word will keep you in perfect peace.

You can’t overdose on God’s medicine.

In fact, the more Word you take, the stronger you become.

This passage of Scripture reveals God’s prescription for life and health.

It contains instructions that, if properly followed, can literally change your life and your physical condition from sickness to health.

So, let’s look closely at what God is saying.

Attend to My Words | “My son, attend to My Words….” That means you must give your undivided attention to God’s Word and pay heed to what He says. When you attend to something, you give your attention to it. Give

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Incline Thine Ears | Next, God said you must “incline thine ear unto my sayings.”

You do that when you desire and go after the knowledge of God’s Word and open your understanding to His Word. Attending meetings where the word of faith is being preached and listening to faith-filled tapes are ways to “incline your ear” and get the Word in your heart.

Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Faith comes by hearing the preached Word.

As you listen to what is being preached, listen with your spiritual ears as well. In Mark 4:23-25, Jesus tells us:

If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening and let him perceive and comprehend. And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you—and more [besides] will be given to you who hear. For to him who has will more be given…

(The Amplified Bible).

Every man to whom Jesus was speaking had physical ears.

He was referring to receiving God’s Word in the heart by listening to the Holy Spirit speak revelation knowledge.

You must listen with your spiritual ears as well as your physical ears.

Jesus was not talking about passively hearing. He said to listen, perceive and comprehend, and even be careful how you hear. The time you give to digesting the Word you hear will measure the return of the virtue (power) and knowledge that will come back to you through the Word.

The man who hears (or receives revelation knowledge) will be given more. If you desire to grow in the knowledge of God, be careful how you hear His Word.

Let Them Not Depart From Thine Eyes | It’s also vitally important to keep your eyes on the Word of God. Don’t look at circumstances or give your attention to feelings that are contrary to your healing. Look at and consider (or give thought to) the scriptures instead of your body. “Let them not depart from thine eyes.”

Jesus said, “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light” (Matthew 6:22).

The eye is the gateway to the body. Keep the Word in your sight.

If your eye, or your attention, is on the darkness—the sickness—in your body, there will be no light to expel that darkness. If you focus on darkness, your eye will be unsound; therefore, your body will be unsound.

But if your eye is single, focused on the Word of God, your whole body will be full of light. The single eye allows no darkness to enter.

Looking at and giving your attention to sickness brings death. Looking at and giving your attention to God’s Word brings life! In some cases, what you give your attention to could mean the difference between life and death.

Keep Them in the Midst of Thine Heart | Allow God’s words to abide in you. “Keep them in the midst of thine heart” by meditating on the Scriptures and acting on what you hear.

The portion of God’s Word you act on is the portion of His Word that is living in you. Continually feed yourself with

God’s Word in order to keep the Word producing the force of faith.

Inclining your ear and refusing to allow the Word to depart from your eyes keeps God’s Word alive in your heart.

Proverbs 4 says, “For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.”

The Word is God’s medicine.

Jesus said, My words “are spirit, and they are life” ( John 6:63).

Attending to the Word with your ears, your eyes and your heart will cause you to live in divine health. It will become as hard for you to get sick as it once was for you to be healed!

The power of the Word will be made life and health to your body continually.

So “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23). The forces (issues) of life come from the midst of your heart. The Word in your heart produces life and health in your body.

Put Away a Froward Mouth | Once your heart gets full, it begins to overflow. Then “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34).

The last step in taking God’s divine prescription is to speak, not words of sickness and disease, but rather words of healing and life, faith and hope. “Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee” (Proverbs 4:24).

For faith to work, it must be in two places: in your heart and in your mouth (Deuteronomy 30:14; Romans 10:10).

You must speak God’s Word!

Several times since I have learned to walk in faith, almost before I realized it, I became too sick to stay on my feet. (I have learned since to go to the Word at the first sign of a symptom and immediately take a dose of God’s medicine!)

I got my Bible, turned to 1 Peter 2:24, read it aloud, and by faith received my healing. I also played the New Testament on tape. Usually, I went to sleep listening to the Word. In a few hours or by the next morning, I was completely healed.

God’s medicine effected a healing and a cure in my body.

To be sick and receive healing was not God’s best for me. To receive healing is good, but to live in divine health is better.

To fill God’s prescription for life and health, you must diligently attend to His Word. Give the Word the place of authority in your life and spend time in it every day. The forces of life and power that come out of your heart will be in direct proportion to the amount of Word that goes into you.

You can’t overdose on God’s medicine. In fact, the more Word you take, the stronger you become. You have nothing to lose but sickness and disease.

So, today, begin taking God’s medicine and putting His Word to work. It’s your personal prescription for life and health! V ICTOR Y

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Asthma Out— Healing In I am glad I am a Partner of KCM. My son and I went to the Greensboro Victory Campaign in June 2003. I know you came just for me!

I was on three inhalers, two medications and nose spray every day for asthma and allergies. I came home after the meeting and forgot to take the medicine. But I started to breathe all through my chest—something I had not been able to do for years. Now I can be out in the yard. It has been 17 years since I have been able to be outside in the springtime. I thank God for healing me!

I thank God for you, and for the teaching you give us. God bless you and your staff.

J.T. | North Carolina

A Horse of Faith I am 12 years old and live on a ranch in Montana. I went to the Helena Victory Campaign in 2002 where I sowed $400 toward a horse of my own.

In April 2003 God blessed me with Scooter. I had been riding Scooter for years, but in April our former boss gave him to me. I would like to become a Partner with KCM. I promise to support you prayerfully and financially.

The picture is of Scooter and me.

Katherine Korpi | Montana

GoodNEWSG “The Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God w

Fighting the Good Fight of Faith As a Partner of KCM, I called for support, guidance and prayer in my time of need.

My story begins in 1993 with an unwanted divorce, my ex-wife’s remarriage in 1995, and then finding out her new husband was a convicted pedophile. In 1997, my three children were removed from their mother’s home and the following year I was awarded full custody. Yet a judge concluded that her husband could be around the children during visitation.

For the next six years, I prayed, planted seed, stood on God’s Word, attended the Believers’ Convention in Fort Worth, sought the Lord, forgave and strove to apply God’s Word in my life.

I knew I had to go back to court to fully protect my children. Before the trial I read Mark 11:23-24. Based on that scripture I told my children: 1) this man would never be around them; 2) we would continue to live together as a family; and 3) their visitation schedule would be improved.

In April 2004, the judge granted all requests. My children’s faith soared!

Thank you KCM family for your many letters of encouragement. Thanks to the prayer ministers who listened, prayed and rightly divided the Word. Thank you, Kenneth and Gloria, for your unrelenting devotion, unbending faith and obedience to God. Thanks also to Kellie whose Peaceful Praise for Children CD was a great comfort to my 11-year-old daughter—many nights those songs gently ministered to her spirit.

I prayed, planted seed and

stood on God’s Word.

L.L. | Texas

He Loads Us With Benefits!

About three months before Kenneth ministered on believing for the double, the Lord prompted me to double our monthly gift. So when Kenneth spoke it, I was ready to receive.

For two and a half years, I had been receiving a monthly benefit from an insurance company. In October I received a letter stating they had overpaid me $10,000 and wanted their money back immediately or my monthly benefit would stop. I prayed and trusted the Lord as I sent in my prayer request with my monthly gift to KCM. On the prayer form, the scripture was a promise of God’s favor.

After reviewing my file, someone from the insurance company called—they owed me $20,000 from a previous claim that was never processed! The day I received the check I also received a letter from you offering me the Big Band Gospel CD as a gift. That CD will be a constant reminder of the double harvest in my mailbox that day! God bless you.

R.S.

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SGazette

International News

Foundation Series Feeds Hunger for Truth

od who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations..."

My husband and I recently received our Foundation Series from KCM—we are so Deuteronomy 7:9, New King James Version blessed! I can hardly express what is happening to us as we listen and study and pray, and listen and study and pray. God is so great OV BV and we thank Him every day for your minto g in Tuning in to God by Tunin m my job without cause. God had istry reaching out to the world with the ted fro Recently, I was termina e home not in the cam I so , en truth. So many questions are answered pp ha to going warned me that it was to heed the w ho ng rni lea to f as we delve into the Word and listen to sel devote my I tuned least upset. I decided to n he W d.

Go of ce voi Brother Copeland. We are so hungry for Spirit and the promptings of the Holy oore teaching a twoM ith Ke s the Word and grateful to have access to wa re the , ast in to the BVOV broadc ! irit Sp ly Ho all this material to feed that hunger! the to ld week course on how to yie in my left ot kn ct tin dis rd, ha y Yvonne Dickinson | Alberta, Canada a ver Then, last week I found fessing “by His stripes I con an beg I r. fea of g breast. I had not one pan for my healing…the “He Heals ised God, thanking Him was healed!” Then I pra working.” ays alw is r the Fa y All Our Diseases” “M s. Jesus said, knot was gone in two day God is our healer and giver of life. !

Yes, He is. Glory to God!! ver regretted it. ne e I’v d an Some time ago my husband had a ago rs yea r fou I became a Partner about migraine attack in the middle of the a D.W. | North Carolin night. Normally he needs to have treatment with very strong medications—injections and all. I awoke and told the devil enough is enough and the Holy Spirit told me to start praising God. I quoted Psalm Holy Ghost Prayers Hit Hurricanes 103: “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is Thank you for the encouraging phone calls we received just within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, before Hurricanes Charley and Frances. The anointing was powO my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who erful and we knew God was confirming to us that our prayers for heals all your diseases.” I thanked God for my His protection had been heard. husband’s healing and went back to sleep. My The first call from KCM came while my family was over for husband woke up the next morning comdinner, just before Hurricane Charley hit. It was such a witness pletely healed. to them that you would be concerned about your Partners in Thanks to Brother Copeland and Sister Gloria Florida. I held the phone while many and to all our Covenant Partners for your listened to the recorded prayer. We had prayers, love and support. already been speaking faith-filled words W.M. | Germany against the storm, and praise God it did not come through our area of the state.

Partnership Brings Scholarships As Hurricane Frances approached we began speaking to it I am a university student in Canada. I became while making preparations. My husband received a call from a a Partner with KCM in October 2003 and in KCM staff member and they had a Holy-Ghost prayer meetNovember the Lord amazed me with His proviing right over the phone! We were in a more direct path of sion. I was awarded two scholarships that covHurricane Frances, yet our property and family were untouched. ered my tuition for the whole year!

We are now in a position to help many others less fortunate.

A.O. | Canada Thank you for being sensitive to your Partners!

Our property and family were untouched.

D.M.

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Florida

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Also now available on

DVD

Praying Powerful Prayers!

Seven Steps to Prayer That Bring Results

Prayer Series I: Effective Prayer

In these end times you can be sure—as always—your prayers are needed! Around the world and on the home front each day, the prayers of people like you make a difference.

In this powerful audio series by Kenneth Copeland, you’ll discover how to pray more effectively for your family, your job, your marriage and your world. You’ll learn: • the scriptural basis of effective prayer, • how to apply your faith, • how to stop unbelief and fear, and • much more!

In these last days we must know how to pray powerful prayers! So discover the Seven Steps to Prayer That Bring Results—and revolutionize your prayer life.

In this inspiring teaching, you’ll witness one family’s remarkable story of healing—a healing that came as the result of effective prayer. Plus, you’ll get insight from Kenneth Copeland on the keys to prayer that will bring you out of any crisis situation. Discover: • how to build your entire life around prayer, • how to use the Name of Jesus and God’s Word in prayer, • what is meant by “You have not because you ask not,” and • much more!

Don’t wait until tragedy strikes to learn how to pray. As a Christian, you have a communication system with God that is off-limits to the devil. Make the most of it by learning how to pray effectively today!

Seven Steps to Prayer That Bring Results

Prayer Series I: Effective Prayer

4-tape series CDN $20 #B050303

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single video CDN $21 #B050301 DVD CDN $29 #B050302

To order in Canada call toll free 1-877-480-3388. To place an order by mail, please use the address located on the last page of this magazine.

Order online at shop.kcmcanada.ca.

answered

Always prayer–

by Kenneth Copeland

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rayer works. For many people, however, prayer is

some kind of abstract experience or just an escape valve. They don’t see their prayers answered to any degree. And really, they don’t expect their prayers to be answered.

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But that’s

contrary to the way Jesus lived His life on the earth. And it’s contrary to the way He taught His followers to live. He taught them (and us) to live a lifestyle of faith and prayer—and to expect results.

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As Christians, prayer should be as natural and powerful to us as it was to Jesus

when He spoke to the fig tree in Matthew 21:18-22: Now in the morning as he returned into the city, he hungered. And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away. And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away! Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Notice that when Jesus was answering their questions about the fig tree withering, He was answering their questions about something literal. He was not just referring to something spiritual.

So speaking to the mountain, asking in prayer, and believing to receive work not only in the spiritual realm, but also in the physical, material realm.

When Jesus spoke to the fig tree He was demonstrating and teaching us that by using our faith, the Word of God and prayer, we too can bring circumstances in line with God’s will.

Praying With Power | When you pray do you expect results…every time? Well, you should, and you can.

Here are seven steps that can help you see results in prayer—every time.

1. Base every prayer on the Word. | Prayer that brings results must be based on God’s Word. So start with the answer, which is the Word. Jesus said in John 15:7, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”

For prayer to bring results, you must pray specifically.

That means you must find scripture that applies to your situation and base your prayer on that scripture.

For example, if you’re facing sickness, find scripture that pertains to healing. Your prayer could be based on 1 Peter 2:24 because that scripture says, by Jesus’ stripes you were healed.

When you have God’s Word about a particular

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issue, you have a foundation on which to believe Him. And when you put God’s Word in your spirit, it feeds your faith.

Romans 10:17 explains, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” 2. Apply your faith. | Once you find scripture that reveals God’s will regarding the situation you are facing, here’s the next step: You must apply your faith to the problem.

To apply your faith, say what you believe (speak in agreement with God’s Word). Confess the Word out loud and start thanking God that you have what He said you have. Act as though you have received it, as though it is already done.

In Isaiah 43:26, God says: “Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.”

To put God in remembrance of His Word and declare your case, say something like this: “Lord, right now I believe I receive what You have said in Your Word. I believe [quote the scripture you are standing on]. I’m not saying it because I feel it or see it. I’m saying it because I believe Your Word. I believe it’s done, in the Name of Jesus!”

To be afraid to confess and act as though it’s already done is to doubt God’s Word. So hold fast to your confession (read Hebrews 4:11-16)!

3. Refuse doubt and fear. | Don’t allow doubt and fear to enter your consciousness. Satan tries to undermine your faith through suggestions, dreams and visions. He will do everything he can to try and convince you the circumstances are not going to change. But remember what God’s Word says! It’s your responsibility to believe what God says and refuse doubt and fear when it comes your way.

Second Corinthians 10:5 tells you to do that by “casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” You must control your mind, and you do that with the Word of God. Dwell on the answer instead of the problem.

And be advised, some people will try to talk you out of your stand of faith. But you can refuse to receive anything that goes against the Word of God. It won’t be hard if you do what God says in Proverbs 4:20-21: “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.”

4. See yourself succeeding. | See what you’re believing for as done—finished. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is….” The Word says you have it—now.

So take the scripture you’re standing on and begin to see that Word as being a reality in your life.

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Take that Word and renew your mind—change your mental attitude about your situation. Don’t be conformed to the world. “Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2).

Keep your mind on the Word and be transformed, changed. Begin to act as if you already have it. That’s acting in faith and faith will open the door for God to move in your life.

Prepare to succeed! Make no provision for the flesh (Romans 13:14). Make no provision to fail.

5. Testify of what you believe—the Word. | Revelation 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.” You have a right to everything Jesus’ sacrifice bought and paid for. So testify to that right. Proclaim it!

You have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus!

You are what the Word says you are!

You can have what the Word says you can have!

But knowing all that won’t do you any good if you don’t believe it, receive it, apply it in your life…and make it the word of your testimony.

6. Help someone else. | Galatians 5:6 says faith works by love. So love others. Get involved in helping people the way Jesus did. Pray for and encourage them. Give your testimony—tell them what Jesus has done for you.

When you start sharing Jesus with others, your problems will begin to roll away.

7. Get on the giving end. | Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

This is not just talking about money. You can give in the area where you have need. Give of the little you do have, and it will be “given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over.”

For instance, if you need healing, pray for someone else to be healed. James 5:16 says to “pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

Remember, seeing results in prayer can become a way of life for you, when you follow Jesus’ instructions. He said “all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.”

Notice He didn’t say you would receive half or three quarters of your prayers answered. Jesus said all, and He meant exactly what He said. V ICTOR Y

Get Into the

Overflow!

West Coast Prosperity Convention July 4-9

Anaheim Convention Center | 800 W. Katella Ave. Anaheim, CA 92802 | (714) 765-8950

Southwest Prosperity Convention August 1-6

Celebrating 25 Years at Southwest!

Fort Worth Convention Center | 1201 Houston St. Fort Worth, TX 76102 | (817) 570-2222

Great Lakes Prosperity Convention August 22-27

Visit our Web site for more information.

Meetings are subject to change without notice. For updated information, please log on to www.kcm.org/meetings or call the KCM office nearest you.

Partners and Friends within the United States call (800) 600-7395.

Partners and Friends within Canada call 1-877-480-3388.

U.S. Cellular Arena | 400 W. Kilbourn Ave. Milwaukee, WI 53203 | (414) 908-6000

Z

CircuitRiders Z

Early American Evangelists

Z

I

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ n the 18th century, brave itinerant preachers called

circuit riders crisscrossed the country spreading the gospel. This circuit system originated in England with the founder of the Methodist Church, John Wesley. Methodist missionaries and others later found the circuit method well-suited to the American frontier.

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These ministers traveled on horseback and

served a “circuit,” a regular route consisting of numerous stops. On the vast frontier, distances between settlements or towns were often great and pastors scarce. Circuit riders traveled grueling miles over rough terrain to preach in places that had no pastor or where churches were in need of help. Congregations often met in log cabins, courthouses, barrooms, schoolhouses or even outdoors.

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These remarkable

men, sometimes known as “saddlebag preachers,” usually carried only the supplies that would fit in their saddlebags, which typically included a Bible, hymnal and the denomination’s book of rules called a “Discipline.”

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Danger awaited them on the trail, but neither wild animals, threat of ambush, nor

persecution could stop these determined servants of God. They often preached seven days a week, sometimes multiple times a day, to all who would listen. They rode—rain or shine, heat or cold. As a result of the hardships they endured, some died before they were 30 years old.

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Their love for God and

His people came before their own safety or comfort. They dedicated their lives and worked tirelessly to preach the gospel throughout frontier America.

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Francis Asbury | Francis Asbury, born in England in Peter Cartwright | Another well-known circuit rider 1745 to devout Christian parents, was one of America’s first was Peter Cartwright. He began life in Virginia in 1785 circuit riders. Before his birth, Francis’ mother had a vision but a few years later moved with his family to Kentucky and received a prophecy that he would become a spiritual in an area dubbed “Rogue’s Harbor” because of a large giant. Although raised in an atmosphere of church meetings, population of ruffians and outlaws. Peter’s mother was a prayer and Bible reading, Francis didn’t accept Jesus until faithful Methodist who allowed traveling preachers to hold he was in his teens. He then began sharing his faith with meetings in her home. Although revival broke out and the others and within a few years became a Methodist minister Cartwrights were involved in building a church, Peter fell and itinerant. in with the wrong crowd and embarked on a life of sin. His Like many itinerant ministers, Francis received little formal mother prayed for him until at age 16 he became convicted education. His family was not well-off and at an early age and was saved. he had to leave school and go to work. But when he entered At that time, Peter began preaching and within a couple the ministry, he organized his time to include reading and of years, entered the traveling ministry. His autobiography studying each day, sometimes as he rode. reveals he went days without food, rode through storms and In 1771, when John Wesley called for missionaries to go snow, had to ford rivers and swamps, climbed mountains to America, Francis was one of the first to volunteer. He and often ended his days “wet, weary and hungry.” arrived in Philadelphia a few years after the Methodist Not only that, he faithfully proclaimed the good news church had been established in America. when some didn’t care to hear it…and said Traveling on horseback to remote areas, so. Many colorful stories are told about Their love for Francis threw himself into preaching as Peter Cartwright’s life. Thugs and rowdies well as training others to minister. His great often challenged him, even interrupting his God and His organizational skills also enabled him to meetings. But his wit, his faith and someestablish preaching circuits for his students. people came times his sheer strength helped him come out They carried the gospel message far and on top. before their wide and as a result, great revival broke out!

Peter Cartwright’s ministry spanned more These events fueled a wave of growth in the than half a century. His dynamic preaching own safety or Methodist denomination. to crowds in several states reportedly resulted Francis Asbury eventually became bishop of in 10,000 salvations. Yes, he endured many comfort. the Methodist Episcopal Church in America. hardships, yet he believed the price he paid Throughout his more than 40 years of was nothing compared to the joy of seeministry, he rode approximately 5,000 miles a year, usually ing souls saved! on horseback, and preached more than 16,000 sermons.

During the 19th century, circuit riders from several One of the greatest American circuit riders, Francis Asbury denominations continued preaching the gospel throughout displayed dedication and selflessness to the end. It is said America. The great faith, dedication and unselfish lives of that he often went without adequate clothing, having given these spiritual pioneers serve as an example of Jesus’ love it away to those in need. His journal told of nights spent in action. They teach us that we must not only share the outside, exposed to the elements and sleeping on floors of gospel when it’s easy or convenient, but rather we must obey insect-infested buildings. At times he was so tired, he had 2 Timothy 4:2: to be lifted onto his horse to ride to his next pulpit. In his later years, when he was not physically able to ride a horse, Herald and preach the Word! Keep your sense of urgency he traveled by carriage. Francis Asbury was compelled to [stand by, be at hand and ready], whether the opportunity preach the gospel—no matter what the circumstances. seems to be favorable or unfavorable. [Whether it is During his strong leadership, the Methodist Episcopal convenient or inconvenient, whether it is welcome or Church grew and became the largest denomination in unwelcome, you as preacher of the Word are to show America at that time with more than 200,000 members. people in what way their lives are wrong.] And convince This great man of faith preached his last sermon on them, rebuking and correcting, warning and urging and March 24, 1816, and died a week later. At the unveiling of encouraging them, being unflagging and inexhaustible an equestrian statue of Francis Asbury in 1924, President in patience and teaching (The Amplified Bible).

Calvin Coolidge cited the devotion and sacrifice that went into the making of America and hailed him as “one of the We must always be willing to love others enough to tell builders of our nation.” them about Jesus! V ICTOR Y

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by Keith Butler

I

Patience is what allows you to go from good measure to running over.

t’s one thing for a promise to be made. It’s another thing to actually inherit that promise—to have it in your hand and truly partake of it. A We not only need faith in God’s promises, but we also need patience to endure with hope and cheerfulness as He brings His promises to full maturity in our lives. Patience is the completing, finishing and enduring power to faith. With patience and faith working together, we move on, confident in our expectation that He will deliver on His promises.

A Hebrews 6:12 says, “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” Verse 15 goes on to say “And so, after [Abraham] had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.”

A Inherit, endure and obtain are three very important words that give us reason to operate in patience. Notice that you “inherit the promises” not through faith or patience alone, but rather “through faith and patience.” It takes both to inherit: “to view the promises as a physical fact.” A It also takes endurance to go through challenges—to take a licking and keep on ticking! Abraham endured; therefore, he was able to obtain the promise.

A To obtain means the same thing as inherit. When you obtain something, you literally have it as a physical fact. It ceases to be just a promise. A Hebrews 10:35-36 further explains, “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.” A Patience will help you receive the manifestation of God’s promise in your life.

Endure Calmly, Without Complaining | The Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines patience as: “the suffering of afflictions, pain, toil, calamity, provocation, or other evil, with a calm, unruffled temper; endurance without murmuring or fretfulness; the act or quality of waiting long for justice or expected good without discontent; perseverance; constancy in labor or exertion.”

In other words, having patience means being constant and unmoved. There’s an attitude associated with that. It doesn’t mean you’re just standing, but rather you’re standing with the right attitude and expecting good things to happen.

It means staying in there long enough to get the miracle.

Not all manifestations are instant, particularly those involving faith and healing. Mark 16:18 gives us insight into this when it says “…they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” The word recover doesn’t mean immediately; it means there is gradual improvement resulting in the full manifestation of healing. Hands are laid on the sick and the power of God begins to work, flowing through system after system in the body.

Faith releases the power, but patience keeps faith there long enough for the power to continue being released until full recovery takes place. While there are cases of instant manifestations of healing, that isn’t always the case—not even in Jesus’ ministry. That’s right. Jesus ministered to people and they were not instantly healed as a physical fact. They became healed over a period of time. They became healed as they went (Luke 17:14).

Keeping Hope Alive | As you operate in faith and patience, you must constantly act as though the Word is true. Even though you may see little progress initially, don’t become discouraged. Believing for the manifestation of a promise is just like putting a seed in the ground: The seed eventually comes up because it’s being watered. Water your seed with praise and worship. Go to bed, get up and praise God. From the time you plant until the time you receive complete and full manifestation, water your seed (the Word) with worship!

When someone is stricken with illness, it often seems sudden.

In most cases though, the problem has been working in his or her body for a long time; it was just never discovered. People often sense something is wrong, but dismiss it rather than taking care of it right away. As a result, the problem gradually grows. Then, suddenly, it is fully seen or realized. But, the truth is, it didn’t happen overnight. In the same way, the recovery from a physical condition may take place over time.

In this earth, everything is seed, time and harvest. If you don’t receive an instant healing, just know that the Word is still working—God’s power is still working on the problem.

You must operate in patience when believing for healing.

And patience is hopeful—it’s cheerful, it has endurance and

it’s constant. So keep your hope alive. How? The only thing that will give you hope 24/7 is the Word.

Faith, Patience and Finances | There are seasons for everything in the kingdom of God—seasons of sowing, seasons of reaping. This is spiritual law.

Think about an apple tree. When an apple begins to grow, it doesn’t instantly bloom out into a big, red, juicy apple. It begins as a small thing, hard as a baseball, and about the size of a little marble. You can pluck it then and you may be able to eat it and get some nutrition. But if you want the benefit of a fully matured apple, you have to wait for it to gradually develop.

Everything in this earth is seed, time and harvest.

In Luke 6:38, Jesus says: “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure [that’s one level], pressed down [that’s

Patience?

Who Has Time for Patience?

Waiting patiently while God prepares all the blessings He has for you isn’t always easy. Yet patience is exactly what’s required for your faith to work. Patience and faith unlock the power of God’s Word.

|

In Patience and Faith—A Match Made in Heaven,

Keith Butler explains how patience and faith work in tandem to bring you closer to God and everything He’s promised you. | Don’t settle for less! Order today and hold out for God’s best.

Patience and Faith: A Match Made in Heaven

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To order in Canada call toll free (877) 480-3388 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m. PT Monday-Friday. Charge card orders only please. All major charge cards accepted. To place an order by mail, please use the address on the last page of this magazine.

another level], and shaken together [that’s another level], and running over [that’s another level], shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

There are four different levels, and of course, we want the running-over level—or the overflow.

But notice it didn’t say, “Give and it shall be given unto you running over.” Instead, it says, “…good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.” In other words, there is a gradual manifestation to reach overflow.

Patience is what allows you to go from good measure to running over.

Stay in There—Stay in Faith! | Let’s take a look at the profile of a blessed believer; a believer who is receiving the manifestation of God’s promises. Psalm 1:1 says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”

If we want to be blessed, we should not seek counsel from ungodly people, closely associate with sinners, or spend time with scornful people.

Verses 2-4 tell us a blessed man’s “delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.”

Notice the phrase “bringeth forth his fruit in his season…” Here we see there are seasons of manifestation, seasons of patience.

Some things require patience, particularly where men are concerned. Remember the promise in Luke 6:38 that says: “…shall men give into your bosom.” For some folks, it takes two years of God talking to them before they will even say, “OK, I’ll entertain the thought.”

Several years ago, the Lord instructed us to give our Learjet to Oral Roberts University. I said, “OK, Lord.

We’re going to do what You said, even if it means we have to walk.” We sowed our paid-for jet into ORU and believed for God to provide us with an aircraft that would be multiple-times better.

I obeyed God by giving away our aircraft. Then every day for two years when I woke up each morning, as part of my confession I thanked the Father in the Name of Jesus for our new jet. Even though we didn’t see a manifestation, we continued to operate in faith and patience. And since that time the Lord has blessed us with two aircraft!

There’s a season of walking in patience. And no matter what the situation, you must stay in there while your faith is working. Stay in there and praise God, believing the seed you’ve sown is coming to complete maturity. Stay in there, knowing you’re going to make the devil pay seven times.

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Stay in there because God’s made a way of escape. Hebrews 11:6 says you must stay in there because “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

If you seek God in a diligent fashion, He will reward you.

Don’t Settle for Less! | So hang in there and keep believing with praise and hope. Fight the good fight of faith, as 1 Timothy 6:6-12 says: But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

Godliness with contentment is great gain! And contentment is a key to walking in patience—it’s an attitude.

God wants us rich, and blessed. He is our Rewarder—we don’t have to try to make things happen. We don’t have to compromise our values to get ahead. The good fight of faith doesn’t get caught up in impatience, lust, covetousness, envy or the love of money— the things this world is always promoting.

Instead, we fight the good fight of faith by following after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience and meekness.

As you fight this good fight, you can rest assured God is working on your problem. Walk in the force of patience until you have full manifestation in your life. The Lord is mighty in power. He’s battling on your behalf and He’s never lost a match. You just need to stay in the ring so He can stay in the battle until you win.

Don’t settle for less—hold out for God’s best! V ICTOR Y Adapted from Keith Butler’s new book, Patience and Faith: A Match Made in Heaven.

Keith A. Butler is founder and pastor of Word of Faith International Christian Center in Southfield, Mich., and Faith Christian Center in Smyrna, Ga. and Phoenix, Ariz. For information or ministry materials write to Word of Faith, P.O. Box 3247, Southfield, MI 48037-3247, call (888) 909-WORD or visit their Web site at www.wordoffaith-icc.org.

by Gloria Copeland

Faith is not for “Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

(Mark 11:22-24)

In living by the Word of God for more than 36 years, one of the greatest lessons I have learned about the Bible word receive is this: Receive is not a passive word. | I’ve seen this in conducting Healing Schools. Never did we have a Healing School in which God failed to reveal Himself.

Testimony after testimony confirmed this. | What I did observe was that God always shows up where there is a willingness to receive. Each of us has a part to play in receiving healing or anything else we need from God. We can’t just hope He will touch us. That’s not what the Bible teaches. What you receive depends on your faith, and faith is not passive. Faith is a receiver, an appropriator, a taker. It reaches out and takes what God offers. | Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon says the word translated receive in Mark 11:24 means “to take, to lay hold of, to take in order to carry away, to take what is one’s own, to take to one’s self, to claim or procure for one’s self, of that which when taken is not let go, to seize, to apprehend, to get possession of, to obtain a thing, to appropriate to one’s self, to obtain, to collect, to gather, not to refuse or reject.”

The Word of God is like a solid platform in the

spirit that you can walk out on and stand on with complete confidence.

Whether or not you receive is not entirely up to God. Keith Moore says it this way: You can’t leave up to the Lord what He has left up to you. You can’t sit over in the corner singing “Kumbayah” and expect to receive.

That’s the truth. If you desire to walk in divine health, you have to take what God has for you. Matthew 11:12 says, “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.” The New International Version says that “forceful men lay hold of it.”

Let me put it another way: Faith is not for wimps!

Lies That Block the Blessings | God expects us to lay hold of what belongs to us.

Now we do have an enemy who tries to stop us. He sets up roadblocks in an effort to keep us from receiving from God. Jerry Savelle calls them “blessing blockers.”

Many of these obstacles to God’s best in our lives fall under the category described in Mark 7:13: The tradition of men makes the Word of God of no effect. Traditions are demonic error—really lies—to keep the Church in the dark. For years traditional ideas and interpretations of Scripture have kept people from receiving healing.

So I’d like to expose some of those lies of the enemy and explain why they are wrong. As we go through them, make a note of any that have become part of your thinking.

Then replace those lies with what the Word really says.

1. “Miracles have passed away.” | I grew up in a church in which we frequently heard statements like these: “Miracles have passed away” and “Healing has passed away.”

But the truth is that in order for miracles and healing to pass away, God would have to change or pass away. And that can’t happen. He has already declared, “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed” (Malachi 3:6).

He has also said, “I am the Lord that healeth thee” (Exodus 15:26). Sickness and disease were never God’s will for man. Sickness only came when man disobeyed God, sinned and died spiritually. At that point man became subject to the evil one. But even then, God made a way to provide healing for His people. If He ever healed 28 |

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anyone, He is still that same healer today. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). But we have to do our part and give Him something to work with by exercising our faith.

2. “God gets glory from sickness.” | Sickness doesn’t bring glory to God. Healing does.

As Jesus healed the multitudes, Matthew 15:31 says, “When they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see…they glorif ied the God of Israel.”

3. “All things work together for good…” | A scripture that is often taken out of context and misunderstood is Romans 8:28: “All things work together for good to them that love God.” If you believe this means sickness is somehow for your good, you won’t resist it. But the Bible is very plain in what it says about sickness. The curse spelled out in Deuteronomy 28 includes “every sickness, and every plague” (verse 61).

Curses do not come from God. He is good to everyone (Psalm 145:9). Acts 10:38 says, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”

When you read Romans 8:28 in context, its meaning becomes clear: Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Romans 8:26-28).

This is not saying everything that comes along is working for your good. This is about those who love God. Those who love God obey His Word: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his

commandments are not grievous” (1 John 5:3). When we obey God we enjoy the blessing of God. The will of God is always good, but not everyone is in the will of God. This scripture is talking about the things of the Spirit working for our good. The Spirit makes intercession on our behalf when we pray in the spirit. When we obey God all things work together for good.

Everything that comes your way does not come from God and does not bring good into your life. You have the authority in you to obey or disobey. For instance, cancer does not work for your good. Car wrecks do not work for your good. They come to steal, kill and destroy. If you think these things come from God you will receive them instead of resist them.

4. “God puts sickness on you to teach you something.”

Sickness is not good. So when people say, “God puts sickness on you to teach you something,” that is totally unscriptural. The Bible says God uses His Word to teach us. He has sent the Holy Spirit to teach us. In Deuteronomy 28 God says if you don’t obey Me, all these curses will come on you. That’s not the will of God. God’s will is your redemption from the curse in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:13). Through ignorance, unbelief or rebellion

Jesus delivered people from sickness everywhere He went. He rebuked it! He was never a friend of sickness and disease. He always did the will of God and you never saw Jesus instructing anyone to stay sick.

5. “Lord, if it be Thy will…” | A traditional prayer that will help you die young is “Lord, if it be Thy will, heal my body.” Praying this shows you have not been reading your Bible and you don’t have a clue about God or His will. It’s always His will to heal.

Perhaps you’ve been going to the wrong church. You should come out of a church service with your faith more built up than when you went in. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). But if you don’t hear and believe what the Word says, your faith won’t be strong.

6. Unbelief | Even Jesus couldn’t heal those who were in unbelief. In His hometown of Nazareth, “he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief ” (Matthew 13:58).

Unbelief is the major blessing blocker. That’s why it’s imperative for you to know what the Word says and believe it enough to act on it. All the traditions I’m talking about are the result of unbelief.

There is no time to waste being lukewarm.

I believe Jesus is coming soon. It’s time to be on fire and live up to what we are supposed to be doing. and disobedience, we open the door to evil in our lives.

According to 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

God sent the Holy Spirit to be the teacher of the Church ( John 14:26). He will guide you into all truth ( John 16:13). God also placed teachers in the Church to instruct us (Ephesians 4:11-12). He doesn’t use sickness to do that.

Many believers labor under the misconception that whatever happens to them is God’s doing. As a result, they take no responsibility for anything and put up no resistance to the enemy when he brings sickness and disease.

If you don’t resist sickness, it won’t go away. The enemy will continue to rule and reign in your life. You must resist the devil if you don’t want him to live with you.

James 4:7 says resist him, and he will flee.

Unbelief comes by hearing just like faith comes by hearing.

It’s dangerous to your health to listen to unbelief.

There is no good reason to sit under teaching that’s full of unbelief if you desire to live and live well. Go where the uncompromised Word of God is being taught. Your life depends on it.

Galatians 3:11 says, “The just shall live by faith.” That means believers are to live by believing what the Bible says. You are healed by believing and acting on what the Word says about your healing. It takes believing and acting to fulfill the word receive!

Your Bill Has Been Paid | To all these traditions of men that would rob you of your right to be healed from the top of your head to the soles of your feet, God’s Word has something to say: Your bill has been paid!

Isaiah 53:4-5 tells us what Jesus actually secured for us. It says: “Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows. He

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was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole” (The Amplif ied Bible).

That is not a promise any more. It is reality. First Peter 2:24 says we were healed.

According to Galatians 3:13-14, Jesus was made a curse for us: “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us. That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ.”

Jesus took sin, sickness and the whole curse to free us from it. Sickness and disease were taken care of at the same time Jesus took care of sin. Matthew 8:17 says, “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”

The bill has been paid! Now all we have to do is receive it. Refuse to be ignorant of what the Word says. Read Deuteronomy 28 and you will see that everything bad is under the curse and everything good is part of the blessing. In plain words, sickness is a curse and healing is a blessing.

If you have never made Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, you are living under the curse. The only way out of the curse is through receiving Jesus as Savior and Lord. If you haven’t already done that, do it right now.

Then rejoice that you’re free, and receive what the Word says is yours—including “with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

Appropriate your healing.

Receive it. Seize it!

Don’t Wimp Out | This lifestyle of faith is not for the wimp. It’s not for the unbeliever or the doubtful. It’s not for the lazy. It’s for the one who abides under the shadow of Almighty God as Psalm 91 says. This person trusts God and lives by consistently depending on His Word in faith.

James 1:6-7 says the man who wavers won’t receive anything from God. Determine in your heart not to be like that man. Don’t neglect the great salvation Jesus paid for (Hebrews 2:3), which includes healing.

Even though these blessings belong to us now, they don’t just fall on us. We have to press in to the things of God (Philippians 3:14). We have to possess the land.

Each of us needs to spend time every day in prayer and in the Word and then do what it says.

Everything you will ever need in this life has been spoken out of God’s mouth and paid for by Jesus Christ.

When God speaks, spiritual law is established. It cannot change. When you take hold of those words and don’t

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let go, they become a solid foundation in your life. The Word of God is like a solid platform in the spirit that you can walk out on and stand on with complete confidence.

To walk in health, find out what the Bible says about it, believe it, speak it and act on it. God’s Word is life and health to your flesh (Proverbs 4:22). But it’s hard for healing to manifest if you don’t have Scripture to back it up because that is where faith comes f rom.

Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”

Don’t let ignorance of the Word kill you. Don’t be destroyed because you don’t take time to sit under the Word and be taught the truth. It takes time to get the Word in you to where it overcomes all the unbelief you were raised with before Jesus came into your life.

To begin with, resist the temptation to worry or talk about the problem—the circumstances.

Your responsibility is to believe and say what God says. You can do that when you obey the instructions in Proverbs 4:20-21: “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.”

Consistently put the Word in your eyes and ears so it gets down in your heart in abundance and becomes a part of you. Then it can come out your mouth by the Spirit of God as words of faith with the power to change your circumstances. Second Corinthians 4:13 says the spirit of faith believes and therefore speaks.

Bible believing is not just mental agreement with the Word. Bible believing acts.

Don’t Retreat...Abide! | I can tell you from experience that the lifestyle of faith works. When Ken and I started in it, we had absolutely nothing, except each other, our children and family. Since that time God has given to us not only our needs but He has fulfilled our desires in every aspect of life. He has given us whatever we ask.

It didn’t come easily and it didn’t come all at once. But if we didn’t give up, we received it. We learned to put God and His Word first—we learned to abide: He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence…. Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling…. Because

he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation (Psalm 91).

2005

Get Into the Overf low!

Fifty years ago no one would have thought biological weapons and epidemic diseases would be a threat today. But we have the antidote right here.

God will deliver us when we abide in Him, trust Him and say so.

When you hear threatening reports, talk back.

Say, “No, that’s not coming to me or to my house!”

Don’t let the devil talk you out of your healing and deliverance. Receive all the good things God has declared for you in Psalm 91 and throughout His Word.

Get Violent! | Settle the issue that God is a good God. He has good things for you when you honor, revere and trust Him (Psalm 31:19). Settle the fact that Jesus bore every sickness and every disease so you don’t have to bear them.

Praise and thank God for all the good He has done.

Psalm 145 says, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised. One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness” (verses 3-4, 7).

Dismiss all the traditions that have been holding you back from receiving from God. When you believe the Word and do what it says, you will experience good in your life.

There is no time to waste being lukewarm. I believe Jesus is coming soon. It’s time to be on fire and live up to what we are supposed to be doing.

People are dying for the lack of somebody standing up and being bold. We ought to be healing going somewhere to happen by the power of the living God. So live out your part. Don’t just be one who gets healed—be one who lays your hands on others and sees them healed as well.

Expect to be strong, live healed and live long.

Speak the Word and be bold about it. Whatever you believe for, don’t let go.

Don’t wimp out!

Be among the violent who take the kingdom of heaven by faith and by force! V ICTOR Y

VICTORY CAMPAIGN

M a r c h 17-19 Join Gloria Copeland for Healing School Saturday, March 19 at 9:30 a.m.

Speaker Schedule Thursday, March 17

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7:00 p.m. Kenneth Copeland

Friday, March 18

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9:00 a.m. Kenneth Copeland 1:30 p.m. Gloria Copeland 7:00 p.m. Kenneth Copeland

Saturday, March 19

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9:30 a.m. Gloria Copeland Healing School 6:30 p.m. Kenneth Copeland

Meetings are subject to change without notice.

For updated information, please log on to our Web site or call the KCM office nearest you.

Partners and Friends within the United States call (800) 600-7395.

Partners and Friends within Canada call 1-877-480-3388.

Faith Life Church • 3220 Falls Parkway • Branson, MO 65616 (417) 334-9233 • www.moorelife.org

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MARCH

BELIEVER’S

Kenneth Copeland

Gloria Copeland

Terri Copeland Pearsons

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Kenneth Copeland Becoming a Kingdom-of-God Investor Where do you spend your time? Your money? This Sunday discover a place where your investment will always yield big returns—the kingdom of God.

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V I C TO R Y

BROADCAST

CALENDAR

DAILY BROADCAST 7 Mon

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Kenneth Copeland Don’t Let Fear Steal the Free Gift of Eternal Life The devil wants nothing more than for you to lose out on living the life God has for you. Find out how to stop fear in its tracks…and hold on to God’s gift!

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Kenneth Copeland Jesus Triumphed Over All of Hell Jesus’ victory over the grave bought your salvation. This week, discover that’s not all it means! It also means you can live in abundance and overcome adversity every day.

Tune in to the BVOV broadcast Monday through Friday and on Sunday each week at

8 Tue

9 Wed

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11 Fri

The Bible Revelation of Partnership

Join Kenneth and Gloria Copeland this week as they dig into the Bible and share why partnership is so important, and how God will use it to bless YOU! 14

Kenneth Copeland Walking in Love Is Walking in the Light What is needed to have an intimate relationship with Jesus? A life filled with love. Discover the joy and power of living in the light and living in the love of God!

Click here to visit our online tv listings for Canada.

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Kellie Copeland

SUNDAY BROADCAST

www.kcm.org/media.

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VOICE

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Becoming a Proverbs 31 Woman

Join Terri Copeland Pearsons and Kellie Copeland this week as they discuss the importance and many benefits of obedience to God. 21

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Purposes and Priorities

Don’t miss this second week with Kellie Copeland and Terri Copeland Pearsons!

You’ll discover your purpose and learn how to establish priorities as a woman, wife and mother.

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God Desires for You to Be Healed!

Join Gloria Copeland for a powerful week in the Word as she shares God’s will for your healing and how you can be made whole!

Watch the BVOV broadcast again and again!

Order your cassette or video copies of the BVOV broadcast now by using the form in the center of this magazine. cassette Daily broadcast (one week) CDN$10 Sunday broadcast CDN$5

video Daily broadcast (one week) CDN$21 Sunday broadcast CDN$15

BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY VOLUME 33 NUMBER 3 March 2005 BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY is published monthly by Eagle Mountain International Church Inc./Kenneth Copeland Ministries Inc., a nonprofit corporation, Fort Worth, Texas. ©2005 Kenneth Copeland Ministries Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.

BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY and the logo on the back page are registered trademarks of Eagle Mountain International Church Inc./Kenneth Copeland Ministries Inc., in the United States and international countries where BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY circulates. Printing and distribution costs are paid for by donations from KCM Partners and Friends. Printed in the United States of America. For a free subscription write to Kenneth Copeland Ministries, Fort Worth, TX 76192-0001 or sign up online at www.kcm.org. Because all BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY issues are preplanned, we are unable to accept unsolicited manuscripts. Marketing Manager/Kelly Weekly Publishing Manager/Glenda Bunkofske Managing Editor/Kim Culp Editors/Deborah Ide Barbara Morley Writers/Karen Adlong Rick Bunkofske Christopher Maselli Don Turner Editorial Assistants/Penny Hagerman Eileen Hooley Melissa Johnson Proofers/John Caccomo Jean De Long Michelle Harris Melissa Trammell Senior Designer/Michael Augustat Advertising Coordinator/Clara Sorensen Account Executive/Jan Fraser Type Coordinator/Joyce Glasgow

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Kenneth Copeland Ministries PO Box 378 Surrey, BC V3T 5B6

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