Author: Editor

Welcome to The Sisterhood Hub! The Hub is where I share insights, resources, and reflections that have deepened my faith and strengthened my Christian walk. My hope is that you find encouragement and inspiration, be uplifted and challenged as you navigate your own journey. The Hub is dedicated to empowering women to embrace their God-given identity, rooted in the love, grace, mercy, truth and sacrifice of our Lord, Saviour, and soon-coming King, Jesus Christ. May this be a source of strength and renewal, fostering your self-worth and guiding you to live out your faith authentically. Together, let us walk confidently in our callings, trusting God every step of the way. May our lives reflect humility, integrity, and reverence for Him, as the Holy Spirit leads us to live fruitfully for His glory. The mission is to parade God’s love by sharing the gospel, writing, engaging in outreach and missionary work, distributing Christian resources, and serving communities both locally and internationally—as a pro-life advocate, committed to the sanctity of life from the womb to the tomb and beyond the grave, in both the physical and spiritual realms, as every life matters. Blessings, Lori 💕

The Parable of the Mexican Fisherman

Published on September 16, 2021January 17, 2025 by Editor

An American investment banker was taking a much-needed vacation in a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. The boat had several large, fresh fish in it.

The investment banker was impressed by the quality of the fish and asked the Mexican how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied, “Only a little while.” The banker then asked why he didn’t stay out longer and catch more fish?

The Mexican fisherman replied he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs.

The American then asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman replied, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos: I have a full and busy life, señor.”

The investment banker scoffed, “I am an Ivy League MBA, and I could help you. You could spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats until eventually, you would have a whole fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to the middleman you could sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You could control the product, processing and distribution.”

Then he added, “Of course, you would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City where you would run your growing enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But señor, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15–20 years.”

“But what then?” asked the Mexican.

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You could make millions.”

“Millions, señor? Then what?”

To which the investment banker replied, “Then you would retire. You could move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

The moral of the story highlights the importance of contentment and trusting in God’s provision. The Mexican fisherman, living simply, finds peace and fulfillment in his relationships with family, friends, and with God’s provision of meeting His needs. While the American banker represents the constant striving for wealth, success and greed, the fisherman demonstrates that true richness comes not from accumulating possessions but from living a life centered on what is truly valuable—faith, love, and community.

In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus teaches us not to worry about material needs but to seek first the kingdom of God, trusting that He will provide for us. The fisherman’s life reflects this truth: he is not consumed by the pursuit of more, but finds joy and peace in what God has already given him. This parable reminds us that living with contentment, rather than ambition for worldly success, is the path to true fulfillment in Christ.

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** Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh at pexels

Learn to Desire the Best for Others

Published on September 11, 2021November 25, 2023 by Editor

Our passion should be to know God better and better, because this is eternal life. We are going to spend all eternity getting to know God more and more. This is why eternity will not be boring for anyone whose passion is to know God. Our earthly life too will then not be boring any more. Let us learn something of God’s life and of His ways from Genesis 2, in the way He dealt with Adam. There we see that it was God Who saw Adam’s need for a wife and Who met that need and made a wife for him. There we see what God’s nature is like. God is always alert to the needs of people and does all that He can to meet those needs. When we partake of this Divine nature, we too will become like that – always alert to the needs and problems of those around us and doing everything we can in order to meet those needs! This will involve a great deal of sacrifice on our part often. We need therefore to ask ourselves whether we are willing to pay this price for partaking of the Divine nature.

Our Adamic nature is the exact opposite of this Divine nature. The life of Adam is thoroughly selfish and makes us alert only to our own needs and to the needs of our own family members. In fact it is so full of selfishness and jealousy that it does not want the needs of others to be met even by another. On the contrary. it enjoys seeing people suffer.

When man sinned, God placed cherubs in front of the tree of life with a sword that turned in every direction to guard the way to that tree. The tree of life symbolises eternal life – knowing God. Through this sword placed in front of the tree of life, God was symbolically showing Adam that if anyone now wanted to partake of the tree of life, he had to first experience the sword falling on his own selfish life. We read in Genesis 3:21 that as soon as Adam and Eve sinned, God killed an animal in Eden and clothed them with coats of the skin of that animal. There too God was teaching them the same lesson – that the only way for them to be clothed now was through the way of sacrifice and death. Adam and Eve had tried to clothe themselves at first without any “death” – with just fig leaves. But God threw those leaves away and showed them the right way to be clothed. So we see right from the beginning God emphasising sacrifice as the way for man to fellowship with Him and to be clothed with His nature.

God told Cain that his fundamental problem was that he “did not intend well” towards his brother Abel (Genesis 4:7). Jude speaks of those who walk in “the way of Cain” (Jude 11). Who are they? They are those who do not intend well towards their brothers. It is good for all of us to have a spiritual check-up in this matter. Can you honestly say that you desire the very best for all the brothers and sisters in your local church and for their families? Can you also say that you desire the very best for other believers whom you know in other denominations? Then widen the circle still further and ask yourself if you desire the very best for all the people whom you know, including your relatives, your enemies and those who have harmed you in any way. If you find a disturbance in your heart (instead of a rejoicing) when something good happens to another person or to his children, or if you sense a rejoicing in your heart (instead of a grief) when something evil happens to him or his family, what do such attitudes indicate? Just this that the life of Adam is alive and active in you.

If you are honest with yourself, you will soon discover whether you are walking the way of Cain or not. You must be quick when you see that evil Adamic life within you to put it to death, if you want the fire and the anointing of God to rest upon you constantly.

It is when the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies TOTALLY, that there will be much fruit. One who dies totally to himself will never get offended, no matter what others do or don’t do. He will always intend well towards all. He will never get angry in any matter that concerns himself and he will never quarrel with anyone. He will never shed a single tear for himself in self-pity – for, surely, dead people don’t weep in their graves!!

Cain’s face was sullen and dark when he did not intend well towards his brother (Gen.4:6). We may not realise it, but the attitude we have in our hearts is often reflected on our faces. If you intend well towards all, your face will always beam with the joy of the Lord. Many believers are walking in the way of Cain. Beneath their weak smiles and the “Praise the Lord”s that come from their lips, are found wrong attitudes towards their fellow-believers. When people turn against you and do evil to you, God uses them to give you a scan of your real heart condition. If you cannot love them, your heart-scan will show that you have NOT partaken of God’s nature, for God’s nature is one that loves even His enemies. Jesus intended well even towards Judas Iscariot.

God desires the very best for all people. The gospel message is that we too can partake of this nature. Those who haven’t understood the gospel thus haven’t understood the gospel at all.

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**Copyright – Zac Poonen. No changes whatsoever are to be made to the content of the article without written permission from the author.

10 Things You Should Know About The Welsh Revival of 1904 – 06

Published on August 18, 2021November 25, 2023 by Editor

On Sunday, Christmas Day, 1904, Dr. G. Campbell Morgan, pastor of Westminster Chapel in downtown London, England, delivered a somewhat unusual sermon. Contrary to his normal practice of expounding a passage of Scripture, he proceeded to tell his people about the remarkable things that the Holy Spirit was doing at that very time in Wales.

G. Campbell Morgan was a perceptive man, a conservative, sane, balanced, and highly respected pastor. Having heard that revival had broken out in Wales, and unwilling to accept anything on hearsay, he personally travelled to Wales to observe firsthand for himself, what, if anything, God was doing. Upon returning, he said this on that Christmas Day in 1904,

“I say to you today, beloved, without any hesitation, that this whole thing is of God, that it is a visitation in which He is making men conscious of Himself, without any human agency” (quoted in S. B. Shaw, The Great Revival in Wales, 78).

Here are ten things we should know about what happened in Wales.

(1) The principal human agent used by God in the Welsh revival was Evan Roberts. Roberts was born on June 8, 1878, and died in 1951. He began working in the coal mines when he was 12, but soon felt the call to study for the ministry. He immersed himself in the study of the Bible. Roberts was 26 years old when revival broke out. He had been praying for it every day for 13 years. Let me mention three things about Roberts.

He had a remarkable encounter with God that served to prepare him for what God was about to do.

“One Friday night last spring, when praying by my bedside before retiring, I was taken up to a great expanse – without time and space. It was communion with God. Before this I had a far-off God. I was frightened that night but never since. So great was my shivering that I rocked the bed, and my brother, being awakened, took hold of me, thinking I was ill. After that experience I was awakened every night, a little after one o’clock. This was most strange, for through the years I slept like a rock, and no disturbance in my room would awaken me. From that hour I was taken up into the divine fellowship for about four hours. What it was I cannot tell you, except that it was divine. About five o’clock I was again allowed to sleep on till about nine. At this time I was again taken up into the same experience as in the earlier hours of the morning until about twelve or one o’clock. . . . This went on for three months” (Shaw, 49).

Roberts was not a brilliant speaker or preacher, yet his audiences were captivated by his words. “What is the secret of the spell he wields over that audience? Is it learning or eloquence . . .? Nothing of the kind. The secret of his power is that he is ‘full of faith and love and zeal and the Holy Spirit’” (Shaw, 117). He was simple, plain, and unimpressive so that God might get all the credit and glory for what happened. Roberts dreaded publicity, newspaper reporters, and shunned praise and adulation. If he ever sensed that the people had come to see or hear him only, he would withdraw and refuse to preach. He refused to be photographed. He was convinced that if people focused on him and not Christ that the Holy Spirit would immediately withdraw his presence.

He was filled with joy! Someone remarked that the most striking feature of the revival “is the joyousness and radiant happiness of the evangelist. It has been remarked that the very essence of his campaign is mirth. To the rank and file of the church ministers this is his most incomprehensible phase. They have always regarded religion as something iron-bound, severe, even terrible. Evan Roberts (on the other hand) smiles when he prays, laughs when preaches. ‘Ah, it is a grand life,’ he cries. ‘I am happy, so happy that I could walk on the air’” (Shaw, 11).

(2) Some point to the beginning of the revival at New Quay, Cardiganshire, on Sunday morning in February of 1904. It was during a prayer meeting being led by pastor Joseph Jenkins. Jenkins asked for personal testimonies. Some tried to speak on other issues, but Jenkins redirected their focus to the Lord. There was prolonged silence. Then suddenly a young girl named Florrie Evans rose to her feet and spoke softly, with a trembling voice: “I love the Lord Jesus with all my heart!” A journalist named W. T. Stead who was present that day wrote this:

“The pathos and the passion of the avowal (of that young girl) acted like an electric shock upon the congregation. One after another rose and made the full surrender, and the news spread like wildfire from place to place that the Revival had broken out, and that souls were being ingathered to the Lord.”

(3) What was the cause of it all? While there are many answers, most believed it was the result of earnest, agonizing prayer, couple with heart-broken humility. Evan Roberts had prayed daily for 13 years. There were numerous prayer groups in Wales that had prayed for the previous 1 ½ years. One observer said:

“If it be asked why the fire of God fell on Wales, the answer is simple: Fire falls where it is likely to catch and spread. As one has said, ‘Wales provided the necessary tinder.’ Here were thousands of believers unknown to each other, in small towns and villages and great cities, crying to God day after day for the fire of God to fall. This was not merely a ‘little talk with Jesus,’ but daily, agonizing intercession.”

G. Campbell Morgan put it this way:

“If you and I could stand above Wales, looking at it, you would see fire breaking out here, and there, and yonder, and somewhere else, without any collusion or prearrangement. It is a Divine visitation in which God – let me say this reverently – in which God is saying to us: See what I can do without the things you are depending on; see what I can do in answer to a praying people; see what I can do through the simplest, who are ready to fall in line, and depend wholly and absolutely upon Me” (Shaw, 76).

One thing is clear: the revival was not the product of someone’s personality or of another person’s preaching or of anyone’s planning, but of God’s gracious response to the prayers of his people!

(4) The revival broke out and spread without any advertisement or commercials or posters telling of the meetings that were being held. There was no publicity to speak of; no fanfare. What then brought the people to the meetings? The Holy Spirit! One researcher said: “I have scanned newspapers of Wales which came out in 1904-05 and found no paid advertisements there announcing the meetings.” Not one dollar was spent promoting the revival.

(5) People were saved! Approximately 70,000 came to faith in Christ in the first two months and over 100,000 during the course of the revival. There are countless stories of salvation. Here is one.

During one meeting a well-known skeptic in the town interrupted Evan Roberts as he preached. “I want to ask a question,” he shouted. Roberts ignored him. “I want to ask a question,” he yelled angrily again. “If you do not answer me, I will come to pulpit to ask my question.” Everyone ignored him, so he began to make his way to the pulpit to confront Roberts. An eyewitness to the event described what happened next:

“As in the case of Saul of Tarsus, on the Damascus Road, the Holy Spirit overpowered this man – he would have collapsed on the stairs had not the people upheld him – constraining him to cry out for mercy and pardon. What a scene followed! When the people realized the full import of what had happened, the shout went up, ‘He has been saved! He has been saved!”

(6) There was a noticeable absence of preaching during the revival, not because it was devalued but because great preaching had preceded and precipitated the move of the Spirit. As one man said, “These people, all the people in a land like ours, are taught to death, preached to insensibility” (Shaw, 29). The time had come for response!

(7) There was an intense passion for Jesus. On several occasions during a meeting people could be heard crying out: “No more, Lord Jesus, or I die!” The point is that you want revival when you pray for more of Christ. You are in revival when you’ve got so much of him that you feel compelled to say, “No more, lest I die.”

(8) There was a remarkable, widespread passion for singing. When one man was asked if he thought the revival could spread to other countries, he replied: “Can the people sing? That is the question to be answered before you can decide that. Hitherto the revival has not strayed beyond the track of the singing people. It has followed the line of song, not of preaching” (Shaw, 28).

G. Campbell Morgan was stunned by the energy of their worship. “No books, but, oh my, I nearly wept tonight over the singing of our last hymn. . . . When these Welshmen sing, they sing the words like men who believe them. They abandon themselves to their singing. We sing as though we thought it would not be respectable to be heard by the man next to us. No choir, did I say? It was all choir! And hymns! I stood and listened in wonder and amazement as that congregation on that night sang hymn after hymn, long hymns, sung through without hymn-books” (Shaw, 75).

Another described it this way:

“The fact is, unless heard, it is unimaginable and when heard [it is] indescribable. There was no hymnbook. . . . Just anybody started the singing, and very rarely did it happen that the hymn started – no one knew by whom – was out of harmony with the mood at that moment. Once started, as if moved by a simultaneous impulse, the hymn was caught up by the whole congregation almost as if what was about to be sung had been announced and all were responding to the baton of a visible human leader. I have seen nothing like it. You felt that the thousand or fifteen hundred persons before you had become merged into one myriad-headed, but simple-souled, personality. Such as the perfect blending of the mood and purpose that it bore eloquent testimony to a unity created only by the Spirit of God” (JS, 17).

Often while many were praying, others broke into quiet song: “Oh, send the Holy Spirt, Lord!” “The effect of this soft musical accompaniment to the prayers of several voices cannot be described. It is deeply impressive, and often leads the soul into a quiet ecstasy that is truly of Heaven” (Shaw, 24).

(9) Another feature was the overwhelming sense of God’s presence. One pastor said: “If one were asked to describe in a word the outstanding feature of those days, one would unhesitatingly reply that it was a universal, inescapable sense of the presence of God. The Lord had come down! A sense of the Lord’s presence was everywhere. It pervaded, nay, it created the spiritual atmosphere.”

Said another: “Eternal issues were discussed freely and unashamedly, and above all, a sense of the presence and holiness of God pervaded every area of human experience, at home, at work in shops and public houses. Eternity seemed inescapably near and real.”

The pervasive sense of God’s manifest presence awakened great emotional intensity. F. B. Meyers describes a typical service:

“They who merely read such descriptions as this may think that the meetings are characterized by emotional excitement. But that is not the case. There are undoubtedly strong excitement and deep emotion, but these are well under control; and beneath all that can be accounted for by the influence of highly exalted moods of soul on other minds, it is undeniable that the power of God is working after the fashion of those wonderful scenes of which our fathers have told us in 1859” (Shaw, 66-7).

Yet another described it this way:

“Let it not be suspected that we are afraid of all stir and excitement. The greatest and best actions have [always] been performed in stages of excited feeling and high personal exaltation. Nothing was ever achieved in the way of great and radical changes in men or communities without some degree of excitement; and if anyone expects to carry on the cause of salvation by a steady rolling on the same dead level, and fears continually lest the axles wax hot and kindle into a flame, he is too [fainthearted] to hold the reins in the Lord’s chariot” (Shaw, 56).

Another pastor describes the emotional impact of the revival:

“I have no more doubt of its being a work of God than I have of my own existence. As to describing the revival and estimating its results, can you put in words those deep and hallowed experiences of life realized when God meets you almost palpably and sways your whole being cross-ward, heavenward, and the atmosphere trembles with light, life, love, joy, praise, reverence, [and] awe?” (Shaw, 92).

Again:

“No wonder the people could not sleep and could not stay away from the meetings. No wonder the services carried on till two and three o’clock in the morning and then resulted in a march through the streets with the people singing the praises of The Lamb!
Many at the time and since then criticized the emotionalism displayed in the meetings. Yes, when thousands of people are convicted of their sins and are gloriously saved by the grace of God, how can they contain their joy? When believers are elevated to a new heavenly position in Christ and at the same time see the answer to years of agonizing prayer in the salvation of their loved ones, surely there must be shouts of joy and songs of adoration.”

(10) There were prolonged meetings of prayer and praise. One newspaper reported who attended wrote this:

“The scene was almost indescribable. Tier upon tier of men and women filled every inch of space. Those who could not gain admittance stood outside and listened at the doors. Others rushed to the windows, where almost every word was audible. When, at seven o’clock, the service began, quite 2,000 people must have been present. The enthusiasm was unbounded. Women sang and shouted till the perspiration ran down their faces, and men jumped up one after the other to testify. One told in quivering accents the story of a drunken life. A working [man] spoke like a practiced orator: and one can imagine what a note the testimony of a converted gypsy woman struck when, dressed in her best, she told of her reformation and repentance. At ten o’clock the meeting had lost none of its ardor. Prayer after prayer went up from these Welsh hearts with almost dreary persistence. Time and again the four ministers who stood in the pulpit attempted to start a hymn, but it was all in vain. The revival had taken hold of the people, and even Mr. Roberts cannot hold it in check. His latest convert is a policeman, who, after complaining that people had gone mad after religion, so that there was nothing to do, went to see for himself, and bursting into tears, confessed the error of his ways, and repented” (Shaw, 10).

One lady reported on the meetings:

“There was no opening of the meeting; the hearts were full, and burst with prayer and praise to a God felt to be in our midst. One gentleman who had come from Oxford to see the work, said: ‘These men are not praying to be heard of man; it doesn’t matter to them what people think of them; they are thinking about the answer, not about the hearers.’ At times a wave of power, without any human instrumentality, or anything external to cause it, would sweep over the mass of the people, and spontaneously almost the whole company would pray aloud, no one heeding the other, and without the slightest confusion. Everyone was absorbed with God; but in the midst of it, no one dealing with them, a man here, a woman there, would yield to God, and in a few minutes stand up and give praise that they had found the Lord. Sometimes singing and prayer would go on together, but there was no real confusion – the praying was not to man, and the singing was not to man. But such singing is rarely to be heard. It was perfect time and perfect harmony; often the same hymn (never given out, but started spontaneously), sung in English and in Welsh at the same time, and sung over and over, until it penetrated” (Shaw, 12-13).

Yet another described the meetings this way:

“An indefinable influence pervades the country, and awakes to action in the services through the mere reading of a passage, or the singing of a well-known hymn, or the inelegant prayer of a [coal miner] or a country maiden. The ministers, even when in sympathy, take little part; . . . the meetings, often prolonged through the whole night, seem to conduct themselves. . . . From all accounts it is clear that there is a controlling spiritual power that dominates and directs in all. Everywhere stress is laid upon the personality and operation of the Holy Ghost – ‘the Pure Spirit,’ as the name reads in Welsh” (Shaw, 52).

And another:

“Three-fourths of the meeting consists of singing. No one uses a hymn book. No one gives out a hymn. The last person to control the meetings is in any way Mr. Evan Roberts. People pray and sing, give testimony, [and] exhort as the Spirit moves them” (Shaw, 53).

Once again, G. Campbell Morgan describes his experience in a meeting he attended:

“I can tell you no more, save that I personally stood for three solid hours wedged so that I could not lift my hands at all. . . If you could but once have seen the men, evidently [coal miners], with the blue seam that told of their work on their faces, clean and beautiful. Beautiful, did I say? Many of them lit with heaven’s own light, radiant with the light that never was on sea and land. . . Today it is awakened, and I look on many a face, and I knew that men did not see men, did not see Evan Roberts, but they saw the face of God and the eternities. I left that evening, after having been in the meeting three hours, at 10:30, and it swept on, packed as it was, until an early hour next morning, song and prayer and testimony and conversion and confession of sin by leading church members publicly, and the putting of it away, and all the while no human leader, no one indicating the next thing to do, no one checking the spontaneous movement” (Shaw, 73).

What were the results of this awakening? During the time of revival the police were left with virtually nothing to do and the courts were empty. Saloons and bars shut down for lack of business. Public drunkenness was almost non-existent. Old debts, many long forgotten, were paid off in full. Traveling theatrical agencies canceled their engagements, as everyone was in church! Profanity disappeared. It was said that horses everywhere were in complete confusion. They had become accustomed to responding to their master’s profane shouts and kicks and cursing, virtually of all of which had disappeared.

At one rugby match, a pastor said he heard only one man cursing, who thereupon repented. Of the 40,000 present, 10,000 began singing hymns. Relationships were healed and marriages restored. This last description of the revival perhaps sums it up best:

“It was plainly evident now to everybody that God had answered the agonizing prayers of His people and had sent a mighty spiritual upheaval. A sense of the Lord’s presence was everywhere. His presence was felt in the homes, on the streets, in the mines, factories and schools and even in the drinking saloons. So great was His Presence felt that even the places of amusement and carousal became places of holy awe. Many were the instances of men entering taverns, ordering drinks and then turning on their heels and leaving them untouched. Wales up to this time was in the grip of football fever when tens of thousands of working-class men thought and talked only of one thing. They gambled also on the result of the games. Now the famous football players themselves got converted and joined the open-air street meetings to testify what glorious things the Lord had done for them. Many of the teams were disbanded as the players got converted and the stadiums were empty.”

On that Christmas Sunday in 1904, G. Campbell Morgan closed his sermon by saying this. Let no man hear of what happened in Wales and try to start it in his own land. Why? Because no man started it in Wales! We cannot produce revival. We can only pray that God would be gracious to us and send it in abundance!

** By Sam Storms at samstorms.org / Photo by UCKG

Invisible Barriers to Healing

Published on August 14, 2021June 9, 2025 by Editor

*“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds”*
***– 2 Corinthians 10:3-4***

While Scripture clearly teaches that healing is part of the atoning work of Jesus on the cross (Isaiah 53:5; Matthew 8:17), even after we have gone through all the scriptural truths and prayed in faith, God in His sovereignty may still choose not to heal. We see this throughout the Bible—in the lives of faithful servants like Paul, Timothy, and Job. Paul was not delivered from his “thorn in the flesh.” Timothy dealt with frequent stomach issues. Job endured great suffering over an extended period. These examples remind us that healing is not always immediate or guaranteed, and sometimes God’s greater purposes are worked out through our weakness and dependence on Him.

But what do you do when you don’t see the healing manifest in the physical realm? Derek Prince discloses six common barriers to healing—and how to overcome them. The notes below are from the sermon Invisible Barriers to Healing.

Common Barriers To Receiving Healing

A. Ignorance (Isaiah 5:13; Hosea 4:6)

B. Unbelief (Hebrews 3:12–13)

Prayer: “Oh, God, I come to You in Jesus’ Name, and I confess my sin of unbelief. I do not try to excuse it. I am responsible for it. I am sorry for it. I ask You to forgive me and to deliver me from it and impart to me Your faith. I want to declare: I believe in God the Father, I believe in Jesus Christ His Son, I believe in God the Holy Spirit, and I believe in the Bible—the true, authoritative Word of God. I believe, Lord Jesus, what you said, “God’s Word is the truth.” Amen.”

C. Unconfessed sin (Proverbs 28:13) [Ask God to reveal any areas of unconfessed sin]

Prayer: “Oh, God, I acknowledge I am sorry. Forgive me, cleanse me in the blood of Jesus. Thank you for forgiving me, God. I receive your forgiveness. Now, God, because You have forgiven me, I forgive myself.”

D. Resentment and unforgiveness toward others (Mark 11:25)

Prayer: “Holy Spirit, I ask You now in Jesus’ Name to speak to my heart and show me areas of bitterness, resentment and unforgiveness and make me willing to forgive. If there has been any resentment in my heart—any unforgiveness, any bitterness— I renounce it now. I lay it down. If anyone has ever harmed me or wronged me, I forgive them now, as I would have God forgive me. Lord, I forgive them in Your Name, and I believe You forgive me. Thank you, Lord, in Jesus’ Name.”

E. Occult involvement (Exodus 23:24–26):

1. Fortune-telling

2. Ouija board

3. Horoscopes

4. Superstition

5. Rock music

6. Drugs, etc.

Prayer: “Lord, if I have ever been involved in the occult, even ignorantly, whatever it was, I confess it as a sin and I renounce it. I ask You to forgive me and I commit myself now that never again will I be involved in those things. Forgive me, Lord, and release me from their influence. Right now. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.”

F. Freemasonry (Exodus 23:32):

1. False religious system

2. Royal Arch Degree – The god Jabulon (Ja = Jehovah, bul = Baal, on = Osiris). This is an abomination in the sight of the Lord.

3. One example: Woman with baby, six weeks old, that would not take nourishment (girl’s father was a Freemason). Baby took three full bottles after curse broken.

Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, I want to serve You and love You. If there is in my life (or in my family) a curse of Freemasonry or any other cult, I ask You to release me and forgive me and break its power over me right now. In Jesus’ Name.”

G. Effects of a curse over a family:

1. Mental and emotional breakdown

2. Repeated and chronic sicknesses (especially hereditary)

3. Repeated miscarriages or female problems, barrenness, etc.

4. Breakdown of marriage and family alienation

5. Continuing financial insufficiency

6. Accident prone

7. Suicides or unnatural deaths

Prayer: “Thank you, Lord Jesus, that on the cross You were made a curse that I might be redeemed from the curse and enter into the blessing. And because of what You did, Lord Jesus, in Your precious Name I release myself from every curse over me and my family and I claim the blessing that You purchased for me with Your blood. Thank you, Lord Jesus.”

H. Evil spirits associated with sickness (Luke 4:40–41).

Direct cause of sickness:

1. Spirits of infirmity, crippling, pain

2. Curvature of the spine

3. Spirit of death (Look on dark side of things, morbidity, dressing darkly)

Prayer: “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.” (Ps. 118:17) I. Ministry to the sick (Mark 16:18) After prayer, keep your plug in.

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**Courtesy of Derek Prince Ministries / The notes are from the sermon: Invisible Barriers to Healing

** The spiritual warfare prayer

**How to have a relationship with God and be saved: The Path To Salvation, please click: HERE

7 Ways To Tell If You Are In A God Ordained Relationship

Published on August 13, 2021January 16, 2025 by Editor

Why God ordained? Because if your relationship is NOT God approved, you will surely experience unnecessary heartache and years of drama and turmoil. Who would dare enter into a relationship that isn’t approved by God? Many do… And many stumble and regret not utilizing Godly insight and wisdom when picking their mates. Who you date/court and eventually marry is the most important decision in your life, second only to your decision to follow Jesus Christ. This shouldn’t be left to chance or worldly wisdom such as choosing based on physical attraction, emotional connection or worldly status. “Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.” (Proverbs 31:30).

Physical and emotional attraction is great, but come only secondary when it comes to picking “The One” who God has chosen for you. Depending primarily on these factors cause many Christian marriages to fail in the end, because they are not based on Biblical principles nor are they the main part of God’s blueprint for marriage. You must seek the Lord earnestly in prayer for His will in such an important matter. Let us not lean on our own understanding, but in all our ways acknowledge Him, so He can direct our paths. His ways are not our ways, neither are His thoughts our thoughts. The Lord seeks to build His Kingdom which is long term, our thoughts are short term and usually involves our own selfish desires. He knows the plans He has for us, which includes our marriage partner.

1 – You are Equally Yoked Christians

The operative word here is equally yoked. By this I mean you are both Christians for starters and are both in a similar place in your walk with Jesus. If one of you walks closely with Him and the other barely knows Him, you are not Equally Yoked. You must have a strong Spiritual connection with one another. You must view and worship God in a similar fashion. You can talk openly about God and can spur each other on in your faith and walk with Christ. You should be able to pray together as a couple and pray for one another when you are apart. This prayer should come naturally and without hesitation. I cannot emphasize enough how critical this point is. It’s not enough that both of you believe in Jesus Christ. If you are not equally yoked spiritually, your relationship will unravel quickly.

Ephesians 5:25-26 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word…

If you are not Equally Yoked because one of you is not a Christian, your relationship is not ordained by God, because this is blatant disobedience to God’s Word. If you are not equally yoked because you don’t connect spiritually or one of you is more grown than the other, particularly the woman, you should prayerfully consider taking a break and seeing if time apart will bring the other person to a closer and deeper relationship with God. If not, then it is not a match. MOVE ON… Regeneration and transformation is evidence of a Spirit led life yielded to Him.

“There is no exception to this rule; if a man loves not God, neither is he born of God. Show me a fire without heat, then show me regeneration that does not produce love to God.” — Charles Spurgeon

2 Corinthians 6:14-18 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.” “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Physical attraction is not enough glue to keep a marriage alive. Look at all the celebrity marriages that are based on looks and attraction. Jesus is the Superglue in any marriage! If you don’t see Jesus in that person’s character, action, or spirit, you are fooling yourself and setting yourself up for a world of frustration and hurt.

Deuteronomy 22 tells us not to sow a vineyard with different kinds of seed or plow with an ox and a donkey together. God wanted to separate His children’s practices from pagan practices. In the same way, a Spiritual connection is achieved by equally yoking, sanctified believers planted at the same level, walking along the same path, direction, and speed.

Can two walk together, unless they are agreed? Amos 3:3

This is critical in the context of marriage according to God’s Word. He doesn’t want us to struggle by either being weighed down by someone’s lack of knowledge or overwhelmed by someone’s drive to push to the next spiritual level. God’s sovereignty is greater than our fleshly point of view. This spiritual connection becomes apparent during the dating/courting stage. Don’t think marriage will suddenly cause a spiritual connection to magically appear between two different levels of believers. Not to say that God cannot raise up and sanctify a once flailing believer for His glory, I am merely suggesting that we should obey His commands and precepts to receive His full blessings according to His promises instead of pushing the envelope and walk along the perimeters of what is acceptable in His eyes.

2 – You are both Marriage Minded

You both share similar goals about marriage; you are both ready for it. The time frame should be within one to two years at the most. If neither of you are ready for marriage, why are you dating? Recreational Dating is not advisable for Born Again Bible Believing Christians; it only leads to sin, which dishonors God, then God doesn’t bless the union. This ends up causing long term issues in the marriage by blurring the lines between lust and love.

Once lust and the physical aspect has already been introduced in the relationship, the waters are muddied and both parties cannot see or think clearly. This is also a warning sign that the relationship is not God ordained.

If only one of you is ready to get married, then you are incompatible and shouldn’t date. This also turns into recreational dating for the one who isn’t ready to marry and a big waste of time for the one who is ready to marry. When an individual is ready for marriage after spending quality time with God in worship, sanctification, and service, nothing pleases Him more than to bring a suitable mate for that individual in the covenant of Marriage.

In Genesis 24:1-23, Abraham sent his servant to seek a wife for his son Isaac. He was very choosy by sending his servant back to his country to find a suitable mate for his one and only son. Before meeting Rebekah, the servant said a prayer to God asking for wisdom. Rebekah proved herself worthy when she served water to this servant and his camels. She unknowingly showed her diligence and work ethic which was the sign he was looking for in finding “The One.”

3 – You have Complete Peace

When your relationship is God ordained, it will be simple, uncomplicated, and should run smoothly. It won’t be perfect, but will seem effortless. Your schedules don’t collide. You both have time to go to church, serve God, and enjoy time together. Your lives converge easily without too much effort. Both your friends and families approve. There is no drama, fighting, or constant bickering. Peace will permeate your spirit when God ordains your relationship. When you think about that person, you smile and thank God for bringing you a perfect and wonderful gift. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father…” (James 1:17)

Genesis 24:40 But he said to me, ‘The Lord, before whom I walk, will send His angel with you and prosper your way; and you shall take a wife for my son from my family and from my father’s house.

God will send his angels to ensure you prosper in your ordained relationship. This brings perfect peace. But when you are constantly arguing and chaos/drama is a consistent theme, something is wrong. When your lives are on opposite schedules and you can’t get time together, much less go to church or serve God together, this is a warning sign. When close family members or trusted friends have issues with your mate, take heed. If most arguments are not getting resolved and get swept under the rug; when you think about that person and get upset or stress out, it’s time to get out of that relationship. Most people don’t see these issues as road blocks and think getting married will solve these problems. It doesn’t. Permanently chaining yourself to someone who doesn’t get along with you, will not miraculously make them get along with you better. God is a God of order, not confusion. He is trying to warn you. “Get Out!”

2 Chronicles 8:16 Now all the work of Solomon was well-ordered from the day of the foundation of the house of the LORD until it was finished. So the house of the LORD was completed.

If God has ordained our days, He will also ordain the placement of our mate in our lives in the proper order and time; according to His will. If you are investing emotionally, mentally, and physically before getting a green light from God, you are not only being disobedient, but you are also hurting yourself and your future relationship in many ways. Repent, part ways, and let Jesus mend your heart. If you have a hard time letting go after knowing you are in the wrong relationship, you have other underlying issues like co-dependency. Partnership with a co-dependent person is not advisable. You are not yoking yourself to a healthy partner or relationship.

4 – You Enjoy Being with that Person

Take away the iPhone, Facebook, Cable TV, games, and all media. If you were stranded on a deserted island with this person with only a Bible, would you have the adventure of a lifetime or does getting a root canal seem more appealing? This is the true test of compatibility. When you can sit with this person without distractions and physical intimacy and can laugh, communicate, connect, and enjoy yourself, you are on the right track, because you have the foundation of a Godly Friendship in place.

The thought of this person gets you excited spiritually and emotionally. Out of all the people you know, this person is the first person you want to share your victories and trials with. Their presence and their input is what you look forward to at the end of your day. You see Jesus in their countenance and demeanor.

Proverbs 25:11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.

But if sitting alone with this person for two hours without media distractions makes you uncomfortable, you need to reevaluate your relationship. If your communication often goes awry and ends in an argument or frustration, this is a red flag. You have communication issues. Again, marriage doesn’t cause two incompatible people with communication barriers to suddenly have a strong connection. It’s either there or it’s not.

Proverbs 17:1 Better is a dry morsel with quietness, than a house full of feasting with strife.

5 – Communication, Communication, Communication!

When it comes to Real Estate it’s Location, Location, Location! But in a relationship, it’s Communication to the third power! You must be able to speak freely both ways. The best communicators are active listeners. They are also great at articulating their thoughts and feelings through speaking and writing. It’s best to find someone who can communicate at your level and listens intently to your every word. After all, we have two ears and one mouth. The bible tells us it’s better to listen before speaking.

Ezekiel 3:10 Moreover He said to me: “Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears.

James 1:19-20 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

After being spiritually connected, communication is the next critical item on the list. You must be able to communicate with one another frequently, with ease, openness, and pleasure. If there is a lot of miscommunication, arguments, and difficulty, it’s a Red Flag! Again, this is another item that either exists naturally or not at all. It’s understandable that communication is a skill that can be learned and improved on, but when there are difficulties in a dating/courting relationship, beware! Proceed with caution. Don’t date/court someone to fix them. This is God’s job, not yours!

6 – Majority Approves

People closest to you, whether friends or family must approve of your mate. These are people who know you, love you, and want what’s best for you. Sometimes we can get emotionally and physically caught up in someone and not see the “Big Picture.” This is where they come in, their opinions and insights count. Obviously, be cautious of those who are not basing their opinions on Biblical virtues. With some parents, no one will ever be good enough for their little prince or princess and there are those who may be biased in some way. Seek out Godly council, people who are wise and impartial and who don’t have their own agenda at play. If a majority of them disapprove of your choice, God is trying to tell you something. Don’t ignore their opinions. They are God’s messengers for your protection. Your relationship will not thrive in a bubble or a vacuum. God did not intend that for any marriage. If anything, your relationship is meant to be an illustration to the world of God’s goodness, faithfulness, and love.

Matthew 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

In biblical times and some cultures today, parents often chose spouses for their children. This is not such a bad idea. Who do you think would make a better judgment call, an emotionally inexperienced and hormonally driven 22-year old or a mature parent who has both Godly and Worldly wisdom and insights? Before Rebekah agreed to leave with the servant, she needed her family’s wisdom and approval as a sign that God ordained it. I’m sure if they didn’t approve, she wouldn’t have agreed to go. “Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, “The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot speak to you either bad or good.Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.”(Genesis 24:50-51)

Genesis 24:57-61 So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.” So they sent away Rebekah their sister and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her: “Our sister, may you become the mother of thousands of ten thousands;
And may your descendants possess the gates of those who hate them.” Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.

Here we see that Rebekah heeded her family’s approval before deciding to leave with Abraham’s servant. She also proved her faith, readiness, and willingness by leaving her family at a moment’s notice and setting out for a new life in a far away land to marry a man she never met! This took courage, faith, and preparedness; the kind that manifests after spending alone time with God.

On A Personal Note

I would have to get to know him in an unconventional manner because I don’t believe in dating. We would have to communicate and get to know each other without a lot of physical contact and/or be around groups of people. I honestly believe that too much physical contact blurs the lines and injects romance prematurely. Romance happens after the wedding, not before. This is where the world system gets it wrong … I won’t fall for him emotionally until he decides to be my husband. This way, he can catch me when I fall.

Too many women fall for a man who hasn’t even professed their love much less have the intention of marriage. And this is why they fall flat on their face and end up broken and wounded. Don’t fall for a man or invest emotionally until you know he is God’s match for you!

7 – God Gives you a Supernatural Love for this person

When God ordains a relationship, He gives you supernatural examples to confirm His approval of your union. It won’t take years or months. Sometimes it’s a matter of hours or weeks to know you are in the presence of “The One.” Now granted, if you met in high school, then it will take years, but when you are at an appropriate age, it doesn’t take long to figure it out if God is in the centre of your relationship. A man will be overcome with the desire to see the woman more often, while the woman won’t have time to fret over his intentions or feelings.

Ladies, if you are sitting around fretting over some guy who isn’t calling you or wanting to spend more time with you, give it to God. You could be wasting your precious time and energy on the wrong guy. Instead of being fixated on Mr. Wrong, focus on what you should be doing, which is serving God.

1 Peter 4:8 And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.”

Those who have met the right person will be given an extra helping of love for this person that will seem unconditional.You can’t imagine your life without this person in it. Your love for this person becomes more Christ-like and pure. This love is not driven by selfishness or lust. If it is, beware! Lust doesn’t last. It is only lighter fluid that dissipates over time. The flame dies out quickly if Christ-like love is not the center or foundation of your relationship. God doesn’t bless such a union. Be Warned: the enemy will have a field day wreaking havoc on your relationship, instilling fits of jealousy, rage, and tumultuousness.When deciding on a future mate, these seven factors should be the criteria in your decision making. Emotions and physical attraction shouldn’t override these factors. Otherwise, you will be on a slippery slope compromising in a relationship that God did not ordain. God’s blessings were bestowed on Rebekah as she faithfully waited and readied herself for her future mate.

Genesis 24:67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her.

The Takeaways:

1 – A Spiritual Connection centered on Christ and set apart by His precepts is a requirement in a God Ordained Relationship.

2 – Physical attraction and emotional connection doesn’t last and is not God’s main criteria in selecting a mate for you.

3 – God wants to bless you with a mate who will bring you closer to Him, not farther from Him. He will present the person who will bring you to a more intimate relationship with Him so He will be glorified through your union.

4 – Recreational Dating: leads to sin, doesn’t honor God, and prepares you more for divorce, than marriage.

5 – Communication either flows freely or it just doesn’t. A communication blockage is a Red Flag!

6 – Majority Approval is a must! God reveals His truth through our family, friends and Godly counsel, when we no longer listen to Him.

7 – Wait on God’s choice for you! When God ordains it, it will be exceedingly and abundantly more than you could ask or think!

There is HOPE …
I just want to clarify that if you are already married and both of you are in Christ, you are in the right place regardless of your struggles. Like I mentioned above, Jesus is the superglue. Allow Him to work by giving him control instead of handling everything on your own strength. Both of you MUST submit to Him and obey His statutes for marriage. He wants to be the Hero in your love story and the solution to all your issues. No problem is bigger than Him, including infidelity. Divorce is not the answer, He is. He can make all things beautiful if you submit to Him. Redemption, reconciliation, renewal, and revelation is just around the corner!

Read Ephesians 5:22-33. I believe this is the blueprint of God’s construct of marriage. Most people don’t follow this and wonder why their marriage is suffering or falling apart. If both people love each other and want the marriage to thrive, then they must submit to God and follow His instructions.

Ephesians 5:22-33 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Saviour of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. ”This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

If you notice, the husband has his work cut out for him. This is why it’s very important for a woman to choose wisely in a future husband. I can’t tell you how many women suffer because of their choice in a self-righteous husband … myself included. The man is the leader and head of the home as Christ is of the church. If a man is not walking right with God, this leads to the erosion of the marriage and family. Fervent Prayer is the first step if this is the case. First pray for your husband, next pray for strength and patience. Godly counsel is next if nothing changes.

The wife must submit to her husband, even if he is not in Christ. She shouldn’t sin, but rather submit to his wishes as long as they are not opposed to God. Too many women are strong-minded and imprudent in their ways … myself included in the the past. The culture predicates this and makes women think it’s empowering. This doesn’t work in a marriage ordained by God. It only brings strife and conflict. Allow God to soften your heart and learn to submit to Him as you submit to your husband. When he sees the change, he will soften and his love for you will grow. This allows Jesus to pour His Spirit to further strengthen your bond.

If you have lost hope and are at the end of your rope, I will pray for you. I have walked in your shoes and have counseled and prayed for many on that dark and lonely road. Remember that the enemy is hard at work destroying families with his wicked agenda predicated on the media. His biggest target is husbands. Many are spiritually castrated and have abdicated their roles as Godly men to their wives.

I pray your relationships get refocused and become centred in Christ Jesus. They affect every facet of our lives and determine how we walk with the Lord. God Bless you and yours!

**Husbands and Wives: A Marriage Covenant by Derek Prince

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**Revised Article by author Nina Andres.

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