Go

Shout The Word Stop The Thief

by Frances Hunter

Shout The Word Stop The Thief!

Im a noisy Christian! And glad of it! Because theres a secret to walking in victory every day of your life, and Ill give it to you in one short sentence shout the word! !here was a time when the centurion said to "esus, #If you $ust s%eak the word, my servant will be healed&' But Im going to tell you to go beyond s%eaking the word( Im going to tell you to shout the word! )hen you really learn to shout the word of *od from your heart, it is going to hel% you walk in glorious victory every day of your life, rain or shine! )ords %aint %ictures whether we whis%er them, sing them, or shout them! If I told you about the beautiful hot %ink a+aleas that are blooming in front of our house right now, thats what you would %icture in your mind& If I talked about the bluebonnets along the highway, you would instantly see bluebonnets! If I talked about the worlds best husband, you would instantly %icture Charles in your mind, or at least I would!

Because words %aint %ictures, we need to be e,tremely careful of the kind of %ictures we %aint& I cant take a brush and accom%lish anything, but I can do a lot of %ainting with words, and so can you, %roviding you use the word of *od& )ords give away whats really inside your heart& !he word says, Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks! -ou can say many great. sounding things, but your words will eventually give you away& /id you ever try to tell a lie when you were a kid0 I did! )hen you tell a lie, you %aint a %icture with words, and the ne,t time you %aint the %icture you have to %aint it a little bigger than it was the first time because you have to try to cover the last %icture you %ainted& !hen you discover that you eventually get to the %oint where you dont %aint the %icture the way you did at all in the beginning! -ou dont even reali+e you have distorted the truth because you have been so busy %ainting over the truth that you dont even remember what the truth was to begin with! I will never forget the consuming lie I told when I was a little girl& I was always so much bigger than anyone in my class that I wanted to cut off about si, inches of my legs because I towered

over all the boys& !he other girls were %etite, graceful and charming, and I %ictured myself as a big cow who fell all over the %lace& 1raise *od I dont worry about things like that any more, because since I got saved Ive discover. ed Im a beautiful %erson because Ive been created in the image of *od& Im smart, too, because I have the mind of Christ! !hats the %icture *od %ainted on my mind when I was saved! It says so in His word! I remember I wanted to im%ress my schoolmates so much, but my family was so %oor I had only one dress all year long and if it wore out I had to kee% on wearing it& )e had one %air of shoes all year long, and if they wore out, we didnt have any more shoes until the ne,t year! 2ne time in school they asked how many of us had %arents who were born overseas& 3ome kids raised their hands& !hen the teacher said, #*rand%arents who were born overseas,' and many more raised their hands& !hen #great grand%arents' and almost everyone raised their hands e,ce%t me& 4y %eo%le were all %oor farmers who came from the river bottoms in Illinois, and as the teacher ke%t coming around the room asking the

other kids the country their relatives came from, I sat there like a little ugly duckling, and finally raised my hand& 5-es, Frances,' the teacher said& )ith a %oker face I said, #4y grandfather is an Indian!' #6eally, what tribe did he come out of0' !he only one I had ever heard of was Cherokee, so I said, #Cherokee . hes full.blooded Cherokee!' #!ell us about your grandfather&' #)ell, he has high.cheek bones, and hes got black eyes& 7And there wasnt a black.eyed %erson in our entire family& )e all had blue eyes, but I knew Indians didnt have blue eyes!8 And hes got long black hair& And he wears feathers and he does Indian dances, and he is chief of the tribe, but he lives so far away he could never come to school&' I had %ainted a %icture that was a lie, and it got me into one of the biggest messes I ever got in with my daddy! I couldnt sit down for a week! -ou see, words do tell whats in our hearts& I wanted to be somebody and I thought if I was an Indian Chiefs granddaughter, that would make me somebody& It did& It made me one big liar& )ords also tell your failures and your heartaches& I was talking to a woman at a conference ground and all she could tell me was

how badly her husband had treated her& !he words she was s%eaking were telling me what was on the inside of her heart& Bitterness, resentment, anger, hate, $ealousy of the other woman& 3he thought she was %ainting a %icture that would make me sym%athi+e with her, but her words were %ainting a %icture to me of e,actly what things were in her heart, all of them unscri%tural 9 and what unfor. giveness! Its ama+ing how our fears and our heartaches and our failures are registered in the words we say& )ords can also make things ha%%en& !here are three words, that can make more ha%%en than anything else& In Jesus Name! If we would $ust get so word oriented that we would s%eak nothing e,ce%t the words that come out of the Bible, we would have the strongest vocabulary in the world& I used to think I had one of the strongest vocabularies in the world before I got saved, but it was really a weak one& A strong vocabulary is one that will accom%lish things& And so when your vocabulary becomes the word of *od, when you begin not only to s%eak the word, but actually begin to shout it, great and e,citing things are going to ha%%en in your life&

)ords also gloriously bless or revoltingly curse& Havent you ever been blessed when someone said, #4ary, I really a%%reciate you&' !hats a lot more blessed than if you said, #4ary, you stink!' :very thy I tell Charles that he is the worlds best husband and he gets blessed every time I say it& It never gets old& And thats scri%tural, too& !he word says, #)ives should highly %raise their husband&' ;ot only that but when I say that, Charles isnt about to %rove me wrong, so he kee%s on being the worlds best husband! !he si,th verse of 1hilemon says, That the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. It says to acknowledge every good thing which is in you in Christ "esus& )hen *od saved me, if I had ke%t my mouth shut, I would have never acknowledged that He saved me, but if I say, #!hank you, <ord, for saving my soul,' I am acknowledging something good that He has done for me& !he Am%lified Bible says, (And pray! that the participation in and sharing of your faith may produce and promote full recognition and appreciation and understanding and precise

knowledge of every good (thing! that is ours in (our identification with! Christ Jesus " and unto (#is glory!. !hat verse gives you four things& It says as you share your faith as you %artici%ate in the faith of other %eo%le, it %roduces full recognition, a%%reciation, understanding and %recise knowledge of every good thing that is ours in our identification with Christ "esus& )e need to tell %eo%le of the good things *od has done for us& ;ot only by our own words but by the word of *od& And if you %ara%hrase the word of *od, thats all right& !he main things that you need to know are the %rinci%les in the word of *od& !he word of *od has not lost its ability, because the ability of the word of *od to %roduce is guaranteed by the author of the ability 9 thats *od! *ods word can never be challenged, because He is the author and finisher of our faith and everything that He says is true& !he word is full of creative ability& If we could $ust understand that, we could call into being those things which be not as though they were& )e have creative %ower in our mouths! -ou will have creative ability in your mouth if you will learn to s%eak and shout the )ord& 4any of us would

honestly have to say, if we ke%t track of our time, that we s%end more time talking about the devil than about *od! !hink about the conversations you have with the %eo%le you meet all day long& !here was an old song entitled # Accentuate the $ositive% &liminate the 'egative.' I dont know whether or not the %erson who wrote that was a Christian, but he really said a good thing& )e need to o%erate in the %ositive! !he word of *od is always %ositive& !he devil is always negative& He may seem like hes %ositive, but a lie is negative, and he is always against *ods word! I have heard students at Bible Colleges say, #I $ust dont seem to be getting very much out of school& 4y faith isnt increasing at all& !hey $ust dont teach the right sub$ects!' )hose book is that remark taken from0 !he devils bible& If they would learn to say, #Boy, am I ever learning& 4y faith has really learned to escalate and now Im beginning to shout! Im never going to be a secret. service Christian again& I am going to be a big loudmouth! Im going to be the biggest blabbermouth that ever e,isted in the whole =nited 3tates!' !hen we go sho%%ing and how many do you think get negative on a sho%%ing binge0 *lory to

*od 9 two %airs of eyelashes and one can of shrim% . >??&@@! )ow! /o you reali+e that we s%end a tremendous amount of time gri%ing to each other about the cost of food0 )e say, #2h, I cant believe those %rices& !hey are terrible! I cant believe it!' )e waste much of our time and energy in things that are really devil talk& I can guarantee you that you could stand in that store and talk with the manager and say, #I think this is an absolute outrage& )hy Im not going to %ay that much for a %ackage of cheese& Im not going to %ay that much for a gallon of milk&' He wouldnt change his %rices because he has no choice& 3tores certainly are not of the devil, but right now the devil is trying to control the finances of the world& /o you know what I would do instead0 I would say, #I thank you, <ord& -ou %rovide all my need, according to your riches in glory by Christ "esus& -ou %rovide all of my need& I need a gallon of milk today, <ord, and I thank you that you %rovide all my need&' )e had an interesting thing ha%%en in a service the other night& /uring the offering I had everyone %ass their wallets to the %erson ne,t to them because we were going to %ray for a return of the

money they gave to *od& I said, #-ou always have more faith to %ray for the %erson ne,t to than you have for yourself&' 2ne man handed his em%ty wallet to the %erson ne,t to him, and when he got the wallet back, there was a >A&@@ bill in it! He got so e,cited because there was absolutely nothing in it when he handed it over& !he %erson who held it said he didnt %ut the >A&@@ bill in there& But there it was! )hy0 Because we were s%eaking %ositively that my (od shall supply all our need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 71hili%%ians B CD8 )e were s%eaking the word& )e were not s%eaking the devils word, we were s%eaking *ods word! !he reason I say, shout is because we have too many whis%ering Christians& !hey shout over everything else, but they cant shout over what *od has done for them& -oud be sur%rised at the end of a miracle service or during a miracle service, when %eo%le are sovereignly healed in everyone the audience and they come u% and I ask them what *od did for them, they say the answer in such whis%ered tones that I have to ask them over and over before I can finally understand them&

6evelation C A, ? says #And from Jesus Christ% the faithful witness% the firstborn from the dead% and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To him who loved us and washed us from our sins in #is own blood% and has made us kings and priests to #is (od and )ather% to #im be glory and dominion forever and ever.' -ou have become a royal race& )hen you were born again by the 3%irit of *od, you became a king and a %riest& /o you think thats worth shouting about0 I do! If you went to :ngland and the Eueen %assed by, youd hear more shouting than you ever hear in some churches! )e hear %eo%le shouting about almost everything these days! I turned the television on one morning when I was teaching on this sub$ect at the City of <ight 3chool of 4inistry because I wanted to hear a few commercials, and I heard someone shouting about a wonderful cereal& !hey indicated that if I ate it I would have the figure of a young athlete& Im not interested in having the figure of a young athlete, because Im not the ty%e to have bulging muscles, but as they sat there saying, #Hmmmnimmmm, oh, this cereal is so good&' It made me want to go out and buy some anyway! !hey were shouting about it and raving

about how fantastic it was! )eve got a lot more to shout about than some cereal thats coated with sugar! Another commercial which really #gets' me concerns sham%oo! Ive always had real tacky hair& !hats why I wear wigs! Ive always had su%er. thin, su%er.oily, su%er.fine baby hair& -ou have to wash it every thirteen minutes if you want to kee% the oil out of it & & & thats a slight e,aggeration, but you got the %oint, didnt you0 If youve been born with that kind of hair, you always a%%reciate those %eo%le who have long flowing hair& )ell, here comes a beautiful girl with thick lustrous long hair, $ust having been sham%ooed with #slicky.tricky sham%oo&' 3he throws her head sideways like a race horse, and her hair flies in one gorgeous swing across her face& !his beautiful, %erfectly washed shiny mo% of hair flies in front of her face in %erfect order and then she turns her head the other way, and the hair gracefully flows around and looks gorgeous all the time! !he im%lication and the words behind this say that the same thing will ha%%en to your hair& )hen I was young, I fell for all that kind of advertising& I would get in front of the mirror after using it, and all Id end u% with would be a wet,

stringy little mo% of thin hair that would $ust lie there and look like a wet, stringy little mo% of thin hair! But those %eo%le went on day after day %romising what the sham%oo would do! Ive washed my hair now for si,ty.five years, and it always takes one hour to go #%fffft,' regardless of the kind of sham%oo I use! But theyre still shouting about it! !hen theres always the !F commercial with a beautiful syl%h.like girl who has on a very gossamer nightgown, and shes bouncing on a #beddie.bye' mattress& 3he flies all over the %lace, and the announcer insists that youll look $ust like that if you slee% on one of those mattresses! -ouve got to be kidding! I dont care if you %ile five of those on my bed, I still would never look like that when I wake u%& But those same %eo%le have been shouting that for as long as television has been invented& !heyre shouting and screaming, #:at this cereal, slee% on this 5beddie. bye mattress, swish your head all around G !hen came the frosting on the cake& !here is a new brand of cologne that is su%%osed to be absolutely irresistible& !hey insist that a treasure of sur%rises awaits you if you wear the cologne that brings out the beast in men& I had some, so I %ut it

on, and began to visuali+e what would ha%%en to me on the way to the City of <ight 3chool of 4inistry if the things the world shouts about were really true! I gave myself an e,tra dose to make sure that I would be utterly irresistible to anyone who came within twentys miles of me& !here is one sto%.and.go sign on the way to the office, and sure enough, I got sto%%ed there& /o you know what ha%%ened0 4en got out of their cars on the freeway one.half mile away and began to run to sniff this creature who smelled so good! )hat a traffic $am occurred because the bree+e carried the fragrance u% and down the highway! !he men could not stay in their cars! ;ow I want to tell you the truth& !hat was a big lie! /o you know what really ha%%ened0 I sto%%ed at the sign, and nobody got out of their car, !hey $ust sat there like they didnt even know I was in there, smelling all over the %lace& I even rolled the window in my car down so that the fragrance could get out a little better, but it didnt do a thing! !he world pays to shout that stuff on television! Advertising com%anies %ay a lot of money to get u% and shout about $unk& How many of us would be willing to %ay to get u% and shout

about "esus0 And yet weve got a %roduct that cant be beat! Im going to give you some statistics that are really interesting& !he word #%roclaim' or #%roclaimed' is used forty times in the Bible& !he word #s%eak' is used over ACC times& *od thinks the word #s%eak' is %retty good& *od commanded 4oses, to s%eak to Israel over fifty times& *od said, #4oses, tell Israel this&' *od said, #4oses, s%eak&' And every time *od had 4oses s%eak, what did He have him s%eak0 !he word of *od& -ou can believe that He did not have 4oses out there telling some of these fantastic fibs& 4aybe fibs isnt the correct word( maybe e,aggerations would be better& !he words #s%eaketh,' #s%eaking' and #s%oke' are used CAH times& Add all these u%& #3%oken' is used HIJ times& #3hout' is used KA times& #3houted' is used HJ times& !here are CK times in the Bible where we are commanded to shout and tremendous things ha%%en when you get your voice lifted u% and you begin to shout to *od& 1salm BJ C says Oh% clap your hands% all you peoples* shout to (od with the voice of triumph! t doesn+t say% #)his%er, you little bitty characters down there&' It says, #3hout unto *od with a voice

of trium%h&' 3hout! *et your voice u% so %eo%le can hear you& 3hout unto *od with a voice of trium%h& 1salm A CC says Im a noisy Christian& /o you know why I have so much $oy0 Because I shout all over the %lace& !hink about that verse, ,et them ever shout for -oy% because .ou defend them* let those also who love .our name be -oyful in .ou. <et them that love thy name be $oyful in thee& *lory to *od! Its a command of *od that we are to be $oyful& )e shouldnt be walking around with long %oker faces looking miserable! !here should be such a dance in our feet and such a song in our hearts that we want to dance all over the %lace all the time& !he $oy of the <ord is something to shout about! I %ersonally cant stand still during a worshi% service& Im standing u%, $iggling all over the %lace all the time& -ou ought to let your whole body know youre worshi%%ing *od! )e need to be vocal Christians 9 alive Christians& *od is raising u% an army of shouters in these days! Hes raising u% an army of %eo%le who are not ashamed of the gos%el of the <ord "esus Christ&

1salm KH CC says, /e glad in the ,ord% and re-oice% you righteous* and shout for -oy% all you upright in heart! -ou cant shout for *od if youre not u%right in heart& 1salm KA HJ says ,et them shout for -oy% and be glad% who favor my righteous cause* and let them say continually% ,et the ,ord be magnified% who has pleasure in the prosperity of #is servant. /id you know that *od has %leasure in your %ros%erity0 *od does not have %leasure in your %overty& *od has %leasure in your %ros%erity! Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord! Thank you that you want me to prosper !a""e"u#ah! G"ory! G"ory! G"ory! G"ory to God! Thank you, $ather! I can $ust see those finances rolling into the ministry& !hank you, <ord! I can see you meeting my every need! *lory 9 His word says, Shout for -oy! 1salm CKH D says, ,et .our priests be clothed with righteousness! -ou and I have been made kings and %riests because of "esus& !herefore we are clothed in the robes of righteousness, so it says, ,et .our priests be clothed with righteousness and let .our saints shout for -oy. Shout for $oy! Shout for $oy! If *od says something one time in the Bible, thats good enough reason to do what He

says, but when He commands you thirteen times, He means business about shouting! 1salm CKH C? says will also clothe her priests with salvation% and her saints shall shout aloud for -oy. 4y cu% runneth over, Father& *lory to *od! 4y cu% of $oy is running over, running over, running over! !here is a tremendous story in "oshua ? C.A& It says, #'ow Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of srael* none went out% and none came in. And the ,ord said to Joshua% 0ee! have given Jericho into your hand% its king% and the mighty men of valor. .ou shall march around the city% all you men of war* you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do si1 days. And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams+ horns before the ark. /ut the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times% and the priests shall blow the trumpets. t shall come to pass% when they make a long blast with the ram+s horn% and when you hear the sound of the trumpet% that all the people shall shout with a great shout* then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him. ;ow *od must have thought there was %ower in shouting& /ont you think it would be a

ridiculous thing to build a big wall, wide enough for a car to drive around it, and say, #*o around si, days& /ont o%en your mouth& Lee% your mouth shut but on that seventh day, let go, let it out, shout, and the wall will go down so flat that there is no rubble there& -ou will be able to walk right straight on to%, on level ground&' Continuing at the tenth verse 'ow Joshua had commanded the people% saying% .ou shall not shout or make any noise with your voice% nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth% until the day say to you% 20hout!+ Then you shall shout. And it says% 0o he had the ark of the ,ord circle the city% going around it once. Then they came into the camp% and lodged in the camp. And Joshua rose early in the morning% and the priests took up the ark of the ,ord. Then seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams+ horns before the ark of the ,ord went on continually and blew with the trumpets. And the armed men went before them. /ut the rear guard came after the ark of the ,ord% while the priests continued blowing the trumpets. And the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. !hey did this for si, straight days! /o you have any idea how their faith was rising u%0 /o you see

why *od told them to go around it si, days0 If He had said, #-ou go out there and shout, the wall is going to fall down,' it wouldnt have really done very much for them& I can $ust see them going around and around! 2ne day, si, to go& !wo days, five to go& !hree days, four to go& Four days, three to go& Five days, two to go& 3i, days, one to go! Cant you see the antici%ation rising u% in those individuals until they said, #!omorrow is the day!' /o you think anyone sle%t that night0 I dont think there was a single %erson who sle%t& I can hear them saying, #)2)! )hat do you think is really going to ha%%en0' !heir antici%ation was e,%loding& !his is why *od often allows us a waiting %eriod so that our faith will increase! For three years I have confessed a million dollars coming into our ministry& :very day that it doesnt arrive, my faith increases! )hy0 Because I know its one day closer to the time when it will arrive& !hat was $ust like these men! !hey ke%t saying, #2ne day less, $ust one day less, one day less&' And then if you really believe it with your heart and soul, youre going to know that day is someday going to get there& And when that day comes that Hunter 4inistries gets a million dollars,

do you know what Im going to do0 Im going to shout! Am I ever going to shout! Ive been shouting about it for years, so when it finally gets here, Im going to shout so loud theyll be able to hear me all the way over in Africa& !hen the word says, /ut it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early. They weren+t going to sleep that day! They rose early% about the dawning of the day% and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times. ;ow what else were they doing0 !hey were being obedient to *od& !hey only walked around one time every day& !hey did not whis%er, nor did they make a sound in those si, days& /o you have any idea what a hike it is to go around "ericho seven times0 !hey didnt shout on the first time around& 3hhhh& !hey didnt shout on the second day& !hird, fourth, fifth, si,th & & & shhhhh& !hen it says, And the seventh time it happened% when the priests blew the trumpets% that Joshua said to the people3 shout% for the ,ord has given you the city. /o you know what ha%%ened0 !hey shouted! How loud do you think they shouted0 3u%er loud! Ferse H@ says 0o the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when

the people heard the sound of the trumpet% and the people shouted with a great shout% that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city% every man straight before him% and they took the city. )hy did it ha%%en0 Because they shouted& !hey didnt softly say, #)ould you %lease fall down0' !hey shouted! Its time that all Christians began to shout! Isaiah cha%ter CH says And in that day you will say3 4 ,ord% will praise .ou* though .ou were angry with me% .our anger is turned away% and .ou comfort me. /ehold% (od is my salvation% will trust and not be afraid* for .A#% the ,ord% is my strength and song* he also has become my salvation. Therefore with -oy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And in that day you will say3 $raise the ,ord% call upon his name* declare #is deeds among the peoples% make mention that #is name is e1alted. 0ing to the ,ord* for #e has done e1cellent things* this is known in all the earth. Cry out and shout% O inhabitant of 5ion% for great is the #oly One of srael in your midst! If you are ever down in the dum%s and de%ressed, $ust read that %assage over and over and

see what it does to you! And then when you get to the end it says, #Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Mion for great is the Holy 2ne of Israel in the midst of thee&' -ou shout those same words! *od is in the midst of you because "esus lives inside of you& If everything else in your world falls a%art( if everything else goes wrong, do you know that youve still got something to shout about0 -ou can shout because "esus lives inside of you& Isaiah BH C@, CC says 0ing to the ,ord a new song% and #is praise from the ends of the earth% you who go down to the sea% and all that is in it% you coastlands and you inhabitants of them! ,et the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice% the villages that 6edar inhabits3 let the inhabitants of 0ela sing7 In other words, if you live inside of a rock 7"esus8, sing& 7 let them shout from the top of the mountains. /id you ever go on to% of a mountain and shout0 -ou know there are some %laces where you can go where there is a tremendous echo and you can get u% there and shout, #"esus!' and it comes back, #"esus, "esus, "esus, "esus, "esus, "esus, "esus&' -ou can hear yourself shouting over and over again&

In the house where Charles and I lived when we were first married there was a big brass %late on the wall in our dining room, and there was one %lace where you could sit and look that %late sNuarely in the face and shout, #"esus!' and that brass %late would say it back to you about fifty times& It only ha%%ened from one %lace and that was the %lace where I always sat in the dining room& )hat a %lace to shout from! I could $ust sit there and say, #"esus' one time and then sit back and en$oy the rest of it! !he word tells us to shout! *lory to *od! 3hout it from the houseto%s and the to% of the mountains! )e always ought to be so e,cited about "esus that we cant be Nuiet& Isaiah BB HK says #3ing, 2 heavens, for the <ord has done it! 3hout, you lower %arts of the earth( break forth into singing, you mountains, 2 forest, and every tree in it! For the <ord has redeemed "acob, and glorified Himself in Israel& #It says shout, shout! <et the redeemed of the <ord say so& 3ay it so loud that the world can hear you& Me%haniah K CB says, 0ing% O daughter of 5ion! 0hout% O srael! /e glad and re-oice with all your heart% O daughter of Jerusalem! It says, shout, shout, shout!

Mechariah D D contains the last of the thirteen commands that *od gave us to shout in His word& It says 8e-oice greatly% O daughter of 5ion! 0hout% O daughter of Jerusalem! /ehold% your 6ing is coming to you* #e is -ust and having salvation% lowly% and riding on a donkey% a colt% the foal of a donkey. )hy should we shout0 Because the Ling of the "ews is going to come riding in& !his is %ro%hecy in the 2ld !estament, that the Ling is going to come in and Hes going to be riding on a donkey& And they said thats something thats worthwhile shouting about! *lory to *od! !he word #mouth' is used BCJ times in *ods word& !here is only one way I know of to shout and thats with your mouth& -ou can cla% your hands all you %eo%le, but it still says shout unto *od with a voice of trium%h& We need to start shouting the words of God! 6omans C@ C@ says )or with the heart one believes unto righteousness% and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Im sa%ed! *lory to *od! Im sa%ed! Ive been shouting that from the houseto%s ever since it ha%%ened! )hy dont you go and call someone right now on the tele%hone and say to them, #Im sa%ed!'

If you want your faith to grow, if you want to walk in victory every day of your life, begin shouting, #<ord, I love you! "esus is <ord! Hallelu$ah!'

&&&
At the to% of my lungs I screamed, 'Get out of my (ar! What do you think youre doing with it)* !he thief didnt blink an eye! ;either did I! I $ust screamed again, '+id you hear me) I said get out of my (ar!* <ater as I related this story to a %olice chief, he said, #According to statistics, you should have been dead in thirteen seconds!' The thief does not come e1cept to steal% and to kill% and to destroy. have come that they may have life% and that they may have it more abundantly 7"ohn C@ C@8& 3atan comes to steal your $oy, your %eace, your comfort, your finances, your salvation, your health! He comes to steal everything that you hold %recious& )hy do you know about %eace and $oy and love and ha%%iness and contentment and %ros%erity and the abundant life0 Because of the word of

*od, and the minute the word of *od gets into your heart, it makes the devil mad! It makes him mad because he knows that now you reali+e that the %rice has already been %aid for everything you are entitled to as a child of *od& And the minute you begin to get the word of *od into your heart and you begin to understand the %romises of *od, then the devil comes to try to steal the word away& !his is why in all our meetings and teachings we %ut so much em%hasis on reading the word, on s%eaking the word, and on believing the word, because once you get your s%irit man full of the word of *od, the devil is going to have a more and more difficult time accom%lishing anything in your life! Its the word of *od hidden dee% within your heart which will allow you to rise above the negative situations in life& <uke I A.CH really tells you how to be on the lookout for 3atan, because if ever 3atan was roaring around like a lion, it is today, and youre going to be seeing more of the devils roaring around before "esus comes back than you have ever seen before& #A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed% some fell by the wayside* and it was trampled down% and the birds of the air devoured it. 0ome fell on rock* and as

soon as it sprang up% it withered away because it lacked moisture. )hats the moisture that you need in your life0 !he moisture is the living water of life! It comes in to water your inner s%irit by a continuation of reading the word of *od, and staying in the word of *od, and ,e"ie%ing the word of *od, because not only do you need to %lant it in there, you need to water it and you need to fertili+e it so that the word thats in you will continue to grow& And some fell among thorns% and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. /ut others fell on good ground% sprang up% and yielded a crop a hundredfold. 9hen #e had said these things #e cried% 2#e that hath ears to hear% let him hear! Then #is disciples asked him% saying% 29hat does this parable mean:+ And #e said% 2To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of (od% but to the rest it is given in parables% that seeing they may not see% and hearing they may not understand. 'ow the parable is this3 The seed is the word of (od. !he seed that the devil wants to try to steal from you is the word of *od& #!hose by the wayside are the ones who hear( then the devil comes and takes away the word out

of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved&' !he minute you begin to hear the word, the devil is going to be right there and he is going to try to steal that word out of your heart so that you will no longer believe and so that you will no longer want to follow after "esus& 6omans C@ CJ says, 0o then faith comes by hearing% and hearing by the word of (od. I like to say it this way, )aith comes by hearing% and hearing% and hearing% and hearing% and hearing% and hearing the word of (od% because the word of *od will never stay in your heart if you hear it only one time& -ou need to kee% re%lenishing that su%%ly& !he same thing is true of food& )e could not e,ist very well if we ate one meal this year and then didnt eat another until ne,t year& Ill grant you some of us might do a little better with a few less meals, but we all know that there is no way you can get along without %hysical food& -ou have to eat! *od made a %lan when He created us that we would take nourishment into our bodies and the nourishment that we take is %hysical food to kee% our bodies alive&

!o kee% our s%irits alive, we need to feed on the word of *od, because the most im%ortant food in the world that anybody can ever get is the living word of *od& I often think about the nations around the world where %eo%le are starving to death& )hat is their main %roblem0 !hey need to hear the word of *od& If they could $ust hear the word of *od they could be delivered from the %overty, sickness, disease, sin and death in which they now live& Its because of a lack of the word of *od that they are in the mess they are in& -ou can give them %hysical food and it will satisfy their stomachs for one day, but what is going to ha%%en the ne,t day0 !hey are going to be hungry all over again& 3o if you give them the word of *od, they will learn how to be delivered from sin, sickness, %overty, death and disease, and then you wont have to worry that this nation or any other nation is going to have to feed them! !hey need to understand the %rinci%les of *od! "esus came to deliver us from the curse& -ou and I have been delivered from the curse, which is sin, sickness, %overty and death! 6emembering that )aith cometh by hearing% and hearing by the word of (od% we ought to have Hebrews CC ? underlined, scribbled on, marked

with a marking %encil or something eNually distinctive in our Bibles& It says, /ut without faith it is impossible to please him. It is tota""y impossi,"e to p"ease God if you dont ha%e faith! It is tota""y impossi,"e to p"ease God if you dont ha%e faith! -ou cannot %lease *od when you have doubt and unbelief in your life because without faith, it is totally, com%letely C@@O im%ossible to %lease *od! !he word continues to say, for he who comes to (od must believe that #e is% and that #e is a rewarder of those who diligently seek #im. First of all, youve got to believe that He is, and how do you discover that He is0 !hrough reading the word of *od you discover that *od is, and then you have to ,e"ie%e that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him& !hats why the hungry %eo%le in the nations around the world need to know and believe what the word of *od says, because they can never %lease Him until they have faith& And they certainly dont have faith when they are starving to death and dont hear the gos%el and dont know anything about the only true *od, the *od who said, #I Am&' "ames C, verses A through J reads, f any of you lacks wisdom% let him ask of (od% who gives to all

liberally and without reproach% and it will be given to him. /ut let him ask in faith% with no doubting% for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. )or let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the ,ord. /ont you dare waver, because the word says that then you are like a wave of the sea that is driven with the wind and tossed& And let not that man who wavers between faith and doubt and unbelief think he is going to receive a thing because he isnt going to receive a thing! Ferse I says, A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. 3ometimes we forget what that really means! It means that you cannot come to church on 3unday morning and say, #"esus is <ord,' and then walk out and live directly o%%osite of what youve $ust gotten through saying in church! *od is real at all times! If you believe *od is real, then dont you dare go around wavering all week long saying, #*od doesnt answer my %rayers! !he devil has got more %ower than *od has, and nothing good ever seems to ha%%en to me&' )hen you $um% from one side of the fence to the other, you cannot e,%ect to receive anything from *od because he says that a

double.minded man is unstable in all ways and hes not going to receive one single, solitary thing from the <ord& I want everything that *od has for me! "ohn I KC, KH tells us some good news Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed #im% f you abide in ;y word. ... 1raise *od that He is so %lain and sim%le in his directions to us! /oes He tell us to continue in sin0 /oes He tell us to continue in the devils bible0 ;o, He certainly does not, but He says to continue in *ods word! f you abide in ;y word% you are ;y disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth% and the truth shall make you free. 2nce you know the truth, the truth is going to make you absolutely, totally and com%letely free& !hat is why the devil hates it when you really understand the truth, when you know what the truth says and when you have hidden the word so dee% in your heart that the devil cant reach down there and snatch it away from you! !hats what the devil really hates, but what *od wants you to do is to get it %lanted down there so dee% that the devil cant steal it! I have en$oyed almost total divine health ever since I became a Christian& However, every once

in awhile the devil sneaks in and %unches me with a low blow and down I go for the count! )hile we were out on a recent tri%, the devil delivered to our motel room a case of something called the flu or a viral infection& As soon as I felt the sym%toms sneaking u% on me I rebuked them in the name of "esus and ke%t on doing the things I was su%%osed to be doing& I continued s%eaking, laying hands on the sick and ministering the ba%tism with the Holy 3%irit& However, as soon as we com%leted a meeting I would have to run and $um% in bed because I was totally and com%letely e,hausted& Finally the long tri% was over and we came home& I was still too busy trying to teach in the 3chool of 4inistry and getting things ready for our Fideo 3chools so I was still e,hausted and as a result the devil really closed in& 2ne morning, when I woke u% I thought, #I dont believe this! I must have signed for that %ackage of flu the devil wanted to give me&' I immediately bound the devil and rebuked all signs of the flu, and decided to get u%& I got about as far as the end of my bed and turned around and went back to bed and thought #)ow, Id better lie

here for another thirty minutes until I recover my strength&' At the end of thirty minutes I did the same thing again& I slid out of bed, got $ust as far as the end of my bed and turned around and went right back to bed again& 2nce again I resisted the devil and told him to take his little merchandise some%lace else because I wasnt about to sign for it, but it didnt seem to me that he even bothered to %ut his hearing aid in& I began to cry out to *od, and I began to %ray, and I began to ask *od to touch me and then I rolled over and went back to bed for another thirty minutes& At the end of the thirty minutes I got u% and went as far as the end of the bed and turned right around and came back& !his same %attern continued all day long& I do not know when I have had a day that I felt so totally and com%letely miserable in my entire life& About two years ago we moved from the house where we had lived ever since we had been married, to a house close to our City of ,ight, and so while I was lying there feeling absolutely miserable and crying out to *od and %leading and almost yelling, I finally decided *od forgot that I had moved& I looked u% and said, #*od, did you

forget that we moved last year0 /id you forget that we dont live over on that other street anymore, that were living out here in Lingwood0' But I didnt hear a word from *od& I ke%t crying out reminding *od of my new address but it didnt seem to me like He heard one single little bit of my %rayer at all& Charles came home after work and I didnt even get u% to fi, him su%%er because I felt so terrible& 3o he came to bed early that night and I said, #Honey, we received a ta%e today from somebody in ;ew Mealand& /o you want to listen0' I had not even been able to listen to a ta%e because I felt so miserable& )e turned the ta%e %layer on and as the man began s%eaking it seemed like a long finger reached all the way over from ;ew Mealand and %ointed straight at me because this is what he said, #Have you ever had a day when you felt that *od didnt hear your %rayers0' I screamed at the cassette recorder at the to% of my lungs, #-es!' It seemed like the s%eaker on this ta%e waited $ust long enough for me to say #yes' and then he said, #If thats your %roblem, why dont you try

%raying in tongues for thirty minutes without sto%%ing0' I turned off the ta%e recorder& I turned to Charles and said, #Charles, did you hear what he said0 He said to %ray in tongues for thirty minutes, so lets do it!' !hen I added, #<ets watch the clock&' )e noted the time and began to %ray in tongues& I felt so utterly miserable, I didnt feel like %raying in tongues at all! But I forced myself to continue, because in the beginning it sounded like sounding brass or tinkling cymbals& However, the word says that %raying in the 3%irit edifies the believer& After I had forced myself to %ray, within two or three minutes my s%irit man began to rise u% and to be edified by my %raying in tongues& At the end of thirty minutes I was so totally edified in the 3%irit that I lea%ed out of bed, ran to the bathroom, took a shower, washed my hair, blow dried it, came back to bed and sle%t like a baby all night long& !he ne,t day we got u%, went to /allas, and a%%eared on a national television %rogram! From there we were on the radio for two hours and from there we had a 4iracle 3ervice that night and then

came home early the ne,t day& I was $um%ing all over the %lace with energy& !here lies within every 3%irit.filled believer an unleashed, limitless reservoir of %ower& <ets take the lid off of that %ower and use it the way we should& If we would all s%end thirty minutes a day %raying in tongues, we could turn the world u%side down! I suggested this to the students at the 3chool of 4inistry& I also announced this on my radio %rogram and am ama+ed at how I have been swam%ed with %eo%le telling me of miracles that ha%%ened as a result of %raying K@ minutes a day in tongues& I love what Brother 1aul said, es%ecially in the Am%lified Bible& thank (od that speak in (strange! languages more than any of you or all of you put together 7Corinthians CB CI8& <ets do something s%ecial& <ets show Brother 1aul that we can %ray in tongues more than he did and lets get ourselves so edified and so built u% in our faith that there will absolutely be no holding us back! Ive learned something else about #confessing' a healing, and it concerns a #more e,cellent way'!

)ere you ever flat on your back and insisting at the same time, /y his stripes am healed0 /id you ever have your checking account down to +ero and still confess, #4y bills are %aid, my mortgage is %aid, I have money in the bank& I claim money in my bank account'0 I have often confessed those things, but I want to tell you the story about a car as it relates to healing and %ros%erity, and whatever else is yours as a child of *od, but which youve allowed the devil to steal from you, and I want to show you how to get it back! 3hortly after I became a Christian, I bought a new car& It was very s%ecial to me because the eye %roblem that turned me toward "esus, the one that *od took and made a miracle out of, gave me %roblems in seeing through a normal windshield at night& I ordered a new car that had a s%ecial tinted windshield so that I would not have %roblems as I drove at night& I had to wait about eight weeks to get the car, and when I finally got it I was so e,cited, because I thought it was the most beautiful car I had ever owned, and it enabled me to drive at night without eye %roblems!

I %raised *od that I had enough money to %ay cash for it& It was a beautiful shade of teal blue. green and it had everything on it that anyone could have ever wanted on or in a car! It was beautiful on the outside and elegant on the inside, and I loved it! It was all mine( it had no mortgage lien against it& I had the title to it which showed it was clear of any encumbrances& !he title had been registered in the county records so it was recorded officially that it was mine, and nobody had any right to it e,ce%t me! It was bought, %aid for, and all mine! At that time I owned a %rinting com%any which was located in a sho%%ing center mall& 4y back door o%ened onto the alley so that the mail trucks could %ick u% sacks of mail that went out from my business daily& It was also nice because that was where the cars were %arked for the %eo%le who had businesses in the sho%%ing center& !he front of the sho%%ing center was reserved for customers, but the back was a big %arking lot for the tenants& !his was su%er for me because every time I walked by a window as I was going from one de%artment to another, I could look out at my new car and say, #!hank you, "esus! !hank you, "esus! !hank you, "esus!' It was a su%er.beautiful car and it $ust

thrilled my heart, and I was so grateful that it was totally mine because it was com%letely %aid for! 2ne day as I was going through the office, I looked out the window at my beautiful car, and I saw a strange man driving my beautiful brand.new car out of the %arking lot! I could hardly believe my eyes! I looked again, and, sure enough, it was my new car being driven right out of the %arking lot in front of my very own eyes! I looked again! It was my car! I had the title to it! I had %aid cash for it& !he title showed that the car was mine& ;obody had any claim on that car and here was a man driving off in my car! I got mad! 2ne of the girls in my office had a husband who was a %oliceman, so I felt sure she would know what to do, so I screamed, 'Toni, some,ody is dri%ing off in my new (ar!* !hen I said, #*et in your car, lets go get him!' !his girl had flaming red hair and really had %lenty of +i%! 3he and I ran out of my office,

$um%ed into her car and she screeched out and raced down the alley after the thief& Across the street from us there was a big su%ermarket, and when the thief got over there, he slowed down, so I said, #!oni, +i% around in front of him, and block him off!' 3he did $ust that and I got out and ran u% to the side of my car, stuck my head inside the window right u% against the face of the man driving it and said, 'Get out of my (ar! What do you think youre doing with it)* I could have been shot! He said, #)hat makes you think this is your car0 I said, #)hat makes me think its my car0 !hats my Bible on the seat ne,t to you, and this is my new car&' !hen I screamed again, '-ou get out of my (ar right now!* He looked at me and said, #)hat makes you think your name is Frances0' I thought to myself, #-ouve got to be kidding! I certainly ought to know what my own name is!' I reali+e now that he was looking in the rear view mirror and he couldnt back u%, and he couldnt go forward because !oni had her car in front of him, and he was $ust stalling for time& Again I screamed, #/id you hear me0' I said, 'get

out of that (ar! It ,e"ongs to me!* Beloved, I meant business! By that time, the car in back of him %ulled out and he was free, so he backed u% my car about si,ty miles an hour, turned it around and roared off down the alley behind my office again& I ran and $um%ed back in the car with !oni& <ike co%s and robbers, we took out after him& He got about halfway down the alley when he sto%%ed my car, $um%ed out, got in his own car, and rea""y took off! I said to !oni, #Follow him!' And she did! Here were two women racing down an alley going u% to eighty miles an hour! I never %rayed so hard in my life for a %oliceman and never saw one anywhere& )e finally got his license number, but he eventually lost us! -ou may wonder what the %oint of this story is, but Im trying to show you that I was even willing to be foolish to %rotect something that was mine& !hat car didnt belong to him& It was mine! I had %aid for it! I had worked hard in my %rinting com%any to %ay for it, and here comes a thief to try to steal it right from underneath me& If I had not been so rambunctious and if I had not gone out there, I would never have gotten that car back again! But I knew it was mine and

no,ody was going to get it away from me! )e need to fight to kee% the devil from stealing our health and finances $ust as hard as I fought to kee% that man from stealing my car! 4any times we think we have to reach out to get our healing! 4any times we think we have to reach out to get our %ros%erity! 4any times we think we have to reach out and claim something, when all we have to do is to %rotect and recover what rightfully belongs to us! :verything *od is going to do for you has already been done! :verything "esus Christ is going to do for you has already been done! But we have let it sli% through our fingers because we didnt understand! )e thought we had to beg and %lead and claim something that was already rightfully ours when "esus died on the Cross! "esus died on a cross two thousand years ago and in so doing He gave us a title deed 7with no liens attached8 to health, wealth and ha%%iness& It is ours& He %aid for it fully and that deed is free and clear! !he Bible is your title deed! Healing, health, %ros%erity, $oy, abundant living %lus many other things belong to us right now! !hey are not something that *od is going to give

to us in the sweet by.and.by& !hese things belong to us, and yet we have let the devil steal them from us& )e have let him steal our goods! )e have let him steal our $oy! )e have let him steal our health! !he devil came back at me after I had recovered from the flu and he said, #Ha& ha, ha, that %raying in tongues didnt work! -ou got u% one day, didnt you0 But I got you right back in bed again!' /o you know what I did0 I %rayed in tongues again& For thirty minutes I said, #/evil, healing is mine! Health is mine! It isnt something that I have to %ray and ask *od to give to me& Hes already given it to me, youve tried to steal it but its mine, and Im going to %rotect it!' !he longer I thought about the e%isode of the car, the more I began to see a real s%iritual truth! I said, #3atan, you have stolen the last thing from me that youre ever going to steal&' I said, #-ou have messed with the finances of this ministry long enough, because "esus became %oor that we might become rich&' !hen I added, #-ou have had your hands in the offerings, you have had your hands in the mail that comes in, but youve done it for the last time,

because do you remember how I %rotected that car years ago0 Im giving you notice right now that today, and from this day on, I am %rotecting everything that *od gave me in salvation in e,actly the same way and with the same fervor that I %rotected that car, because its mine!' I dont have to %lead for it! I dont have to beg for it, I $ust have to %rotect it! And some of us have not been %rotecting our assets the way they should be %rotected! Its a"" ,een paid for! :very ache, every %ain, every bit of sickness has already been taken care of, but weve let the devil steal it from us& )e need to say, #/evil, you are never going to steal from me again&' I dont know what youre going to do, but Im going to fight to %rotect what is mine! *od told me I was going to %ros%er! *od told me in His word that the desire of His heart was for me to %ros%er and to be in health! "esus told me that Ive been delivered from everything of the curse, so Im going to %rotect what belongs to me! Its not something that I have to attem%t to acNuire . its something that belongs to me! How do we %rotect something that belongs to us0 If its money, we take it to the bank and de%osit it because we believe when we need it the

bank will give it back to us! 4ost of us dont even check out the bank we de%osit our money in& )e bank for convenience sake, yet we believe the bank is trustworthy because banks are regulated by law and %rotected by insurance as security& I have never had an urge to hide my money in the ground by burying it and then ho%ing to find it when I needed to dig it u%! )e automatically take all money to the bank and leave it there without a doubt or worry about its safety! !o %rotect our homes, we all have doors to kee% out intruders and burglars, and we kee% our houses locked! Fery few %eo%le kee% valuables in their homes but de%osit them instead in a bank vault! 4any homes have burglar alarm systems which sound off when someone tries to enter illegally& !o %rotect our offices and %ro%erty, many organi+ations have night watchmen& <ights burn continually because a thief likes to o%erate in the dark& /oors and windows are checked nightly to make sure there is no easy way for a thief to enter and steal& )hat %rotection do we have to %revent the devil from stealing what "esus %aid for and gave to us0 Because "esus is the door through which we must go to reach our heavenly Father, He is our

greatest security from theft by the devil& "esus %rovided a double.lock system for our %rotection& ;ot only is He the door, but He gave us the word of *od& )or the word of (od is living and powerful% and sharper than any two"edged sword% piercing even to the division of soul and spirit% and of -oints and marrow% and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart 7Hebrews B CH8& 6emember the attacks of the devil often come through the thoughts and intents of our hearts, so if we have the word of *od hidden in our hearts so we might not sin against Him, we can defeat the entrance of the devil into our hearts and minds& Lnowing *ods word, His laws, and His %rinci%les enables us to o%erate in the nature of *od which is a shield from the entrance or attacks of 3atan& He tries to enter the door of our life by bringing sickness into our bodies& !he best %reventative medicine I know of is the word of *od& )hen we saturate ourselves with *ods word, the devil has difficulty trying to get in& )hen youre out of the word of *od, you cause cracks to come into your armor, and the devil can sneak in&

"esus said, /ehold% give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions% and over all the power of the enemy3 and nothing shall by any means hurt you 7<uke C@ CD8& )e wrote the book, #ow to #eal The 0ick, so that ordinary %eo%le would know that they have the %ower to recover what the devil has stolen, because we can heal the sick by the %ower of the Holy 3%irit and with the authority that "esus has given us to %rotect our families, we kee% a watchful eye on them when they are little and unable to %rotect themselves, and as they get older, we lay down certain rules and regulations for them to follow for their own safety and %rotection& )e make sure they eat the right foods and get sufficient rest and slee% until they are mature enough to o%erate on their own! !o %rotect our s%iritual life, we need to be alert to the built.in burglar alarm which we have, which is the Holy 3%irit! )e need to listen to the little nudges which the 3%irit gives us& )e have the best and most fool.%roof burglar alarm system in the world nestled inside of us! )e need to %ut on the whole armor of *od! A soldier never goes to battle without all the %rotection he can get! )e need to do the same

thing because were in a s%iritual war where the enemy is fighting to steal everything we have been given by *od! !he word of *od will clothe you from head to toe, and once you get it inside your s%irit, so that it will come out of your mouth at all times, you will have the best %rotection in the world against 3atan! /e diligent to present yourself approved to (od% a worker who does not need to be ashamed% rightly dividing the word of truth 7II !imothy H CA8& "ust as we lay down certain rules and regulations for our children, *od has laid down rules and regulations for us and He %ut them into %ermanent form . His word! !hen the ne,t time the devil tries to steal your health, your wealth, or your ha%%iness, you can scream at the to% of your lungs the same thing I said to the thief who tried to steal my car! 3tart today and say, '+e%i", get your hands off of my "ife Who do you think you are)* -ou (ant stea" whats mine!!!