November 23, 2020
Receive! Receive! Receive!
(Matthew 21:22 NLT) You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”
Beloved, many of you Give! Give! Give! However, you must learn to give and receive. The Law of Reciprocity is an exchange! We do not give to receive, but it is a universal law similar to the Law of Gravity. What goes up must come down. What you sow, you reap. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows,’ whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:7-9 NIV) You must give to receive. One thing I have learned is that you cannot outgive God. You must give first before you receive. If you want love, give love. If you desire honor, you must first honor. Whatever you desire, give, and you shall receive. In relationships, if you are the one doing all the giving and never receiving, you are not in a relationship. I challenge every giver to receive!
If you can believe, all things are possible! (Mark 9:23)
To whom am I speaking? You find great joy in giving. It’s not hard to give anything you have, especially your love, but therein lies the problem when it comes to receiving. Many have a hard time receiving. Years ago, I was in Little Rock, Arkansas, preparing for a Women’s Retreat. A spiritual daughter flew in from Nashville, Tennessee, to have a little time with me before the event. The first morning, we were spending time together and having prayer time, and she began sharing with me how much she struggles with receiving. This precious woman has given out her whole life but receiving was a struggle. I do not believe she’s the lone ranger. You give out to others, but when it is reciprocated, it’s challenging. You must give and receive to receive the blessing of the Lord. It is the Law of Sowing and Reaping. Stephanie went to her room to get ready, and while making my bed, suddenly I heard a bird outside my window singing:
Receive!
Receive!
Receive!
I was astonished! Did I hear a bird say, Receive? Then suddenly again it said, ‘Receive! Receive! Receive! It said that five times! I ran to the door yelling: ‘Stephanie get to my room – you need to hear this!’ She came to my room and listened, and she heard the bird saying: ‘Receive! Receive! Receive!
The next morning, I woke up at 6:00 a.m. While lying in bed, praying, reading my Bible when suddenly a bird flew around in my room! Chills went down my spine! Covering my head under the covers, I began praying and called several people at Retreat. Everyone’s phone was off! What was I going to do? Suddenly I made a dash to the door! As I ran through the door, praying in the Spirit – three women met me with hot tea and prayed for me before I launched my day. They said woe! What is going on with you? I said a bird is flying in my room. Courageous, Lisa took a towel and went into my room, shutting the door. She opened windows in my room and swooshed the bird out the window. As I was getting ready for the day, I realized God was saying something to me through birds – so I listened! Lisa knows me well; she researched the bird. These are the facts about the bird – the meaning of a Starling:
• Teaches you proper group etiquette and publicly in your family and how they see you.
• How to communicate with others.
• How to live a balanced life
• How to accomplish tasks early and not wait to the last minute
• How to be sensitive to others and be sensitive spiritually
• How to work with others in unity – as well as at home
• Instilling a sense of protection and hope
Receive! Receive! Receive! Within moments I realized this was my outline for the morning.
Why do you struggle with receiving?
a. When you don’t receive, it usually has to do with your belief system.
b. You believe you’re not good enough or holy enough.
c. You think, why would God do this for me?
I want to ask you why wouldn’t He do it for you?
The Bible says the key to your prayers answered is:
1. Ask
(Mark 11:22-25 NIV) “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in Heaven may forgive you your sins.”
2. Believe
(Matthew 9:27-30 NIV) As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” When He had gone indoors, the blind men came to Him, and He asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” “Yes, Lord,” they replied. Then He touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith, let it be done to you,” and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.”
3. Receive
(John 16:23-24 NLT) At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy. (Matthew 21:22 NLT) You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.” It is the Father’s goodwill to bless you! Receive with a heart of gratitude.
Declare this with me:
Father God, I repent for not receiving. It’s so easy to give – I declare and decree from this moment forward ‘I receive.’ I activate the wonderful gift of receiving in my life now. I participate in both giving and receiving. I am worthy to receive Your ‘absolute best’ for I obey all Your commands. I declare that the blessings of the Lord are overtaking me. The windows of Heaven are open and pouring blessings down so fast; I can’t take them all in. I am blessed going in and blessed going out. Why? Because I have special rights and privileges – my Daddy is the King of Kings; therefore, I receive! I decree I am a recipient of the favor of God with both God and man, and I receive all the blessings You have stored up for me in the all-powerful name of Jesus!
