The Power of Faith: Unlocking God's Authority in Your Life

Have you ever felt like your faith was too small to make a difference? Or wondered what it would take to see real miracles happen in your life and community? As I stood before the congregation at New Life Church this Sunday, I was reminded of the incredible power of faith - not just any faith, but the kind that amazes even God Himself.

The Centurion's Faith: A Model for Us All

In Luke chapter 7, we encounter a Roman centurion whose faith astonished Jesus. This man, an outsider to the Jewish faith, understood something profound about authority that many of us still struggle with today.

"For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." (Luke 7:8)

The centurion recognized that Jesus had an authority greater than any earthly power. He believed that just as he could command his soldiers, Jesus could command sickness to leave with a mere word. This faith amazed Jesus, prompting Him to say, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." (Luke 7:9)

Recognizing God's Supreme Authority

Do we truly recognize the authority of Jesus in our lives? As I preached, I felt compelled to remind the congregation:

"Do you realize that he has more authority than the Supreme Court? He has more authority than the Oroville Police Department. He has more authority than the governor of California. He has more authority than a world globalist billionaire."

When we grasp the full extent of Christ's authority, it changes how we approach every challenge in our lives. Sickness, financial struggles, relational issues - all of these must bow to the name of Jesus when we exercise our faith.

Faith That Moves Mountains

Throughout the Gospels, we see examples of faith that moved Jesus to action. The woman with the issue of blood, blind Bartimaeus, the four friends who lowered the paralytic through the roof - all of these demonstrate the power of persistent, audacious faith.

I shared a personal story about my wife's healing from cancer:

"My wife had cancer last year. Guess what? She doesn't have cancer no more. You know why? Because we pray. Because if I pray for people, that's showing that I highly value them, which means I don't take on the theology that said, 'Well, if it's God's will, he'll heal her.' No, it is God's will to heal."

Building Your Faith

So how do we develop this kind of mountain-moving faith? Here are a few key principles:

1. Immerse yourself in God's Word
2. Surround yourself with people of faith
3. Step out in obedience, even when it's uncomfortable
4. Celebrate and remember past victories
5. Persist in prayer, even when you don't see immediate results

A Call to Action: Become a House of Miracles

As I concluded the sermon, I felt a stirring in my spirit for what God wants to do in Oroville and beyond. I challenged the congregation:

"I believe this house is a house of miracles. I believe this is a house of healing. I don't think that God caused Pastor Ken Malone to put all the resources and energy and many of you in this room as well, to build this church so that we would not see signs, wonders and miracles."

What if we dared to believe for more? What if our cities became known not for their problems, but for the miraculous power of God at work through His people?

I encourage you, wherever you are, to step out in faith this week. Bring someone who needs a miracle to church. Pray boldly for the impossible. Let's become a people whose faith amazes even God Himself.

Next Steps:
1. Identify an area in your life where you need to exercise greater faith
2. Commit to praying specifically and persistently for a breakthrough
3. Find a prayer partner to stand with you in faith
4. Attend our miracle service this Tuesday and bring someone who needs a touch from God

Remember, your faith has the power to change not just your life, but your entire community. Let's believe God for great things!

When Prophecy Connects with your Expectations

In Ruth 3 we read the story between Ruth and Boaz when he tells her that there is someone ahead of him to redeem her. What I love about this is that when Boaz said, "If he doesn't want to take you, I'll take you."  (Ruth 3:13) What we see here is that,  even though there's an obstacle, Boaz is completely occupied with Ruth's future. We have to realize that in applying it to our lives, Jesus is completely occupied with our future. 

He's the Redeemer.

He wouldn't have come down to the earth and redeemed humanity if He wasn't occupied with all of humanity's future. It’s predominant in His heart and because of that, prophecy connects us to our future when we don't fully comprehend the Lord's ways. I could imagine that Ruth did not comprehend everything. "What do you mean someone's ahead of him? He's been so kind, he's in love with me..." I'm sure in that moment of not really understanding what's going on, one hasn't had a moment of questioning, "Well, wait, God, I don't understand what you're doing."

But what prophecy does, is it connects and reconnects us to our future.

This is what I love about the prophetic. It reconnects me to my purpose. It reconnects me to where I'm going. I can steer off the path or get off the course a little bit and it puts me right back on that course. It communicates how the Lord wants to please us. Isn't that amazing?

The Lord wants to please His people.

There’s something I love to do when I’m with my grandchildren. Although I’m usually busy ministering, when I have the opportunity to spend time with all five of them, I usually end up taking them to the grocery store and let them fill the cart with whatever their hearts desire. I get so much joy watching them walk down the aisles, skipping and hopping, grabbing things that mom and dad don’t usually buy for them. It’s not about the doughnuts, or the chocolate milk. But the joy of seeing their little faces light up. You see, when God prophesies over you, He's communicating His desire to want to please you. That's what's so beautiful about the prophetic. 

If you continue reading Ruth 3, towards the end of that chapter you see that Ruth returns to Naomi and tells her what Boaz has done for her. What we read next is Naomi prophesying and decreeing, “Sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out; for the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter this day.” (Ruth 3:18)

When Naomi prophesied “He’ll take care of the matter today,” it put the expectation back into Ruth and it became the fuel for her to be able to wait. This is a perfect example of what the prophetic does, it reignites the expectation in our hearts, that while in the midst of waiting, “I know God's going to take care of this”.

Jesus is concerned about what matters to you and I, and He can fix it. He's concerned about America. He's concerned about the nations of the earth. Which means that God is committed to settle the things that matter to you. Just as Naomi prophesied to Ruth, He'll take care of this matter today. If it matters to you, because He's in love with you, He's going to take care of it today, and not leave you hanging, not leave you in suspense. He didn't come to leave us in suspense. He came to redeem us. 

Blessings,

John Harke Team

Reigning as Kings and Queens

It seems we can easily forget what Christ has purchased for us. So we begin to live a much lower standard than what Jesus has called us to live. To reign as kings and queens means much more than monetary success, public recognition and thousands of likes on Facebook. To reign as kings means to not come up short from the image of God. It’s finding victory on the inside, where our emotions are, to have control over our own spirit. It doesn’t mean that we are completely free from crisis, but it means we are seated above it. We tap into divine wisdom and we prophesy to the situations that don’t represent the beauty of God.

God has a goal for us individually and corporately, and that is to form us into a prophetic voice on the earth, prophesying liberty from bondage and decay. Creation is yearning for sons and daughters to speak what the Lord is speaking! In an atmosphere of repentance, respect, honor, and love, our identities flourish and our roles become clearly defined. When this is properly modeled, that Kingdom of God is authentically demonstrated.

4 “Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live. 6 I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.” ’ ”

7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone.” (Ezekiel 37: 4-7)

By prophesying His heart, we come into agreement with what God sees, for He sees beauty in the midst of our deformity. When Ezekiel found himself in a valley, he wasn’t told to pray about the spiritual conditions — he was told to prophesy to them. His words began to transform the people.

• Will we do the same in our time?

• Will we prophesy the wonderful grace upon the slain that are on the battlefield of life?

Without the wealth of grace there isn’t any true wealth in the soul. The wealth of grace allows us to rule with the knowledge of the Kingdom and not rule as those who haven’t been regenerated. We reign from a place of intimacy, not from a place of legality. Life becomes more of a joy because we witness supernatural interventions in our spiritual lives, relationships and finances. We live the way Jesus lived when He was on the earth: reigning over sickness, demonic attacks, and economic lack. We become yoked to His peace, free from the yoke of anxiety and fear.

The body of believers who reign as kings will repair the wrongs in society and restore human dignity by bringing the knowledge of the truth to every sphere. Living like kings means thinking and speaking like kings, weighing out our words because they declare who we really are. The words we speak build the kind of kingdom we live in. And through the gift of righteousness we can rule with the same heart of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sincerely,

John Harke Team

Prophetic Word: Treasure Hunting Season

I wanted to take a moment to encourage you with what God has been speaking to me about the current season we are walking in right now. What we have discovered as the months have continued onward is that we are in a prolonged season that does not have a clear and definite end in sight. When God chooses to hide the end of a thing even from His prophets, it is because there is something within the expanse of the current season that is of incredibly tremendous value.

This lack of clarity speaks of how good God is to us. What!? Yes, really. By closing off the exits and cancelling the timelines that so many are fixated on, it is a demonstration of His mercy and His help. This runs contrary to conventional understanding. When things go unclear, when we can't see ten steps ahead, there are many that see this as a confirmation of their rebellion, inadequacy or even twist their perception of the goodness of God and His desire to prosper them in their lives. Nothing could be further from the truth.

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.

Proverbs 25:2 (NASB)

If things seem concealed from you in this season, take joy, it means God considers you to be a king! What a huge promotion for many of us especially in our own minds. God is calling us to several things in order to partner with this new, unknown place many of us find ourselves in.

1. Take a Royal Perspective

- Slaves fret and walk in constant fear, Kings sit in the confidence of wise council. It is time to confront every slavery mindset and though about ourselves with the reality of our royalty and that we sit in the council of the Holy Spirit.

2. The Treasure Lies in the Valley of the Now

- Fascination with the future and what is yet to come can point to something within us that desires to escape God's dealings and hand which is present in the realm of right now.

- Settle in, embrace your current season, place your face within His hands and there you will find a habitation of His presence that will fill you to overflowing.

- When we allow ourselves to be filled in this way, His Spirit will illuminate the treasure that lies within the ground of our season

3. Treasure Reveals Itself In Pieces, But is Brought Together By the Embrace of Your Entire Heart

- Like roots of a tree that are buried, treasure may not reveal itself in its entirety at once.

- Don't overlook it just because it seems unexpected.

- God will reveal treasure and what He has to us in sections and pieces so that we treasure each portion and give it the attention it deserves.

- Take the treasure, embrace it and hold it dear. Allow gratitude to wash over it.

- God will reveal to you how these pieces fit together.

The treasure that God has hidden for you in your current season is of far greater value than trying to get out of it. If you feel like you've been in a holding pattern, I encourage you to consider that it is because there is something in your current season you have yet to uncover. God cares too much about you to let you walk by it and not be blessed by it. The good news is that we don't have to search alone. One of the strongest prayers we can pray in this season is, "God I cannot see, please help me to see".

In Jesus' name, I declare that this prolonged season will reap a treasure that will exceed every expectation or limitation. I speak to your eyes and ears to be sensitive to discern God's voice to uncover what He has prepared for you.

Best,

David

Your Divine Mix : Discerning God's Voice

I wanted to share some keys on how to discern God's voice more clearly in this season. Below you will find one that I hope will help you flow in this amazing gift more while also dispelling some misconceptions that may be holding you back.

God Speaks To You In Various Ways

I don't know who started this way or thinking or behavior but there are many people who try to limit the way God speaks to them to just one way.

"I'm a seer" "I only feel things" "I only hear things" or "God only speaks to me when the clock on my phone shows 5:55" That last one I'm only partially joking.

Part of this way of thinking can be connected to different times when certain ways of hearing God were "in-vogue" I can remember for a time that those that heard a small voice in their spirit were looked down upon by others that had dreams. Still yet, those that had visions condescended to the dreamers because, well the vision people had to do more work while the dreamers just had to sleep through everything. And of course, all three of these kinds of people had to bend the knee and kiss the ring of the one that had angelic visitations. It's so funny the things we compete with in the Church.

I want to encourage you that God doesn't communicate to you in just ONE way. One of the most beautiful things about God is how He creates a unique mix for each of His children on how He speaks and communicates to them. Part of learning to hear God is discovering what your unique mix is and having the sensitivity to notice it in whatever way it comes. In God there is expansion, forward movement and rivers that spring forth with life. Why then should we expect God to talk to us in the same old way day in and day out? It makes no sense and this improper belief has robbed people of the full color and vibrance of God's communication to them. Don't let that be you.

THE KEY TO UNLOCKING THE FULL MIX OF YOUR ABILITY TO HEAR GOD

1. Ask Him

So if you, despite being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

Matthew 7:11 (NASB)

This seems basic but it's something most people don't dare to do. Most people don't receive from God because they don't even ask Him. Don't let the lie of unworthiness keep you from your portion. Ask God to expand and sharpen your ability to hear Him. If you want to have more visions, or dreams, ask Him.

2. Desire Earnestly (Unwaveringly, unrelentingly, increasing in your fire to attain it as time goes on)

Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.

I Corinthians 14:39

Prophecy is the one thing in the Bible that God commands us to covet. That is how much intensity He wants us to have in our pursuit of His voice. For many of us, the intensity of our pursuit to hear His voice looks more like a game of hop-scotch than it does a man wide-eyed and frantic in his pursuit to fill an addiction. Intensity and deep desire helps with the third component.

3. Allow Your Eyes to Be Opened

The desire and earnest burning to attain what God wants to give you causes your senses to be awakened to see God wherever and whenever He presents Himself. When you combine these three things, you will find yourself swimming in an ocean of His voice.

Best,

David

Interpreting What Prophets Prophesy Corporately

“For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.” 1 Corinthians 13:9

The Danger Lies Not In the Prophecies You Do Not Understand, Rather in the Ones That You Think You Do But Actually Don’t

One role of a prophet is to discern what God is saying to His people amount what He is doing in the earth. Comically, sometimes what they discern and release requires a good amount of discernment and interpretation as well. There have been many prophetic words that I’ve received or heard where both the prophet and myself scratch our heads not really having a clear picture in the moment of what it means. Those are times when we have to dig deeper and seek the Holy Spirit to illuminate the meaning to us. It’s common sense to do this when prophetic words don’t make sense. However the danger lies when we don’t default to this because the prophecy we hear or receive seems so clear and unmistakable that we feel we already know all we need to know about it.

For example, you could receive a prophetic word that seems to fit point for point the family situation that you are having to deal with right now. This can cause us to immediately and without thinking, apply it to the situation that it seems most logically lines up with it. However it could actually apply to a season that is yet to happen. Or it could not relate to your family situation at all but be fore someone else’s family situation that you will be able to help with. It is important to not take for granted our own natural ability to discern a prophetic word and avoid leaning on the illumination of the Holy Spirit to help us properly understand and apply it.

Prophets Can Fall For This Too

Prophets fall into this pitfall too. Sometimes when we receive revelation it can feel like we are strapped into a fully immersive experience. Things seem so clear, so charged, so alive that it feels like we are living the reality of the prophetic word in real time. This is amazing, however this can mislead a prophet into feeling that they know with absolute certainty what it is that God is saying.

We Are All Given a Piece, But Rarely the Whole

The key to help keep us safe from this pitfall and trap can be found in 1 Corinthians which was quoted at the beginning of this post. Our understanding of what God is saying even through prophecy is only partial. Our natural understanding and even our spiritual understanding is only a piece of the full pie of understanding what God is saying. In other words, no one person is going to have the entire interpretation. We must lean on the Holy Spirit to help us fully understand.

I feel this is very important to go over during this very charged season of corporate, national and worldwide prophetic words that are being released by prophets from all over the globe.

In a time where hundreds and thousands of prophetic words are being released every single month, it is important that we take the time to seek God and properly discern and interpret what He is saying personally through His prophets for ourselves.

We cannot farm out this important part of our prophetic life to others, even if they are prophets. The reason for this is that ultimately, we alone are responsible for how we walk out this prophetic word in our personal lives. The excuse, “well, prophet XYZ didn’t explain or interpret it the right way for me, that’s why I didn’t carry it out correctly” is not going to be valid when we account for how we steward the words of God.

Do not allow how specific a prophetic word appears to be, prevent you from discerning for yourself what God is saying in the midst of it and also how it is to apply to you. Again, prophets are not infallible and they only see in part, it’s up to us to lean on the Holy Spirit to illuminate our part of the pie to us.

Keys to Interpreting Corporate, Worldwide or National Prophetic Words

We will discuss keys for personal prophetic words in the future but I want to give you a few important questions you need to ask the Holy Spirit when you come across prophetic words on social media, email and on television that are meant to address large groups of people that you relate to. For example, there are a lot of prophecies that have and continue to go out regarding the election in the United States. Another example are those words that start out like, “I feel that the Body of Christ needs to…” or something along those lines.

These will help keep you from being overwhelmed by all these prophetic words, confused by them and also help you be able to understand how they are to apply to you personally. The key to hearing from God is your ability to step out and faith and hear Him. So when you ask God these questions, step out in faith and be ready to write down what He tells you even if it does not make sense initially. Take note of it, pray on it and watch God expand the answer in your spirit and into your understanding.

Question #1: Is this a prophetic word I should be paying attention to RIGHT now?

• if the answer is no, then go ahead and file it away. Don’t let it take up any more current headspace.

• if the answer is yes, then move on to question #2.

Question #2: What portions of this prophetic word are You highlighting for me to pay attention to?

• often times there are only portions of this corporate word that God is applying to you

• take what He highlights and separate them out from the rest of it. It’s not that the rest couldn’t apply later on, but we are trying focus on the first things first.

Question #3: How do these portions apply to me? What are you saying about these sections to me?

• allow God to show you what He is saying personally to you out of these portions.

• also, if the word is speaking about things that are to come to pass or take place, allow Him to speak to you about the timing of these things.

Question #4: What do you want me to do with this revelation?

• our responsibility to act on what God is saying is very important. Equally important is that we act in the right way.

• sometimes God shows us these things simply to pray about them. Other times there are specific actions that He wants us to take regarding them.

• This will give convert a prophetic word into a tangible action plan for you. Now instead of having a mountain or prophetic words, you now have a Holy Spirit-inspired strategy on how to move forward.

Hopefully these four questions will help you be able to filter though the deluge of prophetic words that are out there and also spark a deeper dialogue with God. Sometimes we can get overloaded with all of the words coming into our lives that we find ourselves being pulled in a thousand different directions. My heart is that this will help you pierce through the overload and uncover the main core of what God is saying for you personally in the midst of these prophetic words.

A thousand prophetic words spoken is good, however one single prophetic word, paired with strategic, God-inspired action is often much more impactful. As we know in part and prophesy in part, we need to remember that our main focus should be doing our part. It is God that is going to be responsible to carry out the whole.