BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

We don’t have any business saying stupid stuff like, “Yeah, I’ll be there if a train doesn’t hit me first. Ha-ha.” Those kinds of words aren’t funny. Whether they’re said jokingly or in all seriousness, they license the devil to bring them to pass. So, stay away from them. Pray as David did: “Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips” (Psalm 141:3), and make a quality decision before God to speak only words of faith. “But Brother Copeland, when I’m dealing with difficult situations, I don’t always feel like speaking words of faith.” It doesn’t make any difference how you feel. If you want to change those difficult situations, you must believe and say only what God says about them. Instead of talking about how you feel, you must follow the simple instructions Jesus gave in Mark 11: Speak words of faith and believe what you say will come to pass. But let me warn you in advance, to do that, you will have to take dominion over yourself because flesh is carnal. It gets its information from this natural realm. So, it wants to see and feel before it believes and speaks. Left to itself, your flesh (and mine and everyone else’s) will behave like Thomas did in John 20. When he heard that Jesus had risen from the dead, he said, “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe” (verse 25). Thomas chose to side in with his natural senses rather than the word he had heard. He chose doubt over faith, as an act of his will. A few days later he saw Jesus in person and exclaimed, “My LORD and my God!” He believed what he saw, but because his faith was based on natural evidence, Jesus said it was not the God kind of faith. “Thomas,” He said, “because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (verse 29). It is impossible to receive Abraham’s BLESSING with Thomas’ faith! So, don’t follow Thomas’ example. Don’t say, like he did and like the world does, “Seeing is believing.” Have the faith of God that says, “Believing is seeing.” Follow the example of Jesus and say with the Apostle Paul: “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak” (2 Corinthians 4:13). Start With What Is Written Notice that verse says the spirit of faith is “according as it is written.” In other words, you get faith by going to The WORD of God first. “Faith cometh by hearing…the word of God” (Romans 10:17). So, start by finding a Bible promise or fact that guarantees you what you desire and believe it on purpose as an act of your will. Do the opposite of what Thomas did and declare, “I will believe this good news! I don’t care what I feel or see to the contrary, I choose to put my faith in what God said and not to be moved by emotions or circumstances. I choose to be moved only by God’s WORD.” Once you’ve taken that stand, take the next step and follow the instructions Jesus gave us in Mark 11:24-25: “What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” Once you’ve done that, maintain your stand of faith. Keep believing you receive and keep saying so. Keep declaring God’s WORD and believing what you say will come to pass, and it will. Maybe not instantly, or in 24 hours, but eventually if you stay with the program, you will have what you say. BVOV : 7

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