6Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. 7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; 9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
As we embark on this new journey of ministry, we are cognizant of the times that we live in today. People of God, we are living in perilous times – and for the Body of Christ, failure is not an option. If we fail, so many people will have no hope but to fail. Whenever I look at the news or read the newspaper, my heart cries out for those that are lost, confused and the weak among us. We are living in a world where there is a clear delineation between those that have and those that don’t. The rich are getter richer and the poor are getting poorer. People are desperate for hope, for a solution, for some good news. We have been called to minister to a deeply distressed and troubled world and we, the believer, have the message of hope . . . it’s the Good News of Jesus Christ. For those that take this journey with us in 2015, the theme for Praise Center Church Of God In Christ will be:
Walking In Authority
Authority is defined as: the power to determine, adjudicate, or otherwise settle issues or disputes; jurisdiction; the right to control, command, or determine; a power or right delegated or given; authorization; an accepted source of information, advice.
Understanding where your authority lies is the key to being successful in every area of our lives and in our Christian walk. As believers, it’s of the utmost importance to understand that we have been given Kingdom authority directly from God for our lives, for our families, for our homes and on our jobs. When we don't walk in the authority that God has given us:
- We find ourselves running away in defeat,
- We find ourselves running into dead ends (dead end relationships, careers and ministries), and
- We find ourselves running into traps that the enemy has set for us.
When we forget who we are and who we belong to, it becomes easy to 1) fail short of God's glory and 2) miss the mark and goals that God has set for us. Sometimes we need to be reminded that God has an "expected end" for His people and we just need to trust Him to have His way in our lives. When we are Walking in Authority according to God's Will:
- We find ourselves boldly proclaiming the Good News of Jesus (Acts 1:8),
- We find ourselves walking by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7),
- We find ourselves walking without fear (2 Timothy 1:7),
- We find ourselves relying upon the Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4:6),
- We find ourselves victorious in every area of our lives (Philippians 4:13), and
- We find ourselves speaking with authority (Romans 4:17).
Though obstacles will come our way, I'm reminded that "no weapon formed against us shall prosper." There are prizes, goals and marks that God has set for the body of Christ and Praise Center to meet in 2015. I encourage you to join us in our journey while we are Walking in Authority in 2015! With God on our side, we expect to take the Prince William County area of Virginia by storm and do a great work for God.
Yours in Christ,
Elder Eugene C. McCown, Jr.
Pastor, Praise Center Church Of God In Christ
