Pursuing Your Destiny pt 5

Dear beloved:  When God begins to reveal your destiny to you, the question ultimately becomes: Are you willing to follow where He leads? Jesus said in Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. v25 For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it.  When God speaks to you in whatever way He chooses, you are then presented with the decision, do I follow where He leads, or do I sit pat on the status quo and let fear and inaction determine my future?  Before you start to walk with your cross, you first have to pick it up, get it off the ground so to speak.  But realize this, whatever God call you to do, He will be there to strengthen and provide for you. The Apostle Paul said it this way, 2 Corinthians 12:9 And God said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness."  Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me.  v10 Therefore, I am well content with weakness, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. 

In 2009 I had been praying and fasting for the Lord to expand my territory and give me greater authority and anointing.  I had done some international ministry, but primarily I had been preaching in the prisons for many years, for what I see now was a time of preparation.  The Lord gave me a very vivid dream showing that the door was going to be opening for me to preach in Africa. I had not been thinking of Africa, had no real ties to anyone or anyplace there, had no real desire to go there, it wasn't really on the radar at all.  In the dream, I was standing on a platform preaching to thousands of African people.  In my right hand was my bible, I was holding it up in the air as if to say, "Here is the sword of the Spirit."  In my left hand was a big burlap style bag, only it was pure white and had written on it in bold letters, Revelation 22.  The bag was full of big ears of corn as if to say, "This is going to be your provision when you go to proclaim the gospel, the good news of the new heaven and new earth, the new Jerusalem.'  Behind the platform was a 2,000 bushel grain bin, filled to the top with ear corn, the same kind as was in the bag; so the Lord was showing  that He was going to be the provision, that where he had given vision for His kingdom,  He would provide for that which He was calling me to do. The last aspect of the dream that was very unique was that between myself and the African people, standing on the ground between us, was 40 or so men in blue shirts and red hats, the men of the prison who He was appointing to be intercessors. 

So I started to pray into that dream, wondering what the Lord was up to here, but waiting on the Lord in anticipation.  Isaiah 40:31  And those that wait on the Lord will renew (or gain) their strength. They will mount up with wings of eagles, They will run and nor get tired, They will walk and not faint.  Within just a few months I received a phone call from an evangelist brother of mine, who told about a worship team that was going to Kenya, and they needed some preachers to go along with them to preach in the revivals.  Boom! the door was open.  Needless to say, I didn't have to pray about it very long to decide that I wanted to go, for the Lord had already prepared me and given me notice.  Since then the Lord has blessed and provided for me to go back several times and preach crusades in Kenya, Uganda, and the Republic of Congo, with many more on the horizon; and He is also opening up other doors in Africa to build orphanages for the children who are victims of the AIDS epidemic.   Beloved, God wants to  move you, but you must be willing to pick your cross up off the ground and step out; but fear not, for He will anoint your head with oil.  God bless you as you pray this day,  in Christ, Jim  www.gathertheoutcasts.com

Pursuing Your Destiny pt 4

Dear beloved:  After you have asked the Lord to speak to you, and then you receive from Him the still, small voice, the dream or vision, or the revelation through His word, the next step in walking into your destiny is to step out in faith, and put into action that which He is calling you to do.  Habakkuk 2:1 I will stand on my guard post, And station myself on the rampart; And I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me, And how I may reply when I am reproved. v2 The the Lord answered me and said, " Record the vision,  And inscribe it on tablets, That the one who reads it may run. v3 For the vision is for the appointed time; It hastens toward the goal, and it will not fail. Though it taries, wait for it; For it will certainly come, it will not delay.  v4 Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the righteous WILL LIVE BY HIS FAITH.

James, in his short epistle, had much to say about putting faith into action.  James 2:14 What use is it brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?  v17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. v18 But someone may well say, " You have faith, and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works."  v19 You believe that God is one.  You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.  v20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?  And the Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians, that as followers of Jesus Christ we are created for the good works.  Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should WALK IN THEM.

Every kingdom action, no matter how great or small, requires us to step out with that measure of faith that we have been given, and move the kingdom forward in whatever way God has called us to move.  Last night at the prison revival, after a time of praise and worship, the Lord started to give me words of knowledge about some afflictions of the ninety men in the room.  I stepped out in faith and called out the words of knowledge, one for men with sciatic nerve and lower back pain, and the second for men with right ankle and right lower leg pain.  Both words brought a response and several men came forward for prayer.  One of the young men that had ankle pain gave testimony later that he had severely sprained his ankle several years earlier, it had swollen up size of a soccer ball.  He had been living with the pain all this time; but after we prayed for him, the Lord gave him immediate healing and relief from the pain, and he was very excited to announce his healing to the whole group before we left last night!  Stepping out in faith pleases God, and when you step out, He will give you more works, and even greater works to help move the kingdom forward.  Hebrews 11:6  And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder if those who diligently seek Him.   Beloved, what is God calling you to do today? Whatever it is, step out in faith and you will bless the Lord as well as yourself.  May God bless you as you pray this day.  in Christ, Jim  www. gathertheoutcasts.com

Pursuing Your Destiny pt 3

Dear beloved:  After you have asked  (ask and you shall receive Matthew 7:7) the Lord to reveal your destiny to you, how do you know if you are hearing the voice of God?  That is a question many ask, as they are not sure if they are hearing the voice of God, the voice of man, or sometimes even the voice of demons that may be speaking to them.  Beloved, rest assured that when you are sincere in following Jesus, and you are diligent to keep His commandments, the voice you will be hearing is the voice of God.  Jesus said in John 10:3 to him (the shepherd) the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. v4 "When he puts forth all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice." v5 "And a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers."  If you are listening for the voice of God, and are God fearing, God is faithful and true to speak to you in regards to what you are asking for, according to His will.

There are many ways that God speaks to us as believers, I will list the primary ones, but God is not limited to these ways.  1. Through His written word, Psalm 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.  2. The  Holy Spirit, John 16:13 But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.  3. Audible voice of God, 1Samuel 3:10 Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, for Thy servant is listening."  4. Dreams and visions, Joel 2:28 And it will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions.  5. Prophetic word through man, 1 Corinth 14:3 But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation.  6. An angel sent from God,  Daniel 9:21 while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, who I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering. v22 And he gave me instruction and talked with me, and said, "O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with understanding"  7. All of creation Luke 19:30 And Jesus answered and said, " I tell you, if these (disciples of Mine) become silent, the stones will cry out!"

Some wait their whole life for God to speak to them in some grandiose way, but ignore the still small voice, the prophetic dream, or even the word of God that clearly speaks to us to give us our charge.  Beloved, it's not too likely that God is going to fly by your house with a helicopter, pulling a long banner behind with your name and the next step in your kingdom walk clearly written out on it.  He could do that, but it is not too likely, so don't let the years pass you by in a passive state while you are waiting for that type of sign. Instead,be ready to receive the dream, the vision, the whisper, the prophesy that helps you move into your future.  Be as Samuel when Eli gave him this instruction in 1 Samuel 3:9 And Eli said to Samuel, "Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant is listening."  So Samuel went and lay down in his place.   So get your pad and pen out and say to the Lord, "Speak, for Thy servant is listening."  May God bless you as you pray this day, in Christ, Jim  www.gathertheoutcasts.com

Pursuing Your Destiny pt 2

Dear beloved  Can you trust God enough in your life to allow Him to help you move forward into your destiny?  That is the basic question of our existence here on this earth, that you step forward in faith and walk into the plans that God has for you.  Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans that I have for you", declares the Lord.  So God has already declared  from the throne in the heavenly realm what His plans for you are, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope."  And so, the first part of the equation is taken care of by God, the One who created Us.  Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.  Our lives are to be filled with good works, those kingdom projects that God has ordained for us, and then He gives us the strength, the grace, and the provision to carry them out.

 The second half of the equation is simply this: will you step out in faith and agree with God about those words that He has declared over you?  Beloved, be confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.  It is an ongoing project, and it will not be finished until the day Jesus returns, or you are taken up to heaven to be with the Lord.  Ephesians 4:7 But to EACH ONE of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift  v11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, v12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying (building up) of the body of Christ.  And so each is called, each is given the measure of faith, each is given the grace to move forward and do mighty works to build up the kingdom and the body of Christ.

If you are in a place today where you truly don't know what God's plans for you are, just start asking Him. He tells us in Matthew 7:7 Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be opened to you,  v8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened.  In my own life, in 1974 God gave me a very detailed prophetic dream that showed me where He was providing a place of refuge, both spiritually and physically.   I had been wandering about in the drug infested wilderness area for a few years, and realized that if I didn't make some rather dramatic changes, my life was going to be short and none too sweet.  So I started asking the Lord. "show me Your way", and He showed me a detailed dream of my grandfather's farm,  the blessings of the land, which also represented the teaching of my ancestors, who were all born again believers, and basic country folks.  In the dream, my grandfather was standing next to a field of golden, ripe wheat ( provision),  saying to me, "this will make you a great garden some day!"  I started to pray into that dream and gradually move in that direction, forsaking the wilderness area for what I knew would prosper me, and give me a hope and a future. Ten years later, the farm become my home and refuge, and the teachings given to me in my youth, the living Word, became my rock and anchor,  Beloved, trust the Lord, start asking Him today, "show me Your way", and then get ready.  He will do it!  God bless you as you pray this day, in Christ, Jim  www.gathertheoutcasts.com

Pursuing Your Destiny

Dear beloved:  As winter is here and all of creation in this area rests and restores, now is the time for reflection on the past year's events and accomplishments, especially as it relates to the Kingdom of God. As you contemplate the coming year and the opportunities and open doors God is making available to you, the question to ask yourself is this: Am I pursing my calling that God has declared over me?

How do you know if you have a destiny or calling that God has declared over you?  Paul says in 1Thessalonians 5:24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.  Though this letter was written to baby believers in Thessalonica, it is also a teaching for us. Every person who is on this earth has been created in the image of God, and has been given the creative attributes given only to God's crowning creation; the ability to reason, to have an imagination, the ability to bring ideas together and then act them out in new and exciting ways, are all hallmarks of God's children.   This expresses itself also in the Kingdom of God, as new ways to evangelize the lost, as well as new ways to train and equip the saved, become the focus of our highest pursuits, or in other words, our calling.

God spoke over Jeremiah in Jer 1:4 Now the word of the Lord came to me saying v5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations."  And so God revealed  to Jeremiah at a young age his destiny, and told him that He had known this destiny even before Jeremiah was born or formed in the womb. And so also it is with you, no matter how insignificant you think you are, no matter how unimportant your life seems to you, or even to others, to God it is very important.  No one else was created with just the same characteristics and qualities, talents and passions that you have.  When you start to express those attributes to move the Kingdom of God forward, then you are truly pursuing your destiny, you are walking into your calling. 

I just received an email from a brother in the faith in Kenya, he was informing me with great joy of a new baby born to him and his wife.  The middle name given the baby is Mandela, named after Nelson Mandela, of coarse.  He is probably one of many thousands of babies around the world that will be named after this great man who just recently passed away.  I prayed and spoke blessings over the new baby to walk into his destiny, and become a great man just as Nelson Mandela was, that this baby, too, would fulfill his calling in spite of tribulation and adverse circumstances, that he would be a world changer.  Beloved, God knows your name, you are famous to Him, may you also become a world changer in spite of your adverse circumstances and the schemes of the devil against you.   I will be speaking more in coming posts on how God speaks to us to reveal our calling       God bless you, in Christ, Jim

Season"s Greetings

Season's Greetings

from Jim Rowh

Dear beloved: I'm very busy keeping the wood fire stoked these days, as temperatures have certainly let us know that winter is here. I'm also spending a lot of time in the Word, writing and keeping up with correspondence. The Lord has already opened many of doors for ministry in 2014; I will be praying and fasting about that after the first of the year, so I can move forward with boldness, knowing that I am in the perfect will of God.

James 1:27 This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

I have been very thankful this last week for a warm house, with heat and protection from the elements, food in the pantry, and warm clothing to put on my body. All these things are very easily taken for granted here in the abundance we have in America. God has given me a burden to build an orphanage for 30-40 children in Kenya, and I am appealing to you prayer warriors to help bring this dream to reality. We already have a great pastor team in place, as well as the land procured with good well water. The orphanage site is in a lush area of western Kenya, near the city of Mumias, and food is plentiful and can be grown easily on the land. So everything is in place for the next step, which is to build the structure, and provide for the basic needs and education of these children, many of whom have been orphaned by the AIDS epidemic which has devastated parts of Africa.

2 Samuel 24:21 Then Araunah said to David, " Why has my lord the king come to his servant?" And David said, "Top buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, in order that the plague may be held back from the people." v22 And Araunah said to David, " Let my lord the king take and offer up what is good in his sight. Look, the oxen for the burnt offering, the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. v23 "Everything, O king, Araunah gives to the king." And Araunah said to the king, "May the Lord your God accept you." v24 However, the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price, for I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God which cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. As you consider year end giving, consider helping the helpless, those who have no place to call home. Come before the Lord with an offering, God will certainly bless you for it. Thank you again for standing with Gather the Outcasts with your prayer and financial support this year, and may we do even greater exploits for the Lord in the coming year. If you have any questions, email at  pureprairie@hotmail.com.,www.gathertheoutcasts.com  in Christ, Jim Rowh, Gather the Outcasts Ministry, Box 92, Norton, Ks. 67654

Happy Thanksgiving

Dear beloved:  As we pause to reflect on the bounty that God has given us this past year, I am especially thankful for you ministry supporters and prayer warriors that have stood with Gather the Outcasts Ministry.  It has been an eventful year, God has opened many doors, many victories have been won.  Because of you prayer warriors, greater battles will be engaged in the future, and greater victories for the Kingdom will be won.  Great is Thy faithfulness!, O Lord, to provide all that we need in the battle, including the warriors to stand with us each and every day. 

I am thankful also for this great country, and the bounty God has provided for us here.  This country is worth fighting for, join me to contend for righteousness.  Psalm 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord'the people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.  Join me in praying as I do every week to start off my radio broadcast, let us pray for our elected leaders, the President, Congress, the Supreme Court, as well as all the men and women of the military who are defending our freedoms, many of whom are in harm's way this day as we sit down in the comfort of our homes to enjoy the Thanksgiving meal.  May God grant all of them wisdom and protection.

Psalm 65:9 Thou dost visit the earth, and cause it to overflow; Thou dost greatly enrich it; The stream of God is full of water; Thou dost prepare their grain, for thus Thou dost prepare the earth.  v10 Thou dost water its furrows abundantly; Thou dost settle its ridges; Thou dost soften it with showers; Thou dost bless its growth.  v11 Thou hast crowned the year with Thy bounty, And Thy paths drip with fatness.  v12 The pastures of the wilderness drip, and the hills gird themselves with rejoicing, v13 The meadows are clothed with flocks, and the valleys are covered with grain; They shout for joy, yes, they sing.

May God bless you as you celebrate and give thanks to the Lord this day.  in Christ, Jim   Gather the Outcasts, Box 92, Norton, Kansas 67654