By Sharon Manasseh
“….There’s no need to bother the Master any further. Your daughter has passed away. She’s gone.” Luke 8:49 (TPT)
In the Bible, Jairus received news about his twelve-year-old daughter’s death. Have you received similar news? An end to a relationship? Are you being bombarded with fears and torment by the enemy? Are you in a situation where there is no way out but death to a vision, or have you received a negative health report? Jesus was standing beside Jairus when this news arrived. This was Jesus’s answer.
“When Jesus heard this, he turned to Jairus and said, “Don’t yield to your fear. Have faith in me, and she will live again”. Luke 8:50 (TPT)
I received a health report last year that shook me. I felt a sudden dark raging storm around me for a few days. Then one night, I heard His voice, “Do you believe me? Use your authority in me, there is power in my name to bind and rebuke the enemy.”
“…Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm”. Mark 4:39 (KJV)
He backed up the whisper of authority that I could muster. The storm dissipated. Although I thought my faith was strong, God revealed that some past unanswered prayers caused unbelief and disappointment. I had tucked these fears deep in a dark corner. There was a little root of thought that He won’t answer this prayer. Self-preservation leads to fears. I thought I knew what was best for me, except this time, I could only seek His help. I had no solution. Although I had miraculously enough answered prayers to talk a lifetime about, there were the troubling little foxes.
“You must catch the troubling foxes, those sly little foxes that hinder our relationship. They raid our budding vineyard of love to ruin what I have planted within you. Will you catch them and remove them for me? We will do it together”. Songs of Songs 2:15 (TPT)
His perfect love casts out ALL fears.
“Even when your path takes me through the valley of deepest darkness, fear will never conquer me, for you already have! Your authority is my strength and my peace. The comfort of your love takes away my fear. I’ll never be lonely, for you are near. You become my delicious feast even when my enemies dare to fight…” Psalm 23: 4-5 (TPT)
He is our inheritance and prize.
“Yahweh, you alone are my inheritance. You are my prize, my pleasure, and my portion. You hold my destiny and its timing in your Hands.” Psalms 16:5 (TPT)
If I claim to know Him, then I know the power of His love. We are never separated!
“So now I live with the confidence that there is nothing in the universe with the power to separate us from God’s love. I’m convinced that His love will triumph over death, life’s troubles, fallen angels, or dark rulers in the heavens. There is nothing in our present or future circumstances that can weaken His Love. There is no power above us or beneath us – no power that could ever be found in the universe that can distance us from God’s passionate love, which is lavished upon us through our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One!” Romans 8: 38-39 (TPT)
“……..Then you will be empowered to discover what every holy one experiences – the great magnitude of the astonishing love of Christ in all its dimensions. How deeply intimate and far-reaching is His love! How enduring and inclusive it is! Endless love beyond measurement that transcends our understanding – this extravagant love pours into you until you are filled to overflowing with the fullness of God!” Ephesians 3: 18 – 19 (TPT)
He continued to talk to me in this journey, “I didn’t cause this trial so partner with me .” It is the enemy who comes to steal and destroy. The enemy is quick to deceive through self-condemnation and plans to separate us from God’s love; then we become an easy target, a road leading to despair.
“Whenever our hearts make us feel guilty and remind us of our failures, we know that God is much greater and more merciful than our conscience, and he knows everything there is to know about us”. I John 3:20 (TPT)
“So now the case is closed. There remains no accusing voice of condemnation against those who are joined in life-union with Jesus, the Anointed One.” Romans 8:1(TPT).
He taught me to sow the tears and the pain, and I found wells of revelations and a harvest of peace, strength, and healing in the end.
“Those who sow their tears as seeds will reap a harvest with joyful shouts of glee. They may weep as they carry their seed to sow. Still, they will return with joyful laughter and shouting with gladness as they bring back armloads of blessing and a harvest overflowing.” Psalm 126:5-6 (TPT)
God used many ways to heal and solve problems when He walked the earth. There are no formulae. He works through a relationship. Whatever your circumstance, He will guide you on a path of healing.
This season, I knew I was to pray differently. God taught me to ask according to His will. His will is to give us hope and a future. I prayed desperate prayers like Hannah and King Hezekiah when they presented their requests to God. I refused to accept the enemy’s narrative and any norm presented to me. I am a child of God. I am not a victim of my circumstances!
So this is what my journey looked like. I have always loved reading the Bible and praying, but I read and prayed for many more hours this season. I read the word until I heard God speak to me. Then I ran with it, rested with it, and prayed it over and over. There were many, many precious promises. Promises look different when you are walking through a dark valley.
There were many nights when I was reading the Word, praying the Word, and singing the word for hours. I could hear His breath. He lives in us.
“For the word of God is alive and powerful….” Hebrews 4:12 (NLT)
There were days when I felt like running away from all the options. Those days I call Him for help.
“The very moment I call to you for a father’s help, the tide of battle turns and my enemies flee. This one thing I know: God is on my side! I trust in the Lord. And I praise Him! I trust in the Word of God. And I praise Him!” Psalms 56: 9-10 (TPT)
There is always a shift. Even the tiniest. Sometimes He removes difficult options, sometimes, He walks with me energising me, and sometimes I just fall at His feet. The reality of His presence in us is just mind-blowing! His word is sweeter than honey! Oh, the deep peace you find in Him even in the deepest unrest. Wait for Him, expect His answer, and imagine it until He responds. Ask Him for eyes to see and not to miss the answer. Rejoice in the process.
“Rejoice with singing, you barren one! ….. Increase is coming, so enlarge your tent and add extensions to your dwelling….” Isaiah 54: 1-2 (TPT)
“You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness, you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past…” Psalm 139:5 (TPT)
Sometimes an answer is wrapped in a process filled with little miracles. I thank Him for every flicker of a miracle. I do a victory dance, and sometimes I fall to my knees in awe of His goodness and mercy. Staying grateful during a trial and declaring His goodness & supremacy over our difficult circumstances – unlocks more miracles! His handprint is on everything if we look for it.
What do His handprints look like? (there were countless, but just naming a few)- a loving husband who stood by me every step of the way, a family that created a faith environment – no room for doubts, pastors that anointed and prayed over me. The nurse that held my hand minutes before surgery who just happened to have the same name as my sister! Many miracles in the form of failed reports of the enemy – all the ridiculous probabilities and what-ifs!
“We all experience testing times, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust Him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out of it victoriously.” 1 Corinthians 10:13 (TPT)
He showed me a way of a victorious escape and healing path.
“But I will give my thanks to you, Yahweh, for you make everything right in the end. I will sing my highest praise to the God of the Highest Place!” Psalms 7:17 (TPT)
“What comes to your mind when you think of treasures, He asked me?” (Just like me, pause here and think what comes to your mind) He continued, “May I suggest?”:
“The rarest treasures of life are found in His truth. That’s why God’s word is prized like others’ prize the finest gold. Sweeter also than honey are His living words-sweet words dripping from the honeycomb” Psalm 19:10(TPT)
It may not be a popular brand – to be unashamed and passionate about Him, but an encounter with Him will awaken His love, truth, and life within – it will set us free.
“We are like common clay jars that carry this glorious treasure within, so that this immeasurable power will be seen as God’s, not ours. Though we experience every kind of pressure, we’re not crushed…” II Corinthians 4:7-8 (TPT)
In Song of Songs, the Shulamite discovers His transforming love and becomes an awakened bride, confident of His love. In Psalms, the shepherd boy, David, knew His God and became a king and a warrior.
“You’ve trained me with the weapons of warfare-worship…” Psalms 18: 34 (TPT)
Warriors are needed when there is a threat in the gates of our life, family, city, and nation – those that walk from a place of love, worship, and rest. Warriors refuse to shrink back from the enemy’s lies and are firmly planted in His love and truth.
By the way, Jesus raised Jairus’s daughter from the dead.
“Jesus approached the body, took the girl by her hand, and called out with a loud voice, “My sleeping child, awake! Rise up! Instantly her spirit returned to her body, and she stood up…” Luke 8:54- 56(TPT)
Jairus chose to believe in Jesus. Today, we can choose to believe and declare His truth over our circumstances. He is a God of restoration.
Aboud Dr. Sharon Manasseh
Dr. Sharon Manasseh is an experienced educator with over 20 years of involvement in the field of teaching and learning. She resides in New Zealand with her husband, Arwyn, and their three children. She recently completed her doctorate studies in accounting. Presently, Sharon applies her expertise in education as a senior academic staff member. She serves within her local church community and is passionate about writing and sharing about the faithfulness of God.
