A GOOD REPORT.

The Word of God is powerful. It is sharper than any two-edged sword and will turn you into the type of person who believes that whatever you do will prosper and succeed. The Bible says you can do all things in Christ but first you must adjust your thinking to line up and agree with the thoughts of God. Rom. 12:2a says, “And do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” The way you think can either cause you to press forward in the midst of a trial or it can become a roadblock that prevents your advancement in life. Thomas Edison once performed ten thousand experiments in his quest to invent the light bulb and none produced the results he wanted. “I have not failed,” he said. “I have successfully found ten thousand ways that will not work.” When you think like that there is no way the enemy can stop you from accomplishing what you set out to do.

Paul said in 2 Cor. 4:8,9, “We are hard pressed on every side yet not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; persecuted but not forsaken; struck down but not destroyed.” The Message Bible puts it this way, “We’ve been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken.” A winner is not a person who has never suffered a setback. A winner is someone who knows that when the setback comes he or she must rise to the occasion and continue forward. The thoughts, words, and actions of a winner will always be in agreement with the Word of God. This, in turn, will determine whether you will be a success or failure because what happens “in” you is more important than what happens “to” you. You can have the attitude that God is bigger than any obstacle you face or you can believe that He’s not. The former will allow you to release the power of God into your situation through faith whereas the latter will confine you to a life of fear and failure. This truth is illustrated in Num. 13 which tells the story of when Moses sent twelve people to spy out the Promised Land.

After being gone for several weeks the spies came back and told of seeing huge fortified cities there and strong giants dwelling in the land. Everything the spies said about the land was true, the difference being Joshua and Caleb came back with a good report while the remaining ten returned bearing a bad report. Num. 13:30,31 says, “Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, ‘Let us go up at once and take possession for we are well able to overcome it.’ But the men who had gone up with him said, ‘We are not able to go up against the people for they are stronger than we are.’’’ We need to understand that faith is not a denial of the circumstances. Joshua and Caleb saw the same giants as the other spies, but they knew God had given them the land and refused to allow the circumstances to dictate to them how things were going to be. This is called faith and faith always has a good report. To walk victorious we need to feed on the Word of God continually and maintain a good report on the evil day when circumstantial giants block our path. Num. 14:36-38 tells us that because the ten spies brought back a bad report they immediately died by the plaque before the Lord whereas Joshua and Caleb were the only members of their evil generation who entered into the Promised Land. This reward was given to Joshua and Caleb because they believed God in spite of the circumstances and as a result brought back to the people a good report.

There is another story in the Bible where under grave circumstances a woman overlooked a tragic event in her life and won a major victory by confessing a good report. Her story is found in 2 Kings 4:8-37. One day Elisha traveled to the city of Shunem where he met a woman who constrained him to come into her home and eat some food. This happened regularly and this same woman persuaded her husband to build an upper bedroom onto their house so that the prophet of God could have a comfortable dwelling place whenever he traveled to that region. During one of his visits, Elisha decided to bless the family for their kindness and upon hearing that the woman and her elderly husband had no children he foretold that in about a year’s time they would have and embrace a baby son. In time the child grew and one day he ran out into the field to be with his father and immediately complained of a pain in his head. The boy was taken to his mother where he sat on her lap and eventually died. Now was the moment of truth for this woman who longed to be in the presence of the man of God.

A person’s faith is most tested when all they have is taken away. Oftentimes a person is required to use their faith when they are drained emotionally, mentally, and physically. The young boy’s mother did this by not preparing her son for burial but instead went and laid him on the bed of the prophet. She immediately got ready to run to the man of God and when asked why she was going all she said was “It is well.” She made a good report in spite of the loss a mother is sure to feel at the death of one of her children. For this mother there was no turning back and without delay she departed and went to Mount Carmel to see the man of God. Elisha instructed his servant when he saw her approaching, “Please run now to meet her, and say to her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?’ And she answered, ‘It is well.’” For the second time this woman gave a good report and confessed “It is well.”

It is interesting to compare what this mother said to Elisha to what Martha said to Jesus at the death of her brother, Lazarus. Jesus was not present when Lazarus passed away and the first thing Martha said was, “Lord, if You had been here my brother would not have died.” When Jesus respond-ed that her brother would rise again Martha said, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Martha had faith for the past and for the future whereas the dead boy’s mother displayed a “now” faith by twice saying “It is well.” The timing of faith is vitally important to those who desire to live a victorious life that is pleasing to God. To walk by faith you must forget about yesterday and look beyond tomorrow in order to focus on today. Faith is a present tense reality and the first three words of Heb. 11:1 say, “Now faith is…” When Moses asked God what His Name was He said “I Am Who I Am.” Our God is a “now” God and so also is His faith which He gives us when we confess and believe His Word. Knowing this is what compelled the young boy’s mother to confess “It is well” and as a result of her “now” faith the prophet went and minister-ed the miracle-working power of God into the body of her lifeless son. The lad was raised up and went on to live a rich full life and it all began when his mother gave a good report in the face of adversity.

The ten spies who brought back the evil report and Martha walked by sight while the young boy’s mother was able to walk by faith because of the commitment she made to be in the presence of the man of God. On the other hand, it was Martha’s younger sister Mary who sat at the feet of Jesus and listened to everything He said while Martha chose instead to busy herself with the task of serving her guests. It is this commitment to the Word of God what will enable you to give a good report on the evil day and will cause you to rise up and boldly proclaim, “It is well!”