Community Transformation

A Disciple is called to believe in God and His ability

Community revival is the result of community based evangelism through the power of prayer. It is were hope must give way to faith in preparing a way for the Lord to come into a community. God’s presence is the catalyst for community transformation, when a community is overrun by the presence of God, it is where the Kingdom of God manifest in the community.

Every level of society reacts to a new authority, the authority of God which brings in a new sense of purpose. Perfection is not the measure of transformation, transformation of a community is like sanctification of an individual, it is an event and a process.

The land itself reacts to the transformation of believers – 2 Chron 7:14

Jesus however said – “apart from Me, you can do nothing” people in general have no sense of who they are or were they are going, there is only one remedy, to inviting God to dwell amongst us, for when God comes into a community His presence become our identity. When every facet of live submit itself to a Higher authority, a new sense of destiny comes into the community. God is the God of all, we just want to give part, but God want all. The name of the city from that time on was “THE LORD IS THERE” Ezekiel 48:35

Core principles for community transformation

How do we realize community transformation

• Opportunity – God invite us to invite Him to transform our communities.
  • God’s character is to transform communities, Isaiah 61:1-3
  • How do we invite God into a community, by praying unto God for the community, petitioning God on their behalf. Isa 62:6-7 On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent. You who put the LORD in remembrance, take no rest, and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth.
  • God’s presence is a desire of all, but the desire must manifest in prayer.
  • The capacity must grow, but only God can make it grow.
• God is drawn to holiness and humility.
  • Being proud, opinionated and arrogance are things that appose community transformation.
  • To be agents of change we must first be changed agents.
  • God keeps the proud amiss but the humble He brings unto Himself. Isa 66:2 All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.
  • The biggest thing that imputes unity is our own pride, and we get offended easy.
  • Humility is the bases for sustained transformation.
  • Sincere heart to serve the Lord, to worship Him.
  • Without Him we can do nothing.
  • The mind is at its best a tool.
• Corporate revival begins with individual obedience.
  • A community starts with individuals.
  • How a community start praying together is not the most important part, the most important thing is to begin.
  • Man is impressed by activity, God is impressed by obedience.
  • In abiding in God’s presence, we must seek God heart for a community.
  • As part of a community, it is our duty to get involved with a corporate call unto God for my community.
  • Whether opposition leads to revival or stop a revival depend on our response.
  • Make a commitment by yourselves and join others with the same commitment.
  • Without exception, community transformation started with a few individuals who would not give up, who pressed on kept on praying.
  • The question is, who is the captain of your heart.
• Biblical unity is a majority with God
  • God does not need a majority, and he never used a majority.
  • You cannot work for total unity within a community.
  • Transformation is not the result of unity, unity is the product of transformation.
  • If we all within the community acknowledge the Kingdom of God, then we all submit to His Kingdom and His rule.
  • When people of a like mind come together, they draw the presence of God. Mat 18:19-20 When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action.  And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.” (Message)
  • Unity is not based upon the number of people within a room, unity is something that God brings about when His people call unto Him.
• Breakthrough prayer release destiny
  • Jam 5:16  Confess faults to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous one avails much.
  • Effectual fervent prayer is a cry of desperation.
  • All the above principles is without worth if it is not founded upon fervent, penetrating and perseverance prayer. Elijah watch and waited.
  • Prayer is the foundation of our faith, no one can graduate from prayer.
  • Lord we will not let go until we hear from You, we must be determined to seek the face of God.
  • Prayer into the presence of God.
  • We must seek God plan for the community first, so that we can call into existence the planned destiny for the community. Do not bind the evil call in the light.
  • We must be result orientated within our prayer life for the community.
  • Prayer literally change things, it however depend upon the people’s desire to see God moves, sometime we aboard God’s creation because of our own impatience.
• God’s work will always be unique
  • God’s work is not within the sphere of human control, God come to get His glory.
  • God’s program my caught you by surprise, He is unexpected and do not react on our call but in accordance to His plan and purpose.
  • Jesus said that the HS is like the wind you cannot see Him come.
  • God configure His strategy based upon His level of knowledge and not what we think.
  • We err in our ways as we decide upon a strategy and then we want God to bring it in fulfilment.
  • God will not allow His arrival to be stage manage.
• God use servant leaders
  • Committed to the community.
  • Willing to persevere, who will not give up when the going gets tuff.
  • We are not in the ministry to become a quick star, but to run the race that God set before us.
  • One who counts the cost, stay on course and directs all to the Kingdom of God – John the baptise.
  • God can do incredible things through our lives if we do not care who gets the credit.
  • It is not about names and titles, it is about acknowledging the gifts of God.
  • We are not stakeholders; we are shareholders – partners in God’s Kingdom.
  • What would Jesus do
  • The measure of leadership is not whether the leader has influence within the public eye but whether he has influence with God.

What hinders community transformation.

• Theological misperceptions
  • We believe that we cannot call on God to intervene – 2Ch 7:14  if My people, who are called by My name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Isa 62:7  And give Him no rest until He establishes and makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
  • If we do as God commanded us to do, then God will do whatever He wants to do, but if we are disobedience we become the obstacle on the way to transformation.
  • Why is it so difficult for the church to believe that something as powerful as community transformation is the very intend and purpose of God’s plan. Being recreated in Christ Jesus.
  • God purposed it in that we can do nothing apart from God and God choose to do nothing apart from us, it is labouring together to bring about God’s plan – establish His kingdom on earth.
  • God have chosen us to be His body (The body of Christ) to make Himself known on earth.
  • God never lost focus, He is still diligently seeking a transformed world, and that is the very reason He send His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
• Reliance on programs
  • Because we cannot always distinguish between good idea and God’s ideas, we end up with religious work and not real Spiritual change. (Moses on the mountain and the Israelites)
  • We do not distinguish between real faith and religious games.
  • Humanism and man’s ability is leading us away from faith in Jesus and His ability.
  • We want to take the credit for a program being initiated, while Jesus said that the work that God called us for is to believe (trust, rely upon) on Him, Jesus as the one send from God.
  • We in the modern society moved away from Kingdom building to ministry building.
  • We are so busy with the institution of the Gospel that we miss out on the Gospel, and the relationship with Jesus.
  • If God does not transform people, there is no transformation.
  • Program orientation is mark by impatience and pride, not only do we offend God when we insist on our own course, we limit our own inability to receive guidance from God to bring about transformation.
  • We plan en then asked God to bless our plans, instead of waiting on God to release His plan. (Moses on the mountain)
  • Do not seek man’s ways for answers, do not allow the world around you to dictate to you, spend time on your knees to get counsel from God. If we wait on God, then we can partner with God and His creation work and His power behind it.
  • Preoccupation with programs comes seductively, for the world that we live in, is focus on own effort.
  • If we want to get there, He must first come here.
• Lower the bar of expectancies
  • We become satisfied with the little that God is doing, the hope of glory is no more focus on the establishment of the Kingdom of God in our lifetime, we tend to say that it will take generations. Without realizing it, we are proclaiming just that.
  • If our goals are high enough, small breakthroughs will not distract us.
  • There is so much more God wants to do, but we have humanized the Christian church, and therefore we no longer look at Christ and His ability, we look at our own inability.
  • We talk about Jesus more that we talk to Jesus, we talk about what Jesus did without expecting Him to do it for us, because we are no longer following.
  • We talk about a living God but we do not expect Him to be alive within us and our world.
  • We have no expectation of the supernatural.
• Misplaced motives
  • What is our motive when we invite God into a community.
  • It is not about us, or our circumstances, it is about God and His love.
  • We must start looking at God not as the solution to our problems but we must look at God as the King of a Kingdom.
  • We must clense our hearts to ensure that there is no hidden agenda of selfish ambition in our hearts.
  • Relational intimacy is the purpose, it is therefore not about the community, but it is about God’s Kingdom being establish in the hearts of people. The more we pursue Him the more we realize how much we need Him.
  • Community transformation must be about a desire to be in the presence of God.
• Ignorance of the past
  • Lack of diligence to seek the lack of blessing. Looking at the history of the past within a community, for forgiveness of sins.
  • We cannot hide from God, and God want to bless, but there is conditions to be dealt with.
• No sense of membership
  • Unity can only be realized as a by-product of humility.
  • Unity is a Godly revelation, that we as a body can only achieve the results that God want as we stand united in Christ.
  • The pure doctrine of the church is within us, one Spirit, one God, one Baptism.
• Lack for hunger
  • We want God’s presence at our convenience, at times that suit our schedule.
  • We are very distractive; we have a lot of things that can distract us.
  • Revival is born out of passion, when the Lord speaks to us, we must listen in order that we can bring in fulfilment God predestined plan, that He want to bring in fulfilment through the Body of Christ, being recreated in Christ.
  • We must decide whether we want a confortable Christian life or do I want God’s presences.