“Make your tent bigger. Open your doors wide. Don’t think small!”
Isaiah 54:2 ERV
Last week we talked about the importance of prayer—especially as it relates to our divine directive to pray for the leaders God has placed in positions of authority.
We talked about our mandate to humble ourselves and pray for the nation in which we live—because when we do, God promises to heal it.
More importantly, when we pray, God increases our capacity to hear His voice and more effectively serve on His behalf.
Today, I want to talk to you about building your capacity to impact the world for Christ.
As we prepare for End Your Year Strong Dec 2-3, we are praying that every individual in attendance will experience a supernatural expansion of their personal capacity to be an extraordinary force for positive good.
The Impact Center is SOLD OUT, but you can join the EYYS movement via LiveStreaming…
CLICK HERE NOW FOR YOUR PASS
Don’t miss this opportunity in this historic season to lock arms with fellow change makers.
Now, more than ever, we must come together and raise up a new standard of hope and healing.
We must lengthen our cords and strengthen our stakes as Isaiah spoke of; we must think bigger by stretching our minds, our imaginations, and our faith. (See Isaiah 52:2.)
“You have opened my ears and given me the capacity to hear [and obey Your word].”
Psalm 40:6 AMP
We must increase our capacity to receive from heaven the answers and solutions the world so desperately needs in this hour.
When Jesus declared, “You are the light of the world,” He made clear that His disciples were the carriers of all knowledge and truth.
As carriers of light in a dark world, we must fan into flame the embers each of us have been entrusted with.
“No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone.”
Matthew 5:15 NLT
To increase your light you must build your capacity to carry it—and in order to do that you must first and foremost seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness (see Matt. 6:33).
There is a great deal to be said about delighting yourself in the Lord (see Psalm 37:4) and in the work He has given you to do.
“The best way to live,” concluded the wise King Solomon, is “accepting what’s given and delighting in the work” (Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 MSG).
“Make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it.”
Ecclesiastes 15:19 MSG
With a grateful heart, receive what He gives and more will be given. When you are faithful with whatever little you have, you will be trusted with more.
We often forget these simple truths as we strive to achieve great things: That we must first seek after His Kingdom even as we are faithful with the smallest of things.
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Luke 16:10
One of the primary ways God knows whether He can trust you with what He gives, is how tightly you hang on to it.
We are told throughout the Bible in various ways that we will reap whatever we sow (see Gal. 6:7 and 2 Cor. 9:6)—and as we measure it out so it will be measured back to us (see Matt. 7:2 and Mark 4:24).
If you want to increase your capacity to do, have, and be more, then you must be generous in all you do, have, and are.
“God loves a cheerful giver.”
2 Corinthians 9:7
Giving is another fundamental key to capacity building.
If you want to get ahead in life, help others get ahead. If you want to become a great leader, develop the leadership potential in everyone around you.
If you want to build a following, deepen your community presence, or expand your social platform, then invest in other people. The quickest way to push past your own limitations is to help others push past theirs.
“The secret to growth is helping others grow.”
Julian Hall
Capacity building is yet one more of CTMI’s ten core values. In previous weeks, we’ve highlighted several of our other core values such as faith, prayer, and potential.
Below is our value statement as it relates to capacity building:
We believe in capacity building, because when ordinary people are empowered to maximize their potential, they produce extraordinary results. Giving increases our capacity to be and do more. In order to grow and expand we give extravagantly—we give of our time, talent, and treasure. Every human being has the ability to contribute to the health and prosperity of their community by engaging in a capacity-building process.
Giving and capacity building go hand in hand—because the more you give, the more you are able to receive.
Paul told the church at Corinth that to receive the gifts of God’s Spirit one must have capacity for them. We must position ourselves spiritually in order to receive all that God has for us.
“The unspiritual self…can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them.”
1 Corinthians 2:14 MSG
In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he talked about those who had “lost their capacity for truth”—having their own conscience seared—because they became habituated to hypocrisy, greed, and deception. (See 1 Tim. 4:2 MSG.)
Don’t allow current cultural trends to limit your own capacity to push through the noise and clutter of the common, and prevail in what are difficult times.
In Christ, by faith—faith that works by love—you have the capacity to dispel the darkness. You have the capacity to carry God’s goodness and glory to a hurting world.
“For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.”
2 Peter 2:15
Don’t neglect the gift—the light—that is in you! When you feel stretched and pushed to the limit, lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes!
Learn to think bigger, reach higher, work harder, and ask for more—to believe for and give more than you thought possible before.
“You are the light of the world!”
Matthew 5:14