Wholehearted Commitment to God-Given Passions Produced These Victories

John Wimber became convinced that healing was to accompany the preaching of the gospel. "Unbelievably, Wimber prayed for the sick for a full 10 months before the first person was healed! From then on healings increased exponentially." Wagner, C. Peter. Wrestling with Alligators, Prophets, and Theologians (p. 123). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Here is an interesting quote. “John Wimber’s healing conferences and teaching impacted thousands of Christians around the world in the 20th century. He noted once that he would receive cards or letters after someone had heard him teach that would say something to the effect of, 'I went home and prayed for somebody and it didn’t work.' John would laugh and reply, 'Why don’t you pray for a thousand somebodies, and then let’s talk.'” (Reference).

Most, if not all, healing ministries will confirm that they went through a period of trial and error before seeing healing as a normal part of their ministry.

Shawn Bolz in his video training series “Translating God” discusses how he grew to become a mature, skilled, accurate prophet. He started as a young child and practiced using the prophetic gift God had given him. Later he received mentoring from other prophets such as Paul Cain. Now he is an international trainer, raising up prophets around the world.

Peter Daniels, an entrepreneur and millionaire in Australia, tells in his book of nearly going bankrupt several times before finally achieving such success that he now gives $10,000 a day to ministry causes. It is normal for businessmen to fail in their first three attempts at business.

Abraham Lincoln - There is probably no better example of failure and persistence that I know of. Let me share Lincoln’s life history with you: This was a man who failed in business at the age of 21; was defeated in a legislative race at age 22; failed again in business at age 24; overcame the death of his sweetheart at age 26; had a nervous breakdown at age 27; lost a congressional race at age 34; lost a senatorial race at age 45; failed in an effort to become vice-president at age 47; lost a senatorial race at age 49; and was elected president of the United States at age 52.

Would you dare call him a failure? He could have quit anywhere along the line. But to Lincoln, defeat was a detour and not a dead-end. And it was a great source of learning.

Walt Disney - As a young cartoonist, Walt Disney faced many rejections from newspaper editors, who said he had no talent. He was even fired from one who told him he lacked imagination and original ideas. His first company went bankrupt within two years and he ate dog food until he could get back on his feet. He lost the rights to his first successful animated character. When he tried to get MGM studios to distribute Mickey Mouse in 1927, he was told the idea would never work - a giant mouse on the screen would terrify women! The Three LIttle Pigs was rejected by disctributors in 1933. Pinocchio, Fantasia and Pollyanna were box office flops at first. Undaunted, Disney faced each disappointment by planning his next adventure.

Mark Virkler – Ten years of failure in hearing God’s voice drove me to a conviction that hearing God was central to a relationship with Him and central to an effective life and ministry. God inspired a thought that I should spend a year of focused effort seeking to learn to hear His voice. God arranged for me to meet key people and read certain books which sparked insights of understanding. God woke me one morning with a loud voice saying, “Get up, I am going to teach you to hear My voice.” That day He showed me four keys in Habakkuk 2:1-2, which have now been taught to millions, allowing them to clearly hear God’s voice.

I have used this same year-long process to discover many keys to Christian spirituality which are now recorded in my books.

Journaling Application

1. Lord, what is the love, passion, and giftedness You have placed within me?
2. What battle are You commissioning me to fight and win this year?
3. What am I to do to begin?
4. Share your stories of victory below.

Explore this entire three-part series:

Part One – God-Given Passions Are a Key to Achieving God-Ordained Victories

Part Two – Discover Your Unique Passion and Giftings as These Pave the Way for Your Success

Part Three – Wholehearted Commitment to God-Given Passions Produced These Victories