Pauperhood
If you think about it our mind has a lot of affect on how we think of ourselves! With all of the surroundings of what may seem to be “poor,” we somehow lose our identity and it becomes a big mess. We start to settle for less than what we deserve. We are not just special people, but we are created in an image of the one, true God.
Kris Vallotton says that a Pauper is born into insignificance and by that definition we cannot label ourselves as paupers because if we were insignificant than there would be no point to us at all! That only leaves the opposite of a pauper and that is someone who is rich and significant!
When we understand that we are significant just like Moses did, we gain total confidence in our lives and even in our actions. This leads us into a totally new spectrum that has the power to change this world. Like I said it is all in our head.
Kris Vallotton explains thoroughly that it is crucial for us to live in a prince mentality because when we have a pauper mentality we gain behaviors that can destroy the people we are trying to lead. If Moses had a slave mentality, could he have led the Israelites out of slavery? Can you give someone something that you don’t have?
You and I do not deserve to be treated less than royalty. We all deserve to be treated like princes and princesses. Your opinions matter, you have access to the highest place, you can ask for it and receive it.
Humility
This morning I thought about how we do have value and our place in this world is to not settle for anything less than the love of God. I know we aren’t out to prove to people that we can handle things better or different, but in all reality there is a huge difference in being either a pauper or royalty. I love Kris Vallotton’s chapter about Superheroes in the Sanctuary. Superheroes know their purpose and they know what they are capable of doing. Each of us deserves to have all the characteristics of a superhero. Each day we go out confident of who we are because we know we have a power invested in us to accomplish daily tasks. These tasks include catching someone from falling off a skyscraper, so to speak. But for some reason healing somebody just seems as impossible as saving someone from falling off a skyscraper. I say, we need to understand our greatness. When we understand our greatness it glorifies the creator.
You are all called to become greater than what you have ever thought you could be. Right now think about how great you can be! Is it hard? Can you look in a mirror and point out everything that you like about yourself? I challenge you, before you go to bed, go stand in front of a mirror for like 5 minutes and tell yourself the good things you see in you whether it is external or internal. Now if it was a couple years ago, I would probably be pointing a finger at a person and screaming at them, “YOU ARE SO PRIDEFUL! GLORIFY THE LORD AND NOT YOURSELF YOU WORM!” To me now I laugh at this, but I also weep because it’s still the mentality of a lot of people! Kris Vallotton does a great job explaining pride versus exaltation of God.
The price that Jesus paid on the cross determined the value of us! The fact that Jesus died on the cross for us is amazing because if we were insignificant, than Jesus died for nothing! I am so thankful that we are so valuable to God that He would give His own Son! I am not afraid to admit that I have value to God, well, probably because I am His favorite, but when someone dies for me I start to think, “Wow, they must have really valued me and saw something in me that was worth dying for?” So again, now when you look in that mirror before bed tonight or even when you are in the bathroom next, ask God, “What in me is so valuable that Christ died for?” I bet God can tell you a never ending list of characteristics of a royal person!
We need to stop demeaning ourselves and acting like it glorifies Christ even more. God has given the church a great call, and therefore it takes great people to accomplish it. If we fail to see our greatness, we will fall short of our call.
For a short example, I know that I can play drums. I have been playing for 7 years now and I know that I can play a lot better than I did when I first picked up a pair of drumsticks. So is it wrong to recognize that my skill has only increased to a greater level? Well no, if I were to constantly demean my music gift, I would not grow and overall I would not be able to be a part of blessing God with it. Kris Vallotton says that humility is not the absence of confidence, but it is strength restrained. Giving ourselves an honest assessment of ourselves before God is the only way to be truly humble!
Understanding true humility is only going to lead you into a life where you are not only successful, but you will end up at an amazing level of intimacy with Christ. Identifying who you are in Christ brings our Christ’s identity.
Another example: When we see an obstacle in our path, what do we do about it? We pray that prayer, “Oh God, give us strength and encouragement to make it through this tough time.” I am all in for asking God to help us in any way possible, but why does it take an obstacle in our path for us to ask God to give us something that makes us greater (temporarily) than before we prayed? In this method I see us just using God for when we need Him? Why do we only ask to become greater in tough situations? I want to always receive from God what will only make me greater! Again, we are significant and have value!
Standing Strong-- The Dogs of Doom bark loudest at the gates of your destiny.
When we are trying to create or even enter a royal culture, we sometimes, if not always deal with a battle. This battle mainly consists of the enemy trying to persuade you that the direction you are going in is not the best way. Sometimes we get easily scared into believing these misbeliefs and we end up in a place that haunts us and keeps us from glorifying the King.
What I am getting at is when we realize that we do have value, where that value comes from, and why we have that value, we begin to step into a new direction that changes our whole lifestyle. We begin to see a new light that hasn’t shined nearly as bright as it did before. This is a “perfect” place for the enemy. We are created to be bold. We are challenged to show our faith, but how intimate are we with God? Bill Johnson says, “You cannot go in faith where you have not gone in intimacy.” For example: You and your significant other know each other so well that you can finish their sentence without a doubt in your mind. Wait? So we are brides to Christ, is He our significant other? He is! We are not complete without Him. I want to know Christ so well that He knows what I am going to say next, I want Christ to know that my next words are going to praise Him that my next words are in faith with boldness and putting those dogs of doom back in their kennel!
Those dogs of doom like to bark, but their bite is nothing compared to what we have! Our value should be able to defy the fear of death. Standing strong may seem hard, but pressing on to knowing not just your call, but your royal call. When I first became a Christian I was too focused on life after death. Of course I would have made it to Heaven, but I would have missed out on so much. Now that I know my royal call, there is a lot more expected of me like healing people, blessing people, destroying the enemy, kenneling those dogs of doom, seeing more princes and princesses rise up, and seeing a culture infiltrate this world creating a world that is focused on Christ. Where everyone honors everyone regardless of anything! The fact that we can have a royal culture is so amazing!
Honor
I think a huge part in creating a culture of royalty is to honor until you cannot breathe! Being royalty we do have standards that help us keep this culture growing and to keep it focused on the truth. Constantly honoring others when they don’t honor us because who we think deserves honor could limit who really needs honor. By honoring all, Kris Vallotton says it shows that our standard isn’t determined by people around us. Also we need to do all this with a royal attitude. Living with these royal standards, the lifestyles of many will change into a royal culture.
What tends to happen when there is a culture of honor is mass intimacy! Just imagine knowing that the stranger you just walked by is focused on living in a royal culture. Trust then builds and you become more of a family. Right now I have spiritual fathers in this covering that are building me up. They have things that are prime examples of how I want to be. That is what a culture does. We all learn from each other, but most of all we gain what our forefathers have worked for without having to go through what they have already gone through. I cannot stress enough how crucial it is to love and honor each other no matter how much they pushed your big red button that says, “Do Not Push.”
Conclusion
We all have specific roles that influence everyone we pass by. There are expectations that we are called to live up to and standards required of us only to fulfill the will of God. Our mission is to show who our father in heaven is and to honor all so that a culture of royalty is created. Let’s show people the supernatural and witches that their levitation is weak, that the power of God is intense. I challenge you today to try to understand your value to God. What does God see in you? Jesus died for you for a reason! You are significant and rich! I declare pauper hood to be gone and I speak life to the culture of royalty to live far more greater than we could ever imagine! Today when you leave, leave with your heads high, your prayers answered, and your families healed! God is in a good mood and He is in love with you and you are His favorite!
