Mastery For Rest Part 2 by Pastor Lawrence Oyor: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Feedback from Practice

Last week the assignment was to practice words of knowledge and step out. The feedback came back: people who stepped out, asked questions, and stayed sensitive received confirmations. The principle holds — as you practice, you make one or two mistakes. That is okay. If you are told you will never make mistakes, that will shoot you in the leg and you will never master. But once your mind has peace that mistakes are part of the process of mastery, watch yourself surmount every mistake into mastery.

With visibility comes less forgiveness. People hold the visible to a higher standard. Make all your mistakes now, while you are still growing and less visible. The more you master it, the safer for you.

Why We Must Practice

There is nothing like actually doing the work. James 1:22 says, "Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." In Acts 4:20-22, when Peter and John healed the crippled man at the beautiful gate, the Sanhedrin could not say anything because a notable miracle had been done — one that was evident to all and could not be denied. Forty years the man had been crippled, and he was leaping and jumping. The crowds were excited, and the authorities were powerless.

One action trumps many words. Your honour is multiplied in the hearts of people when you are an action person.

People don't have a problem with your Jesus. They have a problem with powerlessness. They don't hate God — they hate noise without demonstration. When the miraculous shows up, even the unconvinced are compelled to respond.

What Only Practice Can Teach

Practice exposes you to twists and turns that theory never will. For example, in ministry across different cultures and nations, you learn that your accent, your idioms, and your illustrations may not cross every cultural boundary. Half of what you share passionately in one context may not land in another. You learn from experience, not from a book.

You discover that the environment matters. The goal is stillness — "Be still and know that I am God." Every distraction in the environment — a generator running nearby, people eating in a cafeteria during a meeting, phones going off — is adding to the noise in the soul. And the more noise in the soul, the less depth of encounter. Everything that distracts from listening cheats a person of their encounter.

You learn that prayer investment before a meeting determines the atmosphere of that meeting. Some meetings produce extraordinary results. Others feel flat. Often the difference is the weeks or months of intercession that preceded them.

You learn that children are not complicated — stillness is simply what is required. Once they are still and focused, encounter happens. The key is not shouting "keep quiet" for twenty minutes. One firm act of establishing dominion in the first minute does what twenty minutes of pleading cannot.

Practice in Healing Ministry

When you go out to pray for the sick:

• Connect with the person first. Learn their name. Ask how they are feeling.
• Ask what the signs and symptoms are — not to diagnose, but so you can track what changes when you pray. If you never ask, you will never know whether anything happened.
• Ask them what it would look like if they were healed. What specific thing would they be able to do? This sets a measurable expectation.
• Remind yourself of who you are before you pray. Confess inwardly: "As it was upon my father, it is upon me now, and greater."
• Invite the person to close their eyes and receive. Stillness brings the encounter.
• Pray, then ask them to check themselves. If any improvement has occurred — even one percent — press in further. On a scale of zero to ten, what number is the pain at now? Thank God for that progress and keep praying toward full healing.
• When it is a demonic case — when the condition worsens as you pray — that is actually the simplest situation. The enemy has reacted to your authority, confirming there is something to expel. You don't need drama. "In the name of Jesus — get out. Be still." Quietly enforce what has already been won legally.

Never finish praying for the sick without checking in with them. Results matter — not religious activity.

The Legal Foundation of All Ministry

In Revelation 12:11, they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. The blood is the price that has been paid. Your voice is the instrument of enforcement. Once you understand what the blood has legally secured, all that is needed is your declaration.

You are not begging the devil. You are not pleading with him. You are exercising legal authority over territory that has already been purchased. The angels present are not spectators — they are enforcement agents waiting for the command from your mouth.

Vow from today: I will be an action believer. I will be full of proofs. If God's hand is upon my life, I will prove it. Decide that you will not be empty with just words. These signs shall follow those who believe.