In Heb 11:13  (NKJV) These All died in faith, Not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured / persuaded of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

We see the three things we must do, with the promise that God gives to us, we see that these all died in faith not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were to be persuaded of them, now we talking about being fully persuaded and how to be fully persuaded because it’s so very, very important for us to be fully persuaded when God gives us a promise

Notice when the bible refers to Abraham and let’s keep our finger here and turn over to Rom 4v19 (AV) And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb:

Here again, in order to be fully persuaded, you must Not consider the circumstances and you must Not focus on the circumstances. And that’s one of the main strategies and tactics of the devil is to get us to focus on the circumstances. Because the more we focus on the circumstances, the more we’re going to be convinced of that the circumstances than of the Word of God. The more we focus on the circumstances, we’re going to find ourselves being fully persuaded in believing the circumstances instead of being fully persuaded in what God’s Word says, can you say: Amen? That’s why it’s so very important that we learn to protect our mind and that’s where we left off that, is learning how to protect our mind which moves us to point 2 and let’s turn back to Heb 11 a moment, Anytime God gives you a promise, we see this in Heb 11 notice it says in verse 13 to be persuaded of them and notice what it says: embrace them. In other words we must embrace the promise of God. Now, when you look at that word: embrace, that word translated embrace means to clutch to, in other words, you’re not just holding it lightly. You’re clutching to that particular promise. For the simple reason the devil is going to try to come and steal God’s promise and blessing away from you! Turn over to John 10 a moment, we’re going to see the job of the devil: John 10 (AV) The thief cometh not but for to steal and to kill and to destroy: I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.

Anytime God gives you a promise the devil’s going to try and come to steal God’s promise from us. And we see this in John 10 notice here’s the job of the devil and we see here in verse 10, it says that the thief, underline that ‘the thief’ that’s one of the first things we must understand and know that the devil is a thief! he will try to steal from us, he’ll try to steal your health from you, he’ll try to steal your children from you, he’ll try to steal your family from you, he’ll try to steal your joy, he’s a thief. And notice it says that the thief cometh not but for to steal and to kill and to destroy. And notice what Jesus said: I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. So the thief comes to kill, steal and destroy! now turn over to Mark 4 let’s just look briefly at this parable again, Glory be to God, for this is such an important parable, and here we get an understanding of what the devil really comes to get, the devil’s not concerned about you, he’s not concerned about me, what he’s concerned about is our faith in the Word of God. And what he’s going to try to do, he’s going to try to steal our faith. You can see this in operation. You start praying for your family members and what happens? The person who you’ve prayed for act up worse than they’ve acted up before in their lives. 

So one of the first things the thought comes to your mind: is that they’ll never get saved, things will never get better with them. How many have seen that happen to them in their particular lives? or the thought comes: every time I pray for my family members, things get worse, maybe I ought to stop praying for them.

NO, that’s the devil trying to discourage you! As I said previously, always remember thieves never break into empty homes, do they? Thieves always go into homes where there’s what you call: a plenty, never into empty homes to steal. Well many times we start praying for people and they start acting worse, rejoice! you know why? Because you’ve got the victory!