8:00- a.m. -Today is a traveling day with a long road ahead. As I am preparing for the meeting in St. Simons Island, Georgia, Jacob comes to mind. He had to struggle with the angel of God to get a blessing. In Genesis 32:16b, he said to the Lord, “I will not let you go until you bless me.”
God, there has got to be a way for me to be blessed without having to fight anything. Send your grace, Lord!

9:00- a.m.- These traveling days require me to attend to many details: what to take, who to call. Lord, I wish I could stay today and rest, but I can’t. This is a date that you have designed and I must fulfill my call. But Lord, I wish I could stay home today.

11:00- a.m.- It will be 5 hours of driving that South Georgia road. Much needs to happen this weekend in the life of these college students.

4:30- a.m.- Here we are in Epworth-by-the-Sea, in a fine room at Robinson’s Inn. Someone knocks on the door needing prayer. One must be ready in season and out of season. Prayer can set the captives free. We must never hold back the power of God. Let go and trust that God is the One doing it all. “The just shall live by faith.” Soon, we are having supper at Crawdad’s.

8:00- p.m. – The room is filled with college students. I see needs and problems: depression, sadness, deep rejection from family, anger, condemnation, sickness, death, rebellion and much more. Ho! I wish I could speak to it now, but I can’t yet. I must first communicate with them and love them. I preach on Psalm 46. I move toward God as the Psalmist did….little by little.

10:00- p.m.-I go to my room and struggle with how to break through. I wish I could find a formula to solve problems such as these. What to give them? I talk with a friend for a while and, as always, decide to give them Jesus without holding back. (Thank God for friends) How can I do less? I hit them hard and to the point. I go to bed thanking God that my mind is made up.

8:00- a.m.- Out to breakfast where I meet Eddie Fox, with World Evangelism of the Methodist Church. I talk with him and then move once again toward the meeting with college students.

12:00- a.m.- A 3-hour meeting. Ward shares on the understanding of condemnation. He sets them free from the idea that sin has any impact in your life after you bring Jesus in. At 10:00 a.m., the Lord begins to speak to me about Jabok and them. I read scriptures from Acts chapters 1, 2, 7, 9, and 16. The Word does its work. The Holy Spirit blows in the room with mighty power. Ninety-five percent of them are baptized in power.

The Lord gave a word of knowledge about a young lady totally rejected by her family. Now without mother and father, she faces life by herself. The word was: “I am with you, My child. I will never leave you. I am your Father and God. IF you let Me, I will provide you with companionship, blessings and life in My Spirit. I am with you!

Well, it is going to be 5 hours returning to Athens just to leave again tomorrow a.m. to Jamestown, Tennessee. Another 5-hour trip.

“Lord, I will not let You go until you bless me!”

Rick Bonfim
Rick Bonfim Ministries

6:00 am- The night was short. In my mind Psalm 46 came as a “photograph” of an old man carrying a cart from Jesuralem to Assyria. The man was a captive and was followed by women and children. Most men died in the hands of the Assyrians. This old man says, “Come, behold, the works of the Lord.” He humbly declares, “God is our refuge and strength…” This “photograph” came from Bob Tuttle.

7:00 am- Returned to bed and slept till 8:00 am- The day is filled with things to do and one of them is income taxes. I need to find where I put my return sent promptly by Joseph Tillman, an angel from Valdosta, Georgia.

8:00 am- Called Joseph Tillman and requested a copy by Fed-Ex.

9:00 am- Met with a couple needing counseling. After a 3-hour session, my mind moved toward what I need to do for the weekend in St. Simmons Island. There will be college students in need of Jesus. I will have to teach at least 5 hours.

1:00 pm- Called my son on the Nextel Radio to say hello. He is deeply involved with his family: Laura, Mary Jayne and Harrison. I began to write a blog called, “What are you thinking”. It all about the mind and what it does to you when it runs free. Answered several e-mails on Brasil approving this and that and raising questions about a worker who wants paid vacation on his terms. It worries me when someone puts the kingdom in second place. It bothers me that a 30-day vacation by law in Brasil does not consider the employee or what we pay. We have to consider 89 holidays by law also. By 2:00 pm I was racing in my mind as to what needs to be done about that.

2:00 pm- Informed the board in Brasil about our board decision to build. We are about to build an extension on the sanctuary at the mission and plans are under way

2:30 pm- Received calls from several friends such as Frank Appel, Dino Cates, Craig Estes, and Ward Davis. Ward is our intern-secretary who is creating, building, fixing, helping, arranging and remodeling our ministry. Our Last secretary was Michele, a dynamic young lady who did more for us than the U.S. Post Office. She was so great; we still call Michele to help us almost weekly.

3:00 pm- Began to pray for several people. I have lists with me and names everywhere. One of them was Jerry Varnado, my dearest friend, married to Beverly. Prayed for his ministry and for the Lord to send $400.000,00 to help build the most awsome sanctuary in Athens, Georgia.

4:00 pm- My mind is now going toward supper, for what I eat daily is a bowl of cereal in the morning and a light supper at 6:00 pm. Went for a 2-mile walk and almost did not make it. Signed almost 200 letters and spent at least 30 minutes on the 3rd chapter of Romans.

5:00 pm- Found out about rain. It came without warning and filled every crevice around the house. I thought we had another flood. I saw several small creatures running for cover and the thought came to me that I must run to God for cover these days. Tomorrow I must travel 5 hours and begin a series of meetings that will have me preaching 8 times in 5 days. I know that the Lord will fill my heart and mind with His Word, but I still need to be thinking about it and prepare for it. I believe the time is coming when I can memorize Ephesians chapter 2.

6:00 pm- Mary Lucy warmed up some leftovers and after reading for 2 hours on Romans the day came to an end. Still some phone calls to make before I am done.

NOTE: The slowest, laiziest, quietest day of the week. Very little happened today – wait until tomorrow!

Rick Bonfim

What are you thinking?
Filed under: Rick’s Thoughts — @ 5:08 pm

Did you know that you can become your thoughts? Your thinking power can turn against you. You can become your thoughts.

This is what Proverbs 23:7 says:

” For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”

What a scary thought. Your mind can in fact dictate what you become.

In Romans 8:6, 7, Paul writes:

“To set our minds on the flesh leads to death, but to set our minds on the Spirit leads to life and peace.”

Setting your mind is simply a mind that is decided and commited to a way of thinking, 24 hours a day. The fleshly thoughts of the natural man will, over time, lead to death in areas of peace and life.

v.7″That is why the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile toward God. For it refuses to submit to the authority of God’s Law because it is powerless to do so.”

God’s authority is revealed to our minds by the Holy Spirit. To fully experience His power and life, our thought life needs to be surrendered to God, yielded to His Spirit within us. If your mind is “set” on the flesh it begins to be hostile toward God, rejecting the mind of God in the things that you do. The fleshly mind become powerless and in fact, cannot help you concentrate on that which is good or come to terms with decisions and completion of tasks. You become paralyzed and ineffective in all that you do.

v. 8″ Indeed those who are under the control of the flesh cannot please God.”

The result is simple: You cannot please God any longer, for your mind is now divided and sold to the flesh.

I ask this question:” How then can I deal with my mind and have peace with God?”

Very simply, you must receive the mind of Christ and refuse the mind of the flesh. Notice that is not a question of a single thought. It is a pattern of thinking that sets your mind in the flesh. It is flesh in the morning, flesh in the afternoon and flesh in the evening. The whole pattern of your thinking is in the flesh.

You know that most of us get in the flesh once in a while. However, what the scripture is addressing is not the occasional weakness of fleshly thinking – but the deadly pattern of relating to the flesh continuously.

Question: Would you be able to tell me if you are thinking flesh or visiting the flesh, or looking at the flesh? If you want to live in victory and abundant life, what you cannot do is to set your mind in the flesh. That will produce death of emotions, death of peace, and death of spirit which leads to eternal death.

Rick Bonfim