A beloved friend had a chat with a father of faith. The father asked him; “Son, what’s your vision/plan for this city?” His response was; “We would take charge of the spiritual and economic climate of this city.” The beloved father replied; “You cannot do both at the same time. The way to control the economy is to take your place in the spiritual.” That conversation helped him greatly.
Friend, the way to take cities and territories is to take your place in the realm of the spirit (Psalms 110:1-3). When we say that the spiritual controls the physical. It is not just a cliché. It is the reality of life. Those who chase the physical at the expense of the spiritual end up losing both the spiritual and the physical. You cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24).
Taking territories begins with dealing with the forces in those territories. There are princes in localities called principalities, and until you deal with such, you won’t do much in such territories (Daniel 10:12-13). These principalities and powers control both the political and economic climate of localities. The way they compel submission from men is through such platforms (Ephesians 6:12).
God will first make you bigger in the spirit before He gives you a platform among men (Genesis 32:28). While you seek to have a better life, God’s goal is for you to have a higher life. Higher life is a life of spiritual dominion that would eventually translate into a better life (Deuteronomy 32:13). If you have a better life without a higher life, you would still end up a victim of the forces of the environment.
Higher life comes through prayers and capacity building (Jude 1:20, Revelation 4:1). It determines your sensitivity and accuracy. You see things for what they truly are. You gain mastery over the forces in the environment. Higher life requires prices. Like digging wells, it may seem that nothing is happening now. But it is what would later sustain your life and relevance (John 4:12).
Whatever God plans to give you on this side of eternity, the devil can also give you (Luke 4:5-8). If the devil wants to steal your future, he would attempt to give you today what God plans to give you tomorrow. Like Jesus, you need to come to that point where you know that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (Luke 4:4). That is how to take territories.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria