God ordained partnership to increase the effect of everyone”s potential and contribution so that we all can have abundance for every good work. There is a multiplier effect when partnership is understood and entered into in reality. In every covenant relationship there are the principles of sacrifice, being God-focussed, and destiny pursuing for all parties concerned. Then we have the understanding of role-recognition and encouraging one another to rise up to be all that God wants us to be. These roles are ordained by God and we all align our thoughts actions and intentions with His will for our lives and for the relationship. Our contribution is used by God to bring increase into the life of our covenant partner and their contribution is used by God to increase the scope of what we are doing. All God ordained relationships are meant to be covenant ones. All relationships have their scope, boundaries and focus as they maintain the ingredients of covenant relationships. Marriage is the highest form of covenant relationships (amongst human beings) and others are not as permanent and exclusive as marriage. God ordained partnership in ministries to multiply the effect of each person”s contribution in the advancement of His kingdom.

Examples abound in the bible and a few will suffice: Abraham and Lot; Elijah and the widow of Zarepath; Apostle Paul and the Philippians” church; Daniel and his companions; and the Apostle and their companions in the early church. Each person brought something of benefit to the other person. Their roles were God-given and they did what they did as unto the Lord. Their efforts at working together brought about increase in both lives that could not have happened without their efforts together.

In 1 Kings 17 we read about the process the prophet Elijah went through during the days of famine in the land. The story starts with the beginning of the famine by the judgement of God. In spite of the famine-judgement for three years, the Word of the Lord came to the prophet to go to the Brook Cherith to get the ravens to feed him. God supernaturally provided for the prophet in the time of famine. The brook dries up and God gives a fresh set of instructions to His man, this time to be supported by a widow at a certain place. True to the word, the widow was as he was told, she was seen and he establishes a relationship with her at giving and receiving. She obeyed the giving first to the prophet and according to the prophetic word she was sustained along with her household. She supplied the physical food and the prophet supplied the spiritual side of things and together they were all sustained. They were involved with giving and receiving and supernaturally they were both sustained throughout the famine. The dynamic of this combination within the context of partnership has always produced a supernatural intervention from God. If two of you shall agree as touching anything they ask, it shall be done for them of the Father-God. The combination of Daniel and hid companions in prayer (Daniel 2) produced a supernatural intervention of God revealing the dream and the interpretation of it from God. The three Hebrew friends of Daniel too had themselves supernaturally protected in the fire. Impossibilities become possibilities when partnership is established. The widow of Zarepath eventually got her son raised from the bed of death. One relationship and more than one divine intervention from God, reveals a pattern through scriptures how God”s supernatural provisions are made available in whatever aspect of our lives where we need them; from provision to wisdom, to open doors of utterance and God power to produce miracles. Acts 4: shows how they came together and prayed and they had answers to their prayers. God”s commanded blessing is experienced in the place of unity according to psalm 133.

HOW TO EXPERIENCE THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIP.

Let God lead you into the partnership, so that whatever you do in terms of your role is done as unto the Lord. From the Lord rewards are to be received. Our expectation should always be from the Lord as He is the centre and focus of any God-given relationship. He is the giver of the vision for the partnership in the first place. He has a plan for every party in the partnership. Prayers became a major aspect of the partnership. So we pray for one another. Identify your roles clearly recognising the roles of others and what it is your involvement is contributing to the relationship. Your support, prayers, and any other contribution from you will be used of God to bring blessings to many others not just those in partnership. God has always been an ‘other-people” minded God. From the time God made a covenant with Abram, He had in mind all the families of the earth. He is a “Going –God”, always wanting to touch all lives possible on the earth. Be faithful in your roles and expect God”s grace to come through for you in doing what you do. Pray for your partners and trust God for them to do their part from their hearts. As in Apostle Paul with the Galatians, He prayed that the God of His calling will supply all the need of the church according to his riches in glory. (Gal. 4:19). God”s grace will constantly make the supernatural available to all partnerships ordained by God. So faith will be involved in the hearts of the partners. Faith towards God for the release of his power must be released from our hearts. Faith always pleases God.

Every one God had worked with and through; He has done it most of the time through partnership with that person and others. It is time to walk in partnership and experience the tremendous power of partnership. Let God lead you.