From Groaning to Owning: How to Possess What’s Already Yours

By Gregg Dennington

From Groaning to Owning is written for those believers who passionately desire more revival breakthrough in their lives—for those who want to claim the full Promised Land inheritance that Jesus died to give them. It covers five kingdom values that are essential for receiving this blood-bought inheritance, addressing such issues as how to ignite a vibrant, growing relationship with God, how to discover your true identity and destiny in life, how to walk in the same miracle-working power that Jesus did, how to stand strong during trials, turmoil, and tragedy, and how to experience the joy and freedom of dwelling in God's presence.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Oct 5, 2022
• ISBN: 9781667867359

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From Groaning to Owning

Copyright © 2015, 2022 by Gregg Dennington

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, contact Gregg Dennington at [e-mail].

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked CEV are taken from the Contemporary English Version® Copyright © 1995 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-66786-734-2

eBook ISBN 978-1-66786-735-9

Cover design: 100 Covers

Printed in the United States of America

Endorsements

Reading this book is dangerous. In the right hands, God may use it to open deaf ears, heal wounded hearts, and even raise the dead. The unique beauty of From Groaning To Owning is the author’s approach. Gregg doesn’t beat you up or give you a long to-do list, but he helps lure you into God’s glorious presence by sharing story after story of His goodness. If you’re not careful, you’ll find yourself longing for real, abundant life, and being renewed. I can’t recommend this book enough. Remember, you’ve been warned.

David Jones

Lead pastor of Cross Points Church, Kansas City, KS

From Groaning To Owning inspires a real-life journey into identity and personal destiny—a journey from religion to relationship! This is a book rooted in the new wineskin of the Spirit, and the revelation of the fullness of the grace of God that we have all received. Gregg shares personally and intimately about his own journey—one I’m sure many can relate to—mixing his life experience with powerful biblical insights he’s received from God along the way.

The revelation in this book will change the lives of many, just as it has changed Gregg and impacted the ministry he leads. The practical tools and declarations will bring radical mind renewal to readers. It also releases great insight into walking in God’s empowering grace, so we are able to live from our true identity and to do what Jesus did. I highly recommend this book to you.

Steve Backlund

Associate pastor of Bethel Church, Redding, CA

Director of Igniting Hope Ministries

Author of ten books, including Crucial Moments

The Christian life often boils down to the battle to trust that God really does love us as wildly as He says. Gregg Dennington’s book teaches us how to win this battle. Gregg has fought it during the darkest of circumstances, not only living through it but living abundantly beyond it. His back-from-death testimony and scriptural illuminations foster deep wisdom and contagious courage. When you read From Groaning to Owning, you will see life differently. You will see challenges differently. You will see yourself differently. Jesus brought us abundant life in the powerful presence of God’s Spirit. Gregg has laid hold of it, and those of us who receive his ministry will forever be changed by it.

Jordan Seng, PHD

Senior Pastor of Bluewater Mission, Honolulu, HI

Author of Miracle Work: A Down-to-Earth Guide to Supernatural Ministries

From Groaning to Owning is not a flavor-of-the-month book filled with clever one-liners and cute Christian cliches. Both times I read through it, I was tempted to rush by concepts like inheritance, the goodness of God, His love, and His power, as these are usually considered basic to the Christian life. Elementary principles, you might say. But as I slowed down and the Truth—with a capital T—began to sink in, I was as once profoundly broken, blessed, and built up. I found my soul rising in faith that I could move away from the groaning for my inheritance in Christ, to an experiential owning of it.

Danny Lehmann

Director of Youth With A Mission, Hawaii

Author of Beautiful Feet: Steps to a Lifestyle of Evangelism

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my remarkable wife, Eva. She’s the most hungry, tenacious, devoted-to-Jesus, revival-pursuing person I’ve ever met, and the greatest model I know of what it means to be a passionate groaner for all the more that God has for us in this life.

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part I: God’s Inheritance For You

Chapter One: Birthright Pangs

Chapter Two: Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Chapter Three: Belly Up To The Buffet

Part II: God’s Goodness To You

Chapter Four: Stealing Glances

Chapter Five: Racing To The Throne

Chapter Six: Strong Tower Stuff

Part III: God’s Appraisal Of You

Chapter Seven: Anchored In The Voice

Chapter Eight: Intimate Heirs In Earrings

Chapter Nine: Scrubbed And Sent

Part IV: God’s Presence On You

Chapter Ten: Pitching His Tent

Chapter Eleven: Full Of Sweet Wine

Chapter Twelve: The Good Portion

Part V: God’s Power Through You

Chapter Thirteen: Getting Plugged In

Chapter Fourteen: Wielding The Spear

Chapter Fifteen: The Final Nail

Appendix A: Small Group Discussion Questions

Endnotes

Acknowledgments

My deepest appreciation to …

The Brothers and Sisters at Toufen Home Church – Your contagious passion, humility, and softness to God make pastoring so very, very easy. It’s such a joy to journey with you on this amazing glory-to-glory adventure. Let’s keep believing together for more, more, more!

Kevin Harrel – Thank you for all your first-draft editing endeavors. I knew I could entrust you, as a good friend, with my firstborn. I also knew I could count on you to give valuable feedback and keep me honest. You did not disappoint. A million thanks!

Pastor Bill Johnson and Bethel Church in Redding, California – Thank you for fathering us here in Taiwan. Your example and encouragement have helped release genuine revival breakthrough in our lives, our church, and our community. Know that your fingerprints are all over us.

Cross Points Church in Kansas City and Kirken I Kulturcenteret in Copenhagen – Thank you so much for all your friendship, support, and encouragement through the years. You’ve been such dear families to Eva and me. We can’t wait for you to meet someday!

Wolfgang Simon and the Asia-EuroNet Prayer Warriors – A special thanks for faithfully standing with us in prayer all these years. The Hakka Chinese are truly a part of your kingdom inheritance.

Introduction

This book is written for the dead. Or the near-dead. Or the dying. Or even those who are terminal but don’t yet know it. That was me some years ago, both physically and spiritually. Turns out I was walking around with a disease that was killing me off one cell at a time, and I didn’t have a clue. Also turns out I was walking around spiritually with one foot firmly in the grave. That one didn’t really catch me off guard because I could feel it deep in my heart. Jesus had promised me an abundant life, a life filled with joy and hope and passion and purpose and power and victory. But for whatever reason, mine seemed to have gotten lost in the mail.

Just so you know, I’m not talking about backsliding, or a crisis of faith, or a bad case of burnout, or even that mysterious dark night of the soul. I loved God, had a deep desire to please Him, and was committed to following His ways, no matter what. As a pastor, Bible teacher, and long-term pioneer missionary among an unreached people group, I was doing something I loved, with the people I loved, using all the gifts and abilities I loved. I was serving with the most amazing mission team, pastoring the most gracious church, and married to the most zealous woman of God I’ve ever met. But I was slowly dying. Feeling empty and bored and unfulfilled in my walk with Jesus, knowing that something wasn’t plugged in like it should have been. Romans 8:23 says that we groan within ourselves, and I was groaning inside for more of God. A more that I couldn’t even identify, much less pursue.

From Groaning to Owning is written for the dead, or the near-dead, or the dying, because it’s all about life. Revival life. How Christian walks that are showing signs of decay can get raised from the grave into that abundant life that Jesus promised. As I discovered, mine wasn’t really lost in the mail, I just hadn’t been looking in the right mailbox. During the past several years, I’ve experienced an amazing revival breakthrough in my life, a breakthrough into the very more of God that I had been groaning for. More of His presence, more of His power, more of His passion, and more of His purity. And I haven’t been walking alone. Our entire church has stepped out in this amazing journey with me, so that we’re now experiencing greater levels of joy, hunger, and hope than we ever thought possible. Our worship times are marked by fresh encounters with God’s glory, and we’re continually seeing people around us get healed, saved, and set free. New life. Revival breakthrough. From our groaning for more to our owning the more.

This book can help you make the same journey. It presents five vital kingdom mind-sets that need to be established, adjusted, tweaked, or further developed if you want to position yourself under the flow of heaven’s never-ending revival outpouring. From Groaning to Owning is designed to sow powerful seeds into your heart that will yield a harvest of joy, hope, passion, purpose, fulfillment, and freedom. The super-abundant inheritance that Jesus promised to every one of us.

This book is not just written for the dead, or the near-dead, or the dying, but for the groaning. So if you groan deep inside for all of the more that God has ready and waiting for you, then you’re holding the right book in your hands. Prepare your heart to drink to His delight.

Part I

God’s Inheritance for You

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.

Ephesians 1:18

Chapter One

Birthright Pangs

The Old Testament is full of stories that paint pictures of New Testament truths. Stories that help us discover what God’s kingdom life is all about. When we read of the miraculous Red Sea rescue of the Israelites from the wrath of the Egyptian army, we see our own rescue from slavery to sin and Satan. By the blood of Jesus, we crossed the Red Sea into freedom, out of death and into life. But God never intended for the Israelites to stay camped out forever on the bank of their Red Sea miracle. He saved them out of Egypt so they could go in and claim the Promised Land. That was their true destination. That’s why God set them free. Their deliverance from captivity, as wonderful as it was, fell short of God’s great purposes for their lives. It was a doorway, and not the final objective. A gate that swung open to allow them to enter in and enjoy all the blessings that God had prepared for them in His astounding Land of Promise.

Sad to say, many believers today are still camped out on the bank of their Red Sea miracles. They’ve already walked through the gate of the Good Shepherd, crossing over from slavery to freedom, but they haven’t yet set their faces to continue on toward His intended destination for their lives. Could be that their view of the Promised Land is limited mostly to a future eternity in heaven, believing that the bulk of God’s blessings are for the by-and-by instead of the here and now. Or it could be that they’re laboring under the lie that they just don’t have what it takes to enter in and claim these priceless treasures for themselves. Either way, they’re missing out on God’s Promised Land for their lives, and that usually ends up with a whole lot of wandering in the wilderness.

Revival breakthrough is found in the Promised Land. In fact, it is the Promised Land. And it’s your God-ordained destiny. He has set apart an inheritance for you to claim, both in this life and in the life to come. According to John 10:10, Jesus came so you would have life, and have it abundantly. Not just eternal life after you die, but as the Greek portrays it, a superabundant, overflowing, without measure kind of life while you still walk on this earth. A life right here, right now, that is to-the-brim full of God’s blessings, God’s gifts, God’s purposes, and even—make that especially—Almighty God Himself. If we really desire to get positioned for revival breakthrough in our lives, then our thinking must begin to line up more fully with these remarkable Promised Land truths!

A Violent Spirit

In Ephesians 1:18, Paul prayed that the eyes of the hearts of the believers in Ephesus would be enlightened so they would know the riches of the glory of God’s inheritance for them. I pray the same thing for you as well. Every one of us needs to have a divine revelation and a deep-hearted appreciation of the Promised Land inheritance that God has called us to claim for our own. Without these, we can’t even begin to enter in.

One of the more puzzling stories in the Bible is found in Genesis 25. The tale of Jacob and Esau. Twin sons of Abraham’s only heir, Isaac, these two young men could not have been more different. Esau was hairy, Jacob smooth skinned. Esau loved to hunt in the wilderness, while Jacob loved to cook in the comfort of his own home. Esau was a man’s man, his father’s favorite, while Jacob was more of a momma’s boy. You know the story. One day, Esau returned from a long, and apparently unsuccessful, hunting trip. Tired and hungry, he asked Jacob for a bowl of lentil stew that he found his younger brother cooking. But sensing a prime opportunity at hand, Jacob held the lentil stew for ransom. I’ll give you the stew if you give me your birthright. Esau was so famished that he agreed to the demand, selling off his inheritance rights of the firstborn for a bowl of hot soup.

To be honest, this story has always troubled me a bit. If I were asked to choose the bad guy here, the real villain in the tale, Jacob would get my hands-down vote. After all, he took advantage of his brother’s hunger to get the family birthright, that divine inheritance passed