Whether we notice or not, whether we stop to take account or not… We ARE in a battle!

–> Closing our eyes & imagining it away – doesn’t make it go away

–> Pretending that all is well in the neighborhood – doesn’t make it go away

–> Being as nice as you can to everyone, trying to not make anyone upset with you – doesn’t make it go away!

 
Why?

 Because we have an enemy who hates “GOD IN US!”

 1Peter 5:8b
…for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.

 Yes we are in a battle, but our God has already won the war!
 –> We don’t just sit back & coast through life on a free ticket to heaven & expect to never have to deal with our enemy… so… we want to make sure that we are equipped to do so!

BUT God has given us the understanding about how to walk in victory!

2 Peter 1:3-11 
2Pe 1:3  By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the One who called us to Himself by means of His marvelous glory and excellence.
2Pe 1:4  And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
2Pe 1:5  In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge,
2Pe 1:6  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness,
2Pe 1:7  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.
2Pe 1:8  The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2Pe 1:9  But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins.
2Pe 1:10  So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away.
2Pe 1:11  Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Some IMPORTANT Instructions For Us!

1 Peter 5:7-10 
NLT
1Pe 5:7  Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you.
1Pe 5:8  Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
1Pe 5:9  Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.
1Pe 5:10  In His kindness God called you to share in His eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, He will restore, support, and strengthen you, and He will place you on a firm foundation.

AMP
1Pe 5:7  Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. [Ps. 55:22.]
1Pe 5:8  Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.
1Pe 5:9  Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset--rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined], knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world.
1Pe 5:10  And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace [Who imparts all blessing and favor], Who has called you to His [own] eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely, and strengthen, and settle you.

1. The first thing he tells us to do is –> to Cast or Give some things ON HIM!

EXAMPLE:   to cast upon God our cares, anxieties, worries, and concerns.

Anxieties 

Php 4:8  And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Php 4:6  Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.
Php 4:7  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Cares & Concerns 

Jesus said…
Mat 6:31  “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’
Mat 6:32  These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.
Mat 6:33  Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need.
Mat 6:34  “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.
Why does God tells us to cast these things on Him?
–> The word “cares” here is to mean – “distractions”
1. They are to heavy for us to carry, weigh us down & can cause destruction
2. They are distractions to keep our eyes off of God’s plans & purposes for our lives!
3. We can’t “fix” these things in our own strength, but God can handle them!

2. Second Thing He Tells Us to –> Stay alert!
1Pe 5:8  Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion – in fierce hunger – seeking someone to seize upon & devour.
(from both the NLT & AMP)

Why does he tells this?

Because we need to BE ALERT & not allow the enemy to walk into our lives & bring his destruction with him!

Lions attack sick, young, or straggling animals; they choose victims who are alone or not alert. Peter warns us to watch out for Satan when we are suffering or being persecuted. If you are feeling alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers, or if you are so focused on your troubles that you forget to watch for danger, those are the times when you are especially vulnerable to Satan’s attacks!

During times of suffering, seek other Christians for support.

Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Resist means – stand against or oppose!

This is not some little wimpy … hands over ears not listening to you…

We are taking action – standing against or opposing the enemy!

How Do We Do This?

KJV
2Co 10:3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
2Co 10:4  (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
Weapons means - Armor

Mighty means - Powerful & Capable

Eph 6:10-18
Eph 6:10  In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].
Eph 6:11  Put on God’s whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil.
Eph 6:12  For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
Eph 6:13  Therefore put on God’s complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
Eph 6:14  Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God,
Eph 6:15  And having shod your feet in preparation [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace. [Isa. 52:7.]
Eph 6:16  Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].
Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.
Eph 6:18  Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God’s consecrated people).
–> Do you notice how there is no weapon/armor for our backs?

Why? 

1. We are to be fighting together – guarding one another

2. God will be our rearguard!
Many places God talks about guarding from behind!

One example:

Isa 52:12  You will not leave in a hurry, running for your lives. For the LORD will go ahead of you; yes, the God of Israel will protect you from behind.

No Weapon! 

Isa 54:17  No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

PRAY

Mat 7:7  “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.
Mat 7:8  For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 

Jas 5:16  Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

FAST 

Is 58:1-12 

Isa 58:1  “Shout with the voice of a trumpet blast. Shout aloud! Don’t be timid. Tell my people Israel of their sins!
Isa 58:2  Yet they act so pious! They come to the Temple every day and seem delighted to learn all about Me. They act like a righteous nation that would never abandon the laws of its God. They ask Me to take action on their behalf, pretending they want to be near Me.
Isa 58:3  ‘We have fasted before You!’ they say. ‘Why aren’t You impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and You don’t even notice it!’ “I will tell you why!” I respond. “It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves. Even while you fast, you keep oppressing your workers.
Isa 58:4  What good is fasting when you keep on fighting and quarreling? This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with Me.
Isa 58:5  You humble yourselves by going through the motions of penance, bowing your heads like reeds bending in the wind. You dress in burlap and cover yourselves with ashes. Is this what you call fasting? Do you really think this will please the LORD?
Isa 58:6  “No, this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people.
Isa 58:7  Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
Isa 58:8  “Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the LORD will protect you from behind.
Isa 58:9  Then when you call, the LORD will answer. ‘Yes, I am here,’ He will quickly reply. “Remove the heavy yoke of oppression. Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
Isa 58:10  Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
Isa 58:11  The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.
Isa 58:12  Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes.

God doesn’t want us to just go through the motions of “religion“, but He wants us to be in right standing with Him – to have our lives in order!
Jesus said…

Mat 6:16  Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
Mat 6:17  But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;
Mat 6:18  That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

We are not fasting so we can “be on display” before men – but so we can humble ourselves before a mighty God!

1Pe 5:6  So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time He will lift you up in honor.

We often worry about our position and status, hoping to get proper recognition for what we do. But here, Peter tells us to remember that God’s recognition counts more than human praise. God is able and willing to bless us according to his timing.

Humbly obey God regardless of present circumstances, and in his good time, he will honor you.

The Church is Not:
A Building or what we do on Sunday mornings

The Church is:
We the people…We are the Church!

Church is not somewhere we go, or something we do… it is who we are!

Join us as we look into what the church is, and as we explore the part that we play in God’s plan!

Colossians 3:17
“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Ephesians 6:11

“Put on the whole armour of God,
that ye  may be able to stand
against the  wiles of the devil.”

Gal 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
meekness, temperance: against such there
is no law.

Trust = to flee to for refuge, to have confidence, secure, to place all care in, to hope

* We put our trust in lots of things, but I wanted to look at how much trust we place in just metal alone!

Airplanes – Tons of metal to hover high above the clouds & take us to places thousands of miles away

Submarines – A submarine is among the most technologically advanced machines ever built. With computer technology, precision navigation, atmosphere regeneration, sensitive sonar equipment, nuclear power, and precision weapons, it makes for a most unusual environment. Imagine living & working in a 3 story space that was 300-foot long, 30-foot wide, with no windows! Then, after you lock the door… submerge beneath the surface of the ocean and travel silently underwater for months at a time with 100 or more other crewmembers!

Satellites – To float around in the galaxy & send us the signals that we rely on everyday… cable, GPS systems, cell phones, news, online mapping devices 

Suspension Bridges – A bridge in Japan that is 6 lanes wide, and spans over 4 miles long! Also costs $20US in tolls to cross

** As children, we tend to have so much more trust than we do as adults.

Think about…

• Riding on the crazy rides at the amusement park
• Running & jumping onto a rope tied to a branch of a tree dangling high above a pond of water, then swinging out into the middle (hopefully) and letting go!
• Right down from our property, there’s a bridge where the kids stand up on the railing & jump into the water below… it’s not a high bridge by most standards – but it’s high enough for me to worry about their safety!

You probably have lots of examples of crazy things you did as a kid – maybe some we wouldn’t want to share – as to keep the youth among us from getting any ideas!

Bu as we grow up;
- we get wiser
- we see the accidents that happen from crazy stunts
- we see how other people hurt us
- we see how other people have broken our trust

No matter what we have seen, heard, learned, or think we know… we still need to TRUST IN GOD with our WHOLE HEART & not rely on the things that we think we know!

The bible says… we must come to God with child like faith… trusting Him to catch us, to carry us, to walk with us, to get us to our destination!

Psalm 20:7-8
“Some may trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.”

Trust God to care for us…

Jesus believed it!

Mark 12:41-44
Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins. Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”

We might have said… no… Ms., please you keep your money – you really need it! But, what did Jesus do, He let her give, because He knew that she was activating her faith. He knew that His father would take care of her & provide her needs, because of her faith & trust in the Lord that she demonstrated by giving!

** If our trust is on things such as; political leaders, economic conditions, spiritual climate, weather… then our feelings will rise & fall each day!

But… God offers us constant source of contentment and encouragement and strength, regardless of circumstances. Confidence in the Lord is a secure and unshakeable foundation!

Sometimes, God builds our trust & faith in Him through the trials that we face!

What are we trusting in?

A. Other People’s Ideas? What the world says we should be doing? What looks logical?

1 Sam 17:39 – David tried on something that was not familiar to him to go into battle

“David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. ‘I cannot go in these,’ he said to Saul, ‘because I am not used to them.’ So he took them off.”

David, the young shepherd boy, heard the challenge from the Philistines to send someone to fight Goliath. No one volunteered to fight except David. King Saul reluctantly agreed, and offered David his armor. David put on the weighty equipment, but quickly concluded he could not fight in this heavy armor.

God equips each of us in such a way that is unique to our strengths and abilities.

David knew who he was and who he wasn’t. David was trained as a shepherd to use another weapon. For David, it was a slingshot. David showed great maturity in realizing he could not be effective with Saul’s armor.

What is God developing inside of you, that you can trust Him with?

What we can do is only ½ of the equation. We need to mix using our abilities with our faith in God!
Abilities alone = not enough
Faith alone = not enough

Faith without works is dead… we need to act on the faith that God works in us!

B. Are we relying on our knowledge? 

War games… after our military learns head knowledge, they practice through wars games. But it’s not until the reality of the battle is upon them, that they know if they have learned enough to fight & win.

You’ll never experience the power that God wants you to live in by just acquiring Bible knowledge alone!
We have many people say…. Oh that person knows the word, oh they can quote the word, oh they have studied the word… but until you are living the word… you only have your own knowledge & you’re not walking it out by faith – trusting God.

This only helps you become a spiritual intellectual – which produces little fruit!

* David became a great warrior and leader of a nation at an early age. His training ground was his job as a shepherd in the open fields. When bears and lions sought to take his sheep, he personally fought them. This was his early preparation for future battles!

When he stood before Goliath, he knew how well his training prepared him!

C. Are we relying on our own abilities?

Although David trusted in the Lord at an early age & demonstrated that He could trust God instead of man, as he got older – he began to rely on His own strength!

1Chron 21:1-2
“Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel”

David made what might appear to be an innocent request of his general Joab – to count the number of troops available to them.

You see to count the troops was a great sin in Israel, because it demonstrated that you were placing more trust in numbers than in the living God. David’s decision to take a census was a failure to keep his trust totally upon the Lord.

God punished David and reduced his forces by bringing a plague that killed 70,000 men (1 Chron 24:14,15).

God always requires total trust in Him for our victories!

Some examples of other things we trust in today

• our bank accounts
• our skills
• security of our workplace

When we begin placing our faith in these things instead of the provider of these things we get into trouble with God.
Story of Trust: Blondin a 19th Centurt Acrobat

Blondin was a famous tightrope walker back in the 1800’s. He would accomplish unbelievable things on a tightrope across Niagara Falls.

In 1860, a group from the Royal party in Britain came to watch the famous Blondin. That day, on a tightrope 160ft above the falls and over 1000ft long, Blondin walked on stilts, and again blindfolded. Then he went out into the middle – stopped halfway and ate an omelette. Next he wheeled a wheelbarrow from one side to the other, and returned with a sack of potatoes in it.

After these amazing accomplishments, Blondin approached the Royal party, and asked the Duke of Newcastle, “do you believe that I could take a man across the tightrope in this wheelbarrow?”

“Yes, I do”, said the Duke.

“Then, Hop in”, replied Blondin.

The Duke politely declined Blondin’s challenge, because although he might have believed that Blondin could take a man across the tightrope, he wasn’t willing to trust Blondin’s with his life.

God doesn’t just want us to believe that He could take care of us, He wants us to trust him with our lives!

Proverbs 3:5
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

God is causing us to have a greater trust in Him, and a greater vision of what He wants to do through us & for us!

- Where there is vision there is provision
- Where God guides, He provides

Colossians 1:16-17
“For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

Matthew 14:13 – Jesus goes away to be by Himself, but the crowd follows him.

- The people were in need & heard that Jesus could help in some way.

- By the time Jesus got to His destination, the crowd was there to meet Him as He stepped out of the boat!

- Even in a time when He wanted to be alone, due to the death of John the Baptist, when He saw the people, He had compassion on them & healed their sick!

Can you imagine… looking out and seeing a crowd of 5,000 men plus their wives & their children? A crowd of approx. 15,000 people with such need …need of healing, need of a savior, need of direction.

That evening… The disciples said:

- It’s getting late

- This is a desolate (desert) place – the word means… lonesome, waste, or wilderness

- Send everyone away so they can buy their own food & feed themselves

* Sometimes we hear… this area is a desolate place, I’m in a place of loneliness, there seems to be no nourishment in the place I find myself in, this is a wasteland. The disciples didn’t realize, that even though it was a desolate place, when Jesus is present, you have all the power you need – right with you! Even in our desolate places, Jesus is there with us, to give us the power we need!

Vs 16 – Jesus said… that’s not necessary – YOU FEED THEM!

Vs 17 – Their response to Jesus was…. IMPOSSIBLE… because this is all we have to work with!

Sometimes we feel like all we have to give is not enough – but in the hands of Jesus… everything is possible!

He told them to sit down. Jesus was not only about to feed nearly 15,000 people with a small amount of bread & fish, but He was also about to teach the disciples a lesson about how to depend on Him.

Jesus…
– took what they had (loaves & fish)
- Looked to heaven
- Asked for God’s blessing
- Handed it back to the disciples to feed the people

We need to take what we have… marriage, relationships, talents, abilities, money & resources, etc., and give it back to God – ask Him to bless it – then use it for His purpose!

With their natural eyes, all they had was never going to be enough to feed all of those people, but in the hands of Jesus, there was multiplication & the impossible became possible!

In our lives – our own efforts, ability, talent, personality, resources, can never be enough… but when placed in the hands of Jesus, He multiplies what we have & the impossilbe becomes possible through Him!

Matthew 19:26 – With God all things are possible

Gen 18:13 – God asks Abraham… is there anything to hard for the Lord?

As we move forward in the purposes of God, we need to give what we have, and He will make up the difference! He will multiply it, and cause the little to become MORE than enough!

God is our Jehovah Jira – The God Who Provides!

2 Samual 11

It was the Spring time when Kings went out to war… but David stayed at home!

* Shared the video of the word of the Lord received for our church from: Pastor Terry Davis
He said… the winter is over, and spring is upon you!

- He wasn’t where he was supposed to be, doing what he was supposed to be doing!
* It was his time to be in battle

- He was spending idol time out on the roof enjoying his kingdom, what he had done for himself, looking at all that was his. David had more ground to cover, more to gain for his kingdom.
* Don’t be satisfied staying where you are, when God says there’s more to accomplish!

- Looking around to see what everyone else was doing
* Instead of looking around to see what everyone else is doing, we must do what God has called us to do!

- Let his lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life (when he had Uriah her husband killed) settle in & it gave birth to sin.
* He, his family, and ultimately the whole nation paid consequences for his decision.

The decisions we make, don’t just affect us!

It’s time to get off the bench & into the game, because God has much for us to accomplish!

Pro 29:18
Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

• No = nothing or not exist
• Vision = to gaze at, to mentally perceive, contemplate with pleasure a dream or revelation
• Perish = avoid, go back, uncover

When God given dreams are non existent in your life, you avoid going forward, and instead go back! And, happiness is found when you live God’s way!

God wants you to DREAM!
– He wants you to see His vision for your life
- He wants you to go forward & accomplish His plans for you
- He wants you to have pleasure in thinking & dreaming about His plans for your life

* This is VERY different, and not to be confused with, the “New Age” theology…
Everything stems from your own thinking; if you can dream it you can have it, the power for change comes from within, you have the power to heal yourself, blah, blah, blah!

Without remaining in Jesus, we are powerless!

Jesus said… in John 15:5
Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.

Through Christ we can do all things, because He strengthens us! – Philippians 4:13

Not new age living, but living as we are instructed in – Philippians 4:8

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing – Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. NLT

We are to gaze with pleasure on the REAL fact that God has plans & a purpose for your life – still in front of you – something still left for you to accomplish!

Possibility…

Imagine what possibilities lay before us – with God in control of our lives!

The Number Game

** On your handout, I would like for you to write down a number – any number.
Now show this number to the person sitting beside you. What numbers did you write?
Most of the time, people will write a number under 20, because that’s an easy, manageable number. Something that they are used to – something they’ve accomplished before!

I’d like to give you a little story about a little company that I do some work for, you might have heard of them?

In 1998, Larry Page and Sergey Brin incorporated Google while still graduate students at Stanford University. The last I knew, internet users perform over 150 million searches a day on the Google Search Engine, and it accesses over two billion pages in 74 different languages. One study showed that Google users used the search engine 13 million hours in one month – which I’m sure has already increased significantly! Compare that with Yahoo that came in second with 5.4 million hours.

Google is dominant.

How did they get so big? I don’t have the expertise to answer that question, but I can tell you that it began with their initial vision.

** The word Google comes from a mathematical term that is the number 1 followed by 100 zeroes.
While most people are likely to pick a number like 14 or 98, Brin & Page decided to pick a googol—1 with 100 zeroes – before the first search was even made!

Striking the arrows half heartedly – 2Kings 13:14-19

King Jehoash was given the opportunity to totally destroy his enemy, but was halfhearted, and left so much possibility on the table!

Parable of the talents – Matthew 25:14-30

Jesus said this was an illustration of the Kingdom of heaven!
• The money belonged to the Master
• He gave them each an amount that He knew they could handle
• The money was to invest for Him, to bring Him a return
• The first 2 servants “went to work immediately” & DOUBLED their Master’s investment
• The last servant dug a hole & buried the money – for safekeeping. Was it wrong for him to want to keep the money safe? YES!
• The Master came home after a long time – so they had time to work
• The 3rd servant was only thinking of himself – not bringing increase to his Master!
• He was called wicked – lazy – useless

Jesus said, in verse 29, …those who are unfaithful, even what little they have will be taken.

* The money didn’t belong to the servants in the first place, but was a tool given to them to use on the Master’s behalf!

Think about the possibilities that God has set before us in our lives!

You might be saying… I’m ok where I am – it’s good enough for me & my family!

But… is that good enough for God?

Are you even willing to do more, go farther, reach more goals, win more souls?

As an example – people say things like…
I want to earn as much money as possible – the problem is…
- they were not specific in how much they actually wanted
- The amount they thought possible was to small

Christians often say…
We want to reach as many people for Christ as we can – often, the problem is…
- they don’t actually have a goal in mind
- the amount of people that is possible for them is often to small – or they go on past experience – which could be 0

We need to enlarge our vision – enlarge the possibility of what God has for us!

Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever!
James 1:17 – He never casts a shadow, because He doesn’t change!

- If God isn’t changing, we are the ones who must change if we are to be like Him.

Philippians 3:14 – Although we’re not there yet, we must forget everything that is behind us and press forward.

Psalm 138:8 – God will fulfill His purpose for us, so we need to yield to His will for our lives. 

- While you may choose not to fulfill the purpose that you were made for, you still have a purpose that God “intends” for you to fulfill!

- God wants us to grow from a “salvation” mentality, to a “kingdom” mentality. When the gospel of the Kingdom comes alive in a community, everything starts to change – the economics, crime rate, prayer, number of Christians, etc.

- Many times we view the enemy as trying to “do something to us”, when one of his best weapons is just getting you to become ineffective to the world around you! Does he have an easy job when it comes to your life?

Numbers 13 – Spies were sent into the land so see the promise before everyone else. They came back with proof in hand! Ten spies also came back with an evil (discouraging) report about the possibilities of actually going in and enjoying the Promised Land, because they were seeing things from the perspective of past experiences & accomplishments.

They said;

• The people are powerful – they did not have faith in God
• The cities & towns are fortified – they did not trust in God’s power
• We saw giants – they thought the opposition was more powerful than God
• The land is already occupied – they didn’t believe that God could deal with those already living there
• They will take our wives & children – they didn’t trust God to take care of their families
• We felt like grasshoppers & we know they thought we looked like grasshoppers next to them – assuming the thoughts &  ability of the enemy, and allowing that to defeat them before they got started
• We wish we could go back to Egypt – they wanted what was familiar & comfortable, even though they would be placing themselves under the heavy bondage of slavery again! They were not happy looking forward to the new wonderful place that God was taking them, simply because it was not familiar to them.

- Caleb saw the same things that everyone else saw, but he was looking through God’s perspective! He tried to quite the murmurings and bring the people to a place of faith, instead, they cried all night long and came against the very leaders that God had provided to bring them into their promise!

Luke 1:8-20 – An angel came to share the goods news of a new son with Zachariah. Instead of rejoicing at what he heard, he questioned the angel as to how this could really happen! The angel said – I am Gabriel (or… do you know who you’re talking to?), and I stand in the very presence of God, and now you will be silent until this promise comes to pass! The very voice that Zachariah used to question God’s promise was taken from him.

Judges 7 – Gideon was about to go to battle, when God stepped in & told him he had to many resources! He was to send everyone home who was afraid & who put their face in the water to drink. The only men who were to stay and fight, were the ones who drank from their hands – so they could be aware of what was going on around them, and they could focus on the task at hand. * Pastor Dan also said, the men who drank directly from the water, could only see their own reflection, but we need to look to God – not our own strength!

*** When your memories outnumber your dreams, you are heading towards the grave ***

God wants to help us focus forward on the things that He has planned for our lives. As Paul said, we need to forget those things that are behind us, and press forward towards the life & promise still ahead of us!