It's Just A Matter Of Time

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This is not an 0:01:28.000 --> 0:01:29.400 offer to buy your self securities sn or is it 0:01:29.440 --> 0:01:30.760 investment legal or tax advice. 0:01:30.880 --> 0:01:35.000 The miracle has already been set into motion. The roots 0:01:35.080 --> 0:01:38.000 of what's been trying to stop you have already been 0:01:38.080 --> 0:01:42.880 cut off. Now stay in faith until you see the manifestations. 0:01:43.360 --> 0:01:46.440 Don't talk yourself out of it. You may be tempted 0:01:46.480 --> 0:01:49.560 to let it go. You're about to give up on 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:53.920 your dream, your health, your children. They get a new grip. 0:01:54.560 --> 0:01:57.640 It's closer than you think. You wouldn't be hearing this 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:00.600 if it wasn't about to happen. Hi, this is Joel 0:02:00.640 --> 0:02:03.960 and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks 0:02:04.000 --> 0:02:05.320 for supporting the ministry. 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:07.800 If you enjoy today's message, why don't you be a 0:02:07.800 --> 0:02:09.359 blessing and share it with a friend. 0:02:09.680 --> 0:02:12.400 We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in 0:02:12.440 --> 0:02:20.120 your life. God bless you. It's great to be with 0:02:20.160 --> 0:02:23.560 you today and every in our area. Please stop buying 0:02:23.760 --> 0:02:25.799 be a part of one of our services. We would 0:02:25.880 --> 0:02:28.399 love to have you now. I hope you'll stay connected 0:02:28.440 --> 0:02:31.280 with us during the week. We have a daily podcast. 0:02:31.360 --> 0:02:35.240 You can download our YouTube channel, watch the messages anytime. 0:02:35.600 --> 0:02:37.880 You can follow us on social media and we'll keep 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:40.880 you encouraged and inspired. But I'd like to start with 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:44.200 something funny and I heard about this pastor. He'd been 0:02:44.240 --> 0:02:47.760 out bear hunting all day long, searched and searched through 0:02:47.760 --> 0:02:51.600 the woods and could find any sign of a bear. Finally, 0:02:51.639 --> 0:02:54.800 in frustration, he threw his gun on the ground and 0:02:54.840 --> 0:02:57.520 went to the stream to cool off. About that time, 0:02:57.560 --> 0:03:00.880 he saw this huge, grizzly bear about one hundred yards 0:03:00.880 --> 0:03:04.600 away running toward him full speed ahead. He fell on 0:03:04.639 --> 0:03:07.680 his knees and said, God, please convert this bear to 0:03:07.760 --> 0:03:12.079 a Christian. Miraculously, the bear froze in his tracks, put 0:03:12.120 --> 0:03:14.880 both paws up in the hair, and said, Lord, thank 0:03:14.919 --> 0:03:19.040 you for this food I'm about to eat. Say it 0:03:19.120 --> 0:03:22.280 like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am 0:03:22.360 --> 0:03:24.840 what it says I am. I have what it says 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:27.359 I have. I can do what it says I can do. 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:30.640 Today I will be taught the word of God. I 0:03:30.760 --> 0:03:34.920 boldly confess my mind is alert, my heart is receptive. 0:03:35.200 --> 0:03:38.840 I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God 0:03:38.880 --> 0:03:42.320 bless you. I want to talk to you today about 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:46.560 extra mile blessings. There are times God asks us to 0:03:46.560 --> 0:03:49.480 do things that are hard, things that don't make sense. 0:03:50.000 --> 0:03:52.400 To give something to others when we need it more 0:03:52.440 --> 0:03:55.000 than them, to take a step of faith when we 0:03:55.040 --> 0:03:58.600 don't have the experience, or to forgive someone that doesn't 0:03:58.680 --> 0:04:02.760 deserve it. Everything in our logic says, this is not right. 0:04:03.320 --> 0:04:07.280 That's too much, it's not fair. God is asking you 0:04:07.520 --> 0:04:11.320 to go the extra mile. Any time you obey, there's 0:04:11.320 --> 0:04:14.520 a blessing that follows. If you're going to see extra 0:04:14.600 --> 0:04:19.159 mile blessings, you have to have extra mile obedience when 0:04:19.160 --> 0:04:21.719 you do the hard thing that God's asking you to do. 0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:25.160 It's not because God's trying to make your life miserable. 0:04:25.560 --> 0:04:29.760 It's because he has something awesome coming your way. You 0:04:29.800 --> 0:04:34.600 can't reach the fullness of your destiny without extra mile obedience. 0:04:35.240 --> 0:04:39.720 There are good breaks increase healing that are only connected 0:04:39.960 --> 0:04:43.000 to doing the right thing when it's hard, and it's 0:04:43.040 --> 0:04:46.400 good to obey in the small things that's important. Be 0:04:46.560 --> 0:04:50.320 kind to a neighbor, give to charity. A coworker is 0:04:50.440 --> 0:04:53.440 rude and you let it go. That's not real difficult. 0:04:54.000 --> 0:04:56.040 But when you're about to go to a new level, 0:04:56.400 --> 0:05:00.320 when you're about to see something unusual, out of the ordinary, 0:05:00.440 --> 0:05:03.320 don't be surprised if God asked you to do a 0:05:03.360 --> 0:05:06.840 hard thing, to go the extra mile. Well, God, I'll 0:05:06.920 --> 0:05:09.760 keep giving my offerings each week, but not that money 0:05:09.760 --> 0:05:13.440 I've saved up from my dreams. I'll forgive that relative 0:05:13.560 --> 0:05:16.520 that offended me yesterday, but not that one that hurt 0:05:16.520 --> 0:05:19.760 me five years ago. I'll go to work on time, 0:05:20.080 --> 0:05:23.400 do my best. But I can't apply for that management position. 0:05:23.880 --> 0:05:28.080 You know I'm not qualified. There are extra mile blessings 0:05:28.240 --> 0:05:31.919 waiting for you, something out of the ordinary. The question 0:05:32.200 --> 0:05:37.000 is will you have extra mile obedience? Is God asking 0:05:37.040 --> 0:05:41.039 you to do something that seems too hard, uncomfortable to 0:05:41.120 --> 0:05:44.160 break away from a friend that's causing you to compromise, 0:05:44.680 --> 0:05:47.479 to be more disciplined in what you're watching, to go 0:05:47.600 --> 0:05:51.280 back to school and sharpen your skills. Everything in your 0:05:51.320 --> 0:05:54.280 reasoning will tell you you don't have time. It's not 0:05:54.320 --> 0:05:57.880 going to matter. Don't rock the boat. Yes, it may 0:05:57.920 --> 0:06:01.000 be difficult, but if you could see the blessing that's 0:06:01.000 --> 0:06:04.120 attached to the obedience, if you could see the joy, 0:06:04.520 --> 0:06:07.919 the fulfillment, the provision, that you would dig down deep 0:06:08.120 --> 0:06:11.840 and do it. One king seventeen, there was a widow 0:06:11.880 --> 0:06:15.520 that lived in the city of Zerophath. Her husband had died, 0:06:15.560 --> 0:06:18.800 and now she was living there alone with her one son. 0:06:19.440 --> 0:06:21.880 There was a drought in the land, dried up all 0:06:21.920 --> 0:06:25.480 the crops. She couldn't find any groceries. All she had 0:06:25.560 --> 0:06:28.640 left was a little flour and a little oil, just 0:06:28.800 --> 0:06:32.080 enough for one meal. She was out picking up sticks 0:06:32.160 --> 0:06:34.440 to build a fire. She was going to cook her 0:06:34.520 --> 0:06:39.000 last meal. Few days earlier, the prophet Elijah was at 0:06:39.040 --> 0:06:42.640 the Jordan River where he had been living. Every morning 0:06:42.920 --> 0:06:45.920 the ravens, these birds would come to him, and that's 0:06:46.000 --> 0:06:50.000 how he survived. Well. The ravens quit coming. God said 0:06:50.000 --> 0:06:53.160 to him in verse eight. Go to the city of Zerophath. 0:06:53.600 --> 0:06:57.000 There is a widow that will feed you there. It's 0:06:57.040 --> 0:07:00.520 interesting that God sent him to a widow that didn't 0:07:00.560 --> 0:07:04.520 have any food. When God does things that don't make sense, 0:07:04.839 --> 0:07:07.880 that means he's up to something out of the ordinary. 0:07:08.240 --> 0:07:12.720 Something supernatural is about to happen. Elijah came walking into 0:07:12.800 --> 0:07:16.680 town saw the widow gathering up the wood. He said, 0:07:16.680 --> 0:07:19.920 excuse me, ma'am, I'm traveling through the city. Would you 0:07:19.960 --> 0:07:23.560 please bring me a cup of water? That was no problem. 0:07:23.960 --> 0:07:27.160 She was kind, she was giving. She stopped what she 0:07:27.320 --> 0:07:30.600 was doing. Despite her own challenges. She went to get 0:07:30.600 --> 0:07:34.480 the water. Most of us are like her. If it's 0:07:34.520 --> 0:07:37.040 not too much, we're going to do it. If it's 0:07:37.080 --> 0:07:40.840 a small thing, no problem. But here's the test. As 0:07:40.840 --> 0:07:44.320 she was going to get the water, Elijah said, ma'am, 0:07:44.640 --> 0:07:48.200 I'm hungry too. Please bring me a loaf of bread 0:07:48.280 --> 0:07:52.119 as well. The water was easy, the bread was hard. 0:07:52.880 --> 0:07:55.960 She said, Sir, I swear by the Lord your God, 0:07:56.320 --> 0:07:59.120 I don't have any bread in my house. I only 0:07:59.160 --> 0:08:02.480 have enough flower to make me and my son some food. 0:08:02.800 --> 0:08:04.800 We're going to eat it, then we're going to die. 0:08:05.800 --> 0:08:08.680 You would think, Elijah would saying, I'm so sorry. I'm 0:08:08.720 --> 0:08:12.640 gonna help you find food instead. Just after she poured 0:08:12.640 --> 0:08:15.800 out her heart, after she had swore that she didn't 0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:20.160 have any extra food, Elijah said, I understand you don't 0:08:20.200 --> 0:08:22.960 have enough for all of us, but make me a 0:08:23.040 --> 0:08:26.760 loaf of bread first, give me what I need. If 0:08:26.840 --> 0:08:30.320 you'll do this, the Lord God of Israel says, there 0:08:30.320 --> 0:08:33.720 will always be plenty of flour and plenty of oil 0:08:33.960 --> 0:08:38.760 left in your containers. Elijah was saying, if you will 0:08:38.800 --> 0:08:42.760 have extra mile obedience, if you'll do something that doesn't 0:08:42.760 --> 0:08:46.880 make sense, that doesn't seem logical. Nothing in your reasoning 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:49.800 says to make him a meal when you need a meal. 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:53.440 But if you'll do it, you'll see an extra mile blessing. 0:08:53.880 --> 0:08:59.680 You'll see supernatural provision, supernatural increase. What God asked you 0:08:59.760 --> 0:09:02.880 to do is not always going to make sense. It's 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:05.679 not always going to be logical. This is what faith 0:09:05.760 --> 0:09:09.480 is all about. Give away what you need, make him 0:09:09.480 --> 0:09:14.040 a meal first. This widow didn't understand it. Thoughts told her, 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:17.640 you're making a mistake. This couldn't be God. You and 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:20.800 your son should be eating this last meal. But this 0:09:20.920 --> 0:09:24.560 woman dared to obey, She took that step of faith 0:09:24.760 --> 0:09:28.600 and made him a meal. First Verse sixteen says she 0:09:28.720 --> 0:09:32.160 and her son continued to eat from the flower and 0:09:32.240 --> 0:09:35.319 from the oil, for no matter how much they used, 0:09:35.559 --> 0:09:38.880 there was always plenty of oil left in the containers. 0:09:39.679 --> 0:09:43.679 When you have extra mild obedience, you set miracles into motion. 0:09:44.520 --> 0:09:48.600 God begins to pour out blessings, open up doors, bring 0:09:48.720 --> 0:09:53.080 supernatural provision, healing things that you couldn't make happen that 0:09:53.200 --> 0:09:57.240 will thrust you into new levels of your destiny. Are 0:09:57.280 --> 0:10:00.680 you missing the great things God wants to do because 0:10:00.679 --> 0:10:03.600 you're not willing to do the hard things? Don't talk 0:10:03.640 --> 0:10:06.360 to yourself out of it. The more difficult it is, 0:10:06.760 --> 0:10:10.600 the greater the blessing. God could have had Elijah show 0:10:10.679 --> 0:10:13.520 up and tell the woman God wants you to know. 0:10:13.760 --> 0:10:16.600 He sees that you're struggling. He's going to supply all 0:10:16.640 --> 0:10:19.880 of your needs. He could have done it without her 0:10:19.920 --> 0:10:23.800 feeding Elijah. But most of the time, an act of 0:10:23.880 --> 0:10:28.000 obedience is required. If you'll do the hard thing when 0:10:28.000 --> 0:10:31.880 it doesn't seem logical, you don't feel like it. Everything 0:10:31.920 --> 0:10:34.720 in your intellect is telling you this doesn't make sense. 0:10:35.280 --> 0:10:39.000 If you'll have this extra mile obedience, you'll see God 0:10:39.320 --> 0:10:42.480 show out in your life. He wouldn't ask you to 0:10:42.559 --> 0:10:46.920 do something hard unless he has something amazing coming. Is 0:10:46.960 --> 0:10:50.360 he asking you to forgive someone that hurts you He've 0:10:50.360 --> 0:10:53.840 been holding on for years. They don't deserve it, They 0:10:53.840 --> 0:10:57.920 were wrong. You're not excusing their behavior. You're letting go 0:10:58.040 --> 0:11:01.280 of the poison. You could see what God has in 0:11:01.320 --> 0:11:04.800 store on the other side of that forgiveness. You wouldn't 0:11:04.800 --> 0:11:10.600 think twice. There are extra mild blessings, new relationships, new opportunities, 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:15.760 greater joy. Think about Joseph, betrayed by his brothers. He 0:11:15.800 --> 0:11:21.160 went through thirteen years of injustice, rejection, in prison, all 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:25.360 because of his brother's jealousy. One day they showed up 0:11:25.360 --> 0:11:29.920 at the palace. Now he was in charge, vindicated, promoted. 0:11:30.440 --> 0:11:33.440 His brothers were standing before him, trying to buy food 0:11:33.559 --> 0:11:37.040 in a famine. This was Joseph's big chance to pay 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:40.719 them back, to get even. But Joseph could hear that 0:11:40.760 --> 0:11:45.040 still small voice saying, forgive, be good to them, let 0:11:45.080 --> 0:11:48.240 it go. It's one thing to forgive when someone is 0:11:48.320 --> 0:11:50.960 rude to you at the office. That doesn't take a 0:11:50.960 --> 0:11:55.000 lot of effort. But these brothers sold Joseph into slavery. 0:11:55.480 --> 0:11:58.640 They took his freedom. He lost years of his life 0:11:59.000 --> 0:12:03.000 being away from his faith, not following his dream because 0:12:03.000 --> 0:12:05.760 of what they did to him. In a sense, he 0:12:05.800 --> 0:12:08.960 had a right to be angry to get revenge. But 0:12:09.120 --> 0:12:14.480 Joseph understood this principle. He had extra mile obedience. He 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:18.480 forgave people that didn't deserve him. He forgave the people 0:12:18.679 --> 0:12:22.559 that tried to ruin his life because he showed God 0:12:22.600 --> 0:12:24.960 that he could trust him to do the hard thing, 0:12:25.440 --> 0:12:28.120 to forgive when it wasn't fair to be good to 0:12:28.160 --> 0:12:31.400 people that weren't good to him. God poured out extra 0:12:31.520 --> 0:12:35.120 mile blessings. He put Joseph in charge of the whole nation. 0:12:36.040 --> 0:12:39.720 When you have extra mile obedience, you do what God's 0:12:39.760 --> 0:12:42.760 asking you to do when it's hard, it's not fair, 0:12:43.200 --> 0:12:46.680 doesn't make sense. There's no limit to how high God 0:12:46.720 --> 0:12:50.200 will take you. Is God asking you to break away 0:12:50.240 --> 0:12:53.480 from people that are pulling you down? You know they're 0:12:53.480 --> 0:12:57.719 a negative influence causing you to compromise. Joel, they've been 0:12:57.720 --> 0:13:01.520 my friend for years. We always had out. I know 0:13:01.600 --> 0:13:05.280 it's not easy, but where could you go? What could 0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:08.959 you become if you did the hard thing? God wouldn't 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:12.439 be asking you if he didn't have extra mile blessings 0:13:12.480 --> 0:13:15.680 in store? Is God asking you to keep a good 0:13:15.720 --> 0:13:20.040 attitude in a negative situation. You're working hard but not 0:13:20.160 --> 0:13:24.120 seeing growth, praying for your child, they're not changing. You 0:13:24.240 --> 0:13:29.080 lost a client, business has slowed. You attempted to be critical, complain, 0:13:29.480 --> 0:13:33.720 live sour, Do the hard thing, Keep being your best, 0:13:34.200 --> 0:13:38.000 keep thanking God, keep being good to people, keep declaring 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:41.560 the victory. When you do the hard thing, you set 0:13:41.640 --> 0:13:46.080 miracles into motion. Angels go to work, good breaks come 0:13:46.120 --> 0:13:50.679 looking for you. In the early nineteen seventies, Lakewood started 0:13:50.720 --> 0:13:54.120 to grow. We had less than two hundred people for 0:13:54.280 --> 0:13:57.760 thirteen years. Now my father's dreams were starting to come 0:13:57.800 --> 0:14:01.000 to pass. We were in the original building, the little 0:14:01.000 --> 0:14:05.360 feed store. We needed a larger auditorium. One Sunday, my 0:14:05.440 --> 0:14:08.360 father announced to the congregation that we were going to 0:14:08.360 --> 0:14:12.080 build a new sanctuary that held a thousand people. He 0:14:12.200 --> 0:14:15.080 asked everyone if they would pray about what they could 0:14:15.080 --> 0:14:17.480 give toward it. In a few weeks, he was going 0:14:17.559 --> 0:14:21.479 to take up a special offering. The whole church was excited. 0:14:21.880 --> 0:14:26.120 People gave generously. We had enough to get started. There 0:14:26.200 --> 0:14:29.520 was a small Spanish church down the road They had 0:14:29.560 --> 0:14:32.440 been building a new church for months. It was going 0:14:32.560 --> 0:14:36.200 very slowly. One afternoon, my father stopped by to see 0:14:36.240 --> 0:14:38.640 how they were doing it. He had never met them, 0:14:38.880 --> 0:14:41.520 didn't know anyone. He just wanted to be friendly and 0:14:41.840 --> 0:14:44.560 let them know that we were praying for them. They 0:14:44.600 --> 0:14:47.640 told how they started their building, but it costs more 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:50.600 than they thought. They had some setbacks and ran out 0:14:50.600 --> 0:14:53.720 of funds. Now it was just sitting there, half finished, 0:14:54.120 --> 0:14:58.080 had part of the roof, part of the walls, nothing inside. 0:14:58.200 --> 0:15:01.920 The next day my father heard a still small voice saying, 0:15:02.440 --> 0:15:05.120 I want you to give that money you took up 0:15:05.120 --> 0:15:08.520 for your new building to that Spanish church so they 0:15:08.520 --> 0:15:12.840 can finish their building. His first thought was, get behind me, Satan. 0:15:13.160 --> 0:15:16.680 That could not be God. That's money for our sanctuary. 0:15:17.040 --> 0:15:19.440 He began to reason it out, but he couldn't get 0:15:19.480 --> 0:15:22.680 away from it. Down deep, he knew he was supposed 0:15:22.720 --> 0:15:26.080 to give that money. Like Elijah and the widow, it 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:29.000 was a test, will you make me a meal first? 0:15:29.400 --> 0:15:32.600 Will you do the hard thing, something that you don't understand, 0:15:32.840 --> 0:15:36.160 and give away what you need. After debating it a 0:15:36.160 --> 0:15:39.560 few days, he finally decided to do it. The Spanish 0:15:39.640 --> 0:15:42.440 pastor was so thrilled. He couldn't believe it. They were 0:15:42.480 --> 0:15:46.360 able to finish their building. What's interesting is the funds 0:15:46.360 --> 0:15:50.720 for Lakewood's building started coming in from all over. A 0:15:50.840 --> 0:15:53.600 lady flew into town that had never met my father, 0:15:54.040 --> 0:15:56.880 never been to Lakewood. She had read some of his books, 0:15:57.040 --> 0:15:59.960 but she handed my father a check for more than 0:16:00.120 --> 0:16:03.200 what we gave the Spanish Church. One lady out of 0:16:03.240 --> 0:16:08.440 the blue, like this widow woman. There was supernatural provision. 0:16:09.080 --> 0:16:12.680 The money came in for the foundation, the steel, the walls, 0:16:12.800 --> 0:16:16.000 the seats, the sound system. The whole building was built 0:16:16.040 --> 0:16:20.440 debt free. We never lack for resources. Not just that building, 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:24.720 but my father built another sanctuary, and another and another, 0:16:25.080 --> 0:16:29.800 paid cash for everyone, never borrowed. The provision kept coming. 0:16:31.040 --> 0:16:34.880 It all started when he did a hard thing. He 0:16:34.920 --> 0:16:39.160 gave away what he needed. When you have extra mile obedience, 0:16:39.320 --> 0:16:43.360 you're going to see these extra mile blessings. This really 0:16:43.400 --> 0:16:46.800 boils down to a question of trust. God was saying 0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:49.440 to the widow, if you take care of the prophet, 0:16:50.000 --> 0:16:53.000 if you make the last meal, do you trust me? 0:16:53.360 --> 0:16:56.320 Did I'll take care of you? To my father, if 0:16:56.360 --> 0:16:58.840 you give the funds to that Spanish church, do you 0:16:58.880 --> 0:17:01.240 trust me? That I'll give you the funds for your 0:17:01.320 --> 0:17:04.760 church if you forgive that person that hurts you, Do 0:17:04.840 --> 0:17:06.879 you trust me that I'll make it up to you. 0:17:07.720 --> 0:17:10.199 On the way to your destiny, God is going to 0:17:10.240 --> 0:17:14.159 ask you to do things that require great trust. You 0:17:14.200 --> 0:17:17.920 can't have extra mile obedience if you're not convinced that 0:17:17.960 --> 0:17:19.960 God is going to take care of you, that He 0:17:20.040 --> 0:17:24.000 has the favor, the blessings, the funds, the people, the 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:28.320 confidence to get you to your purpose. The last Sunday 0:17:28.480 --> 0:17:31.520 that we were in our former location, right before we 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:34.879 came to the Compact Center, I was driving home after 0:17:34.920 --> 0:17:39.040 the services that afternoon. It was very emotional pulling out 0:17:39.040 --> 0:17:41.600 of the parking lot for the last time. I'd spent 0:17:41.640 --> 0:17:45.000 my whole life at that location. As I was leaving there, 0:17:45.359 --> 0:17:48.280 there was a rainbow in the sky looked like it 0:17:48.359 --> 0:17:51.320 stretched from the old location to this place. It was 0:17:51.359 --> 0:17:54.240 like God was saying, I'm doing a new thing. I 0:17:54.280 --> 0:17:58.040 felt very grateful. Now. About that time, I passed the 0:17:58.040 --> 0:18:02.280 Spanish church that my father in the First Congregation helped 0:18:02.320 --> 0:18:06.600 build some thirty years earlier. On their small marquis out front, 0:18:06.640 --> 0:18:10.040 it said thank you Lakewood for giving us our building. 0:18:11.000 --> 0:18:14.480 I wonder if I would be standing here if my 0:18:14.640 --> 0:18:19.520 father had not had extra mile obedience, had he not 0:18:19.600 --> 0:18:21.919 done the right thing when it was hard, had he 0:18:22.000 --> 0:18:24.800 not proven to God that he could trust him. I 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:27.600 don't know if I would be seeing the blessing and 0:18:27.720 --> 0:18:31.840 favor on my life. Where will your children be thirty 0:18:31.920 --> 0:18:35.440 years from now if you will have extra mile obedience, 0:18:35.880 --> 0:18:39.680 What kind of favor, good, breaks, abundance will they see? 0:18:40.040 --> 0:18:42.200 Because you did the right thing when it was hard. 0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:45.720 You could have played it safe, not taken any risk, 0:18:46.080 --> 0:18:49.639 held on to the hurts. But like this widow, you said, God, 0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:53.119 I trust you. Doesn't make sense, but I'm going to 0:18:53.200 --> 0:18:56.440 do it even though I don't understand it. You had 0:18:56.560 --> 0:18:59.879 extra mile obedience. Get ready, you're going to see ex 0:19:00.040 --> 0:19:05.400 stromile blessings, blessings that not only catapult you ahead, but 0:19:05.440 --> 0:19:09.720 your children and grandchildren will be better off. They'll walk 0:19:09.760 --> 0:19:14.600 in favor and blessings because of you. Anytime God asks 0:19:14.640 --> 0:19:17.600 you to do something hard, that's a sign that's something 0:19:17.680 --> 0:19:21.200 big is in your future. The widow went from getting 0:19:21.240 --> 0:19:24.800 by each day, having just enough to survive, to having 0:19:24.920 --> 0:19:29.680 abundance provision that never ran out. My father went from 0:19:29.720 --> 0:19:33.080 believing for one sanctuary hoping to have the funds to 0:19:33.119 --> 0:19:37.000 pay for that thousand seat auditorium, to having the funds 0:19:37.040 --> 0:19:41.000 over the years to build multiple auditoriums much bigger than 0:19:41.000 --> 0:19:44.960 he ever imagined. Don't put off the hard thing. God 0:19:45.000 --> 0:19:47.320 wouldn't be asking you to do it if he didn't 0:19:47.320 --> 0:19:51.040 have something much better in your future. But sometimes we 0:19:51.119 --> 0:19:54.000 let fear hold us back. What if I do it, Joel, 0:19:54.080 --> 0:19:56.800 it doesn't work out. What if I make the profit 0:19:56.880 --> 0:19:59.800 the meal and I starve. What if I give these 0:19:59.800 --> 0:20:03.800 fun and I can't build my sanctuary? David said, I 0:20:03.920 --> 0:20:06.840 was young and now I'm old, and I've never once 0:20:06.920 --> 0:20:10.600 seen the righteous forsaken God is not going to let 0:20:10.640 --> 0:20:14.560 you down. Don't let fear and doubt keep you from 0:20:14.600 --> 0:20:17.600 seeing the greatness of our God. He's going to ask 0:20:17.640 --> 0:20:20.719 you to do things that don't make sense. It's because 0:20:20.800 --> 0:20:24.359 faith has to do with your heart, not necessarily your mind. 0:20:24.920 --> 0:20:28.560 That's why the scripture says lean not to your own understanding. 0:20:29.240 --> 0:20:32.240 If you can figure it out, make it work on paper, 0:20:32.800 --> 0:20:35.479 you've got it calculated how it can happen, then you 0:20:35.480 --> 0:20:39.879 don't need faith. But when you're like this widow, you calculate, 0:20:40.160 --> 0:20:43.120 I have enough flour for one meal. I've made bread 0:20:43.160 --> 0:20:47.600 my whole life. I'm concluded. We're limited. That's when faith 0:20:47.680 --> 0:20:50.320 has to kick in. God. If you want me to 0:20:50.359 --> 0:20:52.720 make the profit of a meal, first, you want me 0:20:52.760 --> 0:20:56.639 to do something I don't understand. I trust you. Doesn't 0:20:56.680 --> 0:21:00.119 make sense to me, but I realize I'm natural and 0:21:00.160 --> 0:21:05.480 you're supernatural. You controlled the universe. You spoke worlds into existence. 0:21:06.040 --> 0:21:09.280 You stopped the sun for Joshua. You gave Sarah a 0:21:09.320 --> 0:21:12.760 baby at ninety years old. You parted the sea for Moses. 0:21:13.119 --> 0:21:16.400 You opened prison doors for Paul. You brought water out 0:21:16.400 --> 0:21:20.760 of a rock for the Israelites. I recognized you're Jehovah, Jirah, 0:21:21.040 --> 0:21:26.399 my healer, my deliver my promise keeper, my waymaker, my 0:21:26.520 --> 0:21:30.960 miracle worker. Jesus was on the shore of Galilee about 0:21:31.000 --> 0:21:33.720 to teach the people. So many were gathered that he 0:21:33.760 --> 0:21:37.359 didn't have room. He saw both over on the side. 0:21:37.400 --> 0:21:40.600 The owner, a man named Peter, was cleaning his nets. 0:21:41.119 --> 0:21:43.760 Jesus had never met Peter, but he asked a bar 0:21:43.840 --> 0:21:46.280 of the boat. He pushed out from the shore and 0:21:46.359 --> 0:21:50.280 started teaching. The scripture says Peter had fished all night 0:21:50.640 --> 0:21:55.399 and caught nothing. He was a little frustrated, tired, ready 0:21:55.440 --> 0:21:57.800 to get home as soon as this man gets out 0:21:57.800 --> 0:22:01.560 of his boat. When Jesus fithed, he asked Peter to 0:22:01.600 --> 0:22:05.960 do something that didn't seem logical. He said, Peter, launch 0:22:06.040 --> 0:22:08.720 out into the deep and you will catch a great 0:22:08.840 --> 0:22:12.960 haul of fish. I can imagine Peter thinking, excuse me, 0:22:13.480 --> 0:22:17.440 I'm a professional fisherman, you're a teacher. I didn't tell 0:22:17.440 --> 0:22:19.800 you how to teach. I've been doing this for years. 0:22:19.920 --> 0:22:22.520 I know when to fish. This is not the right time. 0:22:23.000 --> 0:22:26.120 Everything in his logic said, don't do it. It's going 0:22:26.160 --> 0:22:28.880 to be a waste of time. He could have said, sir, 0:22:29.119 --> 0:22:32.760 I appreciate your suggestions, thanks for your advice, but that 0:22:32.760 --> 0:22:36.240 doesn't make sense. He could have walked away and we 0:22:36.280 --> 0:22:38.919 would have never heard of Peter. But I love the 0:22:38.960 --> 0:22:42.520 fact that, even though Peter didn't understand it, even though 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.400 it went against his logic, he said, Jesus, we fished 0:22:46.400 --> 0:22:50.639 all night and caught nothing. Nevertheless, at your word, we 0:22:50.720 --> 0:22:54.000 will go back out. He threw out his net and 0:22:54.080 --> 0:22:57.320 caught so many fish that his net began to break. 0:22:58.119 --> 0:23:01.399 When you have extra mild obedience, God will give you 0:23:01.760 --> 0:23:06.600 net breaking blessings, blessings that you can't explain increase. It 0:23:06.640 --> 0:23:10.760 doesn't make sense. You weren't the most qualified, you didn't 0:23:10.760 --> 0:23:14.200 have the seniority, But the promotion came to you, The 0:23:14.200 --> 0:23:17.000 healing came to you. The right people came to you. 0:23:17.880 --> 0:23:20.840 It's significant that there were no fish there a few 0:23:20.840 --> 0:23:24.439 hours before, but God knows how to bring the fish 0:23:24.560 --> 0:23:28.480 to your nets. What you tried before may not have worked. 0:23:28.880 --> 0:23:31.720 But when you hear God say, do it again. Don't 0:23:31.760 --> 0:23:34.320 reason it out, don't talk to yourself out of it, 0:23:34.560 --> 0:23:38.159 go back out. God is putting the fish, the provision, 0:23:38.480 --> 0:23:41.920 the healing, the good breaks right where you need. It. 0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:44.320 Wasn't there last time, but it's going to be there 0:23:44.400 --> 0:23:47.560 next time. A couple of years after Victoria and I 0:23:47.600 --> 0:23:50.480 were married, we sold our town home. It was a 0:23:50.520 --> 0:23:53.919 beautiful place, backed up to the woods. We made a 0:23:53.960 --> 0:23:57.040 good profit, and we're looking for a house. One day, 0:23:57.119 --> 0:23:59.840 Victoria called me at work, said, Joel, I found on 0:23:59.840 --> 0:24:04.119 new Come see it. It was this old rundown house. 0:24:04.560 --> 0:24:08.280 It had been abandoned, doors were missing, had holes in 0:24:08.359 --> 0:24:11.840 the roof. There were buckets inside to catch the water. 0:24:12.400 --> 0:24:15.800 Had made your foundation problems. The floor was all crooked. 0:24:16.440 --> 0:24:19.199 Nothing about the house was good, but it was on 0:24:19.280 --> 0:24:23.080 a nice piece of property close into the city. Victoria 0:24:23.200 --> 0:24:25.520 was so excited. She said, Joe, we can fix this 0:24:25.680 --> 0:24:28.200 up and do this and do that. We will love 0:24:28.320 --> 0:24:31.439 living here. I thought she had lost her mind. It 0:24:31.480 --> 0:24:34.119 didn't make sense. We just came out of this beautiful 0:24:34.160 --> 0:24:37.640 town home. This place was a tear down. But when 0:24:37.640 --> 0:24:40.639 I would get quiet, I would hear that still small 0:24:40.720 --> 0:24:44.639 voice saying she's right, this is your property. I felt 0:24:44.640 --> 0:24:47.440 peace about it. We bought it and fixed it up. 0:24:48.000 --> 0:24:50.639 A year later, a builder knocked on our door and 0:24:50.720 --> 0:24:53.719 asked if we would sell the property. I said, no, thanks, 0:24:53.720 --> 0:24:56.159 it's not for sale. He said, how about if I 0:24:56.200 --> 0:24:58.840 give you this amount. I said, like I said, we'd 0:24:58.840 --> 0:25:02.720 love to sell it. We sold him half of the property. 0:25:03.119 --> 0:25:06.720 He built two houses, one for us and one for him. 0:25:07.320 --> 0:25:10.240 A year later we had a brand new, beautiful home, 0:25:10.680 --> 0:25:14.359 something more than we ever imagine. When you have extra 0:25:14.480 --> 0:25:18.200 mile obedience, you're going to see these extra mile blessings. 0:25:18.800 --> 0:25:21.639 Don't talk yourself out of what you know God is 0:25:21.720 --> 0:25:24.960 asking you to do. It's not always going to make sense. 0:25:25.840 --> 0:25:29.000 Make the profit a meal first, give the funds to 0:25:29.040 --> 0:25:32.800 the Spanish church. Go back after we fished all night, 0:25:33.320 --> 0:25:36.920 buy this old rundown house. Trust that God knows what's 0:25:37.000 --> 0:25:39.840 best for you. He'll never ask you to do a 0:25:39.880 --> 0:25:44.439 hard thing unless he has something amazing coming. Sometimes we 0:25:44.480 --> 0:25:48.080 miss God's best, we miss the extra mile blessing because 0:25:48.080 --> 0:25:50.240 we don't want to take a risk, we don't want 0:25:50.240 --> 0:25:53.480 to forgive. We don't want to give what we need. 0:25:53.760 --> 0:25:55.960 That's what's going to take you to the fullness of 0:25:56.000 --> 0:25:59.359 your destiny. That's where you'll see the greatness of our God. 0:26:00.200 --> 0:26:03.560 My friends, Craig and Samantha had their third child a 0:26:03.600 --> 0:26:06.679 while back, and for a couple of years everything was great. 0:26:07.080 --> 0:26:10.800 But they begin to notice little Connor wasn't developing like normal. 0:26:11.280 --> 0:26:15.240 He was diagnosed with autism. They're people of faith, they 0:26:15.280 --> 0:26:18.560 know that God's in control, but it was still difficult. 0:26:18.800 --> 0:26:22.080 They could have sat around defeated, bitter God, why did 0:26:22.119 --> 0:26:25.760 this happen? But in the midst of their pain, Craig 0:26:25.880 --> 0:26:28.520 heard God say to him, I'm going to use your 0:26:28.560 --> 0:26:33.040 son Connor to help people all over the world. Craig said, God, 0:26:33.080 --> 0:26:35.919 my son can't even talk, he can't even ask for 0:26:35.960 --> 0:26:38.439 a drink of water. How's he going to help people. 0:26:39.359 --> 0:26:42.480 Wasn't long after that that Samantha walked in his room 0:26:42.520 --> 0:26:45.840 one night, about to put him to bed. Connor had 0:26:45.840 --> 0:26:48.800 his Bible in his hand. He held it up and said, 0:26:49.119 --> 0:26:51.920 this is my Bible. I am what it says, I am. 0:26:52.240 --> 0:26:56.199 He quoted the whole thing. He had been watching our videos. 0:26:56.800 --> 0:26:59.560 Those were the first words that he ever spoke. They 0:26:59.560 --> 0:27:02.800 were so thrilled. Craig was the head of our children's 0:27:02.840 --> 0:27:06.040 ministry at the time, and he realized we didn't have 0:27:06.080 --> 0:27:10.480 any programs for children with special needs. Parents couldn't attend 0:27:10.560 --> 0:27:13.200 church with these children that are not able to sit 0:27:13.240 --> 0:27:16.600 through a service. He felt God telling him to start 0:27:16.640 --> 0:27:20.119 a ministry for special needs children. He could have thought, 0:27:20.119 --> 0:27:23.200 God is hard enough to raise our own son, our 0:27:23.240 --> 0:27:26.119 hands are full. That doesn't make sense to take on 0:27:26.240 --> 0:27:30.200 more challenges. God was asking him to do a hard thing, 0:27:30.840 --> 0:27:33.960 to birth a ministry. Out of his pain, Craig and 0:27:34.000 --> 0:27:38.560 Samantha started the Champion's Club for children with autism and 0:27:38.640 --> 0:27:42.879 special needs. The first month, three hundred new families joined 0:27:42.880 --> 0:27:47.520 the church. Today, there are over one hundred Champions Clubs 0:27:47.840 --> 0:27:52.400 in churches around the world. Craig had extra mile obedience. 0:27:53.560 --> 0:27:58.600 What happened. He had seen extra mile blessings, just like 0:27:58.680 --> 0:28:03.159 God said influence is impacting people all over the world. 0:28:03.880 --> 0:28:07.000 Is God asking you to do a hard thing, something 0:28:07.000 --> 0:28:10.720 that doesn't make sense, doesn't seem fair. If you'll take 0:28:10.760 --> 0:28:13.919 that step, you'll see God show out in your life. 0:28:14.720 --> 0:28:19.000 It's easy to make excuses, reason it out. It's not logical. 0:28:19.520 --> 0:28:23.480 What if I fail? They don't deserve it. I'm not qualified. 0:28:24.119 --> 0:28:26.280 If you could see what's on the other side of 0:28:26.320 --> 0:28:30.040 that obedience, the joy, the favor, the victory, then you 0:28:30.040 --> 0:28:34.440 wouldn't put it off. There are extra mile blessings waiting 0:28:34.480 --> 0:28:38.360 for you, blessings that will thrust you ahead. The way 0:28:38.400 --> 0:28:42.600 you release them is by having extra mile obedience. If 0:28:42.600 --> 0:28:46.320 you'll do this, I believe and declare, like the widow, 0:28:46.600 --> 0:28:51.240 you're going to see supernatural provision like Peter Net, breaking 0:28:51.280 --> 0:28:55.880 blessings like my father, increase that affects your children like 0:28:55.960 --> 0:28:58.840 Craig and Samantha. Out of your pain, you will see 0:28:58.880 --> 0:29:03.440 your purpose, doors opening dreams, come into past, favor that 0:29:03.600 --> 0:29:08.080 catapults you into your destiny in Jesus' name, and if 0:29:08.080 --> 0:29:12.280 you receive it, can you say amen, I'd like to 0:29:12.280 --> 0:29:15.080 give you an opportunity to make Jesus the lord of 0:29:15.120 --> 0:29:19.120 your life. Would you pray with me. Just say, Lord Jesus, 0:29:20.160 --> 0:29:24.920 I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I 0:29:25.080 --> 0:29:28.840 make you my Lord and Savior. If you've prayed that 0:29:28.920 --> 0:29:32.120 simple prayer, we believe you got born again. We'd love 0:29:32.200 --> 0:29:34.480 to send you some free information on your new walk 0:29:34.480 --> 0:29:36.680 with the Lord. Just text the number on the screen. 0:29:37.000 --> 0:29:38.600 You can go to the website and take our New 0:29:38.600 --> 0:29:42.000 Beginning's course. I hope you'll get into a good Bible 0:29:42.080 --> 0:29:45.920 based church and keep God first place. Thanks so much 0:29:45.960 --> 0:29:49.240 for listening to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so 0:29:49.360 --> 0:29:52.520 you can receive the latest podcast to keep you encouraged 0:29:52.560 --> 0:29:54.120 and inspired all through the week. 0:29:54.320 --> 0:29:56.520 Help us to continue to share the message of hope 0:29:56.520 --> 0:30:00.000 with those all around the world. Visit joeloasting dot com 0:30:00.120 --> 0:30:02.719 or click the link in the description to partner with 0:30:02.800 --> 0:30:03.320 us today. 0:30:03.560 --> 0:30:06.000 We hope you'll share this message with a friend and 0:30:06.120 --> 0:30:08.920 be sure to follow us on social media. We're praying 0:30:09.000 --> 0:30:12.080 for you. I know God's best is still ahead. We'll 0:30:12.120 --> 0:30:12.960 see you next time. 0:30:15.120 --> 0:30:17.880 With millions of books on Amazon, there's a reading feeling 0:30:17.920 --> 0:30:22.440 for everyone. For example, Quand's as he drifts away to 0:30:22.520 --> 0:30:26.240 Nirvana after only the first chapter is different to Maya's 0:30:27.360 --> 0:30:30.520 when she discovered the narrator was in fact the Evil Twin, 0:30:31.080 --> 0:30:34.680 which is also different to Noah's aw anytime the cute 0:30:34.720 --> 0:30:38.080 cyberpunk is mentioned, even though in reality, he'd be totally 0:30:38.120 --> 0:30:43.520 out of his league. 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