Preplanned For Purpose

0:00:00.680 --> 0:00:03.080 Hi, this is Joel and Victorian. So great to have 0:00:03.160 --> 0:00:05.840 you listening to the podcast. We have a new resource 0:00:05.880 --> 0:00:08.719 we'd love to send you. It's the twenty twenty four 0:00:08.920 --> 0:00:12.800 Devotion North Calendar. It's full of inspiration and encouragement. It'll 0:00:12.800 --> 0:00:15.160 help you to start the day off right. Hope you'll 0:00:15.200 --> 0:00:18.040 request your copy, but enjoy the podcast today. 0:00:20.760 --> 0:00:21.520 God bless you. 0:00:21.840 --> 0:00:24.279 It's great to be with you today, and I hope 0:00:24.280 --> 0:00:26.880 you'll stay connected with us during the week through our 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:31.080 daily podcast, our YouTube channel, social media, and you can 0:00:31.080 --> 0:00:33.519 come visit us in person. We'd love to have you 0:00:33.600 --> 0:00:36.120 be a part of one of our services. So I'd 0:00:36.120 --> 0:00:38.360 like to start with something funny and I heard about 0:00:38.400 --> 0:00:42.080 this reporter. He was visiting different churches across the nation. 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:45.559 While in the Northeast, he saw a gold phone on 0:00:45.600 --> 0:00:48.879 the wall with a sign that said calls ten thousand 0:00:48.960 --> 0:00:52.080 dollars per minute. He has the pastor what it meant. 0:00:52.320 --> 0:00:55.320 The pastor explained that was a direct line to Heaven. 0:00:55.720 --> 0:00:57.800 If you were willing to pay the price, you could 0:00:57.800 --> 0:01:01.480 talk directly to God. He continue, you're visiting different churches 0:01:01.800 --> 0:01:05.080 seeing the same gold phone the same sign. Well, he 0:01:05.160 --> 0:01:08.200 finally made it to Texas. He saw the phone, but 0:01:08.280 --> 0:01:10.280 the sign said calls twenty five. 0:01:10.160 --> 0:01:11.240 Cents per minute. 0:01:11.800 --> 0:01:14.319 In tree D's the pastor why it was so much cheaper. 0:01:14.640 --> 0:01:17.680 The pastor said, you're in Texas now, it's a local call. 0:01:19.680 --> 0:01:22.880 All right, y'all say it like you mean it. This 0:01:23.120 --> 0:01:25.800 is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:28.520 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:01:28.600 --> 0:01:31.160 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:01:31.240 --> 0:01:35.160 taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind 0:01:35.280 --> 0:01:38.560 is alert, my heart is recepted. I will never be 0:01:38.680 --> 0:01:43.520 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:01:43.520 --> 0:01:46.560 to talk to you today about pre plan for purpose. 0:01:47.440 --> 0:01:50.440 It's easy to think that we have to make everything happen, 0:01:50.960 --> 0:01:54.200 make our dream come to pass, and make this door open, 0:01:54.440 --> 0:01:59.200 make this person like need. This can be stressful and discouraging. 0:02:00.200 --> 0:02:02.880 There are things that we can't make happen. We've gone 0:02:02.920 --> 0:02:06.360 as far as we can, facing obstacles that are too big, 0:02:06.400 --> 0:02:08.639 and feels like we've reached our limits. 0:02:09.280 --> 0:02:12.320 The good news is you're not doing life on your own. 0:02:12.919 --> 0:02:14.240 It's not just up to you. 0:02:14.720 --> 0:02:19.280 There's something happening that you can't see. Paul said in Ephesians, 0:02:19.800 --> 0:02:23.280 we are created to do good works which God has 0:02:23.360 --> 0:02:29.000 planned before time, taking past that he prepared ahead of time, 0:02:29.680 --> 0:02:33.239 that we should live the good life which He prearranged 0:02:33.480 --> 0:02:37.079 and made ready for us to live. God has already 0:02:37.240 --> 0:02:41.040 pre arranged a good life for you. He's already planned 0:02:41.080 --> 0:02:44.120 out your days. He's lined up the right people, the 0:02:44.200 --> 0:02:49.160 right breaks, solutions to problems. He's put in you the gifts, 0:02:49.360 --> 0:02:53.120 the talents, the potential so you can live this good life. 0:02:53.919 --> 0:02:57.080 When you realize the creator of the universe has a 0:02:57.120 --> 0:03:01.360 prearranged plan, that he's already figured it all out, that 0:03:01.440 --> 0:03:05.560 you're not at the mercy of faith, happenstance, coincidence. 0:03:06.360 --> 0:03:08.799 I hope this works out. I hope I meet the 0:03:08.880 --> 0:03:11.400 right person. I hope I'll fulfill my purpose. 0:03:12.040 --> 0:03:15.280 No, you can be confident God is ordering your steps. 0:03:15.880 --> 0:03:19.120 You can live in peace knowing it's not just up 0:03:19.160 --> 0:03:22.160 to you to make it all happen. God has gone 0:03:22.200 --> 0:03:26.200 ahead of you. He's planning things out before you got here. 0:03:27.160 --> 0:03:30.840 Now our part is to honor God. Keep in first place, 0:03:31.320 --> 0:03:35.080 and you'll walk into that prearranged good life that He's 0:03:35.120 --> 0:03:38.960 already planned. Now, this doesn't mean we won't have difficulties. 0:03:39.280 --> 0:03:42.720 Things come against us people that are not fair. It 0:03:42.880 --> 0:03:46.720 means that God has already taken that into account when 0:03:46.720 --> 0:03:48.360 he pre planned your life. 0:03:48.680 --> 0:03:50.040 He arranged to come. 0:03:49.800 --> 0:03:54.400 Back for every setback, a solution to every problem, mercy 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:59.000 for every mistake, a new beginning for every loss. When 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:02.960 Jesus was betray Trade Acts, Chapter two says God knew 0:04:03.040 --> 0:04:08.080 this would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out. 0:04:08.200 --> 0:04:12.160 When Jesus was betrayed, God knew Judas was going to 0:04:12.200 --> 0:04:12.880 turn on him. 0:04:13.240 --> 0:04:14.280 It wasn't a surprise. 0:04:14.880 --> 0:04:17.760 He had already pre arranged that as a part of 0:04:17.800 --> 0:04:24.840 his plan to bring salvation. Your setbacks, disappointments, betrayals, they 0:04:24.839 --> 0:04:28.320 don't catch God off guard. He wouldn't have allowed it 0:04:28.480 --> 0:04:31.320 if it was going to stop your purpose. It may 0:04:31.320 --> 0:04:34.680 not have been fair, but God has the final say. 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:37.840 He's already pre arranged how He's going to turn that 0:04:37.880 --> 0:04:42.000 for your good. See God's been thinking about you long 0:04:42.120 --> 0:04:45.640 before you ever showed up on planet Earth. You're not 0:04:45.800 --> 0:04:48.920 just a product of your parents they decided to have 0:04:48.960 --> 0:04:52.320 a child. God knew you before you were in your 0:04:52.360 --> 0:04:55.919 mother's womb. You may have come through your mother, but 0:04:56.040 --> 0:04:59.840 you came from Almighty God. David said, in some w 0:05:00.000 --> 0:05:05.200 one thirty nine. God, you knew my unformed substance. All 0:05:05.279 --> 0:05:07.520 my days that you have ordained for. 0:05:07.680 --> 0:05:11.400 Me were written in your book before I was ever born. 0:05:12.080 --> 0:05:15.680 Before you got here, God already decided your purpose. 0:05:16.360 --> 0:05:18.000 He already planned out your. 0:05:17.920 --> 0:05:22.160 Days, already put in you everything you need to fulfill 0:05:22.200 --> 0:05:25.920 his plan. There are gifts and talents in you right 0:05:25.960 --> 0:05:30.960 now that you haven't tapped into. Potential, this lying dormant, 0:05:31.440 --> 0:05:33.240 but at the appointed time. 0:05:33.320 --> 0:05:35.240 It will come to life. 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:38.599 Like in the natural, a gene can lie dormant in 0:05:38.640 --> 0:05:43.560 our body for years. It's been preprogrammed by genetics, by 0:05:43.560 --> 0:05:47.480 who your parents and relatives are. I've seen people when 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:49.960 they're young, they have a full head of hair, but 0:05:50.040 --> 0:05:53.520 when they hit forty, there's nothing there. What was that 0:05:53.760 --> 0:05:55.160 a gene lying dormant. 0:05:55.880 --> 0:05:57.880 It was there but not activated. 0:05:58.560 --> 0:06:01.360 When the time came, it did exactly what it was 0:06:01.400 --> 0:06:05.680 supposed to do. We pray against those genes in the 0:06:05.760 --> 0:06:09.560 same way. There are gifts God put in you that 0:06:09.600 --> 0:06:14.279 you can't see right now, talent, potential, ability that you 0:06:14.400 --> 0:06:18.040 need for your purpose. When the right time comes, you're 0:06:18.080 --> 0:06:21.040 going to discover ability that you never knew you had. 0:06:21.800 --> 0:06:24.440 For thirty five years. I didn't know there was a 0:06:24.480 --> 0:06:27.120 pastor in me. I didn't know I could get up 0:06:27.120 --> 0:06:30.000 here and speak. My father asked me to help him 0:06:30.000 --> 0:06:33.400 pastor for seventeen years. All that time I was behind 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:36.360 the scenes. Joe, why don't you speak for me this Sunday? 0:06:36.520 --> 0:06:37.800 You would be a good pastor. 0:06:38.480 --> 0:06:40.839 I thought, there's not a chance in the world. I 0:06:40.839 --> 0:06:44.240 wouldn't know what to say. I'm more quiet and reserved. 0:06:44.720 --> 0:06:45.760 I don't have a big. 0:06:45.560 --> 0:06:48.920 Personality to be out in front of people. But when 0:06:48.920 --> 0:06:52.320 my father passed, suddenly I had the desire. 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:53.039 To get up and speak. 0:06:53.640 --> 0:06:58.200 I felt a boldness, a confidence I can do mentality. 0:06:58.240 --> 0:07:01.479 And yes, those limiting thoughts still came, but they didn't 0:07:01.480 --> 0:07:02.000 phaze me. 0:07:02.640 --> 0:07:04.719 I thought, I can do this. I am well able. 0:07:05.760 --> 0:07:09.200 That wasn't me just getting my courage up, being determined. 0:07:09.800 --> 0:07:13.240 That was something God put in me before I was born. 0:07:13.800 --> 0:07:17.760 A gene, so to speak, that he preprogrammed to open 0:07:17.840 --> 0:07:18.720 at a certain time. 0:07:19.800 --> 0:07:22.680 You don't know what God has put in you. You 0:07:22.720 --> 0:07:26.200 don't know what's going to open up. The talent, the ability, 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:27.120 the confidence. 0:07:27.600 --> 0:07:32.240 What He has already planned in your future is bigger, better, 0:07:32.720 --> 0:07:36.840 more rewarding that you can imagine When you understand this, 0:07:37.360 --> 0:07:41.640 you want live striving, straining, worried, how's. 0:07:41.440 --> 0:07:43.680 It going to work out? What if I don't meet 0:07:43.720 --> 0:07:44.480 the right people? 0:07:44.960 --> 0:07:48.160 You'll live from a place of peace, a place of rest, 0:07:48.520 --> 0:07:52.520 your confident that your creator has planned out your days 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:55.480 for good, that he put in you what you need 0:07:55.520 --> 0:07:58.840 for your purpose, that he's lined up the right people, 0:07:59.240 --> 0:08:01.160 the right brain, the solutions. 0:08:01.800 --> 0:08:03.440 It's all been pre arranged. 0:08:04.360 --> 0:08:07.680 Your job is to keep being faithful, keep living with 0:08:07.760 --> 0:08:11.160 excellence and integrity. You're going to walk in to the 0:08:11.200 --> 0:08:14.040 good plan that's already been prepared for you. 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:17.240 I'm still amazed that I'm able to do this. 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:20.800 Sometimes Sunday nights, I'm flipping through the channels and I 0:08:20.800 --> 0:08:22.240 see myself on television. 0:08:22.800 --> 0:08:25.560 Now, I think, who is that man? How did this happen? 0:08:26.280 --> 0:08:29.560 It was all a part of what God already prepared 0:08:29.600 --> 0:08:29.880 for me. 0:08:30.960 --> 0:08:33.680 God's not making it up as he goes. Oh man, 0:08:34.240 --> 0:08:37.880 Joel's father died. Need somebody to pastor the church? Maybe 0:08:37.920 --> 0:08:38.679 Joel can do it. 0:08:39.280 --> 0:08:42.560 No, before you were born, God planned at all your days. 0:08:43.520 --> 0:08:48.600 The scripture says God put treasure in earthen vessels. We 0:08:48.679 --> 0:08:53.080 can feel ordinary thoughts tell us where average nothing special? 0:08:53.640 --> 0:08:54.880 But God loves. 0:08:54.600 --> 0:08:59.400 To use ordinary people to do extraordinary things. I'm an 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:03.040 earth investor. You're an earthen vessel. Don't let that fool you. 0:09:03.640 --> 0:09:10.720 There is treasure in you. God put greatness on the inside, value, honor, influence, 0:09:11.440 --> 0:09:14.800 things that have not yet all come out, Things that 0:09:14.880 --> 0:09:17.880 He has pre planned that will cause you to bloom, 0:09:18.120 --> 0:09:22.200 to blossom, to go further than you ever dreamed. When 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:26.119 God needed a young woman to bring Jesus, the Messiah 0:09:26.160 --> 0:09:29.240 to the earth, someone that would give birth to the Savior, 0:09:30.040 --> 0:09:34.200 he could have chosen royalty, a king's daughter, someone that 0:09:34.240 --> 0:09:35.559 came from wealth. 0:09:35.480 --> 0:09:36.880 Prestige, influence. 0:09:37.559 --> 0:09:42.480 Instead, he put his greatest treasure, his only son, in 0:09:42.559 --> 0:09:47.520 a girl that was from a low income family, pour overlooked, 0:09:47.679 --> 0:09:48.959 not regarded as much. 0:09:49.920 --> 0:09:53.520 God loves to put treasure in earthen vessels. 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:56.360 Don't discount yourself because you feel like. 0:09:56.520 --> 0:10:00.920 You're at a disadvantage. You have flaws, weakness, you've made 0:10:00.920 --> 0:10:02.960 some mistakes. That's okay. 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:07.280 Your heart is tender toward God. You're an earthen vessel. 0:10:07.480 --> 0:10:11.000 That's who God uses. Or maybe you think you're not 0:10:11.080 --> 0:10:14.720 as talented as son, not as beautiful, not as outgoing. 0:10:15.320 --> 0:10:18.760 None of that stops our God, He's put things in 0:10:18.800 --> 0:10:21.240 you that are going to cause you to stand out, 0:10:21.800 --> 0:10:24.960 to leave your mark, to make the world a better place. 0:10:26.000 --> 0:10:29.960 David was a teenager out in the shepherd's fields taking 0:10:30.000 --> 0:10:31.360 care of his father's sheep. 0:10:32.040 --> 0:10:33.680 Was lonely and boring. 0:10:34.360 --> 0:10:37.680 I'm sure thoughts told him, you'll never do anything significant. 0:10:37.880 --> 0:10:38.880 You're stuck out here. 0:10:39.960 --> 0:10:44.280 Somehow, I believe David understood this principle that God put 0:10:44.360 --> 0:10:47.680 things in him that he couldn't see. One day, the 0:10:47.720 --> 0:10:51.079 prophet Samuel showed up unexpectedly. 0:10:50.440 --> 0:10:51.120 At his house. 0:10:51.760 --> 0:10:54.160 He was there to choose the next king of Israel. 0:10:54.920 --> 0:10:59.839 David's seven brothers all stood before Samuel. When Samuel saw Eliab, 0:11:00.080 --> 0:11:02.520 the oldest, he thought for sure it was him. 0:11:02.840 --> 0:11:05.160 He was tall, strong, good looking. 0:11:06.000 --> 0:11:09.840 But God doesn't choose the way we choose. He passed 0:11:09.840 --> 0:11:13.640 over all seven. Finally asked Jesse, is there another son? 0:11:14.640 --> 0:11:17.480 Jesse said, yes, my son David is out in the fields, 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:18.520 but I'm sure. 0:11:18.320 --> 0:11:19.240 It's not him. 0:11:19.600 --> 0:11:23.760 He's small, young, not experienced. He doesn't have the strength 0:11:24.040 --> 0:11:26.280 the talent like these other sons. 0:11:26.880 --> 0:11:29.160 God loves to use the unexpected. 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:33.439 He loves to put treasure in people that seem unlikely 0:11:34.120 --> 0:11:39.040 at a disadvantage. When Samuel saw David, he didn't think twice. 0:11:39.240 --> 0:11:43.400 He said, there's the next king of Israel. Later, David 0:11:43.440 --> 0:11:46.520 took lunch to his brothers. They were in the army 0:11:46.600 --> 0:11:49.959 in another city. He heard Goliath taunting. 0:11:49.600 --> 0:11:50.560 The people of Israel. 0:11:51.240 --> 0:11:54.800 Something rose up in David. He told King Saul, I 0:11:54.880 --> 0:11:58.800 will defeat this giant. Well, Goliath was twice his size. 0:11:59.240 --> 0:12:02.199 When the other soldiers heard Goliath, they ran in hid. 0:12:03.200 --> 0:12:07.760 How could a teenager with no military experience, with nothing 0:12:07.800 --> 0:12:11.559 but a slingshot had this kind of boldness, this confidence. 0:12:12.440 --> 0:12:13.000 It was like. 0:12:13.080 --> 0:12:17.640 David had this gene open up, this courage, this ability 0:12:17.880 --> 0:12:21.520 that God put in him before he was born. Now, 0:12:21.559 --> 0:12:25.640 at the appointed time, it came alive. David went out, 0:12:25.720 --> 0:12:27.760 slung that rock and defeated Goliath. 0:12:28.840 --> 0:12:31.920 King Sault nearly passed out. He couldn't see it. 0:12:32.240 --> 0:12:36.760 But there was treasure in this teenager. There was greatness 0:12:36.800 --> 0:12:40.360 in this earthen vessel. This was all a part of 0:12:40.400 --> 0:12:43.679 what God had pre planned for David. God had already 0:12:43.760 --> 0:12:45.040 pre arranged him. 0:12:44.960 --> 0:12:46.200 To be a giant killer. 0:12:46.720 --> 0:12:49.480 He had already put in him the talent, the confidence, 0:12:49.520 --> 0:12:51.880 the skill to bring down Goliath. 0:12:52.760 --> 0:12:55.760 There are giants in your future that God. 0:12:55.520 --> 0:12:59.400 Has already equipped you to defeat. There are dreams that 0:12:59.440 --> 0:13:03.640 look possible that God has already empowered you to accomplish. 0:13:04.400 --> 0:13:06.360 When you look at what you're up against, it can 0:13:06.400 --> 0:13:11.360 seem dawning, a sickness, financial issue, struggling with an addiction. 0:13:12.320 --> 0:13:15.920 Like David, that potential there's been lying dormant in you 0:13:16.360 --> 0:13:19.120 is going to suddenly come to life. You're going to 0:13:19.120 --> 0:13:24.000 feel a supernatural strength, a supernatural power, God breathing in 0:13:24.040 --> 0:13:28.960 your direction. He's already pre planned your victory. He's already 0:13:28.960 --> 0:13:32.920 put treasure in your earth and vessel. Yes, you may 0:13:32.960 --> 0:13:34.200 seem ordinary, the. 0:13:34.120 --> 0:13:38.520 Truth is you are extraordinary. You may look small, but 0:13:38.600 --> 0:13:41.000 the most high God is on your side. 0:13:41.120 --> 0:13:44.600 Goliath had a sword and a shield, but your slingshot, 0:13:44.920 --> 0:13:47.559 with the favor of God, will bring down the giant. 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:52.239 My father was raised very poor. His parents were farmers. 0:13:52.679 --> 0:13:56.520 They lost everything during the Great Depression. His family were 0:13:56.559 --> 0:13:59.240 good people, they just had a limited vision. 0:14:00.000 --> 0:14:01.120 He didn't think they could ever. 0:14:01.000 --> 0:14:04.079 Get out of poverty and defeat, and they knew nothing 0:14:04.120 --> 0:14:04.760 about God. 0:14:05.240 --> 0:14:06.680 They didn't have any kind of faith. 0:14:07.320 --> 0:14:10.840 But at seventeen years old, my father gave his life. 0:14:10.640 --> 0:14:13.000 To Christ, the first one in the family. 0:14:13.800 --> 0:14:17.440 The scripture says that God chose us before we could 0:14:17.480 --> 0:14:21.160 choose him. Part of this good life that God has 0:14:21.240 --> 0:14:25.000 pre planned is when He reaches down in mercy and 0:14:25.080 --> 0:14:28.360 calls us out of darkness into the light, when we 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:32.040 become a new creation. Now our part is we have 0:14:32.120 --> 0:14:35.440 to respond to that call. That's what my father did. 0:14:36.400 --> 0:14:37.160 Was working in a. 0:14:37.080 --> 0:14:41.960 Movie theater selling popcorn at seventeen, no future to speak of. 0:14:42.760 --> 0:14:45.440 But now he felt this calling to become a minister. 0:14:46.280 --> 0:14:49.560 Where did that come from? Seems so out of the blue. 0:14:49.840 --> 0:14:53.360 That was a gene that had been lying dormant, something 0:14:53.400 --> 0:14:56.960 God put in him before he was born, treasure in 0:14:57.040 --> 0:15:00.920 an earthen vessel. Now, at this appointed time, it came alive. 0:15:02.120 --> 0:15:05.520 You don't know where God is taking you. You don't 0:15:05.560 --> 0:15:08.560 know the treasure that's going to wake up, the gifts, 0:15:08.760 --> 0:15:11.920 the callings, the ideas that are going to come alive. 0:15:12.640 --> 0:15:14.120 It's already pre planned. 0:15:14.800 --> 0:15:17.760 There are good things that God has already pre arranged 0:15:17.800 --> 0:15:18.160 for you. 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:21.000 My father told his parents that he. 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:23.320 Was going to leave and go out and start ministring. 0:15:24.040 --> 0:15:25.800 They said, John, all you know how to do is 0:15:25.840 --> 0:15:28.080 work on the farm. You're going to get out there 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:31.840 and fail. You better stay here with us. Other people 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:34.040 can't always see what God. 0:15:33.840 --> 0:15:36.680 Put in you. They can't see the treasure. 0:15:37.280 --> 0:15:41.760 They just see the earthen vessel, your ordinary, your average. 0:15:41.920 --> 0:15:44.960 You can't do anything great. Don't let them talk you 0:15:45.080 --> 0:15:46.960 out of what God put in your heart. 0:15:48.080 --> 0:15:52.240 My father didn't have the training, any experience, any support, 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:54.960 but he took that step of faith and went out 0:15:55.000 --> 0:15:56.000 and started ministry. 0:15:56.600 --> 0:15:58.560 He didn't have a car. He had to hitch hike. 0:15:59.320 --> 0:16:03.840 God begin to open doors. He started pastoring churches. Yes, 0:16:03.880 --> 0:16:08.160 there were disappointments, betrayals, and let downs, but when I 0:16:08.160 --> 0:16:11.080 look back over his life, I can see how at 0:16:11.120 --> 0:16:14.200 every step of the way he had exactly what he needed. 0:16:14.640 --> 0:16:19.360 The right people showed up, right doors, open solution for problems, 0:16:19.600 --> 0:16:20.760 mercy for mistakes. 0:16:21.440 --> 0:16:22.800 It was already. 0:16:22.560 --> 0:16:26.040 Lined up, pre planned by the creator of the universe. 0:16:26.360 --> 0:16:29.640 He stepped in to that good life. He discovered the 0:16:29.720 --> 0:16:33.480 treasure in an earthen vessel. I want you to have 0:16:33.600 --> 0:16:37.000 this confidence, this knowing that God has. 0:16:36.880 --> 0:16:40.000 It all figured out, that before you were born. 0:16:40.760 --> 0:16:44.520 God who is rich in mercy, God who is loving 0:16:44.640 --> 0:16:48.880 and kind, God who calls you a masterpiece, God who 0:16:49.000 --> 0:16:52.720 chose you before you could choose him. He thought so 0:16:52.880 --> 0:16:56.600 much of you that he took time to preplan your life, 0:16:57.240 --> 0:17:04.720 to prearrange everything you need to positive in you, gifts, treasures, talents, wisdom. 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:07.800 This is why we don't have to go through life worried, 0:17:08.560 --> 0:17:11.159 wondering what if I don't get the right breaks, what 0:17:11.200 --> 0:17:12.800 if this giant is too big? 0:17:13.280 --> 0:17:16.280 Stay in peace. God has it all lined up. 0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:20.960 What's in your future is greater than anything you can imagine. 0:17:21.200 --> 0:17:23.600 The good news is it's already set up. 0:17:24.760 --> 0:17:28.280 In my early twenties, I was playing baseball practically every 0:17:28.359 --> 0:17:31.320 night of the week and tournaments on the weekend, and 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:35.240 I'd never really ever dated anyone. I thought, God, I'm 0:17:35.280 --> 0:17:37.640 tired of hanging out with all these guys. I need 0:17:37.680 --> 0:17:40.720 to meet me a woman. Well, the battery for my 0:17:40.800 --> 0:17:43.919 watch died, so I went to a jewelry store to 0:17:43.960 --> 0:17:48.399 get it replaced. Outwalked the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:50.520 To wait on me. It was Victoria. 0:17:51.160 --> 0:17:54.480 I thought, God, you just answered my prayer. We got 0:17:54.520 --> 0:17:56.399 to talk and I found out that she was a 0:17:56.440 --> 0:17:59.879 good Christian girl. I thought that's great, because if not, 0:18:00.320 --> 0:18:04.399 I was about to convert her. I went in to 0:18:04.480 --> 0:18:07.520 buy battery for my watch. She ended up selling me 0:18:07.560 --> 0:18:10.800 a whole new watch. She's been taking my money ever since. Then, 0:18:12.880 --> 0:18:16.280 out of all the jewelry stores in Houston, I just 0:18:16.359 --> 0:18:17.280 so happened. 0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:20.400 To go into that store, her mother's store. I loft Jewelers. 0:18:21.000 --> 0:18:24.159 That wasn't random, That wasn't a lucky break. That was 0:18:24.200 --> 0:18:27.600 something God pre planned before I was born. That was 0:18:27.680 --> 0:18:31.040 God ordering my steps, putting me at the right place 0:18:31.240 --> 0:18:36.119 the right time. This building the former Compact Center. I 0:18:36.240 --> 0:18:39.360 used to have season tickets to watch the Rockets play basketball. 0:18:39.680 --> 0:18:42.080 This is where Victoria and I came on our first date. 0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:46.600 But I don't believe this building was built just for basketball. 0:18:46.960 --> 0:18:50.480 God knew that one day Lakewood would need a larger auditorium. 0:18:50.880 --> 0:18:54.760 This was something He pre planned to thrust. 0:18:54.440 --> 0:18:56.000 Us into our destiny. 0:18:57.080 --> 0:19:01.560 The scripture says, you haven't seen, heard, or imagine what 0:19:01.720 --> 0:19:05.000 God has in store for you. God has some things 0:19:05.040 --> 0:19:08.600 stored up for you, some things He's planned that are 0:19:08.600 --> 0:19:12.439 going to boggle your mind. Doors he's going to open people, 0:19:12.480 --> 0:19:15.920 You're going to meet gifts, You're going to discover, treasure 0:19:16.000 --> 0:19:19.280 that's going to come out, resources that no one in 0:19:19.320 --> 0:19:22.359 your family has seen. He's going to take you further. 0:19:22.720 --> 0:19:26.800 He's a progressive God. He wants every generation to increase. 0:19:27.640 --> 0:19:30.960 You're not limited by your background, your job, your family, 0:19:31.040 --> 0:19:35.639 your skills. God has things pre planned that will catapult 0:19:35.720 --> 0:19:39.880 you ahead, things you didn't see coming. His ways are 0:19:39.880 --> 0:19:43.400 not our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. 0:19:43.600 --> 0:19:48.320 We think natural, but he's supernatural. Before you were born, 0:19:48.840 --> 0:19:52.160 he planned out your days for good. That means he's 0:19:52.160 --> 0:19:54.879 not playing catch up. Let me see what I can 0:19:54.920 --> 0:19:59.240 do now. They're in a bind. They've made mistakes. That 0:19:59.400 --> 0:20:03.680 giantess so much bigger. God knew everything you'd face. He 0:20:03.760 --> 0:20:08.640 knew every limitation, every weakness, every disadvantage. He took all 0:20:08.680 --> 0:20:13.440 that into account. He's already planned the solution. He's already 0:20:13.480 --> 0:20:15.080 lined up the right people. 0:20:15.119 --> 0:20:16.119 The jewelry store. 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:20.480 He's already put the treasure in you, the talent, the favor, 0:20:20.600 --> 0:20:23.040 the anointing that you haven't seen yet. 0:20:23.760 --> 0:20:25.359 It's like a time capsule. 0:20:25.640 --> 0:20:29.600 When the appointed time comes, you'll discover who you really are. 0:20:30.000 --> 0:20:33.320 A new level of your destiny. And yes, I know 0:20:34.040 --> 0:20:35.120 we have to do our part. 0:20:35.760 --> 0:20:38.320 We have to believe, take steps of faith, keep God 0:20:38.400 --> 0:20:42.960 first place. But there are times when we're making poor choices. 0:20:43.560 --> 0:20:47.399 We've gotten off track. But God is so merciful. His 0:20:47.600 --> 0:20:52.840 purpose will override our mistakes. His plan will supersede our 0:20:52.880 --> 0:20:53.840 wrong decisions. 0:20:54.800 --> 0:20:55.720 Just ask Jonah. 0:20:56.400 --> 0:20:58.879 God told him to go to the city of Nineveh 0:20:59.160 --> 0:21:00.000 and preach the peace. 0:21:00.800 --> 0:21:02.080 Jonah didn't want to go there. 0:21:02.320 --> 0:21:05.240 He got on a boat going the other direction. He 0:21:05.280 --> 0:21:08.120 did exactly opposite of what God told him to do. 0:21:08.920 --> 0:21:12.440 Surely that would stop God's plan. Surely he wouldn't see 0:21:12.440 --> 0:21:16.159 this good life that God had prearranged for him. But 0:21:16.200 --> 0:21:20.280 the scripture says God who is rich in mercy. It 0:21:20.320 --> 0:21:22.760 could have said God has an ample supply of mercy. 0:21:23.119 --> 0:21:26.680 God has enough mercy, but it uses the word rich 0:21:27.040 --> 0:21:30.320 to let us know that God has an abundance of mercy. 0:21:30.680 --> 0:21:32.760 It's from generation to generation. 0:21:33.600 --> 0:21:36.359 Jonah was in this boat going the wrong direction, and 0:21:36.400 --> 0:21:40.879 a huge storm arose. They threw Jonah overboard in the 0:21:40.920 --> 0:21:45.280 middle of the sea, waves crashing winds so strong he 0:21:45.359 --> 0:21:47.400 thought he was done, But it. 0:21:47.480 --> 0:21:48.360 Just so happened. 0:21:48.600 --> 0:21:52.040 There was a big fish waiting for him, swallowed Jonah 0:21:52.440 --> 0:21:55.359 three days later, took him to the shore and spit 0:21:55.440 --> 0:21:56.719 him out on dry ground. 0:21:57.480 --> 0:21:59.440 The word of the Lord came to Jonah. 0:21:59.160 --> 0:22:04.280 A second time saying go to Nineveh, God was saying, Jonah. 0:22:04.240 --> 0:22:05.520 You can't stop my plan. 0:22:06.440 --> 0:22:09.080 I have a purpose that I laid out before you 0:22:09.160 --> 0:22:13.000 were born. I have an assignment, a calling on your life. 0:22:13.160 --> 0:22:16.960 I put treasure in you. God is so merciful. 0:22:17.560 --> 0:22:21.240 He not only pre planned the good breaks, the open doors, 0:22:21.359 --> 0:22:24.879 the right people, but he's pre planned the fish to 0:22:25.000 --> 0:22:27.600 rescue you when you go the wrong way. 0:22:27.680 --> 0:22:29.240 He's pre planned. 0:22:28.800 --> 0:22:32.240 For the times we'd fail, the times we doubt, the 0:22:32.280 --> 0:22:35.560 times we put off doing the right thing. And I'm 0:22:35.600 --> 0:22:38.720 not saying to live sloppy and make mistakes, it doesn't matter. 0:22:39.400 --> 0:22:42.600 I'm saying, when you have a heart after God, but 0:22:42.640 --> 0:22:43.840 you make some mistakes. 0:22:44.400 --> 0:22:47.320 There are times you fail, you get off course. That 0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:51.359 is not going to stop God's plan. May cause trouble 0:22:51.400 --> 0:22:54.840 and heartache, but the scripture says God is working all 0:22:54.960 --> 0:22:59.919 things according to the counsel of his will. Not your will, 0:23:00.560 --> 0:23:04.600 not your circumstances, not how you were raised. It's according 0:23:04.760 --> 0:23:08.440 to what He has pre planned long before you got here. 0:23:09.480 --> 0:23:12.800 You may be an earthen vessel with flaws and weaknesses, 0:23:13.400 --> 0:23:16.359 but he put treasure in you. He's not going to 0:23:16.480 --> 0:23:20.160 let that treasure go to waste. Don't believe those lies. 0:23:20.600 --> 0:23:24.000 You've made too many mistakes. You've gotten too far off course. 0:23:24.440 --> 0:23:27.159 You've missed what God pre planned for you. Can I 0:23:27.280 --> 0:23:31.960 encourage you? You're not that powerful. God's calling is still 0:23:32.000 --> 0:23:32.800 on your life. 0:23:33.160 --> 0:23:34.440 God is not through with you. 0:23:35.000 --> 0:23:37.400 If He was finished with Jonah, he would have made 0:23:37.440 --> 0:23:41.200 it out of the waters. If God was finished with you, 0:23:41.200 --> 0:23:42.360 you wouldn't be hearing this. 0:23:43.400 --> 0:23:46.600 He sent me as that big fish to bring. 0:23:46.359 --> 0:23:48.840 You back to shore, to get your back on track. 0:23:49.520 --> 0:23:53.320 The treasure is still in you. Get your fire back. 0:23:53.960 --> 0:23:58.200 Start making decisions that honor God. The Book of Acts, 0:23:58.600 --> 0:24:01.199 there's a man by the name of Soul of Tarsus. 0:24:01.720 --> 0:24:03.679 He was the biggest enemy of the church. 0:24:04.280 --> 0:24:08.399 He was constantly arresting believers, causing all kinds of havoc. 0:24:08.960 --> 0:24:11.800 No one did more to threaten and bring fear and 0:24:11.840 --> 0:24:12.920 turmoil than Saul. 0:24:13.760 --> 0:24:16.320 He was on his way to Damascus. 0:24:16.080 --> 0:24:19.600 With official letters from the courts to put believers in prison. 0:24:20.520 --> 0:24:24.080 This bright light shine down from heaven, knocked him off 0:24:24.119 --> 0:24:24.760 his animal. 0:24:25.359 --> 0:24:26.400 He was on the ground. 0:24:26.440 --> 0:24:30.280 He couldn't see his blind A voice boomed out, Saul, 0:24:30.840 --> 0:24:32.080 why do you persecute me? 0:24:32.840 --> 0:24:34.439 He was puzzled. He said who are you? 0:24:34.920 --> 0:24:39.119 The voice answered, I am Jesus. That day was a 0:24:39.160 --> 0:24:42.720 turning point for Saul. He became a follower of Christ. 0:24:43.280 --> 0:24:46.960 His name was changed from Saul to Paul. He went 0:24:46.960 --> 0:24:50.000 from being the biggest threat of the church to being 0:24:50.080 --> 0:24:53.040 the biggest asset of the church. He ended up writing 0:24:53.119 --> 0:24:56.119 over half of the books in the New Testament, and 0:24:56.119 --> 0:25:00.320 it's significant what he wrote in Galatians chapter one. He said, 0:25:00.359 --> 0:25:03.639 you know how violently I persecuted Christians? 0:25:04.119 --> 0:25:06.679 How did my best to get rid of them? But 0:25:06.800 --> 0:25:08.120 then something happened. 0:25:08.520 --> 0:25:12.760 God, in his kindness, chose me before I was born 0:25:13.280 --> 0:25:14.120 to proclaim the. 0:25:14.080 --> 0:25:16.239 Good news to the gentiles. 0:25:16.760 --> 0:25:20.240 Paul was saying, I was going about my business doing 0:25:20.280 --> 0:25:23.520 what I thought was right, but what God pre planned 0:25:23.560 --> 0:25:28.280 for me overrode my will. That encounter with God on 0:25:28.320 --> 0:25:32.000 the road to Damascus changed his mind, brought him into 0:25:32.040 --> 0:25:35.400 the purpose that was ordained for him before. 0:25:35.040 --> 0:25:37.760 He was born. There are things that. 0:25:37.720 --> 0:25:40.479 God has pre planned for you that he's not going 0:25:40.520 --> 0:25:41.760 to let you miss. 0:25:42.320 --> 0:25:45.159 Sometimes they think, oh, Joel, I've made too many mistakes. 0:25:45.560 --> 0:25:48.080 I got way off course. It's too late now. No, 0:25:48.200 --> 0:25:51.320 what God has purposed for your life is still going 0:25:51.359 --> 0:25:52.199 to come to pass. 0:25:53.040 --> 0:25:55.880 He did not take the time to plan your days 0:25:55.960 --> 0:25:58.879 before you were born, to line up everything you would 0:25:58.920 --> 0:26:02.920 need to put gifts and talents programmed to open at 0:26:02.960 --> 0:26:06.280 the right time. He didn't go to all that effort 0:26:06.560 --> 0:26:09.080 and then decide you can miss your purpose. 0:26:09.840 --> 0:26:11.560 The treasure is still in you. 0:26:12.040 --> 0:26:15.880 The good breaks, the favor, the spouse, They're already on 0:26:15.920 --> 0:26:20.440 the schedule. You keep honoring God, being faithful. There are 0:26:20.600 --> 0:26:24.040 destiny moments in your future where doors are going to 0:26:24.080 --> 0:26:27.360 open right, people are going to show up, Gifts come 0:26:27.359 --> 0:26:28.440 out that you didn't. 0:26:28.160 --> 0:26:28.760 Know You had. 0:26:29.400 --> 0:26:32.639 Come back to a place of peace, a place of rest. 0:26:33.160 --> 0:26:36.200 There is a good life in front of you. It's 0:26:36.280 --> 0:26:38.679 not just up to you to make it happen. The 0:26:38.760 --> 0:26:42.160 Most High God is ordering your steps. It's all working 0:26:42.480 --> 0:26:44.800 according to the counsel of His will. 0:26:45.480 --> 0:26:47.600 I believe and declare you're. 0:26:47.480 --> 0:26:51.440 About to step in to some prearranged blessings, some pre 0:26:51.520 --> 0:26:55.800 planned favor, something you didn't see coming. The treasure God 0:26:55.840 --> 0:27:01.880 put in you is about to be discovered. Talent promotion resources, breakthroughs, 0:27:02.280 --> 0:27:06.600 the fullness of your destiny in Jesus' name, And if 0:27:06.640 --> 0:27:10.840 you receive it, can you say amen, I'd like to 0:27:10.840 --> 0:27:13.520 give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of 0:27:13.600 --> 0:27:14.040 your alive. 0:27:14.520 --> 0:27:18.560 Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I'll 0:27:18.560 --> 0:27:22.440 repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make 0:27:22.520 --> 0:27:24.000 you my Lord and savior. 0:27:24.760 --> 0:27:27.240 If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got 0:27:27.240 --> 0:27:30.240 born again. We'd love to send you some free information 0:27:30.440 --> 0:27:32.720 on your new walk with the Lord. You can text 0:27:32.760 --> 0:27:35.520 the number on the screen or go to the website. 0:27:35.800 --> 0:27:37.720 But I hope you'll get into a good. 0:27:37.520 --> 0:27:40.840 Bible based church and keep God first place. 0:27:41.560 --> 0:27:44.119 Do you have a dream that's waiting to happen, but 0:27:44.200 --> 0:27:47.160 it often feels like you'll never get there? Is your 0:27:47.280 --> 0:27:50.520 dream to start a business, to see a loved one 0:27:50.640 --> 0:27:53.720 come to the Lord? Are you asking God? Will it 0:27:53.760 --> 0:27:54.359 ever happen? 0:27:55.400 --> 0:27:58.200 Sometimes it feels like our dream is so far off. 0:27:58.520 --> 0:28:00.560 But I believe you're closer than you think. 0:28:00.720 --> 0:28:03.800 You're on the verge of seeing things change in your favor, 0:28:03.960 --> 0:28:06.720 new doors opening, the right people showing up. 0:28:06.880 --> 0:28:09.000 I'd love to send you our new hopes and dreams. 0:28:09.040 --> 0:28:10.360 Twenty twenty four planner. 0:28:10.560 --> 0:28:13.840 It's not only a calendar, but it has scriptures and inspiration, 0:28:14.119 --> 0:28:15.199 a place to journal. 0:28:15.320 --> 0:28:18.119 It'll help you stay focused and encouraged so you can 0:28:18.160 --> 0:28:19.320 see your dreams come. 0:28:19.200 --> 0:28:22.280 To pass As you support the ministry this month with 0:28:22.320 --> 0:28:25.439 a special end of year gift of any amount, we 0:28:25.560 --> 0:28:27.960 would like to bless you with the Hopes and Dreams 0:28:28.000 --> 0:28:31.360 twenty twenty four Planner. With the new Planner, you will 0:28:31.359 --> 0:28:34.720 start the new year with fresh ideas, fresh hope, and 0:28:34.960 --> 0:28:39.200 endless possibilities. You'll find monthly calendars and plenty of space 0:28:39.280 --> 0:28:42.200 to plan for a better day ahead. Plus there are 0:28:42.240 --> 0:28:45.640 inspiring scriptures and thoughts that will encourage you to believe 0:28:45.720 --> 0:28:46.600 for your dreams. 0:28:47.160 --> 0:28:50.160 Thank you so much for your prayer and support your 0:28:50.240 --> 0:28:53.520 year in giving, you're making a difference around the world. 0:28:53.800 --> 0:28:55.040 And a special thank. 0:28:54.800 --> 0:28:57.960 You to our Champion of Hope partners for your monthly gift. 0:28:58.440 --> 0:29:01.600 If you're not a partner, I hope you consider becoming one. 0:29:02.080 --> 0:29:05.520 Remember you can watch the services online every Sunday morning, 0:29:05.640 --> 0:29:08.760 see all the music and ministry, and you can download 0:29:08.800 --> 0:29:10.120 our daily podcast. 0:29:10.320 --> 0:29:12.640 We hope you and your family have a very blessed 0:29:12.720 --> 0:29:17.720 Christmas season and a healthy, productive favor Field twenty twenty four. 0:29:18.440 --> 0:29:20.800 Be sure to request your copy of The Hopes and 0:29:20.880 --> 0:29:25.280 Dreams twenty twenty four Planner today. 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