Recognize God's Goodness

0:00:00.200 --> 0:00:02.880 No one likes to talk about money. Am I saving enough? 0:00:02.960 --> 0:00:05.040 Can I buy a house? Am I paying too much 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:07.760 in taxes? Will I be able to retire? What if 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.360 you could unlock insights about your finances in less than 0:00:10.400 --> 0:00:12.840 five minutes, with a clear picture of where you stand 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:15.720 today and where your money can work harder. Now you 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:18.759 can visit facet dot com to take the free quiz 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:23.400 and get your financial wellness score today. That's Facet dot com. 0:00:23.400 --> 0:00:25.360 This ad is sponsored by Facet. Fast Wealth in Corporated 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.280 is an sec registered investment advisor. 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Download the uns stap and use the 0:01:18.800 --> 0:01:20.840 code I heeart fifty at sign up to receive a 0:01:20.880 --> 0:01:23.400 fifty dollars bonus when you find your account. That's code 0:01:23.400 --> 0:01:26.400 iHeart fifty when you sign up at unest dot co 0:01:26.760 --> 0:01:29.319 for a fifty dollars bonus. See terms and conditions at 0:01:29.440 --> 0:01:30.120 UNEs dot co. 0:01:31.280 --> 0:01:32.880 We're so glad to have you with us on the 0:01:32.920 --> 0:01:37.160 podcast today. Twenty nineteen is going to be an awesome year. 0:01:36.959 --> 0:01:37.800 In your life. 0:01:37.959 --> 0:01:40.440 When you're finished listening, I hope you'll take a minute 0:01:40.480 --> 0:01:43.760 and write a quick review. Your encouragement will help others 0:01:43.840 --> 0:01:47.360 to be inspired and encouraged. Enjoy the message. 0:01:47.000 --> 0:02:00.000 Now, God bless you. 0:02:00.440 --> 0:02:03.400 Thanks for being with us today. If you're ever in 0:02:03.480 --> 0:02:05.920 our area, please stop by and be a part of 0:02:05.960 --> 0:02:08.600 one of our services. Neither are the finest people in 0:02:08.639 --> 0:02:11.640 all of Houston, Texas right here at Lakewood, but I'll 0:02:11.639 --> 0:02:13.880 promise you we will make you feel right at home. 0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:17.239 I like to start with something funny and I heard 0:02:17.240 --> 0:02:20.720 about this older lady. She came to church one Sunday morning, 0:02:20.760 --> 0:02:23.160 and a friendly usher met her at the back door 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:25.760 and asked her where she wanted to sit. She said, 0:02:25.800 --> 0:02:29.480 I want to sit on the very front row. He said, oh, no, ma'am, 0:02:29.840 --> 0:02:33.079 you don't want to sit there. Our pastor is very boring. 0:02:33.480 --> 0:02:35.920 He'll put you to sleep. Let me find you another seat. 0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:39.200 She looked appalled. She said, sir, do you know who 0:02:39.240 --> 0:02:42.079 I am? He said no, ma'am. She said, I am 0:02:42.120 --> 0:02:46.720 the pastor's mother. He hung his head in embarrassment. He 0:02:46.760 --> 0:02:48.600 finally looked up and said, ma'am, do you know who 0:02:48.639 --> 0:02:53.560 I am? She said no. He said, Thank God, say 0:02:53.600 --> 0:02:56.560 it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I 0:02:56.600 --> 0:02:57.440 am what it says. 0:02:57.480 --> 0:02:57.839 I am. 0:02:58.360 --> 0:03:00.880 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:03:00.919 --> 0:03:03.560 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:03:03.639 --> 0:03:07.639 taught the word of God. I boldly confess. My mind 0:03:07.760 --> 0:03:11.080 is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:16.200 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:03:16.240 --> 0:03:20.720 to talk to you today about recognizing God's goodness. When 0:03:20.720 --> 0:03:23.480 you look back over your life, you can see the 0:03:23.520 --> 0:03:27.040 faithfulness of God times where he made away where you 0:03:27.080 --> 0:03:30.440 didn't see away. He opened a door and a dream 0:03:30.560 --> 0:03:33.600 came to pass. You were at the right place. You 0:03:33.720 --> 0:03:36.760 met that person and fell in love. Even when you 0:03:36.880 --> 0:03:41.400 made mistakes, he showed you mercying, coveraging, brought you out 0:03:41.480 --> 0:03:45.480 and here you are, blessed and moving forward. You didn't 0:03:45.520 --> 0:03:49.720 get to where you are by yourself. Wasn't just your talent, 0:03:49.880 --> 0:03:53.040 wasn't just good breaks. It was the hand of God. 0:03:53.640 --> 0:03:57.840 He's been working behind the scenes in your life, pushing 0:03:57.920 --> 0:04:01.800 back forces of darkness, lining up the breaks that you need. 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:06.520 Even before you were born in your family line, God 0:04:06.680 --> 0:04:11.280 was orchestrating things in your favor. A grandmother that always 0:04:11.360 --> 0:04:14.800 prayed for you, She spoke faith into you and told 0:04:14.840 --> 0:04:18.560 you what you could become. That wasn't a coincidence. That 0:04:18.760 --> 0:04:21.719 was the goodness of God putting the right people in 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:26.039 your life. Or maybe a great great grandfather that you 0:04:26.200 --> 0:04:30.160 never met. But he lived a life of integrity, He gave, 0:04:30.680 --> 0:04:35.520 he served because he honored God. He put you in 0:04:35.600 --> 0:04:39.680 a position to be blessed. God has been working on 0:04:39.760 --> 0:04:44.039 your behalf for generations. Some of the favor that you're 0:04:44.080 --> 0:04:48.320 seeing didn't have anything to do with you. You stepped 0:04:48.360 --> 0:04:53.320 into opportunity, good breaks, promotion because of those who went 0:04:53.440 --> 0:04:57.640 before you. Other people worked harder, but they didn't get 0:04:57.640 --> 0:05:01.000 the position. They were more talented. I had more experience, 0:05:01.160 --> 0:05:04.960 but the door didn't open. Your reaping from what your 0:05:04.960 --> 0:05:09.159 relatives sowed, seeds of favor that didn't start with you. 0:05:10.240 --> 0:05:16.080 Salm one five says they harvested what others planted. Someone 0:05:16.240 --> 0:05:20.080 in your family line made it easier on you. They 0:05:20.160 --> 0:05:24.400 made sacrifices, They got up early, They went the extra 0:05:24.520 --> 0:05:27.880 mile to do the right thing. They may have never 0:05:28.040 --> 0:05:31.919 seen the fullness of what they were believing for, but 0:05:32.080 --> 0:05:35.960 God never lets a seed be sown without a harvest. 0:05:36.720 --> 0:05:40.359 They sowed it so you could benefit. That's what the 0:05:40.400 --> 0:05:43.880 scripture says. You will live in houses that you didn't build. 0:05:44.240 --> 0:05:47.280 You will reap from vineyards that you didn't plant. It's 0:05:47.360 --> 0:05:52.680 talking about generational blessings. I know I'm reaping from the 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:57.680 seeds that my parents and grandparents have sown. My grandmother 0:05:58.040 --> 0:06:01.120 on my father's side of the family made ten cents 0:06:01.200 --> 0:06:05.520 an hour washing people's clothes. During the Great Depression, she 0:06:05.600 --> 0:06:09.279 worked twelve hours, made a dollar twenty a day. She 0:06:09.440 --> 0:06:14.200 never really had much, but God is faithful. Those seeds 0:06:14.240 --> 0:06:18.360 didn't go unharvested, And some of the abundance that I'm 0:06:18.400 --> 0:06:22.240 seeing today is not so much what I've done, it's 0:06:22.279 --> 0:06:26.520 simply where God put me in my family line. I'm 0:06:26.640 --> 0:06:30.520 reaping what she sowed. It didn't happen in her generation, 0:06:31.040 --> 0:06:34.840 but it happened in my generation. That's why I take 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:39.440 time every day to say, God, I recognize your goodness. 0:06:39.839 --> 0:06:43.000 I know I didn't get here by myself. You chose 0:06:43.080 --> 0:06:47.279 to bless me, you chose to show me mercy. It's 0:06:47.279 --> 0:06:50.760 easy to think, well, Joel, I'm successful because I'm talented. 0:06:51.480 --> 0:06:55.360 I'm blessed because I'm wise, I'm smart, I'm a hard worker. 0:06:55.680 --> 0:06:58.200 Let me ask you where did you get that talent? 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:02.240 It came from your in heaven. Where did you get 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:05.120 the wisdom? Where did you get the funds to go 0:07:05.200 --> 0:07:08.360 to school? How could your parents afford it? Why did 0:07:08.360 --> 0:07:10.800 the scholarship go through? Why did the loan go through? 0:07:11.200 --> 0:07:15.560 Because God favored you. He chose you to succeed, He 0:07:15.760 --> 0:07:19.840 chose you to go further than those before you. You 0:07:19.880 --> 0:07:24.000 could have been born generations back. Perhaps when your family 0:07:24.040 --> 0:07:28.720 struggled and made sacrifices, didn't see the increase that you're seeing. 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:32.960 You are living in the day they dreamed about. In 0:07:32.960 --> 0:07:35.440 one sense, it didn't have anything to do with you. 0:07:35.840 --> 0:07:38.760 It's just the hand of God putting you here at 0:07:38.800 --> 0:07:42.320 this time where you can reap what others have sown. 0:07:43.200 --> 0:07:45.960 My father was raised in a family that didn't know 0:07:46.040 --> 0:07:49.480 anything about God. They were good people, but they just 0:07:49.520 --> 0:07:53.440 didn't have any kind of faith. For several generations back 0:07:53.800 --> 0:07:56.600 as far as we can see, it was the same thing. 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:00.600 This could have continued on been passed down to me 0:08:00.800 --> 0:08:04.680 and my children. But God, in his mercy, put a 0:08:04.720 --> 0:08:07.960 man by the name of Sam Martin in my father's life. 0:08:08.560 --> 0:08:12.360 They were friends growing up in high school. Sam would 0:08:12.400 --> 0:08:16.080 get there early and write scripture verses on the chalkboard. 0:08:16.720 --> 0:08:20.400 My dad was so embarrassed he tried to distance himself. 0:08:21.040 --> 0:08:24.680 Sam was determined. He kept talking to my father about 0:08:24.680 --> 0:08:27.600 the Lord. Didn't seem like he is doing any good 0:08:27.600 --> 0:08:31.360 because my dad wouldn't listen. But you never know when 0:08:31.400 --> 0:08:34.240 a seed is going to take root. You don't have 0:08:34.400 --> 0:08:38.160 to convict people. The Holy Spirit is the one that convicts. 0:08:38.720 --> 0:08:38.800 You. 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:42.600 Just keep sowing the seed, and at the right time, 0:08:43.200 --> 0:08:46.439 when the soil of their heart is softened, the seed 0:08:46.480 --> 0:08:50.440 will take root. A seed can live for years. You 0:08:50.480 --> 0:08:54.440 may not see anything happening your loved ones, with your friends, 0:08:54.880 --> 0:08:58.240 no sign of them changing. Don't worry. The seed is 0:08:58.280 --> 0:09:03.280 still alive. When my father was seventeen years old, one night, 0:09:03.360 --> 0:09:06.080 at two o'clock in the morning, he was walking home 0:09:06.080 --> 0:09:09.240 from a nightclub. He looked up at the stars and 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:12.480 began to think about his destiny and what he would 0:09:12.480 --> 0:09:15.960 do with his life. He didn't know anything about religion, 0:09:16.520 --> 0:09:19.280 but he could feel God was drawing him that night. 0:09:19.920 --> 0:09:22.920 The next morning, he called his friend Sam said he 0:09:22.960 --> 0:09:25.640 wanted to go to church with him. They sat on 0:09:25.679 --> 0:09:29.120 the very back road. The end of the service, the 0:09:29.160 --> 0:09:32.880 pastor invited people to the front to receive Christ. My 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:37.120 father wouldn't go. He was too afraid. Sam leaned over 0:09:37.200 --> 0:09:39.920 and said, John, if you'll go, I'll go with you. 0:09:40.840 --> 0:09:44.120 My father stood up and walked down the aisle with 0:09:44.200 --> 0:09:47.360 his friend Sam Martin. His life was never the same. 0:09:48.320 --> 0:09:53.120 I often think about where would I be without Sam Martin. 0:09:53.920 --> 0:09:57.000 What if God had not put him in my father's path. 0:09:57.400 --> 0:10:00.000 I wouldn't be up here, I wouldn't be married to Victim, 0:10:00.480 --> 0:10:04.840 wouldn't have my children. Many times, when I'm praying I 0:10:04.920 --> 0:10:08.200 say Lord, thank you for Sam Martin, thank you for 0:10:08.280 --> 0:10:11.640 putting him in our life. I recognize that your goodness. 0:10:12.679 --> 0:10:16.560 If you knew all the things God has been orchestrating 0:10:16.720 --> 0:10:23.480 behind the scenes to get you where you are, people, promotion, protection, opportunities, 0:10:23.600 --> 0:10:28.000 you would be amazed. If this one person had not 0:10:28.120 --> 0:10:31.720 been at the right place and interacted with someone in 0:10:31.760 --> 0:10:36.080 your family, you wouldn't be here today. God's been thinking 0:10:36.120 --> 0:10:38.280 about you long before. 0:10:38.000 --> 0:10:38.640 You got here. 0:10:39.240 --> 0:10:43.640 The scripture says, God chose you before you could choose him. 0:10:43.880 --> 0:10:46.640 You didn't get here on your own. The creator of 0:10:46.679 --> 0:10:50.360 the universe chose you. When I think about all that 0:10:50.400 --> 0:10:53.320 God has done, the things I know about and the 0:10:53.360 --> 0:10:56.800 things I don't know about, I can't keep it to myself. 0:10:57.240 --> 0:10:59.800 I have to say, Lord, thank you for your goodness. 0:11:00.160 --> 0:11:05.040 I recognize your favor in my life. As you've heard today, 0:11:05.760 --> 0:11:10.880 my parents founded Lakewood on Mother's Day in nineteen fifty nine, 0:11:10.920 --> 0:11:15.840 sixty years ago, with ninety people in an old Rundown 0:11:15.960 --> 0:11:19.440 feed store. They cleaned out the building and borrowed some 0:11:19.600 --> 0:11:24.200 old wood pews. Didn't look like much, but the scripture says, 0:11:24.640 --> 0:11:29.520 don't despise the day of small beginnings. Don't get discouraged 0:11:29.600 --> 0:11:33.120 because where you are is much smaller than what's in 0:11:33.160 --> 0:11:36.720 your heart. As a young man, my father knew one 0:11:36.800 --> 0:11:40.200 day he would pastor a church with thousands. But you 0:11:40.360 --> 0:11:43.760 have to be faithful with the small before God will 0:11:43.800 --> 0:11:47.040 trust you with much. That's a time of testing, a 0:11:47.120 --> 0:11:49.959 time of proving. It's easy to think, well, Joel, when 0:11:49.960 --> 0:11:52.959 I see some growth, when I get some good breaks, 0:11:53.000 --> 0:11:55.280 then I'll give it my all. No, you have to 0:11:55.280 --> 0:11:58.559 give it your all. Right where you are, God is watching. 0:11:59.400 --> 0:12:03.480 He sees what's not growing. He sees when you're in 0:12:03.520 --> 0:12:06.200 a feed store and others are in a nice building. 0:12:06.520 --> 0:12:11.480 Stay faithful. Your time is coming. Sometimes now, when I 0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:14.200 pull up to the Compact Center and I see this 0:12:14.360 --> 0:12:19.240 huge building on the freeway with all the people, I 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:23.360 feel a tear running down my cheek. It's because I 0:12:23.480 --> 0:12:27.680 remember where I came from. My mind flashes back to 0:12:27.720 --> 0:12:31.040 the feed store as a little boy, sitting on the 0:12:31.080 --> 0:12:34.720 front row with the ninety people watching my father minister. 0:12:35.520 --> 0:12:38.520 I think about my grandmother that made ten cents an hour, 0:12:39.160 --> 0:12:42.319 my grandfather that worked at the factory all those years, 0:12:42.880 --> 0:12:46.080 And when I realized how far God has brought us, 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:49.679 how he's opened doors I never dreamed would open how 0:12:49.679 --> 0:12:53.480 He's taken us further than we ever imagine. I can't 0:12:53.520 --> 0:12:56.320 help but say, Lord, thank you for what you've done 0:12:56.480 --> 0:12:59.800 in my life. Thank you for taking me further than 0:12:59.840 --> 0:13:03.120 I could go on my own. When you look back 0:13:03.200 --> 0:13:07.240 over your life and see the faithfulness of God, the 0:13:07.240 --> 0:13:11.280 times he protected you, promoted you, healed you, favored, you 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:14.880 don't take it for granted. It wasn't a lucky break, 0:13:15.080 --> 0:13:18.599 It wasn't an accident. That was the goodness of God. 0:13:19.160 --> 0:13:23.360 In Deuteronomy chapter eight, God told the Israelites he was 0:13:23.400 --> 0:13:27.480 bringing them into the Promised Land. It described it as 0:13:27.520 --> 0:13:32.080 a land of abundance, flowing with streams and rivers. The 0:13:32.160 --> 0:13:35.560 clusters of grapes were so large it took two people 0:13:35.559 --> 0:13:38.760 to carry. There was so much iron and copper in 0:13:38.840 --> 0:13:43.160 the ground it was as common as stone. After promising 0:13:43.400 --> 0:13:47.600 all this increase and favor, God gave them a warning. 0:13:48.320 --> 0:13:52.720 He said, in verse eleven, beware that in your plenty 0:13:53.360 --> 0:13:56.960 you do not forget the Lord your God. For when 0:13:57.000 --> 0:14:00.800 you have become full and prosperous, when you have built 0:14:00.880 --> 0:14:05.560 nice houses, when your gold and silver has multiplied, do 0:14:05.679 --> 0:14:09.600 not forget the Lord your God. Rescued you out of slavery. 0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:13.240 Do not forget he led you through the wilderness with 0:14:13.320 --> 0:14:17.400 poisonous snakes. Do not forget he gave your water out 0:14:17.400 --> 0:14:20.480 of the rock. He fed you with manna, which your 0:14:20.520 --> 0:14:25.080 father's knew not. God was saying in today's language, when 0:14:25.120 --> 0:14:29.320 your business takes off, when your health turns around, when 0:14:29.360 --> 0:14:32.120 you have that baby I promised when you get the 0:14:32.240 --> 0:14:36.960 compact center, don't let it become so common that you 0:14:37.000 --> 0:14:40.960 don't recognize it was my goodness that you don't take 0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:44.560 time to thank me for what I've done in one 0:14:44.720 --> 0:14:47.960 area of our lives. We're all in the Promised Land. 0:14:48.600 --> 0:14:52.800 We've seen God do amazing things. Free you from an addiction, 0:14:53.520 --> 0:14:57.000 give your healthy children, Bless you in your career. You 0:14:57.120 --> 0:14:59.960 know it was God's favor at the time, you were 0:15:00.160 --> 0:15:05.000 so grateful. My challenge is, don't lose that sense of awe. 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:09.440 Live with that amazement at what God has done. Go 0:15:09.560 --> 0:15:13.360 back over the times where He made a way, protected you, 0:15:13.960 --> 0:15:17.440 opened that door that shouldn't have opened. If you don't 0:15:17.520 --> 0:15:21.520 remember what God has done, then it's easy to start 0:15:21.600 --> 0:15:25.200 taking the credit and think we got here by ourselves. 0:15:25.560 --> 0:15:28.720 We did it in our own power. The problem with 0:15:28.880 --> 0:15:33.680 forgetting is that God won't share his glory. He'll take 0:15:33.720 --> 0:15:38.200 it incredible places, he'll open amazing doors. But if you 0:15:38.240 --> 0:15:42.560 don't recognize it's his goodness, the same God that opened 0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:46.320 the door can close the door. That's why God gave 0:15:46.360 --> 0:15:50.320 them such a strong warning. He said, I am taking 0:15:50.360 --> 0:15:53.760 you into a land where you will lack nothing. You 0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:59.040 will have beautiful houses, businesses that are blessed, resources more 0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:03.520 than you could imagine. My only requirement is that you 0:16:03.640 --> 0:16:06.960 don't forget. It was my favor that brought you here. 0:16:07.680 --> 0:16:11.440 It was my angels protecting you in the desert. It 0:16:11.520 --> 0:16:15.360 was my power keeping enemies from defeating you. I was 0:16:15.400 --> 0:16:18.600 the one that pushed back the red sea. I was 0:16:18.640 --> 0:16:20.840 the one that gave your water out of the rock. 0:16:21.280 --> 0:16:24.000 I was the one that brought you in to this 0:16:24.120 --> 0:16:28.280 land of abundance. That's why I never get tired of 0:16:28.360 --> 0:16:31.440 thanking God for what He's done in my life. You 0:16:31.520 --> 0:16:34.160 hear it all the time. Lord, thank you for giving 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:37.880 us the compact center. I realized we didn't get this 0:16:38.000 --> 0:16:41.760 in our own strength. This is the hand of God. Lord, 0:16:41.880 --> 0:16:45.560 Thank you for healing my mother from terminal cancer back 0:16:45.600 --> 0:16:49.400 in nineteen eighty one. Well, Joel. That was almost forty 0:16:49.480 --> 0:16:52.560 years ago. Yeah, but I'm not gonna forget. I'm gonna 0:16:52.640 --> 0:16:57.200 keep thanking God, Lord, thank you for leading me into 0:16:57.200 --> 0:17:00.000 that jewelry store where I met Victoria for the first 0:17:01.160 --> 0:17:03.920 Thank you that she couldn't keep her hands off of me. 0:17:06.359 --> 0:17:09.240 That was a lie, but that wasn't a coincidence. That 0:17:09.400 --> 0:17:13.880 was God directed my steps, the same God that led 0:17:13.880 --> 0:17:18.240 the Israelites through the desert and didn't let poisonous snakes 0:17:18.280 --> 0:17:22.480 harm them. Think about all the times God has protected 0:17:22.520 --> 0:17:26.680 you on the freeway that car swerved at the last 0:17:26.720 --> 0:17:29.840 moment barely missed you. That wasn't a lucky break. That 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:35.080 was His angels protecting you. You weren't next in line, 0:17:35.200 --> 0:17:39.240 but somehow you got the promotion. Then another good break, 0:17:39.280 --> 0:17:42.240 and another, and now you're living at a level you 0:17:42.359 --> 0:17:46.119 never dreamed. Like me, you've seen God show out in 0:17:46.200 --> 0:17:50.040 your life. You have some compact centers, family members that 0:17:50.119 --> 0:17:53.399 God's healed, a person you met that changed your life 0:17:53.600 --> 0:17:57.920 for the better. Have you forgotten what God has done? 0:17:57.960 --> 0:18:00.680 Have you convinced yourself it was just vain? It would 0:18:00.720 --> 0:18:04.520 have happened no matter what. That's what causes blessings not 0:18:04.680 --> 0:18:07.960 to last. It's like this man I heard about. He 0:18:08.040 --> 0:18:11.240 pulled into a crowded parking lot and he couldn't find 0:18:11.240 --> 0:18:14.800 a parking space anywhere. He prayed, God, please help me 0:18:14.840 --> 0:18:17.800 to find a place to park. He pulled around the 0:18:17.840 --> 0:18:22.240 next aisle right on queue. This car up front backed out. 0:18:22.560 --> 0:18:26.879 He said, never mind, God, I found one. Sometimes we 0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:30.760 have short memories. We forget. God is the one that 0:18:30.840 --> 0:18:34.400 opened the door. He's the one that caused that college 0:18:34.440 --> 0:18:37.639 to accept you. He's the reason your company chose you 0:18:37.760 --> 0:18:42.000 over somebody else. Here's the reason your health turned around. Sure, 0:18:42.080 --> 0:18:46.200 the medicine help, but God is the healer. Don't forget 0:18:46.280 --> 0:18:50.399 about all the prayers he's answered for you. Take time 0:18:50.520 --> 0:18:55.240 to acknowledge his goodness. Not only are you thanking him, 0:18:55.680 --> 0:18:59.399 but you're reminding yourself. I didn't get here by myself. 0:19:00.000 --> 0:19:04.280 You're keeping the right perspective, giving God the credit. This 0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:08.199 is where King Nebeka Nezzar in the scripture got off course. 0:19:08.640 --> 0:19:12.480 He said in Daniel chapter four, how great is our God? 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:17.520 How mighty are his wonders? His kingdom is everlasting. He 0:19:17.640 --> 0:19:22.199 started off good, giving God the credit, talking about his power, 0:19:22.600 --> 0:19:26.720 and God continued to increase him. But somewhere along the 0:19:26.800 --> 0:19:31.040 way he started taking the credit. He forgot it was 0:19:31.160 --> 0:19:34.960 God who was giving him the power to succeed. And 0:19:35.000 --> 0:19:37.840 in verse twenty nine, he looked out over the city 0:19:38.480 --> 0:19:41.840 and said, is this not the great Babylon that I 0:19:42.040 --> 0:19:46.359 have built by my might and by my power for 0:19:46.480 --> 0:19:50.600 the honor of my glory and my majesty. Listen to 0:19:50.640 --> 0:19:54.000 all the minds my might, my power, my glory, my majesty. 0:19:54.320 --> 0:19:59.320 His attitude was, I'm something great. The problem is we 0:19:59.320 --> 0:20:03.520 weren't creat to contain glory. We were created to give 0:20:03.600 --> 0:20:08.720 God glory. God will show you his favor as long 0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:12.080 as you let that glory flow through you and back 0:20:12.160 --> 0:20:16.200 up to Him. But the moment you start keeping the glory, 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:20.080 that's when the favor is going to stop. As Nebukanezzar 0:20:20.200 --> 0:20:23.520 was up there bragging to everybody about how great he was. 0:20:24.119 --> 0:20:28.359 First thirty one says, while he was still speaking, a 0:20:28.480 --> 0:20:32.359 voice came down from heaven and said, neber Canezzar, this 0:20:32.560 --> 0:20:36.840 day you have lost the kingdom. Why is that? God 0:20:36.880 --> 0:20:39.840 won't share the glory. If you're going to keep it, 0:20:40.240 --> 0:20:45.240 he'll step away. But when you're constantly bragging on God's goodness, 0:20:45.520 --> 0:20:48.639 thanking him for what he's done, giving him the honor, 0:20:48.920 --> 0:20:53.080 you're going to continue to rise higher. The scripture says, 0:20:53.560 --> 0:20:57.840 God opposes the proud, but gives favor to the humble. 0:20:58.560 --> 0:21:02.520 When you humble yourself and say, God, I know it 0:21:02.640 --> 0:21:05.760 was your goodness that got to me to where I am. 0:21:06.119 --> 0:21:09.280 It was your mercy that brought me out of these mistakes. 0:21:09.800 --> 0:21:13.040 It was your power that kept these enemies from defeating me. 0:21:13.480 --> 0:21:16.679 It was your favor that opened these doors. God, I 0:21:16.880 --> 0:21:21.960 recognize your goodness. When you give God the credit, he'll 0:21:21.960 --> 0:21:25.240 take your places that you've never dreamed. When I have 0:21:25.400 --> 0:21:28.760 friends come to see this building, first thing I always 0:21:28.800 --> 0:21:32.640 tell them is, look what the Lord has done. When 0:21:32.680 --> 0:21:35.440 I see my mom healthy in whole still after all 0:21:35.480 --> 0:21:38.679 these years, Look what the Lord has done. When I 0:21:38.720 --> 0:21:42.240 see our son Jonathan up here ministry. Now I didn't 0:21:42.240 --> 0:21:44.400 even think I would be a minister. Now my son 0:21:44.560 --> 0:21:47.919 is a minister. It's three generations. Look what the Lord 0:21:47.960 --> 0:21:52.280 has done. That's the goodness of God. What has he 0:21:52.359 --> 0:21:56.000 done in your life? Are you recognizing it? Are you 0:21:56.119 --> 0:22:01.440 living amazed filled with gratitude? Or you let it become common. 0:22:02.119 --> 0:22:05.800 Don't forget how he freed you from that addiction, how 0:22:05.840 --> 0:22:08.679 he brought the right person across your path, how he 0:22:08.760 --> 0:22:11.960 led you through the desert. Times you were discouraged, he 0:22:12.080 --> 0:22:15.399 made away, He brought you out. He gave your water 0:22:15.520 --> 0:22:18.000 out of the rock he provided when you didn't see 0:22:18.000 --> 0:22:21.879 how Remember how he delivered you from a few pharaohs, 0:22:22.440 --> 0:22:26.640 people and circumstances that had to in bondage. If you're 0:22:26.640 --> 0:22:30.200 going to continue to go further, you have to remember 0:22:30.560 --> 0:22:33.280 it is the Lord your God that got you to 0:22:33.320 --> 0:22:36.040 where you are, and it is the Lord your God 0:22:36.119 --> 0:22:39.520 that's going to keep you going. Thank him for the 0:22:39.600 --> 0:22:43.320 doors he opened, and thank him for the doors he closed. 0:22:44.400 --> 0:22:47.000 Thank him for the people that stood with you, and 0:22:47.119 --> 0:22:50.480 thank him for those that walked away. You may not 0:22:50.600 --> 0:22:53.280 have liked it, but they weren't a part of your destiny. 0:22:53.680 --> 0:22:56.680 You didn't need them to become who you were created 0:22:56.720 --> 0:23:00.959 to be. Verse sixteen says he fed you with manna, 0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:04.639 which your fathers knew. Not. God is going to do 0:23:04.760 --> 0:23:08.800 things for you that your parents never saw. My father 0:23:08.960 --> 0:23:13.240 dreamed of building a twenty thousand seat auditorium. He said 0:23:13.560 --> 0:23:15.919 even one time that we were going to purchase the 0:23:15.960 --> 0:23:19.560 Compact Center. He had this in his spirit, but it 0:23:19.600 --> 0:23:23.040 never came to pass in his lifetime. God put it 0:23:23.080 --> 0:23:27.800 in his spirit for his children. God has things in 0:23:27.880 --> 0:23:31.680 your future that your parents and those that went before 0:23:31.720 --> 0:23:37.000 you couldn't even fathom, favor that your fathers knew. Not 0:23:38.200 --> 0:23:40.920 I say this in humility, but if my father were 0:23:40.960 --> 0:23:44.359 here now, he would be amazed, not just at me 0:23:44.480 --> 0:23:49.000 being up here, but at the growth the influence. God 0:23:49.080 --> 0:23:53.320 has done things for me that he never experienced. My 0:23:53.440 --> 0:23:57.119 father used to call me sometimes so excited. He would 0:23:57.119 --> 0:24:00.359 tell me the income for the ministry that week. The 0:24:00.440 --> 0:24:04.440 giving was a certain amount. My father came out of poverty, 0:24:05.000 --> 0:24:08.560 never was raised with marchins. He was so in awe 0:24:08.680 --> 0:24:11.560 and so filled with gratitude he'd have to share it 0:24:11.600 --> 0:24:15.760 with someone else. As amazing as that was, what we 0:24:15.840 --> 0:24:18.879 see now is more than ten times what my father 0:24:18.920 --> 0:24:22.760 would call me about. He couldn't even fathom this. That's 0:24:22.800 --> 0:24:26.320 the way God is. He's going to increase you in 0:24:26.440 --> 0:24:34.200 ways that your parents never saw. Influence, income, creativity, opportunities, resources. 0:24:35.200 --> 0:24:38.639 It says he fed you with manna. The word mana 0:24:38.760 --> 0:24:42.360 means what is it? They had never seen it before. 0:24:42.640 --> 0:24:45.440 It was bread that formed on the ground out there 0:24:45.440 --> 0:24:49.560 in the desert. God has some manna for you. He 0:24:49.640 --> 0:24:52.240 has some of these what is it things where you 0:24:52.320 --> 0:24:55.760 think I didn't see this coming. I never dreamed I'd 0:24:55.760 --> 0:24:59.880 be running this business, handling these resources, living in this high. 0:25:00.920 --> 0:25:03.520 You may not see how it can happen. Don't worry. 0:25:03.840 --> 0:25:07.639 God has the manna. He has things that you've never seen, 0:25:08.280 --> 0:25:12.919 doors that have never opened, someone you've never met, influence 0:25:13.000 --> 0:25:16.680 at new levels. Get ready. Things are about to shift 0:25:16.800 --> 0:25:25.280 in your favor. Unexpected opportunity, unexpected promotion, unexpected breakthroughs. God 0:25:25.480 --> 0:25:29.520 is preparing the manner right now. He's getting things ready 0:25:29.600 --> 0:25:32.840 to show out in your life. What he's done in 0:25:32.920 --> 0:25:36.520 your past is going to pel in comparison to what 0:25:36.600 --> 0:25:39.840 he's about to do. Now here's the key. When you 0:25:40.000 --> 0:25:44.720 see the manna favor that you've never seen, always remember 0:25:45.080 --> 0:25:48.400 it is the Lord, your God that's causing you to increase. 0:25:48.880 --> 0:25:52.000 He's the one that's giving you the power to live 0:25:52.040 --> 0:25:57.280 an abundant, victorious life. Now, as we celebrate sixty years 0:25:57.359 --> 0:26:00.560 here at Lakewood, I can sum up how I feel 0:26:00.680 --> 0:26:04.760 with one phrase to God, be the glory. Let him 0:26:04.960 --> 0:26:09.840 increase and let us decrease. God, may we make your 0:26:09.920 --> 0:26:14.520 name famous. Let us shine brighter. Let us take new ground. 0:26:14.960 --> 0:26:18.200 Let us affect the culture in a greater way. God, 0:26:18.280 --> 0:26:22.520 we commit we will always remember where you brought us from. 0:26:23.119 --> 0:26:27.160 We remember how you've defeated giants that were much bigger, 0:26:27.720 --> 0:26:31.040 how you didn't stop all the opposition, but you blessed 0:26:31.119 --> 0:26:34.959 us because of it. God, we remember how you sustained 0:26:35.040 --> 0:26:40.080 us for sixty years. May generations to come be still 0:26:40.160 --> 0:26:43.400 be telling of your goodness from this very building. May 0:26:43.440 --> 0:26:48.399 it be a continuous lighthouse of hope. What's interesting is 0:26:48.440 --> 0:26:52.360 after King nebucha Nezar lost the kingdom because he thought 0:26:52.440 --> 0:26:55.040 he had done it all in his own strength, he 0:26:55.200 --> 0:26:59.320 changed his mind. He realized God had given him the 0:26:59.359 --> 0:27:04.200 favor that God was promoting him. He humbled himself. Here's 0:27:04.240 --> 0:27:08.480 how amazing God is. He's so merciful. He put Nebukanezzar 0:27:08.640 --> 0:27:13.640 back in power. Verse thirty seven says, now, I Nebkaneszar, 0:27:14.119 --> 0:27:18.239 give praise and honor to the King of Heaven. A 0:27:18.240 --> 0:27:21.600 few verses earlier he was saying my glory, my honor. 0:27:22.160 --> 0:27:25.159 Now he was saying, I praise the King of Heaven. 0:27:26.040 --> 0:27:29.600 Instead of taking the glory, he started giving God the glory. 0:27:30.200 --> 0:27:34.320 When he did, God gave him another chance. I wonder 0:27:34.640 --> 0:27:37.840 if there are areas in your life like him. You 0:27:37.920 --> 0:27:40.440 think you've done it in your own strength, and it's 0:27:40.600 --> 0:27:44.040 limiting how high you can go. If you will start 0:27:44.080 --> 0:27:48.359 recognizing God's favor, thanking him for what he's done, giving 0:27:48.480 --> 0:27:52.119 him the honor, then God will open new doors and 0:27:52.200 --> 0:27:55.320 take you further. He won't share the glory, but when 0:27:55.359 --> 0:27:58.240 you're quick to give him the glory, there's no limit 0:27:58.280 --> 0:28:01.959 to how high you will go. I'm asking you to 0:28:02.119 --> 0:28:06.560 recognize God's goodness in your life. Remember how he led 0:28:06.640 --> 0:28:10.240 you through the desert, brought you through those difficulties. How 0:28:10.280 --> 0:28:13.280 you met the right person. Wasn't a lucky break. That 0:28:13.480 --> 0:28:16.840 was the Lord, your God. He's been working in your 0:28:16.880 --> 0:28:20.480 life even generations back. Why don't you get up every 0:28:20.520 --> 0:28:24.000 morning and say Lord, thank you for your goodness. If 0:28:24.040 --> 0:28:27.879 you'll do this, I believe and declare, you're about to 0:28:27.920 --> 0:28:34.160 see some manna, influence, opportunities, creativity, income that you've never 0:28:34.320 --> 0:28:37.879 seen Like Neba Canezzar. God is going to give you 0:28:38.040 --> 0:28:41.560 back what you lost. Your latter days will be better 0:28:41.600 --> 0:28:45.280 than your former days in Jesus' name, And if you 0:28:45.320 --> 0:28:49.360 receive it, can you say him in today? But I'd 0:28:49.400 --> 0:28:52.400 like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the 0:28:52.400 --> 0:28:57.080 Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord, Jesus, 0:28:58.280 --> 0:29:03.280 I repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I 0:29:03.480 --> 0:29:07.480 make you my Lord and savior. If you prayed that 0:29:07.600 --> 0:29:10.840 simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in 0:29:10.880 --> 0:29:13.960 a good Bible based church, Keep God first place. 0:29:15.040 --> 0:29:18.440 Thank you for listening to the Joelus Deine podcast. Help 0:29:18.560 --> 0:29:21.280 us continue to share the message of hope with those 0:29:21.360 --> 0:29:25.280 all over the world. Visit Joelostin dot com slash give 0:29:25.360 --> 0:29:27.040 Hope to give a gift today. 0:29:28.320 --> 0:29:31.240 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:31.240 --> 0:29:34.640 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:34.720 --> 0:29:37.920 keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. 0:29:38.080 --> 0:29:40.520 I know God's best is still ahead. 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