Recognize What You Have

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Start your comeback at Purdueglobal dot edu. 0:01:00.680 --> 0:01:03.440 Hi, this is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to 0:01:03.480 --> 0:01:06.600 our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you 0:01:06.720 --> 0:01:09.280 enjoy today's message, why don't you be a blessing and 0:01:09.360 --> 0:01:12.000 share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray 0:01:12.040 --> 0:01:25.880 for God's very best in your life. Well, God bless 0:01:25.920 --> 0:01:28.880 you always a joy to come into your homes. 0:01:29.240 --> 0:01:30.080 We love you. 0:01:30.520 --> 0:01:33.039 If you're ever in our area, I hope you'll stop 0:01:33.040 --> 0:01:35.080 by and be a part of one of our services. 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:37.679 I promise you we'll make you feel right at home. 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:40.080 But thank you so much for tuning in, and thank 0:01:40.120 --> 0:01:41.560 you again for coming out today. 0:01:41.600 --> 0:01:44.160 And I like to start with something funny. And I 0:01:44.200 --> 0:01:45.560 heard about this new pastor. 0:01:45.959 --> 0:01:49.240 He was in town going from house to house inviting 0:01:49.280 --> 0:01:52.000 people to come to church. He knocked on this one 0:01:52.080 --> 0:01:54.840 door and he could tell someone was home, but no 0:01:54.920 --> 0:01:55.760 one would answer. 0:01:56.240 --> 0:01:58.080 He took his business card and. 0:01:57.920 --> 0:02:01.720 He wrote on the back the scripture reference Revelation three twenty. 0:02:02.000 --> 0:02:03.080 He left it at the door. 0:02:03.800 --> 0:02:07.000 The next Sunday, after service, the usher handed him that 0:02:07.120 --> 0:02:10.320 same card and it had the scripture reference written under it, 0:02:10.560 --> 0:02:14.840 Genesis three ten. Here's what they say the pastor's words. 0:02:14.840 --> 0:02:18.239 Revelation three twenty. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. 0:02:18.639 --> 0:02:22.640 If anyone answers, I will come in the reply. Genesis 0:02:22.680 --> 0:02:25.840 three ten. It says I heard your voice, but I 0:02:25.919 --> 0:02:30.800 was afraid because I was naked. Hold up your bible 0:02:30.880 --> 0:02:34.160 and say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. 0:02:34.600 --> 0:02:37.120 I am what it says I am. I have what 0:02:37.200 --> 0:02:39.720 it says I have. I can do what it says 0:02:39.760 --> 0:02:42.560 I can do. Today I will be taught the word 0:02:42.600 --> 0:02:46.880 of God. I boldly confess. My mind is alert, my 0:02:47.040 --> 0:02:51.480 heart is receptive. I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, 0:02:51.919 --> 0:02:55.000 God bless you. I want to talk to you today 0:02:55.320 --> 0:02:59.959 about recognizing what you have. So often we focus on 0:03:00.160 --> 0:03:03.000 what we don't have and how big our obstacles are 0:03:03.040 --> 0:03:06.560 and how bad the economy is. Joel, I don't have 0:03:06.639 --> 0:03:10.000 the connections. I've got this problem, but I don't have 0:03:10.080 --> 0:03:13.080 anybody to help me. I've got this dream, but I 0:03:13.120 --> 0:03:17.359 don't have the resources. Now here's what I've learned. Everything 0:03:17.480 --> 0:03:22.080 you need to fulfill your destiny is within reach. God 0:03:22.120 --> 0:03:26.239 will always use something that's close to you. It may 0:03:26.280 --> 0:03:31.440 not look extraordinary. All David had was a slingshot, and 0:03:31.560 --> 0:03:35.520 five stones looked ordinary. He could have thought, I'm not 0:03:35.560 --> 0:03:38.160 going to face Goliath. That would be foolish. 0:03:38.240 --> 0:03:39.240 I don't have a chance. 0:03:39.920 --> 0:03:43.960 No, David recognized what he had. He knew those stones 0:03:44.240 --> 0:03:48.240 that slingshot, even though they were ordinary, when he placed 0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:53.640 them in God's hands, they would become extraordinary. All Moses 0:03:53.760 --> 0:03:57.800 had was a stick. It wasn't a fancy stick, wasn't 0:03:57.800 --> 0:04:00.840 covered with jewels and made out of marble. It was 0:04:00.920 --> 0:04:05.040 just a plain, old, ordinary stick. Here Pharaoh and the 0:04:05.200 --> 0:04:09.480 enemy army was chasing the Israelites. They were backed up 0:04:09.560 --> 0:04:12.960 at the Red Sea. There were mountains on both sides, 0:04:13.360 --> 0:04:16.040 the sea in front of them, the army behind them. 0:04:16.360 --> 0:04:17.280 It was a dead end. 0:04:18.080 --> 0:04:22.320 I'm sure Moses said, God, please send ten thousand angels 0:04:22.360 --> 0:04:25.960 to defend us. God, please rain down fire on heaven. 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:30.040 God do something big. Yes, God was about to do 0:04:30.120 --> 0:04:35.640 something big, but it started with something small. Sometimes we're 0:04:35.680 --> 0:04:39.640 looking far away when we should be looking close to us. 0:04:40.480 --> 0:04:44.000 God said, Moses, pick up that stick and hold it 0:04:44.160 --> 0:04:48.080 up in the air. I can imagine Moses thinking, God, 0:04:48.160 --> 0:04:52.200 I'm asking you to do something supernatural, something big, and 0:04:52.279 --> 0:04:55.000 you're telling me to hold up a stick to do 0:04:55.080 --> 0:04:56.040 something ordinary. 0:04:56.839 --> 0:04:57.520 Here's the key. 0:04:58.040 --> 0:05:01.839 If you'll do the ordinary, then God will do the extraordinary. 0:05:02.400 --> 0:05:05.160 If you'll do the natural, God will show up and 0:05:05.200 --> 0:05:10.200 do the supernatural. Moses held up the rod an ordinary stick. 0:05:10.560 --> 0:05:13.520 You know the story. The water's parted, the people went 0:05:13.560 --> 0:05:14.760 through on dry ground. 0:05:15.160 --> 0:05:16.360 But notice two things. 0:05:16.880 --> 0:05:21.760 God use something ordinary, and God use something close to him. 0:05:22.360 --> 0:05:25.680 Could it be that you're looking far away when the 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:27.479 answer is right there close to you. 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:31.039 Could it be that you have the people that you need, 0:05:31.600 --> 0:05:35.120 that you have opportunity for promotion, You have the answer, 0:05:35.880 --> 0:05:39.000 but you're looking for something supernatural, something that will give 0:05:39.040 --> 0:05:43.120 you goose bumps, when the answer is very ordinary. Now 0:05:43.160 --> 0:05:46.960 our prayer should be, God opened my eyes so that 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:51.159 I can see what I have at my disposal. God, 0:05:51.240 --> 0:05:54.119 help me to recognize the people you put in my life. 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:58.760 Help me to see the opportunities, the resources, the ideas 0:05:59.120 --> 0:06:03.640 that will help further me toward my divine destiny. All 0:06:03.680 --> 0:06:07.520 through the scripture we can see how God used ordinary things. 0:06:08.279 --> 0:06:12.039 One time, Sampson had thousands of Philistines coming against him. 0:06:12.800 --> 0:06:15.839 Sampson didn't have any armor, he didn't have a sword, 0:06:16.440 --> 0:06:19.440 No troops were backing him up. Looked like he was 0:06:19.440 --> 0:06:22.920 as good as dead. What did Sampson do complain? 0:06:23.720 --> 0:06:24.800 God is not fair. 0:06:25.360 --> 0:06:28.680 They've got these swords and shields. God, They've got all 0:06:28.720 --> 0:06:33.160 this equipment, and I don't have anything. No, Sampson understood 0:06:33.160 --> 0:06:35.920 this principle. He immediately began. 0:06:35.800 --> 0:06:39.880 To look around. He knew what he needed would be 0:06:39.960 --> 0:06:44.080 close to him. What did he see? A machine gun, 0:06:44.520 --> 0:06:46.040 a case full of hand grenades? 0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:51.200 No, he saw the jawbone of a donkey. Something ordinary. 0:06:51.680 --> 0:06:55.679 Didn't look like much, but Sampson believed that what God 0:06:55.760 --> 0:06:57.040 gave him would. 0:06:56.839 --> 0:06:58.280 Be exactly what he needed. 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:02.800 The scripture says Sampson took the jawbone of the donkey 0:07:03.400 --> 0:07:08.320 and defeated one thousand Philistines that were better equipped and 0:07:08.360 --> 0:07:09.400 had more expertise. 0:07:10.560 --> 0:07:12.080 I've learned it's not. 0:07:12.240 --> 0:07:15.240 So much what you have as it is does it 0:07:15.400 --> 0:07:19.640 have God's anointing on it. You can have average talent, 0:07:20.000 --> 0:07:22.960 but with the anointing of the Most High God, you 0:07:23.000 --> 0:07:28.600 will go further than someone that has exceptional talent. Today 0:07:29.000 --> 0:07:33.080 you may have an extraordinary problem, but because of the 0:07:33.120 --> 0:07:36.720 blessing and favor of God on your life, he can 0:07:36.760 --> 0:07:40.320 take an ordinary solution and cause you to be victorious. 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:44.360 Here's the question. Do you recognize what you have? 0:07:45.200 --> 0:07:48.480 Are you looking around at what's at your disposal, at 0:07:48.520 --> 0:07:53.840 what's close to you? The solution, the breakthrough, the new business, 0:07:54.040 --> 0:07:54.760 the idea. 0:07:55.160 --> 0:07:56.600 It is within your reach. 0:07:57.440 --> 0:08:01.080 It may not seem like much compare to your situation. 0:08:01.320 --> 0:08:04.800 It may look very small, But if you'll just dare 0:08:05.200 --> 0:08:09.560 use what you have, you can defeat a giant with 0:08:09.720 --> 0:08:14.360 less equipment. Both David and Sampson went to the battlefield 0:08:14.520 --> 0:08:18.200 without a shield, without a sword. They didn't have helicopters 0:08:18.240 --> 0:08:21.720 backing them up. All they had was a slingshot, the 0:08:21.840 --> 0:08:23.280 jawbone of the donkey. 0:08:23.920 --> 0:08:26.920 But when you recognize God is the one. 0:08:26.760 --> 0:08:29.559 That gave it to you, you'll put your shoulders back, 0:08:29.800 --> 0:08:32.959 You'll go out with confidence, knowing that you've been equipped 0:08:33.080 --> 0:08:37.480 by the creator of the universe. Well, you say, Joe, 0:08:37.559 --> 0:08:41.080 this sounds good, but I don't have the resources. I 0:08:41.120 --> 0:08:44.200 don't have the money, I don't have the talent. No, 0:08:44.360 --> 0:08:47.960 do you have as much as the jawbone of a donkey? 0:08:48.559 --> 0:08:50.520 Do you have as much as a slingshot? 0:08:51.400 --> 0:08:55.319 Today we are talking about two people that simply took 0:08:55.480 --> 0:08:59.320 what they had, and with the anointing of God, they 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:04.080 made history. We're still inspired by their stories. There is 0:09:04.120 --> 0:09:07.719 something in your life right now that can cause you 0:09:07.840 --> 0:09:11.600 to be a history maker. God has destined you to 0:09:11.720 --> 0:09:15.280 leave your mark on this generation. You are not supposed 0:09:15.320 --> 0:09:18.560 to come and go and nobody even knew you were here. 0:09:19.000 --> 0:09:23.000 You have seeds of greatness on the inside. When your 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:26.520 time is up, the world should look back and say, Wow, 0:09:26.920 --> 0:09:29.800 they were a giant killer. They were a history maker. 0:09:30.120 --> 0:09:32.760 They took new ground for the kingdom. They left the 0:09:32.880 --> 0:09:37.160 legacy of faith and today. Your dream may be big 0:09:37.720 --> 0:09:41.400 and your resources may be small, but don't get discouraged. 0:09:42.000 --> 0:09:44.719 God is saying, if you will use what you have, 0:09:45.520 --> 0:09:49.520 I will multiply your talent. I'll multiply your resources, I'll 0:09:49.600 --> 0:09:51.119 multiply your influence. 0:09:52.040 --> 0:09:55.160 Let me prophesy it. You will defeat. 0:09:54.800 --> 0:09:59.640 Giants with less equipment. You will accomplish goals with less 0:09:59.640 --> 0:10:03.839 resource horses. Those obstacles that are holding you back are 0:10:03.880 --> 0:10:04.600 not permanent. 0:10:04.880 --> 0:10:06.320 They are temporary. 0:10:06.440 --> 0:10:09.360 The giant may be big, but the power of the 0:10:09.480 --> 0:10:10.719 Most High God in. 0:10:10.760 --> 0:10:14.160 You is much much bigger. Now, this is not the 0:10:14.200 --> 0:10:16.040 time to make excuses. 0:10:16.760 --> 0:10:18.680 This is not the time to let people talk you 0:10:18.720 --> 0:10:21.600 out of it and settle for mediocrity. Now this is 0:10:21.640 --> 0:10:26.160 the time to rise up, look around, recognize what you have. 0:10:26.880 --> 0:10:30.520 Everything you need to fulfill your destiny is within reach. 0:10:31.480 --> 0:10:34.680 The prophet Joel said, not me, but another one. 0:10:35.760 --> 0:10:39.160 He said, wake up the mighty men, Wake up. 0:10:39.080 --> 0:10:42.800 The mighty women. Who are the mighty men? The mighty women. 0:10:43.200 --> 0:10:46.440 It's the people that realize they have the creator of 0:10:46.480 --> 0:10:49.920 the universe breathing in their direction. It's the people that 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:54.120 recognize what they have. I have a friend that had 0:10:54.120 --> 0:10:56.960 a dream to start his own business. He needed a 0:10:57.000 --> 0:10:59.480 bank to get behind him to loaning the money so 0:10:59.480 --> 0:11:01.680 he could get it off the ground. So he went 0:11:01.720 --> 0:11:04.559 to his own bank that he'd used for many years, but. 0:11:04.559 --> 0:11:07.840 They turned him down. They said it wasn't a good idea. 0:11:08.559 --> 0:11:11.719 He went to another bank, and another and another. They 0:11:11.760 --> 0:11:14.400 all said the same thing. It's never going to work. 0:11:15.160 --> 0:11:19.400 But understand, God didn't put the promise in somebody else. 0:11:19.600 --> 0:11:23.320 He put the promise in you. Somebody else may not 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:24.720 be able to see what. 0:11:24.840 --> 0:11:25.480 You can see. 0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:28.800 Don't get discouraged and let them talk you out of it. 0:11:29.240 --> 0:11:33.120 Thirty one banks told him no. Thirty one banks said, 0:11:33.120 --> 0:11:35.760 it's not a good idea. It's never going to work. 0:11:36.600 --> 0:11:39.200 You have to decide, are you going to believe the 0:11:39.280 --> 0:11:40.160 report of people? 0:11:40.400 --> 0:11:42.400 Are you going to believe the report of the Lord? 0:11:43.160 --> 0:11:45.880 All he had was one hundred and fifty dollars. 0:11:46.800 --> 0:11:49.960 Really, he needed several hundred thousand dollars to get it 0:11:50.000 --> 0:11:50.960 off the ground. 0:11:50.679 --> 0:11:51.400 The right way. 0:11:51.840 --> 0:11:54.640 But he took what he had and bought a few 0:11:54.720 --> 0:11:56.160 supplies and got. 0:11:55.920 --> 0:11:57.000 The business started. 0:11:57.640 --> 0:12:00.560 His first client liked his work so much much that 0:12:00.640 --> 0:12:03.640 they gave him a one year contract. He took that 0:12:03.760 --> 0:12:06.920 contract to the bank. Thirty one banks had said no, 0:12:07.360 --> 0:12:10.880 but bank number thirty two said yes. Today he has 0:12:10.920 --> 0:12:16.520 a multi million dollar, growing, successful business. What happened He 0:12:16.600 --> 0:12:20.880 defeated a giant with less equipment when he recognized what 0:12:21.000 --> 0:12:24.000 he had and took steps of faith to use it. 0:12:24.360 --> 0:12:27.679 That's when God showed up and started breathing in his direction. 0:12:28.960 --> 0:12:31.720 You may have a dream right now, but like him, 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:34.240 every voice is telling you it's never going to work. 0:12:34.520 --> 0:12:37.240 It's not a good idea. You don't have enough people 0:12:37.280 --> 0:12:41.439 behind you. No, listen, God wouldn't have given you the dream. 0:12:41.800 --> 0:12:44.600 He wouldn't have put the idea in your heart without 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:47.440 giving you the resources to see it come to pass. 0:12:47.920 --> 0:12:51.760 Now you've got to look around, understand when God gives 0:12:51.800 --> 0:12:55.720 you a dream, he gives it to you in seed form. 0:12:56.080 --> 0:12:57.840 In other words, if you have a dream to have 0:12:57.880 --> 0:13:00.240 a big oak tree, God's not going to give a 0:13:00.280 --> 0:13:03.160 big oak tree. He's going to give you an acorn. 0:13:03.559 --> 0:13:06.640 He's going to give you something small. But what God 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:11.319 has given you, what's within your reach right now. Those resources, 0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:14.840 if you will use them, they have the potential to 0:13:14.920 --> 0:13:18.280 become what you're dreaming about. As long as you sit 0:13:18.320 --> 0:13:20.880 back and say, well, I don't have the connections, Joel. 0:13:21.400 --> 0:13:24.319 Everybody tells me it's not a good idea. All I've 0:13:24.360 --> 0:13:26.400 got one hundred and fifty dollars. All I've got this 0:13:26.480 --> 0:13:27.480 little bitty acorn. 0:13:27.760 --> 0:13:29.240 Big deal. Use what you have. 0:13:29.920 --> 0:13:33.800 God's in control. He's already lined up the right people. 0:13:34.679 --> 0:13:38.800 The breaks you need are already in your future. Thirty 0:13:38.840 --> 0:13:41.080 one banks may have told you no, but let me 0:13:41.120 --> 0:13:44.199 tell you, Bank number thirty two is coming. Thirty one 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:46.560 Banks may have said, not a good idea, but Bank 0:13:46.640 --> 0:13:47.679 number thirty two is going. 0:13:47.679 --> 0:13:49.520 To say, great idea, We're on board. 0:13:50.520 --> 0:13:53.120 Don't let people talk you out of what you know 0:13:53.280 --> 0:13:56.079 God put in your heart. I remember when I was 0:13:56.120 --> 0:13:59.160 a little boy, we moved to another house a brand 0:13:59.240 --> 0:13:59.720 new house. 0:14:00.200 --> 0:14:01.959 It was on the north side of. 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:05.040 Houston, close to the new airport back then in the sixties, 0:14:05.080 --> 0:14:09.280 and all around us there were trees and woods and 0:14:09.679 --> 0:14:12.600 just big open fields. There were only a few houses 0:14:12.640 --> 0:14:15.760 in our whole neighborhood. Nothing was really built out. And 0:14:15.840 --> 0:14:18.800 right behind our property there were two one acre lots 0:14:18.920 --> 0:14:20.920 that my father really wanted to buy. 0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:22.640 Felt very strongly about it. 0:14:23.240 --> 0:14:26.400 You could purchase them for practically nothing, about two thousand 0:14:26.440 --> 0:14:29.760 dollars an acre. My father told the man that built 0:14:29.800 --> 0:14:33.040 our house what he wanted to do, and that builder said, 0:14:33.040 --> 0:14:36.080 why would you want to do that? This property is 0:14:36.120 --> 0:14:38.760 not going anywhere. Plus you're gonna have a bunch of 0:14:38.840 --> 0:14:41.080 taxes and up key, it's not going to be a 0:14:41.080 --> 0:14:45.200 good investment at all. My father thought, well, he's the expert. 0:14:45.640 --> 0:14:48.760 He knows what he's talking about. The whole time down 0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:51.920 in here, an alarm was going off telling him, don't 0:14:51.960 --> 0:14:55.040 listen to him. This is a god given opportunity. Purchased 0:14:55.080 --> 0:14:58.440 the property. In his heart, my father knew he was 0:14:58.480 --> 0:15:01.720 supposed to do it. He made the mistake of letting 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:04.000 his head override his heart. 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:06.840 He let the so called expert talk him out of it. 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:10.960 Twenty years later, all the houses in the neighborhood were 0:15:10.960 --> 0:15:11.440 built out. 0:15:11.840 --> 0:15:15.760 There were no more empty lots. Do you know that property. 0:15:15.640 --> 0:15:19.360 Increased in value fifty times what my father could have 0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:22.000 bought it for. It went from two thousand and acre 0:15:22.120 --> 0:15:25.160 to one hundred thousand and acre. My father was kicking 0:15:25.240 --> 0:15:28.080 himself the whole time. He never did speak to our 0:15:28.120 --> 0:15:28.840 builder again. 0:15:30.360 --> 0:15:31.320 What's my point? 0:15:31.760 --> 0:15:36.200 God has already put everything you need to be victorious 0:15:36.520 --> 0:15:41.120 within your reach. Sometimes, like my father, we let people 0:15:41.200 --> 0:15:44.840 talk us out of it. Sometimes because it's ordinary, we 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:48.680 miss what God wants to do. I'm asking you to 0:15:48.800 --> 0:15:52.640 look around at what you have. Don't think that it's 0:15:52.680 --> 0:15:55.720 way off in the future. One day I'll get a 0:15:55.720 --> 0:15:59.240 good break. One day God will rain down manner from heaven. 0:15:59.280 --> 0:16:02.240 One day I'll meet the right people. Now. Can I 0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:05.720 tell you the right people are in your life right now. 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:10.320 The opportunity for promotion is close to you. The solution 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:12.960 you're looking for is within your reach. 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:16.200 I know this gentleman. He's an attorney. 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:20.160 He's always had a desire to be in the sports industry. 0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:23.320 His dream was to become an agent where he would 0:16:23.360 --> 0:16:26.840 represent these ballplayers. But he didn't have any connections. He 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:29.480 didn't know the right people. He was working in the 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:32.680 small town that he grew up in. Several times a 0:16:32.720 --> 0:16:35.600 week he would go to the gym to play basketball. 0:16:35.720 --> 0:16:38.040 He'd been playing with a group of men for some time. 0:16:38.760 --> 0:16:41.800 One day, after the game, an older gentleman said to him, 0:16:41.960 --> 0:16:45.120 what do you do. He explained, I'm an attorney and 0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:48.520 I practice corporate law, but my real dream is to 0:16:48.560 --> 0:16:49.640 become a sports agent. 0:16:50.280 --> 0:16:52.000 That man's eyes lit up. 0:16:52.520 --> 0:16:56.520 He said, really, my nephew is the number one college 0:16:56.560 --> 0:17:00.280 basketball player in the nation and he was just asking 0:17:00.400 --> 0:17:02.600 me about someone that could represent him. 0:17:03.080 --> 0:17:04.240 I'll have him call you. 0:17:05.080 --> 0:17:08.800 It was that one open door, that one connection that 0:17:08.920 --> 0:17:11.960 led him to start his business. He represented that young 0:17:12.040 --> 0:17:15.400 man and today he is considered one of the leading 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:19.960 sports agents in the world. Friends, God has already planned 0:17:20.000 --> 0:17:24.359 out the right people for you. He's already put in 0:17:24.480 --> 0:17:27.240 place everyone you're going to need. 0:17:27.320 --> 0:17:28.760 To get to where you're supposed to be. 0:17:29.800 --> 0:17:33.119 Now, quit telling yourself I don't have the connections, I 0:17:33.119 --> 0:17:35.840 don't know the right people. No, you may not, but 0:17:36.000 --> 0:17:40.280 God does. You have friends in high places. And I 0:17:40.400 --> 0:17:44.600 believe today that God has placed people in your life 0:17:45.160 --> 0:17:49.360 that He's ordained to be instrumental, but if you're not careful, 0:17:49.440 --> 0:17:52.840 you'll miss them. We should go out each day with 0:17:52.920 --> 0:17:57.400 this understanding. What I need is close to me. It's 0:17:57.440 --> 0:17:58.359 not far off. 0:17:58.960 --> 0:17:59.919 In my life right now. 0:18:00.200 --> 0:18:05.080 Now are the right people, the breaks, the opportunity for improvement. 0:18:05.400 --> 0:18:08.439 It's all within my reach. So I'm going to be 0:18:08.520 --> 0:18:12.119 on the lookout. I know this family, they had a 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:16.280 strong desire to help people in India. Their dream was 0:18:16.320 --> 0:18:19.600 to build Bible schools and orphanages so they could help 0:18:19.720 --> 0:18:24.080 the needy people. But this family, they weren't wealthy people. 0:18:24.560 --> 0:18:28.280 They owned a scrap metal business. They made a modest living, 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:31.320 but in their heart they believed that one day they 0:18:31.320 --> 0:18:33.680 would be able to make much bigger of a difference. 0:18:33.840 --> 0:18:37.119 The seed was planted on the inside. The owner of 0:18:37.160 --> 0:18:40.600 the company, this man. At one point he bought this 0:18:40.760 --> 0:18:46.200 huge supply of old discarded lead batteries. They were from 0:18:46.240 --> 0:18:49.639 World War Two. He paid two cents a pound for them. 0:18:50.000 --> 0:18:54.480 There's all kinds of batteries, car batteries, tank batteries, motorcycle batteries. 0:18:54.720 --> 0:18:58.720 It was literally hundreds and hundreds of truckloads worth of batteries. 0:18:59.000 --> 0:19:03.080 They were piled several stories high, several hundred feet long, 0:19:03.840 --> 0:19:06.240 and this man thought that God would increase him. But 0:19:06.640 --> 0:19:10.120 it was always way off in the future. But one 0:19:10.240 --> 0:19:13.840 night this man had a dream. In the dream, he 0:19:13.920 --> 0:19:18.040 saw himself digging through that pile of batteries and he 0:19:18.119 --> 0:19:23.080 found this one unusual small battery, was very distinct looking. 0:19:23.760 --> 0:19:27.080 He woke up and heard the thought, the treasure is 0:19:27.119 --> 0:19:30.640 in the batteries. The next day, he and his teenage 0:19:30.640 --> 0:19:33.800 son went out and started digging and digging through that 0:19:33.920 --> 0:19:36.919 mountain of batteries, trying to find that battery that he 0:19:36.960 --> 0:19:40.800 had seen in the dream. Three days later, toward the 0:19:40.840 --> 0:19:44.560 middle of the pile, they found that exact battery. He 0:19:44.640 --> 0:19:47.000 took it to the expert and had him examine it. 0:19:47.400 --> 0:19:51.639 The expert said, this is a motorcycle battery from World 0:19:51.640 --> 0:19:54.920 War II. There's nothing special about it, just a lead 0:19:55.000 --> 0:19:57.119 battery worth about two cents a pound. 0:19:57.720 --> 0:19:59.080 The man wasn't convinced. 0:19:59.359 --> 0:20:02.080 He asked him go back, take the cover off of 0:20:02.119 --> 0:20:06.040 it and examine it more thoroughly. The man did, much 0:20:06.080 --> 0:20:09.720 to his surprise. He discovered that it wasn't filled with lead, 0:20:10.160 --> 0:20:13.639 it was filled with silver. These were batteries that the 0:20:13.680 --> 0:20:18.040 Germans tested to see if the silver would do better. 0:20:17.760 --> 0:20:19.520 In the cold than the lead. 0:20:20.040 --> 0:20:22.199 The experts said, this is not worth a few cents, 0:20:22.400 --> 0:20:25.480 this is worth thousands of dollars. Well, that man had 0:20:25.600 --> 0:20:29.480 thousands and thousands of batteries piled up back at his shop. 0:20:29.720 --> 0:20:31.400 It was just like he won the lottery. 0:20:31.840 --> 0:20:37.160 God did exceedingly abundantly above and beyond what am I saying? 0:20:38.240 --> 0:20:40.680 You don't know what God has put in your path. 0:20:41.440 --> 0:20:43.400 You don't know what's close to you. 0:20:44.040 --> 0:20:48.560 One idea, one phone call, one connection, and you'll go 0:20:48.640 --> 0:20:52.160 from dreaming the dream to live in the dream. I'm 0:20:52.200 --> 0:20:55.520 asking you to look around at what you have. It's 0:20:55.560 --> 0:20:59.320 within reach, it's not far off in the sweep by, 0:20:59.400 --> 0:21:02.800 and by no right now. God has opportunities in your 0:21:02.840 --> 0:21:06.560 path right now. The right people are in your life. 0:21:06.640 --> 0:21:13.600 God has deposited into you gifts, talents, ideas, creativity. Resources 0:21:14.240 --> 0:21:17.560 may not seem like much, but when you open them up, 0:21:17.680 --> 0:21:20.880 so to speak, you're going to discover what God has 0:21:20.920 --> 0:21:24.359 given you is not led its silver. It's going to 0:21:24.400 --> 0:21:26.639 thrust you to a new level. It's going to be 0:21:26.720 --> 0:21:30.760 one of those explosive blessings that catapult you higher than 0:21:30.800 --> 0:21:31.880 you ever thought possible. 0:21:32.040 --> 0:21:34.360 Can you get a vision for it? Will you look 0:21:34.440 --> 0:21:37.440 around at what God's put in your life. 0:21:37.560 --> 0:21:40.080 Well, Joel, I don't have a big pile of batteries. 0:21:40.480 --> 0:21:42.919 I don't have a bunch of resources. No, you just 0:21:42.960 --> 0:21:46.920 don't realize what you have. In the scripture, there were 0:21:46.960 --> 0:21:51.000 four lepers that were sitting outside the city gates. I'm 0:21:51.040 --> 0:21:53.960 sure they felt much the same way. All the odds 0:21:54.000 --> 0:21:57.679 were against them. An enemy army had cut off the 0:21:57.720 --> 0:22:00.200 supply lines to the city. It was just it's a 0:22:00.280 --> 0:22:03.119 matter of time before the whole city would start to death. 0:22:03.800 --> 0:22:07.359 These leopers had two strikes against them. They not only 0:22:07.440 --> 0:22:12.320 had leprosy, but they were outside the city gates because. 0:22:11.880 --> 0:22:12.640 Of their disease. 0:22:13.240 --> 0:22:15.639 That meant when the enemy attacked, they would be the 0:22:15.640 --> 0:22:18.520 first ones to be killed. And I'm sure for a 0:22:18.560 --> 0:22:22.800 while they sat around and complained about how bad life was, 0:22:23.240 --> 0:22:26.360 about how they were mistreated. If I just didn't have 0:22:26.480 --> 0:22:29.800 this disease, if I was just born into a different family, 0:22:30.000 --> 0:22:34.239 if the economy wasn't bad, well, remember, the answer is 0:22:34.359 --> 0:22:38.280 always within reach. One of the lepers rose up said, 0:22:38.280 --> 0:22:41.240 you know what, if we're going to die, let's. 0:22:41.040 --> 0:22:44.200 Don't die sitting down. Let's get up and do something. 0:22:44.680 --> 0:22:48.240 Let's march toward the enemy's camp and see what's going on. 0:22:49.280 --> 0:22:52.199 They rose up and begin to march toward the enemy. 0:22:52.440 --> 0:22:55.119 In the natural they didn't have a chance. But know, 0:22:55.240 --> 0:22:58.760 when you do the ordinary, God will do the extraordinary. 0:22:59.520 --> 0:23:01.080 The scripture says. 0:23:01.280 --> 0:23:06.400 As they were marching, God multiplied the sound of their 0:23:06.440 --> 0:23:10.600 footsteps and caused them to sound like a mighty army. 0:23:11.240 --> 0:23:13.840 When the enemy heard it, they got scared to death. 0:23:14.400 --> 0:23:17.560 They thought tens of thousands of troops were coming against them. 0:23:17.720 --> 0:23:18.679 They took off running. 0:23:19.640 --> 0:23:22.960 Those four lepers not only spared their own lives, but 0:23:23.080 --> 0:23:26.440 they saved the lives of everyone in the city. They 0:23:26.480 --> 0:23:29.000 went from being outcast to be in heroes. 0:23:29.640 --> 0:23:30.520 What's my point? 0:23:30.840 --> 0:23:34.639 The answer was close to them. It was their footsteps. 0:23:35.320 --> 0:23:37.439 You may not have much, but I bet you have 0:23:37.520 --> 0:23:41.159 your feet, You have your voice, you have your vision, 0:23:41.560 --> 0:23:44.440 you have your spirit of faith. I'm trying to light 0:23:44.480 --> 0:23:48.240 a fire on the inside. You have everything you need. 0:23:48.400 --> 0:23:52.639 It's close to you. Quit saying this problem is too big. 0:23:53.400 --> 0:23:56.800 This legal situation's gonna sink me. Joel, I'm never gonna 0:23:56.840 --> 0:23:59.760 find the right property from my house, for my business, 0:23:59.840 --> 0:24:03.880 for my church. Listen, the creator of the universe has 0:24:03.960 --> 0:24:05.240 already lined. 0:24:05.000 --> 0:24:06.679 Up everything that you need. 0:24:07.440 --> 0:24:11.520 God can cause the sound of your footsteps to be multiplied. 0:24:12.080 --> 0:24:16.159 That means God can make you bigger and more powerful 0:24:16.200 --> 0:24:20.560 than you really are. God can multiply your strength, and 0:24:20.760 --> 0:24:23.840 multiply your talent, and multiply your influence. 0:24:24.040 --> 0:24:25.560 Friends, you have what you need. 0:24:26.440 --> 0:24:29.960 You may have been through some bad breaks like these lepers. 0:24:30.240 --> 0:24:32.000 Life may not have treated you fair. 0:24:32.720 --> 0:24:35.399 You can either sit around and complain and let that 0:24:35.480 --> 0:24:38.760 defeat you, or you can rise up like this one 0:24:38.840 --> 0:24:41.800 leper and say, hey, wait a minute, I'm a child 0:24:42.000 --> 0:24:45.400 of the Most High God. I've got a destiny to fulfill. 0:24:45.920 --> 0:24:48.280 Those that are for me are greater than those that 0:24:48.359 --> 0:24:51.680 are against me. I'm not gonna sit around complaining about 0:24:51.680 --> 0:24:56.400 what I don't have. I'm gonna start marching toward my destiny, 0:24:56.440 --> 0:24:59.520 knowing that the creator of the universe is breathing in 0:24:59.600 --> 0:25:04.280 my Knowing that Almighty God is multiplying what I have. 0:25:04.760 --> 0:25:07.439 And if God before me, who dare be against me? 0:25:08.000 --> 0:25:10.520 You got to rise up with that spirit of faith. 0:25:11.520 --> 0:25:14.000 I love the time in the Scripture when Moses was 0:25:14.000 --> 0:25:16.359 complaining about what he didn't have. He said, God, we 0:25:16.400 --> 0:25:20.000 don't have the water, we don't have good food, We don't. 0:25:19.760 --> 0:25:21.200 Have proper protection. 0:25:21.920 --> 0:25:25.000 God said, wait a minute, Moses, what do you have 0:25:25.320 --> 0:25:29.040 in your hand. Moses said, God, I've got this same 0:25:29.240 --> 0:25:32.280 stick that I had before. It's just an ordinary stick. 0:25:32.320 --> 0:25:33.000 It's not much. 0:25:33.320 --> 0:25:36.600 God said, Moses, throw it on the ground. He threw 0:25:36.640 --> 0:25:40.760 it down and it turned into a snake. God said, now, Moses, 0:25:40.920 --> 0:25:43.680 pick it up. Don't you know it took more faith 0:25:43.720 --> 0:25:44.879 to pick it up than it did. 0:25:44.720 --> 0:25:47.040 To throw it down. Now it was a snake. 0:25:47.400 --> 0:25:50.200 He picked it up and it turned back into a stick. 0:25:50.960 --> 0:25:55.280 God was saying, I can take something ordinary and turn 0:25:55.320 --> 0:25:58.640 it into what you need. It may be a stick, 0:25:59.000 --> 0:26:01.200 but if it needs to be a key to open 0:26:01.200 --> 0:26:03.240 a door, I can turn it into a key. 0:26:03.760 --> 0:26:04.640 If it needs to be. 0:26:04.600 --> 0:26:07.560 A shield to protect you, I'll turn it into a shield. 0:26:08.359 --> 0:26:11.080 If it needs to be silver instead of lead, I'll 0:26:11.119 --> 0:26:15.080 turn it into silver. God is asking you today, what 0:26:15.400 --> 0:26:18.240 do you have in your hand? Well, Joel, I just 0:26:18.280 --> 0:26:21.040 have this high school diploma. I just don't have the connection. No, 0:26:21.160 --> 0:26:24.880 get out of that defeated mentality. If you'll use what 0:26:24.960 --> 0:26:28.240 you have, God will get you to where you're supposed 0:26:28.240 --> 0:26:31.879 to be. He will become what you need. He is 0:26:31.960 --> 0:26:35.480 called the Great I am. In other words, I am 0:26:35.760 --> 0:26:40.160 anything you need. I am your peace. I am your restoration. 0:26:40.280 --> 0:26:44.240 I am your breakthrough, I am your deliverer, I am 0:26:44.359 --> 0:26:49.760 your increase, I am your victory. My challenge is look 0:26:49.840 --> 0:26:53.879 around at what you have. What you need is close 0:26:53.920 --> 0:26:58.000 to you, it's within reach. Don't write it off because 0:26:58.040 --> 0:27:02.359 it's ordinary. David would have never defeated Goliath. He would 0:27:02.400 --> 0:27:05.920 have never made history if he had not recognized an 0:27:06.080 --> 0:27:10.800 ordinary slam shop was sent by Almighty God. Samson would 0:27:10.840 --> 0:27:14.639 have never defeated the Philistines if he had not recognized 0:27:15.240 --> 0:27:20.000 the jawbone of a donkey. Something ordinary would be instrumental 0:27:20.080 --> 0:27:24.159 in his destiny. It wasn't a coincidence that the jawbone 0:27:24.280 --> 0:27:27.320 was there. God put it there. And in the same 0:27:27.359 --> 0:27:31.840 way God has put people in your life, He's put opportunity. 0:27:32.160 --> 0:27:36.479 He put least sources may look insignificant, but with the 0:27:36.520 --> 0:27:40.280 anointing of God, it will become significant. It will help 0:27:40.320 --> 0:27:44.160 you accomplish the extraordinary. Now, I want to declare this 0:27:44.240 --> 0:27:47.840 over each one of you. Like David, you will defeat 0:27:47.920 --> 0:27:52.480 giants with less equipment. You're going to overcome obstacles that 0:27:52.520 --> 0:27:56.639 look insurmountable. You're going to accomplish dreams that you thought 0:27:56.680 --> 0:27:57.600 were impossible. 0:27:58.200 --> 0:27:59.200 You need to get ready. 0:27:59.600 --> 0:28:02.639 God about to open doors that no man can shut. 0:28:03.200 --> 0:28:06.520 You're going to step into a new level of your destiny. 0:28:07.240 --> 0:28:11.000 Explosive blessings are come in your way, blessings that are 0:28:11.000 --> 0:28:14.119 going to thrust you to a whole new level. I 0:28:14.200 --> 0:28:17.200 believe it, and I declare it in the name of Jesus. 0:28:17.440 --> 0:28:19.200 If you receive it, can you shout amen? 0:28:20.920 --> 0:28:23.800 We never like to close our broadcast without giving you 0:28:23.840 --> 0:28:26.760 an opportunity to make Jesus the lord of your life. 0:28:27.000 --> 0:28:27.960 Would you pray with me? 0:28:28.520 --> 0:28:32.400 Just say, Lord, Jesus, I'll repent of my sins. 0:28:33.560 --> 0:28:37.360 Come into my heart. I make you my Lord and savior. 0:28:38.520 --> 0:28:40.880 Friend, if you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you 0:28:40.920 --> 0:28:41.720 got born again. 0:28:42.240 --> 0:28:45.400 Get in a good Bible based church. Keep God first place. 0:28:45.680 --> 0:28:48.040 He's going to take your places that you've never dreamed of. 0:28:48.440 --> 0:28:51.280 Thank you for listening to the Joel os Deine podcast. 0:28:51.640 --> 0:28:54.280 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:28:54.360 --> 0:28:58.360 those all over the world. Visit jolosdein dot com slash 0:28:58.440 --> 0:29:00.480 give hope to give a gift today. 0:29:01.720 --> 0:29:04.640 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:04.640 --> 0:29:08.040 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:08.120 --> 0:29:08.480 keep you. 0:29:08.520 --> 0:29:11.600 Inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. I 0:29:11.640 --> 0:29:14.600 know God's best is still ahead. 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