Secure In His Sovereignty

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. This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.760 --> 0:00:33.960 You're ready for a comeback, and with Purdue Global you 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:37.200 can do more than take classes. You can take charge 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:41.520 of your story, of your career, of your life, Earn 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:43.559 a degree you can be proud of, and get an 0:00:43.680 --> 0:00:48.559 education employer's respect. It's time, your time, not just to 0:00:48.560 --> 0:00:50.960 go back to school, but to come back and move 0:00:51.040 --> 0:00:55.840 forward with Purdue Global, Purdue's online university for working adults. 0:00:56.440 --> 0:00:59.920 Start your comeback at Purdueglobal dot edu. 0:01:00.400 --> 0:01:02.880 What God has for you is not going to go 0:01:02.960 --> 0:01:07.040 to someone else. His sovereign will cannot be overridden. People 0:01:07.160 --> 0:01:10.880 can't manipulate the situation to where you don't get to 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:13.800 where God wants you to go. Nobody stole your blessing. 0:01:13.959 --> 0:01:18.479 Nobody stole your husband, your promotion, your house. Stay in peace. 0:01:18.720 --> 0:01:21.880 God is ordering your steps. The stage is all set, 0:01:22.319 --> 0:01:25.440 the script is all written. He's in control. Hi, this 0:01:25.480 --> 0:01:28.640 is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast 0:01:28.800 --> 0:01:32.280 and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoy today's message, 0:01:32.360 --> 0:01:34.160 why don't you be a blessing and share it with 0:01:34.200 --> 0:01:37.160 a friend. We appreciate you and pray for God's very 0:01:37.280 --> 0:01:43.200 best in your life. God bless you. It's great to 0:01:43.240 --> 0:01:46.319 be with you today, and I hope to stay connected 0:01:46.360 --> 0:01:49.760 with us during the week through our daily podcast, our 0:01:49.800 --> 0:01:53.920 YouTube channel, social media. We'll keep your encouraged and inspired. 0:01:54.600 --> 0:01:56.920 I'd like to start with something funny, and I heard 0:01:56.920 --> 0:01:59.720 about this couple that had been married for over sixty 0:01:59.800 --> 0:02:03.480 years and never had an argument, never had a cross word. 0:02:04.000 --> 0:02:06.320 They were at a church function and someone asked the 0:02:06.400 --> 0:02:09.800 secret of their success. The man told how he always 0:02:09.800 --> 0:02:12.520 treated his wife with respect and how he took her 0:02:12.560 --> 0:02:15.240 on trips around the world. He said, in fact, for 0:02:15.320 --> 0:02:19.120 our twenty fifth wedding anniversary. I took her to Beijing, China. 0:02:19.560 --> 0:02:22.920 Everyone politely applauded. Someone asked, what'd you do for your 0:02:22.960 --> 0:02:26.480 fiftieth anniversary? He said, I went back and picked her up. 0:02:28.240 --> 0:02:30.680 All right, y'all, that's not in your marriage class. Here 0:02:30.680 --> 0:02:34.080 we go. This is my Bible. I am what it 0:02:34.120 --> 0:02:36.360 says I am. I have what it says I have. 0:02:36.960 --> 0:02:39.480 I can do what it says I can do. Today 0:02:39.600 --> 0:02:42.960 I will be taught the word of God. I boldly confess. 0:02:43.480 --> 0:02:46.919 My mind is alert, my heart is receptive. I will 0:02:46.960 --> 0:02:50.760 never be the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. 0:02:52.280 --> 0:02:55.040 I want to talk to you today about secure in 0:02:55.160 --> 0:02:59.520 his sovereignty. We all have our own free will. We 0:02:59.520 --> 0:03:02.640 can make decisions, do what we want, go where we 0:03:02.680 --> 0:03:05.519 want to go. It's easy to think that our life 0:03:05.800 --> 0:03:09.080 is based on what we're choosing. To a point of course, 0:03:09.120 --> 0:03:13.040 that's true, but that's not the only factor. God has 0:03:13.080 --> 0:03:16.880 a conditional will. These are things he does based on 0:03:16.960 --> 0:03:20.160 whether or not we make good choices. We determine the 0:03:20.280 --> 0:03:23.680 course our life will tank. But God also has a 0:03:23.800 --> 0:03:28.000 sovereign will. These are things He's going to do regardless 0:03:28.040 --> 0:03:32.160 of our decisions. God has already planned ahead of time, 0:03:32.480 --> 0:03:35.920 a purpose for you to fulfill. He's not making it 0:03:36.000 --> 0:03:38.960 up on the fly, watching how you're going to perform, 0:03:39.440 --> 0:03:42.800 how disciplined you'll be. Then he's going to decide whether 0:03:42.840 --> 0:03:46.280 he does certain things. He's not watching to see what 0:03:46.320 --> 0:03:50.760 other people do, what bad breaks come your way, what disappointments. 0:03:50.880 --> 0:03:54.720 Then he'll pivot come up with another plan, which says 0:03:54.720 --> 0:04:00.000 in Ephesians, you were chosen, having been predestined according to 0:04:00.200 --> 0:04:04.240 the plan of Him who works out everything according to 0:04:04.280 --> 0:04:08.320 his will. Long before you got here, God laid out 0:04:08.360 --> 0:04:12.040 the plan and purpose for your life. His sovereign will 0:04:12.200 --> 0:04:16.040 is unstoppable. There's nothing you can do or not do 0:04:16.560 --> 0:04:19.839 to keep his sovereign will from coming to pass. You 0:04:19.880 --> 0:04:23.040 can't make too many mistakes. You can't get so far 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:26.200 off course that God's going to change his mind. Just 0:04:26.320 --> 0:04:30.320 ask Jonah. He did exactly opposite of what God told 0:04:30.360 --> 0:04:33.839 him to do when his own way, God in trouble, 0:04:34.400 --> 0:04:38.239 was thrown overboard into the sea. God didn't say, too bad, 0:04:38.440 --> 0:04:41.520 you're on your own. You should have listened. God had 0:04:41.560 --> 0:04:44.400 a big fish waiting for him. It's like God called 0:04:44.440 --> 0:04:47.599 an uber, swallowed him up, took him to the shore. 0:04:48.160 --> 0:04:51.719 God was saying, Jonah, you can't stop my sovereign will. 0:04:52.200 --> 0:04:54.320 Where I want you to go, You're going to go, 0:04:55.600 --> 0:04:58.919 not just in negative things. When it's his sovereign will 0:04:59.000 --> 0:05:02.120 for you to be blessed. It's not dependent on what 0:05:02.279 --> 0:05:07.280 family you come from, how much experience, talent, education you have, 0:05:07.880 --> 0:05:11.680 the blessing will overtake you. You'll see favor that you 0:05:11.720 --> 0:05:14.360 didn't have anything to do with. You didn't earn it, 0:05:14.720 --> 0:05:17.719 you weren't born into it. You can't explain it. It's 0:05:17.760 --> 0:05:22.040 the unstoppable God carrying out the plan that he decided 0:05:22.400 --> 0:05:26.680 long ago. When you go to a Broadway play, you 0:05:26.720 --> 0:05:29.960 don't show up and the actors are all there without 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:34.120 a script. Play starts in fifteen minutes. Let's decide what 0:05:34.120 --> 0:05:37.599 we're going to do. What's the plot? What character will 0:05:37.600 --> 0:05:41.599 I play? How will the drama unfold? The script has 0:05:41.640 --> 0:05:46.039 already been written, long before the actors ever arrive. The 0:05:46.120 --> 0:05:50.520 writer has already decided what's going to take place. When 0:05:50.520 --> 0:05:53.640 you walk in the theater, there's not an empty stage. 0:05:54.040 --> 0:05:57.400 The carpenters don't show up. Say okay, let's build some sets. 0:05:57.880 --> 0:06:01.320 What props are you going to need? Lighting? Director? Tell 0:06:01.360 --> 0:06:03.320 me the scene? So I can get some lights. Let 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:07.159 me figure everything out. The stage has already been set, 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:11.520 The props are already in place, the script already finalized. 0:06:12.360 --> 0:06:15.359 In the same way, you didn't show up on planet 0:06:15.440 --> 0:06:18.359 Earth and God say, okay, let me figure out a 0:06:18.400 --> 0:06:22.320 script for them. Let me figure out what role they'll play. 0:06:22.400 --> 0:06:26.160 You weren't born into an empty stage. God didn't think 0:06:26.360 --> 0:06:29.760 I have to decide what environment they'll be in, what family, 0:06:30.120 --> 0:06:34.880 what people should I use, what experiences? Long before you arrived, 0:06:35.279 --> 0:06:38.320 God wrote a script for you. The fact that you're 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:42.159 here is a sign that the stage is set, all 0:06:42.200 --> 0:06:46.120 the props are in place, all the people you need. Yes, 0:06:46.160 --> 0:06:49.640 there may be some drama, ups and downs, things you 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:53.200 don't understand, but you can stay in peace knowing that 0:06:53.279 --> 0:06:57.160 it's all working according to His will. You're not at 0:06:57.200 --> 0:07:01.760 the mercy of fate. Happenstance. Hope you get some good breaks. 0:07:02.120 --> 0:07:05.040 Hope this sickness doesn't take you out. There is a 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:08.599 sovereign God who is in control of your life. His 0:07:08.800 --> 0:07:13.760 sovereign will cannot be overridden by bad choices by other people. 0:07:14.160 --> 0:07:16.400 By how you were raised, by what you didn't get, 0:07:17.560 --> 0:07:21.480 Jeremiah said, God knew you before you were formed in 0:07:21.560 --> 0:07:25.280 your mother's womb. You didn't show up because your mother 0:07:25.360 --> 0:07:28.760 and father decided to have a baby. It wasn't a 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:33.680 random coincidence that they got together. Sometimes when a pregnancy 0:07:33.760 --> 0:07:36.680 is not planned, we say this baby was a surprise. 0:07:37.640 --> 0:07:40.040 You may have been a surprise to your parents, but 0:07:40.120 --> 0:07:42.960 you are not a surprise to our God. He's been 0:07:43.000 --> 0:07:47.720 thinking about you for generations. Jeremiah went on to say 0:07:48.120 --> 0:07:51.760 God's plans for you are for good, to give you 0:07:51.840 --> 0:07:55.720 a future and a hope. Part of his sovereign will 0:07:56.080 --> 0:07:59.280 is to be good to you. There are blessings coming 0:07:59.600 --> 0:08:03.680 that are unstoppable. There is favor in your future that 0:08:03.800 --> 0:08:07.240 is simply the goodness of God, something that He's already 0:08:07.280 --> 0:08:11.280 planned that cannot be overridden. You don't have to worry 0:08:11.280 --> 0:08:14.400 about how it can happen, how you can get ahead, 0:08:14.840 --> 0:08:18.520 how you can leave your mark. The sovereign God has 0:08:18.600 --> 0:08:22.240 already not only planned it, but he will make it happen. 0:08:22.760 --> 0:08:25.880 It's not up to you, it's up to him. Blessings 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:29.440 that chase you down, favor you didn't see coming, good 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:33.480 breaks that you couldn't explain. It's already written in your script. 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:37.560 The stage has already been set how could I be 0:08:37.679 --> 0:08:40.640 up here today. This is not something that I chose, 0:08:41.160 --> 0:08:43.840 not something that I worked for that I was hoping 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:46.000 to attain. I didn't want to get up in front 0:08:46.000 --> 0:08:50.240 of people. I didn't think I could minister. For seventeen years, 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:54.880 I stayed behind the scenes. My choices were determining my future. 0:08:55.360 --> 0:08:58.760 I was comfortable I would have stayed there, But at 0:08:58.760 --> 0:09:02.200 one point I came to the sovereign will of God. 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:07.000 His will is unstoppable. God will let you make decisions 0:09:07.120 --> 0:09:09.800 up to a point. He'll let you be in control 0:09:09.920 --> 0:09:13.439 of your destiny for periods of time, but at certain 0:09:13.559 --> 0:09:17.600 times he will take complete control. He will override your 0:09:17.640 --> 0:09:22.640 decisions and thrust you into your destiny. When my father died, 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:25.959 I not only knew I was supposed to step up 0:09:26.000 --> 0:09:29.680 and pasture the church, but suddenly I had the desire 0:09:30.080 --> 0:09:33.520 I wanted to. I hadn't had that desire for thirty 0:09:33.559 --> 0:09:36.720 six years. In fact, I was just the opposite. I 0:09:36.800 --> 0:09:39.720 dreaded getting up in front of people. But when you 0:09:39.800 --> 0:09:43.439 hit one of these sovereignty moments, when it's not God's 0:09:43.559 --> 0:09:47.560 conditional will, where you have a part you can decide, 0:09:47.880 --> 0:09:51.440 but God has already decided, it's already on the script. 0:09:51.840 --> 0:09:54.880 He's already planned to bless you, to favor you, to 0:09:55.000 --> 0:09:58.800 rescue you, to turn that trouble around. There's nothing you 0:09:58.840 --> 0:10:02.559 can do except back and enjoy the ride. You stepped 0:10:02.600 --> 0:10:06.280 in to the unstoppable God. The part of his plan 0:10:06.760 --> 0:10:10.280 that is not negotiable. He's not looking for your opinion. 0:10:10.800 --> 0:10:14.440 He's not asking what you think. He will override every 0:10:14.520 --> 0:10:19.720 force trying to stop you, every limitation, every disadvantage, every 0:10:19.760 --> 0:10:24.640 bad decision, and thrust you into your destiny. I think 0:10:24.640 --> 0:10:27.640 about my father. He grew up in a family that 0:10:27.720 --> 0:10:30.960 didn't have anything to do with God. They were good people, 0:10:31.040 --> 0:10:36.160 but they didn't know anything about faith. His grandparents, great grandparents, 0:10:36.640 --> 0:10:39.680 three or four generations back. There was no thought of God, 0:10:39.920 --> 0:10:44.080 no spiritual heritage. Look like that would continue on. But 0:10:44.160 --> 0:10:47.640 he's seventeen years old. My father was walking home from 0:10:47.640 --> 0:10:51.880 a nightclubt two o'clock in the morning. Suddenly he began 0:10:52.000 --> 0:10:54.840 to think about God. He looked up at the stars 0:10:54.880 --> 0:10:57.680 and wondered what he was going to do with his life. 0:10:58.040 --> 0:11:01.360 He felt this sense of destiny calling him. He walked 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:04.760 in the house. There was a family Bible on the 0:11:04.800 --> 0:11:08.520 coffee table, just there for decoration. He opened it up. 0:11:09.000 --> 0:11:11.440 It fell open to a page with a picture of 0:11:11.559 --> 0:11:15.520 Jesus standing at a door and knocking. The caption read, 0:11:15.760 --> 0:11:21.040 if you'll open the door, I'll come in. Nothing randomly happens. 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:24.640 That Bible was put there in the sovereignty of God, 0:11:25.160 --> 0:11:27.760 that was in the script that was written before my 0:11:27.800 --> 0:11:32.720 father was born. Falling open to that particular page wasn't 0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:36.760 a coincidence, wasn't a lucky break. It was the sovereign 0:11:36.880 --> 0:11:40.800 God working out the plan that he had decided long ago. 0:11:41.880 --> 0:11:44.440 My father went to church the next morning with a friend, 0:11:44.520 --> 0:11:47.880 and he gave his life to Christ. That one moment 0:11:48.360 --> 0:11:52.840 broke the cycle of generations of no faith. Now, my children, 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:56.760 my grandchildren, we will come from generations that honor God. 0:11:57.760 --> 0:12:00.960 There are some things that you can't explain. It's just 0:12:01.040 --> 0:12:05.040 the sovereignty of God. Well, Joe, why didn't it happen sooner? 0:12:05.320 --> 0:12:07.760 I don't know. I'm not God. He's the one that's 0:12:07.760 --> 0:12:11.199 in control. It says he lifts up some and sets 0:12:11.240 --> 0:12:14.959 down others. I do know that he's promised to be 0:12:15.080 --> 0:12:18.280 good to you. I do know that there are sovereign 0:12:18.320 --> 0:12:21.000 moments in your future. Well, God is going to do 0:12:21.120 --> 0:12:24.319 things that you can't explain. There's no reason for it. 0:12:24.760 --> 0:12:27.880 You couldn't have made it happen. But suddenly a family 0:12:27.920 --> 0:12:31.559 member gets back on course, Suddenly a door opens, Suddenly 0:12:31.559 --> 0:12:34.839 your health improves, Suddenly you're thrust to a new level. 0:12:36.000 --> 0:12:38.720 When David was a teenager, he was working out in 0:12:38.760 --> 0:12:42.320 the fields, taking care of his father's sheep, and it 0:12:42.360 --> 0:12:44.920 looked like that's what he'd do the rest of his life. 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:49.480 Came from a low income family. They weren't influential, nobody 0:12:49.559 --> 0:12:53.360 knew them. But when God wrote your script, when he 0:12:53.440 --> 0:12:57.000 designed the plan for your life on purpose, he put 0:12:57.040 --> 0:13:01.040 these moments of favor that don't make sense. The scripture 0:13:01.080 --> 0:13:05.320 says he chose the foolish to confound the wise. David 0:13:05.440 --> 0:13:08.600 was out in the fields, minding his own business. Every 0:13:08.679 --> 0:13:12.280 circumstance said you're stuck. This is your lot in life. 0:13:12.880 --> 0:13:15.840 But one day the prophet Samuel showed up at his 0:13:15.960 --> 0:13:19.679 father's house to annoint one of Jesse's sons as the 0:13:19.720 --> 0:13:23.559 next king of Israel. David didn't go looking for Samuel. 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:28.360 Samuel came looking for David. David's purpose came tracking him down. 0:13:29.280 --> 0:13:32.320 David couldn't have made this happen. He didn't earn it. 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:35.440 He didn't work for it. He didn't put out flyers. 0:13:35.480 --> 0:13:38.320 Hey vote for me. This was the sovereignty of God. 0:13:39.600 --> 0:13:43.680 Samuel tried to anoint one of David's seven brothers as 0:13:43.720 --> 0:13:46.959 the next king. They were in the house, David was 0:13:47.000 --> 0:13:49.839 still out in the shepherd's field. Samuel went by them 0:13:49.880 --> 0:13:52.319 one by one. It's not him, It's not this one. 0:13:52.360 --> 0:13:55.880 It's not this one. What God has for you is 0:13:55.920 --> 0:13:59.120 not going to go to someone else. His sovereign will 0:13:59.240 --> 0:14:04.560 cannot be over. People can't manipulate the situation to where 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:06.840 you don't get to where God wants you to go. 0:14:07.760 --> 0:14:12.200 Nobody stole your blessing. Nobody stole your husband, your promotion, 0:14:12.440 --> 0:14:16.240 your house. Stay in peace. God is ordering your steps. 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:19.720 The stage is all set, the script is all written. 0:14:20.200 --> 0:14:24.560 He's in control. David was anointed to be the next king, 0:14:25.000 --> 0:14:27.440 but he didn't go to the palace. He went back 0:14:27.440 --> 0:14:31.400 to the shepherd's field. One morning, his father asked him 0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:34.560 to take lunch to his brothers who were in the army. 0:14:35.080 --> 0:14:38.120 The Israelites were in a standoff with the Philistines. They 0:14:38.120 --> 0:14:41.680 were on the verge of conflict. David left that day 0:14:41.720 --> 0:14:44.880 and thought he was just running an errand no big deal. 0:14:45.080 --> 0:14:48.480 I told my dad, I delivered this lunch. But notice 0:14:48.520 --> 0:14:52.360 the sovereignty of God. When David arrived, it just so 0:14:52.560 --> 0:14:56.680 happened that Goliath came out and started tauning the Israelites. 0:14:57.320 --> 0:15:00.840 David heard all the insults, all the threat and something 0:15:00.960 --> 0:15:05.640 rose up in him. Look how strategic God is. David 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:09.160 thought it was another ordinary day, just taking lunch to 0:15:09.240 --> 0:15:12.720 his brothers, when in fact, it was a destiny moment. 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:16.240 David was at the right place at the right time. 0:15:16.720 --> 0:15:19.120 If he had have been three hours later, he wouldn't 0:15:19.120 --> 0:15:22.680 have heard Goliath. If he had said, Dad, no, I'm 0:15:22.680 --> 0:15:26.320 not an errand boy, get somebody else to deliver this lunch, 0:15:26.600 --> 0:15:30.280 he would have missed his destiny. God is ordering your 0:15:30.320 --> 0:15:34.400 steps when it's his sovereign will. You don't have a choice. 0:15:35.160 --> 0:15:38.320 Don't worry thinking you missed it. You're too late. You 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:41.760 didn't obey. You should have done this. You can't miss 0:15:41.840 --> 0:15:45.200 the sovereign will. It's not up to you. It's up 0:15:45.240 --> 0:15:48.760 to God. What he's already decided is going to happen. 0:15:49.680 --> 0:15:53.040 The good news is God is decided to favor you. 0:15:53.600 --> 0:15:57.040 He's decided to rescue you. He's decided to be good 0:15:57.040 --> 0:16:01.840 to you. Goliath was twice David's size. He was the 0:16:01.960 --> 0:16:06.400 champion of the Philistine Army, their most feared soldier. David 0:16:06.600 --> 0:16:11.760 was young, small, no military training, no armor. How could 0:16:11.800 --> 0:16:14.800 he have the courage to face Goliath? What gave him 0:16:14.800 --> 0:16:18.200 the passion, the fire to even think he had a chance. 0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:22.520 When you come into these sovereign moments, it's not just you, 0:16:23.000 --> 0:16:26.480 it's the most high God backing you up. It's the 0:16:26.520 --> 0:16:29.960 one who's already written your script stepping in with you. 0:16:30.720 --> 0:16:33.840 There will be a faith that you've never had, courage 0:16:33.880 --> 0:16:38.640 and boldness that will catapult you ahead. Like David, there 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.280 are these times where you think you're just going to work, 0:16:42.000 --> 0:16:44.800 just taking care of these kids, just running an Errand 0:16:45.080 --> 0:16:48.720 what you don't realize is it a sovereign moment, a 0:16:48.800 --> 0:16:52.800 moment that God has strategically orchestrated to put you at 0:16:52.800 --> 0:16:55.520 the right place at the right time, to meet the 0:16:55.600 --> 0:16:59.080 right people, to hear the right thing. Faith is going 0:16:59.120 --> 0:17:01.640 to rise up in you. You're going to see things 0:17:01.680 --> 0:17:05.280 happen that you could never make happen. When you defeat 0:17:05.280 --> 0:17:07.720 that giant, so to speak, you're going to look back 0:17:07.760 --> 0:17:10.479 and think, how did I do that? How did I 0:17:10.520 --> 0:17:13.440 get here? How did I meet this person? How did 0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:16.960 this sickness turn around? How did my family member get back? 0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:21.520 On course, it's the sovereignty of God. Something he planned that. 0:17:21.560 --> 0:17:24.679 You couldn't stop. Take this in the right way, but 0:17:24.720 --> 0:17:27.679 you couldn't mess it up. You're not that powerful. He 0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:31.919 already decided long before you were born, to make that happen. 0:17:32.920 --> 0:17:36.119 I'll never forget one Tuesday, I was going to work, 0:17:36.560 --> 0:17:39.679 just like another ordinary day. I was at the church. 0:17:40.160 --> 0:17:43.520 A friend called I hadn't spoken to in years. He said, Joel, 0:17:43.800 --> 0:17:46.120 I want to take you to lunch today. He said, 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:49.040 I'm sorry, I'm busy. Let's do it another day. He said, no, 0:17:49.119 --> 0:17:51.640 it's important. I want to do it today. He said, 0:17:51.680 --> 0:17:53.959 what's it about? He said, I'll tell you when you 0:17:53.960 --> 0:17:56.760 get there. That all great. He's going to have a project. 0:17:56.880 --> 0:17:59.280 He's going to need something from me. I canceled an 0:17:59.320 --> 0:18:03.000 appointment to go. Normally I wouldn't have done that. I'm 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:06.000 very routine, but for some reason I wanted to go. 0:18:06.680 --> 0:18:10.160 We got to the restaurant. He said, Joel, the Rockets 0:18:10.200 --> 0:18:13.879 basketball team is moving out of the Compact Center. You 0:18:13.960 --> 0:18:16.919 should try to get that for your church. What he 0:18:16.960 --> 0:18:20.680 didn't know is we had been turned down twice trying 0:18:20.720 --> 0:18:24.680 to buy property to build an auditorium. I was discouraged, 0:18:24.960 --> 0:18:27.560 thinking that we were at a dead end. When he 0:18:27.640 --> 0:18:31.240 said that, it was like a bomb exploded on the inside. 0:18:31.359 --> 0:18:34.919 I knew this building was supposed to be ours. Looking 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:37.520 back now, I don't know how I had the faith 0:18:37.560 --> 0:18:40.560 for it. I was oblivious to the fact that it 0:18:40.600 --> 0:18:43.080 was going to cost one hundred million dollars to renovate. 0:18:44.000 --> 0:18:48.119 Sometimes God will hide things from your own purpose. I 0:18:48.280 --> 0:18:51.520 wasn't moved by critics telling us we didn't have a chance. 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:55.880 I had this unshakable confidence, knowing that God could make 0:18:55.920 --> 0:18:59.480 a way even when I didn't see away. There are 0:18:59.480 --> 0:19:02.960 these times that you don't have a choice. God will 0:19:03.000 --> 0:19:05.800 give you the faith. He'll bring the building to you, 0:19:06.320 --> 0:19:11.720 the idea, the right people, the favor. It's the sovereign Lord. See, 0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:14.879 the city built this building for the raucous to play 0:19:14.880 --> 0:19:19.080 basketball in. They didn't realize long before they built it, 0:19:19.400 --> 0:19:22.000 God had already decided it was going to be ours. 0:19:22.280 --> 0:19:26.000 It was already written in the script. At the right time, 0:19:26.600 --> 0:19:30.280 his sovereign will came to pass. I'm all for making 0:19:30.320 --> 0:19:34.800 good decisions, honoring God being our best. But there are 0:19:34.880 --> 0:19:38.600 times we don't have the faith. We make mistakes, we 0:19:38.680 --> 0:19:41.680 get off course, we didn't do our best. But when 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:45.920 it's his sovereign will, he will override your doubt, override 0:19:45.960 --> 0:19:49.920 your mistakes, overrides what's trying to stop you, and you'll 0:19:49.920 --> 0:19:53.440 defeat the giant. You'll get your compact center, you'll meet 0:19:53.480 --> 0:19:56.840 the person of your dreams. You'll step into your greatness. 0:19:57.800 --> 0:20:01.399 I lay down at night and sleep in peace knowing 0:20:01.680 --> 0:20:04.560 that there is a sovereign God, because if it was 0:20:04.640 --> 0:20:08.280 just up to me, I'd be worried. I may make mistakes, 0:20:08.800 --> 0:20:10.840 I may not have the faith, I may think the 0:20:10.920 --> 0:20:14.600 giant is too big. But because of the sovereignty of God, 0:20:15.119 --> 0:20:18.600 there are these times where what we think, what we do, 0:20:18.960 --> 0:20:22.880 how we perform, does not change what God has already 0:20:23.000 --> 0:20:27.800 predestined for our life. David understood this principle. He said 0:20:27.800 --> 0:20:32.119 in Second Samuel, who am I, O sovereign Lord? And 0:20:32.200 --> 0:20:35.040 what is my family that you have brought me this far? 0:20:35.880 --> 0:20:38.840 He was looking back over his life, thinking how did 0:20:38.880 --> 0:20:42.040 I get here? I was a shepherd, now I'm a king, 0:20:42.600 --> 0:20:46.600 I'm respected, I have a lasting dynasty. He was saying 0:20:46.800 --> 0:20:50.840 it could only be one thing, the sovereign God. Five 0:20:51.000 --> 0:20:54.080 times in the next few verses he referred to God 0:20:54.160 --> 0:20:58.320 as sovereign Verse twenty eight, he said, Oh, Sovereign Lord, 0:20:58.680 --> 0:21:02.200 you have promised good things to me. Can I tell 0:21:02.240 --> 0:21:06.320 you the Sovereign Lord has good things for you. It's 0:21:06.359 --> 0:21:09.520 not based on how well you perform, who likes you, 0:21:09.960 --> 0:21:14.119 what family you come from, what the economy does. These 0:21:14.200 --> 0:21:19.119 are blessings, favor breakthroughs that God has already written in 0:21:19.200 --> 0:21:23.560 your script. Instead of worrying thinking that's never going to happen, 0:21:23.840 --> 0:21:26.600 trying to earn it, why don't you do like David 0:21:27.040 --> 0:21:30.080 and say, Oh, Sovereign Lord, thank you for the good 0:21:30.160 --> 0:21:33.119 things you have in store for me. Thank you for 0:21:33.240 --> 0:21:36.399 choosing me before I could choose you. Thank you for 0:21:36.480 --> 0:21:41.080 not depending on my performance, my faith, my circumstances, but 0:21:41.240 --> 0:21:45.399 blessing me because of your goodness. Well, Joel, it sounds 0:21:45.440 --> 0:21:47.720 like you're saying that we can do whatever we want 0:21:47.760 --> 0:21:51.000 and God's still gonna bless us. No, what I'm saying 0:21:51.119 --> 0:21:54.800 is you cannot change God's sovereign will. You may not 0:21:54.920 --> 0:21:58.720 perform perfectly all the time, you may not deserve his blessing. 0:21:59.080 --> 0:22:02.200 But when it's his soul sovereign will, it doesn't depend 0:22:02.320 --> 0:22:05.920 on what you do or don't do. God has decided 0:22:05.920 --> 0:22:10.479 to make it happen. What God decides is unstoppable. In 0:22:10.520 --> 0:22:13.879 the scripture, Saul was the biggest enemy of the Church. 0:22:14.400 --> 0:22:17.720 He got letters from the courts to have people arrested 0:22:17.920 --> 0:22:21.240 that were following Christ. He was like a terrorist. You 0:22:21.280 --> 0:22:24.479 would think he's too far gone. God wouldn't have anything 0:22:24.520 --> 0:22:28.000 to do with him. No, don't write anybody off. You 0:22:28.040 --> 0:22:31.239 don't know what God has planned ahead of time. His 0:22:31.400 --> 0:22:36.040 sovereign will cannot be stopped by our choices. Saul was 0:22:36.080 --> 0:22:40.119 on a horse traveling to Damascus to have people arrested. 0:22:40.600 --> 0:22:43.840 He's on a mission to cause more havoc. Suddenly a 0:22:43.920 --> 0:22:46.960 light shine down from heaven like a flash of lightning, 0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:50.439 knocked him to the ground. It was so powerful that 0:22:50.520 --> 0:22:54.760 he couldn't see. A voice boomed out, Saul, why do 0:22:54.800 --> 0:22:58.959 you persecute me? Saul answered back, who are you Lord? 0:22:59.680 --> 0:23:02.960 All the sudden he's using the word Lord. That day 0:23:03.119 --> 0:23:07.080 was a turning point. Saul eventually became the apostle Paul, 0:23:07.480 --> 0:23:11.240 who wrote almost half of the New Testament. If God 0:23:11.320 --> 0:23:14.960 based his will only on our decisions, Paul wouldn't have 0:23:15.040 --> 0:23:18.720 had a chance. The beauty is God has a sovereign 0:23:18.800 --> 0:23:23.040 will that overrides our choices. It's the goodness of God 0:23:23.680 --> 0:23:26.840 loving us when we don't deserve it, showing us mercy 0:23:27.160 --> 0:23:30.719 when we should have judgment. You may have gotten off course, 0:23:31.320 --> 0:23:34.200 made decisions you're not proud of. You feel like you're 0:23:34.320 --> 0:23:38.000 washed up. Can I encourage you? The sovereign God is 0:23:38.040 --> 0:23:41.679 still in control of your life. He's already planned ahead 0:23:41.680 --> 0:23:46.639 of time these moments of mercy, healing favor, where he 0:23:46.680 --> 0:23:50.360 won't just restore you, but he'll thrust you into your purpose. 0:23:51.640 --> 0:23:56.080 Paul wrote in Galatians, before I was born, God called 0:23:56.160 --> 0:24:00.480 me to proclaim the good news to the gentiles, saying, 0:24:00.840 --> 0:24:04.040 this is what God decided ahead of time. I couldn't 0:24:04.080 --> 0:24:07.760 see it. I's doing just the opposite, going the wrong way. 0:24:08.160 --> 0:24:11.840 Then the sovereign God stepped in, that God who overrides 0:24:11.920 --> 0:24:15.959 our decisions and put me into my purpose. When you 0:24:16.080 --> 0:24:20.280 understand that he's sovereign, that he's not basing everything on 0:24:20.359 --> 0:24:24.840 our choices, our ability, our background, our family, then you 0:24:24.880 --> 0:24:30.160 can stay in peace. His sovereign will is unstoppable. Sometimes 0:24:30.160 --> 0:24:33.200 we get frustrated because we can't see the whole script. 0:24:33.800 --> 0:24:36.239 We don't know what God is up to. We go 0:24:36.280 --> 0:24:40.760 through disappointments, loss, bad breaks. Doesn't make sense to us. 0:24:40.880 --> 0:24:45.160 It's a setback. But nothing is random. It's all working 0:24:45.280 --> 0:24:49.480 according to his plan, what he decided long ago. You 0:24:49.600 --> 0:24:53.000 have to trust him when you don't understand. You have 0:24:53.040 --> 0:24:56.720 to believe that he's sovereign, that it's all serving a purpose. 0:24:57.280 --> 0:24:59.800 I believe one day you'll see what he was up to. 0:25:01.000 --> 0:25:04.040 This is what happened with a lady named Naomi. She 0:25:04.200 --> 0:25:07.119 lived with her husband and two sons in the city 0:25:07.119 --> 0:25:11.440 of Bethlehem. Life was good, then a great famine came. 0:25:12.040 --> 0:25:14.560 She had to move with her family to Moab so 0:25:14.600 --> 0:25:19.359 they could survive. In Moab, her sons met Ruth and Orpah. 0:25:19.720 --> 0:25:23.520 They fell in love and were married well. Eventually, Naomi's 0:25:23.600 --> 0:25:27.280 husband died. Ten years later, both of her sons died. 0:25:27.760 --> 0:25:31.000 She was so heartbroken she decided to move back home 0:25:31.040 --> 0:25:34.879 to Bethlehem. She urged her two daughters in law to 0:25:34.960 --> 0:25:38.320 go back to their hometowns as well. Orpah took her 0:25:38.400 --> 0:25:42.000 up on it. She walked away. Ruth said, no, I'm 0:25:42.040 --> 0:25:45.840 not leaving you. She moved back to Bethlehem with Naomi. 0:25:46.560 --> 0:25:49.840 She met a man named Boas. There. They were married, 0:25:50.240 --> 0:25:53.600 had a son named Obed. Obed had a son named Jesse. 0:25:54.160 --> 0:25:57.880 Jesse had a son named David. Look At how strategic 0:25:57.960 --> 0:26:02.640 God is. The famine that called Naomi to move wasn't random. 0:26:03.000 --> 0:26:05.400 It was a part of God's plan to get her 0:26:05.440 --> 0:26:09.800 the moab so her son could marry Ruth. It was painful, 0:26:10.040 --> 0:26:12.520 but if she hadn't gone through that loss, she would 0:26:12.560 --> 0:26:16.399 have never moved back home. If Ruth wasn't single again, 0:26:16.720 --> 0:26:19.640 she would have never married Boas. They would have never 0:26:19.680 --> 0:26:24.240 had a child. Yet God decided ahead of time that David, 0:26:24.600 --> 0:26:27.280 the greatest king that ever lived, would come out of 0:26:27.320 --> 0:26:31.400 their family line. If someone would have told Naomi back then, 0:26:31.880 --> 0:26:36.120 during the famine, during the lass that God was working 0:26:36.520 --> 0:26:38.920 that it was all a part of his plan, she'd 0:26:39.000 --> 0:26:41.520 have said, yeah, right, nothing's good going to come out 0:26:41.560 --> 0:26:45.400 of this. But God is sovereign. We're looking at what's 0:26:45.440 --> 0:26:48.320 going on this week, this month. But God can be 0:26:48.400 --> 0:26:52.920 looking generations ahead. He can be using you to orchestrate 0:26:53.000 --> 0:26:57.880 something much bigger, much more significant than you could imagine. 0:26:58.200 --> 0:27:01.679 Think about Ruth. For some she wanted to move to 0:27:01.840 --> 0:27:06.000 Naomi's hometown. She didn't know anyone there. Why didn't she 0:27:06.040 --> 0:27:08.600 do like Orfrah and go back to where she was from? 0:27:09.280 --> 0:27:12.600 This was the sovereignty of God. God gave her the 0:27:12.720 --> 0:27:17.000 desire because it was something he had already decided ahead 0:27:17.000 --> 0:27:20.600 of time. God is not making it up as you go. 0:27:21.280 --> 0:27:25.399 He's working all things according to his plan. Now stay 0:27:25.400 --> 0:27:29.920 in faith while his plan unforms. What if you're upset 0:27:30.000 --> 0:27:34.119 over a disappointment, living bitter over a loss, when, in fact, 0:27:34.480 --> 0:27:38.520 obed so to speak, is coming now. Ruth is in 0:27:38.560 --> 0:27:42.159 the family line of Jesus. What God is doing in 0:27:42.200 --> 0:27:45.480 our lives is not always going to make sense. He's 0:27:45.520 --> 0:27:49.919 been orchestrating things for you generations back to bring you 0:27:50.040 --> 0:27:53.440 to where you are, just like he brought Ruth out 0:27:53.480 --> 0:27:57.440 of heartache into great joy. Nothing you've been through has 0:27:57.480 --> 0:28:01.920 been random. It's not happenstand bad luck. God is still 0:28:01.960 --> 0:28:05.119 in control. This is when you have to trust that 0:28:05.200 --> 0:28:08.400 He is sovereign, that the good things in your future 0:28:08.680 --> 0:28:12.840 are unstoppable. If you'll do this, I believe and declare, 0:28:13.280 --> 0:28:16.400 you're about to come in to some of these sovereign moments, 0:28:16.840 --> 0:28:20.360 things that you couldn't make happen. Like David, the right 0:28:20.480 --> 0:28:23.399 breaks are going to come looking for you, like Ruth, 0:28:23.560 --> 0:28:27.440 favor that you've never imagined. Like Paul, God is going 0:28:27.480 --> 0:28:31.399 to override your mistakes and thrust you into your destiny 0:28:31.840 --> 0:28:35.679 in Jesus' name. If you receive it, can you say amen? Today? 0:28:37.080 --> 0:28:39.840 I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus 0:28:39.880 --> 0:28:42.360 the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? 0:28:43.040 --> 0:28:48.040 Just say, Lord, Jesus, I repent of my sins. Come 0:28:48.080 --> 0:28:51.880 into my heart. I'll make you my Lord and savior. 0:28:53.200 --> 0:28:55.440 If you've prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got 0:28:55.480 --> 0:28:58.400 born again. We'd love to send you some free information 0:28:58.480 --> 0:29:00.480 on your new walk with the Lord. You can text 0:29:00.480 --> 0:29:02.800 the number on the screen or go to the website. 0:29:03.080 --> 0:29:05.640 I hope you'll get into a good Bible based church 0:29:05.880 --> 0:29:09.440 and keep God first place. Thanks so much for listening 0:29:09.440 --> 0:29:12.600 to today's message. I hope you'll subscribe so you can 0:29:12.640 --> 0:29:16.240 receive the latest podcast to keep you encouraged and inspired 0:29:16.320 --> 0:29:17.080 all through the week. 0:29:17.240 --> 0:29:19.480 Help us to continue to share the message of hope 0:29:19.480 --> 0:29:21.000 with those all around the world. 0:29:21.280 --> 0:29:22.800 Visit Joelosting dot. 0:29:22.640 --> 0:29:25.520 Com or click the link in the description to partner 0:29:25.560 --> 0:29:26.280 with us today. 0:29:26.520 --> 0:29:28.960 We hope you'll share this message with a friend and 0:29:29.040 --> 0:29:31.880 be sure to follow us on social media. We're praying 0:29:31.920 --> 0:29:35.040 for you. I know God's best is still ahead. We'll 0:29:35.080 --> 0:29:35.880 see you next time. 0:29:37.840 --> 0:29:40.600 With millions of books on Amazon, there's a reading feeling 0:29:40.640 --> 0:29:44.960 for everyone. 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