The Commanded Blessing

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Is it investment legal or 0:01:00.080 --> 0:01:00.600 types of bikes? 0:01:01.080 --> 0:01:01.200 Hi? 0:01:01.320 --> 0:01:04.000 This is Joel and Victoria. Thanks for listening to our 0:01:04.080 --> 0:01:06.560 podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. 0:01:06.760 --> 0:01:09.080 If you enjoy today's message, why don't you be a 0:01:09.120 --> 0:01:10.640 blessing and share it with a friend. 0:01:11.000 --> 0:01:13.680 We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in 0:01:13.760 --> 0:01:28.560 your life. God bless you always a joy to come 0:01:28.640 --> 0:01:31.840 into your homes. We love you. If you're ever in 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:34.160 our area, I hope you'll stop by and be a 0:01:34.240 --> 0:01:36.760 part of one of our services. I promise you we 0:01:36.840 --> 0:01:39.440 will all make you feel right at home. But thank 0:01:39.480 --> 0:01:42.160 you so much for tuning in today, and again thanks 0:01:42.200 --> 0:01:44.720 for coming out. I'd like to start with something funny, 0:01:44.760 --> 0:01:47.640 and this was sent to me from an attorney. I 0:01:47.760 --> 0:01:50.920 heard about these two men, the Pope and a lawyer. 0:01:51.440 --> 0:01:53.720 They were standing at the Pearly gates just got to 0:01:53.840 --> 0:01:56.360 Heaven and Saint Peter came up and said, men, follow 0:01:56.440 --> 0:01:59.280 me and I'll take you to your homes. Peter first 0:01:59.400 --> 0:02:03.120 dropped the Pope Paul at this very small house had 0:02:03.200 --> 0:02:06.400 one bed in one desk. Next, he took the lawyer 0:02:06.480 --> 0:02:10.239 to this huge house, a beautiful swimming pool in the backyard, 0:02:10.320 --> 0:02:14.519 a magnificent view, and the lawyer was overwhelmed. He said, Peter, 0:02:14.960 --> 0:02:18.000 how did I manage to have this magnificent place when 0:02:18.040 --> 0:02:21.679 the pope only has that small place. Peter said, we 0:02:21.840 --> 0:02:27.120 have dozens of popes. You're the first lawyer. All right, 0:02:27.440 --> 0:02:29.639 hold up your Bible. Say it like you mean it. 0:02:30.440 --> 0:02:33.280 This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. 0:02:33.760 --> 0:02:36.160 I have what it says I have. I can do 0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:38.880 what it says I can do. Today I will be 0:02:39.000 --> 0:02:43.040 taught the word of God. I boldly confess my mind 0:02:43.160 --> 0:02:46.440 is alert, my heart is receptive. I will never be 0:02:46.560 --> 0:02:51.000 the same. In Jesus' name, God bless you. I want 0:02:51.040 --> 0:02:55.200 to talk to you today about the commanded blessing. There 0:02:55.280 --> 0:02:57.639 is a blessing God has for every one of his 0:02:57.840 --> 0:03:02.400 children that will cause us to out of lack into abundance, 0:03:02.840 --> 0:03:06.639 out of barely getting by into the overflow level. This 0:03:06.880 --> 0:03:11.320 commanded blessing will bring supernatural increase, and if we're going 0:03:11.400 --> 0:03:15.320 to experience it, we have to have an abundant mentality. 0:03:16.080 --> 0:03:20.160 We were never created to drag through life and constantly struggle. 0:03:20.720 --> 0:03:23.760 When times get tough, It's easy to think I'll never 0:03:23.919 --> 0:03:26.799 have enough. This is all my parents had. It's never 0:03:26.960 --> 0:03:30.440 going to change. Now. Where you are is not where 0:03:30.520 --> 0:03:34.120 God wants you to stay. He has a commanded blessing 0:03:34.280 --> 0:03:37.320 in your future that can catapult you to a whole 0:03:37.400 --> 0:03:40.360 new level. You may be in the land of barely 0:03:40.600 --> 0:03:43.480 enough right now, but God wants to move you into 0:03:43.560 --> 0:03:47.120 the land of more than enough. And this commanded blessing 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:51.320 is found in Deuteronomy twenty eight. It talks about how 0:03:51.440 --> 0:03:54.080 if we will live a life that honors God and 0:03:54.240 --> 0:03:58.080 obey his word, then all these blessings will chase us 0:03:58.200 --> 0:04:03.400 down and overtake us. It lists blessing after blessing. It says, 0:04:03.840 --> 0:04:06.360 you will be blessed in the city and blessed in 0:04:06.480 --> 0:04:09.920 the country. God will open up to you his good 0:04:10.120 --> 0:04:13.800 treasury and cause you to lend and not borrow. He 0:04:13.920 --> 0:04:16.960 will make you plenteous in goods and give you a 0:04:17.200 --> 0:04:23.280 surplus of increase. Notice the words God uses plenteous surplus, 0:04:23.520 --> 0:04:27.440 his good treasury. Verse eight sums it up. The Lord 0:04:27.600 --> 0:04:32.480 will command the blessing to be on you and your storehouses, 0:04:32.839 --> 0:04:35.440 and all you put your hands to do. What is 0:04:35.520 --> 0:04:39.920 your storehouses, that's your business, your career, your bank, accounts now. 0:04:39.920 --> 0:04:41.800 I want you to get this down in your spirit. 0:04:42.160 --> 0:04:46.520 The creator of the universe has put a commanded blessing 0:04:46.600 --> 0:04:50.640 on you. When God commanded light to come, it came 0:04:50.880 --> 0:04:54.360 at one hundred and eighty six thousand miles per second. Friends, 0:04:54.480 --> 0:04:57.880 when God commands something, it's going to happen, and he 0:04:57.960 --> 0:05:01.640 has commanded you to increase. He's commanded you to prosper. 0:05:01.960 --> 0:05:06.440 He's commanded us to be above and not beneath. If 0:05:06.520 --> 0:05:09.760 we will get in agreement with God and not let 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.159 other people talk you out of it or your own 0:05:12.240 --> 0:05:14.680 thoughts talk you out of it, you will see this 0:05:14.839 --> 0:05:18.279 commanded blessing take you further than you ever thought possible. 0:05:19.160 --> 0:05:23.640 I know people in this congregation. Their tithe today ten 0:05:23.760 --> 0:05:28.000 percent of their income is more than their entire income 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:32.600 was just five years ago. That's the commanded blessing. They 0:05:32.720 --> 0:05:36.280 walked in obedience, they developed their gifts, they had a 0:05:36.360 --> 0:05:41.360 big vision, and just like God promised, his blessings overtook them. 0:05:41.960 --> 0:05:43.960 Some of you have been stuck at the same level 0:05:44.080 --> 0:05:47.400 year after year. But God is saying, I'm about to 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:50.920 take you where you have not gone before. You are 0:05:51.000 --> 0:05:54.880 going to see a flood of God's favor. Not a trickle, 0:05:55.040 --> 0:05:58.400 not a stream, not a river, but a flood of increase, 0:05:58.880 --> 0:06:02.560 a flood of God's gold goodness. That's the commanded blessing 0:06:02.880 --> 0:06:07.000 overtaking you. I have some friends in another city. They 0:06:07.080 --> 0:06:10.080 needed to sell their home. The housing market in that 0:06:10.240 --> 0:06:13.640 area was very depressed. A large company had gone out 0:06:13.680 --> 0:06:15.839 of business, and now there were a lot of homes 0:06:15.880 --> 0:06:19.440 for sale. In fact, on their street alone, there were 0:06:19.520 --> 0:06:22.760 twelve homes on the market. In the natural It looked 0:06:22.839 --> 0:06:25.520 like it could take a long long time, looked like 0:06:25.640 --> 0:06:29.040 it could go down and down. But instead of expecting 0:06:29.160 --> 0:06:32.640 the worst, thinking that it wouldn't sell, they believed they 0:06:32.720 --> 0:06:36.280 had this commanded blessing. Every morning they would say, Father, 0:06:36.800 --> 0:06:39.720 we want to thank you that you have put something 0:06:39.960 --> 0:06:42.760 on our house that will cause it to stand out, 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:47.080 something that will attract people to it. About six weeks 0:06:47.120 --> 0:06:49.479 after they put it on the market, they sold the home. 0:06:50.200 --> 0:06:52.280 One day, they were talking to the new owners and 0:06:52.720 --> 0:06:55.760 they told how they had looked at many other homes, 0:06:56.480 --> 0:06:59.560 even homes that seemed to be a better value in 0:06:59.600 --> 0:07:03.280 a better location, but they made the statement, when we 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:06.480 came into your home, there was something different about it. 0:07:06.920 --> 0:07:09.680 We immediately felt to peace and knew that it was 0:07:09.680 --> 0:07:14.160 supposed to be our home. That's the commanded blessing. I 0:07:14.280 --> 0:07:17.200 want you to realize God has put something on you. 0:07:18.000 --> 0:07:21.400 It talks about how all these blessings with an ass 0:07:21.600 --> 0:07:24.160 plural will overtake us. But then in verse eight it 0:07:24.240 --> 0:07:30.400 says God has commanded the blessing singular. That commanded blessing 0:07:30.880 --> 0:07:33.400 is what will cause your house to sell when others 0:07:33.400 --> 0:07:37.680 aren't selling. The commanded blessing is what will cause you 0:07:37.800 --> 0:07:42.120 to rise higher and increase when others are decreasing and 0:07:42.240 --> 0:07:45.480 having such a tough time. When we were in Kenya, 0:07:45.560 --> 0:07:49.960 Africa last year, we visited an orphanage. The family that 0:07:50.160 --> 0:07:53.800 ran this place are very great people. The father gave 0:07:53.960 --> 0:07:57.520 up this prestigious job of teaching at a university to 0:07:57.680 --> 0:08:01.160 come back and start the orphanage. He and his grown 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:04.840 children have about two hundred acres and they take care 0:08:04.880 --> 0:08:08.720 of around five hundred children. Their place is beautiful, the 0:08:08.840 --> 0:08:11.920 kids are happy. They've got a first class school. I 0:08:12.080 --> 0:08:14.720 was talking to him about their funding and how they 0:08:14.840 --> 0:08:19.600 raised support. He told how they were self sufficient. They 0:08:19.800 --> 0:08:23.360 farmed the land and that provides the food and nutrition 0:08:23.560 --> 0:08:27.040 for the children. In fact, they've been so successful. They 0:08:27.200 --> 0:08:29.960 sell some of the produce to the local grocery store. 0:08:30.480 --> 0:08:33.839 They bought a nice tractor, and when they're not using it, 0:08:33.960 --> 0:08:37.000 they rented out to help others. But he said, Joel, 0:08:37.040 --> 0:08:40.679 the funny thing is, when we bought this property, we 0:08:40.800 --> 0:08:44.120 were told that we couldn't produce any crops, that the 0:08:44.280 --> 0:08:47.719 soil was not good enough, there wasn't enough rain, and 0:08:47.880 --> 0:08:51.319 we would never be able to sustain ourself off this land. 0:08:52.080 --> 0:08:56.000 In fact, that's what's happening all around them. For miles 0:08:56.080 --> 0:09:00.240 and miles. People can't grow any crops. Experts have come 0:09:00.280 --> 0:09:02.760 over to their property to try to figure out what's 0:09:02.840 --> 0:09:06.400 different about their land. The university came out and took 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:11.120 soil samples and ran test. They cannot understand how their 0:09:11.280 --> 0:09:15.080 soil can be so rich and fertile, and right next 0:09:15.200 --> 0:09:18.959 door the soil is totally different. He smiled and said, 0:09:19.200 --> 0:09:24.600 that's the blessing of God. He is exactly right. That's 0:09:24.720 --> 0:09:29.520 Deuteronomy twenty eight, God commanding his property to be blessed, 0:09:29.800 --> 0:09:34.400 God making them plenteous in goods. When you walk in obedience, 0:09:34.640 --> 0:09:37.719 wherever you go, the blessing goes. You can be in 0:09:37.800 --> 0:09:41.240 a dry and a barren place. But when God commands 0:09:41.320 --> 0:09:44.520 that blessing on your life, you will flourish, even if 0:09:44.520 --> 0:09:47.040 you're out in the middle of a desert. That's what 0:09:47.200 --> 0:09:50.520 happened with Abraham. One time, he and all of his 0:09:50.679 --> 0:09:54.040 extended family and his flocks and herds, they moved to 0:09:54.160 --> 0:09:58.000 another part of the country. They found this beautiful piece 0:09:58.040 --> 0:10:03.240 of property with lush, green pastures and peaceful ponds. Looked 0:10:03.320 --> 0:10:06.800 like a postcard. They were so happy that after a 0:10:06.880 --> 0:10:10.040 few months, they realized that the land could not sustain 0:10:10.559 --> 0:10:14.160 the flocks and the herds, and just too many of them. 0:10:14.480 --> 0:10:18.120 So Abraham said to his nephew Lot, you choose where 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:20.640 you want to live, and I'll move somewhere else. And 0:10:20.760 --> 0:10:23.880 Lot chose to stay right there. He chose the best 0:10:23.960 --> 0:10:28.000 part of the land. Really, that wasn't right. Abraham was 0:10:28.080 --> 0:10:30.360 the leader, He was the reason why they were there 0:10:30.600 --> 0:10:33.560 in the first place. But Abraham took the high road 0:10:33.640 --> 0:10:36.079 and he moved to a different part of the country. 0:10:36.600 --> 0:10:39.400 But this time all he could find was a dry 0:10:39.720 --> 0:10:43.679 and bearing place instead of the lush, green pastures. It 0:10:43.840 --> 0:10:47.920 was just like the desert in the natural Abraham should 0:10:47.960 --> 0:10:51.959 have struggled and seen his crops and herds dwindle down 0:10:52.000 --> 0:10:55.079 to nothing, his business dry up. But do you know 0:10:55.280 --> 0:10:58.839 it was just the opposite. It wasn't any time before 0:10:58.920 --> 0:11:03.000 that dry bearing land was turned into a beautiful oasis. 0:11:03.600 --> 0:11:07.760 In fact, his crops and herds multiplied so much the 0:11:07.840 --> 0:11:12.600 scripture says that Abraham became the wealthiest man in all 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:16.199 of the East. What am I saying? Even if you're 0:11:16.280 --> 0:11:19.400 in the desert, when you have the commanded blessing of 0:11:19.520 --> 0:11:22.199 God on your life, you are still going to flourish. 0:11:22.800 --> 0:11:26.120 You can be in a down economy that doesn't affect 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:30.960 the commanded blessing. Psalm thirty seven says even in famine, 0:11:31.480 --> 0:11:35.600 the righteous will have more than enough, notice not barely enough, 0:11:36.160 --> 0:11:40.160 more than enough. Why is that? Because wherever you go, 0:11:40.800 --> 0:11:44.439 the blessing goes. Your company should be glad to have 0:11:44.600 --> 0:11:47.599 you at work tomorrow, because when you get there, the 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:53.000 blessing of God shows up. You may work around people 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:57.280 that are negative complainers. It feels kind of like the desert, 0:11:57.440 --> 0:11:59.880 like it's never going to change. But let me incur 0:12:00.360 --> 0:12:03.400 to just keep being your best. There is a commanded 0:12:03.520 --> 0:12:06.680 blessing on your life that will cause you to prosper 0:12:07.160 --> 0:12:10.880 in spite of the circumstances. I had a young lady 0:12:10.960 --> 0:12:13.760 tell me last week how she was having her best 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:17.040 year that she's ever had in her career. She's in 0:12:17.200 --> 0:12:20.600 some type of sels and she was so excited. Other 0:12:20.679 --> 0:12:24.120 people in the office are down. The industry in general 0:12:24.360 --> 0:12:27.400 is slow, but she said, Joel, it seems like every 0:12:27.480 --> 0:12:30.840 time I turn around, a new client is coming my way. 0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:34.480 She explained how on three or four occasions she was 0:12:34.559 --> 0:12:38.959 at the right place at the right time, unexpectedly business 0:12:39.120 --> 0:12:42.480 was dropped into her lap. She made the statement, I'm 0:12:42.559 --> 0:12:45.319 supposed to go out and find customers, but it's just 0:12:45.520 --> 0:12:48.599 like customers are always trying to find me. That's the 0:12:48.800 --> 0:12:53.360 commanded blessing. Even in famine, she has more than enough. 0:12:55.240 --> 0:12:57.240 One thing I can tell you about this young lady 0:12:57.400 --> 0:13:01.000 is she's a giver. She volunteers at the church. She 0:13:01.160 --> 0:13:05.520 gives her time, gives her resources. She's honoring God. And 0:13:05.559 --> 0:13:08.760 that's what the scripture says. When you obey God's word 0:13:09.280 --> 0:13:13.800 because of the commanded blessing on your life, increase and 0:13:13.960 --> 0:13:17.480 promotion is going to chase you down. Not just in 0:13:17.600 --> 0:13:22.199 the good times when the economy's up and everybody's doing great, No, 0:13:22.440 --> 0:13:26.800 even in the slow seasons, you can expect Jehovah Jirah 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:31.080 to show up and increase you in spite of the circumstances. 0:13:32.120 --> 0:13:36.240 Now here's the key. Don't let the negative news talk 0:13:36.320 --> 0:13:39.599 you out of having a good year. Don't let the 0:13:39.679 --> 0:13:45.280 critics and the naysayers convince you into having a survival mentality, thinking, Oh, man, 0:13:45.320 --> 0:13:47.640 if I can just make it through, if I can 0:13:47.800 --> 0:13:52.000 just survive this next two years. No. God never created 0:13:52.080 --> 0:13:55.400 us to survive. He created us to thrive, to have 0:13:55.760 --> 0:14:00.400 more than enough, even in famine. Every morning, before you 0:14:00.559 --> 0:14:03.439 leave the house, you should say, Father, I want to 0:14:03.559 --> 0:14:06.560 thank you that you are blessing the work of my hands. 0:14:07.080 --> 0:14:11.160 Thank you that you are increasing my storehouses. Thank you 0:14:11.240 --> 0:14:14.760 that you're making me plenteous in goods. Father, you said 0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:18.920 you would open up your good treasury and rain down favor. 0:14:19.280 --> 0:14:22.440 So Father, I'm expecting your goodness in my life today. 0:14:23.400 --> 0:14:28.040 Get your mind going in the right direction. Live abundant minded, 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:32.320 not barely get by minded. Friends, God has put something 0:14:32.440 --> 0:14:36.960 on you that the enemy can't stop. The economy can't stop, 0:14:37.480 --> 0:14:42.280 bad soil can't stop. Negative people can't stop. When God commands, 0:14:42.560 --> 0:14:46.560 it's going to happen. And God has commanded us to increase. 0:14:47.160 --> 0:14:50.480 Here's why God wants you to be an example of 0:14:50.600 --> 0:14:55.040 his goodness. He wants you to be so blessed, so talented, 0:14:55.200 --> 0:14:58.280 so sharp that when other people see you, they want 0:14:58.360 --> 0:15:02.160 what you have. The Old Testament, they would pray to 0:15:02.280 --> 0:15:06.360 the God of Abraham. They thought, Abraham is so successful, 0:15:06.760 --> 0:15:09.600 he has so much favor. If we can just get 0:15:09.680 --> 0:15:13.200 to his God, then everything will be all right. That's 0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:15.640 what I want people to say about us. If I 0:15:15.720 --> 0:15:18.640 can just get to the God of those people at Lakewood, 0:15:18.960 --> 0:15:22.880 they are so blessed, so prosperous, so generous, so kind, 0:15:23.080 --> 0:15:25.480 so peaceful. That's the God I want to pray too. 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:30.240 That's what the scripture says. That God will increase us 0:15:30.720 --> 0:15:34.040 in such incredible ways that the whole world will know 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:38.320 we serve the most high God. The Message translation puts 0:15:38.360 --> 0:15:42.440 it this way. God will lavish you with good things. 0:15:43.120 --> 0:15:46.280 He will throw open the doors of his sky vaults 0:15:46.800 --> 0:15:49.960 and pour down rain on your land, and bless the 0:15:50.080 --> 0:15:53.360 work of your hands. You will always be the top 0:15:53.560 --> 0:15:57.360 dog and never the bottom dog. I bet you didn't 0:15:57.360 --> 0:16:01.080 think that was in the scripture. I know today I 0:16:01.200 --> 0:16:05.200 am looking at a bunch of top dogs now some 0:16:05.440 --> 0:16:09.440 of you. If you would just start seeing yourself as 0:16:09.520 --> 0:16:13.080 the top dog, you would experience a new wave of 0:16:13.160 --> 0:16:16.960 God's favor. You are not average, you are not mediocre. 0:16:17.600 --> 0:16:22.720 Almighty God has put something on you that makes you extraordinary. 0:16:23.160 --> 0:16:26.080 It's his commanded blessing. Now you've got to put your 0:16:26.160 --> 0:16:30.960 shoulders back and start expecting not a trickle, not a stream, 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:34.480 not a river, but a flood of God's favor. He 0:16:34.640 --> 0:16:38.000 wants to increase you in such a way that everybody 0:16:38.160 --> 0:16:42.320 around you knows you serve the most high God. That's 0:16:42.360 --> 0:16:44.880 what he did to the people of Israel. They'd been 0:16:44.920 --> 0:16:49.000 in slavery for a long long time. Finally Phro decided 0:16:49.040 --> 0:16:52.920 to let them go. As they were leaving, God instructed 0:16:53.000 --> 0:16:56.440 them to ask the enemy for their gold, their silver, 0:16:56.880 --> 0:17:00.360 or their treasure. That didn't seem to make sense, what 0:17:00.520 --> 0:17:03.520 would make them think their captors would want to give 0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:08.040 them something. But the scripture says God put favor on 0:17:08.160 --> 0:17:12.560 the Israelites, and their enemy gave them everything that they 0:17:12.680 --> 0:17:17.520 asked for. What happened. God puts something on them. And 0:17:17.640 --> 0:17:21.920 in the same way God puts something on you. Not defeat, 0:17:22.160 --> 0:17:25.320 not lack, not barely get by. God has put a 0:17:25.480 --> 0:17:29.960 commanded blessing, a blessing that will cause people, even for 0:17:30.160 --> 0:17:32.760 no apparent reason, to want to be good to you. 0:17:33.880 --> 0:17:36.920 I remember a few years back, our little daughter Alexandra 0:17:37.280 --> 0:17:40.400 wanted a cell phone. I promised her i'd get her one, 0:17:40.520 --> 0:17:42.800 and after school one day she asked if we could 0:17:42.840 --> 0:17:45.440 go to the store. And I didn't really feel like going, 0:17:45.520 --> 0:17:47.560 but since I told her I would, I said, okay, 0:17:47.640 --> 0:17:51.040 let's go. Our son, Jonathan, he was about eight years 0:17:51.040 --> 0:17:52.680 old at the time, he said, Daddy, I want to 0:17:52.720 --> 0:17:55.960 go too. I said, that's great, Jonathan, but you've already 0:17:56.040 --> 0:17:58.080 got a phone. We're not going to get you one. 0:17:58.160 --> 0:18:01.119 We're getting one for little Alexandra. He says, I know, Daddy, 0:18:01.119 --> 0:18:03.200 I just want to look. Of course, I know what 0:18:03.320 --> 0:18:07.040 that means. Look, Daddy, here's the phone I want. As 0:18:07.080 --> 0:18:10.480 we were getting ready, Victoria heard the commotion in there 0:18:10.520 --> 0:18:12.439 and asked where we were going. Told her we were 0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:14.719 going up to the cell phone's store, and she said, well, 0:18:14.720 --> 0:18:16.320 I don't want to stay here by myself. I'm going 0:18:16.359 --> 0:18:18.959 to come too, And turned out to be a family affair. 0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:21.440 And we got to the store and the man that 0:18:21.560 --> 0:18:24.720 waited on us was very kind and very helpful. He 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:28.080 had the exact phone that Alexander wanted, the exact color, 0:18:28.119 --> 0:18:31.359 and she was so happy. Then Jonathan came up and said, Daddy, 0:18:31.680 --> 0:18:34.000 this is the phone I really want to get, and 0:18:34.359 --> 0:18:37.080 I've got enough money saved up i can buy it myself. 0:18:37.280 --> 0:18:39.840 I said, no, Jonathan, your phone is not even a 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:43.200 year old. That would be a waste. The salesman overheard 0:18:43.280 --> 0:18:46.720 us talking and he asked to see Jonathan's phone. He 0:18:46.840 --> 0:18:49.840 took it and plugged something into the computer and told 0:18:49.920 --> 0:18:51.880 us that for one hundred and fifty dollars we could 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:54.320 upgrade his phone to a new one. I said, no, 0:18:54.440 --> 0:18:56.800 we don't want to do that. That just wouldn't be right. 0:18:57.240 --> 0:19:00.440 Then he asked to see my phone, so I gave 0:19:00.520 --> 0:19:03.080 him my phone and he ran those numbers. He said, 0:19:03.200 --> 0:19:05.840 in six months you'll be due for a free phone, 0:19:06.359 --> 0:19:08.240 but if you'd like to have it right now, i'll 0:19:08.280 --> 0:19:10.720 give it to you today. Well, I couldn't pass up 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:15.280 that offer, and so I gave Jonathan the new phone, 0:19:15.400 --> 0:19:17.639 and I took Jonathan's phone. Like I said, it was 0:19:17.720 --> 0:19:20.040 barely even a year old. And as we were about 0:19:20.080 --> 0:19:22.480 to leave, he looked at Victoria and said, young lady, 0:19:22.560 --> 0:19:26.119 what kind of phone do you have. We had already 0:19:26.240 --> 0:19:29.000 checked it would be a couple hundred dollars to upgrade hers, 0:19:29.040 --> 0:19:31.880 and hers was only about eight months old. And I said, 0:19:31.920 --> 0:19:34.919 thank you, You've been so kind to us, But no thanks. 0:19:35.480 --> 0:19:38.320 He looked at me and said, very sternly, she is 0:19:38.440 --> 0:19:42.960 not leaving here without a new phone. I thought to myself, 0:19:43.000 --> 0:19:46.399 you cannot make me buy a phone. I wanted to say, 0:19:46.440 --> 0:19:51.400 you're not the boss of me. He looked at his assistant. 0:19:51.800 --> 0:19:53.720 I found out he was the manager. He looked at 0:19:53.760 --> 0:19:57.840 his assistant and said, just give her a phone. That 0:19:57.960 --> 0:20:00.080 assistant looked at him strange. He said, you mean and 0:20:00.200 --> 0:20:03.080 give like free? Said yes, give her a free phone. 0:20:03.600 --> 0:20:07.240 We walked out that day with three brand new phones, 0:20:07.800 --> 0:20:11.080 and I'd only paid for one phone, and it was 0:20:11.160 --> 0:20:11.760 all legal. 0:20:15.160 --> 0:20:15.520 I was. 0:20:17.440 --> 0:20:20.919 I was scratching my head, thinking, what in the world happened? 0:20:21.760 --> 0:20:26.359 Just like the Israelites, God put favor on us and 0:20:26.520 --> 0:20:29.040 cause somebody we didn't even know to want to be 0:20:29.119 --> 0:20:32.840 good to us. That's a part of that commanded blessings, 0:20:33.040 --> 0:20:36.679 blessings that just chase you down and overtake you. Now, 0:20:36.720 --> 0:20:41.040 I don't say this, I don't say this arrogantly. But 0:20:41.160 --> 0:20:45.320 I go out each day expecting God's favor. I'm expecting 0:20:45.400 --> 0:20:48.480 people to want to be good to me. I'm expecting 0:20:48.800 --> 0:20:53.359 extraordinary opportunities, not because of who I am, but because 0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:56.320 of whose I am, a child of the Most High God. 0:20:56.480 --> 0:21:00.520 And I realized God has commanded us to be blessed. 0:21:01.119 --> 0:21:04.600 There is something on you right now that attracts good 0:21:04.680 --> 0:21:08.520 breaks just like a magnet. It attracts increase and promotion. 0:21:09.000 --> 0:21:12.800 It's the commanded blessing. But too many people go around 0:21:12.920 --> 0:21:16.080 just hoping to survive and hoping to make it through. 0:21:16.640 --> 0:21:19.840 Now you've got to change what you're expecting. Having a 0:21:19.920 --> 0:21:24.640 barely get by mentality will stop the commanded blessing. God 0:21:24.800 --> 0:21:27.760 is moved by our faith. When you go out each 0:21:27.880 --> 0:21:31.240 day knowing that you have an advantage, that the creator 0:21:31.280 --> 0:21:33.639 of the universe has put something on you, and you 0:21:33.800 --> 0:21:38.200 live abundant minded, plenteous minded, more than enough minded, you're 0:21:38.240 --> 0:21:40.960 going to see God show up and do amazing things. 0:21:42.040 --> 0:21:45.199 One Kings, chapter seventeen, there's the story of a widow. 0:21:45.800 --> 0:21:49.240 She's a single parent mother. All of her funds have 0:21:49.400 --> 0:21:52.720 run out. She doesn't have any income. Now she goes 0:21:52.760 --> 0:21:55.640 out to get some firewood, and she's going to cook 0:21:55.760 --> 0:21:59.159 the last little bit of food that she has. It 0:21:59.280 --> 0:22:02.440 looks like she and her son will have their final meal. 0:22:03.000 --> 0:22:06.240 But while she's out there, she runs into an old friend. 0:22:06.680 --> 0:22:10.840 It's the prophet Elijah of all things. He says, I 0:22:10.960 --> 0:22:13.920 am so hungry. Would you do me a favor and 0:22:14.040 --> 0:22:17.480 make me something to eat? She said, sure, I will, Elijah. 0:22:17.840 --> 0:22:20.680 But the truth is, this is the last food that 0:22:20.800 --> 0:22:23.719 we have. I was going to cook it for my family, 0:22:23.800 --> 0:22:28.080 but we'll share it with you. Notice her attitude despite 0:22:28.160 --> 0:22:33.600 the desperate circumstances. She wasn't selfish, She wasn't despondent. Deep down, 0:22:33.880 --> 0:22:37.000 she knew that God was in complete control. She went 0:22:37.080 --> 0:22:39.399 to the container and poured out her last bit of 0:22:39.480 --> 0:22:43.400 flour and her last bit of oil and made Elijah 0:22:43.480 --> 0:22:46.520 something to eat. She and her son ate something as well. 0:22:47.200 --> 0:22:49.840 The next day, out of curiosity, she went back and 0:22:49.960 --> 0:22:52.919 opened to the container, and much to her surprise, there 0:22:53.040 --> 0:22:55.720 was some flour in there. There was some oil in 0:22:55.840 --> 0:23:00.480 the other container. Day after day, month after month, that 0:23:00.720 --> 0:23:04.920 flower and that oil never ran out. God multiplied what 0:23:05.119 --> 0:23:07.959 she had. When you look at your situation, you may 0:23:08.080 --> 0:23:10.800 think I don't see how I'm going to make it. 0:23:11.600 --> 0:23:14.359 You've run the numbers. You know what's coming in, you 0:23:14.480 --> 0:23:17.040 know what's going out. It looks like you're going to 0:23:17.119 --> 0:23:21.640 go under. But just like this lady, because you're honoring God, 0:23:22.240 --> 0:23:25.800 because you're a giver, there is a commanded blessing on 0:23:25.960 --> 0:23:30.280 your life. God is going to multiply your resources. He's 0:23:30.359 --> 0:23:33.160 going to cause what you have to go further. He's 0:23:33.240 --> 0:23:35.760 going to help you find the best deals. He's going 0:23:35.840 --> 0:23:39.439 to give you unexpected increase to where you look up 0:23:39.520 --> 0:23:42.080 and say, like her, I don't know how this happened. 0:23:42.359 --> 0:23:45.200 It doesn't make sense on paper, but look at me today. 0:23:45.359 --> 0:23:49.080 I'm blessed. I'm prosperous with more than enough for in. 0:23:49.280 --> 0:23:53.639 Supernatural provision is a part of this commanded blessing. David 0:23:53.720 --> 0:23:57.160 said it like this. I was young, but now I'm old, 0:23:57.560 --> 0:24:00.800 and I've never once seen God's children begging for bread. 0:24:01.680 --> 0:24:03.760 But some of you have been stuck at the same 0:24:03.920 --> 0:24:07.320 level for a long time. You've struggled with lack and 0:24:07.920 --> 0:24:11.440 barely getting by, and it's been in your family for generations. 0:24:12.040 --> 0:24:15.159 You don't realize it, but that's been programmed into your 0:24:15.280 --> 0:24:18.080 thinking to where you think that that's normal. It's all 0:24:18.160 --> 0:24:21.000 you've ever seen, and if you don't rise up and 0:24:21.160 --> 0:24:25.320 break that stronghold, it'll continue to get passed from generation 0:24:25.640 --> 0:24:29.800 to generation. Now I've learned you have to have abundance 0:24:29.920 --> 0:24:33.919 on the inside before you'll ever have abundance on the outside. 0:24:34.560 --> 0:24:38.280 If you think lack and barely get by, and I'll 0:24:38.320 --> 0:24:41.440 never be successful. And Joel, I like what you're saying, 0:24:41.480 --> 0:24:43.760 but you don't know my family, you don't know what 0:24:43.840 --> 0:24:47.000 I'm up against. That kind of thinking will set the 0:24:47.080 --> 0:24:51.280 limits for your life. I heard somebody say lack is 0:24:51.400 --> 0:24:55.920 going to leave God's people like leprosy left the lepers 0:24:55.960 --> 0:24:59.200 of old. And if you study the scripture, you'll find 0:24:59.320 --> 0:25:03.080 that lepress he was always in a person. We think 0:25:03.160 --> 0:25:07.080 of leprosy as being on a person, an outside skin disease, 0:25:07.480 --> 0:25:11.040 but when Jesus healed the lepers on several different occasions, 0:25:11.320 --> 0:25:15.520 it says that leprosy departed out of the person. It 0:25:15.680 --> 0:25:18.200 was on the inside. That's the way it is with 0:25:18.480 --> 0:25:22.920 lack and not having enough. It manifests on the outside, 0:25:23.200 --> 0:25:26.080 but the root cause is on the inside. And if 0:25:26.119 --> 0:25:29.640 you will break these strongholds that are telling you you've 0:25:29.680 --> 0:25:31.840 gone as far as you can go, this is all 0:25:31.920 --> 0:25:35.080 your parents had. You'll never get any good breaks, You'll 0:25:35.119 --> 0:25:37.960 never get any better. No, those are all lies from 0:25:38.040 --> 0:25:41.600 the enemy. Some of you have had lack ingrained in 0:25:41.720 --> 0:25:46.840 your thinking. It's been programmed into the inside year after year. 0:25:47.520 --> 0:25:52.560 But I believe and declare today, just like leprosy left 0:25:52.640 --> 0:25:56.240 the lepers of old, right now, in the name of Jesus, 0:25:56.600 --> 0:26:00.719 that spirit of lack is leaving you as you hear 0:26:00.840 --> 0:26:06.080 the truth. The truth is making you free. Strongholds are 0:26:06.160 --> 0:26:10.040 being broken. You may have struggled for a long time, 0:26:10.400 --> 0:26:13.320 but this is a new day. God is moving you 0:26:13.560 --> 0:26:16.560 out of the land of barely enough. He's bringing you 0:26:16.720 --> 0:26:19.439 into the land of more than enough. Now you need 0:26:19.520 --> 0:26:23.320 to get ready for increase, get ready for new opportunities, 0:26:23.640 --> 0:26:28.040 get ready for supernatural breaks. God is saying to us 0:26:28.320 --> 0:26:31.320 what he said to his people in Deuteronomy eight. I 0:26:31.440 --> 0:26:34.640 am bringing you into a land where you will eat 0:26:34.760 --> 0:26:39.440 bread without scarceness, a land where you will not lack anything, 0:26:40.119 --> 0:26:43.960 the amplified says, a land with no shortage. God is 0:26:44.040 --> 0:26:47.520 bringing us into the land of no lack, the land 0:26:47.720 --> 0:26:50.640 of no shortage, not the land of barely get by. 0:26:51.119 --> 0:26:53.680 Now we're coming into the land of more than enough. 0:26:54.200 --> 0:26:56.680 Now let me challenge you to do your part and 0:26:56.920 --> 0:27:00.119 get lack out of your spirit. Don't go around I'm 0:27:00.119 --> 0:27:03.800 thinking I'll never have enough, I'll never rise any higher. 0:27:03.920 --> 0:27:07.120 Business is just too bad. Don't ever say I can't 0:27:07.160 --> 0:27:10.760 afford it. It's just too much. I'll never make it. Now, 0:27:10.800 --> 0:27:12.680 if you have a poor mouth, you're going to have 0:27:12.720 --> 0:27:17.159 a poor life. Our attitude should be I am a 0:27:17.359 --> 0:27:21.240 no lack person. I'm not lacking when I need to 0:27:21.280 --> 0:27:24.159 pay my bills. I'm not lacking when I want to 0:27:24.200 --> 0:27:27.080 bless others. I'm not lacking when I want to send 0:27:27.119 --> 0:27:29.840 my children to college. I'm not lacking when I want 0:27:29.880 --> 0:27:32.560 to build a nicer home. I'm not lacking when I 0:27:32.600 --> 0:27:37.399 want to support those missionaries. I am a no lack person. Friends, 0:27:37.920 --> 0:27:43.560 I'm asking you today to have an abundant mentality. God 0:27:43.640 --> 0:27:46.920 has amazing things in your future. He's already put a 0:27:47.040 --> 0:27:50.000 commanded blessing on your life. And if you will do 0:27:50.119 --> 0:27:53.600 your best to honor him and get in agreement with God, 0:27:54.200 --> 0:27:56.840 then let me just declare what's going to happen. God 0:27:57.000 --> 0:27:59.520 is going to open up to you his good treasury 0:28:00.080 --> 0:28:03.680 and reiin down favor like you've never seen before. God 0:28:03.840 --> 0:28:06.840 is going to make you plenteous in goods and give 0:28:06.920 --> 0:28:10.560 you a surplus of increase. He's going to bless the 0:28:10.720 --> 0:28:14.959 work of your hands. You're going to see supernatural provision 0:28:15.840 --> 0:28:18.439 where your resources are going to go further than they 0:28:18.480 --> 0:28:22.119 should have on their own. Even in famine, even in 0:28:22.240 --> 0:28:25.160 a slow season, you're going to have more than enough. 0:28:25.760 --> 0:28:29.399 God is going to cause your storehouses to overflow in 0:28:29.520 --> 0:28:34.240 such amazing ways. Everybody around you will know you serve 0:28:34.320 --> 0:28:37.200 the most high God. I believe it and declare it 0:28:37.280 --> 0:28:40.560 over each one of you in Jesus' name. Come on, 0:28:40.720 --> 0:28:42.360 give the Lord of shatter phrase today. 0:28:45.640 --> 0:28:48.440 Thank you for listening to the Joel los Deine podcast. 0:28:48.840 --> 0:28:51.440 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:28:51.600 --> 0:28:55.520 those all over the world. Visit joelostin dot com slash 0:28:55.680 --> 0:28:57.600 give Hope to give a gift today. 0:28:58.960 --> 0:29:01.840 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:29:01.880 --> 0:29:05.200 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:29:05.320 --> 0:29:08.480 keep you inspired all through the week. We're praying for you. 0:29:08.680 --> 0:29:11.120 I know God's best is still ahead. We'll see you 0:29:11.240 --> 0:29:11.680 next time. 0:29:23.360 --> 0:29:26.080 With millions of books on Amazon, there's a reading feeling 0:29:26.160 --> 0:29:30.640 for everyone. 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