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How Did I Get Here?

Ciera Nichole Thomas Preached on 12/5/2023Exodus 3:1-15

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Summary

Ciera Nichole Thomas explores the story of Moses at the burning bush to remind us that even when we feel lost or disqualified by our past, God is using our current situation as a holy setup for a greater assignment.

Key points
  • •Seasons of isolation or difficulty, like Moses in Midian, are often God's workplace for preparation rather than punishment for past mistakes.
  • •Distractions are a primary weapon of the enemy; staying focused on God's 'burning bush' moments is essential to receiving your assignment.
  • •God qualifies the called by addressing their insecurities with His identity (the I AM), ensuring His glory is revealed through human weakness.
  • •An individual's assignment is rarely just about them; it is about the deliverance of the people and generations attached to their obedience.
  • •Authority in Christ does not require human permission because it was already purchased through the sacrifice of Jesus.
Scripture
Purpose
Authority
Discipleship
Spiritual Growth
Grace
Life application

Identify one 'distraction' (a relationship, habit, or fear) that is drawing you away from God's presence, and intentionally set it aside this week to focus on the specific assignment He has placed in your heart.

Reflection questions
  1. In what ways does your current 'wilderness' feel more like a punishment than a preparation? How can you shift that perspective today?
  2. What 'Who am I?' excuses are you giving God to avoid the assignment He has set before you?
  3. How would your confidence change if you truly believed that the 'I AM' was standing in your current situation with you?
  4. Are there areas in your life where you are waiting for human permission to do something God has already authorized you to do?
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Full transcript
0:00Come on, make a big noise and with the
0:02clapping of your hands, welcome Sierra
0:05Thomas. Come on.
0:07Let's thank God for her.
0:09And show her some love.
0:19Well, Faith Center, that was good for
0:20me, but can we give a shout of praise
0:22for the God that we serve this morning?
0:25Can we give a shout of praise for the
0:26God that woke us up?
0:29That gave us breath in our lungs today,
0:30that made us able to walk in the
0:32building.
0:33Can we give it up for the God that we
0:35serve this morning?
0:38I don't know about you, but I'm
0:39grateful.
0:41I don't know about you, but I'm grateful
0:44that we serve a God
0:46that we serve a God that gives us grace
0:49and mercy that is new day and day again.
0:53Faith Center family, good morning, good
0:56morning, good morning. It is so good to
0:58be in the house with you all today.
1:01As Bishop Hardie stated, I am coming all
1:04the way from Richmond, Virginia, from
1:07the Life Church RVA, and I am so excited
1:10to be with you all. It would be remiss
1:12of me to not honor the leaders of this
1:15house, your pastors, Bishop Henry and
1:17Carol Fernandez.
1:24I had the opportunity of speaking with
1:26him earlier this week on a Zoom call,
1:29and there's just something about certain
1:31people when the Holy Spirit, when you
1:33talk to them, you know the Holy Spirit
1:34in you just leaps.
1:36It was like in scripture when Mary went
1:38to Elizabeth and it said the baby inside
1:40of her leaped. It was the spirit of God
1:42inside of me that leaped. I knew that
1:43this man had a heart not only for God,
1:45but a heart for his church.
1:48Your Bishop loves you all. Your Bishop
1:51loves you all.
1:55And so, Bishop, today I just want to say
1:56thank you. I honor you.
1:58I'm so grateful to be in this place. I'm
2:00so grateful that you would trust me with
2:02your sheep, with your people. And I
2:04believe that God is going to do
2:06something incredible. I do want to shout
2:07out my home team, the Life Church RVA,
2:09my pastors Vernon and Ashley Gordon.
2:12Thank you so much. I love them so much.
2:14I am part of the woman that I am today
2:16because of them. Yes, you can give it up
2:18for them. They're incredible and I'm so
2:19excited that they would let me come and
2:22be with you all today. I'm super
2:23excited. I do want to honor my mom.
2:26She's in the room. I'm thankful for her.
2:29I'm so thankful for her.
2:32My friends, listen, I just I had to
2:33shout out my village. How many knows
2:34it's it takes a village to raise some
2:36people. It takes a village to raise some
2:38people.
2:40I think God knew when he created me it
2:42was certainly going to take a village. I
2:44am a daughter of two parents parents who
2:46had me at 18 and 19. So my grandparents
2:49had to step in and they all collectively
2:52brought me up and so I am just thankful
2:54for the grandparents. Any grandparents
2:56in the room?
2:57I'm just
2:58There's a special place in heaven for
3:00you guys. I'm so thankful.
3:02But I'm also one of those kids that has
3:04to go to seven or eight houses on
3:06Thanksgiving and Christmas because
3:07everybody is remarried and divorced and
3:09got other family and so pray for us in
3:12this holiday season as we are traveling.
3:15We did it with Thanksgiving and now we
3:16have part two, Christmas and then we're
3:18going on into the New Year's. Family,
3:20you all can go ahead and have your
3:22seats. Thank you so much
3:25for your welcome.
3:27It feels good
3:29in this place
3:31today.
3:33It feels so good in this place today.
3:35Well, I believe the Lord has a word for
3:37this house this morning.
3:40When I got the call from Bishop in
3:41August that he wanted me to come and be
3:44with you all today, I immediately
3:46started preparing because I just was
3:48like, Lord, you you've given me this
3:49opportunity. I want to steward it well
3:52and I wanted to prepare it, and I
3:53started writing a sermon that I thought
3:56was going to be perfect for this house.
3:58I started writing a sermon that I just
4:00knew. I said, "This is the one. This is
4:01it."
4:02And family, would you know,
4:04God being God,
4:06on Monday
4:08of this week,
4:09tapped me on my shoulder and said, "No,
4:11I have something else for the house."
4:13I said, "God, no.
4:15I've been preparing for months. What do
4:16you mean you have something else?"
4:18And he said, "I have a word specific for
4:22the faith center. Whether you're in this
4:23room today or whether you're watching
4:25online,
4:27know that you serve an intentional God
4:30that knew exactly what you needed
4:33and cares so much about you. Loves Loves
4:35you so much that he said, "I need to
4:37make sure that they get this word."
4:40And so, I am so excited and so eager for
4:42what I believe God is getting ready to
4:44do. Are you all ready?
4:47All right. All right. Will you take your
4:48attention with me to the book of Exodus?
4:51We'll be reading from the third chapter,
4:54verses 1
4:56through 15. Exodus 3,
5:00verse 1 through 15. And it reads as
5:02this, "Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding
5:04the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro,
5:06the priest of Midian. He led the flock
5:09to the far side of the wilderness and
5:10came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Then
5:13the angel of the Lord appeared to him in
5:15a flame of fire within a bush. As Moses
5:18looked, he saw that bush was on fire but
5:20was not consumed. So, Moses thought, 'I
5:23must go over go over and look at this
5:25remarkable sight. Why isn't this bush
5:27burning up?' When the Lord saw that he
5:30had gone over to look, God called out to
5:31him from the bush, 'Moses, Moses.' 'Here
5:35I am,' he answered. 'Do not come
5:37closer,' he said. 'Remove the sandals
5:39from your feet, for the place where you
5:41are standing is holy ground.' Then he
5:44continued, 'I am the God of your father,
5:46the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
5:48and the God of Jacob. Moses hid his face
5:51because he was afraid to look at God.
5:53Then the Lord said, I have observed the
5:56misery of my people in Egypt and have
5:58heard them crying out because of their
6:01oppressors, and I know about their
6:02sufferings, and I have come down to
6:04rescue them from the power of the
6:06Egyptians and to bring them from that
6:08land to a good and spacious land, a land
6:10flowing with milk and honey, the
6:13territory of the Canaanites, Hittites,
6:15Amorites Perizzites Hivites and
6:17Jebusites. So, because the Israelites'
6:20cry for help has come to me, and I have
6:22also seen the way the Egyptians are
6:23oppressing them, therefore go. I am
6:26sending you to Pharaoh so that you may
6:29lead my people, the Israelites, out of
6:31Egypt. But Moses asked, "Who am I that I
6:36should go to Pharaoh and that I should
6:38bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" God
6:40answered, "I will certainly be with you,
6:42and this will be the sign to you that I
6:45am the one who sent you. When you bring
6:47the people out of Egypt, you will all
6:49worship God at this mountain." Then
6:51Moses asked, "If I go to the Israelites
6:53and say to them, 'The God of your
6:55fathers has sent me to you,' and they
6:56ask me, 'What is his name?' what should
6:58I tell them?"
7:00God replied to Moses, "I am who I am.
7:05This is what you are to say to the
7:06Israelites, 'I am has sent me to you.'"
7:10God also said to Moses, "Say this to the
7:11Israelites, 'The Lord, the God of your
7:13fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of
7:15Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me
7:17to you. This is my name forever. This is
7:21how I am to be remembered in every
7:25generation.'"
7:27Could you turn to your neighbor and ask
7:28them this question,
7:30"How did I get here?"
7:35"How did I get here?"
7:40Dear heavenly Father, Lord God, we thank
7:42you, Lord, that your spirit is already
7:44in this place. God, I thank you that you
7:46have already begun to do a work, Father
7:48God, in this room, Father God, in the
7:50hearts of your people. God, now I just
7:52pray that your spirit would rise up.
7:54Lord, in this moment that they would see
7:56less of me and more of you. Lord God, I
7:58decrease as you increase, Lord. May this
8:00word resonate and land in the hearts of
8:02your people just the way you gave it to
8:04me. God, I love you. God, I give you
8:05glory. I give you honor and praise. In
8:07Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.
8:11Family, have you ever found yourself in
8:14a situation
8:15that you had to look up and just be
8:17like, "How did I get here?"
8:21"How did I get here?" The relationship
8:24that you were in, you thought it was
8:25going to go a certain way, but now it's
8:27left you in a season of heartbreak. The
8:30people that you were calling friend,
8:32that you thought were going to be
8:33rocking with you for a long time,
8:34started to act a little funny. And it's
8:36like, "How did I get here?" A place that
8:40was once comfortable for you is now
8:42starting to be uncomfortable.
8:45Or maybe you're like Moses, who one day
8:48found himself standing in the middle of
8:50an assignment that he did not ask for.
8:55"Lord how
8:56did I get here?"
8:59There's nothing like ending up in a
9:01place that you had no intention being.
9:05I personally experience this a lot at
9:07Target. Um I don't know about you or I
9:10don't know about Florida, but in
9:12Virginia, there's just something on
9:14Target. Every time I go in there, I'm in
9:16there for just one thing, but I end up
9:18in the candle aisle, I end up in the
9:20home decor aisle, I end up at the
9:23checkout line only going in there for
9:25hair products or something small,
9:26spending $100. Is the Target like that
9:28here for y'all, too? Cuz I I don't know.
9:31There's something on Target, but I'm
9:32just like, "Lord, how did I get here?"
9:36See, when I put in my GPS the location
9:39to get to Target and I pulled up at this
9:41big tan building and I see the words
9:43Target on the side, I was not surprised.
9:46But when I looked at my bank account
9:49and I saw that I was no longer in the
9:51same financial position that I used to
9:53be in,
9:54I had to start reflecting on the
9:56transactions that had taken place that
9:59led me here.
10:01And that's such an uncomfortable
10:03question because what it does is it
10:05causes us to remember why we're even
10:07asking the question in the first place.
10:10What did I go through that got me here?
10:14What person did I end up getting
10:16connected with that drew me away and I
10:18thought I was supposed to be going
10:19closer? What business opportunity did
10:22did I accept that I didn't even pray and
10:24ask God for?
10:26How
10:28did I get here? What happened to me that
10:31put me in this position? And maybe that
10:34has been your question in this season.
10:37Here we are in the month of December.
10:39We've been talking about we have 28 days
10:41left until the end of the year. And
10:43maybe some of you at the top were
10:45saying, "I'm going to write a book." God
10:47gave you a vision to do a thing. And on
10:48January 1st, it was so strong in your
10:50heart, but here we are in December and
10:52the notes are still lying in your
10:54journal. Maybe you stepped out this year
10:56and you started a business and you
10:57thought that it was going to blow up.
10:59You just knew that it was going to go
11:01well, but it's starting to look a little
11:03bit different than what you expected.
11:06There was something
11:08in your heart that God gave you, but
11:11it's like it's not happening. We talked
11:12about loans. I personally thought
11:14student loans were going to get canceled
11:16this year, but I'm still looking at that
11:19number. But hey, Bishop said, "By the
11:21end of the year."
11:23So, I am believing. My faith has been
11:25increased, okay? I don't know about you,
11:27but my faith has been increased.
11:31And maybe some of us are even "How did I
11:34get here?" because you found yourself
11:36standing in an answered prayer
11:38that you don't even believe that you're
11:40worthy enough to receive.
11:43That there were some things you wrote
11:44down in your prayer journal and you're
11:46starting to see the things unfold and
11:48you're starting to be like, "Man, God, I
11:50don't know if I have what it takes to be
11:51here. God, I don't know if I have the
11:53qualifications for the job. Lord, I put
11:55it on the resume, but I didn't really
11:57know they were going to read it in
11:58detail. God, I don't know if I have what
12:01it takes to really be here."
12:05And today in our text, we find a man
12:07named Moses, who I'm sure found himself
12:10asking this question time and time
12:13again.
12:15If you don't know the story of Moses, he
12:16is one of the greatest prophets and
12:18leaders of all time.
12:21But Moses' story did not start off that
12:24way.
12:26In Moses' time, there was a king,
12:28Pharaoh, who had put out an order that
12:30all Hebrew boys, the firstborn of the
12:33family, must be killed. And Moses was a
12:36Hebrew boy, and his mother and his
12:38sister recognized that there was
12:39something on his life that could not
12:42end.
12:43They knew that there was something in
12:45him that they must protect. So, they
12:47wrapped Moses up and they put him in a
12:48basket and they send him down the Nile
12:51River.
12:53If anybody could have questioned, "How
12:54did I get here?" that should have been
12:55Moses in that exact moment. "Why am I in
12:58a basket in a river?" That does not make
13:01sense, but he he goes down the Nile
13:03River to where he is discovered by the
13:06daughter of Pharaoh.
13:09The same palace, the same place that the
13:12king sent out the order to have him
13:14killed, he ends up in.
13:17He ends up in the same place, under the
13:19same roof, with the same person that
13:22wanted to kill what was in him.
13:27And years after going up in this home
13:30with Pharaoh, one day he is out in the
13:34land and he sees
13:36an Egyptian and a Hebrew having some
13:40sort of altercation.
13:42Moses shows us in this moment that he
13:44had a little G in him. Moses didn't play
13:47about his people. He was like, "I may be
13:49in this nice palace, but I can go back
13:51to where I'm from. Don't play with me.
13:53Don't play with my people."
13:54Um and he sees an Egyptian attacking
13:56attacking this Hebrew man and he ends up
13:59killing the Egyptian.
14:02The scripture says that Pharaoh found
14:03out about it and so because Moses was
14:05afraid, he he fled.
14:08He fled to a town named Midian.
14:13This was a desert place. He went from
14:15being in a palace
14:18to fleeing to a desert.
14:22And it said that he was there for 40
14:25years.
14:27For 40 years, he had to wake up and
14:30remind himself of the things that
14:33happened that brought him to this place.
14:37God, how did I get here?
14:39What I'm standing in and what is around
14:41me does not make sense. This isn't what
14:43I'm used to. God, how did I get here? I
14:45thought you had a promise for my life. I
14:47thought you spoke a word over me, but
14:49God, what's around me does not look like
14:51what you said. God, how
14:53did I get here?
14:57And for 40 years he finds himself
14:59reminding him him himself about what
15:02brought him to this place.
15:05But what felt like seasons of shame and
15:07guilt was actually a setup for what he
15:10was created for.
15:15What he was experiencing was actually a
15:18setup for what he was created for. I had
15:20looked back at the first verse in
15:23chapter 3 and it said that he was
15:26leading the flock to the far side of the
15:29wilderness.
15:31He was leading
15:33the flock
15:35to the far side of the wilderness.
15:39This entire time
15:41Moses is being a shepherd doing what he
15:44was called to do in that season
15:46but really what he did not know was that
15:49in all those years
15:51preparing him to lead an entire nation
15:53to the promised land.
15:55In one season he was just leading sheep.
15:58In one season he was just leading
16:00animals but in another season he was
16:02going to be leading a nation of people
16:04into the promised land. In another
16:06season he was going to be standing in a
16:08posture and in a position that he had no
16:10idea he was even capable of doing.
16:15Don't let the season that you're in now
16:17cancel the season that God's trying to
16:19take you to.
16:21I know you don't have the degree right
16:23now. I know it doesn't look like you'll
16:25ever be able to have the doctor in front
16:27of your name. I know you don't have the
16:28ring on your finger in this moment but
16:30listen to me. God is doing a thing in
16:33this season. God is doing a thing here
16:37and now and could it be that the place
16:39that you're in is really the setup for
16:42what is on your life?
16:45Could it be that the very thing that
16:47you've been going through the very thing
16:49that has felt like a desert was actually
16:51your preparation?
16:54See we've been looking at our season
16:56wrong. We've been saying God, why are
16:57you trying to punish me? God, why does
16:59this feel like punishment? And God's
17:01saying this isn't punishment, it's
17:02preparation.
17:04He's not trying to harm you. He's not
17:06trying to hurt you. He's actually trying
17:08to cultivate what is needed inside of
17:10you because if he sent you in the
17:11condition you were in now, it would kill
17:13you.
17:15Your promise would not be able to you
17:17wouldn't be able to withstand the
17:18promise if he sent you in the way that
17:20you are now. He's building some
17:22character traits in you that you need
17:24for where he's sending you.
17:27He's sending every single thing that you
17:30need for everywhere he's trying to take
17:32you.
17:34This wilderness that you've been feeling
17:36like that you're in,
17:39it's not your wilderness.
17:41It's your workplace.
17:44It's your workplace.
17:47Watch God work in your wilderness. God
17:50watch watch him work in where you are
17:53right now.
17:55And so we find Moses. God looks upon him
17:59and Moses is just like, God, why are you
18:02calling me?
18:03He calls out to him from a burning bush.
18:05He says, Moses, Moses.
18:09He answers, Here I am, Lord.
18:12And I love how God responds in this
18:14moment. To me, when I read the text, it
18:16made me feel like uh Jesus might have
18:18been a a black parent a little bit. He
18:19said, Listen, don't come any closer.
18:21Actually, take off your shoes and let me
18:23remind you of who you're talking to. Um
18:26and so in my mind, Jesus was like,
18:27Listen, I don't have time for you to ask
18:29no questions. I don't have time for you
18:30to play no games. This is an important
18:31moment. I need you to sit down and I
18:33need you to listen.
18:36And God reminds Moses where he is and
18:39who he was talking to.
18:42And I can imagine that Moses had a hard
18:44time believing that the wilderness that
18:46he was in had just become holy ground.
18:54The bush, God starts speaking to him in
18:57the very place that he ran to after
19:00experiencing shame and guilt and
19:03condemnation. And now he's standing in
19:05the same mess, the same wilderness that
19:08he felt like he had to go to because he
19:10felt like he had canceled the call on
19:12his life and now here he is standing in
19:14that very place and God calls out to
19:16him.
19:18God meets him in Midian.
19:23God meets him in this desert place.
19:27Moses did not wake up that morning and
19:29say, "I want to see a burning bush
19:31today. You know, today I want to have an
19:34encounter with God." That was not on his
19:36agenda for the day, but it was on God's.
19:40It was on God's. Can we just give God
19:42praise that he's a God that comes and
19:44meets us in our wilderness? That he's
19:46not afraid of our emotions? That he's
19:48not afraid of the things that we go
19:50through? He's not afraid of the things
19:52that scares us.
19:53But that God will meet us exactly where
19:58we are.
19:59And I love it that when Jesus enters and
20:01when God enters, he shifts the whole
20:03situation.
20:05When he gets here, demons have to flee.
20:07When he gets here, anxiety and
20:09depression have to bow. When he gets
20:11here, your child has to be saved. When
20:13he gets here, the thing that you thought
20:17was going to take you out
20:19suddenly has to bow to the king of
20:21kings.
20:23When he gets here, he shifts the
20:26situation.
20:28Who would have thought
20:30that here would be holy?
20:34Who would have thought
20:36that this hard season could be holy?
20:40Who could have thought
20:42that God would have met me
20:45in the middle of my mess?
20:47How would you change how you view here
20:50if you knew who was with you?
20:53How would you look at the very situation
20:55that you're standing in if you knew
20:58about the God who was standing in it
21:00with you?
21:03I don't know about y'all, but you start
21:04I start to walk a little bit different
21:06when I'm with people who I know can
21:07fight.
21:09I've personally never been in a fight,
21:12but I'm just going to go ahead and make
21:13the assumption that I can't. So, I just
21:15have a little bit a different walk when
21:17I know that there's people with me
21:18who've already won a battle. When
21:20there's somebody walking with me who
21:22already has the upper hand, somebody
21:24who's with me who said, "I already
21:26defeated the very thing that you're
21:28going through." You walk with a little
21:29bit more confidence when you know who's
21:31got your back.
21:36You walk differently. You talk
21:37differently. You'll You'll dare to step
21:39into a room that you didn't think you
21:40would step in before because it's like,
21:42"I know who's with me. So, if I don't
21:43know it, I know he does. If I feel like
21:45I don't got it, he does."
21:51Lord, how did I get here?
21:56Moses is in Midian. He's running away
22:01from a part of his life that he wanted
22:03to just discard.
22:05I can imagine. I mean, he has been a
22:07foreigner in a land
22:10for all of his life.
22:12I mean, shoot, he was sitting there in a
22:13basket. I mean, it just
22:15he went through so much, and it was
22:16probably like, "God, I don't have
22:18anything left
22:20to give you. God, I don't have anything
22:22left.
22:23I don't feel like I have purpose.
22:26God, the family that you put me in
22:27doesn't understand me.
22:30God, I've been battling with this pain
22:32for so long.
22:34God, I've been going through all of this
22:36stuff. Does anybody get me? Does anybody
22:37understand me?"
22:41He ran from a past that he felt like
22:45was the end of it.
22:49But, God calls on Moses
22:53in the middle of feeling like he had
22:55lost it all.
22:58He calls on him and gives him the
22:59greatest call that he could have
23:02imagined.
23:04And I believe God today is saying,
23:05"Listen, I know it is uncomfortable
23:07here.
23:09I know here may feel lonely. I know here
23:12may feel like you're in a season of
23:13isolation. I know here may feel like you
23:15don't understand whether or not I'm
23:17still walking with you."
23:19But God is saying, "I am here and there
23:22are things that I wanted to do in you
23:25and for you and it could only happen
23:28here."
23:32You had to be here.
23:36And I believe the text shows us three
23:38things that God wants to do in the midst
23:42of here.
23:44The first thing is God wants to get your
23:47attention.
23:49God wants to get your attention. Listen,
23:53he needs your attention before he could
23:56ever give you your assignment.
24:00God needs your attention.
24:03How has he been trying to get your
24:05attention here in this season?
24:09What has God been whispering in your
24:11ear? What has been the little promptings
24:13that you you thought you were just like,
24:15"Oh, no, I'm just hearing things." No,
24:16what has God been trying to do to get
24:19your attention here? And we often miss
24:22God's instruction because we've allowed
24:24other things to interfere with our
24:27attention.
24:29But God is often in the details that we
24:32typically look over.
24:35Can you imagine if Moses would have
24:37missed the bush?
24:40Can you imagine
24:42if the bush was burning and
24:45Moses was responding to the DM.
24:49Moses was,
24:50"Who talking about me on Facebook?"
24:54If Moses was like, "Man, I'm hearing all
24:56these people talk about me.
25:00What if Moses would have missed the
25:01bush?
25:05What I love about God though is that
25:07we don't have the power of the authority
25:10to cancel the call,
25:13but we can delay it.
25:16Cuz the bush would have still been
25:17burning. God did not change the
25:19assignment on Moses' life. God did not
25:22say, oh, if he happens to see it, then
25:24I'll use him. No, the bush was going to
25:26burn regardless.
25:29But what if something else would have
25:30had Moses' attention?
25:33And he would have missed the bush.
25:38Face center, we have got to know that we
25:41cannot allow anything to take our
25:44attention.
25:47We can't We already have enough
25:49distractions in this world. We have got
25:51to guard our attention.
25:55And what's crazy is the enemy doesn't
25:56even have to attack you. He just has to
25:58attack your attention.
26:02He doesn't even have to attack you
26:03physically. All he needs is your
26:05attention. He All he needs is for you to
26:07take your eyes off of the one who called
26:09you. All he needs you to do is take your
26:11eyes off of the one who sent you.
26:15God is just God is trying to use you and
26:17the enemy is going to try and attack
26:19your attention.
26:21But I'm reminded of the scripture that
26:23talks about that the enemy prowls around
26:26like a roaring lion seeking who he can
26:30devour.
26:32That's a distraction.
26:36Cuz guess what?
26:37The lion may be there,
26:39but the lion is on a leash.
26:41The lion can't touch your promise. The
26:44lion can't touch your calling. The lion
26:47can't touch the anointing that's on your
26:50life.
26:51And see, you look at a distraction
26:53differently when you know what its
26:55intention is.
26:58If I knew that there was something here,
26:59but it did not have the capability of
27:01harming me, I'm not even going to worry
27:03about it. You can stay there all you
27:06want, but because I know that you cannot
27:08get to me, because I already know that
27:10the battle is won, because I already
27:13know that victory is mine, because I
27:15already know that I'm not fighting for
27:17it, I'm fighting from it, I don't have
27:19to get upset. I don't have to be afraid.
27:21I don't have to get discouraged.
27:24The enemy just wants to get your
27:26attention.
27:29And I want to take a moment
27:31to talk to my single people just for a
27:33second.
27:34I'm in the number as well, so I'm
27:35talking to us. This is This is for us.
27:39But if the person that you are talking
27:40to,
27:42the person that you are trying to date,
27:44the person that you are trying to be
27:45with, is causing you to drift away from
27:48God rather than draw closer to him,
27:51it's a distraction.
27:54It's a distraction.
27:58Please do not miss out
28:03on what God wants to do in your life.
28:06Please do not miss out on what God wants
28:10to do here
28:12just cuz you want to be boo'd up for the
28:13holidays.
28:16Please do not pick a picture of with you
28:19and your boo in matching pajamas over
28:23being in the promised land. Do not miss
28:27what God is trying to do in your life.
28:32Listen, distractions can come in all
28:34forms.
28:36Distractions can come in all forms. It
28:38may not look like what you thought the
28:40distraction would look like.
28:44You've got to be aware. You've got to be
28:46on your toes. The Bible says to be alert
28:49and sober-minded. I know you're trying
28:50to knock me down. I know you're trying
28:52to bring up these notifications on my
28:53feet to get me off guard. I know you're
28:55trying to shower me with bad news to
28:57knock me off my post, but baby, I'm
28:59standing my ground. You're not going to
29:01take me off my attention. I'm focused.
29:03My eyes are set on the hills. My eyes
29:06are set to the one who I know my help is
29:09coming from.
29:12You have to be mindful of what God is
29:15trying to do here. He wants to get your
29:17attention, but not only does he want to
29:19get your attention,
29:20he wants to give you your assignment.
29:25Once God has your attention, that is
29:28when he will give you your assignment.
29:32And listen, you will not always agree
29:34with where God is calling you. You will
29:35not always agree with what he's telling
29:37you to do, but our job is not to argue.
29:41It's to obey.
29:43God is not here to have a back-and-forth
29:45conversation with you about what he's
29:48calling you to.
29:50Our only responsibility is to obey.
29:55And I love in the text
29:58in verse 4, we see Moses when God calls
30:00him,
30:01Moses Moses
30:03he responds, "Here I am."
30:06But then,
30:07in verse 11, he responds and he goes,
30:11"Who am I?"
30:14He went from this eager
30:16"Hey God, it's me. You're calling out to
30:18me. I recognize that you saw me. You got
30:20my attention. Here I am, Lord."
30:23And then he gives his him his
30:24assignment.
30:26And he's like, "Wait, who am I
30:29that you would call me
30:31to lead your people? Who am I
30:34that you would give me
30:36this type of weight to carry? Who am I
30:41that you would use me.
30:44He got this call from God and I imagine
30:46it's like those times when you get a
30:48call from somebody and you already know
30:50what what they want. Like you see the
30:51name pop up on the caller ID and it's
30:53like, "Lord, I don't have time to talk
30:55to them today." Is there any real people
30:57in the room? I know. Is there anybody?
30:59Cuz I'll be honest, there's just
31:00sometimes somebody calls you and you
31:02already know they're going to try and
31:03talk to you for a long time. You just
31:05don't You trying to get your kids to
31:06school, you trying to get to work, you
31:08trying to feed the dog, you trying to do
31:09all of these things. It's like, "I just
31:10don't have time."
31:12And then there's some people who call
31:13you and like, "They're only calling me
31:14because they want something. You don't
31:15ever call me until you need something."
31:21If I'm honest, sometimes I feel like
31:22that when God calls me.
31:26I'm hearing him and I'm like, "God, no,
31:27don't. God, I don't want to talk today.
31:29Please don't call me."
31:32And I think that
31:33Moses answered in this way of "Who am
31:37I?" Because it's easy to respond to a
31:39call when you don't know the
31:41responsibility of it.
31:44When you don't know the weight that's
31:46attached to whatever they're about to
31:48ask you, it's easy to just pick it up.
31:50It's easy to to just run to it, but when
31:53you recognize
31:55what's attached to the assignment,
31:58it causes you to hesitate. It causes you
32:01to question whether or not you're the
32:02person for the job. It causes you to
32:04question God, "Why would you even use
32:06someone like me? Don't you know where I
32:08came from? Don't you know my past? Don't
32:10you know what happened to me? God, how
32:12could you use someone like me?"
32:18God,
32:19this doesn't sound like me. I don't have
32:21the credentials for this. God, why why
32:23would you call me?
32:26And God has a history of calling the
32:28unqualified.
32:31He's not here to call people that could
32:33already do the very thing that he's
32:34asking him to do. Why would he do that?
32:37No, when he calls the unqualified, he
32:39has an opportunity for his glory to be
32:42revealed. He has an opportunity to say
32:44that I just took a broken thing and made
32:46it whole again. I just took someone who
32:48only knew divorce and heartbreak and
32:50gave them a whole marriage. I just knew
32:53somebody who didn't understand why I
32:55placed them in the season that I placed
32:56them in, but I was able to reveal my
32:58glory through it.
33:02You are the woman and you are the man
33:05for the job.
33:07Whatever God is calling you to,
33:10don't worry about whether or not you're
33:12qualified or not.
33:15If God is with you,
33:17you have all that you need.
33:21He doesn't call the qualified.
33:24He qualifies the called.
33:27And you are called.
33:29You are called. You are a chosen person.
33:31You are exactly where you are supposed
33:33to be. You are supposed to be
33:35here.
33:37And I can imagine that not only did he
33:39respond with who am I because of the
33:41responsibility of the assignment, but I
33:44bet he started to remember
33:46who he was before he was called.
33:51I'm sure he thought about
33:53Wow, well, this sounds good. Okay. He
33:55just asked me to lead these people.
33:58But then all of a sudden he was like,
33:59but wait, God, no.
34:01When I was in Egypt, I killed I killed a
34:03man.
34:05Wait God no.
34:06When I was in college, I had sex out of
34:08wedlock. Wait, God, no.
34:12I lied
34:13to this person. Wait, God, no.
34:16I drifted away from you. God, no. I I
34:19I've been lying. I've been sinning. I've
34:21been messing up.
34:24I bet he started to remember
34:26the things that brought him
34:29to Midian.
34:31The things that brought him to this
34:33place, God, how could you call me?
34:36But your assignment is not just about
34:38you.
34:40Your assignment is about the people
34:41attached to you.
34:46He He's not asking you to do this
34:48because he wants to do it in you. It's
34:50He wants to do it in you, but he wants
34:52to do it in you because of the people
34:53who are attached to you, the people in
34:54the generations that are coming after
34:56you.
34:58When God called Moses, he did not call
35:01him and say, "Hey Moses, I found your
35:03resume on Indeed. Great stuff. This is
35:05incredible. I really love what you put
35:07here. I think you're just the right
35:09person for the job." No. When he called
35:11Moses, he said, "I have heard my people
35:16I have heard my people crying out."
35:21We serve a God who is concerned about
35:23us.
35:26He is concerned about you, those tears
35:28that you are crying at night that nobody
35:31knows about. Your God is catching every
35:32single one of them, and he says that
35:34your tears are a harvest is going to
35:36harvest in joy. You are going to see joy
35:38as a result of your tears. You serve a
35:40God who cares about you.
35:43He cares about people. He cares about
35:45us, and he said, "Listen, I'm trying to
35:47do a work, but I'm going to use you to
35:49do it."
35:53I need to bring kingdom to earth,
35:56and I want to use you to do it.
35:59I'm trying to bring kingdom to the
36:01workplace, and I want to use you to do
36:03it.
36:05I'm trying to bring kingdom to Florida,
36:07and I want to use you to do it.
36:12Your assignment
36:14is not just about you.
36:16It's about the people that are attached
36:19to you.
36:21And it is my fear
36:23that many of us won't step into what God
36:25is calling us to
36:27because we are too concerned about how
36:28people would choose to remember us.
36:34We live in a world of social media and
36:36so
36:37some of us we don't go back and delete
36:39the life that we was living before we
36:42before we came to the Lord. So if you
36:44scroll far enough you go to on
36:45somebody's Instagram or Facebook
36:47pictures and you can see the life that
36:48they used to live and so you're starting
36:50to think well I can't serve at this
36:51church or I can't step into ministry or
36:53I can't do the thing that God is calling
36:55me to do because people are going to
36:57remember me. People are going to
36:58remember me from college. They're going
36:59to remember how I used to talk, how I
37:01used to dress, what I used to do. God I
37:03don't want to do this because people are
37:04going to talk about me.
37:08And we're staying out of the will and
37:10promise of God because of people?
37:14About mere men
37:16who bleed like you bleed.
37:18Who are going to have to stand before
37:20the throne just like you do.
37:23And answer to an account that they don't
37:26you don't have no business with theirs
37:27and they don't have no business with
37:28yours.
37:29But we would allow what people think
37:31about us to keep us from stepping in
37:34stepping into what God has called us to.
37:38But God is saying that I can work it all
37:41in there.
37:42I can work the very thing that you
37:43thought canceled you from the promise
37:46into your story. The very thing that
37:47happened to you that thought it was you
37:49thought it was over I can work that in
37:51there. We serve a God who works all
37:53things together for the good of those
37:55who love him and are called
37:58according to his purpose.
38:02God can use you and he can use you here.
38:08He doesn't have to wait until the new
38:11year.
38:12He doesn't have to wait
38:14until 2024. He doesn't have to wait
38:17until you get the finances in order. He
38:19doesn't have to wait until you get the
38:20marriage. He doesn't have to wait until
38:22it makes sense. God can use here.
38:28Can we make a declaration today that we
38:30will not go into 2024 distracted? We
38:33won't go into 2024 worried about what
38:35people think about us. We won't go into
38:372024 worried about whether or not we've
38:39canceled the call in our life because
38:40God has confirmed it to us today.
38:46God wants to use your here
38:50to get your attention, to give you your
38:52assignment, and he wants to reveal your
38:55authority.
38:58There are certain places and spaces that
39:00will cause things that you didn't even
39:02know were in you to come out.
39:07Moses kept asking, "Well, what what am I
39:08supposed to tell these people? What am I
39:10supposed to tell the Israelites when I
39:12go go to them?"
39:15The Lord gave him a word to give to them
39:17that seemed impossible.
39:21"I'm going to give you a land flowing
39:24with milk and honey.
39:27I'm going to give you a good and
39:29spacious land."
39:32God sent Moses with a word that did not
39:34look like what these people knew.
39:37It was unfamiliar to them.
39:39Not only that, Moses is like, "Lord, I
39:41have a speech impediment. I don't even
39:43talk well. Why would you call me to do
39:45this?"
39:50God
39:51has given you authority.
39:54And God is going to affirm your
39:56authority every time you come at him
39:58with your insecurity.
40:00Every time God called Moses, every time
40:02he asked him a question or told him to
40:03do something, Moses responded with an
40:06insecurity.
40:08And we do that all the time with God.
40:11Well, God, I'm an introvert.
40:15I don't like people, God. Why would you
40:16ask me to lead a a small group? Or why
40:18would you ask me to serve on a team?
40:21God, I don't like to be in front of
40:22people.
40:24But you have a voice, and he's calling
40:25you to sing. He's calling you to speak.
40:28God, I really don't feel like writing
40:30this book.
40:32Cuz I'm not great at grammar. I'm not
40:34great at English. But he's saying, "I've
40:36given you a word that I want you to
40:37release to people." And we're allowing
40:38our insecurities
40:41to be disobedient to what God is asking
40:43us to do.
40:45We're allowing our insecurities to keep
40:47us from the call.
40:50But every time he responded with an
40:52insecurity, God responded with who he
40:53was.
40:56When you go, tell them I am sent you.
41:00When you go, tell them that I am that I
41:03am, which means that I'm everything that
41:05you'll ever need. I'm everything that
41:07you ever needed and wanted. I'm
41:08everything that they're going to present
41:10to you, and you think that you don't
41:11know how to do it. I'm everything that
41:13you need. Tell them I am that I am sent
41:16you.
41:22Which tells me that God is going to
41:24affirm your authority.
41:26That God is not going to send you out
41:27and make you look stupid. That God is
41:29not going to send you to a place and
41:31make you feel like you can't do this.
41:33He's going to let the people know who
41:35sent you as well. And he said that, he
41:36said, "I'm going to give the people a
41:37sign that I was the one who sent you."
41:41God's going to work on your behalf when
41:43you obey and step into what he's calling
41:45you to.
41:46There are certain things that you won't
41:47be able to even handle because it's
41:49outside of our powers, outside of our
41:52spectrum. But God is going to do the
41:54impossible. He's going to be able to
41:55shift people's thinking, shift the way
41:57people see you, shift the way people
41:59support you. That God can do things that
42:01we don't even have the capability of
42:03doing.
42:05But God is going to affirm you. He's
42:06going to back you up. He's walking with
42:08you. He's going with you. You're not
42:09going into it alone. You're not standing
42:12here alone. He's in this moment with
42:14you.
42:19God told Moses to tell them I am that I
42:21am sent you. And so the next time you
42:23find yourself standing in a in a moment
42:26and people are like, "How did you get
42:27this opportunity?"
42:29Him.
42:31"How are you even sitting at this
42:32table?" Him.
42:35"How did you pay off your debt before
42:37the end of the year?" Him.
42:40"How did your marriage become restored?"
42:42Him.
42:45You don't have to prove to people that
42:47he called you. You don't have to prove
42:50to people that you have favor. You don't
42:53have to prove to people that I know my
42:55situation may look like one thing, but
42:57he's doing another.
42:59You don't have to prove to people that.
43:02And you also don't have to ask
43:03permission for something that's already
43:05been purchased for you.
43:09When he died on the cross, he gave you
43:11the authority. It says he left a helper
43:13with us and that the same power that
43:15rose Jesus from the dead is the same
43:18power that lives in you and I today. And
43:20so I don't have to ask permission to
43:23walk in authority. I don't have I don't
43:24have to ask permission to go after the
43:26job, after opportunity. I don't have to
43:28ask permission to stand and declare God
43:31because I have authority.
43:35Stop asking for permission
43:37when it's already been purchased for
43:39you.
43:44If you're going to take anything else
43:46from today, I just want you to be able
43:48to say to people, to yourself, whoever
43:50may ask you, "I don't know how I got
43:52here, but I can handle here because of
43:55who is with me."
43:59I am is with you.
44:02I know the situation may look dark, it
44:04may look scary, it may not make any
44:06sense, but I am is with you.
44:11He's giving you
44:13what you need.
44:15You can look at your situation here
44:17differently because of who is with you.
44:23God is not going to make a fool out of
44:26you.
44:29He's giving you the authority. So now
44:31that he has your attention,
44:33now that you have your assignment,
44:35and now that he's revealed your
44:36authority,
44:38I want you to look at here differently.
44:42Here is a holy place.
44:46Here is a place that God can do the
44:48imaginable.
44:50Here is a place that God can show
44:52himself to be God.
44:55He wants to reveal himself in a new way
44:58to you today.
45:02The passage ended with
45:04him saying that I I want you
45:07to remember that I'm the God of Abraham,
45:09the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
45:11And that this is my name forever, and
45:14this is how I'm to be remembered
45:16in every generation.
45:19I want us to have a remembrance
45:22come back to us
45:24of the God that we serve.
45:27God wanted to remind Moses of who he was
45:30because he knew the history of God with
45:33his people.
45:35God had made a promise to Abraham,
45:38and it came to pass.
45:40God had made a promise to Isaac, and it
45:42came to pass.
45:44God had made a promise to Jacob, and it
45:47came to pass.
45:50God has made a promise to you,
45:53and it's going to come to pass.
45:59Remember
46:02the God that you serve.
46:05Remember that he is a God that will meet
46:08you here.
46:11He is a God
46:13that will give you everything that you
46:16need.
46:19And there have been many seasons in my
46:21life where I have even questioned and
46:23didn't understand where I was in life.
46:27I found myself looking up all the time
46:28like "Lord how?
46:30How did I get here?"
46:32I went to school
46:34at Old Dominion University in Virginia
46:36Virginia. It's in Norfolk and I studied
46:39psychology.
46:41And shortly after graduating, I realized
46:43I did not want to study psychology.
46:45Um
46:46it was very difficult and it to be
46:48successful, they told me I would have to
46:50go and be a doctor and I was just like,
46:51"That's not for me." So
46:54I graduated and I found myself asking
46:56God,
46:57"I don't have no job.
47:00I don't know what I'm supposed to be
47:00doing. I don't know where you're calling
47:02me to go.
47:03I'm just here."
47:07And then I did a 21-day fast
47:10and I remember God telling me
47:13in that fast that you're going to go
47:16into ministry.
47:18I talk back to God sometimes. I said,
47:20"No, I'm not."
47:22No, I'm not.
47:26He said, "You're going to go into
47:27ministry." And I said, "Okay, well,
47:28Lord, if that's what you're saying, then
47:30you're going to have to do it.
47:33Cuz I I don't think that's the path for
47:34me. I don't think that's what you really
47:35want for me. So, if that's what you're
47:37saying, then I need you to actually be
47:38the one to do it."
47:42And next thing I know, I'm
47:45working at Home Depot. That was the job
47:47that I got after college, guys. I
47:49realized I didn't want to do psychology.
47:51I had somewhat of a passion in interior
47:53decorating and so here I am working at
47:55Home Depot as a kitchen and bath
47:57designer.
47:59And every day I kept going to work.
48:01I kept putting on that dusty orange
48:02apron.
48:05And I was like, God, how did I get here?
48:08There was nothing wrong with working at
48:09Home Depot. It was a great job actually.
48:10I really did like it. Um but I was just
48:12like, God, how did I get here? This just
48:14wasn't what I imagined for my life. I
48:15feel like there's more for me.
48:18God, I remember what you said to me.
48:19God, I know without a shadow of a doubt
48:22you told me
48:24I was going to go into ministry.
48:26But here doesn't look like what you
48:28said.
48:30And so I had to make a decision in my
48:32mind. I finally decided. I said,
48:35Okay, I know what you said.
48:37And I know that this job is
48:39not what you said.
48:41But what would it look like if I took
48:44where I'm at right now
48:45and I started serving here?
48:51I started serving here. So every morning
48:53I got up
48:55and I put on that dusty orange apron.
48:58And I went to work and I said, I'm going
49:00to make this place my ministry.
49:03I walked in there. I started praying for
49:04people.
49:06I started writing down the vision that
49:08God gave to me.
49:11I started declaring that I would be in a
49:13place that I was not in that moment, but
49:15I believed that God was going to send
49:17me.
49:20And I worked there
49:23for 9 months.
49:28For 9 months.
49:31And then God birthed something
49:34through me.
49:39I got a call from the the church that I
49:41serve at now.
49:43I'd just been serving at the church.
49:47I'd just been serving. I had picked up a
49:49skill in media and I said, okay, well,
49:51this is where I will I will serve."
49:54That may be a word for somebody. There's
49:55gifts that you've been sitting on that
49:56your church needs.
49:59Serve at your church.
50:01It's not cuz they need It's not because
50:03we're just telling you to. It's
50:04biblical. God has called us to serve his
50:06bride.
50:08Serve at your church, but I I started
50:09serving.
50:11And one day my pastor
50:13he called me.
50:14I had never had a conversation with the
50:16man and he said,
50:17"Hey,
50:20we heard we saw you one we saw you and
50:22we we've heard a little bit about you
50:24and my wife and I would love to discuss
50:26a ministry opportunity with you."
50:34I had not applied for a job.
50:36I had not said to anybody else that I
50:39wanted to go into ministry.
50:42I was sitting on a word from God.
50:46But I was serving
50:49even though I couldn't see what he said.
50:55I struggled with shame. I struggled with
50:56guilt. I struggled with feeling like my
50:58past was going to catch up to me.
51:01I was like, "They going to call me in
51:02the ministry and then somebody going to
51:04tell them, 'Do y'all know what she used
51:05to do in school?
51:06Do y'all know where she used to be?'"
51:10But finally I had to say,
51:13"God, if you called me,
51:15here I am.
51:18God, if you want to use me,
51:20here I am.
51:23God, here I am, so have your way."
51:29And I believe that God wants to call
51:31some of you today.
51:32He's been calling you.
51:35And you've been sitting on the call.
51:39You've been sitting on it because you
51:40didn't feel like you have what it took.
51:43You've been sitting on it because of the
51:45shame and the guilt. you've been sitting
51:46on it.
51:50And God is saying, "Today, I want you to
51:53make
51:54an altar
51:55at this place."
51:59All throughout scripture, anytime God
52:01did something, a lot of times you would
52:03see the people make an altar there and
52:06name it
52:08as a remembrance
52:10of what God did in that moment.
52:15They set an altar.
52:18And I'm thankful today that we have an
52:20altar
52:23that anybody can come to.
52:26It's not for the squeaky It's not for
52:27the squeaky clean people. That's the
52:29thing.
52:31If you're broken, if you're bruised, if
52:33you're confused, if you're hurt, if
52:35you're lost, if you're unsure, if you
52:37don't look like the churchy people, if
52:38you came in here in jeans, if you came
52:40in here in a church hat, if you came in
52:42here
52:44carrying what you were doing last night,
52:45it's for you.
52:49And I believe God is saying, "I want my
52:50people to make an altar here."
52:56I want my people to lay down the things
52:59that have been keeping them from
53:00stepping into their call.
53:03That have been keeping them
53:05from being in relationship with me.
53:09He's He's not taken back by your sin.
53:11He's not
53:13You didn't disappoint or you didn't
53:15confuse God. He's all-knowing, so he
53:17already knew what you were going to do
53:18before you did it.
53:20He's not taken back by that.
53:24But he's saying, "No, I want my people
53:26to make a decision that here
53:29is the place. Here
53:32is where I'm calling them."
53:36And so, I just want to take a moment to
53:38invite two different people in the room
53:39to this altar.
53:42The person who is saying
53:45this sounded good, but
53:47I don't even know the God that they're
53:49talking about.
53:52Who is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and
53:54Jacob? Who is a God that could meet me
53:57in my mess and still redeem my story?
53:59Who is this God that they've been
54:01singing and worshipping about and saying
54:03that they have faith in? Who is this
54:05man?
54:09I would love for you to come to this
54:11altar. I believe that the people at this
54:13church would love to introduce you to a
54:15man. The man is here. He's in the room.
54:18He's here.
54:25He's here.
54:28And the second person
54:30that I want to call
54:32is the person
54:35who is trying to fight their here.
54:39Who has been just looking around and
54:40just like, "God, how did this happen to
54:42me?
54:45This was not supposed to be the story of
54:48my life.
54:49God, I thought that December was going
54:51to look different than what it looks
54:53like right now.
54:56Or maybe you're standing in here and
54:58you're saying, "God, you've been
55:00answering my prayers. You've been
55:01actually doing the things you said you
55:02were going to do,
55:04but I'm scared, God.
55:07I don't think I have what it takes, God.
55:08I don't think that I can actually do
55:10this.
55:11God, how did I get here?
55:14I believe there's a blessing that the
55:15Lord wants to release on you today.
55:20And so I invite you now, if you are any
55:21of those people, if you resonate
55:24with any of those categories and you're
55:25saying, "I want to meet the man that
55:27they're talking about."
55:30Or I want to make here an altar.
55:33I want to make here the place where I
55:34make a decision that I'm no longer going
55:36to toy around with Christianity. I'm no
55:39longer going to toy around with the gift
55:40that God's given me. I'm no longer going
55:42to play around with the anointing on my
55:44life. I know what I've been called to
55:46do. I know what he created me for. I
55:48know what he sent me to the Faith Center
55:50to do. I know why he sent me here.
55:54If that's you, I want you to come.
56:01God wants to do something here.
56:06Don't miss this moment. The spirit of
56:09the Lord is here.
56:13And where his spirit is, everything that
56:15you need is also.
56:26Yeah.
56:27Yeah.
56:32I believe before I pray that there's
56:34even something that God
56:37He just honors obedience.
56:40He honors obedience. He honors
56:43when you do the scary thing. He honors
56:46when you step out
56:48and say yes.
56:51He honors it.
56:56This was a declaration. Your movement
56:58from your seat to this altar was a
57:00declaration
57:05that you are changing here.
57:09That whatever you just brought to this
57:11altar,
57:12whatever shame, whatever guilt, whatever
57:14insecurity, whatever fear, whatever
57:16disease, whatever bondage you've been
57:18in, whatever shackle, whatever you
57:20brought to this altar,
57:25you're going to leave it here.
57:36And God is so good that he's going to
57:38bring you back to the very place.
57:43He's going to bring you back to the very
57:44place that he shifted it off.
57:46He's going to give a sign. He's going to
57:48show you.
57:49You're going to know that I am sent you,
57:51that I am called you. He is not going to
57:54make a fool out of you.
58:00You are called.
58:01And there is a God who loves you despite
58:03your sin and despite what you've done.
58:05He loves you.
58:08So, I just want to pray over all of you
58:09now. Those who are here at the altar and
58:11those who are in your seat. God God
58:13doesn't just stay at the altar. He can
58:14also come to you.
58:16So, you may not have moved whether it
58:18was cuz you were afraid to, whether it
58:20was cuz you physically could not move.
58:21God is where you are as well.
58:24God is meeting you there, too.
58:30So, God, we thank you.
58:33Lord, for the work that you are doing
58:35now in your people. God, we thank you
58:37that we serve a God that meets us in
58:40Midian, that you meet us in the place
58:42that we we fled to because of fear.
58:44Father God, you meet us in the place
58:46that we're in because you love us and
58:48you've called us. God, that we're a
58:50chosen people, a royal priesthood.
58:53Father God, may your people walk in the
58:55authority and the boldness that you have
58:57given them. Father God, I pray that from
59:00this moment forward, God, that they
59:01would have the eyes to see themselves
59:03the way you do. Father God, that they
59:05would have the heart to hear your voice.
59:07Father God, that they would know without
59:09a shadow of a doubt that they are loved,
59:11God. That they are called, God. That
59:13they are chosen, God. And that you are
59:16with them.
59:19God, whatever it is that you are calling
59:21them to do, whatever sphere of influence
59:23that you have placed them in. Father
59:24God, wherever their workplace is,
59:26whatever their family situation is, God,
59:29I pray that your spirit would just move
59:31there now.
59:34Father God, your people come and we make
59:36an altar here.
59:39God, we declare that it is here that we
59:41will lay aside every weight.
59:44We will lay aside everything that has
59:46hindered us from running towards the
59:49goal
59:50with all that we have.
59:54Father God, we change the way we live.
59:57God, in today we pray for the people who
60:00are encountering you for the first time.
60:03Lord God, we thank you that you died on
60:05the cross so that we could have life and
60:08life more abundantly. We thank you, Lord
60:10God, that you died and when you died the
60:13veil was torn. Father God, which means
60:15we have access to your presence. God, we
60:17thank you
60:19that you died and you rose again, that
60:22you defeated death, hell, and the grave.
60:25Father God, that you defeated everything
60:27that has been trying to distract us.
60:29You've defeated everything that we
60:31thought denied us from the calling.
60:33Father God, you defeated everything that
60:35has felt like it's been keeping us
60:36bound.
60:38God, today we say that we believe that
60:41you died and you rose and that we invite
60:44you to live into our hearts.
60:48Lord God, may we never live the same
60:49way.
60:51God, we love you.
60:53We bless you and we stand in expectation
60:57for what you are about to do in these
60:59next 28 days, God.
61:01Do what only you can do here.
61:05God, we'll stay here. Father God, as
61:07long as we need to. We will wait on you.
61:10We won't move without your presence,
61:11God. We won't go without your glory,
61:14Father God.
61:15We love you.
61:16It is in your precious name that I pray.
61:19Amen. Amen. And amen.
61:23Family, I love you.
61:25Thank you.
61:27Thank you.